So Blessed

#1 is sick.  I was sick, but I am getting SO much better.  Hod has been sick too.  I'm not sure why, but I just thought that #1 was at the same point in this sickness as I was... meaning that she was getting a lot better.  However, today, I learned that I was wrong.  It's been a long day.  We missed church, cause she is SO sick.  She hasn't been able to breathe well, cause she was so congested.  Her diapers made me very concerned about dehydration.  She hasn't been able to sleep, so she's kind of just been a beast.  I've felt so bad for her!

#1 doesn't cry herself to sleep yet.  But we're getting close to that.  During the time that we've lived in this apartment (a whole 8 days!) this has been our bedtime routine:  We get on pj's, read, sing songs, pray, and then have a last bottle.  She normally falls asleep during the last bottle.  (I know, you're not supposed to let that happen... but it works for us.)  Now, it used to be, that after I took the bottle out of her mouth, I'd wait another... 15-20 min until I was SURE she was very deep asleep, then I would move her the 1 1/2 ft to her own bed.  However, in this apartment, right after I take the bottle out of her mouth, I stand up, and put her in her crib.  She wakes up during this, but I just leave the room and she goes back to sleep.

We tried that today, but as I was giving her her bottle, instead of the long, relaxed breathing that normally accompanies sleep, there were very short, laborious breathes.  When I put her in her crib, and she woke up, she didn't go back to sleep.  She was so sad.  And crying... loud.  As I listened at her door, I realized that not only was she sad, but I could hear her struggle to breathe.  It has been such a long, hard day, and I wondered if we just needed to run to the Emergency Room.  My poor baby couldn't breathe!

I said a little prayer, asking for guidance, and was reminded of something.  I have, in my house, a man who has been given power from God to heal.  He has the Priesthood, and can use it to bless those around him.  I ran to my hubby and told him my concern.  Then I asked him, "Will you please give her a blessing?"  This was done.  As I cuddled #1 close afterwords, and got her back to sleep, I noticed a change.  As she calmed down, I could literally hear her nasal passages clearing up.  Instead of short, laborious breathes, she was taking long, calm ones.  I was able to put her in her crib and leave my sweet baby in the room with just a cute, quiet snore letting me know that yeah, she's still a little sick, but she is breathing.

What a blessing this is in my life.  How great it is, that a loving Heavenly Father has given worthy men the power to bless others.  I know that #1 is still sick, but she finally resting.  Her little body is getting the rest, and air, that she needs to heal.  I am so glad to have Hod in my life and for his dedication to living a Christlike life so he can bless us.

My life is pretty great.

Get Over Yourself

Hello friends!

Sorry that I've been gone so long.  I just... haven't had much to say.  As for my last post... I guess we're going with Hod.  Though it's not his favorite choice, but I think it will work just fine.  Things with Hod are going very well.  He's great.  But that's not the purpose of this post.

I'm in my local institute choir.  The easy one that doesn't involve any trying out.  My sister L5 is part of the auditioned choir.  That choir is led by one Bro. Halibut (Yes, L5 I'm aware that Bro. Halibut's real name has nothing to do with fish, but it's a common mistake others make, so we're going with it.)  People who know me, know that I am not really a fan of Bro. Halibut.  He's a good man, I just can't really stand to have a conversation with him.  That could be because every personal interaction I've had with him has been negative.  I know you're in charge, but really, I've been playing drums for 13 years, you may want to trust my judgement, because after going through 5 other steps, you're going to come to the same conclusion that I suggested to you.  Sorry, but I digress.

L5 and I are in a concert together this weekend.  It's actually the auditioned choir's concert, but they are letting the non-auditioned choir join in.  But really, it's still almost all about the auditioned choir.  Last night, by the time the performance had actually started, I was a little.... unhappy with things.  You know, things like how during our prayer, the speaker asked that we would be able to perform in a way to make Bro Halibut happy, and then he said and in a way to make the Lord happy... I'm thinking that order should have been switched.  Then the lady who was announcing things talked about how the auditioned choir was here to represent the institute and how cool they are, and all of us non-auditioned folks were just there to... twiddle our thumbs.  Ok, that last part wasn't said, but it sure felt like it.

Being as I already have issues with Bro. Halibut, and I'm not a big fan of how most of the auditioned choir acts like they are better than us non-auditioned people, I wasn't really in the best mood.  Well, that and Hod was supposed to be there with me, but then he got called into work, and thats just lame, cause life is always a bit more fun when you have a cute boy there.

This concert really is quite the production, with dancers in their many costumes, L5 being the rockin' awesome narrator and some great choreography.  The non-auditioned choir was placed in the fake mezzanines found on both sides of the stage.  We were up high.  Man did it get hot.  Oh well.  Seeing as I am fairly vertically challenged, I was on the front row.  No surprise there.  And I had a kind of cool experience.  Where I was sitting, I could see where the boys would stand while waiting to come on stage.  This mostly happened to the dancing boys between costume changes.  During one song, I saw one of the dancers standing there waiting.  He was behind a big screen thing so people couldn't see him.  He was far away from any of the microphones. And he was singing with his heart.  I could hear him, but I'm pretty sure that no one else could.  But he understood the purpose of things. Yes, he was there to perform, but mostly he was there to share his testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith and of our Savior Jesus Christ.

And there I was thinking about how this whole thing was lame, and I was hot, and my back hurt.  Then it hit me.  No, I'm never going to be Bro. Halibut's #1 fan.  But I love music, and I love the Lord.  Sometimes I just really need to get over myself.  I needed to understand the purpose of things.  It's not all about you, Paily!

No One Knows Why I'm Doing This

Dear Friends,

I don't really know why I'm writing about this.  But I just feel like I should share the things that I've been learning.  I have an AMAZING Book of Mormon class taught by a Member of the 5th Quorum of the Seventy.

Two weeks ago, we learned about Anti-Christs!  (I know, it's pretty much the coolest subject ever!!) We learned about Humanism.  That is the doctrine of emphasizing a person's capacity for self-realization through reason, one who rejects religion and the supernatural.  Focusing on the assumption that you cannot know what you do not see.  I even learned how to fight the Anti-Christ.

Sometimes, I think I try to do too much.  I try to reject the Lord.  He's doing all he can to help me, but I try to do it alone.  And why do I try to do it alone?  There is a reason I have family, friends, bishops, priesthood blessing, things like that.  And yet, I still try to do it alone.  That is a very bad idea.  But then this week, we learned a better plan.

Some days I feel very lost.  I feel like I don't know who I am.  C.S.Lewis said (though I am paraphrasing) The best way to find yourself, is to look for Christ.  If you look for yourself, you will find despair and ruin.  If you look for Christ, you will find peace and Love, and he will find you.  "Christ says, 'Give me all. I have not come to torment your natural self, but to kill it.' "

Alma 33:19-23 talks of the importance of looking to Christ.  Specifically talking about the Children of Israel and the staff that was a type of Christ.  How if the Children of Israel would look to that they would live.  If we look to Christ, and feel the swelling of faith grow, your burdens will be made light.  All this ye can do if ye will.

Alma 34:31  Come forth and harden not your heart any longer.  For behold, now is the time and the day of your salvation.

Why do I stop myself?  Why don't I just look now?  I'm really pretty good at looking for a bit and then turning away.  But I can do this.  I can do this if I will.  It's up to me.  So.. I will do it.  I will stop letting my heart be hardened.  The days that are good days are the days that I look to Christ.  The days that I don't stress about my troubles, and I just have faith.  Sure the troubles are there, but so are the answers I've been given.  And no matter how much I ask, I keep getting the same answers.

We'll see if I can really do it.  But that's the master plan.

And I Know This Is Random...

Dear People of the Land of Buckets,

Greetings!  So, it's crazy late, and I'm sure I should be sleeping.  But you see, sleeping is something that I seem to have misplaced my talent of.  That's a bummer.

OH, but I do have a great new pillowcase.  CRH made it for me and I got it during my "Let's run away from  your problems" trip to TX.  It's pretty great.  Argyle.  That girl knows me!  Well, let's be honest, most all of you know me and you all know that I love argyle.  Really, what's not to love?  The good news is, I am even using the pillowcase now.  It's not my #1, but getting closer.  There is an adjustment period to me and pillowcases.  You see, when I am sleeping I need to have something familiar next to my face.  Many people take a pillow with them when they travel.  All I really need is a pillowcase.  Mmmm it makes me feel all cozy just thinking about it.  Anyway, when I get a new pillowcase I have to ease myself into it.  I sleep with 2 pillows, so the new case goes on the bottom.  But my pillows are angled so sometimes I'll end up on the bottom pillow.  Then my subconscious cheek gets used to the new pillowcase, thus making it so I can move it up to #1.  It's pretty intense.

And that my friends, concludes the really random portion of our program this evening.

I just have to share, how grateful I am for the Priesthood.  I have had two blessings in two weeks.  That's pretty much a record for me.  But they were both good.  I kind of had to be talked into the one tonight, but it was perfect.  Good news for me:  I'm not crazy!  You see, I've really been questioning all of the answers I've been given.  Hence, the reason the blessing was so good tonight.  I was told that I will be able to do what I've been asked.  And that the answers I've been doubting were real.  That I can have faith in them, because they will come to pass.  So... Here we go!  Hold on, it's gonna be a bumpy ride!  (No, I'm not a creepy talking shrunken head.)  So, thanks for my friends who can give me a blessing at the drop of a hat.  You totally rock my knee-highs.

Oh, and I was pretty much proposed to on Facebook tonight.  Too bad it was by a guy who hasn't taken me on a date for over a year.  The joys of Facebook.

PS, the title of this post can be found in one of the songs that plays on my blog.  Just tying all of the Buckets together!

Avoiding the Whale

Dear Friends,

So... remember back when I was funny?  Yeah, maybe those days will come again.  But today is not one of those days.  Today I need a little bit of advice.

Life's been pretty rough for the past month.  The hard part is, in many ways, rather than getting better, it's getting harder.  Here's the thing.  I have had many very significant experiences with Heavenly Father.  He has answered my prayers in many ways, ways that I think are impossible to misinterpret.  (For example, the day I chose to give up, and just walk away from my problem, I went to a fireside and Robert D. Hales spoke.  His topic was having faith through our trials and never giving up.  How else could I interpret that?) Through all of this, I have come to know that He is VERY aware of me, and I am oh, so grateful for that.  The problem is, He has told me things that seem perfectly impossible.  I know He's a God of miracles, and I see miracles in my life, but this one really, really big miracle that He's told me will happen just seems like it's too big of a job.

How have you dealt with something like this?  I have no problem believe in miracles in other people's lives.  I know that they happen.  And I've heard about a miracle that happened in my life.  But I was only 6 weeks old, so I don't remember it at all.

I guess... Well, Heavenly Father has asked me to do a lot of things.  He told me where to go to college, he asked me to go on a mission, he asked me to move to Texas, he asked me to move back.  Some of those things were very scary, and I didn't understand them.  I didn't know if I could really do them.  But I had faith, so I moved forward and did what I was asked.  And they all worked out.

What he has asked of me now is the hardest thing yet.  It hurts.  Every day I question the answers I've been given.  I've had people tell me that Heavenly Father doesn't want me to be unhappy, so why would he be asking this of me.  But he has.  And it doesn't make sense.  It's not easy.  I don't have perfect control.  When I was told to go on a mission, I started working on papers.  I had control over it.  Sure, I had to be living a good life, and pass all of the interviews, but I had control.  I don't have any control over this.  I just know the idea of what I need to do, but not how to do it.  And it really involves someone else who, to my knowledge, hasn't asked or received the same answers.  They don't want the same answers either.

So, what do I do?  How to I find the balance between having faith in something so hard, that I just can't see?  It's not logical, and right now, I don't even really want it.  It would be so much easier to just turn around and walk away.  That way my heart wouldn't have to break, over and over.  But I know what I've been told.  How do I have hope, and faith in something that seems so impossible?  How do I come to believe in miracles in my own life?

My dear sister, L7 bought me a book.  It's called Believing Christ.  So far it's good.  But it's mostly about believing in the Atonement to cover your sins.  I know I'm not perfect, but I don't really question that.  There have been some things that have really touched me in the book, but I'm not quite there.

Don't think I'm questioning the Gospel.  I'm not.  I'm just questioning my ability to do this.  So, dear friends and family, how have you done it?  Because I don't want to give up.  When the Lord tells you something and you do something else, you get swallowed by a whale.  That would be a total bummer.

Ok, so the big question is:  How do you have faith in the impossible?  How do you get yourself to believe in the illogical?  And how do you find the strength go keep going when everything else around you is telling you to just move on?

"If you are helpless, He is not.  If you are lost, He is not.  If you don't know what to do next, He knows.  It would take a miracle, you say?  Well, if it takes a miracle, why not?" ~ Boyd K. Packer, Conference Report October 1970

Coming Out Of The Rain

Here I am, rocking out with CRH in Texas.  She's pretty great.  She and the Texan have been kind enough to take me in when I felt the need to flee the state I'm living in to run away from my problems.  Yes, I am very aware that running away from my problems won't make them even a little bit better, but it's been kind of nice to try to ignore things.  Granted, I can't really ignore them, and I have probably been doing a lot more thinking than one would care to admit.  It's just that I'm alone during the day, and that gives way to lots of pondering.

Today it was raining.  That is not at all unusual for Texas in the spring.  It rains often, and it rains hard.  CRH was kind enough to let me drive her car around today, so I needed to pick her up from work.  As I left her house to go to her place of employment, it was raining pretty hard.  An interesting thing sometimes happens when it rains in Texas.  When I looked right above me I could see white puffy clouds and blue sky.  And yet, it was raining.  And it kept raining.  The closer I got to CRH's work, the better the weather got.

I remember thinking this was a strange occurrence back when I lived in Texas.  It seems so odd to be driving through rain when the sky looks so blue.  Yes, there were dark clouds around me, but they weren't right over me.  (If any of you are real weather experts, you're probably thinking that there had to be dark clouds right over me, but I swear they weren't.)  The best part was the fact that I was able to drive out of the storm.

Now I'm going to go all philosophical on you.  It's seemed for the past while that I am driving in the sun, yet being rained on.  I'm doing all that I can, and yet the rain still comes.  I often have glimpses of real sunlight and dry conditions but I keep finding myself in the storm.

For example, Friday I was able to spend some time with a friend.  I know him from where I live, but he happened to be in Texas this weekend as well.  We've never done anything together, but we decided to bond while here.  We spent quite a bit of time with his family.  And it was great.  They were all sorts of kind and accepting right from the beginning.  I had a genuinely nice time.  You're all thinking that this is the sun shiny time of life, aren't you?  And yet, it's not.  As I drove home that night, I cried quite a bit.  You see, despite all of the awful things that Scuttle has said, and done in the past 8 weeks, I still love him.  That makes me seem crazy.  I've spent a lot of time praying, and fasting, and attending the temple.  Despite what I want, I've been told that I need to keep trying, and I need to be Scuttles friend.  So I'm doing as I can.  Sometimes that is being made very difficult.  It's impossible to be close to someone who is constantly doing all they can to push you away.  When I was with this friend in Texas, I just kept thinking, "Hmm, he's a nice chap.  Maybe I should try to flirt it up with him.  He's nice, his family is nice, why not?"  This is a logical thought really.  There wasn't anything truly wrong with that.  And yet there really was.

Why would I flirt when I've been told that I should keep trying?  Going and doing something fun with a friend is totally ok.  There is nothing wrong with that.  The problem arose when I decided I wanted to go against the counsel given to me previously.  Yes, things are hard.  Yes, I don't see how things could ever work out.  This is when I need to work on faith.  Faith in what the Lord has promised.  Faith in the answers I have been given.  Because history has shown that when you keep asking for something different than what you've been told, it doesn't turn out very well.  (Think Martin Harris)

When I do as I'm told, despite the hardship, I can walk around in the sun.  Unfortunately, like an idiot, I chose to sit in the rain.  Let's be honest, I can quite enjoy a nice dance in the rain.  Gene Kelly totally rocks my knee-highs.  But this is no singing and dancing in the rain moment.  This is more sitting outside, no umbrella, it's cold, and I could go inside, yet I choose to sit and mope in the wetness.  Why do we as people do this to ourselves?  When we follow the instruction given to us, we are happier.  We can have faith.  When we try to forge our own path, we end up sitting in the rain and having no fun.

My choice:  To drive out of the rain.  Just as I drove out of the rain when I went to get CRH.  It's hard, and I know sometimes I'll probably end up back in the rain, but I need to work harder to just keep myself out of it.  To stop looking at what I think I want, and figure out how to want what I've been given.  It's a process.

Does any of this make sense?  Probably not.  I'm kind of rambling.  My brain is a pretty scary place.  It doesn't often make sense.  Despite the fact that figuring this out is hard, and scary, I'm pretty determined.  Life doesn't really come with an umbrella, so I'll just have to get myself out of the rain.

Returning Notes

Back in the day, I lived in Texas.  Those were some pretty good times.  One Sunday I went to a fireside with my dear friend CRH (We got there late...) and during the fireside a scripture was quoted.  It kind of struck me, but not for myself.  I have a friend who has been fighting cancer for three years now.  I wanted to send it to her.  So, I wrote it down, made a few notes in my notebook about how much this verse would help her, and moved on.  

Today while waiting for Sacrament Meeting to start, I opened my notebook and rather than just flipping through it like I normally do, I decided to start right at the beginning.  The beginning of this notebook is all just gibberish.  It's old notes that I took when I first moved to Texas, things about an upcoming activity, little descriptions of people so I could learn names, things like that.  I always skip the first of my notebook when I'm just looking through it.  I was giggling over my little notes when I saw this note I had written for my friend.  This brain of mine isn't that good, so I didn't have a clue what the scripture was about.  It was an answer to my prayers.  You all may be wondering what the scripture is, and I'm not going to tell you.  Sorry.  I've had a lot of very sacred experiences this week, and I just don't feel that I should be sharing the details of them.  Friday and Saturday were very hard days for me.  I know what I know, I know what I learned in the temple this week.  There are times though, that the temple feels far away, and the Devil works on you, and you start to question revelation.  (Stupid Devil.  I totally want to kick him.  He's lame.)

When I wrote down the little note for my friend, I thought it was just for her.  I had no idea that almost two years later I would need the same type of comfort.  That I would need a boost to my faith.  Today I am grateful.  I am grateful for friends.  For the Scriptures.  For revelation.  For the Holy Ghost.  For being worthy of the Spirit.  For a loving Heavenly Father who finds ways to answer my unending pleas for help.  Yes, there are still problems.  Yes, I am still sad.  But I have reason to hope.  I know what can be, and I have to have the faith that it will happen.  I don't really know what to do.  But I know, if I give it my all, and then exercise patience (that's the hardest part for me) that Heavenly Father will take care of it all.  I will be able to see him working in my life.  And in the lives of people I love.  He is perfect.  And I can always have faith in him.

I LOVE THE GOSPEL!!! 

A Little Bit of Heaven and Hell

Once Upon A Time...

Ok, that really isn't the style that I would like to write in today.  I just had absolutely no idea how to start today's post.  So there you go.

The real life story is, I am so happy that the local temple is open again.  I was able to go with a friend, to see her receive her endowment and be sealed to her husband and their boy.  That was great.  But there was also a special surprise.  Right before i went into the temple, I was able to see an old friend.  He used to be family... Let's see... let's call him Cloud.  You know, Clouds, they hang out up in the Sky?  I'm really hoping all of you who know me know who I'm talking about.  Well, Cloud was going to the temple because his fiance was receiving her endowment.  And it was during the same session as my friend.  I was so happy to be able to be part of that special day.  I'm quite the fan of Cloud, and it was good to see him and meet his cute fiance (imagine that word with the cool French little shmuh, shmuh accent thingy).  I'm so happy for him.  Oh, and I also saw one of Happy Mom's brother-in-laws.  There were just so many people to see at the temple.  I love it!

And now for a funny thing.  Well, I think it's funny.  Yesterday, on my way to work, I witnessed some amazing advertising.  There is a car dealership here.... and we'll call it Kate and Sandy's.  It's actually a very masculine place, no girls in the name, but whatever.  As I was driving down the road I saw this:

NEVER!

And then:

NOT HERE!!

Then it flashed to "Kate and Sandy's" with some nice fire in the background.  Pretty much it made it look very Hellish.  Now, I'm sure that if I had seen the rest of the little add, it would have made much more sense.  But from where I was at, it really looks like the previous words should be something like, "Do you want to buy a car?"  Or, "Is there hope in this world?"  Or something exciting like that.  Really, it just seemed so bleak, and hopeless, and no not like Heaven.  I could almost hear some deep cynical voice laughing a deep "Bwa-ha-ha-ha" in the background.  Quality advertising.  That's what we have here.

Bust Out The Scissors

I'm speaking in church on Sunday.  I have the chance to talk about the Great Apostasy and Reformation.  I am SUPER passionate about both topics.  I could very easily lecture on this subject for over two hours.  My first thought was GREAT!  I'm so excited!  This will be wonderful!

Then it hit me.  I have 10-12 minutes.  How in the world am I supposed to fit two hours of info in 10 minutes.  So here I am, cutting, and splicing, and taping, and trying to make something that is interesting, faith promoting, and makes a little bit of sense.  Anyone wanna do a body transplant and be me on Sunday?  Hey, thanks for that!

No These Things Aren't Related

So, those of you who actually read my blog with speakers working on your computer will notice a change in my play list. I've added most of my favorite songs from Glee! It's a fun show. Well, at least I love the music! So here you go.

Secondly, I want to welcome Scuttle. Yep, I believe he is finding my blog very soon. He said he wanted to anyway. So, potentially Welcome, dear Scuttle of mine. I know, that's super lame and sappy. Sorry friends! This also makes me super nervous. I mean, the rest of you... well at least most of you, already love me. And you won't stop just because I'm a lame blogger. As for the rest of you, I don't know you, so who cares. But Scuttle... Well, he's not the type to stop dating me cause I'm a lame blogger, but still... it makes me nervous. I'll get over it.

And now on to some serious things.... I know, it's rare that I get serious, but here we go.

Today in Relief Society, we had a lesson on Christ and Joseph Smith. Focusing on the Atonement and the Martyrdom. It was a good lesson. I'm pretty passionate about both topics. Some days I just want to stand up and shout from the rooftops about my knowledge of these great men. Yes, Joseph Smith wouldn't have really done anything cool if it was for Christ. I am very aware of that. And the Martyrdom wouldn't have meant anything if it wasn't for the First Vision (Shout out to Palmyra!!) This is not at all what I wanted to tell you about, but it's cool too.

The coolest part for me though, was the closing hymn. We sang A Poor Wayfaring Man Of Grief. (I believe you can listen to it here) I've sung, and or listened to this song for a very long time. It's good. I usually sing the 1st, 6th and 7th verse. Today we sang 1-3. Something about the last line of the 3rd verse really touched me. Just the fact that the singer says that they drank and never thirsted more. What a beautiful picture this painted in my mind. I think it was Heavenly Father watching out for me a little. You see, I had apostate tendencies today. After sacrament meeting I was SO ready to be done. I don't leave after only one hour of church though. That's like paying 33% tithing. Not cool. So I stayed. Sunday School was fine. The lesson in Relief Society was good, but it felt SO long! And then we sang. And I felt the spirit. And I wanted that. I want to drink from this cup that Christ is offering me. I don't want to be thirsty anymore. I'm not just talking about being lazy, and not wanting to go to the kitchen... although I'd take that as well. I just realized that it is so true. I can drink from the cup that Christ is offering me. I don't have to thirst anymore. I can be filled. Yes, there will still be hard times. Yes, I will still struggle, but I don't have to have doubts. I can know of the truthfulness of all of this. I find it important to point out that the lyric says nothing about being tackled to the ground while this water was forced down your throat. It's a choice. How often am I offered a drink but I don't take it, cause I'm stubborn. That's stupid! And yet, when I am stubborn, as soon as I reach for the cup, I get it. It's not pulled away from me. I'm not told, too bad. In fact, I think he smiles at me. There may be a bit of a "it's about time" look in that smile, but that's ok. It's still there. He loves me. I don't have to thirst. Sometimes I don't feel deserving, but I'm working on deserving it. I just need to figure out how to stop messing up. I'll get there eventually. (I'm not being proud, I'm using the language of faith. It's very important to do.)

Yeah, life's pretty great!

Freedom!! … Oh, Blast. Never mind.

Earlier this week, I was feeling pretty lazy. Yeah, my last post kind of showed that off. Well, one day, I was doing my Visiting Teaching, and talking to my companion and the cute girl we visit about how I like to be lazy, but there are WAY too many meetings. You see, I was in the Relief Society presidency as the secretary. I have loved serving, but man! All those meetings! It has been pretty lame. The good news: and end in sight. My dear RS president is going home for the summer. So, today as I packed up my ginormous bag for church, I realized it would be the last time. I was getting released. WHOO HOO!!

I arrived at church and was going about my business when I was attacked and pushed into a small room. Despite my struggle, I was caught! Then the scary man in the dark suit pushed me under a bright light and started asking me questions. "How are you?" "Have you had a good day?" "Is there anything we can do for you?" They were coming in rapid fire. I could barely keep up. Then he quickly slipped in a most serious question, "Will you serve as the 1st counselor in your RS presidency?" I was caught unaware. I froze, and uttered that ill-fated word: yes.

Ok, so it wasn't really like that. My bishop is a great man, and I didn't feel pressured. This is just a more interesting account.

So, it turns out that my old VT companion is the RS president. As she heard me complaining, she was just laughing. It's true. Heavenly Father does have a sense of humor. Don't get me wrong, I am totally happy to serve, but this means...

MORE MEETINGS!