Reflection of My First Ever College Essay!

Essays Man!!!!

Ya know, I thought that as I got to college I wouldn't be such a bad procrastinaton since college education is kinda slightly maybe a little bit more important than high school education, buuuuuut.... nawww that just hasn't seemed to happen for me. I guess if you really want something to happen you actually have to do something about it and not just keep doing the same old habits of the thing you're trying to change. Yeah, I definitely need to work on that! Hopefully within the next four years I'll learn that procrastination is not the best, most efficient way to get work done! But for now, I have to reflect on the essay I just wrote in Writing 150 this past week... so basically I get to reflect on my all-nighter rhetorical analysis!

I actually started this essay a few days before it was due, which is a step up for me! The problem was that I had so much analysis that I wanted to write about, I couldn't narrow things down and focus my paper. It definitely helped to meet with my professor, in which she told me that there is no possible way you can cover everything. After understanding this concept, I was much better off at deciding what was most important and most influential and focusing in on that point. So from now on I will be working towards not finishing my paper 5 min before the due date, and having more of a focus before I start.

"The Stories That Bind Us"

Taking on The World 

My Writing 150 professor at BYU is focusing much of our semester on family history and knowing our heritage. She had us read an article in the New York Times, entitled "The Stories That Bind Us." This article reports the importance of knowing family stories in children's' ability to deal with stress and challenges. The kids who knew a lot about their families felt they had a sense of control on their lives, had higher self-esteem, and felt they belonged to something larger than themselves… a FAMIY! As I first read this article, I began to wonder if I really knew my family's stories. At the moment, I could not think of anything. And let me tell you, I was extremely frustrated with myself. But, at the same time I kept thinking that I knew how to handle stress and other challenges at least somewhat well... I felt like I had pretty good control on my life... And I FOR SURE knew that I was a part of something bigger than just myself. Since I couldn't remember any family stories on the spot, I began to ponder what some of my biggest goals are for this life. The first thing I thought of was temple marriage. And immediately I recalled the story of my parents proposal. 

On that special day, my father had no ring and no intention of asking my mom to marry him, but as they sat in his car, viewing the Provo temple, their conversation turned spiritual. My father shared his excitement of having the potential to become a God and create worlds without end in the next life. In that very intimate moment, he said, "But I can't do it alone… Would you do it with me?" My mom's initial response was, "Can I have some time to think about it?" And of course my dad said yes since he shocked even himself at the question. According to my mom, having some time to think about it is a very short amount of time because not ten minutes later, as they were laughing (which was a common occurrence) about some lighthearted topic, my mom said, "You will probably make me laugh when we are kneeling at the alter in the temple." 

And there you have it… the most spontaneously spiritual engagement. The reason I tell you this story is because of the fact my parents lives were and are centered around the gospel. Even their engagement solely had to do with temple marriage and eternity and potential. Because of that story and the example my parents have shown me all of their lives, I will not settle for anything less than a temple marriage. Because of that story that I so dearly love and cherish, I want to have a relationship like theirs. A relationship that entails all aspects of the gospel, where testimony can be shared often… even in the proposal process. 

By knowing that story, I have developed a goal for my life. I know who I am and what I can become. And I know what  I must do to become that person. I have confidence in my goal for temple marriage and it helps me to prioritize my life. Because of it, I know that my family is forever and all living beings have the potential to become something greater than they could ever fully understand. My family legacy lives on and it binds us. As I begin my own journey "taking on the world," I carry with me stories and legacies of my family… I've truly got them to live it with me and I now understand that that is what will get me through this crazy ride we call life. 

Elder Bednar Talks

Definitely Loving Life 

Sooooo..... I've never blogged once in my life. I hardly ever even read other people's blogs. I really just have never been interested in it...like whatsoever! And honestly the only reason I created this blog is because my Writing 150 Professor at BYU is REQUIRING us to keep up a blog for this semester!!! The first thing I thought when she told the class of this assignment was, "Oh man... A Blog? Really? Even if I had the slightest desire to keep a darn blog (which I sure as heck don't), I wouldn't know where to start. Well then.... I'm dropping the class." This was very much my intention. That is until I began reading two talks by Elder Bednar (Things as they Really Are and To Sweep the Earth as With a Flood), which my professor also assigned to us for homework. Let me tell you something... ELDER BEDNAR IS THE MAN!!! He is the reason I am okay with the fact that I have to keep a blog. In fact, after listening/watching/reading his words, I feel I will no longer think of it as an irritant, but rather a privilege. A privilege through which I can express the knowledge, peace, blessings, experiences, and true happiness I have received from my glorious and merciful Father in Heaven which is only possible because of His Son, my Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ.

In his talks, Elder Bednar speaks of the amazing time that we live in with all of the technological advances. These new technologies and easy accesses are neither bad nor good by themselves... we make them a certain way according to how we utilize them. If we become addicted to any type of website or app, then we are not using technology in the best ways we could. I know I am definitely guilty of frequently checking my facebook, instagram, snapchat, yik-yak, etc. Although now that I am a college student and am coming to realize that this is nothing like High School and that I actually have to do work and be responsible, my social media checks have significantly decreased. Aaaaaaaaand here at BYU, I experience social activities everyday... I don't need the electrical versions. I make more friends by just walking around campus and studying in the library than I ever would through Hot or Not, twitter, or tinder. This is also something Elder Bednar addressed in the two talks we were assigned to read, "To feel the warmth of a tender hug from an eternal companion or to see the sincerity in the eyes of another person as testimony is shared.... To be 'encircled about eternally in the arms of His (Chirst's) love' (2 Nephi1:15) will be a real and not a virtual experience." That is what really matters! That is "things as they really are"! Instead of slowly slipping into the powerful, disrupting pull that technology can have, Bednar tells us to use these amazing inventions to flood the earth with the the love of God and His gospel!!!! By posting, pinning, tweeting, and blogging about the goodness of God, we can bring the world happiness! We can literally "sweep the earth as with a flood" with the gospel of Jesus Christ, with true joy!

I Nephi chapter 20 verse 6: "Thou hast seen and heard all this; and will ye not declare them?" I have seen the hand of the Lord in my life... on a day to day basis I see His blessings and feel His love. I have been so extremely blessed to live where I live with the advances and technologies that I have. To have the knowledge and testimony of the gospel that I have. How could I have ever been so unwilling to declare what I have been so blessed with? Through this blog, I hope to be able to do my part in flooding the earth with the gospel of Christ. I owe much thanks to my professor and Elder Bednar for helping me come to this realization. I KNOW and I testify that God is real. We are all sons and daughters of Him, a Heavenly King. He knows us by name and he knows our needs better than anyone. We have the potential to become just like him. Through Christ this can be accomplished. He sacrificed His life for us so we could be truly happy. That right there is a love we can not yet fully comprehend, but we feel it.... ALWAYS! This I know and do testify.

I LOVE LIFE. And I want everyone else, all my brothers and sisters, to feel the love that I feel.