Attitude of Gratitude and Things That are Worth Your Time

Welcome back, readers and friends!

First off, back to our five list for 'attitude of gratitude':

1. Answered Prayers.
2. The Welcome of Family.
3. Safe Travels.
4. Minor Injuries.
5. Half-Baked Ice Cream.

Brief Explanation:

Really grateful for answered prayers. Prayed hard for good weather this past weekend, so we could travel safely to the family reunion. The Lord answered that prayer, we made it to the reunion and were on our way home when the rains finally began to fall in our area of the East Coast. Being around family was a blessing and really helped to recharge my emotional batteries. We all had to introduce ourselves (we made Dad do it for our group!) because the older people had no idea who the younger ones were and those of us who fall into the 'young' category didn't remember the names and faces of many of the older people. It was fun, though. People clapped for you at the mention of your name. Family, the only people who applaud you, just for showing up! (Haha, I hope Heaven is like that! Wouldn't that rock? You know it would!)
That takes care of items 1-3. Now on to 4. Early Tuesday morning, I was woken up around 3:30 by Luna, our puppy, who had a potty accident and needed a bath as a result of the issue. After rousing the husband to watch her, and keep her sequestered in the tub for the two mins it took me to get dressed, I bathed her and then got the blow dryer to dry her fur off. Her hair is thin and she catches chill easily. She hates the dryer and kept escaping me. I snatched her up, and while I was moving with her across the room, I tripped over my broken latched sandals (which I had worn because I knew they would get soaked giving her a bath). I dropped her on the way down, to my horror. I landed solidly on my 'good' knee, the one I rarely injure, and it took me several moments to gather my wits and attempt to get up again. Luna fell about a foot and a half off the ground and landed on her feet. Bless her heart, she stayed right next to me, looking concerned. (Her canine sibs have shown no such worry, when they have encountered my klutzyness). So, the end result, was that I had trouble walking for a few days (and stairs were killer) but I was so grateful I did not fall on Luna (and break her spine, she is a very small shih-tzu mix). I am also grateful I did no lasting harm (knock on wood!) to myself.
The last item on the list is ice cream. My husband brought some home a few days ago, for FHE. He knows my favorite flavor and surprised me with it. He snacked on raspberry sorbet and I put off eating my ice cream until tonight, which is homework night! Every night that is homework night should also be ice cream night. Because that is the world that I live in!

Moving on, I wanted to tell you more about my ongoing Pathway experience. I would easily recommend the program to anyone interested in going back to college. The friends you make are fun and the gatherings you attend are both enlightening and inspiring. At the gathering this past week, we discussed several things that I found interesting (as well as profound). The first thing had to do with three keys to the principal of being a lifelong learner. The first key was that we have infinite potential, as God's child, to learn anything we put our efforts into. This is because of the divinity that we possess in our relationship with Heavenly Father. Henry Eyring was quoted as stating, "I believe that every brilliant conquest made by man is but a manifestation of the divine spark, which sets him apart from the rest of creation. Man is in the image of God, destined to go on learning and perfecting himself throughout eternity." We have infinite potential (and it is amazing and sad how often we lie to ourselves and believe we are incapable of learning certain things). The second key is that to learn you need to have childlike humility. Being humble makes you teachable and willing to learn. The third key is to keep the Holy Ghost with you, to aid in your learning, by living a clean life. You have to make sure your actions do not detract from the Spirit's ability to be present with you and that the things you surround yourself with (including media) do not impede your ability to connect with the Holy Ghost, and thus with God.
One of the points that jumped out to me was the idea of attitude and how we look at what we are trying to achieve. Katie Swank brought up the point about the recent Harvard debate team losing to a group of prisoners and how the prisoners had to jump through so many hoops just to get allowed the clearance of the reading material that they needed to study for the debate. Clearly, they had more obstacles to overcome, in this regard, then the college students who had the whole of the internet at their fingers, but it was the approach of the prisoners to obtaining, assimilating, and appreciating that knowledge that made the difference. (Also, the Harvard team said that the prisoners were the most well researched, well spoken team they had ever had the pleasure to debate with!)
In the talk, "Attitudes in Affliction", Kirk Astel brought up the idea that it was Nephi's attitude, and the attitudes of those who followed him, that made the difference in their journey in the wilderness. That the women became strong, like unto the men and were able to bear the journey. That our outlook depends on what we are focusing on: are we looking at the past? or wealth or lack thereof? Or are we looking at the blessings the Lord has given us? The many good things in our lives? The prisoners could easily have given up on the debate, due to the frustrating wait period over obtaining approval for their materials, but they didn't. They looked forward to gaining knowledge and being able to present and share what they had learned. (And keep in mind, these are gentlemen who will, most likely, never see the light of day, as they are sentenced to more years then they can possible live to serve, due to the nature of their crimes).
Adama Kone taught the class for the religion portion of the gathering. We talked of symbolism and how it is used to put stories in a context that your audience can better understand them. It was suggested that symbolism adds levels of layer and texture to what is being taught (to the point that you can review the same story later and gain new insight from it, that you did not learn the first time around). We talked about how symbolism is made to fit the people whom you are teaching, that you are using objects and places that they have a familiarity with and that they may easily relate to. We also spoke about the importance of prophets and how God calls them forth from the people, as well as the idea that a prophet can expertly teach you on any subject that God wishes him to teach to you. (This echoed the sentiment that I learned, way back in Institute of Religion about a prophet being given the knowedge and authority to speak on any subject, at any time. That the authority comes from God and God would not allow the prophet to tell you something that was false or detrimental to your eternal learning and progression).
As we talked about Nephi, it occurred to me that you can learn from ANY example, good or bad. That if you look at the life of Nephi, his is a life that you would want to emulate and follow in his footsteps. As you look at Laman and Lemuel, you can also learn from their example. What you learn, is who you do not want to be. Both examples teach you an important lesson. We divided into groups and in our group, we talked about Laman and Lemuel and how one can best prepare to help people who uphold their types of attitudes. Laman and Lemuel were prideful, they had their hearts set on worldly goods, a life of ease, and riches. They wanted what they did not currently possess. And they were lazy, in that they never 'asked of God' in regards to the visions that Nephi and Lehi had. They could have learned so much, had they put forth the effort to inquire of the Lord, but they chose not to. In the end, my group concluded that you cannot change the hearts of men, only they can do that for themselves. What you can do, is be a good example to them. You can live a righteous life, keeping the Spirit with you and sharing what you learn, gospel and secular truths, with others. You can encourage them to make sure they go to the right sources of information (scriptures and Heavenly Father). Lastly, you can make sure that you are both diligent and persistent in your efforts to reach out to them. God never gave up on anyone, so we should not either.
The last thing we talked about was the scattering and gathering of Israel. What struck me about this topic was the idea that the Lord scattered Israel in order to preserve them. If he had not scattered them, they might never have returned to the truths of the gospel. (That was a 'wow' moment for me. I knew that the scattering was partly a punishment, but the fact it was also something done out of love, to bring about something greater, was amazing to learn).
All of the various things this week have made me consider the question: what am I made of? What is at my core? I know the gospel is at my core. Years ago, I ended a relationship with a boy who wanted to marry me. I ended it because, while he claimed to love me, he didn't really understand or know me. At my core. From the time I was twelve, I grew up with the gospel of Jesus Christ. By the time I was in college, that gospel was a living part of me, like the rings inside a tree that mark its growth. It was not something outside of myself, something I could set aside for him, to make him comfortable. I didn't want a life without the gospel and I didn't want a partner in that life who refused to share in living the principles. I think, when we all take a hard, long, look at ourselves, we'll find out those things that are most precious to us and we'll realize what we can live without and what isn't worth living without.