I love to laugh!

"There is nothing in the world so irresistibly contagious as laughter and good humor" - Charles Dickens

So a while back I was feeling low (not too low) but kind of low. I was driving in the car by myself and I thought of the song, "I Love to Laugh" from the musical Mary Poppins. Dick Van Dyke and Ed Wynn do a great job of this scene, I cannot help but start laughing and singing along with them!

As I drove in the car, I started one of my own little sessions of Laughter Therapy. I didn't have anything to laugh at, but I was having a great time just busting a gut! It sounds a little silly, but you should try it sometime. Of course you will get some very interesting stares from people beside you, and they will be trying to figure out what radio station you're listening to. But wouldn't that be even more hilarious?

Life is too short to never laugh.

Here's a quote from an inspirational talk that I heard one day (and frequently go back to.)

"The first thing we can do is learn to laugh. Have you ever seen an angry driver who, when someone else makes a mistake, reacts as though that person has insulted his honor, his family, his dog, and his ancestors all the way back to Adam? Or have you had an encounter with an overhanging cupboard door left open at the wrong place and the wrong time which has been cursed, condemned, and avenged by a sore-headed victim?

"There is an antidote for times such as these: learn to laugh.

"I remember loading up our children in a station wagon and driving to Los Angeles. There were at least nine of us in the car, and we would invariably get lost. Instead of getting angry, we laughed. Every time we made a wrong turn, we laughed harder.

"Getting lost was not an unusual occurrence for us. Once while heading south to Cedar City, Utah, we took a wrong turn and didn’t realize it until two hours later when we saw the “Welcome to Nevada” signs. We didn’t get angry. We laughed, and as a result, anger and resentment rarely resulted. Our laughter created cherished memories for us.......

"The next time you’re tempted to groan, you might try to laugh instead. It will extend your life and make the lives of all those around you more enjoyable." - Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin ("Come What May and Love It", October 2008, http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2008/10/come-what-may-and-love-it?lang=eng&query=come+may+love)

Enjoy these videos to start off your laughing session.

New name, new meaning.

So I was working at my desk today (which gives me a lot of time to think) and I figured out what I can do for the blog. Both something that I really enjoy, and something that helps me. I have this cool application on my phone that gives me a quote for each day. Granted some aren't as inspirational as others, so I have gone through the one-thousand something quotes and have selected some of my favorites. I am also finding many other quotes that I like through music, the spoken word, inspirational speakers, and some random thoughts that pop into my head as well.

So I've decided to name the blog "A Quote a Day Keeps Depression Away." Because I sure know that if I find the right quote, my mornings (and usually my entire day) is changed for the better, even at 7AM (amazing right?).

So I will start with today's quote:

"I will not let anyone walk through my mind with their dirty feet." - Mohandas Gandhi


I Think this quote is AWESOME! It helps me realize that I can choose what comes into my mind. Our minds are much like a home. I don't know about your house, but in mine we have a pretty strict rule that we do NOT wear our shoes in the house. We've lived here for about eight years now, and the carpets are rather clean. 


But thinking about it a little further in the carpet analogy, we can always scrub really hard to get it clean, but somethings will not be forgotten (spinning/shaking salad dressing bottles to get the most out of them, so-and-so spilling their cup frequently, and other random concentrations of the gravitational forces.) 


The spot or stain itself will no longer be visible, but we can't really decide if we remember it or not. 


Moral of the story: YOU CAN CHOOSE WHAT ENTERS YOUR MIND! There are so many good things in the world, and so many wonderful things you can fill your mind with. You can keep company with past, Kings, Queens, Presidents, and Religious Leaders IF you read the things they have written. Don't fill your mind with bad things. Keep good company.

A little Currant Bush.

Last night I had a wonderful conversation with my friend. We both came to a small decision, and we both decided that we would pray to confirm our feelings. Prayer. What a wonderful gift. I am so grateful that I believe in a Divine Source of knowledge.

Some would call it silly to pray about a small decision, but I am glad that she asked me to do so. I did, and I felt very confident that the decision we had made is a good one. I woke up this morning (because my phone alarm went off at 4:15AM. Since then I have been wondering what answer she had received. I am more than anything anxious to hear what she felt.

Another part of me is nervous to know, especially if it is in the negative. I told her that I will respect her feelings and what she receives of the Lord. I know I will, I think she's a great person, and I have been so much better because I have known her. I'm not saying that if she feels that we should not continue on the path that we have thought about starting; I will never be around her. Not at all.

This reminds me of a story I heard given. Please read on.

I was living up in Canada. I had purchased a farm. It was run-down. I went out one morning and saw a currant bush. It had grown up over six feet (two meters) high. It was going all to wood. There were no blossoms and no currants. I was raised on a fruit farm in Salt Lake before we went to Canada, and I knew what ought to happen to that currant bush. So I got some pruning shears and clipped it back until there was nothing left but stumps. It was just coming daylight, and I thought I saw on top of each of these little stumps what appeared to be a tear, and I thought the currant bush was crying. I was kind of simpleminded (and I haven’t entirely gotten over it), and I looked at it and smiled and said, “What are you crying about?” You know, I thought I heard that currant bush say this:

“How could you do this to me? I was making such wonderful growth. I was almost as big as the shade tree and the fruit tree that are inside the fence, and now you have cut me down. Every plant in the garden will look down on me because I didn’t make what I should have made. How could you do this to me? I thought you were the gardener here.”

That’s what I thought I heard the currant bush say, and I thought it so much that I answered. I said, “Look, little currant bush, I am the gardener here, and I know what I want you to be. I didn’t intend you to be a fruit tree or a shade tree. I want you to be a currant bush, and someday, little currant bush, when you are laden with fruit, you are going to say, ‘Thank you, Mr. Gardener, for loving me enough to cut me down. Thank you, Mr. Gardener.’”

Years passed, and I found myself in England. I was in command of a cavalry unit in the Canadian army. I held the rank of field officer in the British Canadian army. I was proud of my position. And there was an opportunity for me to become a general. I had taken all the examinations. I had the seniority. The one man between me and the office of general in the British army became a casualty, and I received a telegram from London. It said: “Be in my office tomorrow morning at 10:00,” signed by General Turner.

I went up to London. I walked smartly into the office of the general, and I saluted him smartly, and he gave me the same kind of a salute a senior officer usually gives—a sort of “Get out of the way, worm!” He said, “Sit down, Brown.” Then he said, “I’m sorry I cannot make the appointment. You are entitled to it. You have passed all the examinations. You have the seniority. You’ve been a good officer, but I can’t make the appointment. You are to return to Canada and become a training officer and a transport officer.” That for which I had been hoping and praying for 10 years suddenly slipped out of my fingers.

Then he went into the other room to answer the telephone, and on his desk, I saw my personal history sheet. Right across the bottom of it was written, “THIS MAN IS A MORMON.” We were not very well liked in those days. When I saw that, I knew why I had not been appointed. He came back and said, “That’s all, Brown.” I saluted him again, but not quite as smartly, and went out.

I got on the train and started back to my town, 120 miles (190 kilometers) away, with a broken heart, with bitterness in my soul. And every click of the wheels on the rails seemed to say, “You are a failure.” When I got to my tent, I was so bitter that I threw my cap on the cot. I clenched my fists, and I shook them at heaven. I said, “How could you do this to me, God? I have done everything I could do to measure up. There is nothing that I could have done—that I should have done—that I haven’t done. How could you do this to me?” I was as bitter as gall.

And then I heard a voice, and I recognized the tone of this voice. It was my own voice, and the voice said, “I am the gardener here. I know what I want you to do.” The bitterness went out of my soul, and I fell on my knees by the cot to ask forgiveness for my ungratefulness and my bitterness.  (http://lds.org/liahona/2002/03/the-currant-bush?lang=eng)

As I think of this story, I quietly think this in my mind.

Mr. Gardner,

I am ready for anything that might happen today. You know how I feel about what I would like to happen, but I know that you know the grand design. Please help me (if I am cut or shaped in an uncomfortable way today). To understand the pattern which you have set forth. I trust you completely. Thank you for loving me enough to be aware of what I need to grow correctly. And if you have the desire to let me grow in the way I have chosen (at least for a little while) thank you. Thank you for your love.

Sincerely,

A little currant bush. 

Better than you were yesterday.

So. I've decided that I am going to take time out of my peaceful Sunday mornings to write in my blog.

This has been a wonderful week. Work has been going really well, and it has been a trip in trying to figure out what I am going to do in the future.

I have received a promotion in my job! It is going to be a great opportunity to grow, and to become a better employee. I'll be basically doing the same thing that I am doing now, but I will be providing more direct, and focused customer support for our multiple customer groups.

I have been getting ready for school. I have been working on getting registered for classes, and everything will work out just fine.

On Jan 1 2012, I will be fully covered with health insurance! These last 6-7 months have been interesting because I have put myself in positions (rock climbing, jet-skiing, wrestling, learning to ride a motorcycle) that could have put my pocketbook back for a very long time, but thankfully I haven't needed to go to the hospital/doctors office. (Knock on wood.)

This week has also been good because I have been able to spend time with a wonderful person. Said person has taught me so much about who I am, and what I like to do. It's refreshing to have someone to talk with, and to be able to speak so openly to. I highly recommend the game "Truth or Truth" to anybody. In friendships, relationships, and in marriage; it is so important that you learn to speak openly and honestly with the person that you are with.

Overall it has been a great week. I will start now to work on being better for the future. I had a leader in the Church that would always say something to the effect of, "Always try to be better than you were yesterday."

One thing not many people know about you.

So I'm getting to know someone and we play this cool little game called "Truth or Truth". It usually starts out like this:

Her: "Truth or truth?"
Me: "Hmmm tough one. I'll choose Truth."

Then last night she asked something of me that was difficult to answer. This is what she wrote.

"Tell me one thing not many people know about you."

I honestly had to think about an answer for almost a full hour before I could give one. I'm usually pretty open with people when it comes to getting to know others. I don't have a lot of reservations when it comes to asking questions. I think that started almost two years ago.

I was in the city of Guatemala, about three weeks into my mission for the church I belong to, and I was put with a what was then a complete stranger for a companion (but now who is a really great friend). We sat down to start getting to know each other, and he said, "You know man, I live by the Latin saying, "Quid pro quo" which means, "what for what". Or how he put it, "I will let you know what I think, and I want to know what you think."

I also think it started because the people in Guatemala are so loving and caring. That is something I wish as Americans we were better at. Don't get me wrong, we are very charitable and kind to most people; but we don't forgive very quickly. The Latin American countries are just different. It's like they can feel if you like them or not. And being around them for so long, it's weird because it's almost like I have developed that "sense" as well. Some could just call it being over sensitive, but I honestly think it is a feeling that you have.

So back to my original story.... (rambling) I sat there for an hour thinking about what I could tell this wonderful girl. Eventually I told her something, but I woke up this morning realizing that probably wasn't the best thing to tell her.. It wasn't bad at all, but it was just the whole "Why did you put that? That's not really like you...." thing. Don't you hate how sometimes you wish you could take back time?

I sent another message to her today, realizing that I should have put something that was more like me. So I did. It felt right to tell her what I did. And I'm glad that I finally found something that not a lot of people know about me. It helped me define just a little more of who I am and what I am doing here. 

Today.

Today. What an interesting way to start. Many things have happened already today, and I feel like I have yet to accomplish multiple other goals. Lately I have been going throughout life working on trying to figure out what I need to be doing. In order to figure out where I want to go, I should probably figure out where I have been in the last year.

1. I have an awesome job. I work with a successful company in trying to help others attain auto loans. (Which I feel are never necessary when making a purchase.) 

-- It's something quite remarkable to me that people wouldn't wait to buy a car. GRANTED there are times when you need a car / home / anything else in life. I think if it comes down to an actual need, then it's okay to splurge. But if you can plan ahead for the future to obtain some goal 

2. I have awesome family and friends around me. It's been a lot of fun this past year getting to know people, and working on being the best person that I can be. Easy? Nope. But well worth it. 

3. I am deeply involved in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. For that I am extremely grateful. It has been a wonderful year in that sense because I have had a lot of learning opportunities in trying to learn how to be more like the Savior. It is amazing to me how I am taught to be like Him. A lot of experiences have just been quiet things said (by others) and felt within myself that have helped me see that I still have a long way to go. 

So. That pretty much is where I am right now. But the real question is where I want to go. 

I've never really had a huge desire to ever "be" something when I grow up. I have always just tried to do what the best thing seemed to do. I wish there was this direct way for us to know exactly what to do in our lives to be happy.

But then I think of the stars. The ship-men of long ago could tell where the were and where they were going just by looking at the starts and memorizing the position of them and comparing them to the land. I have guides in my life, and they are just as constant.

So within the next couple of weeks, I will be working on formulating my goals, putting them on paper, and working towards accomplishing them in 2012.

A lot of wonderful things are going to happen this next year. 

Reason for the Change

Lately I have been reading from the book "Mans Search for Meaning" by Dr. Viktor Frankl. He was a survivor of the Concentration camps during WWII. Reading just a part of his book inspired me to enjoy my everyday life.  I don't really have a problem knowing why I am here on Earth, but I know that sometimes it is difficult for me to be happy all of the time.

And I know that we are NOT supposed to be happy 100% of the time.... We are all supposed to have ups and downs, that is what makes us who we are. The ups, the downs everything that happens, happens for the best.

So! In my small attempt to blog (I think this is the first time in maybe 4 months). That is why I changed the name, so that I can remember to be happy!

There is more to come on this, I just had a little time left until I had to get ready to go to work. I'll try to be better about posting.