the best part of the christmas story is the glowstick party at the end

I know I've posted this video before, but this is still my favorite version of the Christmas story (as told/acted by adorable New Zealand children):

There's a line where one of the girls says in this perfectly accented little voice, "They call the baby Jesus. And they loved Him. He has two daddies: God and Joseph. They both needed to look after the baby." Something about the way she says that gets me every time! I almost can't watch it without crying. 

I like thinking about tiny baby Jesus. He was the all-powerful Son of God and yet He was willing to be born, just like any other person, as a helpless baby. "Behold the condescension of God!" almost isn't strong enough to describe it. It took more humility and love for humankind than I can imagine to do that. I also like thinking about both of Jesus's fathers rooting for Him and doing what they could to "look after the baby." It reminds me that God is looking after me. 

Just something I've been thinking about lately. Merry Christmas, guys. 

pretty words for your sunday

via

"Within"

By Carol Lynn Pearson 

I read a map once
Saying the kingdom of God
Was within me.
But I never trusted
Such unlikely ground.

I went out.
I scoured schools
And libraries
And chapels and temples
And other people’s eyes
And the skies and the rocks.
And I found treasures
From the kingdom’s treasury
But not the kingdom.

Finally I came in quiet
For a rest
And turned on the light.

And there
Just like a surprise party
Was all the smiling royalty–
King, Queen, court.

People have been
Locked up for less, I know.
But I tell you
Something marvelous
Is bordered by this skin:

I am a castle
And the kingdom of God
Is within.

(found here)

praise god from whom all blessings flow

Last week in church was a little unconventional. Since it was the week of Thanksgiving, our branch president asked a bunch of people to come up and share what they were thankful for, but in their native language. We had people come up and talk in Tagalog (Philippines), Tamil (Sri Lanka), Vietnamese, Mandarin, and Italian. And that wasn't even all of the people from different countries in our branch! It was really neat. I don't know why, but I especially liked the testimony of the sister who spoke in Mandarin. Obviously, I couldn't understand the words she was saying, but as tears rolled down my cheeks I understood the spirit of what she was saying.

Because of ballroom, I've had the chance to go to church all over the US and a few countries in Europe. I'm always struck by how it's more or less the same everywhere you go. It's the same doctrine, and we're all just trying to do our best to be like Jesus. I think that's really powerful, and this week, I'm really thankful to belong to that kind of an organization.

He is risen!

Aaron posted this to his facebook today, and I thought I would steal it:

“We laugh, we cry, we work, we play, we love, we live. And then we die. …
And dead we would remain but for one Man and His mission, even Jesus of Nazareth. …
He it was who died on the cross to atone for our sins. He became the firstfruits of the Resurrection. Because He died, all shall live again.”

-President Thomas S. Monson


Where I would be without the knowledge of Christ's resurrection and life after death, I don't want to know. What a precious gift it is to know that truth!

paradise

Thank you so much for your outpouring of love and support. We are in awe of the kindness we've received from so many. Thank you for the comments, tweets, messages, phone calls, emails and prayers. They have made a world of difference.

We feel so blessed not only to have such a wonderful support group, but also to know that we will be with Zach again. Life does not end with death, but continues on because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. He truly has borne all of our sorrows, and He knows perfectly what we are feeling. I echo Nephi's words: I do not know the meaning of all things, I do not understand why this happened, but I know that God loves His children. 

Romans 8 "For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to^aseparate us from the ^blove of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Slowly but surely, we are finding peace.

a gift to the world

With Christmas fast approaching, maybe you could take 10 minutes and watch this video and remember what the holiday is really all about?

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him might not perish, but have everlasting life. 


John 3:16

What are you doing to make Christmas special this year?

death be not proud

Today in Aaron's doctor-patient relations class they watched a video chronicling an English professor's struggle with stage 4 ovarian cancer. Since all of his lectures get posted online, I got to watch it too, at home. It was heartbreaking. And it reminded me of my grandma and visiting her in the hospital, so you know, I was practically sobbing in half of it. This poem by John Donne was mentioned over and over:


Death be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadfull, for, thou art not so,
For, those, whom thou think'st, thou dost overthrow,
Die not, poore death, nor yet canst thou kill me.
From rest and sleepe, which but thy pictures bee,
Much pleasure, then from thee, much more must flow,
And soonest our best men with thee doe goe,
Rest of their bones, and soules deliverie.
Thou art slave to Fate, Chance, kings, and desperate men,
And dost with poyson, warre, and sicknesse dwell,
And poppie, or charmes can make us sleepe as well,
And better then thy stroake; why swell'st thou then?
One short sleepe past, wee wake eternally,
And death shall be no more, death, thou shalt die.


The last two lines are especially beautiful. "...wee wake eternally" isn't that the truth? Because of Jesus Christ, death is dead. It is overcome, and we live forever.
Beautiful.

my gps took a long time to find a satellite signal

We did not end up getting to hang out in DC. Some people in our branch needed a ride to the temple, and we were the only ones with extra seats. So to the temple we went! But not into the actual city (where I was going to meet up with my old roomie Kristen).

Maybe I cried a little bit behind my sunglasses, sitting in the front seat. I like planning things, and I'm not too happy when things don't work out.

But I did not cry during our first sunday school lesson yesterday, so that was good!

But then I cried after I got home from driving Aaron to orientation this morning, so I'm back to square one. Parallel parking is not so easy, especially when you have an angry cabbie behind you annoyed that you're blocking the road.

On days like this, I like to listen to this song:

I dream of driveways and garages and lawns. The end.

lately

We have been put right to work in our branch. We sort of love it. (note use of litote.) Already we feel so much more welcome than we ever did in our ward back in Utah. We were in the ward for almost seven months, never got callings, never spoke in church, made like two friends. Probably we could've been more social, but we just weren't feeling it. Here, within two weeks we've been called as the new Gospel Doctrine teachers (ahhh!!!! I never took the second half of New Testament at BYU! And...maybe I have never even read the entire second half of the New Testament!) and we spoke in sacrament meeting yesterday. And, Aaron went teaching with the missionaries last week, and we're going on the branch temple trip this Saturday. It is nice to feel needed.

Temple trip = day trip to Washington, DC so my friends who have spent some time in the glorious capital, what should we do with ourselves? Good places to eat, must-see museums/monuments? What would you do if you had, say 2 PM to 8 PM free in the city?

Also, today I ordered a new book from Amazon (my free Amazon Prime membership ends next week, so I have to use it while I can!). It's this year's Pulitzer Prize winner in nonfiction, and it's called The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer. I think medical nonfiction is fascinating (if you haven't read Better or Complications by Atul Gawande, you should!), so I'm quite excited for this book to arrive.

Tips for DC? Books you've been reading lately? You love your ward too?
Tell me about it. :)

sunday thoughts

My very dear friend Kim is leaving this Wednesday (!!!) on a mission for the LDS church to Fort Worth, Texas. We've been friends since 3rd grade, and I still consider her to be one of my best friends. Today we got to go hear her speak at church, and she did awesome. This girl is gonna change a bunch of lives, guys. Kim is one of those people who is not afraid to tell it like it is, and she can start up a conversation with anyone.  
At the end of her talk she bore a really powerful testimony of Christ and the Atonement. It was refreshing and inspiring. A great reminder of what is important in life, and to whom we owe everything.

Isaiah puts it poetically:

"He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed."

Isaiah 53:3-5

We are healed.
Isn't that beautiful? Awful things may happen to us, and we may make mistakes, but we can be healed. There is always a way out. And that way is Jesus Christ.

"And now, I would commend you to seek this Jesus of whom the prophets and apostles have written, that the grace of God the Father, and also the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost, which beareth record of them, may be and abide in you forever. Amen."
Ether 12:41, emphasis added

Amen, amen.


(basically, I stole all the scriptures Kim used in her talk. see? it was good.)

thought of the day:

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

Proverbs 3:5

to and fro

My lovely friend Sara emailed me this great talk by Sister Patricia Holland. This paragraph was particularly striking to me:


"We must have the courage to be imperfect while striving for perfection. We must not allow our own guilt, the feminist books, the talk-show hosts, or the whole media culture to sell us a bill of goods—or rather a bill of no goods. We can become so sidetracked in our compulsive search for identity and self-esteem that we really believe it can be found in having perfect figures or academic degrees or professional status or even absolute motherly success. Yet, in so searching externally, we can be torn from our true internal, eternal selves. We often worry so much about pleasing and performing for others that we lose our uniqueness—that full and relaxed acceptance of one’s self as a person of worth and individuality. We become so frightened and insecure that we cannot be generous toward the diversity and individuality, and yes, problems, of our neighbors. Too many women with these anxieties watch helplessly as their lives unravel from the very core that centers and sustains them. Too many are like a ship at sea without sail or rudder, 'tossed to and fro,' as the Apostle Paul said (see Eph. 4:14), until more and more of us are genuinely, rail-grabbingly seasick."


Full talk here.


Oh and chemistry GRE? So done with that. Scores to come in 6 weeks. I'm just glad it's OVER!!!!

the night is darkest just before the dawn

My oscillation between despair and joy continues, as this afternoon I'm feeling significantly better about life.

461 homework is done (thank you thank you thank you Dave).
391 paper is...getting there...
French doesn't feel too daunting
and neither does lab.

So, what did we learn kiddies?
Katie should try harder not to freak out about school all the time.

I read Romans 8 last week, and I really like a lot of the verses in there:

18: For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed to us.

26: Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.

28: And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

31: What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can prevail against us?

35: Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
37: Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors though him that loved us.
38: For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor pricipalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
39: Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

May I add "nor 391 papers, nor 461 homework, nor post lab quizzes, nor sleepless nights, nor feelings of inadequacy shall be able to separate us from the love of God"?

Everything will work out. Things will get better. The semester will end.
I have been so richly blessed. If school is all I have to worry about, life is not so bad.
It's just hard to remember that sometimes.

like a little seed

"Now ye may suppose that this is foolishness in me; but behold I say unto you, that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass; and small means in many instances doth confound the wise."

-Alma 37:6

This week has been really, really rough. And right now I'm sort of clinging to the hope that the fact that I gave up two hours of my evening going to the temple (small thing) instead of doing a number of other things that need to be done will help me get my presentation (great thing, as in huge task, not as in my presentation is going to be so awesome) done before 7 AM tomorrow.

My chem lit professor would cringe at the construction of that sentence.

Here's to having a little faith, for once.

girl on fire

Today I was getting a little freaked out by my classes and everything else that I have coming up next semester...Blackpool...new calling...chemistry intramural team (?!) etc, and then I read this snippet from President Uchtdorf's message in the January Ensign:

"If ever you are tempted to become discouraged or to lose faith, remember those faithful Saints who remained true in Kirtland. Hold on a little longer. You can do this! You are part of a special generation. You were prepared and preserved to live at this important time in the existence of our beautiful planet earth. You have a celestial pedigree and therefore have all the necessary talents to make your life an eternal success story.

The Lord has blessed you with a testimony of the truth. You have felt His influence and witnessed His power. And if you continue to seek Him, He will continue to grant you sacred experiences. With these and other spiritual gifts, you will be able not only to change your own life for the better but also to bless your homes, wards or branches, communities, cities, states, and nations with your goodness.

It may be hard to see that at times, but hold on a little longer, for 'eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him' and wait for Him."

Here we go, year 2010. Let's hold on and make this the best one yet.

full message

Minuit Chrétiens

"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever..."
-Isaiah 9:6-7

Merry Christmas everyone! May we remember why we celebrate.

have a little faith

"It's not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man actually in the arena, whose face is marred with dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes short again and again, who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worth cause, who at best knows achievement, and who at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly so that his place will never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat."

-Theodore Roosevelt

via a card from Laura. What a perfect quote! Thank you!

I am feeling much better mostly for two reasons:

1. Because of a tremendous outpouring of love and support from my mom, roommates, teammates, friends, and coaches. Thank you all for your words of encouragement. I really, really appreciate it.

2. During my mad scramble this morning to see if there was any possible way I could still apply for an internship I discovered that the deadline was extended to December 1st. Miracle of miracles, I still have the chance to at least be considered for this amazing opportunity!

More than anything, I guess this weekend has been a testament to me that I don't need to freak out. Things will be okay, and whether the definition of okay matches with mine or not is not important. This time it did (minus the fact that there was no way to go back and redance the competition), but it won't always in the future. And I have to accept that. Heavenly Father has a plan for me, like he does for each of you, and if I'm doing what I can to live the Gospel, I need never worry about what events or circumstances I have to experience.

That being said, this girl is not going down without a fight.
Bring it on, finals week, scary social situations, and the next round of ballroom competitions (ah?). I'm not dying with the song still in me.

time is all around

As of 5:10 this morning, I am back to reality.

Tour was so much fun this year. I knew what to expect and what not to expect (vacation-like experience, I don't think so), so it was a lot more enjoyable. We got to see some cool things like the beach (we didn't get to swim, but we did get to get our feet wet), the Reagan Presidential Library (which has his Air Force 1 plane in it, the entire, huge, actual plane. It was awesome.), the 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica (shopped at H&M and got a delicious ham and cheese crepe), Downtown Disney, multiple temples, Hollywood, In-N-Out, and more. The thing that always strikes me when we tour is how generous people are. We stay with host families every night, and they are always so welcoming, so willing to do whatever to make us comfortable. You have the chance to see people from all walks of life and from all socioeconomic statuses, but everyone has the same high level of hospitality. It's awesome. It's also great to go to church in different cities and see that it's still the same, no matter where you go. The members believe the same things, give talks on the same subjects, testify of the same doctrine everywhere in the world. What a testimony of the truthfulness, stability, and unity of the church.

The forecast for this week is:
three tests
three extra homework assignments that should've already been done
two 5-11 pm rehearsals for Homecoming Spectacular
two performances for Homecoming Spectacular
one morning full of balloon handing out for the Homecoming Spectacular parade

May I be blessed with three extra hours in the day and twice as much brainpower for the next seven days...

I was going to work on physics homework, but then realized I didn't understand resistivity and got stuck here instead.

Sugar free pudding has no point (if you're going to buy pudding, why bother trying for healthy?) and almost no taste. I wish I'd remembered this while grocery shopping on Friday.

A big thank you to everyone who came to our mocktail extravaganza for Laura's birthday on Saturday! If you weren't there, you missed some awesome drinks including: Upside Slammer with a Twist, Mocktinis, Strawberry Daiquiri, Peach Pina Colada, NCMO on the Beach, Au Pair, Everything but the Kitchen Sink, Twisted Brown Cow, One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish, Pop-n-Rock, Screwdriver, Kamikaze, Death by Chocolate, Spicy Shirley Temple, and more...to the total of 21 completely unique mocktails. Yes, we are that cool.

If you're wondering what to make for dinner, why don't you check out our new dinner group blog for recipes? Let me say I am oh so very glad that our apartment decided to do this. Thanks to Avenues 123 guys for inviting us!

Conference was awesome. Can't wait for the November Ensign to come out so I can attack it with a highlighter. I'm feeling a tad guilty for falling asleep not once, not twice, but three times, once per session for every session except Saturday morning. Oops. That's what the mp3 files online are for...

Little Bec Bec is dancing this Thursday at the dance lab, and she looks AMAZING. Oh my greatness, I am so excited to watch her kill everyone in the silver latin competition. I shall be organizing a cheering section for her since I don't actually have to compete due to taking Gold Bar Latin this semester. Yay!

Happy Monday everyone. Hope you all have awesome weeks. :)

Goalage!!

I've been thinking a bit here and there, and I've come up with some goals for the back to school season. There's nothing too life changing, but little things here and there to make for a more successful semester.

Spiritual:
1. Morning scripture study before I go to class. Now, I have class at 7:00 AM almost every morning, and I love, love, love my sleep so this is going to be particularly difficult. However, I feel that if I make scripture study a bigger priority by doing it first thing in the morning I'll be blessed in other areas in my life where I desperately need some divine help.
2. Weekly temple attendance. I think once the semester starts, and I get a regular schedule going I'll be able to find mornings or late afternoons where this will be possible.

Physical:
1. Running (or some other form of exercise I can stand) twice a week. Yeah, I know that's not really enough to do much for me, but combined with all of my dancing, I think I'll be okay.
2. Practice twice a week for dance. This is cutting back hugely compared to years past, but I think it's all I can handle. I really want to focus on...

Academic:
1. Study at least an hour a day on my own for both Physics 220 and Chem 462. I want to make the Dean's List this semester (which means I have to get straight A's), and I did awful on studying last semester, so....yeah.
2. Work in the lab ten hours a week. Last semester I was working maybe two. Every two weeks. I'd like to up that a bit to earn some money and real life experience!

Social:
1. Know the names of all my neighbors (hahaha, so I'm not the most social person) and go to all the church activities I can. Freshman year I was really bad at this. Sophomore year was improved (anything would've been an improvement), but...I can still do more. I want to know everyone in my ward and make a lot of friends there.
2. Do something for someone else every day. It doesn't have to be big, but just some small act of service. I get busy and stressed and then I spiral down into a busy-stressed-self-pitying vortex, so I'm going to try to avoid that this time around. :)

Random:
1. Keep track of money. I am so, so awful at this. I did however, make up an excel spreadsheet a little while ago to keep track of expenditures. Have I been using it? Well....that's something to work on.

So there you have it. Anyone else have back to school goals?