Humility

One of the greatest struggles I have in life is my pride. I suppose most of us could say that to one degree or another. So how does one obtain that infamous humility? It's a constant struggle I come back to again and again. And I think one of the best answers I've found is this little gem, given to me on my mission by an old lady with lots and lots of books:

“Humility is: Perpetual quietness of heart. It is to have no troubles. It is never to be fretted or vented, irritable or sore. To wonder at nothing done to me. To feel nothing done against me. It is to be at rest when nobody praises me or when I am blamed or despised. It is to have a blessed home in myself, where I can go in and shut the door and kneel to my Father in secret and be in peace as in a deep sea of calmness when all about is searing trouble.”–Dr. Black

You know, come to think of it I've probably shared that quote before on this blog. But it's been such a long time since I've thought of it, so I feel ok about posting it again. My favorite part is the last sentence. How do you have a blessed home in yourself? I think so often we look, as the quote suggests, for outside praise or outside sources of happiness. When really, we can go inside of ourselves, kneel to our Father in Heaven in prayer, and feel peace amidst any storm, any insecurity, any personal weakness, any sorrow, any hurt, and any feelings of guilt, shame, or remorse. Because real humility leads us to the knowledge that without our Father in Heaven and our Savior, we are nothing. But with them we can be anything. We can be forgiven. We can be loved. We can be happy. Actually, more than that, we can feel forgiven, we can feel loved, and we can feel happy, not just act happy.

If I may, here is another quote that is semi-related (also one which I may have quoted in the past), which is especially needful for me right now:

“We are so absorbed in ourselves–how we look and what we need and whether or not other people like us or think we are attractive or capable–that we have little time and energy to think about and serve others or to seek God’s will instead of our own.”–Wendy Top, Getting Past the Labels, p. 9 (she's my mission president's wife--a remarkable woman!)

Here's to feeling confident about our self-worth and our estimation in God's eyes (not to mention others' eyes, though we may not readily admit it), and to having more energy and emotional strength to serve others more fully. Love to you all!

Friday fun

Royce has come up with a way to help me overcome my indecisiveness. I'm not sure yet how much I like it, but it sure does make for an entertaining evening!

To begin, he handed me a 20-sided die (although his doesn't have neat blue and yellow dots). I was instructed to roll, and whatever number I rolled would determine our activity for the evening. On a piece of paper were 20 possible activities (this list, though, was not to be seen by my eyes, lest I try and cheat). I was also told that if I wanted to roll again for a different activity I could do so, but it would cost me a dollar. Can you believe that my very own fiance is trying to rip me off?! Lucky for me, I was thrilled by the activity that corresponded with the number I rolled: a trip to the Monte L. Bean Life Science Museum!

You would not believe how cool that place is. First of all, it's free. And not free in the sense that when you walk in there is a donation box with a person behind it that won't let you pass unless you donate the suggested amount of $15 (have you ever been to one of those? I hate that!). And this week was especially exciting as they were celebrating their 30th Anniversary. The special anniversary event for Friday was going behind the scenes to see the hidden collections. We ended up on the insects tour--not the best choice it turns out, as the smell of chemicals was nauseating to the point where I was trying to breath through Royce's shirt to avoid passing out. But we saw some pretty cool dead bugs. Not as cool as this display though:

A butterfly made out of butterflies! Wow!

At 7:30 they had a live animal show--Friday was supposed to be invertebrates, but instead we got reptiles. A fair exchange, I think. The host of the show, Matt, was super entertaining, but not as entertaining as the kids. We met Otis the Tortoise, Colonel Mustard the lizard, and a boa constrictor, whose name fails me. In any case, the kids asked the greatest questions, such as:

"Is that the kind of snake that shatters?" An incredulous Matt responds, "I've never heard of that kind of snake; it sounds awesome though." The kid: "You know. When their body shatters apart?" My question: is this a shattering snake that also reconstructs after it shatters?

Another one, in reference to Colonel Mustard who is a bearded dragon lizard: "Does it have fire in it?!" Unfortunately, no.

On the other hand, they asked some pretty intelligent questions, such as what each animals' predators were, which were the largest species of each animal, and what species could you find in Utah. I should clarify that these were primarily little boys. Go figure.

Royce had the brilliant idea of inviting the Trumans, who fortunately were able to come, which meant that we got to hang out with Lucy and like star-struck fans watch her every reaction and laugh at her every delight. Following the show, Lori was asking Lucy about the animals we had seen and asked her what color Colonel Mustard the lizard was.

Lori: "Was he yellow?"
Lucy: "No."
Lori: "What color of lizard is he?"
Lucy: "Kind of an orange-green lizard."

Oh. Both orange and green have yellow in them, so I guess that's not too far off.

Well folks, I was going to tell you what happened when I rolled for dinner, but this post is too long as it is, so you'll just have to wait in anxious suspense.

One Month!!!

That's all.

Mysterious neighbor

Late last night as I was driving home, I saw the silhouette of what appeared to be a cat in the gutter as I rounded the corner. For some reason I slowed to a stop to get a better look. As I approached the animal, I saw very clearly a little raccoon staring me down before he disappeared under the grate. Now, I don't know if I'm super excited about having raccoons in the neighborhood, but it is kind of cool to actually see one. Once, on my mission, my companion and I were driving slowly through a neighborhood trying to find a house (it was quite dark) and saw what appeared to be a cat running. As it passed in front of our headlights we realized it was a fox! Real foxes look very different than cartoon foxes, by the way. It was kind of cool.

So I haven't been studying ALL the time

I've definitely managed to have a bit of fun here and there. A few weeks ago--on Leap Day, to be precise--we went to Disneyland with the Fitz's. Though Amy did a more than adequate job describing our adventure, I thought I would add a few pictures.

The McDonald's in Barstow is a great place to stop for breakfast, should you happen to leave from Las Vegas at 4:00 am.
(If you look really hard you can see Royce.)


Once at Disneyland, we kept seeing what we supposed were the dream-givers (not sure if they have a real title) and asked them to take our pictures in front of random areas in hopes that they would give us dream something-or-others. It failed, and we tried at least three times!




We met up with some of Royce's friends for lunch in Burbank the next day.

If you stop by the large thermometer in the desert, you can get your picture taken with this awesome guy at Big Boys Burgers. We didn't eat there though.

Back in Vegas, we finally got to see the caves. You all should go! They're pretty awesome. Just be prepared for a bumpy, slightly crowded ride in Ryan's dad's awesome truck (why didn't I get a picture of that?). Royce and I burned our names into the ceiling of the cave so all will know we were there. And Royce created what I think he called his sacrificial circle. Kind of weird. Good thing we did this instead of going to church (oops!).


And here's a random chronicling of what we've done since that big adventure.

Royce decided we should make a fruit pizza. Here was the result.
Looks pretty good, huh! We wish we had more people to share it with though, because after a few days the crust got pretty soggy!

Last weekend Royce took me on a surprise date. I had been up in Bountiful working on some wedding stuff, and while I was up there he planned a scavenger hunt in the mall. So creative, huh! And so fun, and free!

We decided that we could afford to live here. Think it will work?
I finished all 28? questions in barely over an hour!
And for winning (I didn't have anyone to play against, but I suppose I won) he treated me to an Orange Julius.
What a sweetheart.

My excuse

So, I realize it's been awhile since I posted, but there's definitely a reason. In addition to wedding plans (which, by the way folks, we're almost there!), I've been preparing for my GRADUATE ORALS. If you don't know what I'm talking about, be grateful. So, they were this morning, and, miracle of miracles, I passed! It ends up being a pretty intimidating affair--when asked questions on the spot like that it's amazing how quickly your brain stops functioning. As I was trying to think of various composers I just kept thinking, "Beethoven, then Brahms, then . . . well . . . but he's French . . . " Really helpful. Anyway, it's done. Hallelujah. I'm one step closer to graduating. I have one more REALLY BIG project to complete and then you can call me Master Heather if it so pleases you.

I will try to do some catch up posts here. Sorry you get so much of me at once and then none of me for long stretches. I'll try to be more consistent starting in . . . August?

Dates . . . and otherwise

For Valentine's Day Royce and I got a heart-shaped pizza. It's hard to tell because of all the toppings. But it was pretty romantic. I think it may become a tradition!



Post Valentine's Day, we went on a spur of the moment "blind date." I highly suggest this when you have nothing else to do.
Not too much explanation is needed. All you need is a blindfold . . .
an iPod (the covering of the ears is just for extra measure) . . .
and a secret destination, arrived at by driving in circles to the point of confusion
Then you conduct a taste test.
It took awhile, but he finally made the correct diagnosis. Fun times.


Afterwards we woke up the ducks at the botany pond by throwing them little balls of snow that they apparently thought was bread--it was quite entertaining!