Tough Grits

At the Beehive clothing store there is a size chart that correlates a persons measurements with the sizing on the clothing. The same chart can be accessed on-line when purchasing temple clothing from the Church website. Usually the workers at the store (or on the phone) are good about helping one to find the appropriate size. Unopened packages can be returned. When purchasing clothing items from Beehive clothing, the workers generally suggest to only open one package, try the items on...then, if the fit or material is not correct, the other unopened packages can be returned/exchanged for a different size/style/material.

I got your quip...thought it was funny too. I had just never heard of Durlon. Drysilk, yes. Cotton, yes. Mesh, yes. Durlon, no.

What is a "troll"? What in the world is "durlon"?

Fear is the path to the Dark Side. Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering. YODA, Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace My son (5) is really into Star Wars right now...he has been playing Star Wars Legos on PS2. Anyway, he has wanted to watch all the episodes...in order. So, I have Star Wars on the brain!!!

Thanks for posting this!!! I love e-mailing links like this to family and friends. There are still those who are not adept on the internet and computer, and being able to e-mail a link that they can just click on and watch is AWESOME. Thanks!

I am the Freefall and the Starfish. With some exceptions. In the freefall, my arms are under my pillow. In the starfish, one arm is on my forehead or over my eyes. If I sleep on my side, one arm goes under the pillow, and the other arm goes over my ear. I have to have noise. So, I have a loud fan by my side of the bed for the noise, and I like a fleece blanket against my body. I don't like to be touched, held, or snuggled while I am sleeping.

I agree. Without pulling out my dictionary, I thought an atheist believes that there was absolutely NO God, while an agnostic could not be certain that there was a God, or that there was not a God. Go back as far as you can in written history, and there is religion of some form. Which to us only makes sense, as Adam and Eve, being the first humans, taught the gospel to their children. It stands to reason that as their descendants multiplied and spread out upon the earth that they would carry that seed of faith, even though it often became distorted and these descendants, as Elphaba said, "created gods that best reflected their individual cultures."

traffic

Very true.

Two story... Vinyl siding or brick house?

fences Wood fences or chain-link?

arrogant

wordy

lamp

Roses Trees or shrubs?

No, either you misunderstood, or I typed my thoughts wrong...LOL LOL Sacrament starts at 9 a.m., but the bishop has asked that we be in our seats 10 minutes BEFORE 9 a.m. I get to Church at 8:30 a.m. to open the library. But I close the library at 8:50 so that I can go sit down with my family 10 minutes before sacrament meeting starts. However, some members (who run late) think I should have that library open right up to 9 a.m. Like I said (or I thought I said) I will go open the library even once I have closed the library if it is a true emergency, otherwise I politely tell the brother/sister that I will do or get what they need AFTER sacrament meeting...which for us ends at 10:15 a.m. I only open the library between each meeting or class. I feel it is important for me to be on time to Sacrament, Sunday School, and Relief Society. If somebody has a true emergency I will keep the library open later, even though it puts me late getting to class. Basically, I just follow the Spirit. But I am trying to set an example that we should all be better prepared on Sunday's and not have to run around like chickens with our heads cut off. We should also be considerate of others who may actually want to be in the meetings and be there on time! I need EVERY bit of class time I can get. I have known librarians to sit in the library throughout the entire Sunday, not going to Sunday School or to their Priesthood/Relief Society meetings. I can't afford to do that. I need to be in my classes learning and partaking of the Spirit. Also, if I have that library open at all times, and the members know it, then they will not do their part to be in their classes on time either! BTW: I am by myself in that library. I have no assistants. So, that makes it a little more frustrating for me, being the ONLY person that the members can come to, to get their supplies and copies. *SIGH*

Reverence is key. True, we should only speak of the gospel when gathered at Church on Sunday's...but we are human. Maybe the line between fellowshipping and socializing is very fine and left up to interpretation and the Spirit. What if I have nothing in common with another member, but would like to have some light conversation with them between classes? If I knew that they liked football, then maybe asking them how their favorite team did that week WOULD be fellowshipping rather than socializing. I believe in following the Spirit. If the Spirit prompts me to ask a member a question or offer a comment that is not gospel related, then it is not for another to judge. Vision, I agree with you in your thoughts on how the Spirit cannot be driven from us in Church unless we allow it to be. Even when a person makes a weird comment in class or during a talk, as long as it is not a subversive comment against the Church or its teachings, then it is for me to look beyond the mistake and focus on the other good things that might have been said up to that point. Or, when prompted by the Spirit, to offer a clarifying comment during a class to get the discussion back on track. But how could a person follow a prompting of the Spirit and offer a clarifying comment, if they became so upset at the person who offered an off-base comment, that they lost the Spirit? We need to try our hardest to retain the Spirit, so that we will be able to receive promptings that might help that person, or others that might be listening, in getting back on track and back to true doctrine and true principles. I have a hard time paying attention to monotone speakers, speakers who only read from their talk, or who just don't speak well. That is MY issue not theirs. It is for me to listen with the Spirit, as much as it is for another to teach with the Spirit. How can I have the Spirit with me as I listen, if I am only focused on their faults, instead of the actual core message that they are trying to deliver? There are members who get upset with me because I close the library 10 minutes before sacrament, so that I may sit with my family and enjoy the prelude music and focus my heart and mind on receiving the sacrament. If somebody really needs something right away, I will get up and go to the library...or I might politely ask if it is something that I could do for them AFTER the sacrament meeting is over. When I do leave the library to sit down in the chapel, I do not focus on who is talking to who, who is being too loud, who needs to be sitting down, etc. Rather, I am looking forward to sitting down in the pew next to my family and enjoying the peace of the Spirit...which drowns out all the other noise and commotion. It does bug me when members talk during the sacrament or during the talks...but again, that is my problem. I need to learn to focus for myself. None of us are perfect. We just need to try to do the best we can. But I do believe that we have more ability than we think in retaining a peaceful spirit even when others are not being perfect saints. Just my thoughts.

crafting

Vision, I really like the analogy that you used. I agree with you. We cannot have faith or hope without having nurtured them through study, prayer, pondering, and obedience. Think of a tree. With shallow roots, the tree will fall over or be pulled from the ground by strong winds. However, a tree with deeper, thicker roots will not be as easily pulled from the ground or knocked over. Our roots are our faith, hope, and charity. The soil is the gospel. What we nourish our tree (our spirit) with are study, prayer, pondering, and obedience. These principles will allow our roots to grow deep and thick. It does not mean that storms will not come. There may be times that branches are torn off, and that gashes are made in our trunk. But we will be less likely to be ripped from the ground (the gospel) with strong roots (faith, hope, and charity). I want to be a tree with deep roots that do not yield their hold on the earth just because storms are buffeting it.

:lol:

This thread has made me think of the rules of my home: No alcohol, no smoking (unless you go outside...at LEAST 100 ft. from any door or window...as I get severe headaches from the smell of smoke), no unmarried room sharing (never had this one come up!), etc. But Vision, you touched on something that reminded me of when my Dad used to visit me. I have mentioned before that he likes to use profane language...not in anger, just as "flavor" to his conversation or story. I did not ask him to refrain from using ugly words in my home. Looking back, he did not speak vulgar around my babies, but when it was just him and me he would go back to speaking just as he always has. I did not correct him. I honestly felt prompted by the Spirit to hold my tongue. Why? I sincerely feel that it would have upset my dad and placed him in a situation where he would not even feel comfortable conversing with me, his own daughter. I didn't want that. I love him. I don't like his language, but he has talked like that for as long as I can remember. My father is also Cuban. They really like their Cuban coffee, which is MUCH stronger than American coffee. I would never dream of telling my dad not to drink coffee around me. That is as much a part of his culture and speaking Spanish is. A person drinking coffee or tea, whether in my home or not, does not offend me. It is a standard that I have chosen to accept, but they have not. I DO have problem with smoking. I have had this problem LONG before I became a member of this Church. It is NOT a religious issue. Cigarette smoke stinks, and clings easliy to those who are not even smoking. It is also hazardous to my health. It invades my senses, invades my good health, and it violates my personal space and my right to choose NOT to be contaminated with cancer. So, I think there is a HUGE difference between somebody smoking around me, or somebody having coffee/tea around me. Coffee and tea do not invade my senses, my health, or my person space. Smoking does. I agree with Vision in that our "core" values should not be set aside, but the "rules" (like coffee and tea) that I have chosen to abide by, should not be enforced on those that do not understand or accept such rules. But that is just my opinion.

Spirit World

Thank you for sharing this. I have learned quite a few things over the years...up there among the top things are these two: 1. Hindsight is often 20/20 2. Forgiving others also includes forgiving ourselves. My heart goes out to you and your family. Lots of love... ~TG

Looking back at my mental break-down in 2005, I could say that I had no hope. Not because I had lost my faith, but because my mind was so broken, that I could only think of leaving this earth. Yet I am still here. How is that? I have seriously pondered this. The answer means a lot to me, because my life was spared as a result. Maybe all the hope, faith, studying, praying, pondering, listening to my leaders, and reading of the scriptures that I had done prior to my breakdown had me on such a forward momentum, that when I went through my breakdown, I was able to coast forward still on the momentum of the hope and faith that I had before my breakdown. Also, there were MANY family members and friends praying for me. I was certainly lifted up and protected by their prayers, their faith, and their hope. Now, at the bottom of it all was God's will. It was not His will for me to succumb to the dark thoughts of depression. True, I was not actively using my hope/faith during my breakdown, because I was not mentally able to do so. But it is my own personal belief that because I had followed correct principles BEFORE my breakdown, that I was able to better endure that horrendous trial. I can't even begin to imagine how I would have endured without this Gospel. It is not folly to teach correct principles. Yes, there are some who use their knowledge to bash those they see as sinners, but we are all sinners to some degree. Therefore, correct principles are for each of us. When a person states that we should never lose our brightness of hope, we should choose to see their words as concern for us and their way of trying to help us. Some people are better at expressing themselves than others. Did I really lose my brightness of hope amidst my breakdown? My personal belief is that all my faith and hope was still within my spirit, but because of the severity of my depression, it just became harder for that hope and faith within my spirit to penetrate the dark thoughts of my mind. Just my thoughts.

I often wonder where the hope has gone when I hear members bemoan the state of the world and society, and focus too much on the bad. LDS.org> Gospel Library> Gospel Topics> Hope Yes, things are bad. But there have been "bad" things since Adam and Eve were thrust out into the loan and dreary world. Just look at what happened between their sons, Cain and Able. But having a brightness of hope comes from looking at all the beauty amidst the turmoil. Yes, we must avoid the pitfalls of mortality and the temptations of Satan, but we have so much to be thankful for even as we overcome obstacles. LDS.org> Gospel Library> Gospel Topics> Hope What do I hope for? What differentiates my hope from my faith? I hope that I will have a happy life full of learning and progression. I have faith in Heavenly Father that He will bless me with the appropriate blessings and trials to achieve the very learning and progression that I hoped for. LDS.org> Gospel Library> Gospel Topics> Hope Yes, we should be concerned enough about the ills of society to do that which is righteous, but there is no need to run around in a panic as if we were Chicken Little shouting that the sky is falling. I wonder if those (even some members) who are of a doomsday mindset have simply fallen away from reading their scriptures, FHE, daily prayer, repentance, and/or listening to the messages of joy and hope from our leaders. LDS.org> Gospel Library> Gospel Topics> Hope Sure, I am concerned about the world...especially in regards to my children, but because of my faith and hope, which is constantly nourished by my prayers, studying, FHE, repentance, and listening to the messages of joy and hope from our leaders, I am able to see the brightness all around me rather than the darkness.