To The Seeing

 If you have good vision, there are some things you cannot see.  You cannot see the blur of a leaf the way I see it.  You cannot see the way I feel when there are bright lights that look like mini suns instead of light bulbs.  The way a dirty floor looks that needs to be swept.  There are some things you can see.
Today, I can see.  When I was in China, I lost my glasses on the bus or at English Corner.  That was about 2 years ago.  When I realized they were gone for good, I just hoped they went too someone who needed them.  Now, I have a new pair.  2 new pairs, actually.  And I went on a walk and I thought about how beautiful this world that God has given us actually is.  Oh yes, I believe it is a beautiful gift from Him to us. 
The first thing I did, actually, when I got my glasses was look through them and try to comprehend the new sort of depth perception and clarity.  It is like watching high definition in an IMAX after only being able to watch old videos, yes, on VHS.  You know what I mean?  I mean the ones that have a poor visual quality to them and cheesy acting.  The ones we loved as kids and have to get touched up on dvd/digital now.  Those ones.  That is what getting glasses is like.  It is like going to the IMAX after only watching old VHS. 
Then the first thing I did was sweep my floor.  ...Then I cleaned my dustpan. 
After a while, I went on a walk.  It was beautiful outside.  You know what a miracle having glasses is?  It is a miracle.
I showed my new glasses to my dear friend, Minta.  She asked me what it looked like before.  This is a question that although I can give an answer to, it doesn't really make sense unless you have experienced it or something like it.  So, I handed my glasses to her and she looked through them.  She was surprised.  I asked her what it looked like.  She said it looked blurry.  That is exactly what I would tell people when they asked me what it looks like without glasses. 
Last time I got glasses, people would say, "Oh, now you can see!"  or, "Oh, now you can see the blades of grass and the trees!"  In a way, I didn't care if people said that.  In a way, I almost had to stop myself from letting myself think they were judging me.  And it is not that they were making fun or anything.  They were comprehending and letting me know that they were happy for me.  Before I got my glasses this time, I had forgotten the clarity they brought.

Let me show you what I mean.
Instead of seeing this dandelion,

I would see this dandelion. 

 

 I take off my glasses, and look at this fuzzy picture and think, "Yep.  That looks normal."  (Not up close, but from a distance.)  If you have only experience with excellent eye sight, you would not understand that.  If you have experience with things being blurry you could understand it.  I guess that is the way we people are built, though.  We have no experience with something and we don't understand it.  We have experience with something, we understand it, or we begin to.  

Can you imagine walking around 24/7 not being able to see clearly after having been able to see clearly without any effort at all?  This is what it made me think of:  Can you imagine taking away the medicine one takes so that his or her immune system does not attack itself?  Can you imagine taking the needed accomodations, adaptations or medicine away from a person who has AHDH, Asperger's, Down's Syndrome, Bi-Polar, eczema, Crohn's disease, etc...?  How about the cast from the star tennis player who broke her arm or the crutches from the injured runner?  Can you imagine, taking away someone's glasses?

So, let me just tell you, although it is weird to get used to and I have to sit farther away from my computer so I can focus on it, now, it is a wonderful miracle to have glasses.  It is a miraculous blessing to be able to see.  Sight is a blessing that God has given us.  And the lack of proper sight is a blessing that God has also given me. 

I'll take you on my little walk and show you some of what The Lord, eye doctors, insurance and my family have blessed me to see.  

The morning glory - (I didn't notice anything specific, just that it was pretty and more clear.  That's why I shared this one.)

The rocks and their shadows, the grass blades and my friend, Megan, walking home.  From 3 stories up.  

 The veins of some leaves on the ground.  The crisp, jagged shape.

 The very last telephone pole.  It's hard to see it in this picture, and it was faint in the distance, but I could see it!

 The crows or black birds in the trees behind that house. 

 Here's a closeup of them.  I was very surprised I could see them from where I was. 
I also saw some birds in a tree above me and I COULD SEE THEIR WINGS and tail feathers!  I could see their tiny, tiny beaks!  I mean the beak and the detail of it, not just the shape.  I could see the crow's individual feathers when he spread his wings and flew.  I could see the bars on the airplane that flew above.  (I was going to show you the picture, but you would have barely been able to tell it was a plane.)

 The droplets of water shooting forth out of the sprinkler.  It didn't just look like mist. 

The columbine out my front door.  It was in perfect focus. 

Here is a closeup of their beauty.  Notice the seeds from the burning bush on the ground.  I could see those, too!  :)  

I hope you now enjoy the beauties outside more than you did before.  I hope you appreciate the glories and wonders of this world.  I hope I enjoy the beautiful, glorious, wonderful creation where I live and what I see.  It is beautiful. 

Home Made Yogurt and Wisdom Teeth

Okay, folks.  You remember that homemade yogurt recipe I posted on here a while back?  Well, I am finally making it!   Except, instead of doing the cooler method, I am using a yogurt maker!  Here's the story: 

I got my upper wisdom teeth out on Thursday.  And they had already grown in, so it was a cinch and basically painless.  Awesome recovery.  Fabulous dentist.  Kind teeth.  TOMORROW, I am getting my lower wisdom teeth out.  !!!!!!  Yikes.  !!!!!!  These are the ones that make me nervous.  (But maybe it will be as lovely as my top teeth???  (Yeah right.  Dream on.)  SO, I am making homemade yogurt!  Finally!  I got some powdered milk substitute - they didn't have the real stuff at my store...  It is called 'Morning Moo's" and you know, we even tried it just like drinking milk (and we probably even tried it with cereal) and it wasn't bad at all.  It was actually pretty good!  For example, it tasted like milk!  I know.  Weird.  So I am using that in my Yogurt Experiment Number One.  And then I will have some delicious yogurt for the week when I have a holy mouth.  ...i am hoping it works because this will be a cheaper way to have yogurt... and I would feel like a better homemaker woman.  I'm also just excited to try this out and see if my creation actually works. 

If it is good, I'll let you know.  If not... I'll have to try again and you can tell me if it worked for you... or not... or what you did. 

Integrity

Okay, I totally fell apart with the whole arm workout thing.  Sorry.  But, I have not forgotten.  I just let it fall apart.  Time to start up again. 

The real reason I am writing to you:
I found this quote in a little notebook I have.  It says,

"I am not bound to win.  But I am bound to be true.  I am not bound to succeed, but I am bound to live by the light that I have.  I must stand with anybody that stands right, and stand with him while he is right, and part with him when he goes wrong."
 ~ Abraham Lincoln

This is an very significant quote.  It shows us that we must have integrity in our hearts and our actions.  We must stay true to the truth.  In our modern world and society, there is a huge influence of lies, misunderstandings, fraud - whether legal fraud or fraud of the heart - and people just disregarding integrity for their own personal gain of misery.  I don't know why people think they want things that bring misery, but we all fall into this trap.  I even fall into this trap sometimes.  For example; I tell myself, "I'll just relax a little,"  when I would be happier to go do something productive or going to visit someone who needs some cheering up.  You see, no matter what size we are on the scale, integrity is always something that is being attacked and is always something that we have to stand up for and actively fight for, otherwise it disintegrates and we have nothing much to hold on to.

When I was 12-18, I was part of the world wide Young Women organization.  Every week, we would recite the Young Women Theme. 

We are daughters of our Heavenly Father, who loves us, and we love Him. We will “stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places” as we strive to live the Young Women values, which are:

Faith • Divine Nature • Individual Worth • Knowledge • Choice and Accountability • Good Works • Integrity • and Virtue

We believe as we come to accept and act upon these values, we will be prepared to strengthen home and family, make and keep sacred covenants, receive the ordinances of the temple, and enjoy the blessings of exaltation.
 (reference)   (Mosiah 18:9)

 Isn't that a beautiful thing?  We would work on something called Personal Progress.  This is where you have a little booklet and there are experiences in there that help you live certain values.  They are called Value Experiences.  As you can see from the theme, one of the values is integrity.  I didn't really understand integrity when I was in the Young Women program, but I tried to and I tried to live it.  Now, as I have grown older, I realize how important  and spot on President Lincoln was when he expressed the need to stay true. 

I invite all who read this post to re-evaluate yourself and what you know and what you believe.  Re-align your actions and words and thoughts with what is truth.  You may have a difficult time, once you make the resolve to do this, but it is not beyond your capacity.  Pray that God will help you be true.  If you don't know what is true, ask him.  It may take a long, long time to find the answers, but sometimes, that is part of the refining that He gives us to do.  Hold on.  He will comfort you, help you, and steady you and He will answer your faithful prayers. 

Start The Summer Off Right

There's nothing like starting the day off right! Yesterday was my last day of work at the elementary school.
"Our (morning) actually begins before this blog post, 200 years ago...  Back when the day was new, the golden sun was just coming up..."

 I guess I'll cut the animation and re-writing of lyrics to just tell you about our morning. 

 Ryan and I are going to run a 5k in the fall.  It is called Joseph's Miracle Run.  In 1813, two hundred years ago, a young boy who would do a great work as a man prepared for the trials of his life as he endured an experimental surgery during a bout of typhoid fever.  The doctor who performed the procedure founded Dartmouth Medical College.  Joseph's posterity has organized a run;

"As a thank you, the Joseph Smith Sr. Family Association is working to establish a scholarship of gratitude on behalf of Dr. Nathan Smith to the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth Medical College."

So, Ryan and I are starting to train for this 5k.   This morning was our first official day of training.  I know, I know.  We usually hear about people training for running marathons, but we all have to start somewhere and this is where we are, so here is where we are starting. 
And that's the start of my morning.  We got up, went for a jog.  Yeah, it wasn't very far, but that is why we can keep going and why we can improve.  So, we worked out.  It felt really good.  We were very happy to have done so, even though our ears and fingers were cold, and our legs were tired, and we didn't warm up and my lungs screamed at me, like a dragon falling in a pit, flapping it's wings and clawing at anything that may possibly help it escape until a victory is finally found.  I may exaggerate a slight amount, but that is what it was basically like. 
After our workout and stretching, we enjoyed, well, I enjoyed, watching this bird pull a worm out of the ground then hop away with it's prize. 

We prayed and read.  I read some scriptures:

"Fear not to do good, my sons, for whatsoever ye sow, that shall ye also reap; therefore, if ye sow good ye shall also reap good for your reward."

as well as,

 Did I not speak peace to your mind concerning the matter?  What greater witness can you hae than from God?

I really love these scriptures.  They are both found in the same section of scripture: Doctrine and Covenants section 6.)  The word of the Lord is so beautiful and comforting and even when I feel like I'm in trouble for not doing right, I feel like God still loves me and is telling me that I should fix it so that I can feel his love even more.  So I can come back to him when I pass this mortal life. It is just so beautiful to become more like God - more holy, more gracious, more perfect, more pure.

And that is why my morning was wonderful.  It was a great way to begin the start of Summer break. 
 (Also, to end the school year, I applied for 14 jobs!  I love how efficient the internet can be!)  Now, all I need to do is figure out what my list of 104 things to do during the summer are.  My sister came up with her list and it is pretty awesome.  She got it off a tv show.  Phineas and Ferb - or something.  There are 104 days of Summer vacation, so they come up with a list of 104 things to do.  Sounds pretty good to me!  I think I'll have to give it a try. 
Well, I'm up and out.  Off to have a productive day!

Arms Day 2 - Find Your Time and Determine To Stick To It!

Arms Day 2
I finally did my workout.  Day 2 of the arms.  You are supposed to only do this every other day, so I don't know if this is supposed to work if the process takes 7 days or if I actually lift for 7 days.  Either way, I will be in better shape than when I started.  ...right?  (I mean, it is possible to overwork and be worse than when one started.)
Today was more difficult than Monday.  On Monday I worked out in the morning.  Today, I didn't work out until 11pm.  That probably made a difference.  Not that I lifted boxes or anything too strenuous today, I just wasn't as fresh as I would have been in the morning. 
My advice:  Find a time that works best for you and stick to it.  So, on Friday, I'll try a morning workout, again and see if it helps. 
Also, Day one's advice:  Use weights that are not too heavy for your personal use and strength.