I can't feel my fingers...

I can't seem to get warm today. Even though my office says it's 72 degrees I'm still shivering in my blanket. I guess that's why I laughed so hard at the Pickles comic strip today.

I thought I'd pass it on to you whoever is reading. Maybe it will bring a smile to your face on a Monday. Hope you're staying warm. I can't wait for spring!

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So many choices

This week I keep thinking about our ability to choose and the consequences (positive or negative) of those choices. Today at church there was a lot of discussion about agency, our ability to choose and act for ourselves.
The example given that I can't stop thinking about is the story of Lot that starts in Genesis chapter 13. Abram and Lot had returned from Egypt and they both had so much stuff that the land couldn't support them. Basically there wasn't enough water, food, and resources to support their families and all of their animals. So Abram comes up with the idea to separate and live in different areas. He gives Lot the choice to go left or right then he would go the opposite direction. Our teacher pointed out that "left and right" in this context actually mean "north and south." (She gave a reference to Hebrew culture...sorry, I don't remember details.) When faced with the choice Lot chooses to go east which wasn't an option Abram gave! Lot plants himself in a position of temptation...facing the city of Sodom. If you read farther you'll see the terrible consequences of his choice.
Where we choose to go, who our friends are, what we do, and how we live all have consequences. Just think about it...

Should I get a chocolate mustache?

Consider love. Valentine's Day. Romance. Sugar. Shakespeare. It's an interesting time of year when love is expressed through chocolate and pre-fabbed sentiment. Read through the 'mush' section of the card racks and you begin to see that most of the stuff of Valentine's Day is based on the 'feelings' of love. In fact, love is largely considered a feeling that you want, have, lose or fall into accidentally....The differences between new love and true love are vast. The trick to lasting happiness is to make love last. To make it grow. Lasting love is built on much more than a feeling.

Love. Something interesting to ponder especially today being Valentine's Day. Ok, so I didn't write that first paragraph but I love how it is worded. I swiped it from a magazine I was reading this week.

This week I also saw Valentine's Day, the movie. It's a sappy story that shows all aspects of love. One of the parts that made me laugh the hardest was when a girl was talking about her relationship with her best friend "candy." She said she was going to end up an old lady with rotted teeth and a chocolate mustache. I know, it's a sad way to look at things but it still made me laugh. I love my chocolate too!

Of course as I think about love I can't help wishing for a "valentine" of my own to share it with BUT I know he'll come into my life someday. For now what matters is I know I'm loved! I feel love from my family, friends, and God every day of my life. Although, some days I need reminders. I'm so thankful for love and hope I express it enough to those who love me!

Preparing for Rain

In sunday school today we talked about Noah and the ark. The teacher gave a good visual for how big the ark was. Imagine 85 people lined up with their arms outstretched and their fingertips touching the fingertips of the person next to them and they would cover the length of the ark. While this is interesting, I found it more interesting to find out that it's estimated that it took Noah about 120 years to build the ark! I guess I never thought about all the preparation Noah put into this. Really, when you apply it to our life now we have to continually be preparing for the "flood." Here's a thought about when Noah built the ark:

“There was no evidence of rain and flood. … His

warnings were considered irrational. … How foolish

to build an ark on dry ground

with the sun shining

and life moving forward as usual!

But time ran out. The ark was finished. The floods came.

The disobedient and rebellious were drowned.

The miracle of the ark followed

the faith manifested in its building”

President Spencer W. Kimball

(Faith Precedes the Miracle [1972], 5–6).

I've thought a lot about this and just wanted to share some about it. Maybe we can all take a look at our lives and see how we can better prepare for the future. I know none of us are perfect but it's better to consistently try to move forward in life rather than scrambling to try and build an "ark" when "rain" is already falling on us.