Why Do We Do This?

My brother-in-law describes vacations with my family as the McConkie School of Survival. He came up with this term shortly after marrying my sister when my family decided to take a trip to the Grand Canyon. During the few days we were down at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon my brother-in-law was subjected to a nine mile hike along the rim on a Sunday. The next day was a 17 mile hike to Ribbon Falls in the canyon and then back to the rim. In total 26 miles of hiking in two days in a place where temperatures in the shade can reach into the hundreds. 

Ribbon Falls

As my brother-in-law can attest to this first hike is only one of many crazy hikes that my family has done. While I was in middle school my family went camping in the Teton National Park and planned on doing an eight mile hike. After nearly seventeen miles we found ourselves finishing our hike. I've been to the bottom of the Grand Canyon three times with my family. One time was at a place called Toroweap which is basically a near vertical mile and a half trail from the bottom of the canyon to the top. Hiking Toroweap is so dangerous that the National Parks Service discourages people from hiking this trail. The other two times were rim-to-rim-to-rim hikes each of which my family accomplished in two separate four day periods.

So this President's Day's weekend when my mom and dad asked me to accompany them to Bryce Canyon National Park I figured that there would be sometime type of hike involved. Little did I know that my dad hadn't decided where we would go hiking in the canyon. At the Visitor's Center to the park my dad asked a Parks' Employee about hiking. The employee's answer wasn't to tell us what type of hikes to enjoy, but that we should buy $25 crampons to place on the bottom of our hiking boots. My dad wasn't very happy with this response and wasn't willing to shell out $75 on three sets of crampons that we would use only once. So instead he decided to go on his hike without the crampons.

After spending the night in a cabin in Tropic, Utah the three of us (my dad, my mom, and I) arrived at the rim of the canyon to begin our hike into an area known as Fairyland. As we started down the trail into the Bryce Canyon Amphitheater we quickly found that crampons wouldn't have been very good for hiking. Temperatures in the high 40's and low 50's had melted the ice and snow in the canyon and we found ourselves trudging through mostly slush. Other than getting my shoes extremely wet I didn't mind this slush too much as it made for a fun way to descend from the rim.

My Dad in the Grand Canyon.

When the trail finally leveled out we found ourselves winding through the distinctive hoodoos that make Bryce Canyon so famous. As we walked through the hoodoos we found ourselves slogging through clay that stuck to the bottom of our boots in two inch thick increments. This provided wonderful resistance training and made us cheer up a little bit whenever we encountered snow because the snow allowed us to get all the clay off of our feet. Eventually after several hours we found ourselves ascending back up to the rim. Once on the rim we thought that our hike would be easy as we would be on a well traveled trail that would make our journey easier.

We quickly found that our wishes of an easy trip along the rim back to our car wouldn't come true. The trail that we found was a set of cross country ski tracks, a pair of snowshoes, and a few footprints that led through snow over a foot deep. Because it was a shorter distance to follow this trail than going back the way we had come my family set off along this path. I did my best to try and stay on top of the snow, but found myself often sinking up to my knees in snow as I would break the hardened crust of the snow. All of this made our hike difficult and it was only made worse when we realized that the trail we were following wandered aimlessly through the woods and wasn't even connected to the trail that ran along the rim. Eventually we found our way back to the real trail and arrived back at our car. 

The hike made the annals of the McConkie School of Survival with a distance of nine miles and a time of almost six hours. It left us feeling exhausted and for the rest of the day we didn't do anything except for watch TV.

Despite experiences like this hike in Bryce Canyon and so many others that have left me tired and battered I still love hiking. I often find myself looking at distant mountain tops and wondering what it would be like at the summit. Several hours later I often find myself at the top of these mountains looking down at where I came from, thinking to myself, "Boy am I tired, but isn't the view even better than I imagined!" That's the reason why my family and I subject ourselves to these hikes is so we can see all the amazing things that we would miss if we didn't go.

The McConkie School of Survival.

Transfers: I Hate/Love Them

One of the things that I really hated as a missionary were transfers. Every six weeks in the mission field I would spend an entire Saturday morning waiting for a call to see what was going to happen during the next six weeks of my mission. Would I get a call telling me that I was staying in an area that was struggling? Was my good companion going to be leaving? Was I going to have to get used to a new guy with all kinds of weird habits? Was I going to find out that I was leaving a good area and a good companion to head off to some far off area? Would I need to spend time packing up my suitcases that Saturday night and prepare to hop on a van to my next destination on Monday?

As these questions rushed through my head I would stress out. I just wanted to find out what was going to be happening with my life and whether I would like this change or not. Every time the cellphone rang or we received a text I would ask my companion whether it was the Zone Leaders letting us know what was going on with the upcoming transfer. Most of the time it was only other missionaries in the mission asking us if we knew where we were going yet.

A nervous transfer day in Eugene.

Finally the call would arrive from the Zone Leaders. At times the call came very early in the morning, but usually the call didn't come until sometime in the afternoon. The hours waiting for the call were way too long for me. When the call would finally come my stress didn't usually end, most of the time the stress was made worse as I listened to the news of my future. If I was leaving the area I usually stressed out about having to go learn how to work in a new area. If I was staying and getting a new companion then I started stressing about how I was going to get along with the new guy. The only time I ever felt really happy about a transfer call was when I found out that I was staying with my companion in my area, but that wasn't always so great either.

The next few days after the call were always stressful. Saying good bye to people that I had come to love, packing up my few possessions, and not getting much sleep as I stressed too much. Finally the transfer would come. Nervous and sweaty I would get in the van the mission used for transfers and head off to my next destination. Once in my new home I would spent the next two weeks getting used to all the new things. Finally at the end of the second week my fears would be assuaged and the stress would be mostly gone.

Now transfers did have some perks to them. Sometimes I wanted to get a new companion or head to a new area and a transfer would give me that. If I was getting transferred then I figured that I had completed the job that I had been called to do in the area that I was currently serving in. But the best thing that a transfer could bring was the chance to learn more. Every time I was transferred to a new area or received a new companion I learned something new from my new area or my new companion. From my companion Elder Bradley I learned the value of working hard, from Elder Michelsen I learned how to plan effectively. In Lakeview I learned how to work with people from small towns and in Junction City I learned to treat everyone that I worked with as a Child of God. Even though transfers were hard I learned to appreciate them as times to learn and to grow. 

Saying good bye to some of our friends.

Now at this time in my life I am going through another change, another transfer. As I prepare to go back to school there is the same nervousness that accompanied every transfer on my mission. How will I get along with my roommates? Will things be any better at college than they were at home? Will I make new friends? How will I be able to do all of this? I know that the answers are out there somewhere along with a couple of important lessons to learn about myself. 

Transfers and changes come into all of our lives. Some will be welcomed and others will be downright miserable. But no matter what the change might be we can always learn something. For we cannot learn something new without experiencing something new.

Without Hope

My sister, Hope’s name has always been one of the unique things about her. She loves the name because she can always find souvenirs with her name. Her name is also easily translated into different languages in Spanish she is known as Esperanza and Toivo in Finnish. Plus her name is really easy to put into all kind of sentences. “I ‘Hope’ it doesn’t rain today”, “’Hope’fully I get a lucky break”, and “You are our only ‘Hope’”. My sister has heard all of these puns and her reaction is to laugh politely and to then move on with her life. One of the phrases that Hope often hears comes from her husband, who often remarks, “Where would I be without ‘Hope’?” Where would the world be without my sister? I might not be able to answer what might the world be without Hope, but I can definitely think of the things that she has done to help the people around her.

To my parents Hope has always been the child that they haven't had to worry about. My parents whose first daughter had been a terror at night always worried if their second oldest, Hope, would have such trouble sleeping. Early on their fears were assuaged as they would often find that Hope would find her way to the crib and be sleeping long before my parents even thought of putting her down to sleep at night. If Hope hadn't been born then I feel like my parents would have been a little less likely to have more children. Plus my oldest sister would have missed having a younger sister that she could hangout with and treat as a friend.

Hope, my Mom, and Audrey.

When the two of my sisters were both younger the two of them hung out a lot. As the two of them got older, that wasn't always the case. But at a young age Hope and Audrey, my other sister, were always doing something with each other. The two sisters' escapades included choreographing dances together, filming skits, and making tons and tons of cookies. The two of them were inseparable and without Hope who knows what might have happened to Audrey.

Beyond the impact that Hope had on her sister there was also the impact that she had on me and my younger brother. As I stated before Hope might have softened my parents' hearts towards having more children, but beyond that there were other things that my sister did to help me and my brother. Mitchell, my brother, and I were always very close to my sister. When Hope was in high school Mitchell and I were making our way through the awkward years of middle school. During those years Hope was always a friend to the two of us helping us to not feel as weird about the future. She also acted as an inspiration by being a very good cross country and track runner and also a very talented flute player. Watching her made me and my brother want to be better at the things we were doing and gave us hope that things would get better down the road.

Me and Hope.

After Hope graduated from high school she met the most important person in her life. That person's name was Joe. Joe who was attending college ran into my sister at a party and the first thing Joe ever said to Hope was, "I heard your name was Esperanza." From what I've heard my sister wasn't too impressed to be called Esperanza by this boy she had just met. But with time Hope began to really like Joe a lot and the two of them spent tons of time together. Eventually they were married in the Salt Lake Temple.

 After a few years of marriage my sister gave birth to a baby boy. That baby boy is probably the happiest baby that I have ever seen and everybody thinks that he is absolutely adorable. Now at this point I can tell one thing for sure that wouldn't have happened if there was no Hope. That is that this baby boy wouldn't exist. Because Hope is definitely this boy's mother and no one else could be his mother no matter who they were or what skills they had. Without Hope there wouldn't be this kid and there would probably be lots of other things that wouldn't be. So what I can say is that without Hope in the world there wouldn't be as good of a world. Today I want to thank Hope for being my sister and for making the world a better place.

Hope, Joe, and their baby boy.

The Return

It's strange to think that it has been almost five weeks since I came home from my mission in Oregon. For two years my entire life had been dedicated to getting up at six thirty in the morning, studying my scriptures for two hours, and then spending the entire day talking to everyone that I could. Then at the end of that day it was back to my apartment to get some rest so that I could go out and repeat the day over and over. Now I'm not living on that same schedule. Most mornings I wake up at around eight o'clock (which is only a half hour later than waking up at 6:30 in Oregon), studying my scriptures has gone from two hours a day to about half an hour, and instead of teaching random people about the Gospel anymore I spend most of my time talking to my friends.

My family at the airport.

As a missionary I would often hear church members comment about how weird missionaries were when they got home. The members would talk about how these return missionaries didn't know how to interact with people of the opposite sex, couldn't tolerate mainstream music, or acted as if the whole world was weird. As a missionary comments like these seemed strange to me. Even though I was living with rules that seemed pretty "strict" for two years it didn't seem to me that a transition to home would be difficult. I was already socially awkward before I had left on my mission and I figured that when I got home that there was no way that I would be able to be more "weird" than when I left. Life after my mission was not going to be difficult or hard for me.

When I got off of the plane at the Salt Lake International Airport I was excited, I was about to go back to life as it had been before I left on my mission. When I came down the escalator and approached my family I came to see that things were not going to be the same as when I had left. The first couple of weeks after I got home I kept waking up at 6:30 am. This ruined my plan about sleeping in all the time when I got home. I was so tired of getting up early, but now I wasn't able to even sleep past the magical time of 6:30. That was very disappointing to me.

Plus on top of the sleeping in problem I found myself trying to listen to music that I had listened to before my mission. About two songs into an old playlist I found myself skipping through certain songs that I had listened to a lot. I asked myself the question, "Wow how did I listen to this stuff?" Soon I had a list of songs that I was no longer willing to listen to. As a missionary I had never thought that I would have said that about my music. I had been so excited to get home and listen to songs by Kesha and Pitbull. Now they weren't as exciting to me anymore.

Returning home for me has been hard. Finding things to do has been really hard as I've waited for the school year to start. Hugging girls has also been a little awkward for me, because I haven't been allowed to hug girls for the last two years. Certain things that I had found fairly easy to do have become hard for me and I never thought that they would be hard. The stories that I had heard from members were true, post-mission life is awkward.

Even though the transition has been tough I've come to see that the transition is necessary. I can't go out and do all of the things that I did as a missionary anymore. I can't go out knocking on doors, wear a white shirt and tie all the time, or go about not interacting with females anymore. It just can't happen anymore and to be honest I'm glad not to have to deal with those things. 

Of course there are certain things that I miss like all my scripture study. But I know that life has to go on and that the Lord has more things required of me in my life. Things that I can't do as a full-time missionary. Things like getting an education, getting married, having a family, and getting a job. Those are things that I can't do as a missionary. Plus many other things await me in my life and I will have to seek them out as I continue to live my life and strive to put the Gospel first.

Just like the transition to being a missionary was tough going back to normal life will always be hard, but it's alright. The Lord requires hard things from us and those hard things help to build us into what we need to be. Right now I'm starting to see what I can become, but the end is still along way off. But for now I'll be thankful with the hard things I had to do as a missionary and what my mission has already helped me to become.

Me and my Dad after two years.

My "Little" Brother

My best friend in the whole world is my "little" brother Mitchell. From the earliest age the two of us were inseparable. My parents had the two of us share a room from the time that we were very little. At first I am sure that I was a little irked by the new arrival that showed up in my bedroom and took my crib, but slowly I warmed up to the little guy. One of my first memories is of my brother being rushed to the hospital. At the time I wasn't sure what was happening, but  I knew it had to do with Mitchell and I hoped that he would be alright. Luckily he was.

Me and my brother when we were little.

As the two of us grew together we found ourselves playing together often. The two of us would climb the apricot tree together seeing who could climb the highest. I always found pride in the fact that I could climb higher than my brother. Then when our parents would call us into the house from the tree where we were playing my brother and I would race to see who could get there first. Once again I took pride in the fact that I was faster than my little brother.

When the two of us entered elementary school I can remember thinking how cool it was to have my brother in the same school as me. Once again I showed my physical prowess over my brother by being the best in all the sports and by being a head taller than him. But when the school day was over I forgot everything I thought I was better at than him and the two of us would walk home. We would imagine that we were on an adventure together trying to save the world from space invaders. While I was the main hero against our extraterrestrial foes my brother was always there playing an important role. Then when we got home the two of us would play some more.

As we got older the two of us stopped playing so much pretend together. But we still made time for each other. We would go on hikes, talk about music, and talk about the things that happened in our lives. As the time started to go past my brother started to grow taller. Eventually the brother I had once stood over a head taller than was several inches taller than me. Along with growing taller than me my brother also became a much faster runner me. 

When I left for my mission my brother was no longer my little brother. He stood taller than me. He was a better athlete than me and he was working thirty plus hours a week as he finished high school and prepared to go to college. As my brother grew up there was one thing that I didn't notice and that was the growth of my brother's testimony of the Gospel.

My brother always made sure to fulfill all of his duties within the Aaronic Priesthood. While I had hated collecting fast offerings my brother always made sure he did his route, and he always collected fast offerings with a smile on his face. When an extra Priesthood holder was needed to pass the Sacrament my brother always volunteered. Now as it has come time for my brother to leave on his mission he hasn't turned away from the opportunity. Mitchell knows that he needs to go on a mission and he knows why he is going. He knows that he is leaving to serve his Savior. My brother Mitchell is my "little" brother and I'm thankful that my Heavenly Father let me have him as a brother.

My "little" brother.

You Served Where?

Lakeview, Grants Pass, Junction City, Winston, and Newport. Those are all of the towns that I have served in as a missionary here in Oregon. It's funny for me to see the reactions on people's faces when I tell them the areas that I have served in. The comments that I hear a lot are, "Where is that?", "I've never heard of that town", "Wow you served there?" or "Well at least you're in a better place now."

There have been times on my mission where I have agreed with the negative comments that have been made about my areas. Every time that I would get transferred to a new area in Oregon I would hear stories about how terrible the place was. When I went to Lakeview all I heard about the area was how small it was and that it was two hours away from the nearest Walmart. I remember that I was terrified of this small town and scared that I was going to go crazy talking to the same people over and over again. It turns out that in the four and a half months I spent in Lakeview that I always found new people to talk to everyday. I also found the friendliest people on earth and made lots of good friends.

Lakeview

When I left Lakeview to go to Grants Pass, I was nervous and depressed. I had heard stories about how crime rates were high in the town. I heard that I was likely to meet a lot of people, who could use some change in their lives, but wouldn't be willing to make those changes at all. It seemed like I was going to be in for a lot of challenges. I honestly don't think that I have ever been happier in my life than the during the time I spent in Grants Pass. It seemed that everyone I talked to was willing to learn about the Gospel, learning to try something out, and willing to change for the better. I saw lots of people grow closer to the Savior and I felt so good about myself and the work that I was doing for Jesus. 

Grants Pass

After a wonderful seven and a half months in Grants Pass I moved onto Junction City. I found out once again that I was going to another small town in Oregon. Several people told me that there wasn't going to be a single person to talk to and that I would want out of town by the end of six weeks. But once again things turned out to be a lot better than I expected them to be. Even though I could walk from one side of the town to the other in twenty minutes I was able to go out into the countryside and enjoy the beauty of nature, plus on top of that I had an awesome companion and found lots of people to teach. Lots of people who got baptized too. It was a fun couple of transfers.

A Baptism in Junction City.

At the time I transferred from Junction City I learned I was going to yet another small town that was a distance from the closest city. The town I was going to was Winston. When I asked the people in Junction City what they knew about Winston all they could tell me was that it was near Roseburg and that there was an animal safari. The missionaries I talked to said that there wasn't that much potential for the area and that I would want out after six weeks. But with past experience I decided that I would try to make the best of Winston and Winston turned into my favorite area of my whole mission. I met one of my best friends in the whole world in Winston. Enjoyed talking to friendly polite people. And even saw a baptism.

The farmland of Winston

When I left Winston I was sad to go I loved the area and the people so much and I was afraid of my next area. I was headed off to the dreadful coast for a probable couple of months. I didn't want to go to the coast. I wasn't excited for cold winter storms with howling rains. I didn't want to meet lots of tourists, who didn't live anywhere near Newport. And on top of all of that I felt like the ocean was going to be a wall that would stop me from going to the edges of the earth. But once again the area has turned out to be a lot better than I expected it to be. I love seeing the coast everyday, listening to the wind come in off the coast, and I get to meet people from all over the United States. I wouldn't have been able to experience any of these things in any of my other areas.

Newport Coast

Despite all of the negative things that I have heard about my areas I have loved every single one of them. Some of them have been more successful than others, but there was always something to enjoy, something to love. Whatever it was that I loved it showed me that the area wasn't bad like people had told me. The same thing is true about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Lots of people can say all kinds of  mean and hurtful things about the Church and about the Gospel. But they are emphasizing the negatives instead of the positive. There are so many positives about the Gospel and all it takes to find out about those positives is to go and to find out about them for ourselves. Because people will say all kinds of things, but until we find out for ourselves we will never know if they're telling the truth. So check out the Church and the Gospel and find out for yourself if it's good or bad.

Links to learn more about the Church and the Gospel

Find a local LDS Chapel

Basic Mormon beliefs

Visit with Mormon Missionaries

Order a free Book of Mormon

Small Growth

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

My favorite place in the world is the Grand Canyon. It is a place that I love to visit and hike. I have vivid memories of the many trips I have made to the canyon. From the rims I have seen miles of side canyons and the mighty Colorado. Within the walls of the canyon I have dipped my feet into the water of falls and creeks that run through the desert environment. But the most impressive thing to me was standing on the edge of the Colorado River and staring up at the South Rim and realizing how far down I was, the entire thing was amazing.

On that day when I stood and stared up at the horizon I remembered a principle that I had been taught in every geology class that I had ever taken, that principle was erosion. Erosion is the process of wearing away the landscape by forces of nature such as wind or water. It was through the process of erosion that the Grand Canyon was formed. For millions and millions and millions of years the Colorado River made its course through Northern Arizona and cut through the landscape. As the years passed the river had carried away bits and pieces of the rocks that it flowed through. At first the sediment that was carried away wasn't all that impressive, but as the years went by the Canyon was slowly formed, until it became the most impressive canyon on the planet.

In my life I have had experiences that have changed me dramatically, but those changes have sometimes taken months and even years before I have seen the end result. A lot of those changes have taken place here on my mission. But the interesting thing about most of those changes is that it has taken me a long time to even notice that they have happened. But looking back on where I've come from to where I am now I am better able to put into perspective the changes that have been made in my life. All of those changes have resulted in me being a better person than when I left on my mission.

Me at the beginning of my mission.

For instance when I left on my mission I felt pretty confident about the challenges that laid ahead of me. I had just finished a year of college and felt as if I could handle anything that came at me. Within one week of being at the Missionary Training Center I realized just how wrong I was. I found myself incompetent at studying. Not very observant of those around me. And most importantly I shrunk from social interactions. I honestly felt that there was no way that I could survive a mission at all at that point in my life. If I didn't know the Gospel very well, couldn't listen to people very well, and couldn't even get the courage to talk to people how was I expected to go and be a missionary?

When I got into the mission field none of those things were resolved. I still felt like I was a bad missionary, but I decided to trek onward. So for eight months I trudged through my mission just trying to make it from one day to the next. At the end of each day I would comeback to my apartment and review what had happened that day. Most days felt about the same and at the end of most days I really didn't feel all that different from the way I had felt before.  

The interesting thing to me was that the longer I stayed out on my mission the more I was able to get a better perspective of myself. Though at the end of each day I still felt like the same person and still felt like nothing had changed there was a large change happening inside of me. By the time that I had been out for eight months I wasn't as depressed about my prospects of the mission, I felt confident and I felt like I was finally able to listen to people and help them. Then by the time I hit my yearmark I felt a lot more confident in my knowledge of the Gospel and I felt as if every time I studied something from the Scriptures that I was learning something new and uplifting. Then at around eighteen months I thought back on my mission and realized that I now wasn't too afraid to talk to people anymore. 

All of these changes that have happened to me have been amazing to me. But the most amazing thing about these changes is how they came about. I didn't become a good listener during one lesson, it took many lessons and many times of talking to people. Being confident in my Gospel knowledge didn't come from one major study session in the MTC or one morning on my mission, it came from constant study of the scriptures. Being able to talk to people didn't come from just one conversation, but from many awkward conversations, that eventually weren't as awkward as they had been before. All of these changes had come through time lots of time and lots of practice.

When it comes to seeing changes in our lives the principle is the same as it was for me. Oftentimes we get discouraged when it seems that we are not changing, if we don't have the testimony we want, or aren't the person we want to be. All of those things are understandable, but they shouldn't get us down. Building a testimony and changing into a better person takes time. So let us press forward, let us study the scriptures, let us try every day to be a little bit better and let us all rely on our Savior. Eventually we will be able to look back on our lives and see changes that are just as visible as the Grand Canyon.

Me now.

Easter Sunday: A Day of New Life

It has been awhile since I last made a post, but with the Easter season upon us I return with a new post about the special meaning of this time of the year. I hope that each of you will enjoy and be able to remember everything that is special about this holiday.

Several years ago my family made the long drive from Utah to visit my sister in Colorado. The drive was a long and tedious one, involving hours of drive on the high plains of Wyoming and eventually culminated with us arriving late at night in Denver. My family was tired from our trip and we were ready to crawl onto the air mattresses and the futon that would be our beds for the next several days. My family didn't complain about the sleeping conditions and my sister and her husband didn't complain either about the extra six people that were staying in their home.

For a couple of days my family was united on the edge of the Rocky Mountains. We spent time to go and visit interesting sites, go on runs, and spend time together catching up. Most of all we spent time with my sister's youngest child a newly born baby girl. At the time she was only several months old and for most of my family it was our first time to see the newest addition to the family. We all took turns holding the little girl and then would switch to playing with her older brother, who was just as cute.

On Sunday my family went to the local LDS chapel and watched as my brother-in-laws and my dad gave this baby girl a blessing to help start off her life right. It was amazing to hear my sister's husband give the blessing. To feel that power and to realize that this little pure girl was just starting off her life was amazing. The entire family was so happy to be present for the blessing of my sister's little girl.

When the blessing was finished my family returned to my Sister's house to celebrate the Easter Sunday and the baby blessing. That night I sat and thought about what had happened that day.My thoughts were drawn from the baby blessing and how pure my little niece was and how amazing her life was. I thought of how special it was that she was able to start her new life and how I wished for that same thing in my life.

The more I pondered though the more I realized that I too could be made clean like my little niece and how I would be able to have a fresh start like her. I remembered the reason for that Sunday I was spending in Colorado. Two thousand years before Christ had risen from the tomb. By doing such He had signaled that we all could become pure through His Atonement and that all of us could have fresh starts and someday live with our Heavenly Father. I realized that all of those blessings were available to all of God's children no matter who they are.

As I now look back on that day several years ago I remember several things. A pure little girl, an empty tomb, and a chance to change. The memories from that day will not be forgotten in my life. I'm thankful for the blessings of Easter. For the blessings of new life. May we take time this Easter Sunday to think and ponder on the meaning of this day and see what it means for us. May we read the scriptures and find those things that will point us to our Savior.

My Family that Easter morning.

Links

Alma 7       3 Nephi 11      John 20

#BecauseHeLives

Traditions

My Dad always likes to say that traditions can be bad. He often points to slavery as an example of a bad tradition. Because of this my whole family has kind of adopted the view that traditions aren't really all that great of a thing. So there are very few things that my family does ritually. The things that my family does are usually more spontaneous than anything and don't tend to continue to be done for very long periods of time.Somehow despite everything my family does to push back against traditions we still have one that we do every year without fail.

It is Christmas Eve day and the whole McConkie family has gathered together to my parents house for a celebration. From about ten o'clock in the morning to six o'clock at night the kitchen at the house will be full of activity. My Mom, my Dad, and my sisters busily work on making nutballs, toffee, fudge, and Norwegian cookies. When a batch of these sweets is finished they are placed on plates and wrapped in plastic. My brother and I then hurry out into the streets with the plates of sweets and deliver them to our neighbors.

Once all of the candy is finished and delivered my parents start work on the real reason everyone has come to the house. Lasagna noodles start to be boiled, sausage is cooked, and the french bread is buttered. All of this is in preparation for the Christmas Eve dinner that night. As the lasagna cooks the rarely used dining room table is set with my Dad's Finnish glass dishes. These dishes come out only once a year and are immediately put away after being washed. Everyone in my house can tell that we are going to have a good dinner tonight.

When the lasagna is finished it is placed on the table with many of the other foods that have been bought and purchased for this special night. My brother and I eat tons of lasagna and down lots of Cherry Seven Up. My Dad shares stories while we eat and these stories have us laughing and crying as we hear them. It is pretty easy to see why my family has waited all day long for this dinner. As we finish the meal my brother and I help clean the table and take the dishes to be washed in the kitchen sink.This is the only time of the year that my brother and I don't care too much about performing this chore.

Once the dishes have been cleaned and my Dad has carefully placed them back in the buffet it is time to go and brave the world. My Mom puts on her large winter coat and the rest of us put on our winter jackets and prepare to head out into the cold December night. We walk down the street from our house towards the courthouse. The whole way we toss snowballs at each other and slide on the ice. At the courthouse we look at the lights and make obnoxious comments about the silly Christmas displays that have been setup. This is just the first part of our trip this night. Once we have had enough entertainment at the courthouse we make the walk to the Tabernacle for our last stop of the evening.

At the Tabernacle my family finds the same old Nativity scene that sits on the lawn of the Tabernacle every year. My brother and I fight to see who can push the button in front of the Nativity. Once I finally am able to push the button a Narration echoes from the loudspeakers and begins to tell the story of the birth of Christ. Lights flash first on Mary, Joseph, and the Babe, then onto the shepherds, and finally upon the Wisemen. As we watch the scene it is hard to forget the true meaning for Christmas and why my family has gathered together this night. Once we have listened to the narration several times my family leaves and heads back to the house to go to bed.

It has always been funny to me that my family has kept this tradition because no other traditions have ever really lasted. But every year on Christmas Eve without fail we find time to get together as a family, to share a meal, and to then go see the Christmas lights. This is a tradition that I don't mind because it helps to bring my family together and to help us reflect on why we have Christmas. We have it for our families and to help remind us of our Savior, Who makes it possible for us to have families. I will always be thankful for Christ and His birth because without it I wouldn't have my family.

The Gift of My Parents

It was nearly thirty years ago that my parents were sealed for time and all eternity in the Salt Lake Temple. Even though these two college students were married on the darkest day of the year they have enjoyed a successful marriage. I haven't ever and will never doubt whether my Dad truly loves my Mom. The same goes for my Mom because I know that they care about each other and will do anything for the other. My parents have been the best of partners and the greatest example to me and my siblings.

My Mom has always been the kind of women who tries to help everybody no matter what condition she herself might be in. As a child I watched her service to the people in the community. My Mom would spend many hours working and maintaining flower gardens at the local elementary schools. Hours that were already going on top of the many hours she spent working on the extensive vegetable and flower gardens that my family maintained at our home. On top of this my Mom helped to drive kids to school every morning and from the time I was in first grade to my senior year of high school she packed me a lunch everyday.

When I was in elementary school my Mom decided that it was time to return to college. She had been a student at the University of Utah when she and my Dad had met. But when my parents started having children my Mom left her education behind so she could focus on raising her family. With both me and my brother in school the time to finish her studies had come. This time in my Mom's life was one of the toughest that she had ever experienced and a time that made me appreciate my Mom even more.

I can remember my Mom would drop me and my brother off at school every morning and would then make the drive from Brigham City to Logan. She did this pretty much everyday of the year even when the canyon was filled with snow. While at school she filled her time with many studies as she earned her degree in photography. My Mom spent many long nights at the Utah State campus developing film and working on projects that she put her heart and soul into. When she was done with those projects she would then return home to see her family that she loved so very much. Despite everything my Mom was doing at school she still made time to be a Mom and to help out with whatever school projects me or my siblings seemed to be doing. I can really say I don't think I would have passed any classes if it hadn't been for my Mom.

I know that my Mom's return to school was very stressful on my Dad. When he was a student at the University of Utah he had fallen madly in love with my Mom. The two of them had married with the hope of spending their time together. With the majority of my Mom's time being spent at the college my Dad found that he wasn't able to spend time with the redhead he loved so much. Yet my Dad knew that school was where my Mom needed to be and that it was important to her and that he needed to help her out. Everyday my Dad would finish his teaching and coaching duties at school and would hurry home to help take care of his children. For several years it seemed as if my Dad exclusively made all the meals at my home.

I know that the years my Mom spent at college were hard times for my Mom and Dad as they missed the companionship of each other. Yet these times have been a blessing for them and for their family. Me and my siblings grew to love my Mom for the time and effort she spent to help us out even if it meant even later nights than she should have been doing. We also grew to love my Dad for the things he started doing for us in the absence of our mother. Yet the people who were blessed the most were my parents who were able to see just how much they loved each other during those years.

I and my siblings are grateful for my parents and for what they have done for all of us. Because of their brave examples all of us have turned into pretty good kids. My Sisters were both married in the temple and my brother is now preparing to serve his mission. I'm thankful for my parents and for them for raising my family in the Gospel.

Joy to the World

Two thousand years ago in a little town called Bethlehem a birth occurred that would forever shape the world. In the town of Bethlehem was born a little child name Jesus. Jesus was born in a destitute situation. Born among animals to a virgin mother and a father, who was a carpenter. To the world this birth would seem insignificant. No child born in this kind of situation could amount to much and wouldn't be able to change Judea let alone the whole world. But this was the most significant birth ever.

Little did the world know how much of a role Jesus had already played in their history. Little did the world know that thirty-three years from the birth of Jesus would occur the most important event in all the eternities. The birth of the baby Jesus had been looked forward to for millenia. When He came all history was marked from His birth and even today we look forward to His coming again. Everything in our world revolves around this baby, who was born in a stable. But why is He so important?

The first man, Adam and the first woman, Eve both looked forward to the coming of Jesus Christ. Because of their transgression in the Garden of Eden Adam and Eve had fallen. Man was now vulnerable to sin and to physical death. Because of sin man was separated from God and could not on his own pay the price needed to return to God. But our Heavenly Father knowing that the Fall was essential for the growth of man had already provided a way for the redemption of mankind. That way was through His Son, Jesus Christ.

From Adam on down the prophets and followers of God testified of Christ and preached of Christ. They looked forward to the coming of Christ knowing that He must come. The prophet Nephi wrote about Christ so that future generations might know that Christ would come to redeem mankind (2 Nephi 25:26). Can it be too big of a surprise that at the birth of the Son of God that angels appeared to herald the birth? (Luke 2:8-14) Or that a star appeared in the sky and made the night as day? (3 Nephi 1:15) Or that wise men came bearing kingly gifts? (Matthew 2:1-12) It is not when the mission of the Babe is laid before us as it so clearly is in the scriptures.

For the next thirty-three years the Son of God worked in the flesh among the children of men. He performed miracles, the greatest of sermons, and went about doing good to everyone that He met. Yet His own people reject Him and crucified Him. It would appear that the Son of God had failed His mission based on earthly means. He established no earthly kingdom (John 18:36), didn't deliver Judea from Roman oppression, and was killed (John 19:30). But the death of Christ wasn't the end of His mission, it was just part of the greatest event in history, the Atonement. For on the third day after His death Christ rose from the tomb and signaled the defeat of death and sin. He had paid the price for every sin ever committed by mankind. Because He did this man was now able to live again and to be freed from the guilt and suffering that comes with sin. Man was now redeemed.

The mission of Jesus Christ continues today as He continues to strengthen us and allow us to do all things (Phillipians 4:13). We can look to Christ and know that everything will be okay as long as we live the Gospel in our lives and gain faith in Him. To gain a testimony is simple is to read, pray, and then act. That is the message of Christmas as we approach this time of the year. So remember that over two thousand years ago a little baby was born in a stable and that because of Him we can all be happy.

Follow the link to learn more about the birth of Christ.
christmas.mormon.org

Equality

Oftentimes in life it can seem as if things just aren't fair. All of us at one point or another have wondered, "Why is that person blessed with that gift and not me?" We might even say, "If God is a loving God and if He is a fair and Just God, why is He letting that person have it easy, while I'm having such a hard time?" It may appear to us mortals that God plays favorites with His children. In all actuality God loves all of His children equally and doesn't favor one over another.

In a world where there are very poor people and very rich people, people with incurable diseases, and people being treated cruelly and unfairly it can seem as if God doesn't care. But there is nothing farther from the truth,

For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.

Moses 1:39

Everything that our Heavenly Father does is centered around us and about making us better. Just like earthly parents should want the best for their children our Heavenly Father wants what is best for us. And what's best for us is having eternal life and being able to live with Him for forever.

The way that God had made it possible for us to receive eternal life is through the gift of His Son.

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

For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

John 3:16-17

God gave us the gift of Jesus Christ, a gift that allows all of us to be able to live again and to receive all of the blessings that our Heavenly Father has promised us. 

The gift of Christ is greater than anything else that we could receive and as said before allows us to receive all of our Heavenly Father's blessings. Riches, good health, and popularity as important as they may seem are nothing when compared to the happiness provided through Christ when we live His Gospel. What does it gain us if we own the whole world, but do not live the Gospel of Jesus Christ? Does anything matter if we don't have faith in Christ, if we don't repent, if we aren't baptized, and if we don't endure to the end? Nothing matters if we don't have the Gospel. For the Gospel is eternal while everything in this life ends.

Now I can't say why bad things happen to good people and I don't know why it seems as if some people are more blessed than others. But I do know that:

...the Lord knoweth all things from the beginning; wherefore, he prepareth a way to accomplish all his works among the children of men; for behold, he hath all power unto the fulfilling of all his words. And thus it is...

1 Nephi 9:6

So I know  that whatever happens in this life that it will be for my best interest. I also know that all that is unfair about this life will be made up in the next. For remember the greatest gift of God is that of His Son and that gift is available to each everybody. All it takes is to find out more and to live the Gospel. By studying from the Bible and the Book of Mormon we can learn more about this gift and realize how true the words of the prophet Nephi are when He says:

...for [Christ] doeth that which is good among the children of men; and he doeth nothing save it be plain unto the children of men; and he inviteth them all to come unto him and partake of his goodness; and he denieth none that come unto him, black and white, bond and free, male and female; and he remembereth the heathen; and all are alike unto God, both Jew and Gentile.

2 Nephi 26:33

I testify that this is true in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

A Strong Finish

During the four years I spent running cross country I ran a lot of different races. Now when I refer to different races I am not referring to the course alone, but to how I ran the race. Because as I found out no matter how many times I ran a course my experiences were always different than they had been the time before. In fact the first cross country meet I ran I did very poorly at and had to hobble along to the finish line. The second year I ran the race I finished second place. Then the third year I ran the course I had a terrible time. From running that one race three times I was able to find out that there would be times when I could run a race easily and times where it would be a struggle just to finish.

Every single race was absolutely different regardless of time of year, the amount of experience I had under my belt, or how the last race I had run went. But no matter how the race went I knew two things every single time I ran. The first was I would be done running in at least twenty minutes if not faster. The second was that no matter how I started the race the most important part was that I finished the race and that I try to finish strong.

Some of the races that I had in high school were pretty terrible. In some of my races I wanted to give up within the first mile. But I always hung on and never gave up on the race no matter how tough the first couple of miles went. By the time I hit the last mile and half or the last quarter mile I would try my best to run my hardest and to finish strong. I knew that if I could sprint in down the homestretch that I would feel good about my race and would be willing to go out and run my next meet with a little less apprehension.

From my experiences with cross country I learned to liken mortality to a race. There are some racers who float along with ease and post really good times. These people could be likened to those who have the Gospel in their lives and have somehow always made the right decisions. Some people have started out the race slowly, but are gaining speed as they learn the Gospel and start living its principles in their lives. Yet there are some who maybe started the race strong and given up on the Gospel or maybe even those who have never heard the Gospel in their lives and feel like they are failing. There are many different racers in this life just like there are many different runners in a 5k.

Now a cross country 5k is relatively short race and takes a small amount of time to run. Life is the same way and just like a 5k it can be discouraging. As we run this race of life we will oftentimes seem as if people are passing us by. We flounder at the back of the pack trying to keep pace while others move on ahead as if they are Olympic marathoners. At times like this it can seem as if it might be better to just drop out of the race and say "Well I tried, but it just wasn't for me."

When the race gets tough it is best to remember that unlike a real 5K we are never truly out of the race and that we can finish strong. The Gospel of Jesus Christ allows us to use the enabling power of Christ's Atonement to receive the extra boost that we need to finish the race. As we build our efforts upon faith in Jesus Christ, repentance, baptism, receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end we will be more confident in our lives and in the things we are doing. We will know that at the end of this race we will not be ashamed by our "finishing place".

Rely on Christ and He will help you to overcome the obstacles and challenges that you face in this life. He will not let you down and when you get to the end of this life you will be satisfied with your experience. For in the end we will all receive the same reward and it matters not how we started, but how we finished.

Complications

As a young child my parents would read to me every night before I went to bed and every Sunday too. As I grew older I started read on my own more and more. Gradually I went from picture books, to a few chapter books, and then onto full length novels. I loved to read and would oftentimes stay up late into the night reading. Many nights I could be found asleep with a book by my side and the lights still on. I loved reading because of the knowledge that I gained with every word and every paragraph.

The main reason I read was because I loved the things I learned. I had a decent enough memory that I could read something once and remember all the details of what I had read. Once something was in my head it wasn't leaving and I immediately wanted to share what I had read in the encyclopedia, from a book on the French and Indian War, or from a fantasy book. It didn't matter what it was I just wanted to let people know what I knew.

As a fifth grader I participated in a Geography Olympiad. It was during this time that my knowledge of things kind of got me into trouble. In one of the events at the Olympiad we were asked a series of questions. The first person to buzz in and give the correct answer received points for their answer. I knew the answers to every single question that was asked in the event and was the first one to respond to every single question. On one of the questions I buzzed in and gave the correct answer, but then I continued to elaborate on the answer and by the time I was finished the judge was too confused that she gave the other team a chance to answer. The other team then gave the answer I had given with a lot less added detail. That was the only time they scored.

Even though I won the competition by a lot I was frustrated that I hadn't gotten all the possible points. I complained to my mom and asked her why I hadn't they given the points to me when I had given the correct answer? My mom taught me a very important lesson that day. She told me that if you want someone to know what you are saying then you should be simple. That way there is no way they can see things in the wrong way. She told me that even though I knew a lot of information that I should try to keep things simple and that way people would have an easier time understanding me. This lesson has helped me a lot a s a missionary.

As a missionary my purpose is to help other to come unto Christ by helping them learn more about the Restored Gospel. Now the Gospel of Jesus Christ when stripped to the bare bones is really simple. It is simply having faith in Jesus Christ, repentance, baptism, receiving the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. All of those are simple and easy steps. Yet oftentimes missionaries and members can over complicate the simpleness of the Gospel.

As members we first learn the Gospel very simply. We learn that through Jesus Christ we all can be cleansed from sin and live with our Heavenly Father. We know that we must change our ways, be baptized for the remission of sins, receive the Holy Ghost to help guide us, and then we must continue to try and be good people for the rest of our lives. As we mature in the Gospel we begin to learn more about why we do these things and we begin to learn more of the mysteries of God. We want to share these mysteries with the people around us and let them know what we know. But we often find ourselves scaring off these people as we teach them way more than what they are ready for. Confusion and fear will follow when this happens and will sometimes lead people away from the Gospel.

As members, as missionaries, and as disciples of Jesus Christ we need to keep things simple when it comes to sharing the Gospel with our family and friends. Because the Gospel is simple and has been made that way for a reason. The reason is that He wants all of His children to return to live with Him. As Paul said "I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it..." (1 Corinthians 3:2) Start off with the simple truths then move onto the more complex things. If we keep to the basics then our friends will be able to learn and accept the Gospel more easily. Don't over complicate things.

As spiritual children we need to keep things simple.

Grateful for the Blessings of the Gospel

The month of November signals the return of many things. Pumpkin flavored beverages and cookies are seen commonly in this month. Along with the return of very early Christmas music and decorations. Even though all of these things are good reasons to remember November I don't want to spend too much time on any of those things. Instead I want to talk about Thanksgiving Day. Especially the attitude that holiday should foster in all of us. The attitude of gratitude.

Being grateful is something that all of us must do if we wish to truly be happy in this life and receive all of the blessings of the Gospel. During my teenage years I had a bishop who exemplified someone who was grateful and was happy with his life. My bishop was always thankful for everything he had. Yet he didn't have tons of things, he didn't live in a big house and he often made the comment that he had just enough to meet his needs. Yet it seemed like he had everything in the world because he was grateful for the things he had. My bishop was always willing to share what he had with others whether it be his time or the temporal things he had. He did all of this willingly because he knew the things he did have and he knew that they were from God.

That bishop I had in my teenage years is a man that I really look up to and I will always remember him fondly. The gratefulness that he shared with me and others was infectious. Along with that gratitude came a happiness that he shared with many people. Grateful people can truly help brighten the people around them. But the opposite effect can happen when people are ungrateful for the things that they have. I have met many people who seem to have everything nice cars, a wonderful place to live, lots of money and many other worldly possessions. Yet most of them are not satisfied with what they want. They always want what is new and what is better. This ungratefulness brings complaining and a general dissatisfaction with life. This attitude is sadly very easy to spread.

Even if we do not have all the worldly possessions that we want or that we think we need we can still be grateful for what we have. And even if that list is short there are even greater blessings that each one of us receives that we should be grateful to have. We can be thankful for our testimonies, eternal families, and most importantly God's Son Jesus Christ. When we remember these blessings that are always available to us then we can find happiness and see that we have more in those blessings than anything else this world has to offer. We have the love of a Heavenly Father who is willing to give us eternal happiness.

In this month we have a lot to be thankful for. We must let the spirit of thanksgiving and gratitude be something that we carry through this month and the rest of our lives. We must avoid focusing on the things of the world and remember the things of God. In this month also lies Black Friday a day that encourages us to go deeper into debt, to seek after things that are not important, and to be ungrateful. This day is the counterbalance to being thankful.Let us try to focus on what we have and the blessings that our Heavenly Father has promised us instead of those silly unimportant things. Because as we are thankful our love for our Savior will grow and so will our happiness. For in the end we can all be thankful for a loving God.

Online Missionary Work

Even though I have only been a missionary for a little over a year and several months I have seen a lot change in missionary work in that short span. During the first few months of my mission my companion and I would come in every night and spend thirty minutes pouring through the contact information of people willing to meet with the missionaries. When we had filled our day with actives we would then take up to another thirty minutes writing down the contact information of the people we had met with that day. Keeping this information up to date was always important in case new missionaries came in and needed to know who to visit. I can remember having to get really good at writing really small to be able fit in the needed information.

At the beginning of my mission I can remember spending a lot of time talking to people on the street and going from door-to-door looking for people to share the Gospel with. A lot of times it seemed as if our results didn't end in much and it could be very frustrating. I had been told right before I entered the mission field that soon missionaries were going to be able to use Facebook and iPads. I really wanted to use an iPad and a couple of times shared with my first companion that I couldn't wait until it would be announced that missionaries would get these devices. My companion was amused by my wish and told me not to worry too much about getting iPads and that we probably we're going to be using one.

For awhile my companion was right. For six months we went along using our old paper records and our old methods of spreading the Gospel. But at six months into my mission it was announced that we were going to be allowed to use Facebook for proselyting purposes. Then after Facebook was announced the missionaries were all given iPads. The iPads helped to take a lot of stress out of the stressful life a missionary. I can remember how much easier it was to keep records updated on the iPads as we could update it anywhere. We were able to make our bags lighter as we carried our scriptures around on the iPads and could now share videos with people. Most importantly the iPads allowed missionaries to be able to access Facebook so we could share the Gospel to an even wider crowd than before.

At the beginning of my mission we were pretty limited with who we could share the Gospel with. We were left talking to people on the street and on their front porches. Like I've said before it was very frustrating trying to share the Gospel that way. With Facebook we could now share our testimonies of the Gospel with people thousands of miles away. This has helped with missionary work considerably as people who might not answer their doors can now have the Spirit testify to them of the truth of the Gospel in their own homes as they scroll through their newsfeed. It's amazing to see the effect that iPads and Facebook have had on missionary work and it's amazing to think about how many more tools are out there to share the Gospel.

The best part about all of these tools that are coming forth to help spread the Gospel is that they aren't just tools to be used by full-time missionaries. Every person who has access to the internet now has the ability to share the Gospel with their friends around the world. Sharing the Gospel can be as easy as sharing a Mormon Message, a simple testimony of a restored truth, or a scripture. On top of that members can like and share others' statuses, or share their own testimony through blogs. The possibilities for sharing the Gospel are endless with a little bit of creativity and a free Facebook account.

Now people may wonder what good does it really do to share their testimony online or to invite others to learn more about the Gospel? The thing is sharing our testimonies online does more than any of us can imagine. The simple truths of the Gospel are more important to the world that "like my statuses for a truth" or random comments from our days. The simple truths of the Gospel are eternal and when read by those online give those people a chance to feel the Spirit in their own lives. Out of the 300 or more friends that most of us have on Facebook at least one of those people will feel something different from posts made about the Gospel and will want to learn more.

Sharing the Gospel is so much easier than it used to be. The Lord Himself said:

Behold I will hasten my work in its time.

D&C 88:73

Truly that time is now as the Gospel begins to sweep across the world into places that it has never been to before. The work will continue to hasten and to pick up speed and the Lord is giving us a chance to take part and to share the Gospel. Blessings will follow in our lives and we will experience great joy from laboring in the Lord's vineyard.

Far Reaching Effects

When I was preparing to leave on my mission I had many people who told me that there were going to be a lot of changes in my life. Obviously I could see a couple of them such as I would have to wait a few extra years before I could start my career and I would have friends who would be moving on with their lives while I was out. Plus I heard things about gaining a better testimony of the Gospel and that I would probably gain some weight while I was out. So far each one of those things have come true. Some of them have been happy things to hear about such as the fact that I've gained a few pounds. But some of things have been sad too. It's a little sad not to be home to watch my friends grow up. But all of the things that I'm sad about have been outweighed by the positives from my mission. Because while I have been out many more positive things have happened because of my mission.

One of the things that has happened while I've been out is to see how much the Gospel can bless people in their lives. Growing up I had heard plenty of stories from my Dad telling me about his mission. He had some good experiences and I knew that his mission had changed him for the better. But on his mission he didn't ever have the chance to really share the Gospel with people. Most of the people he ever talked with weren't interested in the Gospel. So the entire time he was out he didn't get much of a chance to teach people.

I can remember coming out on my mission and thinking that I wasn't probably ever going to be able to share the Gospel with someone. I figured I would probably spend two years trying to declare what I knew and that I would just hear people say, "Not interested." Now this isn't the typical thinking of new missionaries. Most new missionaries are ready to conquer the world and aren't jaded by the cynicism that I had already. But when I got out I found that people actually were willing to listen the Gospel and that as they listened they began to change. Many of the people I worked with I could see them grow happier as they started to live the ordinances and principles of the Gospel. In many of them I saw a physical change in their countenances as they found the peace and happiness that they had been looking for.

I was pretty happy to see the changes that were happening in people's lives and was glad that I was able to be present to see these changes take place. As I saw these experiences I wanted to share them with my family back at home. Every week I was able to write my family and let them know how I was doing and about the amazing people I was meeting. My Dad loved hearing the stories especially since he was finally starting to see the fruits of his own missionary labors in his son's mission. Fruits that he probably wondered if they would ever be harvested.

But the greatest effect that my mission has had on my life is how it has helped my brother. My brother had heard all my Dad's stories and didn't think that a mission sounded as exciting as some people made it out to be. Now my brother has always wanted t go, but there has always been doubts about serving a mission just like there have always been with me. As I've served though my brother has heard my stories and the things that are happening with me. Because of that he wants to serve a mission. Unlike me he now has little concern about putting his life on two years to serve the Lord.

Now I know that there are many more blessings that will come from my mission that will affect me my friends and my family. I know that my missionary service will affect my future marriage, the kids that I will have, and will be the base of my testimony for many years to come. So I'm excited to continue serving and hope that I can continue to be a good example.

Now the reason that I share all of this isn't to brag about the things I've done, but to illustrate how our small decisions can affect the lives of others. I never knew what serving a mission would do for my life and none of us can imagine what our choices will do to affect our children and our neighbors. For it is "...by small and simple things are great things brought to pass..." (Alma 37:6). Our small decisions have consequences that can help bring about the purposes of the Lord or hinder them. Making good decisions will bless our lives and the lives of everyone else for the better.

Me and my younger brother as kids.