32 years and counting!

Thirty two years ago, I married my Best Friend in the Washington DC Temple for TIME and all ETERNITY! I am grateful for the years we have had, and I pray we will have many more!

Moments that Matter

I watched this short video this morning, and it was a great reminder of remembering the Moments that really Matter. I loved the message and wrote it down and will share it with you.

"Moments are molecutes that make up ETERNITY!" ~ Neal A. Maxwell

"Its not so much the major events as the small day-to-day decisions...that map the course of our living"     ~ Gordon B. Hinckley

"We would do well to slow down a little. Focus on the significant, and lift our eyes to truly see the things that matter the most."
Strength comes not from frantic activity, but from being settled on a firm foundation of truth and light. It comes from paying attention to the divine things that matter most. Diligently doing the things that matter most, will lead us to the Savior of the world."
~ Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Need to stop, breath and be a part of each Moment. I found that much harder to do as a young Mother with 4 kids, but when I did slow down, it was an amazing view! I have been so blessed, I am a Daughter, Sister, Wife, Mother, Nana and Friend...it doesn't get much better than that.
I guess it is only human to get so busy that we miss the little moments that make our world what it is. I have found it much easier to look for and appreciate ...as I am getting older. I think that gaining that wisdom and knowledge, helps so much with my perspective now. Anyway, it has been a tough week. I have been struggling in many different areas, but today when I watched this video...I had a deep sense of GRATITUDE for all my blessings. I know the struggles are part of the teaching moments...so I need to appreciate them too! Hope you are having a wonderful Sabbath!

If you want to see the video, you can find it here:

In the Middle

   I was reading an article today, that reminded me of the importance of remembering we are in the Middle! I will share part of the article with you to explain.
  " By many world calendars, July marks the middle of the year. While the beginnings and endings of things are celebrated and remembered, the middle of things often goes unnoticed.
   Beginnings are times for making resolutions, for creating plans, for bursts of energy. Endings are times for winding down and may involve feelings of completion or loss. But with the proper outlook, considering ourselves as in the middle of things can help us not only to understand life a little better but also to live it a little more meaningfully.

   This change in perspective is more than a simple trick of the mind. There is a sublime truth behind the idea that we are always in the middle. If we look at our location on the map, we are tempted to say we are at a beginning. But if we look more closely, wherever we are is simply in the middle of a larger space.
As it is with space, so it is with time."
   Recently on my trip back to West Virginia, Shirley and I stopped at the mortuary to visit and put flowers on my Mom and Dad's graves. It was a surreal feeling (as this article goes on to say ) to look at the birth dates and death dates on the headstone connected by the usual insignificant little dash, but this represented their lives ( and all the things they started or finished in their life. Their accomplishments, their joys, their sorrows, their hopes and their dreams ). How grateful I am to know that this life isn't the end, yes... this is the middle of my life; and I want to celebrate all the beginnings and ending moments with those I love. I want to live in the moment. I hope you will too. Good night dear friends!


"Being always in the middle means that the game is never over, hope is never lost, and defeat is never final."  ~ Dieter F. Ochtdorf


"Forever ---is composed of Nows."


To read this article go here:

Inspiration!

 

"NIGHT NEVER HAD THE LAST WORD. THE DAWN IS ALWAYS INVINCIBLE."  ~ Hugh B. Brown

I have a young friend of mine that has had some real struggles in her life. Understanding to some degree how hard life can be at that age, I searched for a quote that I might put in a card for her and I think I found the perfect one, this one at the top.

I wished that I could have shared a lesson that I heard from a speaker in church which was directed to the Young Women, it was truly inspirational. Here is part of it, just in case she is reading my blog.

"Over the years I have been exposed to many beautiful languages--each of them is fascinating and remarkable; each has its particular charm. But as different  as these languages can be, they often have things in common. For example, in most languages there exists a  phrase as magical and full of promise as perhaps any in the world. That phrase is "Once upon a time."

Aren't those wonderful words to begin a story? "Once upon a time" promises something: a story of adventure and romance, a story of everlasting love. In many of these stories, nice overcomes mean and good overcomes evil. But perhaps most of all, I love it when we turn to the last page and our eyes reach the final lines and we see the enchanting words "And they lived happily ever after."

Isn't that what we all desire: to be the heroes and heroines of our own stories; to triumph over adversity; to experience life in all it's beauty; and, in the end, to live happily ever after?

For a moment, think back about your favorite fairy tale. In that story the main character may be a princess or a peasant; she might be a mermaid or a milkmaid, a ruler or a servant. You will find one thing all have in common: they must overcome adversity. Cinderella had to endure her wicked stepmother and evil stepsisters. She is compelled to suffer long hours of servitude and ridicule. "Beauty and the Beast," Belle becomes a captive to a frightful-looking beast in order to save her father. She sacrifices her home and family, all she holds dear, to spend several months in the beast's castle.

In each of these stories, Cinderella, Belle and the miller's daughter have to experience sadness and trial before they can reach their "happily ever after." Think about it. Has there ever been a person who did not have to go through his or her own dark valley of temptation, trial, and sorrow?

Sandwiched between their "once upon a time" and "happily ever after," they all had to experience great adversity. Why must all experience sadness and tragedy? Why could we not simply live in bliss and peace, each day filled with wonder, joy and love?

The scriptures tell us there must be opposition in all things, for without it we could not discern the sweet from the bitter.

In stories, as in life, adversity teaches us things we cannot learn otherwise. Adversity helps to develop a depth of character that comes in no other way. Our loving Heavenly Father had set us in a world filled with challenges and trials so that we, through opposition, can  learn wisdom, become stronger, and experience joy."                         ~ Dieter F. Uchtdorf May 2010

I read this quote the other day..."IT'S NEVER TOO LATE TO LIVE HAPPILY EVER AFTER"

So I believe that is just exactly what we need to strive for each day and happiness and peace that only comes from truly understanding our worth and our purpose here on earth. Yes, I pray my young friend will come to know this for herself and that I myself will remember it on the tough days!