Everyday Goodness

A couple months ago, I decided that I was reading and seeing too many sad and troubling things..stuff that really can get you down.  But it isn't in my nature to quit watching TV, reading the news, or perusing the internet.  I am not one of those people who believes that removing those things from my life will automatically make things better.  I believe you have to live in this life and learn to pick and choose from the good and the bad.  It helps you to inform your decision-making process, it helps you to be open minded to the suffering of others, it helps you to form critical thinking skills, etc.  But, I also wanted to be careful to not become mired down.  So I decided I would actively seek out something good to read or watch every day (Sometimes that means that I look at pictures of tiny pigs dressed in galoshes.  Good things come in all different shapes and sizes, they don't always have to be some big spiritual revelation).  Today, I watched the music video for the David Archuleta song Glorious.  I had been resisting it for a long time.  For one his music isn't really my thing, and also I tend to automatically reject anything that everyone is telling me "I have to do/see/listen".  I am kind of snobby that way.  But I was pleasantly surprised by how pretty the song was, and how emotional it would be to see the images and hear the lyrics.  This is not a pitch for you to go see the movie; I haven't seen it either, and I am not planning to anytime soon.  Does that make me a bad Mormon?  No, it doesn't.  But I do think this song is lovely, so I am sharing it here.

Gratitude Month - Choices

 

I have had one of those 'Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Days' today.   Work was more stressful than normal.   And I just got back from a quick trip to Urgent Care for an extremely painful bladder infection.   Too much information?   Sorry about that.

 

But in spite of all that, I want to choose to be happy.

 

I have been thinking a lot about a talk I heard recently.   The speaker talked about regrets that people have at the end of their lives.   He focused on three in particular.

 

1.   The regret that you didn't spend more time with the people you love.

2.  The regret that you didn't live up to your full potential.

3.  The regret that you didn't let yourself be happy.

 

It's the last one that was coming to mind as I was thinking about how much pain I was in at the Urgent Care.   The word 'let' is very interesting to me.   I think that it indicates that happiness is not just something that happens to you, but rather a choice.   Meaning you have control over how you will react in any given situation.  Will you allow it to make you cranky?   Sad?    Angry?  Will you allow it to control how you treat someone else who just happens to be next in line?

 

The Dalai Lama in his book The Art of Happiness says,

 

“Although you may not always be able to avoid difficult situations, you can modify the extent to which you can suffer by how you choose to respond to the situation.” 

I know that this is much easier said than done.  Believe me I know....I am a pretty irritable person, so it is something I really need to work on.

 

Just some food for thought.



Out of the mouth of babes...

This past Sunday I was reminded of why it delights me to teach the children at church.

I taught the 5 year olds this week and we were having a lesson on how we can tell that Jesus loves us and how we can show Jesus that we love him.   I asked the question..."What has Jesus given us to show us that he loves us?".   Then we went around the room.   One little girl said "our moms and dads", the next little girl said "animals, especially baby ducks", the next little girl said "flowers", and bless his heart the one little boy said "Jack Sparrow".

And you know what?   I think he's absolutely correct and I too am grateful for Jack Sparrow...

and also 5 year olds.

My Summer Bucket List

I live less than 30 minutes away from the where this picture was taken (which I borrowed from the internet).  How lucky am I? 

Looking at this beautiful picture makes me think about all of the things that I don't do every day.   Yes work is important, it pays the bills after all, but living your life is important too.  I come to this conclusion at least once a year, and since I love making lists, I figured I would make a list of things I could do this summer that don't entail sitting in front of my laptop for 16 hours a day.

Visit the new Polar Bear at the zoo, check in on the new Sea Lion too 

Go somewhere I have never been

Do something brave

Do something outside every day

Plant flowers

Take a road trip

Eat Popsicles

Keep heels smooth and lovely

Drink a lot of water

Hike a new trail

Volunteer some time

Spend more time at Red Butte Garden

Go to a concert

See a play or musical

Go to a sporting event

Spend more time with friends

Go on a picnic

Swim

Make a craft

Save money for trips

Start Christmas shopping

(yah the 2 items above seem to cancel each other out don't they?)

Register to be an organ donor

Do something educational

Try a new restaurant

Go to the Scottish Festival…eat some Haggis

Organize closets

Try a few new recipes

Go to the Farmers Market more often

Watch a lot of the Olympics (but don't stay up all night obsessively checking every channel for coverage like I did last time)

Be a little more spontaneous...but not too much.

Check back with me in September, lets say around the Autumnal Equinox, and I will make a report on how successful I was in checking things off this list.

In which she posts a plethora of pictures...

Just be grateful that I didn't post all 300 + pictures that we took.

California Screamin - Larcy and MacConnell.

Saucy Pirates in New Orleans Square.

The castle bedecked (almost fully) for Christmas.

New Orleans Square bedecked for Christmas.

We are too cheap to buy the picture, so we just take a picture of the picture.

Yes, we ARE wearing matching shirts. What? It was fun.

I like this picture. I think my hair color is nice in it. And we look happy, even MacConnell. Sorry you have to turn upside down to look at it.

San Diego Zoo Koalas

Mom Panda

Dad Panda

Awwww. Baby Panda

More baby Panda

Orphaned Harbor Seal pups at our Hotel. They were both blind, and oh so cute. The loved to play with each other.

Kate's new Facebook picture.

Shamu Show

One of my favorite exhibits was the penguins. They had all kinds. They amuse me when the waddle around.

We were supposed to meet at the penguins. Some of us...ahem...were not at the meeting point.

This naughty dolphin snuck up next to Kate and I, and then deliberately splashed us with nasty foul smelling water.

Beluga Whale. So beautiful.

Blurryish picture of me at the Nixon Library.

Universal Studios. Jaws.

I asked Kate and MacConnell to look suprised, I am not sure about their acting skills.

Psycho House.

Wisteria Lane.

This was possible the coolest part. It is the airplane set from War of the Worlds.

Kate and MacConnell. This picture really amuses me.

And here is your Christmas scripture, song, and story for the day.

Scripture - Isaiah 40:1-4

Song - Joy to the World

Story - Christmas Day in the Morning (Pearl S. Buck)

Finally!

Hooray! It snowed. In the mountains, but it's only a matter of time until it is in the valley as well. Sigh...I can't wait.

Delicious Autumn

Last year when I was in the Netherlands I picked up a book at the Anne Frank house that I have just now started to read. I have been struck by how someone so young and who by all accounts led a fairly sheltered life could possess such wisdom. She says in her diary that, "The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere where they can be quiet, alone with the heavens, nature and God. Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be and that God wishes to see people happy, amidst the simple beauty of nature. As long as this exists, and it certainly always will, I know that then there will always be comfort for every sorrow, whatever the circumstances may be. And I firmly believe that nature brings solace in all troubles." It is amazing the grace she exhibits under such extreme hardship and the poignancy of her words is heartbreaking considering that she would never again in her short lifetime experience the joy of nature’s wonders.

So…having literally just read that passage this morning, I decided that today was the day to take a drive up to Silver Lake for a quick hike and a peak at the changing leaves. It was beautiful. Here are some pictures of my outing.

Last time I was up at Silver Lake I rounded the bend to come face to face with two baby moose. Now, don't let the word baby fool you, they were big. And we were probably only a few feet away from them. It was awesome. The most ferocious creature I saw this time was this little fellow. Isn't he cute?

If you haven't been to Silver Lake, may I recommend that you go? It is an easy hike and so, so beautiful. It is just hop, skip, and a jump up Big Cottonwood Canyon.

My People

As I was perusing the newspaper on Friday looking for fun and interesting things to do, I noticed that there was a new IMAX movie in town, called ‘The Alps’. Be still my beating heart. You already know how I feel about cinema, but what you may not know is that I just adore IMAX. I think it started when the IMAX movie ‘Everest’ came out. I had read the book ‘Into Thin Air’ a couple of months before, and I was very touched and moved by the story. I became a little obsessed with Mount Everest and learning about Nepal and Tibet, and with prayer flags (thank you Matt for hand carrying some back from Nepal for me), and with mountain climbing in general. Odd, considering I have a very real fear of heights. But anyhoo, at the time Utah did not have an IMAX theater and I was just so tingly with excitement to see this movie that I didn’t know what to do with myself. I was SUPER excited when I went on a trip to Washington D.C. that year and saw that ‘Everest’ was playing at the Smithsonian: National Air and Space museum. My friends and I planned to see the movie on the only free night I had during that trip. The day came, and we drove into the city, walked up to purchase our tickets, and were told that the museum was closed for a wedding reception. WTH! Who do you have to be to get the entire National Air and Space museum to shut down for your wedding reception? I mean geez. I was bitterly disappointed. Anyway, to make a long story short, they finally opened an IMAX in Utah, they re-released ‘Everest’ in the theaters, I went to see it, LOVED it, and went to see it again at the very next showing. It was just as compelling and heart wrenching as I had imagined it would be.

So…when I saw that there was an IMAX movie called ‘The Alps’, of course I had to go. After all The Alps form a part of the land of my people. Ok, ok I know I say that a lot – “My People”. What does this really mean? Let me take a moment to explain. If I have ever communed in a place that brought me joy, then by default the people of that area become “my people”. So if you are Dutch, or Singaporean, or from New York City, or are from Washington D.C., or from Nashville, or if you are Irish, or English, or Californian, or German speaking, or wee little Scots, then you are my people. If you have ever been to Disneyland, worked the Olympics, or attended the Sundance Film Festival, then you are “my people”. But of all the people that are “my people” the Swiss have a special place in my heart. They can be hard headed, and proud, and when you first meet them they may seem cold - but you will never find a truer and more loyal friend than a Swiss person. And although I cannot say that I have seen every place there is to see in the world, I CAN say that I seriously doubt if there is anywhere more breathtakingly beautiful than Switzerland. There were times when I lived there when I would see a sight so lovely that it seemed like it couldn’t be real. One cannot look at such a landscape and not feel a divine presence.

So back to the IMAX, this movie is about a man who has come to climb the north face of the Eiger, the same mountain that had claimed the life of his father when he was nine, 40 years ago. The story is compelling, not just because of the personal aspect but also largely in part due to the mountain itself. The Eiger is one of a group three famous mountain peaks in Switzerland; its neighbors are the Monch and the Jungfrau. In German their names translate into the Monk, the Virgin, and the Ogre. At approx. 13,000 feet, the “Ogre” is not the tallest of mountains, but due to its strange weather, crumbly composition, and mile high rock face, it can be a dangerous mountain to climb. I lived for a short time in the shadows of these three great Alps, and to see their silhouette in the horizon is awe inspiring. What I loved most about this movie and the reason for the post I guess is that there are many lovely shots of Switzerland. It brought tears to my eyes and I felt homesick watching it. If you ever get the chance to go to Europe I highly recommend an outing in Switzerland, I don’t think you will be disappointed. But if you don’t get the chance and you just want to see some really beautiful scenery, I recommend a trip to your local IMAX.

And as the say in the language of my people – Tschussli, I hope you all have a place and a people that you consider to be yours.

"To all who come to this happy place...Welcome!"

Here are a few pics from my recent trip to Disneyland with the family. It was super fun. I of course loved being with my Melissa, Delaney, Peggy, and Mary Ann. But I also really loved being with my cousins Susie, Jenny, and Bailey. I haven't had too many opportunities to spend time with them, and that's a shame, because they are totally fun. Yah, yah, I know that they live in Utah and one would think that I would see them all the time, but I am a bad cousin. Ok, I said it. I am going to try harder.

Obligatory Mickey flower bed picture. Don't we look cute? We are just missing Mary Ann.




Super cute Sister and Niece. (And one of the Care Bears decided he/she had to come too).

Delaney decided she needed to see who was at home at the Mad Hatter's.

Finding Nemo Ride. It's pretty cool.

Fulfilling a life long dream of having my picture taken with Chip and Dale. It looks like Delaney loves Chip, and Chip loves Delaney.

Here Delaney is shown weilding her infamous straw. The one where she would poke my arm and make a mark, and then say in all innocence, "What happened?". And then I would say..."well it would appear that you have poked me with your straw". And then Delaney would say..."I am sorry Aunt Heather". And then Delaney would proceed to poke me with her straw again.

Bailey and Delaney in the 'O' at California Adventure. Aren't they cute?

Good times!

P.S. Oh...And I forgot possibly one of the most important facts. I rode the TOWER OF TERROR. And I didn't even soil myself.

Princess Heather goes on Vacation

Can you guess where?

HERE YOU LEAVE TODAY

AND ENTER THE WORLD

OF YESTERDAY, TOMORROW

AND FANTASY.