Growing up in the LDS religion I always looked up to missionaries. They always seemed so mature for their age. They were all nice. They all seemed so happy. And they were giving up two years of their lives to try and help other people however they could. When I was getting to that ripe old age of 19 it wasn't a hard decision for me to become a missionary.
If you're familiar with the LDS church you may have heard, on more than one occasion, "My mission was the BEST two years of my life!" This expression was thrown around quite a bit. Missionaries would return home and say that phrase like it was going out of style. I think many young men preparing for missions don't get the whole story, and as a result they're shocked when they get out there. Some don't even get through the training period before they get to their real mission destination.
My experience was probably similar to most. I went on my mission with good intentions. I wanted to share my beliefs with other people, because it had been such a great blessing to me. If they didn't want to hear about the church I was willing to help them out in other ways. Moving heavy furniture, weeding, painting, roofing, helping people move in. You name it!
The part about the mission I was ill prepared for was ALL the rejection. Constant rejection. Terrible insults, bottles and other garbage flying out of speeding cars aimed to hurt me, spit, threats from people to get guns and shoot us if we didn't leave right now. Every day we ran into people that hated us. Pure venom and loathing. As a missionary I couldn't grasp why people could react in such a way. Sure, most people already have a religion. I'd say 99.999% would never want to allow me into their home to discuss religious topics. That, I was okay with. I was not okay with the constant persecution. Some people would go out of their way to make us feel like dirt. It was depressing and demoralizing to walk around ALL day and have people react that way. THIS is the stuff I didn't hear much about before I signed up.
Yet despite all those troubles the positives far outweighed the negatives. I was a better person for those two years. There was little time to worry about myself or things that I wanted and I truly DID love what I was doing. I got to really study and understand scriptures that I never would have learned otherwise. I blessed people, I taught people, I learned from people. I was never more happy in my life. In that sense it was the best two years because of all the things I learned while I was there.
Was I happy to be done.... You bet!! But I'll always be glad I got the chance to serve as a missionary.
So when you see an LDS missionary walking around, riding their bike, or maybe even knocking on your door go easy on them. If you don't want to talk to them just so no thanks and close the door. They're still human beings. They hurt, they cry, the get down despite usually having a smile on their face. And for those thinking about a misison. It's totally worth it!
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
SCHOOL
Back to school.... back to school.... to prove to my dad that I'm not a fool. I got my lunch packed up... by boots tied tight... I hope I don't get in a fight.
That's right. Many of you know that school has begun. It's quite unfortuneate. I have made a decision in my mind that I'm not going to complain about school this semester. As much. I'm lucky I have the means to go, and more school means less school later on. So I'm going to just go and do what I have to do
I have been to my classes and they seem alright. I have two classes from Dr. Carboni, which is great because I've had him for 3 other classes before and it's usually pretty fun. Not a TON of homework. There are always one or two pretty tough assignements that stress me out, but better than most teachers.
My other class that I have on Tuesdays and Thursdays is sweet! It's called "Lifetime Leisure Activities." The class consists of different sports that a person can do throughout their life. Not team sports because a majority of people don't participate in team sports after high school. So I will be learning: Juggling, Curling, Hiking, Ice Skating, Unicycling (yea that's right), rock climbing, cross-country skiing (probably just talk about it since there won't be snow in time), Frisbee, Snorkling/SCUBA, boomarang, and more! Now what's better than that? I think I might have just crapped my pants talking about it.
The great thing is that participation is worth 50% of your grade. "Dr. Fun" was explaining that if we missed days we were SOL because there was no way to make up the stuff we were doing. There's not really any assignments per se. I was stressing because I'm going on a cruise Sep 26th-Oct 3rd! As I was starting to sweat the situation "Dr. Fun" says: "You'll notice there's no class from Sep 24th-Oct 10th because I'm going on a cruise." So I won't have to miss any days in that class. Problem solved!
"Dr. Fun" gets to go on this cruise and write it off on his taxes as "research" for his P.E. profession. That's a pretty good deal. He's got a pretty awesome job. I'm excited because one day I'll have a sweet job where I get to play. So bring on the school! I gotta get done.
That's right. Many of you know that school has begun. It's quite unfortuneate. I have made a decision in my mind that I'm not going to complain about school this semester. As much. I'm lucky I have the means to go, and more school means less school later on. So I'm going to just go and do what I have to do
I have been to my classes and they seem alright. I have two classes from Dr. Carboni, which is great because I've had him for 3 other classes before and it's usually pretty fun. Not a TON of homework. There are always one or two pretty tough assignements that stress me out, but better than most teachers.
My other class that I have on Tuesdays and Thursdays is sweet! It's called "Lifetime Leisure Activities." The class consists of different sports that a person can do throughout their life. Not team sports because a majority of people don't participate in team sports after high school. So I will be learning: Juggling, Curling, Hiking, Ice Skating, Unicycling (yea that's right), rock climbing, cross-country skiing (probably just talk about it since there won't be snow in time), Frisbee, Snorkling/SCUBA, boomarang, and more! Now what's better than that? I think I might have just crapped my pants talking about it.
The great thing is that participation is worth 50% of your grade. "Dr. Fun" was explaining that if we missed days we were SOL because there was no way to make up the stuff we were doing. There's not really any assignments per se. I was stressing because I'm going on a cruise Sep 26th-Oct 3rd! As I was starting to sweat the situation "Dr. Fun" says: "You'll notice there's no class from Sep 24th-Oct 10th because I'm going on a cruise." So I won't have to miss any days in that class. Problem solved!
"Dr. Fun" gets to go on this cruise and write it off on his taxes as "research" for his P.E. profession. That's a pretty good deal. He's got a pretty awesome job. I'm excited because one day I'll have a sweet job where I get to play. So bring on the school! I gotta get done.
Monday, August 24, 2009
BIRTHDAY GIRL
Today is Alyssa's birthday, which is kind of a downer because we both started school at Weber State again today. It's never fun to be stuck at work or school on a day like this, but that's life I guess.
I am just going to give a few reasons why I'm so happy to know Alyssa and have her in my life.
1- Alyssa is funny! I like to laugh, and she makes me laugh regularly. She says funny things all the time and it keeps me smiling. She does a robot dance that I find quite funny. She was doing this dance just yesterday and as I was laughing she robot danced her way over to me. During that process she pounded my thumb into the side of the counter top and smashed my finger pretty good. Yeah it hurt, but it was worth it because the robot dance is always funny. The finishing robot move usually has to be an arm swing.
2- Alyssa is very giving. Every year she gets a little bit of money for her birthday and we go to shop in Park City. I didn't get to go this year (sad) but she still went with her family. She came back with new soccer socks, sweaters, headbands, and more. Problem was.... half of it was for me!! This is a typical thing. When she has some extra money or time I have to convince her to spend it on herself instead of me or someone else.
3- Alyssa is very hard working. During the summer she worked two jobs and went to summer school full time! I had the option to do this as well... but I chose to sit around and have a few months off. Not Alyssa! She's motivated to get done with school and she works dang hard. I spent my summer playing golf and video games while she read about 100 books and did homework assignments between jobs. And I didn't hear her complain because I was having so much fun while she was busy working (even though she probably thought it) ;o)
4- Alyssa is fun. We're always having a good time. Alyssa always makes time to do things that I like to do. I am a sports lover and Alyssa has allowed me to continue doing things I love to do. I play in basketball leagues and a soccer league. This costs us money, but she tells me to play because she knows I LOVE it. She's also started playing soccer with me. We play in a co-ed league once a week. She's great at defense and people on the team often refer to her as "the wall" because nobody gets by her. She's started to play more offense lately and she's getting better at scoring goals.
5- We don't have kids yet, but I can tell Alyssa will be a great mom! She takes care of me whenever I'm upset or dont feel well. I had a bad Flu about two months ago and she stayed up and took care of me. She got me into the bath tub and sat there to make sure I was okay. She took care of me all night even though she had to work the next day. I was sick, but having her there made me feel better.
6- Alyssa takes action. I have a lot of goals in my head, but most of them stay there. Alyssa is a go-getter! If there's something that needs to get done, she works until it gets done.
7- This would probably be an insult to some women.... but Alyssa is low maintenance. She gets ready faster than I do. She doesn't put on 10 pounds of make-up every day. She doesn't spend a butt load of money on getting her hair and nails done. She's perfectly comfortable wearing her Aeropostale sweatpants to the movies. And she still looks great!! A girl that can look and feel good without all that stuff is a rare find.
8- Alyssa doesn't judge me. I have a lot of things I need to work on but Alyssa has never looked down on me for my shortcomings. She makes me feel good about myself and it drives me to improve.
9- Alyssa is a girl, but she isn't affraid to do the heavy lifting or yard work (usually assigned to males). She'll move furniture if it needs moving. If I get overloaded she mows the lawn to help me out. We definitely don't have a gender assignment marriage.
10- Alyssa is very adventurous! She's not scared to try new things. She did the sky coaster when we went to six flags. She's often said she would go sky diving or bungee jumping (something I could never do). When we go on our cruise next month we're going parasailing. She'll try anything once.
There are many other things I love about Alyssa. This is just the tip of the iceburg. I'm a lucky guy! HAPPY BIRTHDAY Alyssa!!!! Love you!!! Tomorrow!!
I am just going to give a few reasons why I'm so happy to know Alyssa and have her in my life.
1- Alyssa is funny! I like to laugh, and she makes me laugh regularly. She says funny things all the time and it keeps me smiling. She does a robot dance that I find quite funny. She was doing this dance just yesterday and as I was laughing she robot danced her way over to me. During that process she pounded my thumb into the side of the counter top and smashed my finger pretty good. Yeah it hurt, but it was worth it because the robot dance is always funny. The finishing robot move usually has to be an arm swing.
2- Alyssa is very giving. Every year she gets a little bit of money for her birthday and we go to shop in Park City. I didn't get to go this year (sad) but she still went with her family. She came back with new soccer socks, sweaters, headbands, and more. Problem was.... half of it was for me!! This is a typical thing. When she has some extra money or time I have to convince her to spend it on herself instead of me or someone else.
3- Alyssa is very hard working. During the summer she worked two jobs and went to summer school full time! I had the option to do this as well... but I chose to sit around and have a few months off. Not Alyssa! She's motivated to get done with school and she works dang hard. I spent my summer playing golf and video games while she read about 100 books and did homework assignments between jobs. And I didn't hear her complain because I was having so much fun while she was busy working (even though she probably thought it) ;o)
4- Alyssa is fun. We're always having a good time. Alyssa always makes time to do things that I like to do. I am a sports lover and Alyssa has allowed me to continue doing things I love to do. I play in basketball leagues and a soccer league. This costs us money, but she tells me to play because she knows I LOVE it. She's also started playing soccer with me. We play in a co-ed league once a week. She's great at defense and people on the team often refer to her as "the wall" because nobody gets by her. She's started to play more offense lately and she's getting better at scoring goals.
5- We don't have kids yet, but I can tell Alyssa will be a great mom! She takes care of me whenever I'm upset or dont feel well. I had a bad Flu about two months ago and she stayed up and took care of me. She got me into the bath tub and sat there to make sure I was okay. She took care of me all night even though she had to work the next day. I was sick, but having her there made me feel better.
6- Alyssa takes action. I have a lot of goals in my head, but most of them stay there. Alyssa is a go-getter! If there's something that needs to get done, she works until it gets done.
7- This would probably be an insult to some women.... but Alyssa is low maintenance. She gets ready faster than I do. She doesn't put on 10 pounds of make-up every day. She doesn't spend a butt load of money on getting her hair and nails done. She's perfectly comfortable wearing her Aeropostale sweatpants to the movies. And she still looks great!! A girl that can look and feel good without all that stuff is a rare find.
8- Alyssa doesn't judge me. I have a lot of things I need to work on but Alyssa has never looked down on me for my shortcomings. She makes me feel good about myself and it drives me to improve.
9- Alyssa is a girl, but she isn't affraid to do the heavy lifting or yard work (usually assigned to males). She'll move furniture if it needs moving. If I get overloaded she mows the lawn to help me out. We definitely don't have a gender assignment marriage.
10- Alyssa is very adventurous! She's not scared to try new things. She did the sky coaster when we went to six flags. She's often said she would go sky diving or bungee jumping (something I could never do). When we go on our cruise next month we're going parasailing. She'll try anything once.
There are many other things I love about Alyssa. This is just the tip of the iceburg. I'm a lucky guy! HAPPY BIRTHDAY Alyssa!!!! Love you!!! Tomorrow!!
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Catch up #2
This is my catch up number 2 from our vacation. If you haven't looked at our first one then you better just go look at it first and then come back to this post!
This post is pictures of visiting Iowa (where Megan went to school), and Nauvoo. We had an awesome time everywhere we went but Nauvoo was awesome. We did a lot of things and it was pretty spiritual. Steven and I were lucky enough to be able to go in the Nauvoo temple to do a session and I am so glad I could experience that. It was beautiful! We were there during the Nauvoo pageant and we thought that was way cool as well. We went down the Trail of Tears, or Trail of Hope and it was interesting because it was real accounts of pioneers and what they experienced. Over all this trip was great, fun, crazy, happy, spiritual, new, and exhausting. Nothing better then that! Hope you enjoy these pictures and maybe it will make you want to go to Nauvoo as well!
IOWA-
The hockey rink where my sister was a trainer.
Casey, Steven, Alyssa at the Mulligan's restaurant. It was delicious!
NAUVOO-
Steven and I
My Dad, Casey, and Steven at the Nauvoo Visitor Center.
Steven and I resting after going down the Trail of Hope.
Steven being silly.
Me being silly. It was a fence at the hotel.
The Shaw family.. it only took us 3 times to get this shot! lol
Megan, Joseph Smith, and I
Steven and I at the Nauvoo Pagent.
Steven and I in front of the Nauvoo Temple.
We tried to take a picture of us by the temple.
Nauvoo Temple taken by my sister. I think it looks awesome.
The Nauvoo Temple taken by my sister. I think it looks awesome.
Mark Twain Boat
Us by the Mississippi River
Meg and I on the plane ride home.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Catch up #1
My Uncle Mike's lake at sunset!
Steven and I went with my awesome family to Illinois to visit my Dad's side of the family. We spent 4 days in Fairview Heights, IL.. 1 night in Cedar Falls, Iowa.. and 3 nights in Nauvoo. It was such an awesome trip and I loved every minute of it! Steven hadn't met my Shaw side before so it was nice to have him finally meet them. Everyone was very friendly and went out of their way for us! It was really nice to see them and I didn't realize how much I missed them until I saw them again! It had been about 6 or 7 years since I saw them last. So this first catch up blog will be just of our visit to Fairview Heights, St. Louis arch, the Casino boat (which is now not a boat! Bummer!), and the family reunion at my uncles lake. Which by the way was like the coolest thing in the whole wide world!! My Uncle Mike has property in Coulterville (I think).. where it is all by itself. He has a nice lake and a bunch of open property as well as corn growing all around it. He had 4-wheelers, little boat, we swam and caught frogs, fished, visited with family, ate delicious food, played a little soccer, and watched the fireflies. It was a blast!
Corn Corn Corn!
My Uncle's lake.. ain't it a beauty?
Meg and I hopping on the 4 wheeler for the first time at the lake.
The Shaw family
My Dad and his brother (my Uncle Mike)
I caught a fish!! Of course it died right after :(
Steven caught like 28 fish!
Steven and I by the soon to be sunset. It was beautiful!
We had fun taking these pictures by the sunset!
The Shaw fam. waiting for a dinner.. and waiting.. and waiting..
The Shaw family at my Grandma and Grandpa Shaw's grave site. They died within two weeks of each other, I was little and never got to know them. :(
My brother Casey, Cousin Sarah, and I on the Sky scraper at Six Flags.
Us up in the air! It was a blast!
Steven and I outside the casino boat.. no winnings here!
St. Louis Arch
So there ya have it! The first catch up pictures!! I will prob post the second batch tomorrow! Hope you enjoy the pictures!
Sunday, August 9, 2009
It is finally here!
I have been hoping for this month all year, and no it's not just because its my birthday! Silly people! This week I will have finally made it through my summer semester! All I know is that I bit off way too much, way more then I could chew, but now that it is winding down I am definitely glad I did it! If I wouldn't have taken a full school schedule and that cooperative work experience then I would not be able to graduate until December 2010. But.. since I did take all that crap this summer I will get to graduate April 2010! yay!! Well that is if I pass all my classes! So although my summer sucked really bad I am glad I did it. So thanks for all your encouragement! But dont feel too sorry for me because I did have an awesome summer!
This summer hasn't been much of a dream summer for me, but I cant say I didn't enjoy it because I had an awesome summer! Steven and I did so many things that I sometimes had a hard time catching my breath. Steven has had a great summer. If you ask me I think he has had his dream summer (aside from working). He has got to golf almost on a weekly basis, camp, gone to ReAL games, vacations, lots and lots of video games with friends, movies, played sports, and many other things that I cant think of. But over all I think he had a really nice summer.
We just got back from our awesome trip to Illinois and Nauvoo, I plan on putting a new post with pictures on soon! We did have an amazing time and we enjoyed spending time with the Shaw family. So keep checking my blog k!?
Hope everyone is doing well!
This summer hasn't been much of a dream summer for me, but I cant say I didn't enjoy it because I had an awesome summer! Steven and I did so many things that I sometimes had a hard time catching my breath. Steven has had a great summer. If you ask me I think he has had his dream summer (aside from working). He has got to golf almost on a weekly basis, camp, gone to ReAL games, vacations, lots and lots of video games with friends, movies, played sports, and many other things that I cant think of. But over all I think he had a really nice summer.
We just got back from our awesome trip to Illinois and Nauvoo, I plan on putting a new post with pictures on soon! We did have an amazing time and we enjoyed spending time with the Shaw family. So keep checking my blog k!?
Hope everyone is doing well!
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