People People 101

I envy people who let words flow as freely through them as water does tap. It's something I've never been able to do as long as I've tried (and let me tell you, it's been a long time). But I'm working on it. And I'll get there. Eventually.

Back to people. I love them. So much! It didn't use to be that way, I didn't use to get excited after talking to one of my friends or learning something new about someone. I didn't use to call myself a people person.

But now? I almost can. :)

I guess the change has been in the past few months, where an introduction to proper teenage-hood and growing up subconsciously enrolled me in People People 101. I love it. Every bit of it. I love who I am, I love who I am becoming. And the reason I do is because I'm beginning to love other people.

Remember a few months ago--was it really just one?--where Cambry and I went to a YCL overnighter, went to bed "early" and then stayed up talking for a while? Remember me saying how I don't feel the love for people that Cambry can? Remember me saying I wish I did?

Well, my wish came true. Something about having a best friend as a role model and being provided experiences to grow can shape a girl. And it has definitely shaped me in the past few months.

The result?

I want to get to know people. So bad. I want to call friends on the phone and talk to them, I want to invite someone over and just play. I want to walk up to somebody at school or marching band or wherever and ask them what they're up to. I actually, really, truly want to know. Is that crazy, or is that just me? Where is this coming from? I feel like this feeling is an alien part of me I haven't met, but that's okay. Because wanting to be a people person is a good thing. I am human, after all. It's time I embrace humanity and go for it. Go for making friends. Go for meeting people. Go for calling someone up or inviting them over. Though hesitancy still rules me and those parts of me that hold me back still have control, my mind has begun to discover all that I could be as a friend and person. Perhaps that idea might just gain hold and allow me to act, but for now I'll just watch. And love. And learn. And hopefully become the person I am meant to be. I can see now that I am just starting that journey, and though it's a long one, it's definitely worth it.

[press save]

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And now comes the question I ask myself: how did it taste?

I might be starting to like this tap water.

;) *wink wink* ;)

Rain

First, let me say this:

I love the Lord. He is my strength, my redeemer, my savior, my friend, my brother. He helps me in times of need and loves me always. And, because He knows I need it, He'll prove His love to me in little ways. Small, tender mercies that seem insignificant, but have really affected me and that I cherish.

I had one such experience this week, on Wednesday. To put it simply, I was having the worst mood swing of my life. I was in a weird mood all day, and around 5:00 my brainwork collapsed on me. A plague of irrationality took over, and I was crying, whimpering, angry, hurt, confused, annoyed, and otherwise insane. I knew what I was feeling wasn't real. I knew that I was fine, that nothing was wrong, that there was no reason to be upset over anything. The trigger itself was harmless enough--I was simply feeling lonely, but that feeling exploded inside me until I could no longer stand being in my house.

So I walked to the park. And I walked. And I wandered. And I felt a little better moving around and being left alone by everything else. I just let my mind run away for a bit, I let myself go numb. I went to Cascade Elementary and paced around the front of the building. I traced a pattern in the grass where the mower didn't quite get. I walked through the playground, and around the field. I passed the hill in Cascade Park and followed some trails here and there. I took a few pictures, watched the people on bikes, the people playing tennis, the people on the hill. I wandered.

And then my isolation was over. I turned to walk home as I replied to my friend, telling him what I was up to. I was in the park, and I liked the thunder. As I was texting the words "I hope I get rained on," I walked out from under the cover of a large maple tree and into a downpour.

I laughed. I laughed the whole way as I walked. It was the heaviest rain I've been in for years, and it just made me... happy. :) Soaked from head to foot, my dad came to find me right as I was starting to get cold. I knew the moment the rain started that it was my rain. The timing was too perfect for it NOT to be!

So of course it was my rain.

It is how my Heavenly Father showed me he loved me that day. He let me know how much He cared for me, how He was looking out for me and understood how I felt. All those negative feelings and irrational thoughts were washed out with the rain, and I was left in peace. Nothing wrong, nothing to regret or to hopelessly wish for. Just a warm, clear evening as the last of my raindrops fell to the ground.

All is well.

:)

Mind. Blown.

Freak.

EFY Pictures

Thank goodness for facebook! :) Here are some photos of my week at EFY.
First is my company:

Company counselors, Amanda, Ashley, and Aaron. Amanda was my counselor, on the left.

Our boys

My counselor group girls. :) From the left: Taylor, Shelby, Sabrina, Brittney, Amanda (our counselor), Lacey, Aly L., Elyssa, Aly C. :D Love those girls!

On Wednesday, we have game night. One of the activities is creating a banner and cheer for your company. Here's our macho We-Shall-Hunt circle.

More cheering.

Taylor and Shelby rocked our banner.

A cool pic from game night.

There were also two dances at EFY. One on Tuesday, and another on Friday. Vanessa edited this awesome dance action pic:

Here's me and Sabrina with Elyssa. Again, My camera broke, so I didn't get many pictures with individuals. Still, I like this one. :)

One of my favorite people I met at EFY. Cute Landon.

On Friday we did a service project, writing thank you cards to important people in our lives and also to different departments and companies that made EFY possible. Thank you!

Alright, onto Vanessa's amazingness. She is a great photographer, and she posted some alternative pictures I REALLY like. All credit goes to her, I just wanted to share these because, well, they're awesome. Simple as that.

Here are some favorite ties we saw on Thursday:

And a beautiful daisy native to our company spot:

I don't know where this is, but it's gorgeous. Trisha would say it's romantic <3

Apparently someone threw his friend's tennis shoes into the telephone lines. Makes for a great picture, wouldn't you say?

And finally, an EFY marker flag. Overall I'd say I had a great time at EFY. I met some neat people, had some spiritual experiences. I'm glad I went

And that's all I have! :)
THEY SHALL HUNT!!!!!!

The LoveSac Warning Tag

I know I already read this to Dan and Cambry, but I think the warnings on a lovesac label are absolutely hilarious. They are as follows:

WARNING: Improper use of this product may cause injury or death.

Do not jump on the Lovesac--projecting oneself through open space is inherently dangerous--may cause injury or death.

Do not allow children to play unattended on the Lovesac--better yet, do not allow your children to play unattended at all.

Do not eat the LoveSac foam--more importantly, do not inhale--may damage your political career.

Do not allow people to play underneath the Lovesac, or anything else for that matter--may cause injury or death.

Keep away from heaters.

Failure to keep your LoveSac fluffed may cause injury or death to your sac.

Failure to regularly wash your sac is just gross, and could somehow lead to injury or death.

Failure to share the love will only cause you to lose friends--possibly resulting in injury or death.

Anyway. That was kind of random. And really all I had to say. For now. :)

Haha!

EFY

So...

Things you should know about me, if you didn't infer from the last post or from my lack of posts like it, EVER on this blog... I am a terrible camera owner. I am also a terrible cell phone owner, but I got a lot better all of a sudden. :) I don't use my ipod much, either, but it does find more use than either of those two. Back to cameras.

I didn't take many pictures at EFY. Sad day, right? :( Well, I was GOING to take pictures of everyone on Friday (our goodbye day) but unfortunately my friend dropped my camera, busted the lens, and now I have no camera. :'( *sniff*

Anyway. What I was trying to say is sorry for the lack of pictures. I'll try to steal some from my EFY facebook friends, but we'll see. You know.

*********

SO.... EFY!! :)

I was moderately excited to go. I was hesitant to leave my friends for an entire week, but at least I was with my best friend Sabrina all week! We were roommates, which was very fun. I also went with my cousins Brandon and Nicole, but they weren't in my company so I only got to see them at dances and occasionally the classes.

On Monday, "orientation day," we did fun things like goal setting, FHE activities, and a session fireside. We met our company, a group of 20-something boys and girls that becomes our family at EFY. My company was BIG, with 16 girls and 12 guys. We had a hard time bonding due to the contention between our counselors. It mostly came down to prejudice, but by the end of the week it was an issue of pride. For me and Sabrina the problem was resolved on Thursday, which made things a lot better for the last two days. :)

Anyway, our company name was "They Shall Hunt." Weird, but whatever. ;) I made some neat people, like Landon, Adrian, Jacob, Janessa, and Aly. Also I had some great spiritual experiences. At EFY you go to eight classes total, which are basically AP Seminary classes. I love them so much, they're my favorite part of EFY. Also, we had two dances, one on Tuesday (which got rained on, rainbow-ed on, then lightning-and-thundered on. It was sweet!), and the other on Friday. Wednesday was game night, which wasn't too exciting, and later pizza night. Thursday is often considered the "spiritual day" because you wear Sunday dress, go to YM/YW activities, and then have firesides and testimony meeting. It was neat to hear from the people in my company, many have strong testimonies I admire. I enjoyed Thursday. I also enjoyed Friday, but really, I was ready to leave when I arrived on Monday.

I am a brat, I know. I was counting down the days just a little bit. It was hard to shift my focus away from my friends at home and on to the people surrounding me at EFY, but I made it work. ;) My testimony was definitely strengthened from going, I had some great times, and I'm glad my last year at EFY turned out all right! :D

Oh, and we had a wonderful session director. On Thursday during our morning fireside with just the young women, he showed us this:

Haha I love this so much.

I like my whole house, too. I'm glad to be back... :D

Monday Night Adventures

Family Night, Monday. GREAT NIGHT! :) I love my family.

We went to the Cascade Park and had a little picnic, then afterwards we played baseball in the park. I know it's amazing, but for once, I actually BROUGHT my camera with me. And then (*gasp*) I USED it!!! Here are some of the pictures from the evening:

Brad in mid-swing.

Brianna's up to bat and looking lovely. ;)

My Dad~showing off his pitching skill.

We weren't there for very long when the sprinkers in the soccer field next to us started to go off, and my little brothers started to go for it.

Here are the boys--wet and apparently very happy about it. :)

...Well, kind of. I'm guessing that's a scream of joy.

I thought this one was cool--Brayden's in midair.

I love this face. :P

Sprinker limbo.

My mom, sister, and I just sat around and watched most of the time.

Brianna and my mom, guarding the pile.

Me

My little sister is GORGEOUS!! :)

Also, I just had to post this one. It's not family night unless somebody cries. :)

So there you have it! Our Monday Night adventures. :)
Fun stuff. ;)