Enlightenment

Above everyone's heart are these exact words: Acknowledge Me. Believe it or not, we all have a purpose in speaking. We talk with one another and say things in a certain way to get reactions from each other. Most of us enjoy talking about ourselves, and to some, it comes naturally to divulge information. We are all special and want people to know we are unique and that we have depth. This must be done carefully, or it may come across as being self absorbed. We ALL want to be acknowledged in some form or another. I think our human need to be acknowledged far outweighs that of being complimented. Being acknowledged is more than just a pat on the back and saying "job well done." To be acknowledged means to be noticed, to be appreciated, and to feel genuinely cared for.

People need to be acknowledged on a daily basis in small, simple ways. Most commonly we applaud people less frequently and ONLY if a person has achieved a grandiose accomplishment. This kind of acknowledgment isn't wrong, but there are several reasons to support why this can be harmful to humankind. If one is only applauded when they do something outrageously wonderful, this conditions the person to seek for excellence through any channel to receive acknowledgment. Encouraging people to succeed is a great thing, and we should all be uplifting to one another. The problem is that people will push themselves harder and harder just to be acknowledged for something...anything. They will run faster than they have strength and some will run right off the edge.

Some of you may be wondering why I have chosen to impart of my enlightenment with you, and I would love nothing more than to explain why. Recently I went to lunch with my mom and our waitress was a little cold and down. After she left our table, I mentioned to my mom that something was wrong, and that she must be having a bad day. Normally I wouldn't think anything of it... in fact I would probably assume this person had a bad attitude and leave her a crappy tip. Instead, I decided to say something to our waitress the next time she came to our table. I did, and I learned that she had just called off her wedding not one week ago. She said she was coping fine, but earlier that day she was very sad and spent most of the morning crying. Later she thanked us for being so kind and caring as to ask her what was wrong. I sensed her sadness and I wasn't being nosy. I truly wanted her to know I cared, and that I acknowledged her as a child of God.

When people randomly pop into our heads, this is Heavenly Father's way of asking us to do Him a favor. If we think about them, it's for a reason, and it's like Heavenly Father wants us to give the person a "hug" for Him. Why pass up this opportunity to do His work? We can accomplish this in several simple ways, such as a note of thanks, a genuine compliment, or a statement of acknowledgment.

I have prayed recently for yet another paradigm shift and today, it came to me. I have been so focused on myself lately. I have been frustrated when people don't listen to me, or try to one-up me. I have felt that people talk at me, and not TO me. I have realized that maybe it's a vibe I am emitting, that I am unapproachable or that I don't care about people. I have decided to change that. Instead of wishing for people to have the desire to get to know me, I have decided to make it my personal goal to be an acknowledger, and a better friend. I encourage you all to be better listeners. Instead of talking about ourselves whenever there is a pause in conversation, (or simply starting the conversation talking about ourselves) why don't we take the time to truly care about the people around us. Let us be affirmers and acknowledgers, not discouragers and depressors.

Miss Kat... although I guess I'm a Mrs.

Here are some random facts about me that you may or may not know!

-I love mascara. I use about 3 or 4 all at the same time, and I love purchasing a new tube of mascara. So simple but it makes me so happy!
-I hate chocolate but I CRAVE chocolate ice cream, choc milk, and hot chocolate. Can't get enough.
-I love funfetti cake and frosting.
-I overcook ALL of my food. I have issues with food being undercooked so I tend to overcook it all. I'm still learning. :)
-My favorite movie is Labyrinth. I can quote every line. I know, it's weird and random, sorta like ME!
-I love facewash. I have horrible acne and I love to wash my face and make it clean. My favorite product is the Glymed skincare line. It works!
-I HATE HATE HATE spearmint anything but I love spearmint certs! I eat them like candy. I also HATE cinnamon anything but I love hot tomales. I know, how much more contradictory can I be?!
-I am obsessed with perfume. I have many brands and varieties, and I always want to purchase more. I wear all of them though. I really do.
-The worst part of my day is deciding what to wear. It takes me literally like 30 mins. I spend more time staring at my closet and trying on clothes than time doing my hair and makeup combined!
-I love accessories. Shoes, handbags, earrings, etc, love it all.
-I have horrible nightmares every night and I wake up screaming. Travis calmly tells me it's a dream and comforts me every time. He is patient about it, too.
-I love and look forward to change.
-I change my hair as often as I change my mind! I also change my hair according to my life... if I'm expecting the end or beginning of a semester, a big move, a turning point in my life, I change my hair. Just wait... you'll see. :)
-I am obsessed with checking the weather. I HAVE to know what it's going to be like that day so I can plan what I'm wearing accordingly. The unpredictable nature of the weather in Utah kills me! I miss being able to predict exactly what the weather will be like in California.
-My most absolute favorite restaurant is Olive Garden.
-My least favorite place that I will puke if I even come close to it is Burger King.
-I am very spiritual. Rarely will you hear me tell a story that doesn't involve Heavenly Father, prayer or faith.

Feel free to add if you think I have left anything out! :) Really though, that's me on a somewhat superficial level, in a nutshell. I promise I have more depth than shoes, hair and handbags. I'm an open book!

My brother, Superman

Today I have truly witnessed a miracle. Recently my brother was in an accident, and he broke his neck. Sparing you the details of how it happened, all you need to know is that it was broken. Doctors and Nurses told him he was lucky to be alive. I heard about what happened and rushed to the hospital to support my family. I was devastated. I was a wreck. I cried harder than I have in my entire life. The thought of my brother becoming paralyzed haunted every fiber of my being. He was in pretty bad shape when I arrived, but he was a trooper and very strong. He told me not to cry and not to worry. Yes, that's right... my brother with the broken neck was comforting ME. I wish I was stronger. I asked exactly what bone(s) were broken and he said the bone broken in his neck was the same one Christopher Reeve broke, and how he became paralyzed. Spencer had numbness in some areas of his body, but for the most part he could feel quite fine. In fact he was in a tremendous amount of pain.

I left the hospital after a few hours because there were too many people for the room, and they needed to perform several tests. I hated to leave, but I knew my mom would update me if anything happened. Later she called me and told me that Spencer had received a Priesthood blessing, and that the new x-rays/CT scan showed NO BROKEN BONES whatsoever. Of course I reverted to my natural mind and thought that it couldn't be... the previous hospital must've done the x-rays wrong, and it was never broken. In fact that is not the case. The x-rays prove definite damage to his neck; it was broken. The doctors and nurses of the hospital were just as in shock as we were.

In the blessing he was told that he needed to have enough faith to make room for the blessing of being healed. What more can I say? This is a wonderful opportunity to be a witness that the Savior lives and he truly can heal us. He heals our broken hearts, and our broken necks, all in accordance with His will. The Lord truly SAVES us. He saves us from harm, and sometimes from ourselves. I called just now to check up on my brother and my mom was happy to report that his pain has lessened, and he is happily eating Cafe Rio.

This experience has increased my faith times 100. I cannot wait to bear witness of the Savior in fast and testimony meeting next month. I am grateful for the Atonement and how it has enriched my life more than I can imagine. It's easy to forget the Savior when good things happen, although I've been trying to remember Him when I am being blessed. I love Spencer so much and I would do anything for him. Actually I didn't know how much I loved him until today. I didn't know my heart was capable of loving that much. I've had a few experiences now where I have been able to show and prove my love for my family members and I am grateful for them. I want them to know how much I love them.... more than anything. My family and I now have the opportunity to come together and be grateful for what we have.... Our own strong Superman Spencer.

Free 99!!

On Saturday I went boating with my friends, and there she was... FREE 99!! What a beauty. Literally there was a sign that said, "Free Piano." I about jumped out of my seat! Travis had to hold me back from jumping out of the car! He promised we'd go and ask the owners about it after boating. Well one thing lead to another and we forgot about free 99.

I couldn't stop thinking about her on Sunday. I wanted to claim her, and make sure she was MINE. Then came Monday, and I was too busy to even think straight. Then today was here. On my way home from work I decided to drive by the house to see if free was still there. SHE WAS!!!! I screeched the car to a halt and jumped out. I banged on the door several times and laid on the doorbell. No one answered. Franticly I got a paper and pen from my purse and scribbled a note begging the owners to save it for me. I left my number and pleaded for them to call me. I was literally praying on my way home, wanting the piano so bad that I swear I could cry if it wasn't mine. We had been looking into buying a piano over the past few months and they are expensive! We saw another piano on the side of the road that said "accepting offers" but it was a P.O.C! The people wanted way too much for it and it had a LOT of work to be done, including replacing all the wood, sound board, keys and strings! Might as well build my own or something. LAME-O!! My hopes and dreams of having my own piano were shattered. Better luck next time, I guess.

UNTIL TODAY!!! The owner called me within an hour and told me I could have her! He told me he couldn't guarantee she was mine because several people were interested. I was the only gem to leave a note. I think he liked me. :) The hard part was how to transport it to my house! We had some AWESOME help, my brother Spence and our friend Chris came to help us. Slowly but surely and in only 1 1/2 hours free 99 was safe, inside my house! MINE, ALL MINE!!!! She does need some work, but nothing compared to the other POC. Plus our home teacher used to work at piano gallery and he has already given us TONS of connections!

I could NOT be happier. And may I just add that truly this is another blessing from the Lord! I am being blessed more than I can handle right now. Even though I'm sicker than a dog (strep throat... again) I am happier than a clam. And clams are happy!!! I can't wait for this to be my new project. Something to keep me busy and something to look forward too. I promise she'll be lookin brand spankin new by Christmas! Maybe I'll just have to host a recital to show her off. I can't wait to play it and annoy the people downstairs!!!! Free 99: My FAVORITE price!!!

Be your own kind of beautiful

I have decided to delete my recent blog about my hair and style and instead replace it with this blog... which is a lot nicer, and much less conceited. I've had a change of heart about the situation. So here's my message to you all.

Be yourself.
Invent your own style.
Be unique and different; don't try to be something or someone you're not.
Imagine your own possibilities.
Pursue your own dreams.
Take risks.
Be 100% okay with who you are.
Love more openly.
Play harder.
Give genuine compliments.
Give credit where credit is due.

That basically sums it up. My last blog was horrendous... I apologize for the angst. That being said, I'd like to explain a few things. I love being unique and individual. Instead of being flattered when someone copies me (regardless of what it is... my hair, my shoes, style, makeup, etc) I feel like my individuality is taken from me, and I'm not unique anymore. I feel like I'm being imitated without copyright permission! That's the thing that gets my goat. It's not that someone gets ideas from me, because I don't mind that. If a person looks at me and thinks, "Woah, that's awesome! I wanna do something like that," well then by all means, do something "like" that, but make it your own.

Be unique and be different. It's fun, you should try it! Find out who you are and love yourself! Don't let the pressures and ever changing styles of the world make you think you need to fit in. Find something that is YOU and embrace it. Self esteem comes from within, not from people complimenting you. I don't wait for people to tell me that I'm beautiful. Tell yourself that everyday, and you will start to believe it. Don't let people bring you down or tell you that you can't do something. I dare you to prove them wrong. Moral of the story: Be your OWN kind of beautiful!!!

831- There's no place like home

Oh how I miss it! These pictures were taken on a day that I was feeling particularly blue. My mom told Liz that I needed to go to the beach. Liz dragged me in the car and we drove to our special unknown private beach spot we call "beer cans" only because someone etched this into the sidewalk. That day was monumental for me. I felt instantly better. I had all my favorite things with me at one instant. My favorite spot, my favorite scene (a beautiful sunset) and my favorite person. Could life get any better? I submit that (at the time) it could not! My sister and mom are there without me right now and I want so badly to squish my toes in that sand! I hated every single moment I was in Hollister and the only thing I could think of when I was in high school was how badly I wanted to get outta there... and now all I wish is to go back and visit! The small town of Hollister itself has really grown. No, the 7 next to Hollister isn't the population, although growing up it definitely felt that way! Mostly I miss the beach. I miss the predictable weather forecast of 70 degrees all year round, and the slightly humid air. I miss being so close to the beach and feeling the breeze at promptly 4:00pm everyday. Central California and the greater bay area is truly my home. I suppose now wherever Travis is, that's what I'll call home, but I can't help but feel the pull of my California roots calling me back to my true home... that of the 831.