"Young women, you're going to be an old woman someday; don't worry about it; don't sweat it."

I saw this video on my aunt's blog and I think it's kind of fun. I don't think I'm quite that feisty (though at times I wish I was!!) but I enjoy their confidence and hope I age similarly. Enjoy!

I Know That My Redeemer Lives

I wanted to share my beliefs on this Easter Sunday.

We came to this earth to learn and to be tested, that we could prove ourselves. However, we cannot live perfect lives, which obstructs us from returning to our Father in Heaven, for "no unclean thing can dwell with God" (The Book of Mormon 1 Nephi, 10:21). We die spiritually, as a result of our sins. So how do we return to God? Isaiah answers this question: " He [Christ] hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows . . . He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities . . . All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all. . . . Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool" (Isaiah 53:4-6; Isaiah 1:18). In 2 Corinthians 5:17, Paul continued, "If any man be in Christ, He is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things become new." Through the sacred Atonement, we are forgiven of our sins and made clean, that we might enter into Heaven; thus our spiritual deaths are overcome. But the chains of physical death must also be broken. Thus, Christ was sent to be the Savior for all of mankind. He came to this Earth and was born into a mortal body so He could die. But He rose from the grave, breaking the bonds of death. He lives today, and with that, the knowledge that we will live again as well. He is my advocate and yours; As He and the Father are one, they share the same work: "to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man" (The Pearl of Great Price Moses 1:39). I know that Christ is our Savior, that through His Atonement we can be forgiven of our sins and return to Heaven. I know Christ performs countless miracles in our lives, just as He did while living on the Earth. I am eternally indebted to Christ for providing a way for me to return to my Heavenly Father. I love my Redeemer, Jesus Christ, and I know that He loves me and you. May we remember the risen Lord today.

"Jesus sought me when a stranger,

Wandering from the fold of God;
He, to rescue me from danger,
Interposed His precious blood"

Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing

I Believe in Christ (3rd, 4th verses)

3. I believe in Christ—my Lord, my God!
My feet he plants on gospel sod.
I’ll worship him with all my might;
He is the source of truth and light.
I believe in Christ; he ransoms me.
From Satan’s grasp he sets me free,
And I shall live with joy and love
In his eternal courts above.

4. I believe in Christ; he stands supreme!
From him I’ll gain my fondest dream;
And while I strive through grief and pain,
His voice is heard: “Ye shall obtain.”
I believe in Christ; so come what may,
With him I’ll stand in that great day
When on this earth he comes again
To rule among the sons of men.

I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. To learn more, go here

or feel free to email me with any questions you may have

The Greater Things in Life

I had quite a cultured week. Tuesday, I viewed Dorothea Lange's exhibit "Three Mormon Towns" in the MOA. Saturday evening, I went to the BYU Philharmonic Orchestra's performance. Both, INCREDIBLE experiences.

DOROTHEA LANGE EXHIBIT:

“Kids don’t live today. They just exist,” the man had said to me. My first observation of the exhibit had been done in solitude and silence. My second rotation was done in the accompaniment of a group of older southern Utahans. After observing a photograph titled, “Worldly Way Station on Route 91,” featuring an old movie drive-in, the group had proceeded to tell me about the old ways of life, recalling even that particular drive-in featured in the photograph. Following my remark of the difference between the lifestyle of their days compared to that of ours, his response was, “Kids don’t live today. They just exist.”

What are your thoughts?

I agree with him. And disagree. True, there is a rise in the number of people who limit themselves to the confines of their bedrooms, to the boundaries of the computer or TV, to the curbs of slothfulness. However, there is also an increase in those who dream, those who experiment, and those who push themselves into the world to experience its cultures, those who delve deeply into the intricacies, observations, and possibilities of life.

PHILHARMONIC:

We Listened to Hindemith's "Symphonic Metamorphosis on Themes by Carl Maria von Weber," which I really enjoyed (especially the third and fourth movements, "Andantino" and "Marsch." Go look them up). Following Hindemith, we listened to the entirety of Dvorak's New World Symphony. I LOVED it. I've listened to the second movement many many times (even recommended it to you here), but had never heard the middle section of it. I guess my version doesn't have the complete version; neither does the one I posted. Go look up Largo from The New World and listen to the middle section (Just past halfway. It starts with an oboe). Listening to it in person was infinitely better. At one point, I realized every muscle in my body had relaxed and I was melting into my chair.

I made a resolution to attend some type of musical performance once per month. You just cannot capture sound digitally the way you can with your ears. You miss so much not being there! The acoustics, of course, make a big difference. So does seeing the conductor; I love watching him. But my favorite is watching the musicians. As the music starts to climax, to intensify, they sit up straighter, lean forward. You tense with them, your heart starts to beat faster, your ears prick up to hear every change. And there is an aesthetic pleasure in watching the parallel movements of the tilted violin bows, the violinists' vibrato hand, the cellists' tilted necks.

What a beautiful mind that gives birth to these melodies!! What a skilled instrumentalist to play such music! What skilled hands to create instruments! What a skilled conductor to interpret and present the expressions of the music!

I love it. I love it all. May I, and you, attend more of these uplifting showcases of human capacity.

Oh, my mind

So, for some reason, I've had two songs in my head this past week. The first is from the Swan Princess, which I haven't seen or even thought of for a good few years. The second is from the Polar Express which I also haven't seen for a few years. (My dad loves this movie and watches is every Christmas. I find that there's something unsettling about it and don't know what it is.)

Why have these two songs been in my head for the past week? I don't think I've heard them. I mean, it's not every day you walk into the grocery store and hear Disney tunes. Sadly. They're not even the main songs of the two movies. I think my brain, in a fed-up-with-stupid-school state (I hear ya, little guy), is determined to be exercised on only non-academic things and is rejecting what I insist it focus on, instead pulling up anything it can from the past on which to occupy itself.

I picture the little man titled "Stage Manager of Current Morgan Thoughts" running to the back of his office, to a wall lined with hundreds of floor-to-ceiling filing cabinets of past musings, observations, and memories. He opens a cabinet slowly, looks at me with a mischievous little grin, and begins to grab handfuls of papers, throwing them into the air. Oh, my defiant little brain.

On a completely different note, I LOVE those times I naturally wake up early. I love the morning. When I'm not tired. I'm going to finish my French paper (good thing I woke up, huh?) and then .. ok let's be honest, probably go back to sleep for a bit.

Life after Y

So I've just spent the past .... while (I won't admit how long) looking at PA schools and all I want to do is go!! I looked up the cities on google images, read their city websites, looked up housing in cute little houses with bike trails and buses and marketplaces.....

I'm not sick of BYU yet; I still love it here. But it's a new adventure and I can't wait to start!!

My current favorites:

Quinnipiac University in Hamden Connecticut (last two photos)

A. T. Still University in Mesa Arizona (first photo)

I can't even look at another school because I just want to go to these two!!! SO hard to get myself to finish up this semester.... must...keep... going. . . not...finished....yet.

Forgive my self-indulgent post. Sorry if this is in no way interesting to you