Hard to Plan

Today in sacrament meeting, the topic was desires. I learned A LOT!

First: deep desires eliminate fears and obstacles...sweet

Secondly: our desires require proper prioritization. The General Authorities, for instance, are these amazing men who are leading heart surgeons and nuclear physicists, and are seen as spiritual pillars. Their secret: they put their spiritual desires before their natural desire to advance in their careers.

Third: Our desires will determine our eternity. WOW! Good news though, we can change our desires through heartfelt prayers so that we can draw closer to Christ and our ultimate goal.

I have a lot of desires swarming around inside of me right now, waiting impatiently to become a reality. I have so many dreams and ideas and desires. So many things I want to be and so many things I want to do.

I want to be a nurse in a children's cancer hospital. I want to influence kids lives and bring them a little bit of sunshine in their dark times.

I want to travel. I want to see the safaris of Africa and the ruins of South America and the architecture in the Ukraine and the landscape in Ireland and the people of the pacific and I want to know of places and people and experience them head on, embracing and breathing in every moment.

I want to learn to surf and snowboard. I want to ride a hot air balloon and fly in a helicopter. I want to run a marathon. I want to try new foods and do hard things. I want to never look back with regrets, only fond memories. I want to learn new things through every experience and enjoy every moment.

I already know that these desires won't ever see the light of day unless I find a way for them to happen. And let me tell you, I have plans! Plans however, have a way of changing. Now I know this causes all of you to get a little anxiety for me, so let me reassure you, I have back-up plans.

Already this summer I've made a quilt top, nearly mastered driving stick, gone 3 months without chocolate (8 more months), and taught Benji how to ride a bike. Things haven't all been berries and butterflies, but I've learned from the bad, and I'm ready for the future.