Pearls & Perfection Pending

"Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God." As a missionary I remember one of my mission presidents telling us that his mission statement in life was, "Inspire hope, not despair, in every person, every situation." That always stuck with me. David and I started reading a lot to get ready for our trip to the DR in just two months this weekend. I hope that by starting a pattern of service now, we will be able to find ways to serve throughout our marriage and our lives. While the world is falling apart daily, I believe it is our responsibility to give people hope for a better world and to give them an anchor. When we serve others through good works, we serve God.

Yesterday I had a meeting with the parents of one of my students. She has missed 44 days of school and been tardy 43 days. In our meeting, my principal and our community specialist talked with these people through their issues and why Lexie hasn't been coming to school. It always amazes me to see how some people live and truly believe that they can do no wrong or that the world is out to get them. It was everyone's fault except their own, from the Mormons to the teachers to me personally, the school system in general, the illnesses of family members, the doctors...the list went on and on. It is interesting that some people just can't connect that choices have consequences. It made me want to better myself and to never back down from the responsibilities I should carry. What a sad life it would be to always think that someone is out to get me or to excuse myself time after time from the consequences of my actions. On the other hand, it made me think about the positi...

I suppose I have probably been thinking about the chaos in our world a little too much lately. It is hard to ignore when I go to school every day and am reminded of the jeopardy my job is in. Many days I have to remind some of my kids to wash their hands or brush their teeth because it is obvious that they have not been bathed in days. We turned on the news in class yesterday to watch some snippets about a massive 8.9 earthquake in Japan and the resulting tsunamis; natural disasters that seem to become more and more familiar to us. While all of these things swirl in and out of our information-driven society, I had a thought the other day that gave me comfort. The Book of Mormon is example after example of societies that chose to ignore the counsel of the prophets. These societies all faced destruction, captivity or some other major events that caused them to repent or be destroyed. This cycle that we read about took place every few decades or every hundred years. In some ver...

David made a good point the other day when I was complaining about not meeting some of my expectations for myself. He said, "All you have to do is set a goal and work until you've accomplished it." My response: "I've set a hundred goals and I can't seem to even get one of them!" Of course I know it's ridiculous, but it's really what I do. I get a fleeting moment of inspiration or motivation, I set a hundred goals, and I am disappointed when it all comes tumbling down. Maybe if I would simplify or focus in on one thing at a time (or ten things at a time for that matter!) I would be able to balance my success and not become overwhelmed by imminent failure. I liked this talk by Elder Andersen because I often have that nagging feeling of inadequacy. It is true that I don't know everything. But I do know enough. I know what the commandments are and how to keep them. I know the skills I need to develop to become a better teacher. I k...