In the Theater of Our Mind

So for my job as a student at Brigham Young University, I teach 19-24 year old men and women who are preparing to spend 18-24 months of their lives as a missionary either here in the United States or in foreign countries. To keep them safe from whatever they may encounter they have certain guidelines that they follow during this time. On Saturday we were instructing a large group of them on some principles that are integral to what they go and teach to people and were also addressing preventing possible future violations of the guidelines. One of the subjects discussed was virtue and how virtue is making sure you are doing the right thing even when you are alone.

Now I am not saying I'm any sort of sinner or that I do bad stuff when I am alone but it got me thinking, how virtuous am I, during the course of the discussion someone brought up a quote by a modern day Apostle( special witness of Jesus Christ) whose name is Boyd K. Packer. In this he is talking about bad thoughts that can come into our mind, this of course isn't bad for us, but what we do with those thoughts largely determines what happens afterwards or how virtuous we are. Elder Packer talks about how in the Theater of our mind there can only be one actor on stage at a time, he suggested that every time we have a negative thought enter our minds that we send off the bad thought with something good to fill our minds with. I thought that was a good idea. Then to go along with an analogy another teacher told the story of another missionary who had memorized a verse of scripture everyday so that anytime he had any sort of negative thought, all he had to do was focus on memorizing that scripture. I thought that was a brilliant Idea. I am on day one of that quest and I already feel the difference, especially with the drive to make myself a better person through my Savior Jesus Christ. If you want to, you should try it some time.

-Superman-

Annie's Words

I decided that it was time I made a contribution to the blog. After all, it is about both of us, right? Superman had a hard time sleeping last night and when he called me this morning, he sounded exhausted. A really big part of me just wants to run to him and cuddle and take care of him. He can be irresistible that way.
He told me how his blankets were still wet from the fireworks on Saturday and so he only had his sheets to protect him from the cold night air. What can I say though? I did offer him to borrow some blankets from my apartment, but Cinderella and/or Nikon just didn't sound appealing to him... silly boy! I really hope that he has a better night's sleep tonight and can get the much deserved rest he needs. He works very hard and treats me so well. He's the best fiance anyone could ever ask for!
A great example of how amazing he is happened on Saturday. I've been out of money and can't get a hold of money until I get paid, and the bank accepts the check. That won't be until Wednesday :( So, after he found out that I didn't have much food and was running out of gas, he forced me to go to the store where we got some groceries and he filled up my tank of gas. It was so sweet! My pride got dented a little bit though. I don't like having to rely on others for things, but he's going to be my husband soon and he feels like he should help out. Most fiance's don't do that, but we're just getting practice for when we're married. I am so grateful to have him in my life, he fills it with so much happiness and joy, it's indescribable. Plus, he's really hot so that rocks. ;)
Grocery shopping with him is such a fun experience. I had fun picking up random things and telling him that I needed them when I really don't. I would pause after, waiting for a reaction, but alas he did not realize that I was being ridiculous on purpose until the very end of the shopping trip. So there was no laughter from my stupid jokes. He was just too concentrated on making sure I had the proper sustenance for the next few days. He's adorable. :)

Anyway, I'm out!
Just know that I'm in love with Superman and I don't care who knows it!!!!

Annie T.

I Feel My Savior's Love

There was a musical number during church today that really touched me. It was song about Christ and I don't remember the words but I remember how it made me feel. It was something I never felt so strongly before and it was a nearness or a closeness as in proximity of my Savior. I felt as if he could actually be in the room. It was a feeling that I never wanted to leave and that I want to feel every moment of my life. The thoughts instantly drew me to thoughts and feelings of my wonderful fiance, Britni. I feel closer to the savior with her than I ever have before in my entire life. It reminded me of last night when after the fireworks we went and picked up some groceries. Just being with her made something as mundane as grocery shopping a sacred experience. She radiates the love of the savior and brings happiness everywhere she goes. I can't wait to be sealed to her for eternity!

-Superman-

SUMMERFest

Orem Summerfest was last night, needless to say that it wasn't very summery. The parade was pretty good but right as it was ending the storm clouds rolled in. we then waited in the rain for a couple of hours and about 15 minutes before the fireworks went off, the rain finally let up. Annie and I went there with my sister Ace and her two sons Monkey and Puppy. Annie was so wonderful with the boys, she picked them up by herself from Grandpa at the Home Depot and took them to the festival. She is going to be a great mom if I do say so myself. She bought them tickets and had them go on some rides and then took them and found a place to watch the parade. When I found them, Puppy was clinging to Annie just as happy as can be. Monkey was a little more reserved but I asked him a bit later about how he liked hanging out with Annie and he said he had had a ton of fun.

One of the things we are worried about in starting a new family when we are married is whether or not we are going to be a good mom and dad (when the time comes for children to arrive of course). Seeing Annie with Monkey and Puppy confirmed everything I believed about her being the most amazing mom EVER!

-Superman-

less than a month

I can hardly believe it. It seemed like just yesterday, Annie and I were lamenting how long we had until we were married. We have been engaged since February 28th and it has seemed like time has just flown by. We will be married in the Timpanogos Temple on July 10th 2009 for time and all eternity. This is huge for me. I know every other religion out there believes in the infamous words "until death do you part" for me that isn't enough, for me it means means that we would be divorced when one or the other dies. It tells me that the people who marry in this life only have the power to do it for this life. How grateful I am for the power of the priesthood, or in other words the power of God given to man. God restored it through a living prophet today so that I could be married to the most amazing girl in the world for ALL OF ETERNITY. That means God's true power has been given to man so that someone CAN make marriage possible longer than "death do you part." I will be with her for forever! She is my everything and the thought of spending one day without her is something I cannot even fathom, it would be unlivable for me. So we have less than a month, a few things to wrap up for the wedding and then the most important event of my life will come into fruition.

-Superman-

The Joys of Engagement

So we both needed new pillows and we went pillow shopping. Being the incredibly awesome people we are, we of course had to try out the pillows. This ended up being more fun than either Annie or I could possibly imagine, as you can see we definitely found a nice pillow! The little things that we find to do with each other are what make our love for each other so amazing. Going grocery shopping is setting out on a new adventure , having lunch together becomes divine, and listening to music together becomes heavenly. We can't wait til our wedding day, which is in 27 days but we are perfectly happy being engaged. Life is Awesome!

-Superman-