I delight in anticipation.

Fact: I LOVE having things to look forward to!

Right now...I'm looking forward to waking up to this view from my window. Heaven on earth...no joke!

I delight in change.

Some people love it.

Others hate it.

In fact, some people will do ALMOST anything to avoid change.

Sometimes instead of embracing the past, we hold on to it, hoping that it will change back.

It never does.

Nothing in this life is as consistent as change.

So why fight it, why not embrace it.

Whenever I am fighting the urge to hold on to change a song from the movie Hairspray pops into my head. Random I know. I don't even think the song is on the actual movie, I think its only on the CD or maybe on the credits. Either way...the important part is the lyrics.

"What's gone is gone, what's in the past...is the past."

Insightful isn't it. Its gone, its over. Its like Raffiki in the Lion King whacking Simba over the head trying to teach him the same concept.

This same idea is repeated in one of my all time favorite songs (can you tell that I LOVE music?)...The Call by Regina Spektor on the sound track for Prince Caspian and the Chronicles of Narnia.

"Just because everything changes, doesn't mean that its never been that way before."

We've all had to deal with change before and inevitably it will go changing on us again so let's try harder to embrace it. To live in the now with a hopeful eye to the future. Looking to the Lord to understand the change and to learn from it!

Life is meant to be wonderful!!! Enjoy each day, enjoy each stage, embrace change, embrace life.

I delight in this song.

If I could figure out how to embed it I would but until then...click here...your day will be better because you listened to it! Its the song featured in a recent Mormon Message featuring Nie Nie and her amazing journey she shares with us all. It is all about your heart!

I delight in the ability to let it go.

Today I went visiting teaching. I remember on my mission, Elder Jay E. Jensen of the Presidency of the Seventy came to speak at the New Brunswick Stake Conference. In a special meeting with all the missionaries he shared this insight:

"You know what 4 years of doctorate work taught me? It can be summed up in 4 words..."We teach to learn."

Every time I teach, I learn, hence visiting teaching...me learning.

I shared from one of my favorite talks from May 2010 General Conference, Developing Good Judgement and Not Judging Others by Elder Gregory A. Schwitzer.

My favorite line:

"Many blessings in life are missed because worldly judgement was applied to what was really a spiritual decision."

As I have pondered this line today I have realized that doing this can make all the difference. Its so easy to make everything a physical/temporal/worldly decision, to completely disregard the spiritual aspect however the spiritual aspect is always present. In some cases not as strongly as others but it is always always present. The question is if we give heed to it.

Let go of the world and focus on getting, keeping and acting on the Spirit. That's the key. That's what I am going to try and seek more of every day of my life. I say try because somedays I will inevitably forget and get caught up in the worldly but I know I'll always come back and hopefully I'll be coming back more often and staying longer! :)

I delight in Kleenex.

Not tissues...nothing compares to a real name brand Kleenex.

Today I found myself wondering what those pioneers did when they got allergies or colds? Used a handkerchief, their sleeve or their hand. Oh my heart just goes out to them and my heart swells with gratitude to live in the day when we have Kleenex.

My allergies are currently HORRIBLE. So much so that people keep asking me if I'm sick and I'm starting to ask myself the same question?

Anyway...my delight today is a sincere, heart-felt one...thank you creator of Kleenex!

I delight in feeling loved.

Today was church.

I love church. I always have. Call me strange but even since I was little I genuinely enjoyed going. I love feeling the spirit, learning from the experiences of others, renewing my covenants, and learning more about my Savior Jesus Christ.

I think today I was blessed to understand and feel a little bit more of just how much love our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ have for each and everyone of us. Today I felt their love through the actions of those around me: friends, family and particularly my little sister. It doesn't take long being around her to sense her love for you! What a special talent she has been blessed with the gift of loving and loving to be loved.

I delight in knowing the past.

This is me and my dearest Aunt Frances.

Now Aunt Frances isn't really my aunt...she is my Grandpa's aunt. That makes her my great great aunt! But she deserves the double 'great' in more ways than one! She's 98 years old but she might not like that I told you that.

Frances and I have always been besties since my great grandmothers funeral. She and her brother sat on the couch all night with me sandwiched between them and kept me company at the first viewing I had ever attended. We talked about glitter make up...I was 10.

Today upon finding myself in her neck of the woods I stopped in for a visit and I learned SO much about my family history. More than just names and dates but stories of my progenitors that would be lost if she hadn't shared what she did with me today.

I learned how my great grandparents met (something their children don't really know). I learned how they got some money that made them not super poor for the first time in their lives. I learned what they liked to do to spend time together. I learned how important education was to them and how hard they worked and sacrificed so that all their children could have that opportunity. I learned the sacrifices they made to take care of my great grandmothers younger siblings after her parents died. I learned about their baking traditions, their singing traditions, and their work ethic.

What they taught their children continues to be passed down. Some of the things that were important to them that they taught to their children, my parents have in turn taught me (e.g. love of gardening, love for the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, love for learning, love and duty to family).

Knowing the past changes the way we view ourselves and the future. Our influence can affect generations.

Learning these stories of the past has made me appreciate the righteous traditions they began and these ideals, such as higher education, that have become family staples. Hard work, the gospel of Jesus Christ, and

I delight in benedryl.

Yep...its just that simple...I wouldn't have been able to delight in ANYTHING else today without it so therefore it is my first and foremost delight of the day!

I delight in happies.

pic from a high school musical party for kids with ds at east high school in 2008

There was a woman I taught on my mission (I spent 18 months as a missionary for my church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the maritime provinces of Canada) who, when she got really excited would say..."Oh I has a happies." And sometimes I find myself thinking "I has a happies too!" Lots of happies happen on Monday nights.

My little sis performs in a group of about 25 kids with down syndrome. Now most of them aren't actually kids in terms of age but they are kids in terms of heart. They love to dance, they love to love and to be loved, and they love high school musical...all of them! Tonight as I sat watching with a perma-grin on my face I couldn't help but be reminded that happiness is a choice. Its a choice we make in every choice we make. My happies come from seeing other people have happy moments.

I delight in family...isn't it about time?

a roasted milky way...if you haven't tried it...do it...NOW! yum!

Family is about time and I love Sunday nights when I get to just be with my family! I've been blessed with the best family! Tonight we roasted marshmallows and Milky Ways in our backyard. What a great way to spend a Sunday evening after a great day of church meetings and speaking in church.

I delight in making it more.

Some days we go through the motions. Even though you may be going somewhere special, attending a special event or spending time with members of your family--you can be present but you might not be ALL there enjoying it like it should be enjoyed. Today I had a great day by making more out of everything I did. Relishing in every moment. Not rushing anything or looking for the end game, just living in the moment and sincerely enjoying it.

I delight in accomplishment.

Christin and Justin at their Graduation!!!

I can't believe my little sis finally graduated from her post-high school program. She has worked so hard for so many years and has learned and grown SO much! She has accomplished SO much! I delighted in all the moments I experienced today watching 12 of the most amazing kids graduate! The Lord puts these amazing kids into our lives for a reason! LB is one of THE biggest blessings in my life.

Why ANOTHER Blog?

For those of you who know me, you probably know that I already have TWO other blogs. You also know that I have to have a reason for pretty much everything I do...no spontaneity here! And so...the explanation for this...a third blog:

Before I left on a mission for my church I set up a blog so that friends and family could be updated on what I'm doing as a missionary in hopes that they may then have their own experiences sharing the gospel. I love my mission blog and it will always be my mission blog...visit it to learn about the experiences I had while serving 18 months in the Canada Halifax Mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints! Now that I'm home, I didn't really want to continue it...call it compartmentalization or whatever you want. However, since 2007 I have had a personal blog called just off the map. I use it to blog family stuff, trips, pictures and just the wanderings and ponderings of my mind. However because of its personal nature in 2008 I decided to make it private for invited readers only. I don't like to make my life and open book, plus security and privacy is and issue. I believe in internet safety! Sadly though, having a private blog makes it so I can't use it as a missionary tool. I was deeply impressed when Elder Ballard talked about using the internet as a tool to share the gospel and as a returned missionary...I believe strongly in that! Hence...my creation of this blog...a not as personal but public blog.

Why daily delights? Well...you see, if you have ever had me as an EFY counselor or as a mission companion...you'd be laughing right now. In April 2008, Sister Susan W. Tanner, at the time, the Young Women's General President for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, gave a talk in General Conference entitled, "My Soul Delighteth in the Things of the Lord. In it she talks about the things that make her soul delight in the Lord. And adds the invitation that "we too should delight in the things of the Lord for it will "lift" our hearts and give us cause to "rejoice" (2 Nephi 11:8).

So while I was doing Especially for Youth Counseling one week, as counselors we began our meetings my sharing this sentence..."Today, I delighted in_____"and then filled it in with whatever we delighted in that day...big or small, significant or seemingly insignificant. It fostered a spirit of gratitude, humility and recognition of the many miracles and blessings we all experienced every day. I began doing it with my EFY girls and soon began to record my own personal daily delight at the top of my journal entry every night. I continued this practice until August 2009 and restarted again in May 2010. As a missionary in the MTC, before nightly prayer with all the roommates we shared our delight. With my first companion we shared delights every night...my second companion, well she said she had too many delights to have to think of just one even though I insisted it could be any ONE of the ones of the day...that's when I really began to just write in in my journal and then it just kind of continued on from there.

I find such strength and power in delighting daily. It causes me to see more than just the surface level of my day. I make connections, I expect and seek miracles. I seek greater understanding as to why things happen in my life and in the lives of others. I look for the hand of the Lord in my life each day. I rejoice in gratitude for all that the Lord has given me and done for me. Each day as I delight in the things of the Lord, my testimony is reaffirmed that God is MY LOVING Heavenly Father; that my Savior Jesus Christ knows my name, that he is my kind, wise, heavenly friend, that he lives and loves me to the end (See Hymn 136).

My hope and goal in blogging about my daily delights is that you can delight with me. That together we will recognize the hand of the Lord in our lives, that together we can rejoice and that show our gratitude for all he has blessed us with and all that he will bless us with. I invite you to leave comments either about my delights or sharing what you delight in.

"To delight in Him is to acknowledge His hand in our lives."

-Susan W. Tanner