Today I'm thankful for: #1- A fun last day in third grade. I've enjoyed my week with these little kids. They're a great bunch of students and it makes me very excited for all the buddy activities that my class and Raegan's class will enjoy.
#2- Costco. Kerri and I headed over to Costco to pick up a little produce and some toilet paper. We were walking away from a sample and the sample lady boos us. (We both were wearing our BYU blue shirts in preparation for tomorrow's battle.) We looked at the old lady and laughed but I don't think she was being funny at all. Which made us laugh a little harder and we went on our way to get our toilet paper. Then we were on our way to the check stand and were walking toward another sample lady when she starts booing us as well. I looked at Keri laughed and loudly said, "Really? Really?" We didn't bother stopping to try a sample. I won't write what Kerri wanted to say to the lady but it made me laugh. I tell you what I'm not a big fan of the whole BYU vs. Utah rivalry. It seems to bring out the worst in people and I'm not impressed.
#3- Diligently seeking. After Costco we went home to change and head south to a fireside. Tricia came with us and we had a wonderful time being together as roommates. The BYU football team does a fireside each week before their games. They only do a couple in Utah and on weeks with home games when they're not doing a fireside they do other acts of service. (I think that's pretty cool.) Last year I went to their fireside that was in Salt Lake before they played Utah. I really enjoyed it and wanted to go again this year. This year the fireside was in Orem. When we sat down and looked up on the stand there was a player dressed in a royal blue suit. (Where do you even get something like that anyway?) We all thought it was something pretty specatcular. What is absolutely great about these firesides is the fact that all the singing, praying, and speaking is all done by the team. There's something about huge lineman singing Love at Home that warms my heart and helps me remember that there's some great things that are essential in life. Football is fun but not essential.
At these firesides they have a few musical numbers. Players volunteer and share their musical talents and then there are two players who speak. They also volunteer. Tonight the two that spoke shared simple yet profound messages. This year Bronco has encouraged those who speak to share "their story" at the fireside. That's kind of neat because all of us have a story and each one is so unique. The first player who spoke talked about playing football as a freshman in high school and leaving practice early one day after deciding that he was finished playing. He got home and sat down with his mom listing all the reasons he wouldn't be playing anymore. She said to him, "Get in the car." He said he thought she'd be taking him somewhere to console him but instead she took him back over to the high school told him to go back to practice, to remember that he had made a commitment to his coaches and to the other players and he needed to fulfill that commitment and finish the season. She told him she didn't care if he played after that year but he needed to fulfill what he'd committed to do. He said he went on to love football and had a great time playing in high school. Then he described serving his mission and the first few months being a lot harder than he thought. He said he loved the people and had a testimony but started to think that maybe a mission wasn't for him. He wrote a letter home telling his parents how he was feeling. His mom wrote an encouraging letter back and ended it with - Now get in the car. He remembered the lesson of years before and fulfilling commitments. He went on to love his mission and all the experiences and growth he received. Then he talked about walking onto the team at BYU. He'd played a couple of years at a junior college and then he was recruited to play for BYU understanding that there would be no scholarship for him. He decided that BYU was the place for him but then as he started into it and it was really hard to go to practice, work, and do schoolwork. Again he called his parents saying that he wasn't sure if he could do it and he wanted to give up. His mom told him it was time to get in the car. He said he'd stuck with it and was just rewarded a scholarship in is final year. He bore testimony about how much the Lord is aware of us and loves us. That in the moment when we think we can't do it anymore the Lord is just about to bless us immensely. I thought that was pretty great and how true it is that sometimes we just need to "get in the car." I also thought about how wonderful that he had an amazing mother that helped guide his life. Where would he be if he didn't have a mother who cared enough to help him keep his commitments. I decided two things #1 - When life gets hard I need to remember to "get in the car." and #2 - I want to be a mother like this young man had.
The second speaker talked on finishing first. He used the example of the players that coaches notice. He said that coaches notice those who finish first and those who finish last. He said he'd decided that he didn't want to finish somewhere in the middle or last. If you finish in the middle you are one of many who aren't finishing last but aren't really doing their best reaching their full potential and you go unnoticed. Those that finish last are noticed but not in a good way. I want to finish first reaching my full potential being who the Lord knows I can be. I also want to marry a man who is willing to make the sacrifices that are necessary to finishing first. To finish first as a worthy, righteous priesthood bearer who knows the importance of becoming who the Lord knows we can become.
Then Bronco ended the fireside by talking about seeking diligently. He made me think about how often do I seek for the good, for the spiritual, for those things that uplift and make me a better person. The things that draw me closer to God. I realized that I have a need to more diligently seek for an added measure of The Spirit in my life. It made me think about my daily activities and what I'm doing each day to invite The Spirit into my life.
After the fireside the players hang around and sign autographs. I feel pretty silly asking players who I really don't even know who they are, not even their names, to sign an autograph for me. It makes me feel like I'm 10 years old. But as we were leaving we crossed paths with Joshua "Juice" Quezada and Corby Eason. Juice was dressed head to foot in this awesome royal blue suit. So great. Kerri and I couldn't help but ask for a picture. I made Kerri ask because I'm a wimp and I feel like a 10 year old girl instead of being 30. They happily agreed to take one with us and it made for the perfect picture of my day!
#5- Waffles. I'm pretty sure we've discovered one of Salt Lake City's best kept secrets. We told Preston when we were back up in Salt Lake we'd meet him for dessert. Kerri's sister had told her about this waffle place so we decided to try it out. Let me tell you it isn't just a waffle it's a slice of pure perfection. Oh! SO GOOD!! Can't wait to go back and try other toppings!! We were all very happy with this little trip. It was literally the perfect dessert to end a delightful evening. I can't remember the last time I've had more fun on a Friday night. We were fed spiritually and that made me so happy then we ended the evening feeding ourselves physically with something very divine. Just such a lovely evening!!
