Yes…my siblings make cute babies!
Even if their noses are a little crusty at times.You know when you have those days when you just have so many things you want to write about. Today (and yesterday) were days like that.
First, I loved my English class last night. I finally enjoyed poetry…not sonnets, I’ve always enjoyed that, but I finally got it, I finally understood what people fall in love with. It’s incredible. There are so many hidden meanings to discover. Last night reminded me of that first time I found a shiny, pink tile in our sandbox. The sandbox is often fun at face value, but when you discover the treasures hidden within, it becomes magical and every scoop becomes a sort of treasure hunt. If you don’t understand what I’m talking about, I will explain a little further. Growing up, we had a jungle gym in our yard that was in a huge sandbox. In the sandbox there were tiles, the largest being about 1″ x 1″ and when we discovered this (my little brother and I) it became our mission to find the tiles. Now that I’ve discovered poetry, I want to find the treasures within. The history of the authors, the words, the rhyme, the form, the sound…it’s all so deliberate and there is so much to be found within.
Next…My dad sent me flowers yesterday (a day early for Valentine’s Day) and they are beautiful. I know that flowers on Valentine’s Day may seem a bit cliche and foolish since we are buying into the marketing machine that has perpetuated the irrational spending on items that are normally half the cost, but I love them. I will always love getting flowers, especially lilies and roses and tulips and iris’. And it is so fun to have them on my desk at work. And I love Valentine’s Day, single or not. While I realize that is a contrived holiday, I love to watch people in love.
Third…Katie Melua’s version of “Just Like Heaven” and the XM version of Sting’s “Fields of Gold”. While I love the originals (The Cure did “Just Like Heaven” and I love The Cure), these two versions make me happy.
Fourth…I have decided to make a regular habit of volunteering at the Missionary Training Center on Wednesdays (when the French speaking missionaries do their time in the Training Resource Center). Today, of all days, I didn’t have time, but I had planned on it, so I didn’t take any homework with me to do on my lunch break. I knew that if I had, I wouldn’t have gone and I would have missed out on one of the best and most spiritual experiences that I have had in a long time. I will spare you the details (plus, while I do share so much about myself here, some things are too special to share on a public blog), but I will say that there is something so sweet about two 19-year-old boys who have decided to give two years of their lives to go out in the world and teach people about the thing that is most important to them, a thing that they hold so sacred, a thing that is so easily discarded or mocked. As I sat across from these two missionaries, humbled by their limited ability to speak a language they are just learning, I could feel of their desire to convey to me their feelings about the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Last (at least that I am going to share because I need to get to bed)…and a little less important…I went to see “Music and Lyrics” tonight with the girls. It was so cute. And, with my dreams of cutting my own little album someday, I always enjoy a movie about music of any sort, even the silly, chick-flick kind. I definitely recommend it.
Aunt Kendall, Kristine, me and Grandma at Olive Garden…Today, being Saturday and being that I am still in training for this half-marathon, I headed down to the track to meet Dianne and Ruth, my running partners on the days that I feel I can keep up. Well, the track and I had a bit of a disagreement. I think that running should be enjoyable…the track does not. So, after running a mile with Ruth and Dianne, I had to go. I would rather run on a treadmill for two hours than around a track 77 times (11 miles on the short track…the long track was closed). It’s a beautiful day here in Provo, so rather than heading to the gym, I decided to head to the Provo River Trail and see how it went.
There’s something that feels so hard-core about running outside when it’s 25 degrees and your feet are crunching over snow on the trail. The run was great (well, the first 8 miles). The river was beautiful. The air was clear. The sun was shining. The trail wasn’t crowded. I loved it. It reminded me of a perfect day I spent in Spokane, Washington about two years ago. If you ever have a reason to go to Spokane, do it. It’s a beautiful city with a great river.
Anyway, as I was saying, my run was great, except for the part where I forgot that there wouldn’t be a drinking fountain and didn’t bring water with me. And the part where, at the end of the run, as I was cooling down, I ate it on black ice. Good times! And yes, there were witnesses. Thankfully, most people out on a trail in the winter time have fallen at least once, or at least that’s what they told me to make me feel better.
I haven’t run outside for about two months. And, having lived in Provo 5+ years during college, I was glad to have finally made it down the south end of the Provo River. It’s amazing. There are big trees and there was a section where the stripped brush was coated in ice. And in someone’s backyard, there was a little hose spraying a small stream of water, and this little bit of water, over time, has turned into this amazing sort of ice sculpture. I wish that I had a camera with me, but I’m sure the picture (given my skills) would not have done justice to it. There was a small sign posted asking people not to break of icicles becaue the sculpture was not stable, but I broke one off anyway (a small one) and ate it–hey, I was thirsty. Whether running or walking or biking, being outside is amazing. There are so many things we don’t see when we are driving around and there are so many places that cars won’t go.
And to top off my great morning, when I finally finished my run and headed home (hand throbbing, knees hurting, completely dehydrate – yes it’s worth it), I was driving up the hill to my house and I passed my cute grandma coming down the hill with her neighbor. He’s almost blind and very old and she takes him shopping every Saturday. My 82-year-old grandma (her birthday’s next week) taking her neighbor shopping because he can’t do it on his own. If that isn’t enough to make you smile, I’m sad for you. You must be a very depressed person.
And now, my morning is over and it’s time to take a shower, clean and do some homework. And life rolls on…
I’m still angry that I spent so much money on a camera that I gave to the ex-fiance and I still have my ginormous digital that I purchased 
five years ago. Oh, the stupid things we do when we think we’re in love.
existential dilemmas 