Organize Yourselves

Do you ever have a thought that won't leave you alone? And you're not sure why, exactly, but the thought is persistent and you know you just can't ignore it? I'm not talking about disturbing mental-disorder-type thoughts. I know enough about them to know that it's not those. I'm talking about persistent still-small-voice-thoughts that aren't just a little guidance in what to do in the moment. Instead, it's talking about something that you should pursue for at least the next while, either until you're done with it (and it'll let you know when you're done) or for pretty much the rest of your life...the rest of eternity.

I can't remember if I've written about this, because it's been on my mind for--I can't even tell you how long, months at least. So please forgive me if I have and I've forgotten, and I'm boring you. I keep feeling this inherent need to "organize myself." No joke. That scripture "Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing" has just been kind of burning in my mind. I'm not even really sure what I'm supposed to "organize myself" in, so I've slowly but surely been trying to attack every aspect of my life that needs organizing. And, it's not like I'm the most disorganized person ever. My room is generally in some sort of order (though Val and other past roommates might be able to nail exactly where I'm lacking). But now that I'm working on "organizing myself," I'm pretty sure that my new roommates think I have some sort of OCD disorder with all the cleaning I'm trying to do. But I digress.

I've attacked my books, organizing and even--trying--to catalog them. I bought new drawers for my crafty things. I've thrown a ton of stuff away, and given another ton of stuff to DI. I separated out my household things and my holiday decorations and my outdoorsy things. I've been working on figuring out my finances and getting them in some semblance of order. I cleaned out my file boxes, separated one for my social work things, and created about twenty binders or so on every topic that I need in order to be an effective social worker. I ordered the Ensign (the true mark of an adult, I decided, is to have your own Ensign) and yesterday found a holder to put the past copies in, so they're easily accessible. I've even been working on some beginnings of food storage.

There are still a lot of things that I need to "organize"; but even though I've been working on this for several months, I still feel that small, persistent need to follow the counsel of the Lord.

"Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing; and establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God;

"That your incomings may be in the name of the Lord; that your outgoings may be in the name of the Lord; that your salutations may be in the name of the Lord, with uplifted hands unto the Most High."

~D&C 88:119-120


So, I tend to think of it this way: We don't really know what the Lord has in store for us, but He does. And now that, week by week, I'm slowly getting closer to finishing graduate school, I keep asking in my prayers what step I should take next. And that's usually the answer that I get: "Organize yourself; prepare every needful thing." So, I still don't know what's around the corner of my bend in the road. But I'll be darned if I'm not organized and ready to take it on. =]

The Parent

"Children aren't happy with nothing to ignore,
And that's what parents were created for."
~Ogden Nash

(Oddly enough, my parents actually used to recite
Ogden Nash to us, mostly as they were herding us off to bed)

So, let me preface this by saying that, in ten years of attending religion classes, including five years at BYU, I had somehow managed not to take Marriage Prep. Not sure how that happened. Anyhow, I felt like I should take it this semester, and I ended up with probably the best institute teacher I've ever had. He's been married 17 years and has 10 kids, so he pretty much knows what he's talking about. Anyhow, we were talking in class on Monday about the divine roles of men and women (which, in and of itself, was amazing), and in order to preface this he showed us a few clips. And so, I share them with you, for you viewing pleasure.

You absolutely must go to this link. I think when I have kids I'll just play this for them, and then I won't have to say the actual phrases. I'll just carry a little tape recorder and fast forward to the part I need.

The Mom Song


Dads, here's one for you all:

A Little bit Rowdy

A String of Thoughts

So, you know how people have those defining moments in their lives where something happened that made them doubt, or wonder about, the existence of God? I had one of those the other day. Now, let me start off by saying: Don't worry. My testimony is still completely strong. I have not fallen away from the church or the gospel due to this experience. And if I had, it would really be a pathetic excuse to not believe in God--and I would have to laugh at myself every day for it's ridiculousness. I just thought it was humorous that this "string of thought" would even occur to me.

Anyhow, it all started when I was flossing my teeth before bed. I was standing in the bathroom and flossing and it occurred to me that floss was an incredible invention. I mean, who ever would have thought that running string between your teeth and gums would be so healthy for your teeth, right?...

Next thought: You know, teeth are a really important organ. There are so many people in the world that lose their teeth because we just don't know how to take care of them. And when you don't take care of them, they cause a lot of health problems that aren't easily solved...

Thought number Three: If teeth are so essential to our well-being, why wasn't the manner of taking care of them revealed from God? I mean, if you don't have your teeth, you really don't have much. You can barely eat. Shouldn't that have been one of the things listed in the Word of Wisdom? Don't drink hot drinks, keep your body healthy, and take care of your teeth in such and such a way? And, for that matter, why wouldn't it have been something revealed to Adam and Eve? "Hey, Adam, here's how you take those grains of wheat and smash them up to something I like to call "flour." Then you take this recipe and make "bread." Oh, and by the way, when your done grab some thin stuff that you used to make twine and run it between each of your pearly whites. You'll live an extra two hundred years if you do that."

And, I have to say, the problem perplexed me. But, in the end, I suppose that caring for our teeth is just another challenge that we have in learning how to take care of our mortal bodies. I'm not going to lie, though. I'm really happy that I live in a time of Floss.