The Power of Music

As a little girl, I remember standing at the microphone to sing my very first solo. Butterflies were taking flight inside of my stomach but I was excited. I did not know it at the time, but singing would become one of my greatest passions. My wonderful mom was the person who gave me a start down this path. I was about nine years old when she gave me the idea to sing my first solo in church. I'm so grateful for her encouragement and inspiration.

Since that time, I have had the opportunity to sing and perform a lot and I am so very grateful for that. I know that God has helped me along the way. Singing and music are things that I feel way down deep. I feel as if they pull a hold of my soul and take me into another world. Music is the universal language. I believe that the right kind of music can reach even the hardest and saddest of hearts.

Good music can bring us closer to God. I believe that heaven is full of music. Throughout my life, I have been able to use music to share what I believe to be true. The song in this video is a duet that I sang with my friend Chathum Nielson. We were in the vocal/fireside group called "From the Heart" and this song was one of the songs on our CD for the semester. I hope that you enjoy it and really listen words and feel the Spirit. Like I said, I believe music can bring us closer to God.

Talents

Sports, playing instruments, singing, dancing, painting: these are the kinds of things that people think of when they hear the word "talents." Yet, there are so many other talents that we may not recognize as such. Talents such as relating to others, optimism, thinking clearly in stressful times, being content, problem solving, being productive, listening, and asking are some of the ones that come to my mind. Today, Jaren and I talked about different talents that each of us have that we may not recognize as talents. I recommend doing that! Recognizing a talent makes it possible for us to expand and continue to grow that particular talent more then we may have otherwise.

I believe that developing new talents is just as important as continuing to develop our current ones. This past week, Jaren and I decided that we wanted to start to develop a brand new talent. To do this, we have chosen to take one of our current talents and help to teach each other. Every Sunday, I am going to give Jaren a 30 minute music/voice lesson and Jaren is going to give me a 30 minute Spanish lesson. Today was our first week of doing this and it was awesome! I'm determined to become fluent enough in Spanish that I can use it in my chosen field (Social Work) and help Jaren to teach it to our children. Jaren's goal with developing his new talent is to one day be able to sing a public duet with me.

If we have faith and courage to develop new talents, I know that the Lord with help us. God can make weak things become strong in us. "My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness" (2 Corinthians 12:9).

Pick a new talent and begin! We totally got this! ;)

I love BYU-Idaho!

On April 26th I wrote this entry in my journal and thought that I would share. It expresses my feelings for BYU-Idaho. I also added some pictures.

April 26, 2011

"I am now a Brigham Young University-Idaho graduate. Wow, how time flies. I remember my first semester of college so clearly. I remember moving into that "cave" of an apartment and meeting some other scared freshman girls that would not only be my roommates but my lifelong friends.

Time continued to pass and it was during my second semester that Jaren became my boyfriend. He put me on "cloud 9". I was in heaven.

That fall I moved to California to work for a couple of months. There, my testimony was tested and it grew more than ever. California was a "mini mission" for me. I came home a stronger woman.

At work in California

Upon coming home I got engaged to the man of my dreams and then continued school. The semester of our engagement was a learning experience. I was very busy with school, work, singing, and getting ready to be married. It was also during this time that Jaren and I were working though some "kinks" caused by the stress of everything. We grew.

After getting married, I did six more semesters of school. I loved the married college life. During that time I got accepted and LOVED the social work program. I learned so much about the world and about people. My inner desire to help those who need it the most was magnified.

Throughout my time at BYU-Idaho, my testimony of Jesus Christ multiplied in size. I "grew up" during my time here. There were so many tears, yet so much laughter and joy throughout the years. Sometimes the stress of everything broke me down, but the accomplishment that I felt as I pressed forward with the Lord's help was amazing.

I have become a better person and disciple of Christ. So many of my professors, co-workers, and fellow students at this University have helped me more than they will ever know. I can't help but hope that I have somehow helped them in return.

The page has now turned and a new chapter in my life is beginning. Even though I am excited for these new adventures, I will always look back on these past four years and smile. So thank you, BYU-Idaho, for being a place where I could develop into who I want to be."

Walgreens Parking Lot Drama

Today, as Jaren and I parked in the Walgreens parking lot, I took the keys out of the ignition, put them in my purse and then left my purse in the car. This was not the first time I had locked the keys in our car and I wasn't happy. Jaren was sweet as always about the whole situation which I was grateful for. We were at Walgreens to pick up Jaren's insulin prescription (he has type I diabetes) which is not cheap and so it was a bit disheartening to think that we would now have to pay to get our car unlocked.
A month ago we moved to Phoenix AZ and so we had no idea which locksmith to call. We ended up calling a few different places and then went with the locksmith that said it would cost "$45 and up". That should have been our first red flag! When the technician came, he looked at our car and said that it would cost $150. One hundred and fifty dollars for the 2 minute procedure to unlock our car! Because this has happened before (many times) we knew that it should only cost about $30-$50. We expressed this concern and he said that he could lower it to $100. We were tired and hungry and so not wanting to wait for another technician, we took the deal.

I know that this little locked out experience isn't a big deal but it made me think. I believe that it can be easy to let the little things that happen to us affect us more then they need to. Life is 10% of what happens to us and 90% of how we deal with it. This "lovely" experience in the Walgreens parking lot could have been what ruined our night. Yeah, it wasn't how we would have chosen to spend our evening but looking back I can see some positive aspects. We spent the time while we waited for the technician talking and laughing as we leaned against our car. We had an excuse to eat at McDonalds afterwards because it was way past dinner time (I love their double cheeseburgers!). Plus, it gave me an opportunity to think and double check myself to see if I am making the most out of the situations in my life that I don't have control over.

This Walgreen story is a bit silly, but the lesson I learned was not. Life is not about what happens to us, it is how we chose to deal with it that counts.

Sarah

A New Blogger on the Block :)

I have jumped onto the bandwagon and started a blog. I have always loved to write and am excited to start writing more! It has been interesting to see the growth of the online world as things like Facebook and blogs have evolved to become as large as they are today. When I was in High School, being a 2007 graduate, even having cell phones was new. Now, within four short years, just about everyone has a blog and a Facebook account. It has been an interesting change to see.

I hope for this blog to be an uplifting one. I hope that others will be able to relate to and gain something from it. On things like Facebook and blogs, it is easy to portray our lives as “perfect”. I am content and love my life but it is far from perfect. I hope to show both the ups and downs within this blog. I will also share my thoughts and opinions about subjects that I am passionate about. We are each on a journey, and this blog will share a bit about mine.

Sarah