"Y" the Y

The tour of the Hinckley Center was actually a lot more interesting than I thought it would be. I was amazed that the symbolism and attention to detail that went into planning and building it. I loved all of the things that were President Hinckley's and that represented him. I loved the bookshelf and the books donated by his family. Everything was so beautiful and well taken care of, it was very homely and welcoming. Aside from the actual building, I was impressed at how quickly the money for the project was raised and surprised at how many people donated money. I know that this is because of their love for the Church, Brigham Young, and President Hinckley. 

The statement, "Once a cougar, always a cougar," to me means many things. It is about loyalty of course, but more than that. It is about the caliber of people that come to BYU and that leave BYU. I was actually talking to one of my friends who goes to BYU also, and she said that one of her professors once said that BYU was created to train leaders in the Church. Although, for some this could be offensive, but for me, it seems very true. BYU is a unique educational experience in that it encompasses not only secular growth and knowledge, but spiritual growth beyond measure. At BYU, students have the opportunity to learn from professors who have the Spirit of Christ with them and teach with the Holy Ghost, who is the best teacher possible. Most graduates of BYU are of the highest caliber of individuals, they are usually the ones that are called to leadership positions in the Church and the ones that are successful in life. I am not saying you have to go to BYU to be a good Latter-day Saint or to be called to leadership positions in the Church, but I feel that a BYU education prepares one for such tasks. BYU seeks to make its' students well rounded and the best that they can be. So as a student at BYU I anticipate to be exposed to many spiritual experiences that I could not otherwise be exposed to and I also anticipate to be taught by the Spirit more than at any other University. I know that BYU is a unique educational environment and I am grateful to be a part of it.

My BYU Experience Thus Far:

Well, before ever even coming to BYU I heard many horror stories about the rigor and intensity of classes at BYU. So, I was definitely expecting the worst, as far as difficulty of my classes and such. Since I haven't really had any tests yet or received any grades, I still don't really know how hard my classes are and how well I will succeed in each of them. On a lighter note, it has been easier to get around campus than I have anticipated. I was extremely worried about getting lost and not being able to find my way to each of my classes. Actually, it has not been that difficult and I have figured out my way better than I expected. Furthermore, aside from lots of reading assignments, I have not had too many rigorous or too challenging assignments- yet. So, I guess one could say that the classes have not been are hard as I thought they were going to be- this opinion might change after a few failing grades on tests, but as of right now, things seem do-able.

What is actually more difficult than I assumed it would be is managing my time efficiently and actually studying regularly for each of my courses. I am used to having only 4 classes in high school, so 6 college level courses, for me, is a lot to keep up with. It is hard for me to remember all of my assignments and manage my time in such a way that I can complete each of them. It is also hard for me to monitor how well I am doing in each of my classes, as I cannot just ask the teacher or take a quiz and see my results. As I result, I feel kind of "in the dark" as to how I am progressing in each of my classes. In addition, it is hard for me to be self-motivated, which is surprising to me. I used to consider myself a very self-motivated person and often times people have described me as such, but lately- I am feeling very unmotivated. Hopefully, I can improve each of these problems and work on time management. Actually, right now I am using my time wisely to do this instead of surf facebook during my two hour break between classes.

It is hard for me to decide what I would change with my BYU experience thus far, as one I am not too far into the experience and two, it has not been a bad experience at all. However, I guess I would have changed my attitude coming into school. I could have been friendlier to people and reached out more to get to know people- I know it is definitely not too late for that and I am working on that now. Furthermore, I think I could have researched more things before I got here- such as clubs, classes, and majors- so that I could have known more fully what I want to be involved in and what I want to get out of my BYU education. I think I have a better grasp on what I want now than when I got here though, so that too is improving. For the most part, I have loved my experience at BYU and I am happy for the growing experiences that being "on my own" encompasses.

BYU Adventure :)

Sara, Me, and Ashly before we started.

The entrance to the trail up!

Mid-way up the trail

We made it!

After- back to the car before our swimming adventure.

Jumping In :)

AGAIN!

Today I had my first of hopefully many BYU adventures. The group (Ashly, Sara, Dan, and I) headed out this morning around 9:30 or so. Let me just give you a little background, I am from Florida and I am not a very athletic girl- my idea of working out is walking to class. So, for our adventure, we decided to hike up to the "Y." I figured this should be a tradition among BYU students and everyone should experience it at least once, so why not in my first few weeks here at the "Y." Well, the high altitude and my not being in shape, made the hike extra fun. I thought I was going to pass out on the way up there and I kept making the group stop. It was quite funny actually, but I still enjoyed the hike none the less. We took some pretty great pictures along the way and I loved the view from the bottom of the "Y." I was actually surprised to see that it was just painted rocks. I thought it would be a more smooth cement giant letter. The way back down the mountain was much better and I was able to make it down the mountain with no stops to catch my breath. It was really fun.

Little did I know, this hike to the "Y," was not the end of our adventure. While sitting on the classic letter "Y" we noticed a pool at the base of the start of the trail. This pool looked very appealing considering we were hot, sticky, and tired. So, we decided to take the plunge and try to go to the pool. I was driving, so we drove to the apartment complex where the pool was located and we sent Ashly out to check it out. She said it looked good and there was no one watching. So, we hopped the fence (I have a sweet new bruise on my back) and jumped in, jeans and all. The pool was so refreshing and surprisingly warm, which was great for this Florida girl. We took some pretty cool pictures at the pool too and then decided to head out. It was freezing when we left, considering we didn't bring any towels and we found some bubble wrap in my trunk to sit on in the car. The bubble wrap didn't help much from drenching my car, but it did make for some good background noise. On the way to drop off Sara and Dan, we spotted "Jay's Dawgs," which looked very enticing. After we dropped off Sara, we decided we wanted to eat there for lunch to finish off our adventure, so we picked up Scott, Dan's roomie and went back to "Jay's Dawgs" so I could try what also seems to be a BYU tradition. It was quite good. I felt like a homeless person sitting in the grass eating my hot dog while soaking wet with no shoes on. 

Needless to say, we now have many new memories from our adventure. It was tons of fun and I am glad to have taken part in the traditions of BYU.

Bloch Talk

In Carl Heinrich Bloch's painting, Christ Healing the Sick at Bethesda, at this stage in my life, I feel like I have the tendency to resemble the woman with the child sometimes, while other times I am the man that Christ is healing. The woman depicted in the painting seems to be carrying on with her life, getting water for her family, not even recognizing the presence of the Savior, let alone the miracle He is performing just feet away from her. Why should she care? She is too content with her life at the moment to realize Christ's infinite powers, because she doesn't need Him desperately at the moment. She seems to be doing nothing wrong. However, she really is in the wrong because she is not progressing, she is not helping others. Sometimes I feel like this woman, I forget to utilize the healing power of the atonement and I fail to recognize Christ's hand in my life. I sometimes feel like I am not progressing, not growing spiritually and not living my life to its' full potential. There is always more I can do- I can serve others and by doing so draw closer to God. When everything is going my way, I tend to forget what is happening around me and not utilize Christ's atonement and endless powers.

However, when something hard comes my way, I am humbled and I become as the man Jesus is healing. For instance, I do not really like change, so coming to college and living on my own, has not been a piece of cake. Right now, I feel like the man, dependent upon my Savior and Redeemer to lift me up and give me the strength to do the things I need to do. The man in the painting is impaired, he is not perfect, he can't be healed alone, he needed the help of the Savior. He had faith that the Savior would come and help him. By the look on his face, I can tell that he is extremely humble and patient and filled with joy at the coming of the Savior. Like this man, I know that I can't doing everything alone and I call upon my Savior to come to my rescue. Although, He does not always come quickly, I have the faith that He will answer my prayers and help me, as He has many times. 

This painting teaches me so much about becoming a disciple-scholar. It teaches me that I can't do it alone, that I must be humble and teachable and allow my Savior to help me through everything. I must not have pride, the man being healed has no pride- he is not embarrassed that he can't do it alone and he is not bitter either, instead he has relied fully on the Savior to help him and heal him of his infirmity. Furthermore, this painting reminds me that I must never forget those around me. There is always something to learn from others and there is always someone I can help. In addition, I must never fail to recognize Christ's presence in my life and should always give Him the glory for my accomplishments and successes.