I, quite often, have times when I don’t sleep well. Some of my best thinking and inspiration comes during the wee hours of the morning when I can’t sleep. A couple of weeks ago, I was thinking about things that are somewhat unique about me that I am proud of, or pleased with myself about.
Stating these things will only fan the fire of people’s perceived notion of my craziness or weirdness. But, that’s me. So, I’ve decided to go ahead and mention a few. After all, I’ve never been one to care much about what people think of me.
1. I have never owned a cell phone. Yes, I am proud of that fact. Now, I must admit if circumstances were different now, I would probably own one. But, as things are, I have never owned a cell phone. One thing I have never understood about cell phones is, why would people want to be bothered when they don’t want to be bothered? Don’t you just want to get away sometimes? And not be able to be contacted 24/7/365. I know I used to like to go shopping or running to get away from the stress of everyday life. And get away from everybody. And, this coming from a single woman. I didn’t even have family life to contend with.
I’m even more proud of this fact because during my residency, out of the nine residents in my program, I was the only one sans a cell phone. I’ve always enjoyed being somewhat different. And, there was the dreaded on-call pager, so what did I need a cell phone for?
I understand the argument of convenience, and possible emergency helpfulness. But in all honesty, I think the negatives far outweigh the positives when it comes to owning a cell phone. How many times have you really used your cell phone for an emergency?
2. I have never seen “Titanic”. I know, this one is more obscure. But, the movie Titanic, was a big deal when it was released. “Everybody” was watching it. In fact, the big deal in Utah was to get your copy edited to remove “the bad parts”.
Well, besides the fact that I’m not really a big movie person, I had heard about “the bad parts” and decided not to watch it. It really wasn’t that big of a deal to me at the time . Since then, I have had several opportunities to watch the edited version. But for some reason I have prided myself in not watching this particular movie.
3. I have never had a Facebook account. I know most of you out there are Facebook freaks. And that’s one of the reasons I pride myself in not having a Facebook account, I like to be different. But more than that, I think social networking sites like Facebook or MySpace are a big waste of time. Not only that but are very detrimental to those who are addicted, and many families have broken up because of such addictions.
I know you want to argue that Facebook can be used for good also. And I’ll admit, I have thought about signing up for a Facebook account as a way to share my testimony. Plus it might be kind of fun to run across old friends and acquaintances. But in the end, I have stayed away for several reasons.
First, I don’t really care to know everything that goes on in everybody’s life. I don’t want to know that your baby just ate rice cereal and applesauce. I don’t care to know what stupid things my relatives, friends, and acquaintances do. It would probably just make me sad.
Second, cool people don’t do Facebook. I want to remain cool.
Third, I have heard of so many people wasting so much time and even money building pretend farms and growing pretend crops. A lot of people waste their life away living a pretend life. If you want to grow crops and raise farm animals, why don’t you do the real thing instead of pretending? Isn’t it sad how video games and living a virtual life can be so addicting?
4. I never attended a high school dance. You might think that this is something I would regret or be sad about. But the reality is that I’m very pleased and happy that I never attended a high school dance. In fact, I used to pray that nobody would invite me to a dance, because I didn’t want to have to turn him down. And thankfully, my prayers were answered. On the same note, I never attended any church youth dances either. And for that, I am also happy and pleased with myself.
My mom and I were talking yesterday and she mentioned that she had always wanted to become a dancer. I told her that dancing to me was like English. Something I dreaded, and avoided like the plague.
5. I have never run a road race. You might not think this is such a big deal because not too many people run Road races. But, in the family I grew up in, running road races was a typical Saturday morning activity. My dad and siblings have run many road races. And won many road races. And my mom and I have attended many road races especially during my teenage years. Running was a big part of our family life. In fact, my sister Juliet, was the high school state cross country champion in Utah her senior year. That’s a big deal because running is big in Utah and the competition is fierce.
I didn’t even start running until my mission and afterwards. And I only did it to stay in shape, and keep the weight off. Plus it was a great stress reliever. I wasn’t blessed with the running genes that my dad and siblings were blessed with. So, I guess I didn’t run competitively because I didn’t want to embarrass myself or the family name. “Stop embarrassing me” -U.R.. Plus, I never had that competitive fire.
These are a few of the things I thought about during my sleepless night , for which I am pleased with and proud of myself. None of which is really anything to be proud of, except in my own little world, for my own reasons.
So, think what you will, but I am happy that I never owned a cell phone, I never saw Titanic, I’ve never had a Facebook or MySpace account, I never attended a high school dance, and I never ran a road race.
That’s my two cents.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Monday, April 25, 2011
Relief Society Lesson -- Pride And the Priesthood
I wasn't going to post my Relief Society lesson this month. Because I already did a blog post for my family home evening lesson back in January which is much more detailed. But, I wanted to show a picture of the cute Easter egg soaps we made for the Relief Society Sisters as our lesson handout. We also attached a story called "The Empty Egg". I will attach the text to this blog post.
Since our lesson had nothing to do with Easter, I wanted to somehow tie Easter into the lesson. That's when I thought of doing the soaps with the story attached.
Come to find out, we weren't even supposed to teach yesterday. Nobody informed us otherwise, so I prepared my lesson as usual. I was assigned a General Conference talk for April. Anyway, I felt bad because someone else also prepared a lesson. Which probably would have been a much better lesson than the one I gave. Nonetheless, here are the notes from my lesson.
Pride and the Priesthood
President Dieter F. Uchtdorf
October 2010 Gen. Conference
Every mortal has at least a casual, if not intimate relationship with the sin of pride.
I believe there is a difference between being proud of certain things and being prideful.
Pride Is the Sin of Self-Elevation
Alma 31:21-25
21Now the place was called by them Rameumptom, which, being interpreted, is the holy stand.
22Now, from this stand they did offer up, every man, the selfsame prayer unto God, thanking their God that they were chosen of him, and that he did not lead them away after the tradition of their brethren, and that their hearts were not stolen away to believe in things to come, which they knew nothing about.
23Now, after the people had all offered up thanks after this manner, they returned to their homes, anever speaking of their God again until they had assembled themselves together again to the holy stand, to offer up thanks after their manner.
24Now when Alma saw this his heart was agrieved; for he saw that they were a wicked and a perverse people; yea, he saw that their hearts were set upon gold, and upon silver, and upon all manner of fine goods.
25Yea, and he also saw that their hearts were alifted up unto great boasting, in their pride.
Pride is a deadly cancer.
Pride is a gateway sin that leads to a host of other human weaknesses.
Every other sin is, in essence, a manifestation of pride.
Despite His magnificent abilities and accomplishments, the Savior was always meek and humble.
We don’t discover humility by thinking less of ourselves; we discover humility by thinking less about ourselves.
“Pride is the great stumbling block to Zion.” -Pres. Ezra Taft Benson, May 1989
“Pride is a very misunderstood sin, and many are sinning in ignorance.” -Pres. Ezra Taft Benson, May 1989
“Pride is a sin that can readily be seen in others but is rarely admitted in ourselves.” -Pres. Ezra Taft Benson, May 1989
“The central feature of pride is enmity—enmity toward God and enmity toward our fellowmen. Enmity means “hatred toward, hostility to, or a state of opposition.” It is the power by which Satan wishes to reign over us.
Pride is essentially competitive in nature.”-Pres. Benson May 1989
The proud stand more in fear of men’s judgment than of God’s judgment. “What will men think of me?” weighs heavier than “What will God think of me?”-Pres. Benson May 1989
“Some prideful people are not so concerned as to whether their wages meet their needs as they are that their wages are more than someone else’s. Their reward is being a cut above the rest. This is the enmity of pride.-Pres. Benson May 1989
"Most of us consider pride to be a sin of those on the top, such as the rich and the learned, looking down at the rest of us. (See 2 Ne. 9:42.) There is, however, a far more common ailment among us—and that is pride from the bottom looking up. It is manifest in so many ways, such as faultfinding, gossiping, backbiting, murmuring, living beyond our means, envying, coveting, withholding gratitude and praise that might lift another, and being unforgiving and jealous.-Pres. Benson May 1989
Story attached to the egg soaps:
The Empty Egg
By: Author Unknown
Jeremy was born with a twisted body and a slow mind. At the age of 12 he was still in second grade, seemingly unable to learn. His teacher, Doris Miller, often became exasperated with him. He would squirm in his seat, drool, and make grunting noises. At other times, he spoke clearly and distinctly, as if a spot of light had penetrated the darkness of his brain. Most of the time, however, Jeremy just irritated his teacher. One day she called his parents and asked them to come in for a consultation. As the Forresters entered the empty classroom, Doris said to them, "Jeremy really belongs in a special school. It isn't fair to him to be with younger children who don't have learning problems. Why, there is a five year gap between his age and that of the other students."
Mrs. Forrester cried softly into a tissue, while her husband spoke. "Miss Miller," he said, "there is no school of that kind nearby. It would be a terrible shock for Jeremy if we had to take him out of this school. We know he really likes it here." Doris sat for a long time after they had left, staring at the snow outside the window. Its coldness seemed to seep into her soul. She wanted to sympathize with the Forresters. After all, their only child had a terminal illness. But it wasn't fair to keep him in her class. She had 18 other youngsters to teach, and Jeremy was a distraction. Furthermore, he would never learn to read and write. Why waste any more time trying?
As she pondered the situation, guilt washed over her. Here I am complaining when my problems are nothing compared to that poor family, she thought. Lord, please help me to be more patient with Jeremy. From that day on, she tried hard to ignore Jeremy's noises and his blank stares. Then one day, he limped to her desk, dragging his bad leg behind him.
"I love you, Miss Miller," he exclaimed, loud enough for the whole class to hear. The other students snickered, and Doris' face burned red. She stammered, "Wh-why that's very nice, Jeremy. N-now please take your seat."
Spring came, and the children talked excitedly about the coming of Easter. Doris told them the story of Jesus, and then to emphasize the idea of new life springing forth, she gave each of the children a large plastic egg. "Now," she said to them, "I want you to take this home and bring it back tomorrow with something inside that shows new life. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Miss Miller," the children responded enthusiastically-all except for Jeremy. He listened intently; his eyes never left her face. He did not even make his usual noises. Had he understood what she had said about Jesus' death and resurrection? Did he understand the assignment? Perhaps she should call his parents and explain the project to them.
That evening, Doris' kitchen sink stopped up. She called the landlord and waited an hour for him to come by and unclog it. After that, she still had to shop for groceries, iron a blouse, and prepare a vocabulary test for the next day. She completely forgot about phoning Jeremy's parents.
The next morning, 19 children came to school, laughing and talking as they placed their eggs in the large wicker basket on Miss Miller's desk. After they completed their math lesson, it was time to open the eggs. In the first egg, Doris found a flower. "Oh yes, a flower is certainly a sign of new life," she said. "When plants peek through the ground, we know that spring is here." A small girl in the first row waved her arm. "That's my egg, Miss Miller," she called out. The next egg contained a plastic butterfly, which looked very real. Doris held it up. "We all know that a caterpillar changes and grows into a beautiful butterfly. Yes, that's new life, too." Little Judy smiled proudly and said, "Miss Miller, that one is mine." Next, Doris found a rock with moss on it. She explained that moss, too, showed life. Billy spoke up from the back of the classroom, "My daddy helped me," he beamed.
Then Doris opened the fourth egg. She gasped. The egg was empty. Surely it must be Jeremy's she thought, and of course, he did not understand her instructions. If only she had not forgotten to phone his parents. Because she did not want to embarrass him, she quietly set the egg aside and reached for another. Suddenly, Jeremy spoke up. "Miss Miller, aren't you going to talk about my egg?" Flustered, Doris replied, "But Jeremy, your egg is empty." He looked into her eyes and said softly, "Yes, but Jesus' tomb was empty, too."
Time stopped. When she could speak again, Doris asked him, "Do you know why the tomb was empty?" "Oh, yes," Jeremy said, "Jesus was killed and put in there. Then His Father raised Him up."
The recess bell rang. While the children excitedly ran out to the schoolyard, Doris cried. The cold inside her melted completely away.
Three months later, Jeremy died. Those who paid their respects at the mortuary were surprised to see 19 eggs on top of his casket....... all of them empty.
Since our lesson had nothing to do with Easter, I wanted to somehow tie Easter into the lesson. That's when I thought of doing the soaps with the story attached.
Pride and the Priesthood
President Dieter F. Uchtdorf
October 2010 Gen. Conference
Every mortal has at least a casual, if not intimate relationship with the sin of pride.
I believe there is a difference between being proud of certain things and being prideful.
Pride Is the Sin of Self-Elevation
Alma 31:21-25
21Now the place was called by them Rameumptom, which, being interpreted, is the holy stand.
22Now, from this stand they did offer up, every man, the selfsame prayer unto God, thanking their God that they were chosen of him, and that he did not lead them away after the tradition of their brethren, and that their hearts were not stolen away to believe in things to come, which they knew nothing about.
23Now, after the people had all offered up thanks after this manner, they returned to their homes, anever speaking of their God again until they had assembled themselves together again to the holy stand, to offer up thanks after their manner.
24Now when Alma saw this his heart was agrieved; for he saw that they were a wicked and a perverse people; yea, he saw that their hearts were set upon gold, and upon silver, and upon all manner of fine goods.
25Yea, and he also saw that their hearts were alifted up unto great boasting, in their pride.
Pride is a deadly cancer.
Pride is a gateway sin that leads to a host of other human weaknesses.
Every other sin is, in essence, a manifestation of pride.
Despite His magnificent abilities and accomplishments, the Savior was always meek and humble.
We don’t discover humility by thinking less of ourselves; we discover humility by thinking less about ourselves.
“Pride is the great stumbling block to Zion.” -Pres. Ezra Taft Benson, May 1989
“Pride is a very misunderstood sin, and many are sinning in ignorance.” -Pres. Ezra Taft Benson, May 1989
“Pride is a sin that can readily be seen in others but is rarely admitted in ourselves.” -Pres. Ezra Taft Benson, May 1989
“The central feature of pride is enmity—enmity toward God and enmity toward our fellowmen. Enmity means “hatred toward, hostility to, or a state of opposition.” It is the power by which Satan wishes to reign over us.
Pride is essentially competitive in nature.”-Pres. Benson May 1989
The proud stand more in fear of men’s judgment than of God’s judgment. “What will men think of me?” weighs heavier than “What will God think of me?”-Pres. Benson May 1989
“Some prideful people are not so concerned as to whether their wages meet their needs as they are that their wages are more than someone else’s. Their reward is being a cut above the rest. This is the enmity of pride.-Pres. Benson May 1989
"Most of us consider pride to be a sin of those on the top, such as the rich and the learned, looking down at the rest of us. (See 2 Ne. 9:42.) There is, however, a far more common ailment among us—and that is pride from the bottom looking up. It is manifest in so many ways, such as faultfinding, gossiping, backbiting, murmuring, living beyond our means, envying, coveting, withholding gratitude and praise that might lift another, and being unforgiving and jealous.-Pres. Benson May 1989
The Empty Egg
By: Author Unknown
Jeremy was born with a twisted body and a slow mind. At the age of 12 he was still in second grade, seemingly unable to learn. His teacher, Doris Miller, often became exasperated with him. He would squirm in his seat, drool, and make grunting noises. At other times, he spoke clearly and distinctly, as if a spot of light had penetrated the darkness of his brain. Most of the time, however, Jeremy just irritated his teacher. One day she called his parents and asked them to come in for a consultation. As the Forresters entered the empty classroom, Doris said to them, "Jeremy really belongs in a special school. It isn't fair to him to be with younger children who don't have learning problems. Why, there is a five year gap between his age and that of the other students."
Mrs. Forrester cried softly into a tissue, while her husband spoke. "Miss Miller," he said, "there is no school of that kind nearby. It would be a terrible shock for Jeremy if we had to take him out of this school. We know he really likes it here." Doris sat for a long time after they had left, staring at the snow outside the window. Its coldness seemed to seep into her soul. She wanted to sympathize with the Forresters. After all, their only child had a terminal illness. But it wasn't fair to keep him in her class. She had 18 other youngsters to teach, and Jeremy was a distraction. Furthermore, he would never learn to read and write. Why waste any more time trying?
As she pondered the situation, guilt washed over her. Here I am complaining when my problems are nothing compared to that poor family, she thought. Lord, please help me to be more patient with Jeremy. From that day on, she tried hard to ignore Jeremy's noises and his blank stares. Then one day, he limped to her desk, dragging his bad leg behind him.
"I love you, Miss Miller," he exclaimed, loud enough for the whole class to hear. The other students snickered, and Doris' face burned red. She stammered, "Wh-why that's very nice, Jeremy. N-now please take your seat."
Spring came, and the children talked excitedly about the coming of Easter. Doris told them the story of Jesus, and then to emphasize the idea of new life springing forth, she gave each of the children a large plastic egg. "Now," she said to them, "I want you to take this home and bring it back tomorrow with something inside that shows new life. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Miss Miller," the children responded enthusiastically-all except for Jeremy. He listened intently; his eyes never left her face. He did not even make his usual noises. Had he understood what she had said about Jesus' death and resurrection? Did he understand the assignment? Perhaps she should call his parents and explain the project to them.
That evening, Doris' kitchen sink stopped up. She called the landlord and waited an hour for him to come by and unclog it. After that, she still had to shop for groceries, iron a blouse, and prepare a vocabulary test for the next day. She completely forgot about phoning Jeremy's parents.
The next morning, 19 children came to school, laughing and talking as they placed their eggs in the large wicker basket on Miss Miller's desk. After they completed their math lesson, it was time to open the eggs. In the first egg, Doris found a flower. "Oh yes, a flower is certainly a sign of new life," she said. "When plants peek through the ground, we know that spring is here." A small girl in the first row waved her arm. "That's my egg, Miss Miller," she called out. The next egg contained a plastic butterfly, which looked very real. Doris held it up. "We all know that a caterpillar changes and grows into a beautiful butterfly. Yes, that's new life, too." Little Judy smiled proudly and said, "Miss Miller, that one is mine." Next, Doris found a rock with moss on it. She explained that moss, too, showed life. Billy spoke up from the back of the classroom, "My daddy helped me," he beamed.
Then Doris opened the fourth egg. She gasped. The egg was empty. Surely it must be Jeremy's she thought, and of course, he did not understand her instructions. If only she had not forgotten to phone his parents. Because she did not want to embarrass him, she quietly set the egg aside and reached for another. Suddenly, Jeremy spoke up. "Miss Miller, aren't you going to talk about my egg?" Flustered, Doris replied, "But Jeremy, your egg is empty." He looked into her eyes and said softly, "Yes, but Jesus' tomb was empty, too."
Time stopped. When she could speak again, Doris asked him, "Do you know why the tomb was empty?" "Oh, yes," Jeremy said, "Jesus was killed and put in there. Then His Father raised Him up."
The recess bell rang. While the children excitedly ran out to the schoolyard, Doris cried. The cold inside her melted completely away.
Three months later, Jeremy died. Those who paid their respects at the mortuary were surprised to see 19 eggs on top of his casket....... all of them empty.
Monday, April 18, 2011
Old-Fashioned Banana Cream Pie
If you want to taste the best banana cream pie ever, try this recipe. I imagine this is how the pioneers made banana cream pie. Before Cool Whip, and instant pudding mix. The recipe actually uses flour as the thickener. I was somewhat worried about getting lumps but it turned out perfect. Deliciously divine. Superbly creamy. I have never tasted better banana cream pie.
It is slightly more difficult than using a boxed mix, but definitely worth it. Give it a try! Sorry no picture. :-(
Old-Fashioned Banana Cream Pie
Ingredients:
1 9-inch pie shell, baked
3 cups whole milk
3/4 cup white sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 egg yolks, slightly beaten
2 Tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 bananas
Directions:
1. Have baked 9-inch pie shell ready.
2. Pour the milk into a large saucepan. Combine the sugar, flour and salt; gradually stir into the milk.
3. Over medium heat, stirring constantly, cook until thickened. Cook for two minutes longer. [The mixture will not be as thick as pudding yet, will thicken more when egg yolks are added.]
4. In a small bowl, have the 3 egg yolks, slightly beaten, ready; temper the egg yolks by stirring a small amount of the hot mixture into beaten yolks; when thoroughly combined, stir yolks into hot mixture.
5. Cook for one minute longer, stirring constantly.
6. Remove from heat and blend in the butter and vanilla.
7. Let sit until lukewarm.
8. When ready to pour, slice bananas and scatter in pie shell; pour warm mixture over bananas. [We tossed our sliced bananas in a couple splashes of lemon juice to prevent browning before placing in baked pie crust.]
9. If desired, make a meringue (you'll have 3 leftover egg whites) to top the pie, or just let the pie cool until serving. [Meringue: 3 egg whites, 1/3 cup sugar, pinch of cream of tartar(optional); beat until stiff peaks form. Spread on top of pie, bake in 375° oven 10 to 12 minutes until peaks turn golden brown.]
* For coconut cream pie add one cup shredded coconut to milk as it’s being heated, omit bananas.
** Do not substitute low-fat milk for whole milk. I'm told that it will be soupy if you do.(we didn’t have whole milk so we used 3 cups half-and-half and 3 cups skim milk, we doubled the recipe.) It turned out perfect.
*** Variation: For those of you who are pie crust challenged :-), make a simple Graham cracker crust, or use premade pie shells.
It is slightly more difficult than using a boxed mix, but definitely worth it. Give it a try! Sorry no picture. :-(
Old-Fashioned Banana Cream Pie
Ingredients:
1 9-inch pie shell, baked
3 cups whole milk
3/4 cup white sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 egg yolks, slightly beaten
2 Tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 bananas
Directions:
1. Have baked 9-inch pie shell ready.
2. Pour the milk into a large saucepan. Combine the sugar, flour and salt; gradually stir into the milk.
3. Over medium heat, stirring constantly, cook until thickened. Cook for two minutes longer. [The mixture will not be as thick as pudding yet, will thicken more when egg yolks are added.]
4. In a small bowl, have the 3 egg yolks, slightly beaten, ready; temper the egg yolks by stirring a small amount of the hot mixture into beaten yolks; when thoroughly combined, stir yolks into hot mixture.
5. Cook for one minute longer, stirring constantly.
6. Remove from heat and blend in the butter and vanilla.
7. Let sit until lukewarm.
8. When ready to pour, slice bananas and scatter in pie shell; pour warm mixture over bananas. [We tossed our sliced bananas in a couple splashes of lemon juice to prevent browning before placing in baked pie crust.]
9. If desired, make a meringue (you'll have 3 leftover egg whites) to top the pie, or just let the pie cool until serving. [Meringue: 3 egg whites, 1/3 cup sugar, pinch of cream of tartar(optional); beat until stiff peaks form. Spread on top of pie, bake in 375° oven 10 to 12 minutes until peaks turn golden brown.]
* For coconut cream pie add one cup shredded coconut to milk as it’s being heated, omit bananas.
** Do not substitute low-fat milk for whole milk. I'm told that it will be soupy if you do.(we didn’t have whole milk so we used 3 cups half-and-half and 3 cups skim milk, we doubled the recipe.) It turned out perfect.
*** Variation: For those of you who are pie crust challenged :-), make a simple Graham cracker crust, or use premade pie shells.
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