If

"If" by Rudyard Kipling. I like it. Some parts really felt fitting. Some parts at first read had me hinged on the cusp of acceptance and rejection. But I like it. 

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too:
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,
Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,
And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream—and not make dreams your master;
If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim,
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same:
If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build ’em up with worn-out tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss:
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with Kings—nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much:
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!

Funny Saying

The other day I tutored a student in intermediate algebra. This student has a tendency to panic when she sees too many letters and numbers in one place. I gave her a problem that required her to incorporate her recently acquired knowledge of imaginary numbers. When she reached that step, she froze.

"You can do it," I told her.
"Says the Easter bunny!" she exclaimed.

My other favorite saying of hers? Instead of saying "no way!" she says, "shut the front door!"

To Make Someone Happy

On my way home the other night I had the pleasure of happening across three wonderful neighbors, Emily, Emily, and Asia, who were sitting on their porch playing guitar. Emily had just written her first song ever and delighted us by playing it. We oohed over the song, which was indeed quite good. A couple of other neighbors happened to be walking home at the same time and they stopped to join the fun. They hadn't heard Asia's latest songs, so she played a couple of her wonderful compositions for us. We listened and chatted and had a very pleasant time.

Meanwhile, I watched the other Emily's face and wondered what she was thinking. When she started getting up to go inside I said, "Emily, I was hoping you were going to play next." I'd heard that she is quite a gifted vocalist and guitarist, but I had never heard her play. I wanted to hear her songs, but more than that, I saw the pensive look on her face and thought it just might be a good thing for her that night. She smiled and sat back down to play. She lit up as she took the guitar in her hands and began to sing. I just loved seeing her smile.

I wanted to make sure that in all the shuffle Emily who played for us first wouldn't feel that her thunder had been stolen. After all, she was the reason for the mini concert in the first place. Plus I really liked her song and wanted to hear it again. So, as it seemed that the pleasantries of the evening were drawing to a close, I asked if she would play one her song one more time before we all separated. A bedtime song, if you will. She graciously obliged, and I think she enjoyed feeling that she wasn't overshadowed by her more musically experienced roommates. I loved seeing her smile, too.

The next morning at work I thought a bit about the events of the previous evening. I thought about the joy I get from watching other people smile. Then I thought about how much God loves us and how many things He must plant in our days just so He can see us smile. Luke 12:32 reads, "Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." In the Sermon on the Mount, the Savior teaches, "If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?" (See Matt 7:11 and 3 Nephi 14:11). How much Heavenly Father wants our happiness. How much He loves us. And if I, "being evil," want to see my neighbors smile, "how much more shall [our] Father which is in Heaven" want to see us smile.

In essence, it's what my friend Brady said to me not too long ago. "All we need to do is have faith that the Savior wants the best things for us and repent when we forget that." We have to trust in that and do His will. The moments that bring a smile to our faces throughout the day are gifts from a Father in Heaven who wants our happiness. So smile and be grateful for the moment.

Addendum

Then somebody walks by and says something that really means "I see you," and your burden gets lighter. Moments like those you see there might be someone who wants to hold an umbrella over your head too. And just for a moment they do, and you find that a moment is enough.

"I'm Just a Little Black Rain Cloud"

Do you ever feel the weight of worlds?

Do you wake to find yourself standing under a rain cloud, trying to hold an umbrella large enough for all whom you love? The umbrella tugs as it catches the wind, and you anchor and re-anchor your feet to keep yourself from floating away. Somehow, no matter what you do the umbrella never seems large enough, and sometimes, sometimes it leaks. You try to stand under the leaks yourself, but the water never falls just on you. No, the people you love the most seem to get the wettest. But this rain is not like ordinary rain. It doesn't just dampen. It batters and bruises; it leaves its victims cold and dirty. How, how do you stand strong enough for the world? You can't save them, so what do you do?

"I'm just a little black rain cloud" indeed.

Relationship Advice

Some of the best, funniest, and most practical advice on dating and marriage I've heard recently (you can decide which is which):

"No fun kissing toads to find the prince." 

Uncle Kelly

"Marry the boy next door. This means someone who is as much like you as possible. Opposites do not attract. That's why they are called opposites." 

Laurie Hoer

"Just a bump in the road. It hurts, but it's not the whole road." 

"Becoming will change who we are attracted to, not just who is attracted to us." 

Dr. Carroll

"If you fall in love with someone you should not marry, you can’t expect the Lord to guide you away from that person after you are already emotionally committed. It is difficult enough to tune your spiritual receiver to the whisperings of heaven without jamming up the channel with the loud thunder of romantic emotion." 

Elder Bruce C. Hafen

(About kissing) "These things have to happen too." 

Dad

"Good-humoured, unaffected girls, will not do for a man who has been used to sensible women. They are two distinct orders of being." 

Jane Austen

"You're young still. You can still give several guys the heave-ho." 

Darren

"Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves." 

Paul to the Philippians

Yep. I think that about sums it up. 

A Lesson in Humility and Sacrifice

I was in Salt Lake City today with my mom, and as we walked back to retrieve the car from the parking lot where we left it, a man approached us and explained, somewhat abashedly, that he and his wife and child were stranded and trying to earn money for bus tickets. He asked if he could clean our car windows for a dollar, earnestly promising to be fast and thorough. I was so impressed with his humble but dignified approach. Truth be told, the car windows were pretty dirty and needed a good cleaning anyway. He didn't seem to feel sorry for himself. Rather, he carried the air of a father determined to provide a way for his family. It clearly wasn't easy for him to do what he did, but he did his work honestly and  he did it for his family. I'm not sure he would have done what he did if he had been stranded alone instead of with his family, but his love overshadowed his pride. For him, his family was worth the embarrassment and the sacrifice.