I've been packing like crazy. It's amazing what you can cram into a suitcase.
I get dropped off at the curb of the MTC at 1:10 tomorrow afternoon. A few people have been asking about my blog. Here's what's going down: I am going to leave it to my sister, Julie. She will paste portions of emails that I send onto my blog every so often. I've been thinking that even if I find out that I am allowed to post (unlikely), I think that keeping up with my blog would be highly distracting for me. I love it too much. Here are my two addresses for the next 18 months:
Address before April 10th:
Thailand Bangkok Mission Provo Missionary Training Center 2005 N 900 E Provo, UT 84604
After April 10th: Thailand Bangkok Mission 50/829-832 Muang Thong Thani Chaengwatana Road, T. Ban Mai
A. Pakkret
Nonthaburi 11120
I love writing letters. Write to me. I would love it very much.
I'm trying to think of something inspirational/sentimental/cheesy that I could write here as my last post. But nothing is coming to mind. Usually it just flows. But I've got nothing. I think it's because I've been set apart as a missionary and that is my focus now. So farewell.
No, not this blog post. No porn here. I know you were worried. I was referencing this petition that I noticed circulating facebook. Former model Nicole Weider is pushing to make it illegal to sell the magazine Cosmopolitan to anyone under the age of 18. She also wants the magazine to be put in a nontransparent plastic bag so that the cover will not be visible to children. Do I think think she is doing a good thing? Absolutely. The magazine is way too graphic to be casually placed at the check-out line. Do I think she will succeed? Probably not. Cosmo is too lucrative and chances are this petition is just bringing the magazine more publicity. But I'm glad to see that someone is trying.
I guess the question comes down to whether or not Cosmo can really be characterized as pornographic. If the argument to ban Cosmo to minors can be founded on the idea that the magazine is selling porn to children, then maybe a legitimate case could be made...which brings up the question of what qualifies as porn. Everyone has a different opinion. It's funny how one man's porn is another man's feature film for family night. *This isn't meant to be directed towards men. If I'm going to be equally sexist, I would say that one woman's porn is another's love for a Nic Sparks novel rendered to film. *I know I rip on him all the time but I think his work is cheap.And some way of ridiculing his popularity always seems to fit into my rants. It's sad that the standard of morality that has won out up to this point is that of the people who are making billions by headlining "tips that will make him hot" right next to their featured photo of a 17-year-old-girl.
At this point, this post could possibly turn into a what-is-society-coming-to type of thing, but that isn't where I want to go with it. I think what I want to stress here is that whether people realize it or not, everyone has their own sense of morality. It is impossible to live an amoral life. Religion often seems to serve as the scapegoat for accusations of "forced morality" and offensively scripted campaign ads don't help the cause. But these Cosmo people are pushing their own morality just as much as any religion. They are using their widely-circulated magazine to tell me that sex is something that can be loosely discussed. They are not only telling me how to have sex, they are telling me why to have sex and with whom to have sex. And no, I didn't purchase the magazine. I didn't even pick up the magazine. All I did was stop by Walmart to grab marshmallows for the latest bonfire shindig. I'm not okay with that ("that" being in reference to the magazine, not the marshmallows). And even if I were okay with it, I'm definitely not okay with my 10-year-old sister seeing it. I'm no fanatic *this is probably something only fanatics say but the idea that this stuff is so easily visible to her does make me emotionally reactive to the situation. What is sad is that the reason this magazine is able to have their morality so prominently plastered is because we demand it. We keep them in business.
So, where do you stand? Because whether you like it or not, you stand somewhere.
"Something's wrong when you regret things that haven't happened yet. So rise and shine. Now's the time to be alive. To stay awake with me a while. And smile."
My father and I were having a politically charged discussion the other day which subsequently lead to him calling me a dirty liberal...all in good fun. He said something about being a psychology major elitist as well? Now I'm not entirely sure what that means, but people, I know it isn't true. You know how I know? Because I love this song:
The advice on the Dove wrappers is totally right. A long bubble bath in a jacuzzi tub does fix everything, especially while listening to some Amos Lee. Can't. Get. Enough.
No, I didn't use a tub like this, but I am rather impressed with this design.
Oh, and for future reference, don't search for "bathtub" on pinterest. It brings up naked photos of Jake Gyllenhaal, which I guess could be a good or bad thing depending on how you felt about Love & Other Drugs.
Yesterday we found that my sister's Christmas gift, Bugzie the Fish, was no more. I personally think this might be karma getting Andrea for trying to "pet" my fish five years ago which inadvertently led to the fish being dropped on the floor. Not bitter though.
My family has an abnormally high number of horrible pet death stories. My parents kept buying them for us for some reason. My dad must have had a "buy 20 get one free" punch card or something. One would think that a family with five girls would have nothing but sweet pet stories about hamsters, fish, and kittens, but no. We have death by swimming pool, death by roller blade, self-inflicted death, death by marshmallow, death by rat poison, death by small children that were staying at our house, the list goes on.
A classic family home video with our first ever "pet."
Many thanks to my mother for translating Michelle's speech impediments.
I don't think Lucy realizes how lucky she is. We have had her for a successful seven years. The other day, I gave her the benefit of the doubt and let her off her leash. She ended up running into a fortunately not-so-busy street. This caused me to make a ridiculous dash after her while formulating in my head what my family would do if I left the house with a dog that was just excited for a car ride and returned with a less-than-lively lucy lump. Luckily, she was fine. I was fine. It was fine.
We Stolworthys love our pets and I think that might be part of the problem. We love them too hard and it kills them.
I was in the process of reading a very insightful book, Man's Search for Meaning, but I got distracted by the first book in the Hunger Games series. Blasphemous. But it happened. I have been avoiding these books for years. Why?
Because I knew I would like them.
Not reading them was my only hope. And I was right. Once I got into it, I was completely enraptured. Just so you know, this does not give the book any merit. Judge Judy and pro wrestling have the same effect on me....doesn't make it genius television. There's just so. much. drama.
I have to compliment the author on her work. Not for creating something has led to the betterment of society, but for knowing her audience well enough to emotionally connect with them in a way that has made her filthy rich. The book would be nothing above a silly Nicholas Sparks novel except she set her characters up to die at any second.
I mean really, what girl has not secretly wished she could be stranded in a cave accompanied by a guy with whom she has got some craaazzzyy sexual tension? Especially after she nurses him back to health because he valiantly saved her from a most terrible death?
And what girl does not want to make out with her cave man while she knows potential love interest #2 is watching the whole thing on TV jealously...just making him want her that much more???
And what girl has not wished that she had her own very wise personal stylist to make her look like a babe AND give her valuable information about the man she subconsciously adores?
The book is basically just a literature form of Cosmo in that the author knew exactly what girls want to read about. The fact that they could die at any second just makes the drama that much more intense. It's stupid, but let's just be honest, I can't wait to get my hands on the second one.
"There is no better time than now, this very Christmas season, for all of us to rededicate ourselves to the principles taught by Jesus Christ.
Because He came to earth, we have a perfect example to follow. As we strive to become more like Him, we will have joy and happiness in our lives and peace each day of the year. It is His example which, if followed, stirs within us more kindness and love, more respect and concern for others.
Because He came, there is meaning to our mortal existence.
Because He came, we know how to reach out to those in trouble or distress, wherever they may be.
Because He came, death has lost its sting, the grave its victory. We will live again because He came.
Because He came and paid for our sins, we have the opportunity to gain eternal life."
My dad let me pick out a camera for my mission as an early Christmas present. Naturally the first thing I did with it was record my goof of a little sister. Here is Andrea's Christmas wish list, her favorite Christmas memories, and her thoughts on Christmas in general.
No faith in Santa this year from that littlest sister of mine. It's amazing she got anything at all.
Last Friday my sisters and I threw a surprise party for my parents' birthday. They both turned 50 within four days of each other. We had so many friends and family show up to celebrate. It was fantastic. Many thanks to my Aunt Mary for taking this video of my parents walking in. It's a little dark at first. Also, everyone sang "happy birthday" an octave higher than it should have been sung. I apologize. It makes me laugh so hard every time I listen to it.
To my Mom and Dad: I am so grateful for you both. Love you so much.
The past week has been absolutely insane. Insane. But it's over. Today I turned in a 25 page paper about naturalism's influence in psychology. I have been working on it all semester. It's worth 500 points and it's done. Done. DONE. Do you know how relieved this makes me feel? It's as if I've had my behavioral stats text book sitting on my lungs since September and it has suddenly disappeared. Makes me feel like singing.
Tomorrow I am going to turn off my alarm and sleep until I wake up. I am going to go running and clean my apartment and shave my legs and actually wear makeup. Then I will probably cook something delicious and healthy. It is going to be absolutely glorious.
I am one paper away from being done with school for quite some time. One paper. It's kind of a strange feeling.
I am ready to go on my mission. If I could go tomorrow, I would. I've been thinking about it for almost a year and talking about it since June. Sometimes I have moments where I worry about leaving everything behind. And then, I realize that it's what I want more than anything. I am ready to let go of the contemptible, the frivolous, the trifling and go work harder than I've ever worked in my life. You ever feel like you're just treading water? Me, too. I have so much to learn. Let's get to it.
Thanks to Eric Stapley for sending me this picture taken in Thailand.
"Give up yourself and you will find your real self. Submit with every fibre of your being, and you will find eternal life. Keep nothing back. Nothing that you have not given away will ever really be yours. Look for yourself, and you will find in the long run only hatred, loneliness, despair, rage, ruin, and decay. But look for Christ and you will find Him, and with Him everything else is thrown in."
