Sacrifice

Here's the deal- when I interviewed with LDSFS about a service mission, they asked if I could serve on the 2nd and 4th Saturday's of the month at the main front reception desk for the entire building. I said yes, however I REALLY didn't want to. I like having my weekends open. Lots of family activities happen on Saturday's since that's when most people don't work. Plus, I think it's kind of silly that Family Services has to cover the front reception desk at all since they're not opened on Saturday. Only Family Search is open. So in my opinion, I think they should have to cover the front reception desk every Saturday. But that's just me.

Anyways, when I served my first Saturday (2 weeks ago), a lady from Family Search also showed up to cover the front reception desk. She was surprised I was there, stating that she thought Family Services wasn't covering Saturday's anymore. So I told this to the people in Family Services and stated that if this was possible, that's what I would prefer. The lady in charge said yes, that'd be fine. I was so happy/relieved. Especially since spending 9 hours at the reception desk was well... to be frank- boring. Yes I brought my scriptures and a book, and I was on the computer for a while. But for 9 hours?! That's a long time. 

Well fast forward to this week (this Saturday being the 4th Saturday of the month) and I find out that no- the lady from Family Search was misinformed and Family Services (meaning me) still does need to cover the 2nd and 4th Saturday's. In addition, I am now also covering the front reception desk Wednesday nights from 5:30-9. 

When I found this out I was not happy. In my mind I was thinking to myself, "I came to be a service missionary to LDS Family Services, NOT to the Riverton Office Building front reception desk!" I couldn't seem to get over it. I was full out throwing a hissy fit in my mind over the whole thing. (Don't worry, only in my mind. My feelings were not expressed to the people I serve with. At least not verbally. ;)) 

Then... I had a breakthrough today. The thought came to me (and I firmly believe it was divine communication, not just my own thoughts) something along the lines of- Every mission requires sacrifice in some form or another. You were willing to sacrifice everything- leave everything you've ever known for 18 months to serve a full-time mission- and now that your mission is here at home you're not willing to sacrifice anything? That if it's not exactly how you imagined/want it to be- you're not going to be happy about it? You won't receive as many blessings as you could with that attitude.

Needless to say I was immediately humbled. When you calculate it out, that's only 24 Saturday's in a year. 24 Saturday's in a year- heck in a lifetime?! Yeah I think I can give that to the Lord. Now I'm told that there's a chance things might change and I won't have to do Saturday's anymore sometime in the future. And I won't lie- if that happens, I'll be thrilled. But in the mean time, I'm choosing to have a better attitude about serving on Saturday's from now on. I know I'll blessed for the service, and more so with a good attitude.

*Merely for documenting purposes for myself- when I serve on Saturday's, I serve Tuesday & Wednesday during the week. The weeks I don't serve on Saturday, then I serve Tuesday, Wednesday, & Thursday.

**Also on an unrelated note- I found out more information about being involved with adoption cases, and I am so excited!! They want me to sit in on interviews with adoptive parents, actually go to their homes to tag along on home-studies, and then help write up case study notes. The case study notes might not be so much fun, but sitting in on interviews and being involved in home-studies sounds so exciting to me. 

I have a very special place in my heart for adoption ever since my sister and brother-in-law, Laura & Mike, adopted their adorable little girl, Makai. I love her just as much as my other nieces/nephews, and can't imagine our family without her. It just wouldn't be complete. 

Anyways... at the end of the day- the gospel is true and therefore life is good. 

My Service Mission... Initial Thoughts

So the two people that read my blog may or may not be interested in how my service mission is going so far. But either way, I want to document this experience because this is an important experience in my life.

As stated earlier in previous posts, I've never worked at a job before. As such, this has been an incredibly overwhelming experience so far. I had absolutely no idea what to expect before I started. I'm a perfectionist, and impatient. I hate having to wait out the "learning curve" as I make mistakes trying to learn everything I need to know to be successful serving at LDS Family Services (LDSFS). But some things just take time, and my second week was a lot better than my first week. That first week I honestly thought to myself, "What in the world have I gotten myself into, and how can I get out of it?" I would just sit there as they would explain their computer programs thinking, "Yeah- that all makes sense. But could I do all you just said on my own? NO!" And everything is so much more detailed than I could've imagined. It's definitely an eye-opening experience to the intricacies of how an office works. My appreciation for all secretaries do in every office has increased a hundred fold these past two weeks.

I'll admit it's an adjustment going from school being surrounded by my peers all roughly my same age to working with women a lot older than me. But I'm so grateful to these women and the other therapists who I serve with. They'll never know how much their patience, kindness, and understanding has meant to me. In fact, when my missionary badge finally came the second week, two of the ladies sang "Happy Missionary Day to you!" to the tune of 'Happy Birthday'. Made my day.

It's also been an adjustment getting used to my service schedule. I serve Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 12- 9 p.m. One unexpected thing I love about serving at night, is that as I drive home along Bangerter Hwy, I get to see the Oquirrh Mt. Temple all lit up. And as I was driving home one night, I thought to myself: there is symbolism is seeing the beautiful bright white temple against the dark night sky. The world is a dark, scary, confusing, and often-times evil place. But the gospel/temple is a bright light that beckons others to come unto it. Through the gospel (and literally in temples) we can find an escape from the world, receive peace that can't be found anywhere else, gain clarity in our lives, and feel the love God has for His children. I hope that makes sense to you as it does in my mind. Whether or not it does- it's a great way to end a day of service driving past the temple each night.

As my stress levels have gone down slightly, I've been able to start appreciating my service mission. I love being surrounded by people who hold my same values/beliefs. I love looking around the office and seeing paintings of Christ on almost every wall. I love being part of an organization that is helping people overcome their struggles through the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I love knowing that there are so many resources available in the community to help people. (We often have to refer people who call in to outside resources. I had no idea that so many different resources even existed. There really is help available if people need and are willing to accept it.) I love just knowing that there are people out there who are actively working to overcome their problems, rather than take the easy road and succumb to the problem. Serving at LDSFS has made my desire to one day be a counselor grow, and I'm more determined than ever to make that happen.

As you can tell- it's been a lot of emotions. And it's only been two weeks! I'll definitely be keeping you updated on how this experience goes. I can't wait to see what's ahead.

Two Temples in 48 Hours...

... makes for an excellent weekend. 

When I went through the temple, I decided I wanted to do a "Temple Tour". My best friend, McKinzi, lives in St. George and since that's only an hour and a half away from Las Vegas, we decided that I'd come down for a weekend sometime and visit both temples.

Well this past weekend we made it happen. I don't think the timing could've worked out more perfectly. It was so much fun to see her one more time before she has her baby girl, and to get away from the stress I've been feeling since starting the service mission (more on that in the next post).

McKinzi was a bum and wouldn't get in the picture with me. But in her defense- no one else was around to take it for us. And since she's 9 months pregnant... I let it slide and just let her take a picture of me. I wanted something to remember it by. Hmmm, maybe I'll get a picture at each temple I visit. I like that idea... a lot.

St. George Temple

Las Vegas Temple
*Note I wore red to show my support for the Utes... GO UTES!

So far, the Las Vegas celestial room is my favorite I've been in. It was GORGEOUS! Not that all celestial rooms aren't beautiful, because they are. But the Las Vegas celestial room literally took my breath away. McKinzi and I stayed in there for an hour just talking and enjoying the spirit that is so easily felt there.

Funny story while in Las Vegas: After the session we were both starving for dinner. So we looked on the GPS and chose a place called Carmine's Italian Cafe. I figured- why not be a little adventurous and try something new? So we're driving, and as I'm being directed to turn into a residential neighborhood I start to just laugh, but figure- who knows maybe this is a short cut or something. McKinzi on the other hand, says "Oh my gosh, it's going to be some podunk place out of someone's garage!" Sure enough, we pull in front of a cul-de-sac with no sign of an Italian cafe anywhere. Oh my heck, we both died laughing in the car. Needless to say- we pulled off to the side of the road and promptly chose Applebee's instead... a place we both knew existed! Made for a great memory I'll cherish for years to come though! 

I love going to the temple for so many reasons. I loving feeling the calm and peace found there. The world is so loud, and I love the contrast the temple offers. I love that I am an equal in the temple. I love that I don't care that I'm physically disabled while in the temple. I do my best with the abilities I have with my body, and I know that that's enough. I love the eternal perspective I gain when I'm there. I love the motivation I feel to be a better person after going to the temple. I love feeling the Spirit and feeling more deeply that God loves me because I am His daughter. I'm so grateful to live in such close proximity to so many temples and I look forward to the opportunities of visiting those temples in the near future.

Growing

The attitude I'm trying to keep as I start my service mission. I really don't like changes/not knowing what to expect. But I do think this will ultimately be a great experience and I'll learn (and grow!) a lot.