Listen to Learn Wisdom

This morning, I read some good advice from a book on Stoicism. Apparently, a great stoic philosopher, Seneca, frequently quoted another philosopher, Epicurus. This may seem unusual because Epicurus had a very different philosophy from Seneca's (supposedly. I don't know much about Epicurus. That's just what the nook said). What's striking about this situation is that Seneca was able to gain knowledge and wisdom from a wide variety of sources, even some with whom he disagreed.

This weekend, the church will hold a General Conference, broadcasting messages from church leaders out to all the world. Most of the world will ignore those messages, but they'll be missing out on the wisdom that they could learn from listening to the church leaders, just as we miss out on wisdom when we choose not to listen to others. We all have something we can learn from everyone, even those of other faiths, and everyone, even those of other faiths, could stand to learn something from us.

So, let's listen and see what wisdom we can learn.

"Other Great Tutors"

I just helped a handful of students, one of whom thinks very highly of me. According to that student, I'm one of the best writing tutors in the world. Naturally, I disagree. Given the number of writing tutors in the world, it's implausible that I'm one of the best of them. But more than that, I tend to be rather self-conscious about my abilities. I sometimes say that I'm being humble, but it's more like having self-doubts. I don't really see myself as a great tutor. Or, at least, I didn't.

Perhaps that student's over-estimation of me has rubbed off on me, or maybe I'm finally catching on to the idea that my years of tutoring experience must have increased my skill by now, but I'm finally starting to see myself as a competent, good tutor, perhaps even a great one. When talking about the other tutors at the Writing Center, I said that we have "other great tutors" at the Writing Center, implying a belief that I'm a great tutor as well.

I don't know if I'd go that far, either because of lingering self-doubts or because of trying to avoid the vice of pride, but I think I can confidently say that I am at least a good tutor. I love to help my students. I'm usually able to analyze assignments quickly and give students guidance and advice that will be helpful to them. It's not bloated boasting to say that I have the skills necessary to help my students improve their writing, like a good tutor should. I am a good tutor.

Granted, to say that I am a great tutor may be more boastful than accurate. But I'm not sure whether I'm saying that because I'm humble, or because I'm self-conscious, or because I'm wary of succumbing to pride. It's good to be humble and avoid pride, but it's also good to have confidence and to give accurate assessments, even of oneself, even when those assessments are positive and seem boastful.

I don't want to give anyone the impression that I'm better than I actually am, but I do want to have the confidence and honesty to admit that I am a good tutor, perhaps even a great one.

Mini Miracles

This morning, I couldn't find one of my favorite shirts, a red T-shirt with the silhouette of Toothless, the dragon from How to Train Your Dragon, on it. It wasn't in the drawer where I keep my T-shirts, and I hadn't worn it recently, so I knew it wasn't in my laundry bag. I thought it could have been left in one of the laundry machines and subsequently mixed up with someone else's laundry. But I also had to consider the possibility that I had thrown it away.

The shirt had been fraying for months, beginning to come apart in a way that I wouldn't be able to stitch back together. I knew I couldn't keep wearing it much longer. I suppose I could have made something else out of the fabric - a throw pillow, perhaps, but I knew it'd be ages before I made the time for a project like that, and in the meantime, it would just be clutter, taking up space in a drawer. I had to consider the possibility that, at some point, I might have decided to throw it away.

Thankfully, I hadn't. I found it laying between the wall and the washing machine, apparently having fallen next to the machine rather than into it. When I found it, I thanked God that I had, and that I hadn't thrown it away.

Yet, it wasn't a traditional miracle that had led me to finding my T-shirt. It wasn't miraculously spared from some unfortunate fate. I didn't hear any voices or feel any feelings guiding me to the place where my T-shirt was. I had just lost it, looked for it, and found it. That wasn't a miracle.

And yet, it was. It's a miracle that I'm blessed to own that shirt. I'm blessed with the love of the family members who made it for me. I'm blessed with the eyes that allowed me to find it. And I'm blessed to have had the wisdom to not throw it away (wisdom born, unfortunately, from someone else's less-miraculous experience with the loss of a cherished item).

I'm grateful for all the mini miracles that built up to the mini miracle of having found my shirt again, and I'm grateful that we are all blessed with countless such miracles. We all have more blessings than we realize, especially since so many of those blessings are small enough and constant enough to slip beneath our notice or be taken for granted. Yet, when we consider all the many mini blessings in our lives, we can become overwhelmed by the sheer number of them. In light of that, then, it's only natural to feel and express gratitude for the many miracles in our lives, no matter how miniature they may seem.

Conservatism and Progress

Today, while studying for my Political Ideologies class, I learned about conservatism. According to our textbook, the main idea of conservatism is preservation. Conservatives want to preserve what works and keep all the best qualities of society as it is now. Generally, conservatives resist change because changes can have unexpected downsides and dire consequences. Personally, I see the wisdom in conservatism. It took quite a bit of time, work, and luck to make the progress we've made so far. It'd be foolish to risk all that progress by taking the chance that drastic changes can help us improve society faster. It's often wise to be cautious and consider the possible outcomes of our actions.

Progress is possible, and we should try to make progress, but not at the risk of losing the progress we've already made.

What I Learned From a Documentary I Never Watched

This afternoon, I helped a student whose class had just seen a documentary about hospice care and the thoughts and feelings of everyone involved. Even without having seen the documentary, seeing what this class had written was sobering, and it cleared up a few things for me.

I learned that when death come for me, I want to see it coming. Sure, we all know that we're going to die someday, but knowing that I'm mortal is very different approximately how little time I have left. Sure, it's frightening to know that death is imminent, but I'd rather have some time to brace for it rather than being caught be surprise.

I also learned that, however little time I have left, I'd be willing to fight for more, both to help cushion the blow to my friends and family and to get the chance to say goodbye to them. Granted, there is, of course, the afterlife, but still, the separation, however temporal, will still be painful. Plus, I wouldn't mind having a chance to help put my affairs in order, in order to not leave so much of a mess for my family to clean up.

Death is tough. I'm not looking forward to it, and I hope that it's still many, many years away. But still, this documentary got me thinking, and it's probably worth thinking about it. How would we face death? Would we rather see it coming, or would we rather it be a surprise? How hard would we fight to hold on to life, despite knowing what we know about what'll happen with us when we pass on? And if we knew we were going to die, as we all eventually will, how would we want to spend however much or little time we have left?

These are important questions to ponder, and while I hope we won't need they answers to these questions any time soon, they're still good to think about in preparation for the sadly inevitable.

Luck and Work

This evening, we spent some quality time with our family, including some family members we don't see very often. We each helped prepare the food we ate. We each helped watch the kids and play with them. Basically, everyone contributed to everyone else's enjoyment of the evening, and as far as I know, everyone had a good time.

I'd say that we're lucky to have a family that's willing to come together and support each other, but it's not really luck, is it? Mom raised us to be decent, helpful people, and we all put in the effort to keep the family together. It's not just "lucky" that we're all willing to work together, it's us all collectively and individually deciding to put in the work. Sure, any one of us could be said to be lucky to have been born into such a family, but collectively, luck has nothing to do with it. We all choose to use our agency to put in the work to help the family.

I wonder how many other areas of life work the same way. We think some people are lucky if they're wealthy, but some people worked hard for that wealth. We consider a person lucky if they're healthy, and they certainly are, since unfortunate medical events can happen to anyone, but choosing to try to live healthily can help us avoid some medical issues and quickly overcome others. And of course, I'm lucky to have the opportunity to get an education, but I also chose to seek and avail myself of that opportunity, and I am choosing to apply myself in my classes instead of just sitting through them. My luck made it possible, but my diligence is making it happen.

Naturally, luck can still be a huge factor in people's lives, but it's not the only factor, and there are times when good or bad luck can be enhanced or overcome through diligence or the lack thereof. Good luck can be capitalized through our efforts or wasted through our laziness, and bad luck can be overcome through our diligence or exacerbated through our slothfulness. Luck can have an influence on us, but our choices can minimize or maximize that influence for bad or for good.

So, even setting aside the blessings granted to the righteous and the curses applied to the wicked, it makes sense not to chalk everything up to luck. Our decisions also affect our outcomes and the courses of our lives. So, yes, I was lucky to have been born into a supportive family, but it's supportive because we choose to put in the work necessary to support each other.

"Good Enough"

Sometimes, things are, or have to be, "good enough." When we have a paper due, we'll try to make it as good as we can, but when it's due, we have to submit it, whatever condition it's in. I feel similarly with my blog posts. I can try to do as well as I can, but at a certain point, I have to decide that it's "good enough."

I think I worry too much about perfectionism. When I make a mistake, or when I do something less well than I think I theoretically could have, I tend to worry about it more than is actually helpful. Sometimes, I just need to relax, remember that it's okay to not be perfect, and remind myself that I am good enough.

Nobody's perfect. And of course, we all can and should try to do better. But we should also try not to burn ourselves out. Trying too hard to be perfect just adds unnecessary stress to our lives. Most often, it's better to just try to do well, don't worry that it's not perfect, and be satisfied that it was "good enough."

Better Late Than Never

This blog post is late. I aim to publish one blog post on each calendar day, generally some time between 12:00am and 11:59pm. This blog post, the blog post I had intended to write and publish some time on September 23, 2022, is now 22 minutes later, and it's getting later by the minute.

Now, I could simply give up on this blog post. After all, it's late. I'm tired. Better luck next time, right? And yes, I do hope to have better luck, or better forethought, tomorrow (or, technically, later today), but I still want to publish today's (or yesterday's) blog post, even if I do it 25ish minutes late. I have missed very few days of blogging over the last nine and a half years, and I've almost always had good reasons for missing my blog posts when I've had to. I'd rather not miss a day, if I can help it.

So, here it is: My blog post. 30 minutes late, and not terribly profound. Just a quick note to say that something is better than nothing, and it better late than never. This thought (to make it at least slightly spiritual) can be applied to repentance as well. Our steps in the right direction may be small, and they may be a long time coming, but that's okay. A good thing is a good thing, no matter how small or late it is. Don't let being late or tired discourage you. We can still do good. Even if it feels too little, too late, it's not. Anything is better than nothing, and better late than never.

What I've Learned in My Fitness Class

I'm really enjoying my Fitness class. I'm taking a "class" that basically amounts to a gym membership, where I show up whenever I can, work out as long as I want, and leave when I'm done. There are no quizzes or essays. I'm not really learning anything. But I've been enjoying the physical challenge, pushing myself to meet and exceed certain difficulty levels on the various exercise machines. And my progress has been encouraging. I've been getting noticeably stronger and fitter, and I've been enjoying my increased strength and fitness. I think I'll look into taking additional fitness classes in future semesters or perhaps even getting an actual gym membership. It's been great.

I think that the aspect I like most about it is the self-directed progress. I've been able to set my own goals, make my own plans, push myself as much or as little as I feel comfortable with, and make measurable, observable progress, even in only a month or so. None of my other experiences have given me results like this. Previously, I've had goals and plans decided for me, or I've had people pushing me to work harder or urging me to slow down. In my other classes, I didn't really feel like I was growing or gaining more skill; I was just learning new terms and tricks. And for most of my life, any progress I've made toward anything was either inconsequential or painfully, imperceptibly slow.

But not here. In my Fitness class, I've been making my own goals, and I've been making measurable progress toward them at my own pace. It's been encouraging and empowering, and I'm looking forward to applying this pattern to other aspects of my life as well.

So, I guess I have learned something in my Fitness class. I've learned how awesome it feels to accomplish my own goals at my own pace.

Actions Noted

In an RPG that I'm running for myself, the main character is being observed by one of her traveling companions, who takes note of all of the main character's morally significant actions. This is an evaluation process, and if the man character passes the observer's test, she will be trusted with a powerful magical item.

We may not have traveling companions physically walking among us, weighing our actions, but we are being observed, both by angels and by God, and they make note of all our actions, especially the morally significant ones, to see if we can be trusted with the power God wants to give us.

So, knowing that we are constantly being observed and evaluated, let us all try to be on our best behavior and do good, knowing that it'll be noted and that it'll affect the level of trust God can confidently place in us.

Visiting Another Church

Last week, I was invited by some friendly strangers to attend their Sunday worship service. I told them that I already have a church that I attend, but they told me that they have a YouTube channel, where they share videos of their Sunday services. I've always been a bit curious about how other church services compare to ours, so this evening, I visited their service digitally, about 60 hours after it took place.

There were a few things I liked about it. I loved that they sang a lot of hymns. I was even familiar with a few of them and with the tunes for a few others. The sermon was uplifting and encouraging (if a bit political), and it had a practical and reasonable call to action. It was a good message, centered on doing what we can to help others. And the service seemed to strike a balance between cozy and grand. It was a small congregation, with a Linger Longer-like "Coffee Hour" planned for after the service, but they still had the sorts of decorations you'd expect from a larger church, and they made liberal use of their organ.

However, their service just wasn't for me. There was a lot of ceremony, a lot of reading the words written in the program. It was too scripted. And despite the scripting, I was unclear about why things were happening when they were happening. There seemed to be little rhyme or reason to the organization of the service. I was especially confused when they officially welcomed us to the service after the service was already half-over. I also didn't agree with everything they said, which I suppose is to be expected when visiting other churches. I would have been bothered by the recitation of the Nicene Creed if I wasn't so curious about what the creed actually says. The inclusion of the Lord's Prayer was nice, but it was set to music with which I was unfamiliar, dampening my experience with the prayer. But when they acknowledged the catholic church as being the one true church (despite being Episcopalian), that's when I officially checked out. It's fine that they believe what they believe, and I'm glad that I visited to expand my religious horizons somewhat, but I didn't see any need to subscribe to their YouTube channel.

Visiting this other church was an educational experience for me, and I appreciated it, but I didn't feel that it was a religious experience, and I didn't feel like I was worshiping. And granted, the familiarity bias is probably in effect, but I don't think I'll be attending that church regularly. I feel much more comfortable and closer to the Spirit in ours.

Sincere Appreciation

When I came home from work and school today, I noticed (and noted) that Joe had done a lot of work at home. He had emptied the dishwasher, washed and folded a load of towels, and done a good deal of cleaning. I mentioned and thanked him for all these things, partly because I believe in positive reinforcement, but mostly out of a sincere appreciation for the work that he had done to help the household.

I think that it's important to express sincere appreciation for such favors, assistance, and service, especially if one wants it to continue. I know what it's like to feel underappreciated, and I want to make sure that those who help me never feel that way. I'm grateful for the help that others give me, and I want to make sure they know that.

We should all take noted when we notice that others have helped us or done anything we want them to do again. Showing appreciation is one way in which we can encourage behavior, but more importantly, it's a way in which we can encourage people. People feel good when they feel appreciated, and it's good to give them reason to feel that way.

Whether we're trying to encourage behavior or just trying to give thanks, some sincere appreciation can go a long way.

God Works in Mysterious Ways

I'm occasionally reminded that God works in mysterious ways. Last Sunday, President Belnap told the story about his son, Elliot. Elliot was playing soccer, but he was most looking forward to playing volleyball later, so President Belnap prayed that Elliot would play safely. 

He didn't.

As Elliot dove to hit the soccer ball, he landed badly and injured his right wrist. At the hospital, Brother Belnap prayed to ask God, basically, "What gives?" And God responded in a voice that Brother Belnap recognizedas saying, "Watch this."

As it turned out, Elliot's wrist wasn't broken, merely sprained. It would heal. In the meantime, Elliot practiced playing Volleyball left-handed, learning how to spike well with his left hand. He went on to play Volleyball just as he had planned, and he ended up scoring several important points by spiking with his left hand.

This experience President Belnap shared last week reminded me of the Midnight Miracle, which I don't think I've blogged about, at least not as a complete story. I don't have time to tell the whole story now, but the short version is that a series of seemingly unfortunate circumstances and decisions led to a handful of miracles that weren't likely to have happened any other way.

There are countless stories of such miracles. God can turn misfortunes and coincidences into miracles that bless our lives and those of the people whom we love. I don’t know how He does it, and I don't know why He chooses to bless our lives through misfortune, but I trust that things ultimately work out, even if they don't always work out the way we would like, and that we can find silver linings around even the darkest clouds.

God works in mysterious ways. We don't always know why He does what He does, but we can always trust that He has a plan for us and that, no matter what is happening, God can turn it into a miracle. 

Working Together

One semi-recent development that I really appreciate is that my brother and I have gotten pretty good at working together. We're learning to appreciate each other's strengths and cover each other's weaknesses. Granted, we were already a decent team, but we've gotten even better as circumstances have forced us to rely on each other more than normal. I'm grateful that, through the challenges we've faced together over the last few weeks, my brother and I have gotten pretty good at working together.

The Importance of Appreciating Life

Today, we celebrated the birthday of one of my nephews, who turns eight this Sunday. I also exchanged several text messages with the mother of my best friend, who has been in the hospital all this last week, undergoing several treatments for his recently diagnosed leukemia. This all reminded me of the value of life and the importance of appreciating it and enjoying it while we can. We only get one opportunity to experience mortality, and it's anyone's guess how long or short that experience will be. So, we would do well to make the experience count for something, to leave the world better than we found it, and to enjoy the experience while it lasts.

A Motivational Facebook Post

I just saw (and shared) a Facebook post about how everyone is exhausted, so the best "motivational" advice they could give was to get some rest. "DON'T do the thing today. DON'T go get it, girl. Stay in bed if you can and have a bowl of soup and a nap. Rest isn't laziness. Rest isn't a failure. REST."

This is good advice. Rest is an inherent human need. We all run out of spoons eventually, and when that happens, we really need to rest. Just about everyone close to me, myself included, has had a long week, and our challenges are far from over.

It's late. We're exhausted. Let's rest.

Communication Across Distance

I'm going to be away from my best friend for a while. Or rather, he's going to be away from me. The good news is that we can still communicate, across any distance, about as much as we want. I'm grateful for the internet, allowing people to connect with each other across great distances.

Similarly, it's great that we can use prayer to connect with God, even across great distances. I have no idea where God physically is, but I'm pretty sure He's not on Earth. Yet, anyone on Earth can talk to Him, no matter what their distance in between, physically or spiritually. I'm grateful that prayer allows us to connect with God, no matter how far away from Him we feel or are.

Friendships and other relationships can be difficult to maintain at long distances, but fortunately, long-distance communication also exists to help keep such connections possible.

Curveballs

Life throws us curveballs sometimes. Sometimes things happen that we don't expect. And something I find interesting is that we can learn a lot about ourselves by the way we react to those curveballs. For example, a while back, my brother found a rather nasty and urgent mess to clean up, and I rather quickly got to work in helping him clean up the mess and determine the scope thereof. It was challenging to clean up a mess of that size and type, and there were times when I grew impatient, but we ultimately got through it together, just in time for the next curveball. Through this experience, I learned that I can work efficiently and even take the lead when I have to, and that I could stand to become more patient, particularly with those who have high standards and/or are bearers of bad news.

Life has thrown me and the people around me another set of curveballs recently, and I'm interested to see what I can learn about myself as we try to deal with them. All of life's experiences can be learning experiences, but I think that's especially true of curveballs.

Music is a Gift from God

I've heard someone say recently that music is a gift from God. His argument was that, since it serves no evolutionary advantage, it couldn't have developed as part of natural selection. I'm not fully sure I buy that argument, but I do agree with his claim. Music is good. And insofar as "all things which are good cometh of God" (Moroni 7:12), that must mean that music comes from God as well.

I love music. I love singing. Songs and hymns and music are wonderful blessings, and I thank God for the precious gift of music.

Tracking Tasks

Part of the challenge I'm facing right now is trying to juggle my tasks and responsibilities, including the task of coordinating with those who are helping me. I need to keep track of all my tasks and make sure they all get done by the time they're supposed to. Naturally, sometimes, a task may slip through the cracks and be forgotten, but I try not to let that happen too often. It's tricky, but I'm not sure what else I can do besides keep checking and updating my lists and maybe getting enough sleep to regain the brainpower to try to keep track of it all.

Life gets complex. We just have to do our best to track and complete our tasks as best we can and hope that we don't forget anything too important too often. I'm doing my best out here. But my brain is tired. Maybe I had better give it some rest.

All Part of God's Plan

One thing that gives me comfort when times are confusing or difficult is the thought that this is all part of God's plan. God knew this was going to happen. Even if He didn't directly orchestrate it, He still knew it was going to happen, and He has a plan for this and for whatever's going to happen next. God knows what He's doing. And granted, He has an eternal perspective that's tough for us mortals to comprehend sometimes, but that just means that we have to trust Him. We have to trust that everything happens for a reason, and everything is going to work out alright in the end. And that end is going to come when it's supposed to - no sooner, and no later.

So, when times get tough or confusing, let's all just try to remember that God is good, He knows what He's doing, and this is, in some way or another, all part of His plan.

Human Limitations

It's unfortunate that we cannot be everywhere at once, that we have limited time and energy, and that we cannot always do what we would like to do. It's unfortunate that our mortal limitations can be so restrictive and debilitating. I wish I could be with everyone I want to be with. I wish I had the ability and energy to help everyone I want to help. Unfortunately, though, I have to live within my human limitations.

Most of us would like to do more than we are currently capable of doing. We'd like to accomplish more, spend more time with our families, and do more good in the world. These are noble pursuits. Yet, we are each capable of only so much. We all have limitations that we have to learn to work within, as frustrating as they may sometimes be.

Fortunately, God knows our limitations, and He doesn't require of us anything more than what we are capable of. So, if you can't do something, don't worry; you don't have to. God always wants us to do what we can, but He never demands that we try to do more than that.

So, yes, it can be frustrating to have to live within our human limitations, but it's also comforting that we, in following God's plan for us, will never have to try to exceed those limitations. Sure, it'd be nice to be able to do more, to be in more places at once, to have more time and energy to spend on the people we care about, but I'm afraid that that's just not realistic right now. We can each only ever do what we can, but through the grace and planning of God, He has made sure that it'll be good enough.

Recycling Relay Race

Recycling is like a relay race, where each racer's job is to get their recycling materials to the next receptacle. As long as everyone does this, the recyclable goods will get recycled. However, if anyone, at any point in the chain, drops the baton by putting the recyclable materials in the garbage, then that glass, plastic, paper, or cardboard will become garbage and probably remain garbage for as long as it continues to exist. We each have a responsibility to move our recycling along, and we are all counting on each other to do so.

We all have a shared responsibility to help take care of the planet. No one person can save the world on our own, but we each have to do what we can. If we all work together and each do our parts, we can preserve our world and keep it clean and healthy.

Granted, there are other people involved, and many of them have far more influence than we do, but it still falls to each of us to do our parts and to encourage others to do the same. Our parts may be small, but we still have to do it. We are all counting on each of us to do our part in this relay race. So don't pass the buck; pass the baton.

The Man With A Lunchbag

Yesterday, I saw a man running toward a school alone with a lunchbag. I didn't know yet why he was running, but I could already tell that he was being a good father, getting his kid a formerly forgotten lunch. When I found out why he was running, my estimation of him improved even more. He was running so he could quickly get back to a bus stop. He had risked missing the bus to get his kid their lunch.

Now, I don't know where the man was going, and I didn't know how important it was for him to arrive on time rather than 30 minutes later than he had planned, but my point still stands. This man was willing to put in effort and risk inconveniencing himself, perhaps seriously, to ensure that his kid wouldn't have to go a day without lunch. And going without lunch for a day isn't the end of the world. We members of the church go without lunch (and breakfast) on a regular basis. But this man wanted to make sure that his kid wouldn't have to go without lunch that day, and I admire him for that.

I admire that he went out of his way to help his child. I admire that he was willing to make (and/or risk making) sacrifices for the sake of his kid. I admire that he valued his child's well-being higher than his own. That is Christlike. That is the best kind of manliness. That's good parenting.

Granted, I don't know what that man is normally like, and I don't want to judge people (in general, and especially with such limited knowledge of them), but I admire the man with a lunchbag. In that moment, and likely others, he was being a good dad.

Karma

Tonight, in family scripture study, we read about karma. Isaiah 3:10-11 reads, "Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings. Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given him."

Basically, the idea is that what goes around comes around. Whether we are righteous or wicked, we will eat the fruit of our doings and receive the reward of our hands. We'll reap what we sow.

So, let's sow kindness. Let's make sure the works of our hands are righteous. Let's go around doing good so that good will come around again. Every good act we do will make the world a better place, and the better the world is, they better off we'll be for living here. And sure, sometimes life takes a while to catch up with some people, but either in this life or the next, people get what they deserve.

So, let's try to be good, if only to ensure that our reward will be good as well.

Creativity

One thing I admire about people is their creativity. It's amazing to see people come up with creative solutions to problems, and it's encouraging to see people create great things, from art and ideas to inventions and crafted objects. I love to watch people create.

I think that all people have some aspect of creativity to them, because we were all created to create. God, Our Heavenly Father, is a Creator. Creation is in our blood. We were both with the desire, potential, and proclivity to create. In a way, it's what we were made for, because when we become Gods ourselves, we will become creators as well.

I love creativity. I love helping people create ideas and ways to express their ideas. I love creating stories, both on my own and with my friends. I love seeing what other people have created. Creation is great. I thank God for the creativity I have, and I love seeing the creativity of others.

The Wisdom to Learn Wisdom

One thing that I've learned about proverbs is that they have a trait that is shared by parables: they are almost meaningless without the wisdom to interpret them and apply them to your life. For example, i have no idea what it means to "Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days" (Ecclesiastes 11:1), but if I did, this would probably be good advice, advice that one would be wise to listen to. When one can interpret proverbs and parables in a useful way, those sayings and stories can help a person make better decisions. If you have enough wisdom (and creative thinking) to learn from proverbs and parables, they can help you become more wise.

It sometimes seems a bit strange that such good advice is sometimes hidden in such riddles and cryptic sayings, but it's nice to know that there is great wisdom available to us, if only we have the wisdom to grasp it.

Hubris

Note to Self: Never blog about things going well, at least not without giving God credit. Today went nowhere nearly as well as yesterday. After an event that took the whole morning, I felt tired and drained and in pain (for an unrelated reason), and I did next to nothing for the rest of the day. This was, perhaps, a direct result of my hubris. God doesn't like it when people boast of their own strength or fail to acknowledge His help. So, when I blogged yesterday about how encouragingly well things were going, and I neglected to thank God for His help in making it go so well, perhaps He decided to suspend His aid, so I would learn to be grateful for it.

So, let's take this as a cautionary tale. When things go well, let us thank God for that, even when we feel a certain amount of pride in having done such a good job, supposedly without much help. It almost certainly wouldn't hurt to thank God for the help that He was undoubtedly giving us, and it's certainly not wise to pridefully claim that we did it all ourselves. Granted, I'm not one-hundred percent sure that this is what happened in this case, but the lesson is probably still good, regardless.

I'm grateful to God for the help He gave me yesterday, and I hope He is willing to help me feel and do better tomorrow.  I'm not sure I can do this without Him, and I certain can't do it with Him punishing me for my hubris.

Making Measurable, Encouraging Progress

We're making progress. It's gradual and time-consuming, but it's measurable, permanent, and encouraging. It's nice to see the mountain get whittled down, piece by piece. Seeing how much we've already accomplished helps encourage me to keep at it. If only the rest of life were this way.

In life, progress is usually no less slow or gradual, but it's rarely as measurable, permanent, or encouraging. We can't always see how far we've come, and sometimes we can't even tell whether we're making progress at all, especially when setbacks happen so frequently, stalling our progress. Often, we put in a lot of work, and we're not sure what we have to show for it.

I guess that's why it's so helpful to set SMART goals, goals that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timed, especially the Specific and Measurable parts. If we can nail down what our goals are and find ways to measure the progress we make, that progress can be encouraging enough to help us keep going.

We're going to keep working at this project until we complete it, partly because t just has to get done, and partly because it's encouraging. Hopefully, when we have other tasks that need to get done, we can find ways to measure our progress, so that progress can be encouraging, too.

Breaking Down Mountains

Some tasks and challenges seem insurmountable, but when broken down into pieces, they become much more possible. In my case, I have a mountain of dishes to wash, but I can probably manage it by taking it one dishwasher load at a time. I can do it; it'll just take time and diligence.

I'll admit, I've felt overwhelmed for the last day or two, but now that I'm accepting help and taking this challenge one step at a time, I think we can manage it.