"Wherever You Are"

When Mom and I were choosing where to sit at church this afternoon, we were about to be temporarily separated, so Mom would have to pick out a spot for us. She asked me where I would like to sit, and I, not having much of a preference, said "Wherever you are."

As I thought about it, I think that that answer might have held true, even if I did have a preference. For example, if I had wanted to sit near the back, but Mom sat in the front, I think I would have chosen to sit in the front with her, rather than in the back, where I would otherwise prefer to be. People sometimes prefer to be where the people they love are, even if they wouldn't normally prefer to be in that place. For another example, Mom loves the Pacific Northwest, but she would never move there so long as so much of our family lives here. No matter how much she would prefer to live in the Pacific Northwest, her stronger preference is to live near family.

This principle can hold true in the figurative sense as well. We'd rather live in comfort than in discomfort, generally, but it's often preferable to go through discomfort together with someone you love than to be comfortable but alone. That's not the best example for me, because I really like comfort and I often like being alone, but even I can see the fun and camaraderie of going through difficulty together with the right person. And if a friend of mine were going through a hard time, I'd rather go through it with them than stay comfortable while they go through it alone. Even an introvert like me can see that it's sometimes better to be with other people, even if the other circumstances are less than the best.

Maybe that's part of what makes heaven so good. It's already a decent place, and we get to be there together. But even if heaven wasn't so great, being there with the right person or people would be enough to make it heavenly.

Growing Hope

This evening, I went for a walk, and on this walk, I passed a small tree. This tree was planted in a spot where another small tree had been, but a fierce storm had taken down the first small tree, which was then replaced with the second small tree. This tree, even more so than other small trees, gives me hope for the future.

Planting any tree is an expression of hope in the future. Trees take a long time to grow, so it only makes sense to plant a tree if you expect it to be there for a long time. Yet, that's not what happened to the small tree that used to be in that spot. It was planted with hope for the future, but its future was cut short. Yet, another tree was planted there, expressing a renewed and continuing hope in the future. We acknowledge the tragedies of the past and the possibility that they may happen again, But we also continue to have hope that a tree will live long enough to grow strong enough to withstand the storms of life.

The world is filled with trees that grew strong enough to withstand storms. We just need to have enough faith and hope in the future to keep planting and replanting them.

Focusing on the Future

One of the students I've tutored today talked about his journaling habits. Previously, he had journaled about the past. At the end of the day or week, he would write about what had happened and how he felt about it. This prompted me to tell him that, when I journaled, I wrote mostly about the present, focusing on what had just happened and/or what would happen that day or in the very near future. But the student told me that, lately, he has started journaling about the more distant future, recording his hopes and dreams as well as his plans and goals.

This seemed, to both of us, to be a good idea. Thinking ahead like that can help someone develop a plan that can inform their actions in the present. If one takes the right actions, they can lead themselves toward almost any future they want, which is something one can't do when they focus only on the present or the past. Perhaps I should learn to look father ahead and try to figure out where I want to go and how I'm going to get there. I need to learn to focus on the future, because if I don't, who knows where my future will take me?

Earning Points

Two days ago, I blogged about how I prefer games' challenges over life's challenges, but two weeks ago, I blogged about how life and its challenges can be viewed as some kind of game. So I wonder, how can I "gamify" life to make its challenges more fun to face?

The concept of "gamification" already exists, and it's accomplished mostly through applying point scores and win conditions to various tasks and challenges. By performing tasks well, the "players" earn "points," which can eventually lead to rewards, either real or imaginary. All I really have to do to "gamify" life is to give myself "points" for doing things well. I don't even have to figure out exactly how many points I earn, so long as better performance leads to more points and worse performance leads to fewer points. Granted, I will always get at least a few points for trying.

I gamified my life tonight by challenging myself to fit as many dishes as possible into the dishwasher efficiently, and I scored a great deal of points by managing to fit in every item except for the two biggest, which I washed by hand.

I wonder if "earning points" is really going to be enough to get me to start enjoying life's challenges. I suppose the only way to find out is to try it out for a while and see how it goes.

No Need for Eternal Rest

As much as I'm looking forward to some find of eternal rest, it occurs to me that I might not need it. Right now, I crazy tired, and I want to go to bed, but in the next life, I won't get tired, at least not physically, and maybe not mentally, either. Eternal progression sounds exhausting, but my eternal self won't be able to get exhausted. So, while my mortal self sees the appeal in resting in peace, I might not feel the same way about it when I move on to actually doing it.

Challenges

You know, it's funny. In real life, I like things to be easy. I like consistently doing well on tests, exams, and writing assignments. I like getting my work done without too much trouble. I like having my tasks be simple and straightforward. In real life, I don't like challenges much at all. But in games, it's a different story. In games, I enjoy an occasional challenge. And if a game is too easy, I sometimes make up extra rules and handicaps to challenge myself more. I wonder why that is. I wonder why I enjoy challenges in games, but not in real life.

One reason might be the lower stakes. If you lose a game, it's no big deal. None of it was real anyway. The failure doesn't matter. It's like losing your balance on a tightrope and falling into a net. Real life doesn't have many safety nets, and even when there are, there are consequences for falling into them. When things go wrong in real life, bad things happen, and there is real-world suffering as a result.

Another possible reason is that failure in games doesn't feel personal. Often, in games, the player is controlling a character, who is the one who succeeds or fails. If Mia fails a Stealth check or a Medicine check, that's not because I'm not stealthy enough, wasn't careful enough, or didn't spend enough time studying medicine. It's because Mia's skill modifiers (and her luck, as revealed by dice rolls) were too low. Also, in games, it's easier to acknowledge the role of luck, rather than skill (or the lack thereof), blessings, or curses. If the dice are against me, I can blame the inanimate dice. If fate (as controlled by God) is against me... I'd rather not think about that possibility.

Another reasons to prefer a game's challenges over real-world challenges is that game's challenges are meant to be overcome. Players are supposed to win games. The games are supposed to be beatable. That's not always true in real life. Some of life's challenges are obstacles to be overcome, but others are afflictions to be endured, and it can be painful and frustrating to confuse the two. Trying to "solve" an affliction will get one nowhere and only waste their time and energy, and merely "enduring" an obstacle leads to the perpetuation of needless suffering. Hence, the Serenity prayer asks for the Wisdom to know what can be changed and what can't.

All in all, games' challenges are greatly preferable to life's challenges. Games' challenges are easier, less important, and less personal than life's challenges. Yet, life has plenty of challenges, whether we want them or not. Maybe I can try to worry less about the stakes of failure and stop taking it so personally when I fail. Maybe then I can chill out about life's challenges and learn to enjoy them almost as much as the challenges in games.

Ordinances for the Dead

Tonight, for family scripture study, we read a few sections in the Doctrine and Covenants that made reference to baptisms for the dead, and we talked about what a unique and uplifting doctrine that is. We, like other Christian churches, know that saving ordinances are essential, but we, unlike other Christian churches, know that one's mortal life isn't one's only chance to get them. Those who die without being baptized, endowed, or sealed can still be baptized, endowed, and sealed to their families, if those ordinances are performed for them in the temple. This way, through temple work, everyone can have a chance to be saved in the kingdom of God.

I'm grateful that God gives everyone a fair chance to choose eternal life and exaltation. It would truly be terrible if those who died before baptism were damned for eternity. I'm glad that God's plan is more forgiving than that. I'm glad that everyone can get the essential, saving, and exalting ordinances, even those who couldn't get them in this life.