Skip to main content

Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again

Dear Reader,


When looking my Facebook timeline or at my twitter account, you can see that I haven't uploaded nearly as many pictures in the past couple of weeks as were posted during my first couple of weeks here in Spain. I have had an epiphany in the past week or so. To me it seems that the internet, selfies, videos, links, etc, are all meant for one thing: to share an experience with someone or multiple people who were not present for the original experience. The thought came to mind that the pictures I have posted have the purpose of sharing my great experiences with you, my friend.


They say a picture says a thousand words. This is true. However, there is much more than that. For example, you can see that we are happy and enjoying ourselves in this picture in front of the great city of Toledo. However, I discovered that, unless you were there with us, you do not fully appreciate the view that was behind us. You do not fully appreciate that Liz has a fantastic smile despite being sick that day. You cannot appreciate Alli's enthusiasm to be in the picture. 

Upon thinking that you cannot feel all those things I have felt during this program, I tried to think of things that are  effectively communicated by technology or other means. I can only think of one thing can be shared completely, no matter the distance, no matter the language, no matter your capacity. The one thing that can be shared universally is the Spirit of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 

I came to this conclusion while watching the General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints this morning. This time around, it was time to try Twitter. While writing tweets with quotes from the Apostles and other general authorities, I noticed a pattern of people tweeting the same quotes and impressions. It is important to note that the people sending these tweets are found in dozens of different places from Spain to China to Provo. It is clear to see that even though these people, my friends and family, were not together, they were having the same experience. They were all feeling the Spirit. 

Never fear, I will continue to share my experiences from Spain and across the world. Just remember that the experience that you and I will always share is feeling the spirit of Lord in our lives. 

Labels

Labels:

Comments

  1. Day dreamer10/4/14, 9:58 PM

    You have had some pretty great thoughts while in Spain. I am enjoying reading your blog that gets me thinking about my life as well. Keep enjoying your time there :)

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

You make me dance like a fool, forget how to breath, shine like gold...

Dear Readers, Ok, so I can't fit the entire title into the title box. It's a good song, go look it up: "You make me smile." The title can apply to anyone, I've found. The rest of the lyrics would probably refer to a best friend or a significant other, but anyone can make you smile. They all have the own way of doing it. Some are just funny all the time and you can't help smiling when you're around that person. I know some who take care of people so well that you just smile when they're doing something for another. Others you can talk to about your problems and no matter what they say, it seems to make sense and you feel better...thus a smile. Ok, a smile doesn't always come in that case, but people usually smile after that. Anyone can have a blonde moment and make everyone smile because of it. I'm glad I've got friends who can do all of these: have blonde moments, take care of others or have an episode of hyperactivity that you can't he...
5 comments
Read more

Am I Proud to Be an American?

This weekend is the 4th of July, or Independence Day in the United States of America. One of my favorite songs during this time of celebrating the country is "God Bless the USA." The words paint a detailed picture of the beauty of the United States, both in a physical and emotional aspect. Our country is often depicted in a majestic manner such as this, making it seem like the greatest in the world and we often hear those bold words, "I'm proud to be an American."  With all of the issues that have been cropping up over the past couple of years such as impeachment, systemic racism, foreign intervention, and most significantly the COVID-19 pandemic, I have reflected deeply about what we celebrate with the 4th of July. These issues are just a few of the many that have made me wonder about the country we praise so proudly.  Am I really proud to be an American?  Thomas Jefferson wrote the candid words of the Declaration of Independence, which were th...
Post a Comment
Read more

That's What Makes the World Go 'Round!

Dear Reader, Bonus points go to whoever can name what movie today's song title comes from. Comment below to submit your answers. Today I wanted to give you an update on the great " ALS Ice Bucket Challenge " that is taking the internet by storm. What started as a small campaign to raise awareness and funds for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's Disease) has grown and caused thousands of people to dump ice or ice water over their heads. That is how it works: one person nominates another to the challenge. That nominated person then has 24 hours to either donate $100 to the ALS foundation or have a bucket of ice dumped over their head. I would like to think most people are both accepting the ice bucket challenge and donating to charity. I won't judge, though. With all of this publicity that the ALS campaign has received, it made me think of other fads that people participated in during the 1920s and 1930s. Did you know that people regularly participated...
4 comments
Read more