"Oh how we need each other!"

This week, as I listened to the General Women’s Conference, I was amazed at how many great quotes I heard.  I wrote down as many quotes as I could, but I know that I missed quite a few.  Today, I had a chance to look up quotes from all the General Women’s Meetings and I came across one that hit me hard.  In April of 2014, Bonnie L. Oscarson said, “Oh how we need each other!”

Why do we feel the need to take on the burdens of life on our own?  Why, sometimes, do we feel too headstrong to ask for help when we need it the most?  Why do feel weak at times when we ask for help?  We all have different strengths and weaknesses.  We all have different talents.  I don’t know about you, but I have never compared myself to someone and won.

We need each other to lean on when times get tough.  We need each other to celebrate with when life brings you something exciting.  We need one another to socialize and laugh with.  When we can lean on someone other than ourselves, it can bring a sense of security and dependability.  We are also given the chance to learn from other individuals when we ask for help or guidance.

For example: I know that I can rely on my husband if I ever need advice or a friend to speak with.  He has helped me learn how to enjoy the little things in life and how to live in the moment!  He has also taught me how to be more giving, loving, and spiritual.  Jace has helped me to open my mind to different ways of thinking.  Without his personal knowledge and experience, I probably would not have the chance to grow in the same ways.  I need him, just like he needs me.

There have been multiple times when I have been lifted up by a friend’s words, or even brought down by a person’s attitude.  Without those words of a friend, I may not have been able to get out of the slump I was in and experience joy.  Without that person’s attitude, I may not have experienced that sadness I felt.  Without that sadness I could not fully experience joy either.  I have needed experiences in my life from both kinds of people in order to learn and grow to my full potential!

My point with this entire post is that we need each other.  We should not be afraid to ask for help and guidance from God, a friend, or a family member if we ever need or want it.  Whether it is advice, a priesthood blessing, or words of comfort we need each other!  I am going to work on asking for help when I need it and I will do my best to make sure that God, my family, my friends, and my peers know that I am always here to help when it is needed.

Choose to Laugh.

After going to the LDS Ogden Temple Dedication this week, I started thinking about some of the best quotes I have heard from people of the LDS faith.  One that has always stuck with me is from Majorie Hinckley.  She said, “The only way to get through life is to laugh your way through it.  You either have to laugh or cry.  I prefer to laugh.  Crying gives me a headache.”

This quote is one that I want to live by!  How much better could each of us feel if each time we could laugh or cry, we just laughed?  Let’s be honest, sometimes a good cry is the only thing that you need.  At times when there is a choice though, the best option would be to laugh!  Laughing makes you happy and relieves stress.  I can’t think of a time when I laughed and did not feel good, or at least better, about my situation or what was going on around me. 

So what that I remembered this quote. What am I going to do about it now? I'm going to remember this quote when I want to cry. I'm going to remember that laughing can always help you feel better about a situation. I am going to try to laugh instead of cry when a hard situation comes along. Because truthfully, doesn't crying give everyone a headache?

Be YOUnique.

We all have different hair color, eye color, and skin color.  We are all made in different shapes and sizes and there are billions of options for clothing and hair styles.  We all have different experiences and background stories.  There are certain things that we each wish we could have or desperately want to achieve.  However, we need to remember that we are all different and that is okay.

Imagine putting everything you have into a project and feeling overwhelmed by how wonderful it turned out.  You are so proud of this treasure that you want to show it off to the world!  It is a one-of-a-kind and absolutely nothing else in the world could replace it.  You love it with all of your heart and could not imagine changing one thing about it, because you know that you made it absolutely perfect.  Now ask yourself this: how would you feel if someone criticized this work of yours?  How would you feel if they put it down, and told you that it was not as great as you believed it was.  When they criticize your work, in a way they are criticizing you.

When God created you, he created you perfectly.  You are a one-of-a-kind that cannot be replaced by anything else.  God loves you and cannot imagine changing one thing about you because he knows that you are perfect just the way that you are.  Now imagine how he feels when you criticize yourself for an imperfection that you see.  When you put yourself down, ultimately you are putting God down as well.  

This scenario helps me to realize that we are all unique.  We are all different, and that is perfectly okay!  In God’s eyes, we are all exactly how he intended us to be.  What more do we need?  He knows of our quirks and the little imperfections that we see.  He knows that we make mistakes and he created a plan to help us with that.

Now, I am going to try to remember this and implement it in my life every day.  Every time I feel insecure about something, I am going to remind myself that I am the way I was always intended to be.  I am going to try to remind others that they are perfect just the way that they are as well.  I am a firm believer that small changes in thought processes can go a long way.  I hope that by helping others to see the good in themselves I can make a positive change in the world.