Thursday, July 28, 2011

Love is Never Having to Say You're Sorry

I have made the comment frequently that it is better to leave a party earlier rather than later before it dies. I've been thinking about this for weeks but specifically I was thinking about about this last Thursday before I saw Adam. Then after running into him by accident, it confirmed to me of what I needed to do. He doesn't want to induldge in any part of me and him anymore and neither do I. I believe I have needed these past three weeks to write about him so I could see for myself how important it is to my progression to move on. I meant every word I have written on this blog. Why it has taken me some time to get over Adam is not because he was my crutch but because I was in love. It was selfish on my part really, not wanting to let go and holding onto everything good I ever had with Adam. I don't think it's wrong to remember the good that was created by us. Thank you for allowing me some indulgence.


I think it's always better to end positively and that's how I intend to end my journey with Adam. This is not the end, it's just goodbye for me and Adam for now. It's not that I don't care about him still, but it's time for me to move on.



So if you are still interested in keeping up with me, check out my new blog I will be launching soon:


debutantepink.blogspot.com

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Someone

The words bounce through my head which sits like a vast but empty cavern. The words are trapped much like Cindy. "Be prepared, she is not the same."
I am scared to walk into a familiar room with an unfamiliar person. I feel her spirit slipping away. She is strong, but her body is weak. The light is draining from her and I wish I could bottle up just one drop of that energy.
Most of my heartache in life has been self induced. This is not one of those times. This is one of those times I shake my head with frustration and say, "Why God?" The air I breathe is thick and hard to filter through. I breathe deeper and with more purpose. I have a working body, she does not.
I cannot walk into that room and shed a tear, I must be brave like her. The sadness of this situation is something I have tried to avoid but I cannot any longer. Someone has lit a match in front of my face and they are about to throw it onto the fuel. I wish I knew who that someone was so that I could beat him up. It's easier to be mad at a someone rather than an unknown. She knows this someone too well. His name is Cancer and he has been her companion for too long.

For now, these are the images I wish to see in my head.








Bear Lake. It was like my Terra from "Gone with the Wind". I will always hold onto my summer memories from Bear Lake with the people I loved.

All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.

From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
A light from the shadows shall spring;
Renewed shall be blade that was broken,
The crownless again shall be king.

- All That Is Gold Does Not Glitter by J. R. R. Tolkien

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Amour

A girls night provoked me to speak my mind about love. I told the girls yes, if you feel like true love is in Nebraska, maybe you should consider moving. As for me, I would risk a lot for love. This has been a blessing and one of my greatest downfalls.
After talking to these girls for over an hour, I couldn't help but feel pleased with myself. I felt like I offered genuine and helpful insights. But more so than anything else, I felt beautiful and confident. That's how I have been feeling non stop lately and it's because of three things: 1) People have been complimenting me more, 2) I have been listening to those compliments more and 3) I believed I was beautiful and confident before I heard those words! Truly I have been embracing my own self more. It really doesn't matter what validation I get from others, it only matters what I think about myself (unless your name is Hannah then I care deeply what you say, jk!). To sum up our conversation, I was surprised by the lack of confidence from these girls... and I was surprised I took a chance on them by inserting myself into their lives (at their request by invitation of course!).

Let me tell you a little story...
My friend Alex invited me to Kayla's porch BBQ on Saturday via Facebook event invite (and you must say BBQ as B, B, Q because that's the way Adam says it and it's too cute). Kayla, Alex and I are all in the same ward together. Kayla has posted on the event wall, "Can anyone bring chips or a salad or something? Please respond so we know how much food we will need for everyone." I like to be helpful so I wrote on the wall, "I can bring chips!" Later Kayla wrote back, "Hon, I don't even know you ;)" Insert drama here!! jk But I really wanted to flip, I must admit. Instead, I thought about the logical, most appropriate way to respond... What is really going on here Amy? I didn't want to make anyone like Kayla feel bad, but she made me feel like poop! We've met several times, are in the same ward and share the same friends... and don't call me HUN! Instead I really took the time to think about her perspective. 12 minutes later I posted, "I am coming to your party with a bag of chips and we will settle this- let's get to know each other!" I took the road less traveled. It's there one where you think the best about another person. It's the one where you love people despite their faults because you know that deep down everyone is good and deep down everyone is struggling and fighting a hard battle. I say deep down because there is a lot of skin and muscle that gets in the way of your heart...
Now, fast forward to Sunday night girl night... and I had the chance to meet Kayla and talk intimately with her and her/our friends. She is not a mean person, only insecure. She is beautiful and powerful but she doesn't believe it yet. I am confident she will. I am grateful I have been reading this Assertiveness Workbook. I am in Chapter 3 now and feel like my whole world is changing. I care less about what other people think and more about how I view myself. I care about others but not at the expense of my own sanity and self.

I have been finding more peace in poetry. I love writing and reading good poems! This is from the movie "A River Runs Through It":

“As the moon lingers a moment over the bitterroots, before its descent into the invisible, my mind is filled with song. I find I am humming softly; not to the music, but something else; some place else; a place remembered; a field of grass where no one seemed to have been; except a deer; and the memory is strengthened by the feeling of you, dancing in my awkward arms.”

I used to lie in bed at night and pull on the chord of my blinds just enough so the moon would beam visibly to me. Sometimes I would look at it like a target and pray to my Heavenly Father somehow hoping those prayers would get to him sooner. Nature has always played a vital role in my life since that young age and I lost that for a while in my adult years. That's one of the reasons I chose to go to BYU-Idaho, because the landscape cradling the school was so beautiful. Not many people know that I was in awe of that place long before I attended school there and that was a determining reason why I attended. I think I should expand upon this thought in a later post... but know that nature touches my soul in a way nothing else can. I want to imagine dancing in the trees with the man I love...




http://www.spiegel.de/fotostrecke/fotostrecke-68958-5.html http://cultureandlife.co.uk/2011/06/18/russias-privileged-little-adults-by-anna-skladmann/

Photographer Anna Skladmann explores the world of the Russian rich in her photo series Little Adults. The results are haunting to me. She met with a little boy in Moscow in 2010. "Antoshka only agreed to do the shoot if we could do it with the girl he had a crush on. They met in school and acted in the same school play. For the shoot, he put on the costume he wore during the play. It was uncomfortably small, and even he didn’t like it too much himself … No matter how old or young you are, there are things you do for love."

I wonder how far I would go for love? Is that even appropriate to say I would do anything? Would I move to Nebraska, the state which I loathe the most? Yes, I believe I would.




http://dearphotograph.com/page/3

This photo is from the website above with the caption:

Dear Photograph,
Thank you for everything we had.

This website evokes emotion in me much like nature does. It allows me to feel the pure love of Christ. Silly how a website can conjure that up inside of me. This photo is sweet and made me think of Adam. Adam, I am grateful for everything we had. Now you are gone from me and I am gone from you, but we had the most beautiful times together. I would never erase those and I hope to make more with you. I hope to sit on this bench with you and laugh until I cry. I hope to dance barefoot in the trees with you. I hope this is not the end. I hope.



"Everything We Had" by The Academy Is...

You were the only face I'd ever known.
I was the light from the lamp on the floor,
and only as bright as you wanted me to be.
But I am no gentleman, I can be a prick,
and I do regret more than I admit.
You have been followed back to the same place
I sat with you drink for drink.
Take the pain out of love, and then love won't exist.

Everything we had, everything we had,
everything we had, everything we had
Is no longer there.

It was the only place I'd ever known.
Turned off the light on my way out the door.
I will be watching wherever you go,
through the eyes of a fly on the wall.
You have been followed back to the same place
I sat with you drink for drink.
Take the pain out of love and then love won't exist.

Everything we had, everything we had,
everything we had, everything we had
Is no longer there, longer there.

Well, you saw for yourself, the way it played out.
For you, I am blinded.
For you, I am blinded, for you.

I am no gentleman, I can be a prick.
And I do regret more than I admit.
You have been followed back to the same place
I sat with you drink for drink.
Take the pain out of love, and then love won't exist.

Everything we had, everything we had,
(you have been followed, you have been followed.)
everything we had, everything we had.
(you have been followed, you have been followed.)
Everything we had, everything we had,
(you have been followed, you have been followed.)
everything we had...

I'll be with you wherever you go,
through the eyes of a fly on the wall.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

You Are My Only Escape

I love Salt Lake City. I remember being 14 and taking a carriage ride through Memory Grove Park. The air was cold but intriguing to me. I felt grown up taking this ride but scared to be in a place unfamiliar to me. I find it interesting how I have come back to my roots here in Salt Lake City. The city is now very familiar to me because of those young experiences I had! I know this is the place I am supposed to be. I have a lot to accomplish but I am confident I can do it all!

Now I have the unique opportunity to experience this park on a biweekly basis. I go running every Tuesday and Thursday at 5:45 am with a group of inspiring women. Not only do they push me to run harder, but they are great examples of how Daughters of God should act Spiritually. They have become great friends to me which is exciting because I have always craved relationships with uplifting women- something of which has been hard for me to find throughout my life.

This is also a big reason why I felt comfortable with Adam, because he comes from an equally amazing family. I miss my talks with his Mom in their kitchen. Those times spent talking with Vickie were never little or silly to me, she is so wise and I trust her intentions. I looked forward to hugs from Rachel and I fed off of her spunky spirit. Madeline is the soft one who is fun, kind and who pushes herself to do better in sports. So jealous of her tan! ;) And Liz, who is a beautiful woman and young mother. How does she have like 5 callings, a husband, house and 2 kids? She never ceases to amaze me with her quiet strength. And last, but not least for sure, is Hannah. Honestly her approval means a lot to me which is quite silly considering she is only 17 and has a lot of life to experience. I think I want her approval because she is honest and completely fearless- something I am not just yet. I admire her. She can walk out of the house without any makeup and KNOW she is beautiful because she is! They were all so kind to me and I believe I will never find a better future family- in fact I refuse to. I looked forward to spending time with his family each time we made plans to. Sorry for this tangent... What I was trying to say was that I seek sincere relationships. I am extremely grateful when I find them like I did with Adam's family.

Mostly I find my biggest running competitor is myself. I know that I can do anything with this healthy body which God has given to me. I honor him by taking care of it. Every time I run my motivators are the same- Heavenly Father, Adam, and myself. Nothing else comes into my mind during this peaceful but beautiful struggle inside. Outside when I look around, I feel a wave like sensation of the Spirit hitting me, testifying of the beautiful things which God has created for me. I drink in the beauty of the Earth and it fills me. I have legs which carry me to my destination, a destination I never thought possible before. But that is what I am capable of- carrying myself to many destinations which I never thought possible. It is made possible first because of the belief. Second, I have people who believe in me. Third, I will not let God or myself down because I know I am capable of much growth.

Confidence has been an element which I have let take hold of me and something I have been growing upon. I am in a church co-ed softball league. Last night I practiced my swing and didn't miss the ball once (with good throws from the pitcher)! In reflection, yes I developed a better, more precise swing but the one thing that I held on to was confidence. I knew I could hit the ball, so I did!

Much like my runs, I have confidence I can make it to my destination safely, so I do. But I am not concerned much about my destination or when I get there. I enjoy my time spent feeling my feet hit the pavement beneath me, because I have feet. I have eyes which work properly without help from glasses or contacts so that I may see the beautiful greenery around me and the tall Capital building which awaits me on the downhill. I have ears so that I can hear the singing creek as it steadily races against me. I am proud of who I am, what I am experiencing and who I am becoming because of those experiences. I wouldn't change anything except having Adam with me through all of this (if that were possible but it's not).

I run. I run for a lot of reasons. I felt like running would be a good outlet to escape from my problems but in reality it has brought me closer to a lot of things, good and bad. I am learning how to sort through my conflicts and my deepest desires. In fact, running has actually brought me closer to the two people who matter the most to me. So for that I say, thank you Heavenly Father for the run.

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Two Weeks

Hello two weeks, I've been expecting you. Adam told me about you and I trust him. He said you would come and the pain of losing him would lessen with your arrival. I trust in this process. Fully. Thank you for coming so soon. Every day has felt like a challenging run. But I kept running with anticipation and here I am now, meeting you along the way. Not only have I been excited to see you, but I have also had reservations that I know I should not give in to. It's a fear of letting go. With each passing day, the bond that Adam and I have shared is lessening. I know that in order to move on, I must let go. Fully. I struggle because I know what is right but I don't want to do it in this case. But that is the thing, in order to show myself that I can let go of old behaviors which are not good for me, I must let go of Adam to show myself that I can let go of the hardest thing I have ever given up... everything else will seem small compared to this one giant step. And knowing that I am doing the right thing in this case will help me to do the right thing always.

I introduced my Uncle Mike to the band Civil Twilight and in return, he got me their c.d. (and brought me homemade chocolate cake!) You know how some bands just speak to you? I think seeing them perform last fall helped me to appreciate their music more. They are incredible live. Here is one of their songs that I love. It's so inspiring and comforting to me.


"Next To Me"

You are my only escape
You are the reason that I wait
On the corner of this empty street
Oh, I just can't wait to meet

There's so much a man can do
There's so much a man can say
See, I have done so many things wrong
That you should have saw me away

I've got this second chance, I'm gonna take it
I've got this song and dance, I'm gonna take it
I've got all that I need and I can taste it
I've got you next to me, I don't want to waste it

You are my only embrace
You are the light that lights my face
Any fool would do the same
Oh, to follow in your trace

People come and people go
But I know I should have been replaced
I know it

I've got this second chance, I'm going to take it
I've got this song and dance, I'm going to take it
I've got all that I need and I can taste it
I've got you next to me and I don't want to waste it

I'm gonna take it
All that I can get
I'm gonna take it

It's beautiful, the way you move
The way you take me back
Here she comes, around the bend
She's coming to take me back

Oh, I've got this second chance, I'm going to take it
I've got this song and dance, I'm going to take it
I've got all that I need, I can taste it
I've got you next to me and I don't want to waste it

'Cause you are my only escape
You are the reason that I wait

Monday, July 18, 2011

Foundations

This is a critical time for me. In order for me to be consistently good and doing what God wants me to do, I need to have solid foundations.

I have been meeting and checking in with my Bishop every week and this Sunday was profound. He cried to me of my importance. I have always believed him but something about him saying the same words to me that he has always said, that I am a Daughter of God, and him becoming emotional over it made me more convinced- which I didn't think was possible because it is something I have believed so fully. Knowing I am a Daughter of God is something so precious to me; It has been a big part in forgiving myself.

Since working through my assertiveness book, I have realized that I have been in an extended state of stress. The things that will help me the most in my life are consistent, and soild foundations. For example, did you know creative thinking declines when you are stressed? It's been so hard for me to get back into my art specifically since my divorce. To build stress related resistance, I must exercise, eat well, get enough sleep, watch my caffeine intake and lead a balanced life. These are the physical things that will help me achieve my goals.
My Bishop said he likes the progress I have made with reading my scriptures and praying. Those things are never boring to me- they are essential! He wants me to take my prayers to the next level. He was impressed when I said I have been praying for opportunities to help others. I know that service speaks to my soul like nothing else, and that is one way I can feel the Spirit speak to me. So I pray to be able to serve others and fulfill the Father's will. Bishop also said the scriptures are like a key and unlock one's mind to further understanding. He wants me to experience this and document it and report back. I am excited for this. I know these are the small steps which will set my life on a path which I will never fall away from. Life conflicts are hard, but if I work harder to develop the tools necessary then I will never falter from what I know to be true.

Endure to the End

I wrote this during church yesterday. I like how it's written so I'll just copy and paste.

Endure to the end.
I used to dislike this phrase. Wasn't that sort of the easy part? Not until recently have I understood and lived it so fully. I know what is right, but now I have to live it. Daily. Always.

It is not a coincidence that Angela is in 1 Nephi and is giving a talk about not being frustrated with the timing of things and to have patience.

Lashing out at God because of our frustrations only brings us sorrow.

We need to be patient with everyone including ourselves.

Pray for patience. Have faith. Seek the Spirit- it is a gift from God.