The Final Count Up.

Yes, you did read that right. I am counting up :)

Counting up to so many things.
Happy things :)

Three more days of work.
Seven days till classes are over forever.
Seven days till I'm back with my family.
Eight days till my sister's happiest day of her life.
Eighteen days till Christmas.
Sixty one days till I leave for my mission.
And I'm guessing eight hundred and twenty five days till I get married.

:)

Just kidding. I don't know why I just wrote that.

But back to counting up.

It means that I'm looking at the days half full :) despite the burdens that might be upon your shoulders, to count up is to decide to be happy about the changes that are coming.

. . . even if they mean you are getting closer to leaving the people who matter most to you.

I guess that's why I believe in eternal families.

And the greatest happiness it yet to come.

I don't actually have a count-up for that. It's just going to come when Heavenly Father says it's right.

Until then, seven more days of classes.

I couldn't be happier.

Meet the Robinsons.

Unique.
Ridiculous.
Funny.
Wild.
Hungry.
Entertaining.
Loving.

Yes, we go together perfectly. I thank Heavenly Father for them every day. I have the best freshman older brothers in the whole wide world. Love 'em to death.

Merry Christmas :) 

"Nothing is as Constant as Change."

I had it all figured out, down to the very last year of my life.

It was simple, really, and I was quite proud of it. I was going to go to college for two years; intern at a hospital in a third world country; come back and study for another year; go on a mission; fall in love with a Gilbert Blithe; get married (not like I would be able to choose when I get married anyway, but I planned it, nonetheless); finish college; find a job; have six children; name one of them Léna (a very French name); and become a chubby grandma who makes cookies all day long. 

And I was happy with that. No one knew that that's what I amounted to be - a grandma who cooks cookies all day long, but everyone has their secret ambitions in life :) 

Despite this wonderful plan of mine, I was pretty sure that it would change. I knew Heavenly Father probably had something else in store for me. Something better.

But for right then, it was a plan, and I was going to follow it.

So I did.

Well, I got as far as the first step. Here I am at college in my first semester.

And yet, here I am, ready to change my plans.

In fact, they've already changed. One of the most exciting moments of my life happened in the past week :) And it's probably  the biggest change of my life. You see, it's like this:

Dear Sister Murdoch,

You are hereby called to serve as a missionary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. You have been assigned to labor in the Canada, Montréal Mission.

!!!!!

Yes, I am ready to serve the Lord. Someone in Montréal is waiting to hear of hope. of happiness. of a Saviour who makes it possible for them to repent.

As I was reading my mission packet that tells all about the rules and standards for missionaries, as well as what to bring and what not to bring, I was overwhelmed with a feeling that's kind of hard to describe.

I have to give up everything.

Music. Jeans. Internet. Time. Money. Family. Friends. Cell Phone.
Everything.

Am I bitter? Not in the slightest.

I am ready.

I've come to the conclusion that if there is anything I'm not willing to give up for the Lord, then I must not love Him enough.

But I do. I love the Lord so much. I will willingly give up everything I have, including my time and my money, to serve Him. Thing is, how can I even begin to repay Him for what He has given me?

It's not just called sacrifice - it's a labor of love. Love of God more than love for what I want in life. And I know that if I put Him first, everything will fall into place.

A leap of faith? Yes.
But thankfully not in the dark. Heavenly Father has said: "Consider the lilies of the field how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin; And yet, I say unto you, that even Solomon, in all his glory, was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, even so will he clothe you, if ye are not of little faith.Therefore, take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, what shall we drink? or wherewithal shall we be clothed?
"For your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you."

I woulndn't replace that moment when I read my name, "Dear Sister Murdoch," with any other moment in the whole world. I wouldn't replace the feeling when I looked around at my family and friends singing, "We'll Bring the World His Truth," with any feeling in the whole world.

And I wouldn't give up this opportunity for all the scholarships or job oppenings allotted to me.

I am ready to serve the Lord and the people in Montreal.

This is one change that will change the me for the rest of my life.

In Light of this New Week . . .

This week, I anticipate lots things.

This week I anticipate lots of homework.
No sleep.
Exams.
Late night laughs with Rachel. and Katie. and Hope. and Tasha. and Chelsea.
Temple trips that matter.
Frozen noses.
Rain.
Feeling sad about something.
Smiles.
Speed walking to class.
Late nights in the library.
A text about my mission call.
A phone call from my mom.
Late night piano songs in the HFAC.
Messy hair and T-shirts.
Laundry and dishes.
And perhaps one night I'll get five hours of sleep.

:)

And since I know my anticipations are quite similar to many others', I hope this poem will help you. Because despite the hard things that will inevitably come, it's important to take on the attitude of Elder Wirthlin. In the words of his mother, "Come what may, and love it."

You started the race with a confident pace,

And you waved to your dad with a smile on your face.
You were confident till you looked up ahead,
And the scene that you saw caused you to dread;
For out in the distance you could see the dark clouds,
And tears started to form as you whispered aloud,
"Dear Father in Heaven, help me to be
As steadfast and strong as thy Son was for me."
Then came the pains as you struggled to climb
The hills and the mountains that lengthened the time,
The rocks and the boulders that cluttered your way,
And caused you to trip and from the path stray.
The wind 'gainst your hair and the sweat on your face
Caused you to feel you were losing the race.
While you might think it too much for the pain that it cost,
As soon as you choose to give up, you've lost.
It matters the tears that you cry when it's tough,
But it matters much more that you never give up.
Although you may think that you're losing the race,
Or in order to win you must quicken your pace,
Remember the Saviour, who overcame all,
Is there with His hands when you start to fall.
It isn't the trials or mountains you face:
What matters the most is that you finish the race.
Go forward in life with a twinkle in your eye
And always remember God wants you to try.
Then press forward through life with a smile on your face,
And God will bless you to finish your race.

~Alissa Murdoch

Inspired from President Hinckley: "Go forward in life with a twinkle in your eye and a smile on your face . . . and God will bless you as you pursue your course."

Therefore, In light of this new week, let us remember to keep the perspective that things will be alright.

Come what may, and love it.

And there are officially 50 DAYS until Christmas :) HUZZAH.

Perspective.

One of the most discouraging parts of life must be when, no matter how hard you try, you just can't seem to succeed. No matter how late you stay up doing homework, writing that thesis statement, or making flashcards, you just can't get it.

A road block, a cliff, a giant wall: any word can be used to describe this pebble stone in your shoe, mostly because it just needs to be a word expressing that you are stuck. At the end. And at a loss. In a trial. In a predicament. In the dark.

You ask yourself, How am I supposed to succeed? I can't do better than my best, and clearly I'm not strong enough to break through this wall of steel. 

Don't believe that.

Ever.

All you need is to change your perspective. Yes, grades are important, and at some point you might need to be accepted into the Nursing Program or the Physics Program or whatever major you want to pursue.

Just remember one thing. Well, remember lots of things (like that chocolate helps a lot, the cup really is half full, the Saviour loves you, you can do it, all trials will give you experience and be for your good, etc.)

But be sure to remember this.

(And this is what makes me ridiculously happy all the time.)

:)

Remember that someday, you will have a best friend.

An eternal best friend. And they will love you more than anyone else in this world.

And you will go shopping for cereal together. You will laugh together over forgetting to put sugar in the cake or burning the toast. You'll do dishes together and drink hot chocolate together. You'll go on walks and bike rides and play tennis together because there's no one in the whole world who you'd rather spend your time with more than that wonderful bestest friend.

And you will be happy. Oh, so happy.

That's one of the things I look forward to most in this life. It keeps me going sometimes, in all honesty. And maybe that sounds a little weird, but it's all part of having an eternal perspective. Look at the long run. Look at who you are going to be. Look at your potential. Forget about that test you failed, and just do your best on writing that thesis statement, and endure work for just a little longer. Hold on, don't let go, and keep trying. It will work out. Heavenly Father promised it would.

So it will.

And in the meantime, a little chocolate along the way never hurt anyone :)