Quote of the Day

“The greatest revolution of our generation 

is the discovery that human beings, 

by changing the inner attitudes of their minds, 

can change the outer aspects of their lives.” 

-William James

(See Thomas S. Monson's accompanying message about living an abundant life here.)

Just Some Inspirational Words...

In honor of Black History Month, here is a beautiful quote from Maya Angelou, "one of the most important African American authors and orators of the twentieth century."

"I've learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow. I've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights. I've learned that regardless of your relationship with your parents, you'll miss them when they're gone from your life. I've learned that making a "living" is not the same thing as making a "life." I've learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance. I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw something back. I've learned that whenever I decide something with an open heart, I usually make the right decision. I've learned that even when I have pains, I don't have to be one. I've learned that every day you should reach out and touch someone. People love a warm hug, or just a friendly pat on the back. I've learned that I still have a lot to learn. I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."  

 -Maya Angelou

Also, I'm in love with this song:

My BFF Brooklin (roommate from last year) is getting married and has put me in charge of finding music for her wedding, so I have love songs coming out my ears lately. Be prepared because I'll probably be posting several of my favorites sometime in the near future...

Words of Wisdom

I had a great conversation with my mom today. It went something like this:

Mom: Girls are just mean. There's no way around it.

Me: Sometimes I wish I was a boy.
Mom: Then you would be dumb and insensitive.

Me: So mean and catty or dumb and insensitive are my only options?

Mom: Yep.

It's sad because it's true. I have to leave for class in a few minutes, so naturally instead of working on homework I'm listening to music. Here is my song of the day: (I don't know why it is so huge...)

 Low Rising by The Swell Season

I wanna sit you down and talk
I wanna pull back the veils

And find out what it is I've done wrong

I wanna tear these curtains down

I want you to meet me somewhere

Tonight in this old tourist town

And we´ll go

Low rising

´Cause we´ve gotta come up

We´ve gotta come up

Low rising

´Cause I fear we´ve had enough

Low rising

´Cause there´s no further for us to fall

Low rising

Oh for the love of you

I wanna take you to the rock

I wanna jump right in

And see what that big ocean's got

I wanna turn this thing around

I wanna drink with you

All night till we both fall down

Till we go

Low rising

´Cause we´ve gotta come up

We´ve gotta come up

Low rising

´Cause there´s no further for us to fall

Low rising

And I fear we´ve had enough

Low rising

Oh for the love of you

Low rising

´Cause we´ve gotta come up

We´ve gotta come up

Low rising

And I fear we´ve had enough

Low rising

´Cause there´s no further for us to fall

Low Rising

Oh for the love of you

For the love of you

Low rising low rising

I wanna sit you down and talk

I wanna sit you down and talk about it now 

I have a secret love for The Swell Season. You should check them out.

Here's another gem, shown to me by a good friend who doesn't realize just how great he is:

And...I still think "dumb and insensitive" is better than being a girl. Just sayin.

Blog of Note

Here is another blog worth stalking:

Check out Serendipitous, a blog of beautiful pictures and simple thoughts. It's kind of along the lines of a photo-a-day blog, but she doesn't post daily. Hope you like it! (And if you don't, I don't really care.)

Now it's your turn to tell me some of your favorite blogs!

30 Goals for 30 Days

Right now I am taking a leadership class through the Residence Life program so that I can be an RA next year. I'm probably a nerd, but I absolutely love the class! Yesterday we talked about developing and maintaining healthy lifestyles. We discussed that health is not just physical well-being, but it encompasses emotional, intellectual, spiritual, and social well-being as well. It is a two-hour class, so I'll spare you the details, but I just wanted to share one thing that we did that I think everyone should see.

To end the day's class, the instructor presented to us the idea of a "Daily Decision Log." It is simply a list of daily behaviors that you want to develop or maintain in order to maintain your ideal healthy lifestyle. These things need not be hard or complex, just small simple things that you can do without having to schedule them into your day. You turn them into yes or no questions and put arrange them into a checklist, then you use the checklist for 30 days and see how you improve. I took my own view on it, dividing each item into different categories and coming up with a total of 30 items (which was more than the example he gave us) so I can have 30 goals to work on for 30 days. Here is the list that I came up with.

**Note: I uploaded this as a googledoc, so the formatting is a little screwy. The real version looks better, but it gives you an idea. Let me know if there are any problems with the link.

I'm going to start marking my lists on Monday, March 1. I am excited to start this project and give you all permission to copy this idea and make your own!

Just a Thought

"I have come to the frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element. It is my personal approach that creates the climate. It is my daily mood that makes the weather. I possess tremendous power to make a life miserable or joyous. I can be a tool of torture or an instrument of inspiration. I can humiliate or humor, hurt or heal. In all situations, it is my response that decides whethere a crisis will be excalated or de-escalated and a person humanized or de-humanized. If we treat people as they are, we make them worse. If we treat people as they ought to be we help them become what they
are capable of becoming."

-Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

(emphasis added)