Let them eat cake!

New goal on my 101 list (revisions allowed, right? I mean, after all, 1001 days is a long time... and my interests change like... daily... haha) MAKE THESE:






I want to make cakes. Beautiful cakes. I'm sure the first few will be total flops. That's okay. I'll bring the extras to work with me. :)

Anyone know of a good cake-decorating class in the area?

Impatience

Yesterday was a long day. But when I got home, there was a big, fat envelope in the mailbox! And yes, it came from Spain :)

So I tore it open.

And inside were four little packages, wrapped in newspaper, and a card in an envelope.

And it said, "Do not open until your birthday."

My birthday is still six days away. So the little packages are sitting on my desk in my room. Staring at me. Begging me to open them.

*sigh... *

Live Mindfully

New mantra.

Here's a question: How many of you can remember who you talked to first this morning? Where were you? How many people passed by you while you were conversing? What color were the other person's eyes? What did you talk about? What was the other person wearing?

What color are the mountains? How many colors? Could you sketch from memory the basic shapes of them?

How did you get to _____ this morning? Did you pass any people? How many of them were talking on phones? Were there birds chirping? How many different kinds of trees did you pass, or were they all the same?

Flowers are popping out all over campus. Stop and look at one. REALLY look at it. What do you see? How many colors? How many parts? What shape are they?

So much of life is spent rushing from place to place, constantly "doing" and never seeing, hearing, noticing whatever is around us. The Buddhist view is that we must live mindfully, for this is all there is to life. While I certainly don't believe that, I agree that I spend much of my time focused on the future, either close or distant, and I miss the moments happening all around me.

My challenge to myself is to be where I am. Really be there. To really see people when I look at them, to really experience my surroundings. It's not that hard with a little practice, but it adds ever so much depth and beauty and meaning to life.

Live mindfully.
Viva la Vida.

Regretting.

I saw someone tonight that I haven't talked to in six years.

The last time we did talk, I broke his heart in the middle of the sophomore hall.

It's silly now - heck, I wasn't even sixteen years old yet, and it was just high school drama. But the way that he was never anything but nice to me, and yet I treated him like a worn-out pair of shoes, that has stuck with me for six years. So I saw him tonight at a party. I looked over at him a few times, but, I'm ashamed to say, I was still too embarrassed and self-conscious to say a word. I'm sure by now he really couldn't care less - it was two months in 10th grade, and he probably laughs about it now. But it still haunts me, and I'm terribly embarrassed of how self-centered and inconsiderate I was.

It leaves me thinking "now what?" I don't know how to contact him except maybe through Facebook, and even if I did, it would seem ridiculous to apologize after all this time. But it would make me feel better.

There are only a few things in life that I truly regret. That moment and the way I acted is one of them. To him, I'm sorry for the hurt I caused him, however small or silly it seems now. Live and learn, right?

Why I love my job...

Father on phone: "So my daughter wants to go to college in the fall. She's been accepted to five universities, but she wants to go to a college that wants her badly enough to give her a full ride scholarship... but she forgot to apply for university scholarships and she didn't audition for the School of Music, but she'd like to come."

Me: "Well... the auditions were four months ago... and all our scholarships were awarded in March, so at this point there's not very much that we can do, the funds have already been awarded."

(conversation goes on)

Later:

Father: "Well. So. Do you have a music scholarship there?"
Me: "Well, I'm not a music student, but I do have a scholarship for my program."
Father (accusingly): "So how did you get yours?"
Me: "Well, for continuing students it's based off GPA."
Father (still accusingly): "So have you had yours for the whole time you've been here?"
Me: "No... Have you talked to the Financial Aid office yet?"

We love those dear, dear "helicopter" parents...

Day Zero #100

#100 - Get a scholarship

Do you believe in miracles?

I do.

When I found out I was getting a full tuition scholarship last year, I can't even describe how blessed I felt. With the cost of my study abroad, it was really a miracle. I hardly dared hope for another miracle this year. It sounded too good to be true.

But it wasn't.

I am so very grateful to the wonderful men and women who choose to contribute to the scholarship fund, so that students like myself who work as hard as they can but still don't have enough can still get an education, participate in things like dance teams or orchestras or study abroad programs, so that the realm of opportunities isn't smaller for those who don't have very many financial resources.

Someday I want to start my own scholarship fund. I want to be the means of providing miracles to other people - because I think it's the most wonderful feeling in the world.

Day Zero: #5, #9, #44, #69, #71

#5 - Give away a pass-along card
I did this in Spain as well, but have neglected to check it off the list. The day that Melanie and I left for the Canary Islands, I left chocolate and pass-along cards for the two Italian girls who were also living with Pilar at the time. They were both such nice girls and we had talked about life in Utah, church dances, dating, and other sorts of things, and I had woken up that morning with a strong impression to not leave without telling them what I knew. I don't know if anything will come of it, but it was a good feeling to receive an impression and follow through on it.

#9 - Write in my journal at least 3 times a week for three months
This was not very hard - I love to write. Check!

#44 - Be on the BYU Folk Dance Team
I've blogged about this before - but folk dance this past semester was AMAZING! :) I've been invited to "Workshop" at the end of the summer - which is three days of intensive folk dance, at the end of which they'll assign you a team based on how well you did. I'm excited to dance all day!

#69 - Sew a skirt
At first this goal was "Learn how to sew clothing" but I opted to change that to make it less stressful - it was causing me grief. I enjoy sewing, but I have to take it at a slow pace, since I don't have a lot of patience. However, the straight skirt turned out well - I actually wear it! I also revised a swimsuit, am working on an apron (still!) and am contemplating another skirt style. I'll post pictures - someday.

#71 - Floss every night for a month
Dentist's orders. It was hard not to forget a night here and there - but my teeth have never been quite so happy... maybe, with a little diligence, I can beat my poor dental genetics.

Upcoming goals: recipe sharing, book recommendation reading, tie-dyeing, and more!