Now

NOW, adverb
1. At the present time.

- 1828 Webster Dictionary

I've heard this word many, many times in the past few years. "Now is the time." "You are needed now." "The time to act is now." "Serve now." "Learn now." Etc.
Now, right now, is the time to act, to do. Don't wait for others to do it for you, you do it. Now.

Y.O.L.O. This usually stands for You Only Live Once, which translates into "party now because you only one life so you should live it up now." But in this CD I listened to a few months ago, the guy speaking pointed out that this can go the other way: "you only live once so you should do all you can to make it good." And I agree, I believe that we should all we can to serve others and grow closer to our Heavenly Father. Besides, if all you do is party and try drugs and stuff like that, are you really happy? In the moment maybe but you don't stay that way.

So, now is the time to do whatever it is that you need to do. Build relationships, learn a new skill or hobby, etc. 

Do things that really matter.

How Do You Want To Be Remembered?

Ever wondered about what people will say about you once you're gone, or just on vacation? Do they say you're an excellent friend? Loyal? Funny? Or would they say something different?
Either way, what do you want them to say?

I recently had an interview for a library job and one question I was asked was, "How would your friends describe you?" I thought a moment. "Quiet. They'd probably say smart." But I couldn't really think of anything else. I mean, I don't ask my friends "hey, how would you describe me?" but it made me think about how I'd like people to describe me.
I'd like to say that I'm loyal, funny, smart, kind, thoughtful, a great friend, always willing to serve, helpful. And that brings the thought, "if I want them to say that about me, what do I need to do to achieve that?" Maybe it means that I need to work on being more willing to serve and looking for more ways to serve and then acting on those ideas. Maybe I need to be more attentive to other people's needs and, again, act on my observations.

So, what do you want your friends to say about YOU?

Happy Almost July 4th!

So, July 4th is in just two days. July 4th, America's Independence Day. The day that when we remember how we broke off from Great Britain because we wanted a voice in parliament.

This declaration is one of the most important documents and I invite you to read, or at least skim, over it. Our founding fathers supported this document written primarily by Thomas Jefferson.

(This form of the Declaration was copied pasted from the National Archives and Records Administration website.)

The Declaration of Independence: A Transcription IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776. The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America, When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.--Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world. He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good. He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them. He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only. He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures. He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people. He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within. He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands. He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers. He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries. He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance. He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures. He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power. He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation: For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us: For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States: For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world: For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent: For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury: For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies: For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments: For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever. He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us. He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people. He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation. He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands. He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions. In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people. Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our Brittish brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends. We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor. The 56 signatures on the Declaration appear in the positions indicated: Column 1 Georgia:    Button Gwinnett    Lyman Hall    George Walton Column 2 North Carolina:    William Hooper    Joseph Hewes    John Penn South Carolina:    Edward Rutledge    Thomas Heyward, Jr.    Thomas Lynch, Jr.    Arthur Middleton Column 3 Massachusetts: John Hancock Maryland: Samuel Chase William Paca Thomas Stone Charles Carroll of Carrollton Virginia: George Wythe Richard Henry Lee Thomas Jefferson Benjamin Harrison Thomas Nelson, Jr. Francis Lightfoot Lee Carter Braxton Column 4 Pennsylvania:    Robert Morris    Benjamin Rush    Benjamin Franklin    John Morton    George Clymer    James Smith    George Taylor    James Wilson    George Ross Delaware:    Caesar Rodney    George Read    Thomas McKean Column 5 New York:    William Floyd    Philip Livingston    Francis Lewis    Lewis Morris New Jersey:    Richard Stockton    John Witherspoon    Francis Hopkinson    John Hart    Abraham Clark Column 6 New Hampshire:    Josiah Bartlett    William Whipple Massachusetts:    Samuel Adams    John Adams    Robert Treat Paine    Elbridge Gerry Rhode Island:    Stephen Hopkins    William Ellery Connecticut:    Roger Sherman    Samuel Huntington    William Williams    Oliver Wolcott New Hampshire:    Matthew Thornton

Virtue: Then and Now (Especially in Movies)

I just barely got back from Girl's Camp and our theme this year was Go For The Gold! with an emphasis on virtue.

Virtue is a prerequisite to entering the Lord’s holy temples and to receiving the Spirit’s guidance. Virtue “is a pattern of thought and behavior based on high moral standards.”  It encompasses chastity and moral purity. Virtue begins in the heart and in the mind. It is nurtured in the home. It is the accumulation of thousands of small decisions and actions. Virtue is a word we don’t hear often in today’s society, but the Latin root word virtus means strength. Virtuous women and men possess a quiet dignity and inner strength. They are confident because they are worthy to receive and be guided by the Holy Ghost. President [Thomas S.] Monson has counseled: “You be the one to make a stand for right, even if you stand alone. Have the moral courage to be a light for others to follow. There is no friendship more valuable than your own clear conscience, your own moral cleanliness—and what a glorious feeling it is to know that you stand in your appointed place clean and with the confidence that you are worthy to do so” (“Examples of Righteousness,” Apr. 2008 general conference).1

I like how this definition says that virtue starts in the mind and heart.

I know that virtue is an important thing to have especially in this day and age. Virtue is kind of rare these days. When the movie Gone With The Wind was released, it was banned form a number of states due to Rex's last line which included a swear word. But now we hear swear words, cuss words, we hear them all over the place.

I think it's just sad how far America has changed since 1940 (the year Gone With The Wind came out). And it just seems to be getting worse. I mean, how many G rated movies do we see these days?

I looked on IMDb and looked at the Most Popular Feature Films of 2014 and in the first two pages found no G-Rated movies. That doesn't mean there aren't any but.... So I didn't see any G-Rated but do you want to know how many R-Rated movies were on there? No, you don't. I don't believe that we should have any R rated movies. The R stands for restricted. Why is anyone watching anything that is restricted?! I just don't get it.

R-rated movies are not for people under 17 and definitely not for kids. I think that if youth and children can't watch it because of the content and stuff, then we shouldn't have it at all.

Virtue is something we need. Gordon B. Hinckley said that "There is nothing in all this world as magnificent as virtue. It glows without tarnish. It is precious and beautiful. It is above price. It cannot be bought or sold. It is the fruit of self-mastery." "Let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God." (D&C 121:45)
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1 lds.org/virtue

Books

Books are wonderful things. They can inform, enlighten and take you places.
I love books. I read a lot and just love how books can take you places, whether it's a real place or a made-up realm. Books are...magical.
And it's not like there's only one type of story; there's adventure, mystery, fantasy, horror, romance, etc.
Before there was TV, there were books. Books are a form of entertainment. And they're better than a television (for one thing, books don't have commercials!). Even better are the books that make you think, either during or after you finish reading or both! Those books are deep, those are the kinds of books that become classics.

"I cannot live without books."
~Thomas Jefferson

The Family: A Proclamation to the World

This is a special document. A lot of people still believe in the traditional family. This is an important paper to me and I know that true and that if we follow it's teachings, we can be blessed. I know that family is important and that we are "[called]...to...strengthen the family [because it's] the fundamental unit of society."1 The family is a super important unit in this world and it's up to us to protect it.

The Family

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A Proclamation to the World

The First Presidency and Council of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints

We, the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, solemnly proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children.

All human beings—male and female—are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny. Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose.

In the premortal realm, spirit sons and daughters knew and worshipped God as their Eternal Father and accepted His plan by which His children could obtain a physical body and gain earthly experience to progress toward perfection and ultimately realize their divine destiny as heirs of eternal life. The divine plan of happiness enables family relationships to be perpetuated beyond the grave. Sacred ordinances and covenants available in holy temples make it possible for individuals to return to the presence of God and for families to be united eternally.

The first commandment that God gave to Adam and Eve pertained to their potential for parenthood as husband and wife. We declare that God’s commandment for His children to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force. We further declare that God has commanded that the sacred powers of procreation are to be employed only between man and woman, lawfully wedded as husband and wife.

We declare the means by which mortal life is created to be divinely appointed. We affirm the sanctity of life and of its importance in God’s eternal plan.

Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children. “Children are an heritage of the Lord” (Psalm 127:3). Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, and to teach them to love and serve one another, observe the commandments of God, and be law-abiding citizens wherever they live. Husbands and wives—mothers and fathers—will be held accountable before God for the discharge of these obligations.

The family is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities. By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners. Disability, death, or other circumstances may necessitate individual adaptation. Extended families should lend support when needed.

We warn that individuals who violate covenants of chastity, who abuse spouse or offspring, or who fail to fulfill family responsibilities will one day stand accountable before God. Further, we warn that the disintegration of the family will bring upon individuals, communities, and nations the calamities foretold by ancient and modern prophets.

We call upon responsible citizens and officers of government everywhere to promote those measures designed to maintain and strengthen the family as the fundamental unit of society.

This proclamation was read by President Gordon B. Hinckley as part of his message at the General Relief Society Meeting held September 23, 1995, in Salt Lake City, Utah.

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1 The Family: A Proclamation to the World

My Apologetic Paper

So, I literally just finished up a school program called Classical Conversations and I had to write an apologetic paper for the final day.
(For anyone who doesn't know what an apologetic paper is, I didn't know before, is a paper that defends a topic, usually a religious topic.)

This is my paper:

In John Blanchard's book ”Ultimate Questions" it says that, "From [the Fall in the Garden of Eden and] then on, like pollution at the source of a river, the poison of sin has flowed to all Adam’s descendants, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned."¹ This basically says that we are all inherently sinful.  There's a lot of people on earth. According to that statement from Ultimate Questions, all of us are inherently sinful. But a lot of people lead pretty good lives. And that brings us to a question: Should people be able to lead good lives if they're inherently sinful? I think that yes, people should lead good lives. Now some people believe that we should not be able to lead good lives because we are inherently sinful. But, like I said, I think otherwise. For one thing, Heavenly Father loves us. Second, because of His love, God wants us all to succeed; and lastly, I believe that none of us are inherently sinful.

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten son."¹ He loves us infinitely. "[Our] Heavenly Father loves [us]-each of [us]. That love never changes. It is not influenced by your appearance, by your possessions, or by the amount of money you have in your bank account. It is not changed by your talents and abilities. It is simply there. It is there for you when you are sad or happy, discouraged or hopeful. God's love is there for you whether or not you feel you deserve love. It is simply always there."² His love is everlasting and eternal. And it's for every single person who has lived, is living or will live. 

"For behold, this is my work and my glory to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."³ This is what Heavenly Father wants for us. He wants us to be able to live forever with Him. He loves us more than we could ever know and because of that everlasting love, He wants every single one of His children to succeed in life, temporally and spiritually. "Our Heavenly Father wishes to bless His children... He understands each of their needs, their pains, and their hopes."⁴

"We are, [Joseph Smith] declared, eternally existent, inherently innocent, boundlessly free and infinitely perfectible."⁵ I do not believe that man is inherently sinful. I believe that we are "punished for [our] own sins, and not for Adam's transgression."⁶ Because of this, we are not inherently sinful. I believe that we are innocent when we come to earth. We do not, however, stay innocent, since nobody is perfect. We are all guilty for our own sins; if a parent received a ticket for speeding, their child is not guilty as well; only the parent. I do not believe that our Heavenly Father sent us to this earth as sinners. He sent us here in an innocent state. Adam transgressed in the Garden of Eden but that remains Adam's transgression, not ours. "Some acts, like, murder are crimes because they are inherently wrong. Other acts, like operating without a [driver's] license, are crimes only because they are legally prohibited. Under these distinctions, the act that produced the Fall, was not a sin-inherently wrong-but a transgression-wrong because it was formally prohibited."⁷ This is another reason why man is not inherently sinful, Adam and Eve transgressed but did not sin. “Every spirit of man was innocent in the beginning; and God having redeemed man from the fall, men became again, in their infant state, innocent before God.”⁸ "Adam fell that men might be and men are that they might have joy."⁹ This means that because of the Fall, man came to be and because of that we can have joy through our righteous choices and actions. And vise versa, we will feel sorrow and sadness through our unrighteous actions, not through Adam's.

Heavenly Father loves us. He wants us to succeed, temporally and spiritually. I believe that I did not inherit Adam's sin when he partook of the fruit of the Tree of Good and Evil. Because of those things, I can lead a good life. Heavenly Father loves everyone. He wants everyone to succeed. Nobody is accountable for Adam's transgression. With this knowledge in hand, I firmly believe that everyone and anyone should lead good lives.

Bibliography

[1] Ultimate Questions. John Blanchard. 1987.

[2] John 3:16

[3] "We Never Walk Alone." President Thomas S. Monson. October 2013 General Conference.

[4] Moses 1:39

[5] "Is This Not The Fast I Have Chosen?" President Henry B. Eyring. April 2015 General Conference.

[6] "'Lightning Out of Heaven': Joseph Smith and the Forging of Community." Terry Givens. Nov 29th 2005. BYU Speeches.

[7] Second Article of Faith

[8] "The Great Plan of Happiness" Dallin H. Oaks. Oct 1993 General Conference. lds.org.

[9] D&C 93:38

[10] 2 Nephi 2:25