Bucket List #18: Take Me Out to the Ball Game

You know, I have this huge desire to travel – wanderlust I think they call it-but the funny thing is I live less than a hour away from freaking BOSTON (the best city ever) and I think I can count on one hand the amount of times I have actually visited. I regret not spending more time up there.

For example, 20+ years and up until a few weeks ago I had never even been to the iconic Fenway Park-lame I know (and I call myself a sports fan). But I did it, I went-spending this summer crossing things off the bucket list one adventure at a time. I wanted to get the full Fenway experience. 

• We sat wayyy out in the bleachers-which leads me to believe there isn’t a bad seat in the place because I thought the view was great!
• I spent $6 on a Fenway Frank and then $4 on a box of Cracker Jax (the prize was a stupid San Francisco Giants sticker) and another $4 on Hot Coco.
• We laughed like crazy at the drunks around us as they sang loud, screamed at the opposing team and at each other and almost feel down the bleachers-’m telling you you do not get that kind of entertainment in the box seats. Oh yeah, and the SOX WON!

bucket list #20: go to the movies by myself

i realized i was lost in the book when i highlighted the line “I never took another picture of him” in pink, marking it as a “romantic quote”. i mean seriously…how sad is that?

i did it. i gave into the hype about the novel about terminally-ill teenagers everyone is raving about. and I finished The Fault in our Stars in about 3 days…so i guess that means i liked it. it has all the things that make a book good: one-liners, a dreamy boy to fall in love with page after page, narrative observations that make you reflect on life (i used my kindle’s highlighting capabilities more that ever before), and of course star-crossed lovers. so yeah, i liked it. enough that i decided to go see the movie the day after i finished the book.

which brings me to the title. i have a pretty extensive bucket list-one of those is “go to the movies by myself.” i figured this would be the perfect flick. if i cried no one would make fun of me for it, if i didn’t no one would know how heartless i was. so i put on some comfy clothes, drove to the theater, bought my ticket and sat in indian-style in my seat with nachos and watermelon sour patch in my lap.

the movie was pretty good. the book was better…sadder…but also better. but i think that is only because i loved so many of the things John Green wrote for Hazel that she never said out loud in the movie.  i didn’t cry though. i did during the book but not in the movie. everyone around me did though…and i mean every last girl in that theater…except for me.

just one more thing. its a cute love story…it really is. very believable. but i liked the “bromance” between the male lead and his best friend even more than the actual romance. but maybe that’s just because i don’t have a boyfriend…only friends. haha.

miracles never cease

during my time in el salvador i witnessed many miracles both great and small. but little did i know heavenly father had a miracle waiting for me back home.

in march, while still living in paradise, i wrote an email home. it talked about how I would be heading home in a few weeks time, i expressed the excitement of the whole mission receiving cell phones, and shared the experience of being without power for a few days.

i refer to this email for a specific purpose though. i dont want to talk about cell phones or power outages i want to talk about how the things we choose to share can change lives. about how one simple phrase in that email opened a door.

“love should be our motivation for everything”

i wrote that wanting to share with my family some spiritual insight i had learned. but it became SO much more. mom posted that email to my blog and posted the link to her facebook. among one of mom’s friends who read the post was D.

 

today i watched as D entered the waters of baptism and watched as she left them a transformed person. i watched as she cried and laughed with new friends. i watched the Spirit speak through her as she bore her testimony. today i witnessed another miracle. if we look there are miracles all around us we will find them because miracles never cease.

we have been given the power to influence others, whether it be for good or evil. let it be for good. let your words and actions help others to reach higher and be better. use the influence you have been given to scatter a little less rain and a little more sunshine.

adjusting

mom wants me to start blogging again. she keeps mentioning it. and since i started this blog for her i guess it’s only right that i restart it for her…even if mom is the only one reading it. i guess a year and a half of letters every week has made her miss my writing now that i’m home. so here it goes…this photo marks a moment of change. maybe the change didn’t start exactly in the moment this picture was taken. you could easily argue that the change started before this, the moment i boarded a flight headed for the USA, or the moment i stepped off that plane and hugged my dad who had patiently waited at the gate. or maybe it started after, when i slept in MY bed for the first time or when i took my missionary tag off. i dont actually know-but this picture comes pretty close.

my mom says i’m great at adjusting to change. i guess that’s true. change doesn’t bother me too much. at least not in the moment. when i know it’s coming it bothers me, i worry about it, i often dread it. but when it actually comes i usually just go with the flow. take life as it comes and keep smiling. but that doesn’t mean i dont feel it. that doesn’t mean that inside i dont miss the past or dont long for “ the way things used to be.” and it doesn’t mean that just because i seem to be well-adjusted i dont notice all the things that are different.
i’ve been home about 2 months and its weird. i’ve definitely changed. not too much i hope. i think i’m still me. i still love tv show marathons, sleeping in, laughing too loud and shopping (although i am having to re-discover fashion). i still speak my mind, love eating sushi, and dont mind spending all day in bed once-in-awhile (like today).

but i also have all these weird quirks that i can’t seem to shake. sometimes i have to ask myself if a word is english or spanish before speaking. i resist the urge to point at things with my lips. i used to look for the closest parking spot now i choose the solitary space at the edge of the lot because, honestly, i kinda miss walking everywhere. while i’ve gotten over the shock of bathing with running water i’m still pleasantly surprised when i remember that i can control the water temperature. i eat everything on my plate-even if i dont like it-not just because the idea of “starving children who would love to eat those vegetables” is now real to me but because i have a different idea of what food actually “costs”. seriously…why is cheese SO expensive?!

so yes, i’ve changed. but i think i like change. because i think change always comes when you have adventure and i love adventure.

so here’s to adventure and change and the inevitable adjusting it brings…even if it’s weird and uncomfortable sometimes.

p.s. hope you liked it mom