Live in the Moment

Life is made up of moments. Some moments are big events that involve lots of energy, and all your heart and soul. Some moments are small seemingly insignificant moments where you just sit and ponder, or maybe read a book. Some moments are sweet and romantic; full of passion and joy. Some moments leave you writhing in pain, and hoping for it all to just go away. Whether you are lying in bed in agony, or running a marathon; these are the moments of your life, and they are all very, very, precious.

We get this one chance at mortal life. It is a one-of-a-kind experience. Sure we will get our bodies back after the Resurrection, but they will not be the same mortally frail bodies (thank goodness!), it will not be the same experience we are having now. This earth life is a unique and choice experience that God has granted us. I think it is best to make the moments count, don't you?

What does it mean to make the moments count, exactly?

Should we be saving the whales every second of the day? Should we be rushing around inventing important things to do, so we can appear busy?

No.

I think we make the moments count by living in the moment, and loving the moment before us; rather than always longing for another, better, day to come. I know it is hard to not long for a better day, especially when pain is involved. I know that full well, as of late. But even in my pain, I have been trying to learn, and grow, and even draw closer to Jesus. The moments I spend pondering, and studying, and feeling my way closer to Him are not wasted moments; they are everything. I could run a million marathons, or save all the rain forests in the world; but if I do not take the time to draw close to Jesus, it is all for nothing.

As I laid in bed the other day, allowing my thoughts to wander, I felt the value of a single moment. I laid there thinking, "I am living a moment right now." After watching the breath of life leave a mortal body, perspective kind of changes. Even that moment -- the moment of Charles' death -- was merely a moment in my mortal life. It has come and gone, leaving me with more moments to live and use as I choose. Whether I am sitting in this house, or another, or with a spouse, or not; I have the ability to choose how much I will appreciate the moments that have been given to me. If I waste this day longing for tomorrow, how good will tomorrow be, when I am longing for the next day after that?

Don't wish death closer by wishing away your today.

I highly recommend taking a deep breath, and pausing for a minute, to recognize this moment you have, right now. You are alive. And that is a gift.

Cherish the moments. The moments count, all of them. 

Here are some random moments I found on my iPhone... 

The picture above is Charles reading to Henry at his Law office. We used to go and visit him during the day, since his office was 30 seconds away from home, a true blessing. He always said it was the highlight of his day to have us visit. He loved to snuggle and read to Henry. He would go from snuggling his baby, to meeting with clients, or to the courthouse. He was such a good daddy.

Here is Charles braiding Sammi's hair. He is watching a youtube tutorial on the TV, to try and figure out how to do the Elsa braid from Frozen. He loved braiding Sammi's hair.

Here is Sammi watching her favorite movie Tangled. While other girls her age are into who-knows-what, she is still a Disney princess girl at heart. Rapunzel is, of course, her favorite.

Legos are a constant at our house. The boys LOVE them. Daniel is really into watching tutorials on how to make Lego stop-motion videos, he has been working on one of his own.

Henry enjoying a good book. He loves to sit and read, sometimes. He prefers playing in the dirt, or jumping on the trampoline.

Sammi playing the piano for the Young Women's New Beginnings night... I still need to blog about that, it deserves a post of its own though.

William doing his homework. I am not in love with homework. I feel like they have the kids for long enough during the school day -- I want their evenings. *Sigh*

Hanging out in the sun. I like to study my Gospel Doctrine lessons outside, with the sun on my face. The other day I was getting up on the trampoline, and I said to William, "It is a beautiful day!" William said, "You are beautiful." I replied, "No, I said it is a beautiful day." He said, "I know what you said. I said you are beautiful." And that is why I love my William.

 Sammi looking cute.

Sammi likes to gather the kids for singing time around the piano. I am so grateful she can play so well. I can sing, but I can't play. It is good to have music in the home. Our house is full of music, always, thanks to Sammi. I love it when the boys sing too. It makes my heart feel warm and fuzzy.

I have been doing FaceTime with my sister in Alaska. It is so fun to talk face-to-face. It makes the conversation that much more hilarious. The first time we talked we laughed so hard, it felt so good to laugh. It is fun to be able to see into her home in Alaska, the other day she took us on a video scavenger hunt in their backyard wilderness. The kids loved it. We found moose nuggets.

We went to see the new Cinderella movie. Sammi and I had a girls night with our friend Rachelle. Her husband, Tyson, got us all crowns and wands so we could remember who we are. How cute is that? It was super fun, and the movie was really good. I loved it. Maybe I'll blog about it more later. I am really falling behind on the normal life stuff!

 Another FaceTime with the family...

 Sammi put on her Rapunzel dress and performed for her cousin McKinley. It was so cute. :)

Henry is eating his chocolate bunny during General Conference. I loved every minute of Conference. It was amazing. The one who speaks to my soul is Elder Holland. That fire in his soul... I totally identify with that. I get super excited when he is speaking. There were so many awesome talks, I'll blog about that later too.

Since I cannot run, I walk. I have been taking the kids out with me at night, and we go walk by the river. It has been beautiful. It smells amazing. Sometimes I just stop and suck in the spring air and it makes me so happy. The kids LOVE throwing rocks in the river, there is just something great about it. It is such a simple, but profound pleasure in life.

 Sammi's hair is getting LONG!

Every year the grass grows, and it makes me so happy. Those little blades of grass are my babies! I grew each one of them from little tiny seeds.

 Sammi is so beautiful in so many ways.

 Daniel is a stud. He is really turning into a handsome young man. This young man gets the Priesthood at the end of the month. I am super excited for him. He is a really good boy. I just love him.

Here I am giving the thumbs up after a 4 mile walk last night. Sure my leg was covered in burning, blistering wounds, but why not smile anyway? I was able to walk really strong, and my mind wanted to run, but my leg said forget it! So I listened. The night before the surgery I went for an 8 mile run, the next day I could barely walk. This has been a learning experience for sure. I will be stronger for it.

Enjoy the moments of your life. The good, the bad, the ugly... it is your life.

Life is a gift. 

I love life.