You are probably sitting somewhere looking at your device taking a little breather from reality. A small escape into a screen. Life is tough. Today probably didn’t go exactly how you wanted it to. It very rarely does. Not saying all our days our bad, but usually our expectations for ourselves and our days are too high. Life also goes way too fast whether you believe it or not. I graduated 10 whole years ago! I STILL feel 18 and ready to party. Where did the time seriously go? But at the same time here I am married, in an ugly night dress, (that is my favorite choice of house wear these days!), setting out some toys for my two littles, with giant bags under my eyes and my hair so messy it would attract a mother bird. Regardless of my mess and current state of beauty, life is so good. I wish I could go back and tell myself some advice…
Jump back to 2010 the year I graduated high school. There was so much uncertainty and what-ifs. It was exciting and nerve wracking. I had a few ideas for my future, but nothing solid. Most people I knew were headed on a Church of Jesus Christ LDS mission, while others were heading off to a college with a straight shot into their careers. Let’s not forget the few that got married right away! I did feel quite lost and abandoned. My life didn’t have direction so I felt my life wasn’t of much worth. I took it slow. Days seemed to crawl by. I worked, then played, then worked then played. It was an endless cycle. I started attending Weber State. A school fairly close to me. I still felt lost. Almost as if I was missing something.
2012 crept in. I was dating around and just existing. A cute boy I knew was attending Utah State. He talked to me about it quite a bit. I thought nothing of it. Until one day I had a very big impression to look into the school. Long story short, I got an acceptance letter from Utah State in the mail. Packed my bags with CRAZY anxiety and headed to Logan Utah. I lived with 5 other girls I didn’t know. Time passed. It was the best decision I made
in my whole life! I made friends, lifelong friends. Worked hard in school and at my jobs. I fell in love with Cache Valley. I started dating that cute boy that convinced me to come to school. We actually got married in 2015. And life although naturally tough and bumpy has been a dream. I never imagined life with John so perfect.
Why am I telling you this dreary story about my life? Well, I truly believed life sucked for a while. Because I wasn’t on a mission, or married, or in a career, etc... I thought I could be happy when ____________. I’ll let you fill in that blank. Looking back at that time I should have been having the time of my life. Which I did. Don’t get me wrong I had a blast. But I put too much pressure on myself to have it all figured out. I wish I could hug myself and say, “Chin up. You don’t need a destination to be of worth.” This advice is sound even for me today. In the past I believed I would be happy when I had 1,000 followers. But here I am with mo
re than double and I still have a bigger goal. I think I can be happier in a bigger home when my house now is beautiful and perfect. WHY IS THIS? Why can’t we be happy NOW? My younger self felt she needed
something to make herself happy. Why couldn’t I have loved myself and my life in whole sooner? I could be endlessly anxious about the things in the future until I turn into a rabid zombie, but I can’t. Don’t dwell on the what-ifs. Focus on the what-nows. Take each moment a day at a time. Don’t worry yourself to death.
Take a breath. After you are done scrolling through this blog post, put your phone down for a minute. Just a minute. Close your eyes. Take deep full breaths and say out loud the things you are grateful for. I promise today will go much better. Take it a day at a time. Things will work out. They seem to work out. And one of my ALL time favorite quotes by Ma
rjorie Pay Hinckley goes like this, “The trick to enjoy life. Don’t wish away your days waiting for better ones ahead.”
BE HAPPY NOW. LOVE YOU AND YOUR LIFE NOW!