What good do you see?

Wow. Really there is so much good in my life! I have great family and friends and I feel blessed to learn from them and feel of their love. I have a great job and love teaching! I love hearing our current prophets and apostles speak. Last night we had the Relief Society meeting (women's organization in my church) and I learned so much. I know that they speak what God would have us know. I know this because I feel strengthened and feel something burn inside my heart every time I hear them speak or study their words.

My faith in my Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ gives me strength to meet every day's challenges. I know they live and love us. I know they also expect a lot from us as we live on this earth. We need to serve one another and learn from every experience. God wants us to enjoy every day and find the good and the beautiful in our relationships, our jobs, the scenery we see as we are driving somewhere, etc. Seeing the good helps me to see more good. What is good in your life? Think about how far you have come and all that you have learned. I am so grateful for my life, experiences, family, friends, my roommates, my faith, my comfy bed, the abundance I have in this country, my freedom, my health, movies and music, my talents, my job, the great kids and teachers I get to interact with, my home, my ancestors and their sacrifices, my good parents (all 4 of them), and the peace I can feel when I serve Him. Life really is good. I will  try harder to remember!

Real wisdom

Just last week one of my Latino students wanted to make a comment. (Our discussion was about pursuing an education and making good decisions.) I said he could and then he said (I am paraphrasing)....

"Ok, this is a message for all the guys in the room." The teenage boys look very curious at what he is going to say.
"You guys need to get a good education so you can have money to support your families. You need to make a good life and help your wife. You should help her with the chores and be a good dad." They are looking pretty surprised at this point.
"Have you guys seen 'The Joseph Smith Movie'? Well, in that movie Joseph Smith teaches the other guy to help his wife beat the carpet and to help her in many things. We need to be good fathers and good husbands..."
Part of my class is Catholic and they were pretty confused about what he was talking about but I was so touched. Here is this young man who is investigating the church and learning lots of good lessons. He was really serious and wanted his peers to understand his counsel. The other boys were probably more concerned with what time lunch was starting but it seemed that some of it sunk in. I was so impressed with his knowledge and his conviction of what it takes to make a good family. :) What a great kid!

The good in my students

My students are awesome! They are 15-18 yrs. old (I teach high school) and they have so much energy and excitement about life! They also make me laugh all the time. :) They recently turned in their Student Information sheet which tells me about themselves and gives me important info. like phone numbers and such. At the end I have the question, "What other important information would you like me to know about you?" Here are some of the responses I got:

Student 1: "Sometimes breaks out into spontaneous dance."  (You have to know the student...this is true!!)
Student 2: "I am not very good at Spanish but I'll try my best."  (Ahhh, this makes me want to help her the best I can!)
Student 3: "I like chocolate."  (Good taste!)
Student 4: "I believe there is nothing more tantalizing than the aroma of a fresh baked chocolate cake in the oven."  (This from one of my quietest students...love this!)

Then a student saw me at the Festival Latinoamericano in Provo one night but didn't say "hi". The next day he told me, "Ms. Brown, I saw you at the festival last night but I was scared to say 'hi' because it's weird seeing teachers." I know!! Ha ha! It can be weird to see us wandering out of our natural habitat. :) I remember when I thought the same thing. :) As a teacher you really have to behave well always because you never know when a past or present student is just around the corner!

First Post

So the reason I wanted to start this blog is to share my experiences and the beautiful things I have found each day. Really there is so much good in the world and I love discovering those things with friends, family, students, colleagues, etc. Life is good! If we look for the good, it is there.

I am about to go to bed but thought I would start this blog by saying that I feel blessed to be who I am, where I am, and be surrounded by so many amazing people. I love my job and the challenges that it brings because it makes me better. :)

Well, have a good week and remember to look for the good! :)