gracias a la vida

there is much to be said for life the sunshine brings, especially in the springtime.  this weather is making my heart giddy.  i spent way too much time last year feeling off.  there were times where it felt like no matter what i did, i wasn't happy.  and i was really trying to be happy.  now that the sun is out, it is much easier to feel happy.  but it is still a conscious choice everyday.  i choose how to react to each situation presented to me.  and i am learning to make the choice every day to be happy, to let things go, and to laugh at my mistakes and the mistakes of others.  

i never want to go back to the way i felt or the choices i was making 8 months ago...or even 3 months ago.  but i am grateful i experienced the things i did.  because of them, i am learning to be happy.  i am learning what choices ultimately lead to sorrow, and i am learning to look at each day as a gift.  and especially right now, i do not want to waste time feeling sad.  the weather has been way too beautiful and my life is way too awesome for that.

peace+love

viva méxico

it's oficial....

Friday, September 13, 2013 this half chilena half north american is going to become half mexicana, too.  that sounds impossible, i know... i guess my heart will just have to grow to fit all those mexicans in it.  i'll be moving to Mexico D.F. until December 11 to go prepare the Lord's servants in the newest MTC opening this summer.  there are no words to describe the extreme range of emotions i am feeling right now...so i will express them with a song

you may or may not ever see me again.  there is the distinct possibility that i will o.d. on tacos.
peace+love

i don't want to be the next britney spears.

help.
my hair is falling out at a rapid rate.  i don't know why.  it fell out like this on the mish, but i figured that was just because of stress.  well, my hair is thin enough as it is, so i kind of need the rest of it.  and i don't have cancer, so i don't even have a good excuse to be bald (steph...plus i could never rock a bald head like you did...or like natalie portman...britney spears, well, she never looked good bald).   my roommate gave me some tahitian noni shampoo....i'm still using my lavender conditioner, and i use an oil after i get out of the shower and before i flat iron. but i'm willing to make a change.
does anyone know how to stop your hair from falling out?
and help it grow in thicker?
is there some kind of glue i can use to glue in my already fallen hair?
peace+love

ironically enough...

...my creative writing teacher is killing my muse.  i have to write so much that it makes me not want to write here or my personal journal or letters.  bluh.  so you can pretty much count on my posts being really short this semester.
i keep seeing all these posts about peoples' themes for 2013.  and actually, as cliche as it is, i do have one.  it is a song (shocker, i know).  here it is

you just really cannot know what a year has in store for you...i know that on new years eve 2010 i had no idea i'd be leaving on a mission, my parents would be getting a divorce, i'd be falling in love with cycling, and all the exciting things that happened that year.  each new year brings triumphs, hardships, laughter, tears.

so, "float on" going to be my attitude toward the challenges i'll face this year...

"bad news come don't you worry even when it lands

good news will work it's way to all them plans.

alright don't worry even if things end up a bit too heavy

we'll all float on alright"

peace+love

stay alive, drive 55

cedar was so good to me...

-st. george temple

-a big smile and hug from prof. modesitt

-pastry pub complete with chocolate tiger cake

-sky fest (20 some-odd hot air balloons launching at once)

-german pancake breakfast

-getting lost but eventually hiking in bryce canyon

-all of the above with great friends

-the funnest birthday party i've ever been to with new friends (including huck finn)

-church

-sunday writing ritual in my tree

-birthday celebration for the one and only skye complete with awesome conversation and the encouragement i've needed all month

(photo teaser courtesy of cheri. i'll get the disposable developed someday soon...)

did i mention i have great friends? i've been home less than two hours and i already want to go back. the only thing sustaining me is live recordings of mumford and sons. shocker, i know.

peace+love

the giving tree.

this weekend i babysat my cute neighbors. little 5-year-old eliza said, "do you want to see a funny video?" she went and picked up the napoleon dynamite dvd. "this is such a funny movie. i've been watching it for years."

anyway...

is it possible to love a place so much it breaks your heart to leave?

yes. which is why i am going to cedar city this weekend. and even though you all don't care, i feel like shouting it from the rooftops, that's how excited i am.

to you all this might just be a crappy picture of a tree. but this is the tree i spent many hours of pondering and writing in. it is beautiful.

peace+love

take me out of the city

{near the top of angel's landing in zion}

-my family went to flaming gorge for labor day. it was so beautiful. i saw an owl take off in flight AGAIN! when i think i scared it out of it's nest by accident. the gorge reminded me of cedar.

-sometimes i miss cedar so much that my stomach churns into knots. i probably think about cedar city 8 hours a day (the whole time i'm at work). that's why i'm going to visit soon.

-today i went rock climbing for the first time in almost six months. boy am i out of shape. but boy was it nice to be back.

--i'm sensing a theme...good thing this weekend is only two days away--

peace+love

sam, sammie baby

happy birthday to my best friend in cedar...

thanks for

motivating me to spend more time in the library

letting me vent

being my hiking partner despite a lack of passion for hiking

introducing me to the tuna melt

being the best single ladies dancer i've ever seen

helping me move....twice

introducing me to some of my favorite people in cedar

getting me out of my shell

letting me be sam taylor

appreciating my music taste

being my theater attendance partner in crime.

i miss your face and your dance moves...youda youda best.

peace+love

i want to go to cedar city...real bad

this post was going to be dedicated to all my cedar peeps out there and all about how i'm slightly heartbroken i will not be there with you this fall. in case you didn't know, i love cedar city with most of my heart. but i decided to be positive and dwell on the things i love about nsl. this can still be dedicated to all my cedar peeps, though. you should come to nsl for my mission farewell.

my summer at home

=bike ride on the parkway under a full moon

=outdoor movie with amy

=not enough hiking

=meeting/getting to know amazing people who have already changed my life for the better

=watching a friend be baptized

="guard and protect your heart" (that's for you, ali)

=twilight concert series

=a job where i'm actually irreplaceable.

=inception 3 times

=charlie st. cloud=$8.50 and two hours of my life i'll never get back

=i laughed through the entire thing...the girl next to me bawled through the entire thing and smelled of fecal matter

=waiting five weeks for a mission call

=but guess what? it's coming on wednesday.

peace+love

oh mandy...

...well you came and you gave without taking...{virtual hug to whoever names that song without googling the lyrics}

this is my friend amanda.

sorry, wrong picture

i didn't know her in real life before i knew her on blogger.

see, she was roommates with mackenzie, my sister from another mister/kerri's (my sister) best friend

[this is mackenzie and amanda]

so kerri was friends with her. kerri had her blog on her sidebar.

and i started reading it.

she is funny and has good taste in music, so of course i read/commented on her blog.

then i met her in real life. so now we're real life friends.

welp, she's feeling kinda sad cause in a few months i'll be leaving and won't be reading any blogs for a year and a half. she thinks she'll no longer have any comments on her blog.

so, i'm suggesting if you like me you should go read/comment on her blog. cause i bet you'll like her too.

do a sunday service and say hi!

i'll be happy you did.

(all pictures stolen via amanda's facebook page and blog)

peace+love

earth day, everyday

i saw this movie last night. i had to keep reminding myself that the vibrant colors and flowing movement was real, not animated. every living creature on the earth has a spirit. these animal have personalities and a purpose. the movie made my heart break.

i didn't know much about the oil spill before this and now that i know a little more i wish the focus would shift. because ultimately, it doesn't matter whose fault the oil spill is. what matters is that it gets fixed so the oil stops flowing into the ocean and destroying lives.

there is one part in "oceans" that shows how much pollution is being spilled into the ocean everyday from us. you don't have to be an activist by any means, but i do encourage everyone to try a little harder. turn off the lights. throw your garbage in trash bins. ride your bike more. and pray that this thing gets fixed fast. this is our earth and it's our job to take care of it.
peace+love

melancholy

not to put a downer on life {let's face it, it's a joy!}, but sometimes i'm melancholy. and right now i'm somewhat melancholy. you see, i'm leaving my beloved cedar city for a while to embark on another adventure elsewhere ('twill be further explained at a later date...plus i have no idea where yet)...when i moved here 10 short months ago i did not expect to love this place as deeply as i do. if you are ever considering a move and need all the reasons to move to cedar city i will convince you this is a fantastic place to call your home.

i have this giant tree with faces carved into the trunk that i climb to go ponder and write.

and just up the canyon from my tree is a small cove carved into the sandstone where i go to ponder some more (or have good conversations with friends).

the colors are vivid. black soil against green foliage against red sandstone.

the weather is always perfect as there is a small but constant northward breeze (why always that direction? i have no idea).

i fall asleep at night to a symphony of crickets and wake up only to hear birds chirping outside my window. there are so many birds in cedar. big, beautiful birds. and in the summertime-bats everywhere at night.

cedar canyon is easily one of the most beautiful and surprisingly diverse places i have ever seen. crystal blue lakes surrounded by aspen groves next to lava fields.

and lets not forget cedar city's proximity to my home away from home, zion national park. a majestic sight everyone should see in this life.

then there's the lifestyle. the benefits of being in a city (with the exception of the severe lack of a music scene) with the perks of living in a small town. the pastry pub, the shakespearean festival (which comes with the most delicious raspberry tarts you'll ever taste), utah summer games, and last night we even had a senate candidates' debate. if you like hiking, camping, climbing, cycling, swimming, walking, reading, pretty much anything-ing, there's plenty of it to go around. especially hiking {but maybe that's just cause i'm biased}.

and the people. that means you, my bosom cedar friends. the people i've met and the memories i've made in the last 10 months have influenced my life in some small {or large} way that has made me a better person--or at least made me want to be a better person. genuine, high quality people. plus in the summer there are tons of tourists and i love tourists.

it's true, folks, cedar city {almost} has it all. {all we're missing is the ocean} my heart will break as i say goodbye, but not to worry....i'll be back before too long.

peace+love

one word=nutella

today i have been eating nutella and listening to the format {which inevitably leads to reminiscing over summer '08} ...

{just to clarify, mom, no that is not all i did today--i also worked this morning and went to the allergist and the gym}

anyway, the format: formed in AZ (woot woot, alicia, june 10th!) in 2001 and, sadly, broken up in 2008. sorry guys, can't see them live anymore. and unfortunately that was the year after i was introduced to them. so no, i've never seen them live. but add them to your summer playlist because they fit in quite nicely alongside the likes of delta spirit and japanese motors.

listen to: snails aka kelli jean's views on how love should work

on your porch--depressing but beautiful

dog problems--just listen.

and watch this video

next week: fun.

peace+love

sad day

once upon a time (3 weeks ago), my hard drive crashed. aka pictures=gone. files=gone. worst of all--music=gone. my friend got a new hard drive and installed it for me. cause i have awesome friends like that. then, my iPod decided he was done being alive...he's not totally dead yet, but he's definitely on life support and it makes me very sad seeing as i have no $$$ for a new one and as far as i am concerned my iPod is more of a necessity than food...with the exception of choc. soy. even then, it's questionable.

anyway, because i've been so busy (hence the reason this tuesday's muse is coming 8 minutes before wednesday) and in honor of my bff/desperado sister's wedding TOMORROW (yes, mildly freaking out in my mind) i give you "can't help fallin' in love"....a playlist of some of my favorite love songs slightly incomplete and completely jumbled (i'm probably going to hate it tomorrow and think of all the songs i actually wanted to put on there--tis life:

peace+love

WATER is all you need

even before the earthquake, a lot of haiti was living in poor conditions. many do not have access to clean water and after the earthquake even fewer did.

Unshaken - charity: water's campaign for Haiti from charity: water on Vimeo.

even just buying the shirt helps.
peace+love

make your heart melt...

or just make me cry with laughter...i'm proud to say i've been going to school with these boys since elementary...and went out with the one in the hat (tyler). this video landed them an interview on KSL (a local news station).

also, i'm officially an idiot. as i was driving back to school today i got to payson (an hour away from home) and realized i left my right lung sitting on my desk aka my iPod. bless my mother for her understanding--i'll be expecting it in the mail in just a couple of days.
peace+love

sometimes, i'm really opinionated

remember when i posted on the cove?
most of you probably heard this story in the news this week--you know, where the whale killed a trainer in the middle of a show in shamu stadium...
welp, this is my blog where i get to voice my opinions:

wild animals don't belong in captivity.

peace+love

the beginning of the end

no, i am NOT talking about 2012 and all the hype around the end of the world. i'm talking depressing ending stuff. i'm talking the final season of LOST. what am i supposed to watch when it's over? guess i'll just quit tv altogether. and if you haven't seen the first 5 seasons just listen to this song by my girl Ingrid and you'll get all the info you need.

peace+love

i am a rock

"No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend's or of thine own were: any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind..." -John Donne

pray for haiti

peace+love

young hate

cedar city hates me:
i could barely wait. last night was like christmas eve, only better. it took me two hours to fall asleep and i woke up on my own at 6 a.m... because today i would climb for the first time since october 21st. it had been too long. far too long.

a friend and i walked down to the suu gym and went to get our harnesses when the worker informed us that {of course} the climbing wall was closed that day because they couldn't get any of the outdoor center people to work. i have to wait till monday.

curses.
peace+love