Jorja said good-bye to Ella today. Mike, Maysen, Preston and I all went to San Francisco Sour Dough Pizza. Jorja couldn't come because she was in class. We brought her home some though. It was really good. Mike spilled sauce on his yellow shirt and said, "Oh no! I spilled ketchup on my mustard colored shirt!" Which is a Goldberg reference and made me laugh.
Jorja was supposed to go to breakfast with Layla today, but she was so stressed about her statistics final next week that they postponed it. Jorja studied all day until it was time for her date tonight. Jorja has wanted to set Weston up with Ella for a long time. The plan was to do this nerf gun thing that she saw on Groupon. When we tried to buy it yesterday we found out the company is no longer in business. Casualty of covid I assume. Anyway, a new plan had to be made quickly. They decided to go ax throwing. Which is funny because the last time Jorja set Weston up, they went ax throwing. The only other time Jorja has gone. Jorja drove down there with Weston, Ella and Riley. Giselle and Sami and their dates met them there. They went to Backdoor BRGR which was connected to the ax place. They have hamburgers that are a little different. One has peanut butter and jelly on it. I was hoping someone would try that, but no one did. Weston was the most adventurous and tried The Grumpy Claire which had sautéed apples cooked in caramel. He said it was really good. Jorja ordered the Sloppy Joseph and asked for barbecue sauce on the side. Hahaha. The cook came out to talk to her and asked her why she would do that. She didn't realize that it was a sloppy joe. Hahaha
Riley and Jorja
Today was our last day at the cabin. Well, I brought Jorja and her friends home. I was kind of hoping we could stay longer and they could do school up here, but Ella has dance tomorrow. She says her dance never gets cancelled. She is a fantastic dancer and is hoping to get into the dance program at BYU. We did church this morning. We had four different Sunday school classes going on zoom. Preston and I were on one, Mike and Maysen on another, Jorja on one and Ella on another. Glad Mike got better Internet a few months ago! We had a short break and then sacrament meeting. We watched online. Mike showed Mike Masters how to do it, and it worked like a charm. Except for the few moments when one of the speakers was on mute and Mike had to unmute them manually from here. Glad we were watching! We had a chance to sled before we left. The snow actually was pretty good and the sledding was great! We all played out front and then decided to go to the springs for the last few runs. Maysen was starting to feel sick, so she took Bear inside while we went up there. The girls had a blast. Wish we could have played longer, but I'm glad for what we got!
Ella, Giselle, Jorja
Jorja and I left for Idaho this morning. We brought with her two of her friends. I know there is the statewide mandate, but we are going to Idaho and that is out of state. Loophole? Yes, but this year has been hard! Jorja and her friends agreed not to post anything because people can be very mean if you are not perfect. Although Giselle told Luke she was going and he ratted them out to their entire group chat. I have gotten very behind on my blog, but now, two weeks later I know that none of these girls got corona, so we're good. I'm frustrated with myself for getting so behind. This year has been crazy and I wish I would have been able to write while things were fresh in my mind. Especially with corona and the elections. Jorja has been through a lot and it has been hard. There are people who are angry and take it out on student government or the cheerleaders. Jorja has had many mean messages sent to her. If anyone in student government steps out of line, the entire student government gets blamed. This has been a hard year. Anyway, this weekend was great! Giselle came to our house and we picked up Ella. The freshman elections were today, so Ella was on a zoom chat with Packer and the senior/freshman class officers right up until we picked her up. Hailey's brother Caleb is going to be a senator, so that is awesome! On the way up to Idaho, Ella casually mentioned something about sterling scholar. I had been talking to Jorja about getting her application in. I asked Jorja if she had done it. She said no, but she would look at it when we were at the cabin. Ella said that applications were due at 3:00. Yikes! Glad she mentioned that! Jorja worked on her application on the way up to Idaho and was able to make it just before the deadline. I accidentally took a wrong turn going to the cabin! I couldn't believe it! I missed the turn off to Idaho Falls and was heading to Boise. I have no idea how long I was on the wrong road. I saw signs for Snowden or something like that and wondered what in the world that was. I hadn't been using my gps, because I know how to get there and didn't want my battery to run out. So, I turned it on. It told me to get off at the next exit. Then drive 12 minutes through these back roads. I thought after that it would get me on the freeway. Nope. I ended up driving almost an hour through back roads. It was ridiculous! I don't know why it didn't have me get on the freeway. Had I really driven that far before I noticed my mistake? Anyway, we made it safe and sound. So glad to get here. It is beautiful up here!
Jorja was gone all day. She went to school to help Packer and to work on the fundraiser. Then she went to Kate's house with Bode, Brenton and Dawson. She brought Kate a cute gift basket. (About two weeks later Kate's mom sent Jorja a video and Kate was holding a stuffed Dog that was in the gift basket. Kate talked about how much she loved it. I can't remember what she named it, but it was a super cute video and made Jorja very happy.) Jorja came home for just a second and we ran to the store and got some flowers for Ella. Jorja, Bode and Jake went to Ella's Harry Potter dance show. Ella was Voldemort. I also found out that BYU applications are due Monday. How did I miss this? Usually I'm on top of things, but this slipped through the cracks. There is no way Jorja can get teacher recommendations and interviews with the Bishop and Stake president in time. I'm so sad. I still am trying to convince her to apply, although it will be harder to get in when she missed the priority deadline. Jorja says to me that she has no interest whatsoever in going to that school and that every fiber of her being doesn't want to go there. Still, I want her to apply and have choices. When she sees the cost of the other schools compared to BYU she might change her mind. Fingers crossed she gets the Ambassador scholarship at Utah State. On a side note, Stockton has been out on his mission for 21 months. I miss him.
Jorja
Marie, Grace, Eve, Mina, Brett
Hi, good afternoon brothers and sisters. It's so weird to be standing back up here again but I'm so happy we have this opportunity to come back to church again after these past months. Alright, so before I start, I just want you all to think of one scripture story that has changed your life. And I want you to kinda keep that story or that experience in your mind as I talk today and in just a little bit I'll share mine with you but first I want to take a second to talk about how the scriptures can change your life.
Before the scriptures can change your life, you have to be willing. Willing to ponder the scriptures, willing to seek out that truth. You have to continuously put forth effort in your scripture study before you can see those life changing results. One of my favorite scriptures that mentions this is 1 Nephi 10.
I'm not the best at this. I usually come home from a long day at school and tell myself I'm gonna take time out of my day to ponder over a chapter or two but then the homework comes and I wanna hang out with my friends and before I know it the day's over and I'm exhausted. And then I end up grabbing my scriptures and flipping to a random page and I read one verse and it's like Jesus wept and I'm like ok great and then I go to bed and forget about it and life goes on. But every couple of months I get so inspired to really focus on my scripture study and I make a real effort to actually ponder over scriptures that I sometimes might just skip over when I'm tired and wanting to go to bed. And I promise you that life is so much happier and you receive so much more inspiration when you make a real genuine effort to increase your spiritual learning. As you set your personal time aside for Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, I promise you will grow closer to Him and more fully be able to understand his love for you.
Alright now coming back to that scripture story I wanted you all to think of, I want you to remember that experience you had or that moment when you realized you were receiving inspiration from the scriptures that could change your life. Mine isn't really a story like David and the lions den or like Nephi building a boat, it actually started from my patriarchal blessing. I received my blessing when I was 15 and in probably the darkest stage of my life. My freshman year was hands down the hardest year of my life. I was just starting school as a big kid, and I was having a really hard time with friends. And it got to a point where I was just genuinely scared to come to school and I felt so lost and alone and it was almost like I was unable to feel loved by anyone. And I got my blessing and I'm actually embarrassed to say this, but I was just mad. Because it didn't answer the one question I thought I needed in order to keep going I had been fasting for a specific question to be answered and when it wasn't, I kinda withdrew myself from the scriptures and the gospel because I was just mad. And that is SO embarrassing to say now, because now I realize I heard something that I needed a lot more. Once I got my printed copy of my blessing, I was reading through it again, and I was still mad so I wasn't really paying super close attention to it but there's one line that I've just never forgotten.
I bless you, Jorja to be an example to others. Let your light shine, in your own way, and you will light the way for others. You will set an example for them to follow, to draw strength from you and the way you live your life
I read that, as I was in the darkest most dreadful time in my entire life and I just started crying. I didn't understand how I could be a light for others when I wasn't even happy myself. After I read that, I started marking every single scripture that talks about light or being a light or an example to others and I don't know why it is, it could be the most random scripture ever, but I'm just drawn to it now. Which brings us to my favorite chapter of scripture in the book of mormon. And that's 3 Nephi 12. Before I read a couple of my favorite verses from this chapter, I'm going to ask each of you to close your eyes and just think of that person who is your light in your life. Someone who just has the light of christ within them and I just want you to think of that person as I read. 3 Nephi 12.
That last verse, 16, about letting your light shine to all others so you can be an example unto them, has just always impacted me so much. And I don't know what it is, but something about being a light of christ just stands out to me so much. I hope that all of ou have met someone who reminds you of 3 Nephi 12:16, and if you haven't yet I promise you will.
For me, my person who just fills me with light is my best friend Ella. She doesn't know it, but she's been my number 1 example my whole life. We didn't actually become close friends until this year, but I've known her basically my whole life. Even when I was a loser and the shyest person ever who never talked to anyone, I just wanted to be exactly like her. And I probably didn't realize it when I was little, but that's because she's just always had the light of Christ with her. She's the kindest, most genuine persons I know and she has changed my life more that she could ever know.
I'm not just saying all of this because she's sitting right there and I want her to know how much I love her, but because I know that every single person here has the light of christ within them. And you may not realize it, but I know that every person here has been that light for someone else to draw guidance from. I promise that as you truly ponder over the scriptures and grow closer to your Heavenly Father, you will feel of his love and it will be made known unto you that you are his sons and daughters and you are truly lights of the world. I challenge each of you to live your life as the light of this world, and to put forth an effort to being that light and I promise you will change someone's life. I know that the scriptures are true and we can draw strength from them everyday and they can genuinely change your lives. I promise that he loves you and has provided the scriptures as a way for you to grow closer unto him. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ amen.
Those were Jorja's notes. She didn't say things word for word, but followed the basic outline. She did fantastic. Also, the things she said about Ella are true. Ella was in the Chinese program with Jorja through elementary and middle school. Jorja has always thought highly of Ella and several times mention positive things about her. I remember her telling me how Ella was one of the nicest people she has ever met. I'm so glad they have become such good friends this year.
I checked Jorja out of school today. She had a bad headache. She came home and slept for a few hours. We cancelled her exercise with Kerity too. She was able to go to young women and I let her go to Cornbelly's with her friends. She was wide awake by this point and her headache was gone. She thinks she was dehydrated. She forgot her water bottle and all the drinking fountains are covered because of covid. For the last year Jorja has gotten bad headaches when she doesn't drink water. Still, glad she's not going blind.
Jorja
Jorja and Giselle went up to Ella's cabin today. Lots of Ella's family was there too, but Jorja said she had a great time. Jorja and Ireland had signed up to go on an overnight trip to SUU to check out the campus. We just got an email that it has been cancelled. Utah's covid numbers are going up, so things have to tighten up again. Jorja was disappointed. She could have still gone down there on Friday and come back that same day, but she decided to see if it would be better at the start of next year.
Jorja
Jorja had school at home today. The first half of the alphabet is able to go Monday and Tuesday. Jorja will only go Wednesday this week because Thursday and Friday will be fall break. What a weird year. Anyway, Jorja and Ella spent a lot of time driving around writing down all the businesses near by. She went out again later to do the same thing with Jake in a different section. She is getting a list as possible businesses that could be asked to donate to the fundraiser.
Ella and Jorja
