Notes

I am a note kind of person. I write people notes.

I am a friendly person. I try to be kind. 

I am -- or try to be -- an inspirational person. I try to help people see the best in themselves, and to be the best. 

So, when I write, I express thanks to people. I tell them what I think of them, in positive ways. I encourage. I try to do this in all of my letters. It's just how I am. I'm affectionate with lots of people. If my writing seems intimate, it's because I don't easily comprehend what's "too much," and it's because most people shy away from expressing their feelings and truly trying to encourage each other in this day and age. 

My letters are simple. No hidden messages. I bear my thoughts, and say nice things. That's just how I am. It might be awkward to some people, and I'm sorry for that. But it's my personality. 

The Iron Rod

Seminary! 

One of the most common reference in the LDS lexicon is "the iron rod." This come from Lehi's vision of the tree of life, and is a metaphor. In the dream, the rod led the way to the tree through mists of darkness and there were many people clinging to it. The rod represents the word of God: the scriptures, words of prophets, and other direct revelation to us. If we hold fast to it, we can reach the tree and partake of its fruit, which represents the love of God. 

Church of the Devil

Seminary, September 4th. 

We talked about the "great and abominable church" both Nephi and Lehi saw in their visions. Commonly referred to as the devil, there's a lot of people who mix up what this phrase refers to. Some people think it refers to a specific group, such as the Catholic Church. This is incorrect. The abominable church is anything - be it social, political, religious organization, etc - that takes us away from Jesus Christ and his gospel.    

Also, as a fun aside: turns out, Bephi saw visions of the modern era, from Columbus discovering America, to the revolutionary war, to Joseph Smith translating the Book of Mormon. How neat!  

Results

Seminary, September 5th. 

We focused on how we all have to work hard for things, even our talents. My thought was: some people are really gifted and don't even have to really work. They're rare, but they're out there. What if you could boil it down to: effort x talent = results?

Testing

Today in seminary we took a test about basic doctrine to help the church tweak its curriculum/lesson plans. It took a while, but most of us finished in a timely manner (I finished first (#nolife)). It wasn't unpleasant. Watched "Epic," tonight. It had some strong material, and some not-so-strong material. Overall, a solid film. I've realized I'm far more critical of movies when I watch them now. 

It Might've Been Awkward Asking

The next day, we discussed how Nephi and his brothers were commanded to go to Jerusalem... Again. They went and retrieved Ishmael, who I presume was one of Lehi's contemporaries, and his family and brought them into the wilderness. Interestingly, Ishmael just ups and goes when they arrive. 

"Wanna leave Jerusalem and live in the desert?"

"Yeah, why not. Lemme grab the family."

It was important that Ishmael and his family came, because this gave Lehi's and Ishmael's children (and Zoram) the opportunity to marry and have families. Families are integral to Heavenly Father's plans for our happiness in the next life, which is why we are sealed together forever in the temple. No "til death do us part" for us. 

Missing Day

I'm missing my seminary notes for the 29th, which actually upsets me. As such, we'll be moving on to the 30th. 

That day, we talked about 1 Nephi Chapter 6, 9, and the Words of Mormon. Our focus was on how Nephi was commanded to create two sets of plates: the Large Plates of Nephi and the Small Plates of Nephi. The Large Plates of Nephi were about the history of Nephi's posterity and that of his brothers. It detailed the wars, kings, and sundry other events. The Small Plates of Nephi exclusively focused on spiritual things.  The Small Plates would be added in their entirety to the Book of Mormon when Mormon abridged the records of various prophets to make the Book of Mormon we know and love. 

What I've Been Watching

Lately, I've been playing "The Office" in the background while I work on school, cook, clean, etc. and I've been enthralled by the character work (when I bother paying attention). There's just something about the writing, and the acting... The characters are obvious archetypes, but they're so much more: they're individuals. They learn and grow and tease and get frustrated. They're consistent, which is more than a lot of shows can say. They all have their individual coping methods, verbal tics, facial expressions... It's wonderful. They're absolutely unique, and it's enthralling. This far in, my favorite character is Jim, followed by Pam. I'm loving this show so far. It's hilarious, with heaps of character development.