A Poem for the Sabbath

I LOVE BIKE RIDES THE MOST.

The rain sheds my tears,

because I can't do it for myself.

And when it's not raining…

water still leaks when compelled by the wind.

So sometimes I can't see…

I'm blinded by the sun, the cement slab,

the wind, the rain, the dust,

and even the man in spandex,

but only sometimes,

because I won't let him lead forever.

But when I'm blinded I feel. I feel the sun.

I feel the wind, the rain, the dust,

and I know I'm riding.

Sleepovers are for College.

Sleepovers weren't allowed in my house growing up. My mom believed that nothing good happened at sleepovers, so we stayed in the comforts of our own bed. I remember intently listening to last October's general conference surprised by Larry R. Lawrence's talked, titled: "Courageous Parenting". I still think my mom wrote/helped write this talk. Elder Lawrence said, "May I express my personal warning about a practice that is common in many cultures. I am referring to sleepovers, or spending the night at the home of a friend. As a bishop I discovered that too many youth violated the Word of Wisdom or the law of chastity for the first time as part of a sleepover." So I never really reminisced in any would-have-been experiences throughout middle school/high school, but Mallory Peterson and I figured we needed to end the school year with my first-ever-soon-to-be-annual sleepover at the dorms.

We had one night to caught up on everything we missed… so what did we do?… Logically we hit up the BYU creamery for the essentials, transferred a traffic cone, bought most E.L. Fudge products available at the nearest Smith's, indulged in Princess fruit snacks, made a goofy scavenger hunt that logically led to my parents' mailbox, bought some hardcore tattoos, parked outside Liberty Square for….. way too long, wrote a few poems (the real rhyming kind), laughed about lots of super funny things (and some not-so-funny things), sat on my bed, attempted to watch a movie, and slept (maybe). Sleepovers are for college. :)

*Picture above resembles my tattoo that I have yet to use. I just get a thrill from opening the cardboard flap that reveals my surprise tattoo. (actual use of the tattoo after that point is optional). :)

"Many malt beverages contain alcohol. Please read the label."

Andrew Michael Conley.

The chemistry majors?… I feel like it's a tradition of sorts, but the boys wanted to put me on the outside of this picture, so it'd be easier to crop me out of the photo in case I changed my major… Needless to say I snuck myself in right where I belonged. :)

Andrew Michael Conley. BYU graduate. Chemistry major. Business minor. 2011.

After finals I rushed to the commencement exercises in the Marriott Center to support Andrew in his graduation, the beginning of a two day event. Leslie talked on the phone with Andrew while he was walking in to the Marriott Center, so we could visually follow him to his seat from across the way. They recognized all the graduates, giving the master's and doctoral graduates special recognition, which weirdly embedded a strong(er) desire to get my masters/PhD. Besides the "hooding" ceremony slash the "hood" itself, they seemed to enjoy a substantial amount of perks (best seats/receiving more flower leis etc). Elder Scott spoke (how cool is that), and I oddly got emotional (this is very odd for anyone that knows me), but I just felt so blessed to be at BYU, and I was overcome by Andrew's accomplishment. He is the first child in our family to graduate from BYU, and Elder Scott's words spoke directly to me as a student attending this beautiful university. Andrew was one of 15 chemistry graduates this April.

In a brief "interview" with Andrew via facetime I learned a little bit about his experience at BYU. Andrew suggested that I look up some quotes by Abraham Lincoln or Winston Churchill-"someone who people wouldn't know who said it, but they'd know it wasn't me," in the words of Andrew. (He learned how to utilize his resources/the internet in college). Both Honest Abe and Prime-minister Churchill had worthwhile quotes for the occasion. The first from Churchill, "Difficulties mastered are opportunities won," and the second from Mr. President, " All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother".

Was it worth it Andrew? …silence… "On a scale of one to seven, with one being worth it, it was a negative one." This gave me hope, only being a sophomore in the same major. Andrew said that he "loves BYU," and his only advice for me was to, "change [my] major," with a slight laugh… His favorite class was physics 123, which I will have the privilege/torture to take next year. Andrew became very familiar with the Benson building throughout his stay at Brigham Young University, and we even spent time together studying in the fishbowl (although my favorite place to study is the fourth floor conference room). I look up to Andrew as an example and mentor. Whatever he decides to do I know he'll do it well and be of great service! :)