Monday, August 9, 2010

New Cut, New Clothes, New Calling

The past few weeks have been very interesting, to say the least. I finally got fed up with my hair, and chopped it all off. Sadly, I have no picture of the new 'do, but will wait for a good hair day and post one then. It's short, sassy, and I'm back to blonde after a 2 year hiatus from getting my hair colored. To go along with the spunk on the top half, I decided I needed some new clothes to fit the look. Thanks to my husband, I have a nice little stockpile of winter basics just waiting for the weather to calm down and cool off.

Of course, with all of this transformation going on, I couldn't leave out the most important aspect of my life, and that's the gospel and my testimony. A new calling came right in the midst of all of this, and really gave me a chance (I say gave, but it is still giving) to turn to the Lord in thought and prayer. I always appreciate opportunities that cause me to cast away my daily cares and focus on what's really important. So, what is this new calling, you ask? Primary chorister. I know that for some of you that sounds like lots of fun, and you're thinking, "Oh, you're going to LOVE that calling!" I'm sure that's true, but it's also the one calling I SWORE I would NEVER accept. Even as I was saying a reluctant yes, my mind was screaming NO!!! I was sad to leave my Laurels, and let's face it - performing for a crowd is really not my favorite thing to do. So, for many reasons, I cried for 5 days straight every time I thought about the task ahead. When I was sustained in Sacrament Meeting, I had to leave right after and go have a "moment" in the ladies room. After a sufficient mourning period, I set to work to find some inspiration online. I found a lot of great ideas, but still no inspiration. Then I came across the most wonderful blog, called The Children Sing. There was a particular post that caught my attention as I scrolled through her posts. In it, she quotes Zechariah 2:10, "Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion, for, lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee, saith the Lord." She then says, "Would any of us refuse such an invitation by the Lord to sing? If the act of singing will bring the Lord to dwell with me I want to be the first in line! We can all sing together. Let's do it now and bring him quickly." That was it. That was the answer to my prayers. Over the past days, I have had a great peace about this new and daunting task. Every time I start to feel overwhelmed, I remind myself to "sing and rejoice." We are daughters of Zion, and we have so much to be joyful about. This is truly the right place for me to be right now, and I know that. I just felt like I needed to share that experience with you, more out of gratitude than anything else.

So upward and onward! I have puppets to make!