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Another very busy day, another late night minimum distance walk of a mile and a little extra from the house and back again.  Tortoise really wants to stay vibrantly alive, so he remains committed.  Total today was 2.13 miles with 55 feet climbed in 35:58 minutes.  Tortoise rating was 5.6; calories burned were 333.  For a map, a thought from Marion Hanks that I heard while walking, and some more of my history that made me think of, please click below to continue reading ...

Cheerio!

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2014 Stats:

745.56 miles walked, which is 74.48% of my 2014 goal.

235:35:16 hours walked, which is 75.27% of my 2014 goal

35,673 total feet climbed 

119,067 calories burned
71.57% of the year has passed

I've walked 33 consecutive non-Sundays since my last missed day on August 11, and overall have walked on 212 of the 224 non-Sundays thus far in 2014, a 94.64% consistency rating.

The purpose of the percentages is to have a higher percentage of distance and time walked than of the year. This tells me I am on track. I'm sure this is more numbers than you are interested in, all I can say is I'm really good at setting high goals and having them slip away because I don't do them every, every day.

And now for that thought.  This one especially pulled at my heart, but then Elder Hanks always has ... as you will presently read more about.

"A few days ago, I enjoyed the challenging experience of speaking to a large group of younger teenagers. Thereafter, I received a special letter from a wonderful mother who, with her husband, a bishop, had accompanied their fourteen-year-old son, with some of his friends, to the meeting. These are the last few words of her letter:

“ 'Please accept my thanks. … You spoke seriously to a group of youth who are used to being told how wonderful they are. They are wonderful, but they needed to do some heavy thinking for a change. You helped them do that. Thank you!'

"Good parents and family and leaders and friends do go to great lengths to make it fun for the kids, but the fun they are thinking of is wholesome fun; it hurts no one, and it lifts the spirit and is good to remember tomorrow and through a lifetime and forever. It never detracts from the real, long-term joy we came into this world to experience.

"God so loved that he gave.

"Christ so loved that he gave.

"We are here on this earth to learn, after the example of the Father and the Son, to love enough to give—to use our agency unselfishly. We are here to learn to do the will of the Father.

"The love we speak of is not just a word or a feeling or a sentiment. John wrote: 'My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.' (1 Jn. 3:18.)

"A sobering and poignant scene appears on our screen as we switch channels. A grieving young father and his two children sit before a television set in their home after a makeshift dinner. The children have been staying with Grandmother while their mother has slowly slipped away in a lingering illness; now they and their father are home again after her funeral. The little girl drops off to sleep and is carried to her bed. The little boy fights off sleepiness until he finally asks his father if tonight, just tonight, he can sleep with him in his bed. As the two lie silently in the dark, the lad speaks: “Daddy, are you looking at me?” “Yes, son,” the father replies, “I am looking at you.”

"The boy sighs and, exhausted, sleeps. The father waits a time and then, weeping, cries out in the dark, in anxious anguish: “God, are you looking at me? If you are, maybe I can make it. Without you, I know I can’t.”

Those words are still ringing in my mind ... "God, are you looking at me?  If you are, maybe I can make it.  Without you, I know I can't."

If you'd like to watch, listen to, or read the full speech, which was given in the October 1990 LDS General Conference, please visit https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1990/10/changing-channels?lang=eng  It won't take long, and I promise it will tug at your heart.

And now for the rest of the story ...

I studied my first two years of college at Santa Monica College (SMC) in California, earning an associate degree while there.  I had been offered a half-tuition scholarship to attend BYU when I graduated from high school, and to shorten a long story, I was initially less than thrilled when I wound up attending my local junior college instead.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints operates an Institute of Religion near many college campuses, including SMC.  I enrolled in classes at the Institute and got involved in some of their activities while attending SMC.  One day I commented that the bulletin board seemed to always be out of date.  Next thing I knew, I was asked to be the publicity director, which meant I was to keep the bulletin board current and otherwise publicize activities.  It also put me in a group called the Institute Council, which put on the activities and coordinated them with other Institutes at nearby colleges.

Before long, I was invited to a life changing weekend at a place in the mountains called ISOMATA, the Idyllwild School of Music and the Arts.  It is a beautiful summer destination for workshops and classes that was affiliated with USC and located in the San Jacinto mountains of southern California. (You can learn more about this wonderful place here:  http://www.idyllwildarts.org/page.cfm?p=787)  Doug and Josh, do you remember those mountains? (he he)

That weekend brought together college students from Institutes located near pretty much any college you might have ever heard of in southern California,  We were all members of the Institute Council at our respective colleges and were there for the weekend to be trained ... and to have fun.  It was exciting to make new friends and just to be in such a nice place for a couple days.

 

But the highlight was the keynote speaker, Marion Hanks.  He was an amazing man, especially up close and personal, which was a noteworthy experience in and of itself.

His words to us were quite similar in many ways to his words in this Conference address.  Elder Hanks definitely helped us "do some heavy thinking for a change" ... that the best way to build a lasting happiness is "to love enough to give".

That was about the point that I learned that I was definitely not alone in my personal pity party that I had "settled" on where I was attending college.  Apparently it was a common issue among us, and one he came determined to make a change in.  

 

If we weren't happy with our schools, or with the things that were happening there, we needed "to love enough to give".  We needed to stop whining and go to work to make a difference, right where we were.  Get involved with campus activities.  Look for opportunities to serve, then volunteer, bringing a friend with us.  Run for student body office.

It was quite a wakeup call.  I came home and made every effort to get right to work doing what Elder Hanks inspired us to do.  I don't claim I was perfect at it, but I will say it was a turning point for me.  I was indeed, much happier at SMC after that.  And I have tried never to forget the lessons of that weekend in whatever situation I have later found myself in.

Amazing the thoughts that run through your head late at night when you are dog tired and walking down a street listening to the miracle of wisdom from the past coming through your earbuds.

The tortoise is smiling!