A Mini Christmas Miracle

At BYU there's an Italian club, and every semester they put together a little Italian choir to do Christmas and Easter concerts. I thought it would be kind of fun to try it out, so for the last few months I've been participating in that and it's been a lot of fun :) However, our Christmas concert was on Monday, and these past couple weeks I've been a bit sick. It was just a cold, so nothing too crazy, but it was bad enough that I could barely talk most days, not to mention the constant coughing. It was  annoying.

So on Sunday night, I was worrying about how I was going to sing for this concert when my voice was barely there and I couldn't make it through two sentences without going into a coughing fit.I'd put a lot of time and practice into learning these Christmas songs in Italian, and I was super bummed that I might not be able to sing for this concert.

But then Monday morning I woke up and Tada! I felt completely fine. My throat didn't hurt, I could talk, my coughing fits were gone. That night I was able to sing perfectly normally and I enjoyed the concert a ton! :) I was really happy that I'd decided to take part in it.

And then Tuesday came and I was back to being as sick as I was on Sunday.

It was a mini Christmas miracle guys--or, as many people like to call it, a tender mercy. People don't just randomly stop being sick for a day. This was a little sign to me that I have a Heavenly Father who knows who I am and who loves me :) I know that he wants me (and every other person on the planet) to be happy and will help me achieve happiness throughout my life if I rely on him to help me through it. He cares about the little things that we each care about, like being able to sing for a little concert. This was just one example of how I've seen his hand in my life, and I know there have been so many more "coincidences" that happened because of him.

I know sometimes I tend to overlook the little blessings from God that happen daily in my life, but I'm working on noticing them and thanking my Heavenly Father for them :) These little instances prove to me that God loves me more than I can ever imagine, and he loves each of you, too :) So keep an eye out for those tender mercies, and you'll find that you notice them more and more :)

Looking Through the Wrong End of a Telescope

Tonight my ward decided to go see the lights on Temple Square in Salt Lake together. Even though I don't have a ton of friends in the ward, I was super duper excited to go since I hadn't been up to see the lights yet this year. So I grabbed my camera, an extra battery, a couple coats, and a candy cane, and headed out to the bus we'd all be taking.

All was fine and dandy until about 10 minutes in when traffic started to get really bad. It was stop and go, with brake lights for as far as you could see. Of course, I figured it was just rush hour traffic and it would clear up soon. But no. An hour or so later we were barely passing Lehi (which is all of like 17 miles away).

This one's my favorite :)

I don't know about you guys, but bad traffic is one of the things that annoys me the most in life. I just get so frustrated, even if I'm not in a hurry. It makes me want to rip my hair out or bang my head against the steering wheel.

I sat there, annoyed and frustrated, wishing the darn traffic would just go away already. And then I realized that I was looking at this the wrong way. I was on my way to see something I love--why should I let stupid things ruin my night?? This was so much better than what I'd probably be doing if I hadn't gone: sitting on my bed watching random YouTube videos. Plus I would get to take some fun photos :)

Once I realized that, my night got so much better! Even though traffic didn't clear up for another half hour, I was happy once again because I simply found a different way to look at the problem :)

So what's the point of this? The point is that your attitude and perspective on whatever situation you're in makes all the difference. If you're in a situation that maybe isn't the most fun for you, and you keep a bad attitude about it, it's like looking through the wrong end of a telescope. It distorts everything and it's harder to make sense of what you're seeing. But if you can change your perspective and have a good attitude, it's like flipping that telescope around. Boom! Suddenly everything is clearer!

It's amazing how a simple shift in your perspective can affect your situation and attitude so drastically. So next time you're having a rough time with anything, whether big or small, trying changing how you look at it :) Flip that telescope around. It's always worth a shot :)

The Grand Finale... Just Kidding

The semester is almost over, which means I won't be required to post on this here blog anymore. I'll definitely still post, but it may not be as often. Oh whale.

I only started doing this post because of my writing class. I'd always thought that blogs were kind of lame before. Like, do people even read those? The answer is yes, they do. As I've been writing on here throughout the semester, I've grown to love posting on here! :) It's a great place to share my thoughts and feelings and whatever weird stuff my brain comes up with. It's a place for me to be myself and make my opinions and views on the world known. It's been nice too because it's a heck of a lot easier than writing in an actual journal, so I do it more often.

With every post, I tried to keep with the theme of my blog: "always living life happy." The quote I chose to put at the top helps remind me that my happiness is up to me. It's a choice, a way of life, and trying to find things to post that relate to that have actually helped me see that there's so much more to be happy about in life than we sometimes realize.

This blog has really been a great blessing for me. Because of it, I've become more positive all around and I've noticed that I'm just happier throughout the day. So here's to blogging! It's been a great adventure that I'm excited to continue :)

Weirdoms

Weirdoms
/'wird∙ǝmz/
noun
1. The quirks or oddities about a person that don't seem to make sense
2. A made-up word created by Corynne

Here's what I mean: I hate running. I detest it. I loathe it. But if you put me on a soccer field or a football field, I will gladly run like my life depends on it, all for the sake of winning a stupid game. Why the heck is that? Here's another of my weirdoms: I don't like orange juice, but I like oranges, and especially clementines (which I know are different, but still.) Along the same lines, I don't like ketchup much, but I'll gladly eat tomatoes all day.

Told ya. Walnut.
(Hope you don't mind the picture babe)

Your brain is amazing. It's complicated. It's powerful. And it's weird. It does things you don't understand for pretty much no reason. Like back during the summer, my friend and I were calling each other names and I called her a walnut. For whatever reason, I liked it, and now that's her name in my phone. Why did my brain decide that was the best thing to call my best friend? I don't know! But there you go.

So why are our brains so weird? They do all sorts of crazy crap that really makes no sense. For example, if you make yourself a tuna sandwich and the mayo you use is bad and you get sick from it, your brain does this thing where even smelling a tuna sandwich can make you feel sick, even though that sandwich is most likely fine.

Isn't that weird?

Anyway... I don't remember where I was going with this, to be honest. But I just think it's interesting, all the weird little things your brain does. I find it amazing that something so complex regulates the tiniest details of our lives, whether consciously or subconsciously. To me, it's proof of what Heavenly Father can do, and has done for us :) He created us, he created this beautiful earth for us to live on... We have so much to be thankful for :) And yes, I know this post is pretty much the randomest thing ever, but that's what I get for writing at midnight when I'm sick and should be sleeping.

Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah, It's a Wonderful Day

I've lived in Utah my entire life, and one thing I've grown to love is the snow. I hate being cold, but snow makes the cold so much more fun, which is why I can handle winters here.

Here's the problem though: it's December and we have no snow. Like, where is it?? I want to know. I'm getting so antsy for it to finally snow good and hard here so I can go skiing and make snow angels and do all the fun stuff you can only do with snow.
For a while now I've been complaining about wanting snow. I was told Utah was supposed to have some amazing snow this year. I was super excited for this because the snow these last few years has really sucked. So where is this snow? It's just not here. It's on vacation in Florida or something, chillin' out as raindrops.

I mean, look at this gorgeous sky!! What's not to love?

Anyway, I've been pretty annoyed. But then today I realized something. Yes, there's no snow. But it's warm! It's warm and sunny and just absolutely gorgeous! I shouldn't be complaining when it's still amazing weather :) Pretty soon this weather will cease to exist and it'll be cold and dark and not fun. So I should be grateful for this extra bit of fall weather we're having, because I'm gonna miss it something awful as soon as it's gone.

I love feeling the sun on my face. It just makes me so happy :) And around February or March, when we've seen very little of my big bright friend in the sky, I start to miss it so much. There's this thing called "seasonal affective disorder" where basically you get depressed in the winter because of the lack of sunlight, and it makes me wonder if I have that to some degree... But anyway, I realized today that I should take advantage of this fantastic weather and all this sunlight while I can, and really just be grateful for the extra time I get with the warmth :)

The Magic of 26 Letters

Letters.

And words.

They're magic, did you know?

The same 26 letters make up every little word we know. But those words by themselves don't mean much. For example: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! (Any of you who knew that's a quote from Albus Dumbledore (first book, pg 123)*, you're my favorite ever. Have a cookie.) That random bunch of words has no real meaning. But it's what you do with those letters and words that matters. You can  combine them so that you create a piece of art.

I found a picture of this place.
Now I really want to go there.

Here's what I mean. I was looking through a National Geographic magazine about "The World's Best Hidden Adventures" and came across this: [talking about the Andaman Sea Reef in Thailand, wherever that is] "Dive Beacon Reef near the Similans to explore under the scrutiny of inquisitive batfish, or check out East of Eden, where soft corals resemble an underwater Japanese garden. Translucent waters, white beaches, caves, and coral walls await."*

I have absolutely no idea where this place is, but dang do I want to go there! Those particular words create a magical feeling. They make it so you can imagine this amazing place. Of course, that's their job at National Geographic, to make you want to go see these places, but still.

Honestly, it just blows my mind that you can do so much with 26 simple letters. You can make people feel happy, you can make people cry. You can make them go to a place they've never even heard of, just because you chose the right adjectives to describe it. It truly is amazing! :)

And then I thought about what I'm choosing to do with my words. I've never written something like what's in the National Geographic magazines, but that doesn't mean I'm not having an effect somewhere, somehow. We don't know who sees or hears what we choose to say or write. So try to have your words represent who you really are. Don't let your words be something you'd be ashamed of being associated with, because once you say them, you can't take them back. So just be aware, friends--you never know the effects your words may have :)


*And yes, I know I didn't cite those quotes how I really should have, but the credit is there (more or less) and I'm lazy.

The Nerve-Wracking Responsibility of Being Yourself

Everyone is unique, right? Some of us are very obviously unique, whether it be the way we dress, act, speak, etc. while others take some getting to know before you find out how they're really unique. I, for example, like to pronounce the word unique "you-nih-cue" because why not? And that uniqueness is what makes us, well, US.

Pretty fantastic, huh?

Anyway, there's all this pressure on everyone to "be yourself." But guess what? Being yourself can be scary sometimes. We, as people, tend to judge others based on stupid, superficial things like clothes or hairstyles or whatever. So if you want to "be yourself" by wearing some ugly sweater you really love that you found at D.I., you might get a bunch of weird looks. OR, perhaps, you'll find that people  actually like your ugly sweater. You never know. [Update: I was just at the mall wearing said sweater, and people complimented me on it. It was awesome.]

But how are we s'posed to truly be ourselves if we're constantly worried that someone is going to judge us or make us feel bad for being who we really are? It's a real struggle we all have to deal with. Personally, when I'm at school or out in some public place, I switch to my "normal" self. I'm quiet, dress nicely, say the right things, do what people expect. But when I'm with friends, or even just by myself, "normal Corynne" is nowhere to be found. Instead it's the real me that comes out. The me that's not afraid to wear a hideous Christmas sweater, the me that says whatever the heck she feels like saying, the me that is more random that a cat wearing a waffle hat. Seriously. (Also that rhymed unintentionally, soooo brownie points to me.)

There ya go... Google has everything.

Then there's blog me. Blog me is actually pretty close to real me, so lucky you guys--you know how I think.

Anyway, I've realized a thing, and I wanna 'splain it to you all. There have been times, like Halloween for example, where I decided that I was going to do what I wanted and not worry about what others had to say. On Halloween, I walked around as Cinderella all day. Even though I got some strange looks (the people at the bowling alley were quite interested to see how I was going to manage bowling in such a giant dress), I absolutely loved it! These instances when I've made up my mind to ignore whatever negative feedback I got, I am so much happier! I'm happier because I'm doing what I want to do, and I'm not worrying about what others think.

Honestly guys, people aren't even as judgmental as you think. We worry so much that everyone notices everything we do wrong, every imperfection. But they don't! And that's fantastic! Because it means that you can be yourself more :) like really, truly be yourself, which will make you happier.

So kiddos, I think all of you should really try focusing on not worrying so much what others think. Let yourself do the things you want without freaking out that someone will think you're weird. Heck, maybe you are weird, and if you are, embrace it! :) I'm quite weird, and I'm not afraid to show it. So lovelies, try being yourself, just for a day, and if you're not happier you can send me a letter of annoyance and I'll send you a picture of a cookie, okay? :)

Finally, It's a Monday!

Monday. The most dreaded day of the week. There's nothing worse than waking up in the morning and realizing it's a Monday. Especially if you've just come back from any sort of break, whether it was three days, a week, two weeks, three months, whatever. Mondays just stink.

Up until a few months ago, I hated Mondays as much as any other person out there. Monday meant I had to go back to school. I had to wake up early again. I had to actually use my brain (eww). But then things changed. Now I absolutely love Mondays! I'm sure you're thinking I must be insane (and I assure you, I most certainly am) for being able to do more than tolerate this horrid day of the week.

Well guess what? Mondays are my favorite because of one thing: missionaries! I have so many missionary friends out right now, and each of them have their P day on Monday, which means that's when I get emails from them! :) Whether they're from Peru, Praia, Texas, or Taiwan, these emails never fail to inspire me and put me in a good mood :)

I'm gonna be a missionary too soon enough :)

Having missionary friends, I've decided, is the greatest thing ever. These amazing boys (none of my girl friends are old enough to be out there yet) always know just what to say to me when I'm having a rough day. They seem to know exactly what I need to hear when I'm trying to make a decision on something, even if they know nothing about what I'm going through. But that's what happens when
they're out doing the Lord's work every day and are constantly inspired by his spirit.

So now, every day I wake up, and am actually disappointed that it's not Monday. Weird, huh? It's crazy how your view on some aspect of life can change so quickly and dramatically like that.

But hey. That's life for ya:
It makes no sense whatsoever.

And I'm totally okay with that. :)