Chicago, Fireworks, & Callings to Teach

 

 

Chicago, Chicago! Cue Frank Sinatra’s song because we’re headed to that toddlin’ town this summer! Jaden heard back from EY and he got an offer after he sat through a multi-faceted three hour interview last week. I am so proud of him and excited for this next stage of our adventure out here. He called me immediately after he got the news and asked if I was a bears fan. I heard "are you in a bear stand?" and was really confused but finally put it together and did a happy dance. We really are so excited!

Who knew when we stopped through Chicago on our way out here that we’d be living there over the summer for an internship?! We feel extra grateful that Jaden’s cousin Jacquelyn and her husband Dane live there now. They told us they’d ask around and see if they can find us a sublease somewhere since they know so many students. The internship is only 10 weeks so we’re hoping we can find something temporary that’s fully furnished so we can keep our current apartment and only have to move clothes and some kitchen items.

 

I’m sure we’ll figure out more of those details as it gets closer but I think we’re both relieved we have it set… Jaden especially because now he can focus solely on school without having the stress of securing an internship weigh on him as he studies. I think if you would have told me a few months ago that we were going to Chicago I would have cried because I was really planning on going home to Utah. But after understanding more about the purpose of the internship and the advantage of having a big name on your resume and the opportunities it will open up for the future I began to see that it’s more than what I think would be convenient. Anything worthwhile takes sacrifice and hard work and we have been praying for options and we got them. Jaden also heard back and had offers from two other companies he interviewed with but EY was the one he wanted and we felt the best about.

So we’ll just keep enjoying Pittsburgh and slowly make plans for a little summer move to Chicago next year!

Beyond that our week consisted of the usual school and work until the weekend. Friday we went and hung out with the crew at Taylor and Keile’s and kicked off the Christmas movie season by watching Elf. I think it has been a few years since I have watched that movie start to finish but it really is such a classic. The scene where Michael asks Buddy how they’re going to get the star on the tree and Buddy goes “I got it…” and then walks out of the shot, gets a running start and jumps on the couch and onto the tree makes me laugh so hard every single time I see it.

Saturday I spent the morning doing chores and then Jaden and I did some ministering and gave a ride home from the store to the lady I minister to. We helped her haul her massive new microwave she bought up to her apartment and when I asked her if she bought a new one because her old one broke she said no it was just because her other one couldn’t pop a full bag of popcorn… so not that it was broken but the size was the issue. So now she has two fully functioning microwaves in her kitchen but one is specifically for popcorn popping. I was kind of shocked at the response and also had to bite my tongue to not laugh because I was imagining how big her popcorn bags must be because our little tiny $40 microwave pops a full bag just fine. It’s always an adventure with her.

After that I dropped Jaden off at home and then ran my own errands before coming home to get ready for the Pittsburgh Light Up Night. Every year on the Saturday before Thanksgiving there are tree lighting ceremonies and festivities all throughout the city to kickoff the holidays. This year American Authors performed and there was a humongous fireworks celebration after. I left Jaden at home to watch the Utes pummel Oregon and caught a ride with Zach and Jenna and journeyed into the chaos of downtown traffic to find a parking spot.

No joke we were in the car for an hour trying to get to a place that is only 5 miles away. That’s honestly one of the hardest things about living here is the traffic. That night was especially awful traffic but I think Jaden and I both are still getting used to it taking double or triple the time to go a short distance compared to drive times back home.

We finally made it and were able to secure a spot in the parking garage right across the street from where the concert was. We met up with the rest of the crew and all joked that Zach and Jenna were my parents for the night and I needed to be a good girl and not get lost.

The concert was actually really good I had kind of forgotten about American Authors after their biggest hit “Best Day of My Life” but they have some catchy music and I just love a good concert. After they were done we walked onto the bridge that was right next to the stage and watched one of the most impressive firework shows I’ve ever seen. They were lit off of boats on the river and it was pretty awesome to see fireworks to the tune of Christmas songs. I’m not sure I’ve ever been to a Christmas fireworks show now that I think about it. It was definitely a fun night and made even better because I was able to come home to a happy Jaden who was on cloud nine after a huge win against the ducks.

 

 

 

 

 

To round out our week we went to church and as I sat in sacrament meeting I was praying and pondering to know if there was a specific reason why I hadn’t received a calling at church yet. It wasn’t that I was dying to have an assignment to serve at church but I found it strange that we had been in the ward for a little over three months and were still flying under the radar. I was concerned that there was either more we should be doing or something we shouldn’t be doing that was preventing us from having a calling. As soon as sacrament ended and we moved into the room for Sunday school I was approached by a member of the bishopric who asked if I had been asked about the relief society instructor calling. I replied I hadn’t and he was so embarrassed and said “I’m so sorry to spill the beans I thought we had asked you weeks ago!” He asked if he could speak to me and Jaden after church meetings ended and then he formally asked if I would be willing to help teach in relief society. I accepted and he thanked us for being in the ward and for my willingness to serve with the sisters.

The funny thing is that I had a feeling a couple of months ago that this would eventually be something I would be asked to do. There was a specific lesson one Sunday where I had a mixed feeling of dread and clarity that I was going to be asked to help teach. Well sure enough a couple of months later it’s a reality. I am excited as well as intimidated by this calling. Excited to share my testimony and learn from the women in this ward. They come from all sorts of backgrounds and life experiences and have all sorts of different levels of faith and perspectives.

I am intimidated because these past few months have been the first time I have gone to relief society regularly since I was on my mission and that was back when church was three hours and the format of relief society was very different. Since then I have always been in primary or young women so attending church meetings with my own peers and women older than me hasn’t always been the norm. It has caused me to feel extremely intimidated by my lack of experience but as I reflected on past callings I thought of specific lessons I learned from each one that I hope to carry with me as I serve among this new group.

Primary: My favorite thing about teaching primary was how simple everything is. We teach clear and simple doctrine and it’s all about Jesus. We even got to color and have treats.

 

My Mission: One of the greatest lessons I learned while serving as a missionary was that every single person you meet can teach you something when you take time to listen and get to know them. I truly believe that whether it is positive or negative or a good or a bad example you can learn from every interaction with every person you meet. I met some of the most amazing people on my mission as well as some of the most different people on my mission but when I'd take the time to listen and to ponder I learned from each one and was able to make room for them in my heart.

 

Young Women: Finally what made the most impact on me as I served in Young Women was the hope and preparedness of the young women. I feel like I was able to glimpse their potential and see that they really are prepared for the issues and challenges of today. They gave me hope in the future and peace at the thought of raising children of my own one day.

 

 

 

So to sum it up from primary I learned to keep it simple and make it all about Christ. On my mission I saw the value in learning from everyone I met. Young Women taught me to see potential in each person and hope in the future. I hope that I can take all of those things and apply it to the way I teach and guide discussions in relief society. I hope that I can keep it simple and make it all about Christ, that I can see the value in learning from every woman that comments and that I can see their potential and the way they were prepared for their time and learn from their experiences and perspectives even if they are so very different than my own. 

I know there will be some unique challenges as I work with this group but I also know that I will benefit and learn and grow in ways that will bless me the rest of my life and I'm excited for the peaches, pits and lessons learned.

Peaches

• Jaden got an internship
• Light up night
• Good friends
• Had an awesome comp study with a former mission companion and good good friend
• Listening to Christmas music
• FaceTiming family
• Getting letters in the mail. I sent my family blank coloring pages to send back to me and they actually colored them and sent them back! I died at the note my mom wrote on the back of my dad's picture... apparently when she asked if he was going to write anything he said, "they say a picture is worth a thousand words."
  
• Getting recipes from family and making food that reminds us of home
• Made a copycat Birria Tacos recipe mimicking our favorite tacos from Casa del Tamal back home. They actually turned out really good. Zach and Jenna approved so we’ll make them for the whole crew next time it’s our turn to host dinner
• Utes beat Oregon
• Studying Teaching in the Savior's Way on the gospel library app
  

 

Pits

• Jaden’s team lost their flag football game
• Traffic downtown was horrible
• I had to return an item from an online order and after I initiated the return I was sent the same product again so I had to return both items, totally my luck
  
• Feeling intimidated by this new calling
• We drove past the synagogue where there was a mass shooting in 2018. It was heartbreaking to think about the victims that were killed and wounded that day and their families but also humbling to see the artwork and flowers that are hung up around the grounds 

 

Lessons Learned

• Prayer really is so powerful
• Pittsburgh knows how to do fireworks
• The quote “everything you are learning now is preparing you for something.” - Barbara Pay Hinckley is so true
• Hauling groceries up the fire escape and through the window is so much faster than carrying them around the house through the front door and up the stairs to our apartment