what a year - look back on 2012

okay, so this is a little bit overdue.
i'm thinking back to january of last year.. and holy cow. So much has changed, and even better - so much has stayed consistent.
throughout my 16 years of life, one of my greatest struggles it to keep things in my life consistent and under control. Whether it be in friendships, feelings, or situations. I have handled this sense of control in many ways - both unhealthily and healthily. This past year I have found out more of who I am, and more importantly, who I have the potential to be.

highlights of 2012

I turned sixteen on March 22nd. My wonderful friend (Kelsi) threw a surprise birthday party for me. Let me tell you, it was a SURPRISE. She kidnapped me and took me downtown to the planetarium and to dinner with a few close friends. Afterwords, we went back to her house to "watch a movie". Somehow I didn't even suspect anything when I saw a cake in her kitchen with my name on it? I literally screamed and collapsed when I saw all of the people cooped up in her basement.

I went on my first date last year! It was the best first date I could have asked for... really. The day after my sixteenth birthday happened to be prom, and I was lucky enough to go with James - he's not only asian, but a CUTE asian and one of my best friends! We went go karting and dressed up pretty for a japanese dinner. Looking back on that day just makes me smile.

This summer I had the opprotunity to go to EFY - Especially For Youth - in Salt Lake City with my best friend. We met so many people there, and we are still in touch with all of them. I love the people and leaders I met there, and will truly remember EFY as one of the best weeks of my life.

Also in the summer, I was able to work at Plato's Closet about 30 hours a week. I learned time management and how to deal with difficult situations. I worked away my summer, but it definitely pulled off and I put a big chunk of my money into my "SAVE FOR ECUADOR" fund.

Speaking of Ecuador... this year I made the decision to do a humanitarian trip to Ecuador! We will be building orphanages and caring for the disabled kids there. That will be Summer 2013, this summer, and I am still working to save for it. I truly cannot wait.

Facepainting has become a pretty big part of my life this past year! My neighbor happpens to be a professional face painter, and she has taught me techniques and tricks that have really enhanced my ability to paint quickly and with better control of the brush. I painted this year for school events, at Gardner Village, church events, and community fairs. It's a fun way to earn some extra money, and I absolutely love the opprotunity to expand my creativity.

This past year I became DECA secretary! The other DECA officers and I work so well together and we were able to pull off the Riverton Invitational Premiere - a DECA competition throughout the region that was held at Riverton High School. It's been so fun to be a part of the biggest club in the school! It really tunes into the business side of me and I love it.

I recieved a new calling in my church! I got called to be a part of Special Needs Mutual. It's a program where a few teens from each stake are partnered with a member who has special needs - and together we learn about the gospel and it's teachings. My special needs Friend, as we call them, is named Tiffany. She has changed my life. You go into the program thinking that you will benefit their life and they will learn so much from you... when it is really the other wasy around. Tiffany is beautiful and has taught be more about love, kindness, patience than any other person I know. She teaches by example. She teaches me by the way she lives. She lives 100% for other people, and is always concerned about my well being. I am so blessed to have met her this passed year, and I am so blssed to be a part of that program.

Of course, every year there are plenty of new people to meet. This year I have made so many new friends and I am thankful for all of them! I actually recieved the 'Social Award' for first quarter, and it is so fun to meet and learn people's stories.

I joined Peer Leadership Team! Oh my goodness this has been one of the things I am so grateful for this year. Through PLT, I am so involved in the school and the community. I volunteer at Kauri Sue Hamilton - a school for kids with mental and physical disabilities - once a week, and I have found a new adoration for these kids and causes to help them. PLT also got me really involved in Silver Rush, which I will forever look back on with fond memories.

Silver Rush 2012 was one I will never forget. I took nearly the whole month of December off, and spent it knocking on doors in the freezing cold doing "odd jobs" for donations. The charity our student body officers chose this year was the Haley Bell Blessed Chair Foundation. This charity provided wheel chairs for families in the area who were unable to afford them. This really touched home with me because of members in my family who are in wheelchairs. To provide something that would benefit the rest of their life is something that our whole school worked to achieve. At the end of the three weeks, we raised over $125,000 for this charity. When the "Banner of Love" rose with the number, the whole student body collapsed and cried. The air was thick with love and exhaustion and it was one of the best feelings ever. I wish I could relive that moment again!

Wow, you never truly know how blessed you are until you take a thorough look at your life! There is so much more I could have put into this list of highlights... but I know y'all don't care that much about my life. I'm never sure who reads this and who doesn't, but whoever you are - you are pretty great!

Here's to a great 2013, eh?

A Modest Proposal

People always complain about the smell of cigarette smoke. Whether the smell be in public parks, inside homes, inside cars, or the corner of the girl’s bathroom at school. It is only natural for the average citizen to be repulsed by the distinct smell, but as the anonymous saying goes, “Don’t hate what you don’t understand.” There is only one solution to curing the stench of cigarettes – and it does not include soap, a nicotine patch, or a ‘STOP SMOKING NOW’ kit. The answer is simple, really. In order for everyone not to notice the smell anymore, we must all smell like it ourselves. That’s right, folks. I propose that if we all smoked a pack of cigarettes a day there would be no more complaints, no more crinkled noses in disgust, and no more gasping for air in a smoker’s car.

If everyone took up smoking cigarettes, our economy would blossom. If more money is being put into the system for a pack of Camel or Winston, then cigarette companies will have more money to expand their businesses and hire more employees. Business managers in general would also be thankful for this change in culture, as they wouldn’t have to worry about offending people with “No Smoking” signs plastered everywhere in sight.

Firefighters also love this proposal. It gives them something to do! The more fires there are, the higher their wages go up. And naturally, when one’s house is filled with potential fire hazards, there will be a far greater chance that firefighters will be needed – thus creating even more jobs.

Used car sales would go up. Just this past year, my family was looking for a new [used] car. The van my dad picked out was perfect – the back-up screen, sun roof, automatic door – but there was just one stinky problem. From the moment you hopped in, the smell of cigarettes nearly knocked you off of the soft leather seats. The car salesman wiped the sweat off of his nervous brow and kept offering lower and lower prices for this car until my dad couldn’t pass the offer up. With extensive cleaning, mind you, the smell is nearly non-existent now. Take a moment to imagine that my dad – and the rest of my family – had been chain smokers. That car would have sold in a heartbeat! No negotiation required.

Smokers will feel at home, and children of smokers will feel much appreciation towards this proposal. No longer will they feel as social outcasts in their classrooms. No more will their cheeks flush when asked why they smell so bad. Everyone will smell like everyone, and everyone will grow to love the scent of tobacco. It’s proven that tobacco tends to relax people, right? Suicide rates will go down, and happiness rates will go up. And what if that relaxed feeling goes away after the cigarette is gone, you may ask? The answer to that is simple, too. Just pop another one of those suckers in.

With the economy in the financial crisis that it is now, there is no better solution to help get it moving again than making it required that every American citizen smoke at least a pack of cigarettes a day. Complaints would decrease, jobs would increase, and everyone will be happy.

What Freaks Me Out

1. Beavers - they're mean, and they can bite through trees.

2. The fact that there could be a technical malfunction in stop lights. What if they all went green at the same time and all the cars ran into each other?

3. When people don't put their blinker on. Even if they're way up the road, it just gives me anxiety.

4. Not knowing everything about everyone's lives.
Some would call me a control freak.
I didn't realize I was until this afternoon, when I found out I didn't know every possible thing that was going on in a friend's life. Suddenly I was overcome with anxiety - shaking, tears, the whole shabang. It occurred to me that just a few moments earlier I was fine, happy even. What had changed? My state of not knowing had changed, and it was (and still is) driving me crazy.
If I could see everything from a bird's eye view, I would be completely content. I'd rather know everything, good and bad, than know only a part. So this explains why I'm always meddling in someone's business (usually on accident, mind you).

5. Seeing people wear "Uggs" boots with short shorts.

6. Knowing something is wrong with a dear friend, and not being able to help. Feeling helpless? Yeah, that freaks me out a ton.

7. When I introduce myself to someone new, and they say "Oh, I've heard people talk about you before!"

9. People who hit their kids in public places - namely, at my work. I can't do anything about it, and I can't help but wonder if it's this bad where everyone can see... how bad is it at home?

10. Small, yappy dogs that look like rats.

11. the fact i skipped #8