The Gratitude Challenge

My wife and I recently did this together one Sunday morning and it was very beneficial for us. We both enjoyed and loved being able to reflect on our many blessings. It was wonderful and I encourage it. it was taken from the Dec 2011 Ensign under the Youth section but I feel like anyone and everyone should get in on it. So here is another version( I see no reason why we can't continue to make these lists) Here it is for today:

Take a Gratitude Challenge

By John Hilton III and Anthony Sweat

Let’s not just talk about counting our blessings—let’s do it! Write a list of 100 things you are thankful for. If that sounds like it is too many, try this:

1. Write 10 physical abilities you are grateful for.

2. Write 10 material possessions you are grateful for.

3. Write 10 living people you are grateful for.

4. Write 10 deceased people you are grateful for.

5. Write 10 things about nature you are grateful for.

6. Write 10 things about today you are grateful for.

7. Write 10 places on earth you are grateful for.

8. Write 10 modern inventions you are grateful for.

9. Write 10 foods you are grateful for.

10. Write 10 things about the gospel you are grateful for.

When we make a list like this, we discover that a list of 100 doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface of all the things God has given us.

I am grateful for

1.                   The ability to run

2.                   The ability to jump

3.                   The ability to see

4.                   The ability to hear

5.                   The ability to breathe

6.                   The ability to stretch

7.                   The ability to bend over and pick things up off the ground

8.                   The ability to coordinate movements

9.                   The ability to touch things

10.               The ability to taste

11.               Ps3

12.               Longboard

13.               Laptop

14.               Ukulele

15.               Guitar

16.               The “Dart”

17.               Scriptures

18.               Clothes

19.               Shoes

20.               Toilet paper

21.               Christ( he lives)

22.               Wife

23.               Mom and Dad

24.               Siblings

25.               Rest of family

26.               Thomas Monson

27.               Bishop Miner

28.               John Parker

29.               Those that serve in the Armed Forces

30.               Andrew Crawford

31.               Joseph Smith

32.               George Washington

33.               Martin Luther King Jr

34.               Abraham Lincoln

35.               Both Grandpas

36.               Steve Jobs

37.               Those that preserved the bible

38.               Those that wrote the Book of Mormon

39.               Those that served in the armed forces

40.               Kamehameha the Great

41.               Fall leaves

42.               Snow in the mountains and only in the mountains

43.               Grass, trees, shrubs flowers, fruits

44.               The colors

45.               A cool breeze

46.               Sunshine

47.               The beach

48.               The forest

49.               The animals

50.               The variety

51.               I am alive

52.               I am debt free

53.               I woke up next to my beautiful wife

54.               I don’t have to go to work

55.               I don’t have to go to school

56.               Neither does my wife:p

57.               The sun is out and shining

58.               I got to sleep in

59.               I get to enjoy my presents

60.               I have the internet

61.               Kekaha

62.               Helena

63.               Provo

64.               Salt Lake

65.               Logan

66.               Home

67.               Philadelpia

68.               China

69.               Japan

70.               Ecuador

71.               Toilets

72.               Cell phones

73.               Computers

74.               Cars

75.               Airplanes

76.               Microwaves

77.               Electricity(the practical use of)

78.               Heavy machinery

79.               Space shuttles

80.               Refrigerators

81.               Pulehu Chicken

82.               Kalua

83.               Mac salad

84.               Lau Lau

85.               Lomi salmon

86.               Chocolate

87.               Sprite

88.               Butterfish

89.               Steak

90.               Chicken long rice

91.               Atonement

92.               Repentance

93.               Tithing

94.               Forgiveness

95.               Plan of Salvation

96.               The Holy Ghost

97.               The chance to find out for ourselves and decide for ourselves whether or not its true

98.               The endowments

99.               The Priesthood

100.            Celestial Marriage

Do you have a list?

Resolve

RESOLVE-noun.
1. Firmness or unwavering adherence to one’s purpose; resolution.

2. A determination or decision; a fixed purpose.

3. A formal resolution made by a deliberative body.

4. To come to a definite or earnest decision about; determine (to do something)

Synonyms: steadiness, firmness of purpose, resolving power, solving, resolving, resolution, resoluteness, result,solvent, resolve, soundness, declaration, answer, settlement, firmness, closure, solution 

Recently I've been asking myself about resolution. More specifically, I've been thinking about personal resolution.  What does it take to form personal resolve? What is the source of a firm resolution? When someone is lost in the middle of a desert without water why do they keep going? Or when someone is lost in the artic without shelter why do they push on? When you’ve sprinted 25 miles what makes you push through that last mile?

Let’s look at Moroni, the young captain of the Nephite armies: Yea, verily, verily I say unto you, if all men had been, and were, and ever would be, like unto Moroni, behold, the very powers of hell would have been shaken forever; yea, the devil would never have power over the hearts of the children of men. Behold, he was a man like unto Ammon, the son of Mosiah, yea, and even the other sons of Mosiah, yea, and also Alma and his sons, for they were all men of God. Moroni was a man of God and this was his motivation…the service of God. When it came time to war he proposed a resolve that the men who served under him might also have something to “fight for”:  And it came to pass that he rent his coat; and he took a piece thereof, and wrote upon it—In memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our children—and he fastened it upon the end of a pole. This was the title of liberty. The armies resolve stemmed from a greater purpose in the protection of God, religion, freedom and family.

The Book of Mormon teaches us in 2^nd Nephi And I heard a voice from the Father, saying: Yea, the words of my Beloved are true and faithful. He that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved. And now, my beloved brethren, I know by this that unless a man shall endure to the end, in following the example of the Son of the living God, he cannot be saved. Wherefore, do the things which I have told you I have seen that your Lord and your Redeemer should do; for, for this cause have they been shown unto me, that ye might know the gate by which ye should enter.... And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this strait and narrow path, I would ask if all is done? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for ye have not come thus far save it were by the word of Christ with unshaken faith in him, relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save. Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a clove of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life. But where does that resolve come from? Why do I try so hard to endure? Is it testimony? Is it the thought of being able to live with God again?

What about when you fast a meal? What keeps you from eating? What allows you to hold out for a long time (the 24 hour period) and abstain from food and drink the entire time? Is it the promise of blessings that increase your fortitude?

I taught a lesson a few weeks ago about desire. I said that desire shapes our priorities, which in turn determines our choices, which in turn affects who we become (Elder Dallin H Oaks taught this, it wasn’t my stuff). Is our desire then the source of resolve? There are many examples within the scriptures of those who had a firm mind in what they were going to do and did it. What about outside of scripture?

But what about the athlete? Is an athlete’s resolve to keep going based in trying to get back to heaven? I would say no(I guess people make a big deal about Tim Tebow and tebowing and what not. Maybe you could say that he is playing for Jesus. I am not going to dog him for that). My dad once told me that to be the best you need to be willing to do what no one else does. He spoke of basketball players like Michael Jordan who were the best not so much because they had the most talent or natural athletic ability but because they worked the hardest at their sport. They put in the time. He would simultaneously tell me about the 10,000 hour rule. That if you put ten thousand hours that you could be elite. But why? Why do it? Money? Fame? The love of the game? To be the best? Lots of people have wanted these things but have not pursued this venue. Not everyone can be Jordan.

What about Gandhi? He supposedly said: Let the first act of every morning be to make the following resolve for the day:

I shall not fear anyone on Earth.

I shall fear only God.

I shall not bear ill will toward anyone.

I shall not submit to injustice from anyone.

I shall conquer untruth by truth. And in resisting untruth, I shall put up with all suffering.

Is that then all it takes? To tell yourself something every morning? Is that where true conviction stems from?

(I think it’s funny how it seems that you can validate anything by talking about Michael Jordan or quoting Gandhi. People seem to think more of it regardless of whether or not the quote was accurate)

What about the Occupy Wall Street protesters? Why quit your job and head to protest (as many had done?) why weather the cold? Why face pepper spray? What is keeping them out there and not letting them return to the comfort of their homes? Social injustice? The idea that they can bring about change? Many people believe in something but hardly spend the time or energy fighting for it with such vigor. Not everyone is MLK Jr.

What about war? What causes a person to go to war and not run when you see it rear its ugly head? Why sign up for the army in the first place and keep fighting? The fact of the matter is that war is scary and people die and that is sad. Yet many willingly sign up to give their life. And many lose it without hesitation. Why? Where does that resolve come from? Where does that conviction come from?

So I've been watching movies and I see different heroes go above and beyond to show what the human spirit is capable of. With vast sweeping benevolent music it ushers me, as a viewer forward along the plot. Raising, pushing, pulling and dipping me as if leading, the music carries me across the floor, engaging me in the protagonist. I've been watching sports with huge 4^th quarter heroics and last second comebacks. The frustrations are apparent and the wins are glorious, each athlete trying to etch his name in the books of history and the minds of the people. I've been looking at the politicians and they fight and debate and campaign.  And I've been wondering where they all get their resolve.

Well what about the average Joe? If I'm not on a crusade, not trying to go to the Super bowl, if I'm not in a battle on the front lines, and if I don’t have a full orchestra playing out each and every heightened moment of my life then where is my motivation stemming from? What makes the average person get out of bed every day and go to do the same job everyday? If there is nothing on the line where does one find the unshakable resolve to keep going? To hold steadfast and firm as opposed to just passively letting life go by?  President Monson talked about finding Joy in the journey. Is that where the resolve comes from? a satisfaction from the journey?

Where does resolve come from? How can you increase it? not for just the great ones but for the layman as well. How do you cultivate more resolve? How can you acquire an iron will? Where do you get the gusto to push or keep pushing when others quit?(or even succeed but where you have fallen short?) why is it that some people have it so strong and others do not? 

What do you think?

Sword Play

UPDATE: so this is Evan's sword. he wanted to do them in different colors. My favorite one is in the middle

i wish Evan could show case his sword. so one day i was helping my dear little brother with his seminary homework. we were cooking and getting a ton of stuff done. we were running through chapters and writing summaries and everything. this is however taking a really long time. so we hit a part about the anti nehi lehies and the prompt says to design a historical marker or something. thats were the reading and everyhting stopped. evan proceeded to make a sword. he took forever designing it on the computer. id say a good 3 or 4 hours just to get it just right. i dont think he anticipated taking so long. the complex historical marker was simply reduced to a sword. while waiting for him to finish i took 15 min to pump out a sword of my own. its nowhere near what evan did, his is just another level, but it was something fun to do. i wish i had his one to show

This is Evan's final historical marker

Philadelphia Phillies

Can you remember the first time you had your first team? What I mean by that is do you remember the first time you felt the desire to cheer on a team. A team you felt was your team? A team that you felt you could go behind and put your faith in?

For some people this is obvious. For some it’s the moment they were born or the moment they went to their first school. Some wait til college to really get behind a team. They feel a connection to that team. There are very few professional teams, if any, that I feel I can get behind. I like watching individual players. I like watching dynamic plays. I usually like to follow players that put on a show. Because of this I tend to be what some term a “fair weather fan”. I don’t care though. Should I feel sorry for following players closer than I follow teams? LeBron James is an example. The man is a beast on the basketball court. When he played for the Cavs did I root for the Cavs? Of course. He was awesome to watch. Before he went to the Cavs could I tell you anything abo the institution? No, ill be frank I didn’t know a thing. Now that he’s left the organization do I care about the Cavs? No. I watch Miami now(and even though LeBron choked and even though he’s getting a lot of heat for his behavior and lots of people think he’s cocky he’s still an incredible player who is fun to watch). Michael Vick is another person who is fun to watch. When he was a Falcon I watched Atlanta now he’s an Eagle I watch the Eagles (My wife also happens to be a fan since they are from Philly so it works out). These players are fun to watch and I like it. But I haven’t really gotten behind a team.

                That’s a lie:p my first team was probably Waimea High Menehunes. It was my school and I cheer for them. Then I went to BYU and I cheered for them(sometimes it’s painful to watch them play and they have let me down a lot in the past but it’s still my school). I like UH too but at the professional level there aren’t any teams from Hawaii. It would cost too much to have everyone fly back and forth for games so I never really grew up behind a team and so I've never really had a team. That is, until nowJ I am officially a fan of the Philadelphia Phillies

                It all started when I married my beloved wife Sarah. She has a custom of going back to the east coast once a year and when I married her I had the opportunity to go. I personally have no connection to the east coast besides her. So anyway of all the souvenir things that I could buy from Philly the one thing that I wanted was a hat. I like hats and I have never owned a MLB one(I usually just buy something from Lids and put a patch on it or just wear a blank one. I used to get surf gear eg quicksilver, T&C etc but I stopped cuz they got expensive. Plus I don’t like any of the teams enough to actually sport their gear). So I went there with the intention of buying me a hat. I wanted the old school maroon one because I liked the color better than the red. I found a hat a bought it and had a neat new maroon hat and that was that.

                Well I thought that was that but it wasn’t.

my wife will tell you that I get more attention from people because of my hat than any other thing about me(its debatable. I get attention for being brown and for wearing Hawaii gear too that’s why). People have stopped me though to ask about the hat and ask if I was from there. My response is always the same. I tell them my wife is from there. Besides the attention I began to grow fond of my little that. It seemed to match with most anything, it was new and in good condition. It was comfortable and I liked how I looked in it. It started to grow on me.

                We recent had the opportunity to fly to Philly again. The weather was lovely and I recognized a lot of stuff from before. On the plane ride over we were watching the game on TV. It was the Phillies and the Cardinals trying to see who would go to the NLCS. As I sat on that plane I felt the familiar excitement; the excitement that arises from having a team to cheer for. The excitement that stems from being around lots of other people who seemed unified in one cause. With determination that matches that of the players, each fan believes that he or she can cause the team to win. It is to somehow with sheer will power, push your team forward. With more faith than you seen on most Sundays (tragically) everyone is united and hoping and watching in intense anticipation for the game leading scores and the amazing defensive stops. I felt that excitement again as I watch the Phillies. It’s a first for me to feel that for a baseball team. They continued to grow on me. And then they tragically lost! Oh the heart break! Oh the disappointment? What happened? Where were our star players? Why were they not clutch? The game was still in reach and the came up empty….lame….how is it that I feel such things for a team I never knew….

                Finally, we arrive at the present time. I am sitting in my Advanced Physiology class and I am walking to me seat and another kid in class says “hey where’s your Phillies hat? hehe”. The familiar taunting tone was barely detectable yet it was present. I stopped to think about it for a second and realized what he had been talking about. He saw me with my hat beforehand wanted to rub in the fact that they lost. It made sense. After class I approached him and casually talked to him about it. he lived in Boston and Atlanta and was a Braves and Red Sox fan. He talked about the Philly fan base and the team as I expressed my dismay to him. And like the sun rising it the morning it dawned on me;p

                I am a Phillies fan. The idea had slowly but surely grown on me over time. As my friend spoke to me I felt it. I felt the pride that a fan feels when speaking of his team. I felt the anticipation of next year’s team and a hope for another shot at the World Series. I felt like I could identify. I felt like I finally found a professional baseball team to root for. I decided then that I was a Phillies fan and that I would cheer for them. No matter how good or bad they are I will cheer for them. It’s a good feeling to be a part of something bigger than you. For lots of people being a fan is rather insignificant. It’s not a promotion and it’s not a honor someone bestowed. It’s not something you're born into and it’s not really something exclusive. You don’t have to be rich or poor or belong to any clubs in order to be a fan yet you still get to be unified, when your team is on the field, in cheering. It took me a while to realize it. in fact it grew on me so slowly I barely realized it. But that day it was clear to me. And I'm glad. Instead of having just a nice maroon accessory I now wear my hat with pride.

                                                                  

BYU- do i really need to blog about it? AURAI!

i wish they would go back to this one

Now is the time

this is the original one i made with the quote she wanted

while on the subject of football i thought of Remember the Titans and made this one

 So i wrote nell recently and she really liked what i said. she asked me to make a poster of the quote that she liked(im being quoted! hahaha) so i was going to draw but ended up doing them on computer. one things led to another and i came up with these:)

this one has a more missionary tone with the light significance and everything

i just like The Lion King

The Black Mechanical Pencil

The other day I was walking through the BYU bookstore on the BYU campus. I was down on the basement level where the school supplies are, and I was looking for a good pen to mark my scriptures. I was glossing over the large selection of pens and pencils that the bookstore has all neatly arranged in displays. A variety of colors and styles, each group neatly situated in their individual clear Plexiglas cubbies with bright colored signs and paper for testing. As I skimmed the cubbies looking for the right pen with the right colored ink with the right properties (mainly that they won’t bleed through a page and it won’t smear down the page. I want a fast drying, clean, brilliant sleek styled pen in order to mark my brand new- fresh leather-compositely bound-golden engraved set of scriptures, in the most stylishly fashionable and orderly manner), my eye caught the black and silver shine of the sleek 0.5mm Pentel P205 Technical Drafting mechanical pencil (made in japan).

The 0.5mm Pentel P205 Technical Drafting mechanical pencil (made in japan) is a rather expensive writing utensil. In the BYU bookstore they are about $5.99 plus tax, PER PENCIL. To put that into perspective that’s roughly equivalent to 12 McDonald’s apple pies (I'm sure that put it all into perspective for you of course :P). And that is just for ONE pencil. I have always bought the cheap pencils. They are like $2 for a box of 12. You know the little yellow ones that you need to sharpen? And they are made out of wood? Yeah those ones are the ones I bought until I came to college (in high school is did start to use a variation of wooden ones and mechanical ones) and started heavily investing in the cheap mechanical pencils by Bic (by the by, this is in no way any diss on the Bic brand or the Bic #2 mechanical pencils they sell. In fact I do rather like them). In contrast, one of those Bic ones at the BYU bookstore goes for about $.69 plus tax (I realize that the BYU bookstore isn’t the cheapest place. In fact there are many things that are overpriced. When it comes to buying those things that are overpriced I find it helpful to rationalize the buying of items by telling myself that I am paying for the convenience, and that’s true. I could pay the few extra cents to get something now, or I could pay for the extra gas to take a side trip to the nearest Wal-Mart or office max. I could also spend the time to walk to my car and drive there and look for the item in store then purchase it then get back in the car and then head back to the school and then get back. When I weight the price of the gas plus the price of my time plus the price of energy expended I usually feel like it’s more economical to pay the few cents of a convenience price.) so you can see how much more expensive the black Pentel is: it’s approximately 8.681159420289855072463768115942 times more expensive. So if a Pentel pencil is approximately 8.681159420289855072463768115942 times more expensive than a Bic one, it is perfect natural that you would expect said pencil (Pentel) to perform 8.681159420289855072463768115942 times as well than the other one (Bic). Have I lost you? Read it over a couple of times and it should make more sense. So, yesterday with great excitement I went to use it for the first time in the Testing Center (as a side note of clarification it is not the Testing Center nor the OChem test that loomed before me that caused great joy to swell within my bosom but the opportunity to use my 0.5mm Pentel P205 Technical Drafting mechanical pencil (made in japan)). The Dodecagononical (12 sided shape for those not currently taking organic chemistry or are familiar with the more multi sided shapes) shape rested lightly in between my fingers. The lined embossed natural plastic grip moving perpendicular to the length of the pencil wedges between my thumb and index finger while resting along the side of my middle finger. The silver cone that comes to an extended point and the graphite that protrudes even further looks sweet. The tiny white eraser that is hidden beneath its silver cylindrical hood (that is used for clicking, the hood that is) is efficient but because of the size of the eraser there is not a lot of room for error. The black mechanical pencil is ever so slightly heavier than what I am accustomed to but the feel in hand can be no more than a few milligrams heavier if noticeable at all. The line is smooth and clean without messy graphite chips. The black slick plastic and shiny metal trim make for a very classy classic design. All in all it is a rather pleasant pencil.

In case you couldn’t tell I did end up buying the pencil. I bought it that very day I first saw it to be honest. I spent the boat load (relatively speaking it’s not a ton but it is a lot for a pencil. Well that’s not technically accurate either because there are pencils that cost thousands of dollars but if we limit our population to college under grads then it becomes a more pricey item) on the black mechanical pencil (which is ironic because I don’t ever really spend on anything. I like to shop at Wal-Mart and the DI and I love to find deals and bargains. I've needed new shoes for the past 3 months but I haven’t bothered to buy a pair yet because I have been hesitant to spent the money and I've kept telling myself that it’s ok. I tell myself that there is no harm in using my same shoes because they happen to cover my feet keeping them warm and protect my feel against the hard ground. The bottoms are thin so I can feel and appreciate the shape and size of each and every rock beneath me. The holes that fill the sides and bottom create a wonderful ventilation system to keep my feet relatively cool and smelling fresh and aired out. They still work basically. But my shoes are another story I’ll have to tell at another time.). Now you might be wondering why I would spend so much on a simple pencil and it may surprise you to know the answer (or maybe you don’t care or maybe you knew the answer to begin with so you know). The answer is not that I like to lead a lavish life (although that’s not a bad idea). The answer is not because I like luxury (which I totally do. I went to Philly recently and got spoiledJ but that too is another story for another time.). The answer is not even curiosity (are you getting tired of me telling you what it’s not? Hehe. Are you wondering when I'm going to just tell you already what it is? Hehe). The answer is my dad.

From the first moment I saw the pencil a flood of memories came to me. More accurately a whole bunch of random clips came to me. You see that pencil is one that I grew up seeing my dad use. That pencil was the very pencil I saw him carry around. That was the pencil I remember as a child seeing in his hand and he scribbled things down. The bits and pieces of memory that came back to my have to do with the pencil being the main focus of the memory but other things happening in the background. For example I remember seeing that pencil with my dad and his scriptures. He was writing something down. I don’t remember what. In fact I rarely recall what it was that he was writing ever but I remember him writing. The memory has undertones of a gospel related focus. He was writing something down at a dinner table. Another memory is of him writing in a folder. As I recall it was a black 3 ring binder of sorts. There are work undertones to this particular memory. It is as if he was working on something work related at home. Both happened in the home. The next memory is of the pencil but the pencil has 2 different erasers at different times. I remember the tiny white eraser and I seem to recall a tiny green eraser. I am unable to distinguish if its 2 separate pencils or just a replaced eraser. I also remember rarely seeing that pencil alone. What I mean by that is that as I looked down at the unforgiving eraser (unforgiving in a sense that since it’s so small it’s not really made to be used a ton or to erase a lot. There isn’t a lot of room for mistakes as I explained before.) I began to recall an eraser, a separate one. It was a long blue shaft with a white cylindrical eraser that you could push up. The pencil seemed to always be with this blue eraser (the eraser was white but the plastic casing that it came in was blue). And when I think of the blue eraser my mind is drawn to a thick yellow highlighter. I remember seeing white pages full of black words and yellow lines that highlight various sections. I have not as yet bought the eraser or the highlighter. I am contemplating buying the eraser though if I happen to come across it. We’ll see if that actually comes to pass. The last memory is of my dad writing on a note pad. The contents of the writings are vague and ambiguous. In short I cannot remember exactly or at all what he was writing, but I remember him writing. His handwriting was immaculate. It was succinct yet had such flow to it. I remember watching him form the letters as they danced modestly across the page. I loved his hand writing and I still do.  I remember specifically seeing his signature and wanting to copy it. It looked awesome. I loved the curved nature of his elegant E’s and was impressed by his W. it is unique. I would go and practice this over and over to try to get it just like his. In the end it never did look like his. It’s ok that it’s not exactly like his. My own signature has its own flavor but it was derived from my inability to accurately reproduce his signature. I bought my expensive pencil because it reminds me of my dad.

It really isn’t about the 0.5mm Pentel P205 Technical Drafting mechanical pencil (made in japan) at all. In all reality the black mechanical pencil is just another “thing” that we can't take with us when we go. It is the significance behind the “thing” that really matters. It is the memories that are evoked that matters. It is the man who is behind the black mechanical pencil that makes the pencil itself matter at all. It is a desire to be like such an amazing man. Similarly to how I always wanted to go to BYU just because my father had attended the school (and it wasn’t even the first school he attended but it was the one that I knew and associated him with). In the same childish fashion I wanted to be like my dad. I wanted to buy the pencil my dad used and use it at the university that my dad attended. From the simple child-like desires to emulate those you look up to; to the more profound meaning of what it means to try to be like my father, who has done much in his life thus far, I am glad I came across this pencil. The $5.99 plus tax is well worth it and such a small price to pay given the emotional and psychological benefits derived from the small purchase. As a symbol of good times, good memories and a good man I take pride in my little black mechanical pencil.

Now there is a chance that this is not the pencil. There is a chance that it was a completely different pencil (that would be funny and kind of weird at the same time hehe). There is a chance that my memories aren’t really memories but composites of life experiences that I sewed together and perceive as a memory that never really took place. Given the nature of my classes and the things I study I am willing to accept my human errors and not put it past myself to do such a thing. But if not... J. If I am wrong and it is not the pencil, is there really any harm in having good memories evoked by it? If I continue to believe it is THE pencil and I die and go to heaven and Heavenly Father tells me that it’s not and I spent the whole time on earth believing it was and drew great joy from it but it turns out to not be THE pencil, does it really matter? I think not. I am content believing it is though. I think it is. It matches my memory of it. And most importantly the man behind the idea is there and true and real. You see it’s not about the black mechanical pencil; it’s about the man behind it.