Mona's

Well, it's been over a year since I last wrote (sounds an awful lot like every diary entry I wrote when I was little). I was reminded today about how much I like to write. I've missed it. So why not start now? It can't hurt to try, so here goes nothing!

Today I joined in on a lesson the sister missionaries were teaching in Murfreesboro. I was surprised to find that my friend Farrah lives in the Walter Hill area of Murfreesboro. I LOVE Walter Hill. I've gone to the elementary school there several times for science kit trainings. My coworkers can't stand driving out that far, but I love the drive! It's picturesque. Every time I drive through the area, I leave with a renewed desire to live in the country--close to civilization, but far from traffic and ugly shopping centers.

Frankly, I've seen beautiful country on all sides of Nashville, but the Walter Hill area has one claim on my heart that none other has:

Mona's.

Click on the picture to see a 360 degree view.

Mona's is a small, family-owned restaurant on West Jefferson Pike. It's the lone restaurant for the space of a few miles. It's surrounded by farmland and is neighbor to a small church and the home of the restaurant owners. I decided that since I was in the area, I couldn't pass up a trip to the quaint cafe. Their menu is small, but so delicious....and you want to know one my favorite features of the restaurant? They serve Blue Bell ice cream--dessert straight from my homeland!

Only one other customer came into Mona's while I was there. He ordered some take-out, so I had the place to myself. I loved sitting there staring out the window at the falling rain. There's something so cozy about watching rain, but being safe and warm inside. In this hole-in-the-wall joint in Murfreesboro, TN, it's almost like time stopped...and I could just be. When I think of the country, I think of peace. Stillness. Beauty. And now, Mona's.

While eating, I got a text from Farrah, who drove by and saw me sitting there by the window. Lucky her--to live so close! She doesn't know this yet, but I'm now formulating a plan....it involves a tent and a small patch of grass on her lawn. Farrah, how would you feel about getting a new neighbor? :)

The Day I Became a Bass

It amazes me what the common cold can do to a person. After spending a little too much time in the snow before going home for Christmas, I developed a cold which consequently qualified me for the bass section of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. No audition necessary.

One night whilst I had this cold, I walked over to the piano, played a pitch, and gradually kept lowering my pitch a half-step until I had reached an ivory territory that probably no woman has ever before encountered. Randy will argue it, but for at least a half a second I was able to sing a low, low A flat. That's TWO A flats below middle C, which is not normal for people with two X chromosomes. Nor does it feel good on the vocal chords.

So look for me among the black suits and matching ties next time you see the MoTab. I'll be the only one with long, blond hair.

Auld Lang Syne

Don't let the date above deceive you. It is 2:05 AM on January the 1st of 2011. Today, well, yesterday actually, I was wondering why on earth the new year is such a big deal for people. Don't get me wrong--I love that it prolongs my Christmas break, but why is it such a cause to celebrate? In spite of the fact that I'm way past the time of night in which my brain tends to shut off (generally around 9), I'd like to take a stab at answering my own question.

I think part of the reason for the New Year's enthusiasm is that one moment when the countdown has gotten to 1, everybody cheers and yells Happy New Year!, and we suddenly bridge from one year to the next. I myself was fascinated at the thought that I had already embarked upon my first minutes of 2011, and yet some of my dear friends in other time zones were still living in 2010. Weird and insanely awesome all at the same time!

When you really think about it, though, it is kind of a neat holiday. It's a chance to look back on the last 365 days--to see how our lives have changed and how far we've come...to remember our struggles and triumphs...but also to look forward to the future. To the unknown. To the endless array of possibilities before us. That Phantom we call the Unknown has the uncanny ability to be both frighteningly paralyzing and exhilaratingly motivational. The unknown requires us to be a people of faith and action. We have to have faith that the Lord will guide us, and we also have to be willing to make a plan and act on it. Choosing what to plan for--that is my challenge.

My 2010 was full of new experiences and excitement. I completed my Teacher Work Sample. I finished my first year of teaching and now look back on it with such fond memories. I graduated from college and got my teaching license! I struggled to know where to go and had some disappointments along the way. Once I made the decision to move to Nashville, I was out of my apartment and on the road to my new home in five days. I moved in with my brother Randy's family and became part of the reading department at an elementary school. Though I can't list off all the reasons for my current location and status in life, I have a few ideas. One of those is that in coming to Nashville I have had the opportunity to meet and become good friends with some amazing, amazing people. That's the best part about where I'm at now. I'm so happy to be in Nashville.

But what does 2011 hold? What adventures can I pursue in the next 365 days? My good friend Enya has been known to echo these queries as well as answer them. "Who can say where the road goes? Where the day flows? Only time." Here's to a new year and to the details of life that will unfold in that time!

p.s. Although I cannot tell you everything that will happen this year, I can tell you one thing--and that is what will be happening in about five minutes. I'll be asnooze in my bed! :) (Thanks to Dr. Seuss for his one-of-a-kind terminology!)

Bugs and Skunks

(Thanks to Google Images for the pictures.) :)

Before I forget, I need to write something short about the insane amount of bugs that Tennessee seems to have. Sheesh! At first I thought, 'When God created animals and creatures, He must have had a whole bunch left over, and I'm pretty sure He dumped them all here in Tennessee'. Then I realized that didn't account for Noah and the flood. However it happened, we have an extraordinary amount of bugs. Grasshoppers and crickets, big blue caterpillar-looking things, ants--you name it.

When we went to Philmont in high school, Liz Childs and I performed "bug checks" in our tent at night because she was really frightened of them. Liz, I don't think TN's the place for you, unless of course you've decided to become an entomologist. Don't get me wrong-there are a ton of great things about this place, but why all the bugs?

The other unpleasantry: skunks. I smell at least a few a week. I've never smelled so much skunk spray in my life.

This bug/skunk situation may not sound very appealing to you....but in spite of it all, I still think Nashville is Zion. :)

Real, Fun, and Real Fun

real 1 |ˈrē(ə)l|

adjective1 actually existing as a thing or occurring in fact; not imagined or supposed
fun |fən|nounenjoyment, amusement, or lighthearted pleasure

real fun |ˈrē(ə)l| |fən|adverb + adjectivea state of extreme fun, a derivative of the phrase 'really fun'

Lori, Me, and Jaclyn at Holiday World (an amusement park in Indiana)

I reeeeaally love water slides!

Waiting in line...you know how amusement parks go.

Me with Laura, afraid on the ferris wheel at the Wilson County Fair :)

Me and Chantel, looking at the chickens

Nashville Institute hike at Edwin Warner Park to kick off studying the Doctrine and Covenants

Scarecrows....enough said.

Nicole and I are posing for a picture to be placed on her next album. Right, Nicole??

I wanted a picture in front of these Gerbera Daisies that were growing in an organic garden.

Rowan's face says it all. Real. Fun. And real fun.

Nauvoo!

At the end of July, I went to Nauvoo, Illinois with some of the other YSAs. What a cool opportunity! I'm so glad I got to go. I'll share some pictures, and I'll try to keep my writing to a minimum. I know I tend to be a bit verbose sometimes.

Me with a statue of the Prophet Joseph and his brother, Hyrum

This is the sister missionary who gave us our tour of Carthage Jail. Carthage was my favorite part of this trip. The Prophet Joseph was kept here unjustly with others who volunteered to stay with him. What a special and solemn place!

Me at the window of Joseph Smith's martyrdom. He was shot at from inside the jail and from without its walls as well.

An angry mob burst into the jail. That bullet hole is big enough to fit your index finger through. I think another bullet broke the lock as well.

The window that Joseph fell out of upon being shot by the mob.

Beautiful outside view of that window. I kept an acorn that fell from the tree that is right outside that window.

Angela, Dave, Alberto, Tim, and me at the Carthage Visitor's Center

Me, Jaclyn, and Lori on a covered wagon in Nauvoo. (Apparently I missed the sunglasses memo.)

A gorgeous shot of Nauvoo at sunset. This was on our way to the Nauvoo Pageant.

The Nauvoo Pageant--singing, dancing, and acting out stories of the early Saints.

Waiting for the Pageant to start

The Pageant with a backdrop of the Nauvoo Temple that was gradually built during the program. At the end, they lit up the real Nauvoo Temple in the background and we heard a recording of President Hinckley talking about the Nauvoo Temple facing west and the SLC Temple facing east. It's cool that the Nauvoo Temple faces west, the direction of the early Saints' journey to a home safe from angry mobs and unfair governments. The Salt Lake City temple faces the opposite direction--almost like it's observing the journey that was taken and everything that happened along the way. Now there are so many wonderful temples all around the world!

A statue of Hyrum and Joseph. I think it's of them as they were leaving Nauvoo for the last time--headed to Carthage where they would be martyred. I wish that I could go back in time and meet the wonderful people of Nauvoo!

(As a side note, I just love Hyrum! Like Nephi's brother Sam in the Book of Mormon, Hyrum was a faithful companion and a very righteous man.)

Here's the group in front of the Nauvoo Temple!

It is super pretty! It was rebuilt in 2002 on the same property as the original Nauvoo Temple. The original was destroyed by fire and a tornado after the Saints left Nauvoo.

We walked along the Trail of Hope--the trail taken by the Saints on their way to cross the Mississippi toward the west.

Along the trail, you can ready quotes in stone from the people of Nauvoo. Some tell of the freezing winter conditions that the Saints had to endure as they crossed the Mississippi.

In this picture on the Trail of Tears, you can see the Mississippi River. It would be interesting to be here in the winter when you could get a better feel for the conditions the Saints had to endure. This is absolutely beautiful, but I don't think they had the same July weather on their side when they left.

They had to leave the Temple they had worked so hard on.

Here's me--my first time being at the Mississippi.

The whole group in front of the Mississippi.

I'm grateful for the Prophet Joseph Smith. He was the first prophet of the latter-days, called to restore the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the earth in its fulness. He truly testified of Christ. He taught that Jesus Christ is the center of our faith, and that everything else is an appendage to that core belief. Joseph could not have made up the things that he taught--he was instructed by God and was given the authority act in His name. He was followed by many other wonderful prophets. Today the Lord's prophet is Thomas S. Monson, and I look forward to hearing from him at General Conference in October. In spite of the challenges that our world faces right now, there is a lot of good going on as well. I hope to contribute to that good. What a great time to live on the Earth!

License to Drive

Today I had to say good-bye to my Texas Driver License. I'm not trying to be one of those annoying Texas pride people, but I think you'd have to be a Texan to understand why it was sad to give it up. I still had my vertical 'under 21' license that Texas gives out when you're a minor. I think I still had a few good years left on that card. I wish I could have finagled a way to keep it as a memento.

Even though I was sad to let go of my Texas license, it's kind of exciting to get a new one for another state. I'm a Tennessee resident now with a Tennessee Driver License! Woohoo!