You're Gonna Make It

Some days you just can't help but smile. Some days you realize how blessed you really are, how much you have been given. Some days you realize that you can do things on your own and that you don't have to worry. Some days you get inspiration from Mary Tyler Moore.

You're gonna make it after all. 

And then on top of that realization, you get a Valentine's Day care package from your brother, sister-in-law, and baby (almost) sisters who live 1500 miles away. You really start to feel the love.

I just finished reading a book called Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell for my Sociology class. It was incredible. I wholeheartedly recommend this book to everyone. Gladwell explains how we never rise from nothing, we are all products of many different people who help to shape us and help to become the people we are. This book made me realize how much I have been given and how many people in my life deserve a massive THANK YOU for all they've done to give me the life I have. So this post is dedicated to all of those amazing people...and here are a few of them.

 My fabulous fabulous family. My grandparents, who loved me always, who gave me a love of Beanie Babies, gave me memories of Christmases, Easters, & birthdays, who held me and loved me no matter how short they were in my life, who gave me a legacy to continue. My parents, who brought me up in a happy home, who taught me to love education and books, who paid for all of my schooling, who taught me to be kind and how to find my way in the world. My brother, who taught me how to play basketball, spent hours helping me practice my free throw, set an example by going on a mission, improved my fashion sense. My sister-in-law, who latched onto me and our family long before she became a part of it, who set an amazing example of perseverance and kindness. My sister-in-law's family, all 8 of them, for loving our family, including us, and helping us, for drawing me pictures of flowers and rainbows.

 My incredible youth group leaders. They've done more for me than I have ever realized. Yes, they took us canoeing and camping, to the beach, to Nauvoo. But they taught us incredible lessons along the way. They taught me what it means to be a woman, what it means to be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, how to be an example, how to be a leader, how to get along with others. I remember one year when I was around 15, our girls were not meshing well, we could just never get along properly. So they took us camping, and unbeknownst to us at the time, they brought us so that we could bond and do group oriented activities, to learn to trust each other and cooperate. We had to lift each other through car tires without letting our bodies touch the side. We had to get out of a human knot. We had to sit around the fire and tell everyone about our first kisses, our favorite body parts (that was a hoot!), and our desires for our lives. I feel like this camping trip was a true turning point for us. From then on, we were practically inseparable.

 The youth leaders I had growing up never gave up on me. They still want to know how I'm doing and what I'm up to. They still love me no matter how old I get or where I am in the world. They set incredible examples for me and I will never forget the influence they had in my life. I hope to become even just a fraction of what these women are.

My amazing Seminary teachers. They truly never gave up on me. Admittedly, seminary was not at the top of my priority list. I had to do at-home seminary where we met once a week before mutual activities (because I lived too far away from the church building to get back before school started). No matter what anyone says, at-home seminary is 10x harder than early morning seminary. Yes the early morning people have to get up early and go to the church building...but they also occasionally get away with sleeping through it. I had to write papers after papers after papers! I was behind, but I knew I needed to get everything done to give me the best chance at getting into BYU. My two teachers gently nudged me to get everything completed in time and I most definitely owe my getting into BYU to them--for teaching me and for writing recommendation letters. You've most definitely had a role in making my college dream a reality.

I'll be graduating from Brigham Young University in exactly 72 days. It's been an amazing four years and I owe a TON of my success here to the people mentioned above and so many more. Thank you for helping me to become (and continue to become) the woman I am and want to be.

We are all products of many other people. We are given special opportunities to move higher in life. We are taught lessons from the people around us--both intentionally and unintentionally. You yourself may just be contributing to the success and life of someone around you. 

I'm gonna make it after all.