Hey all, perhaps an update is in order? 

Elder Ricks, a most lovely missionary whose letters I just about swoon over, is doing quite well at the MTC. He is only there for a week and a half now, and then he will be off to Russia. He just sent his family a CD of himself and some other missionaries singing The Lord Is My Shepherd, and his dad sent it to me. Oh, it is a sweet song. Those missionaries are going to make a lot of people cry tears of joy during the next couple of years.

At home for me it is getting quite difficult. My mom suffers from a type of depression which makes her very hard to deal with and very frustrating and... while she says and claims and feels like she cannot do anything, it is very obvious that if we all abandon her she will do what must be done. Abandon, of course, is used loosely, for example I helped her pack for our trip to Utah but after about half-an-hour I told her I was finished. At first she whined but as I left she gave up and said "Thank you" and, I believe, did just fine without me. It is sad what this stupid mental disorder does. Unfortunately there is no one in particular for me to resent, so I really just have to accept that this sort of thing happens. I am so impressed by how my dad can handle it and for thirty years (their anniversary was yesterday).

I think I just wanted to get some of that out of my head... Otherwise, I am alright. I find myself reading more fiction than I should. Really, I should be reading the Bible and Book of Mormon and other scriptures and talks and give my testimony a pillow of faith. Instead, "One Hundred Years of Solitude" is taking up my time with a long list of other books I must read. After seventeen years of life one might think I could have reconciled my love of reading with my spirituality, but for me it is a battle.

Well, good luck everyone with your lives. I must go and pack for Utah myself. We have a big family reunion this weekend, the first in 16 years.

Tags: Life

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