The Year of Reading--The Brothers Karamazov

The Year of Reading—I tried really hard to come up with a better name, but my creativity sputtered on this one—has been coming along just fine . . . if fine means I'm still reading the same book that I was reading a month ago. Let's face it—The Brothers Karamazov is a dense book. I'm halfway through and the murder that's promised in the second sentence in the cover blurb has yet to happen. In other words, NO ONE HAS BEEN MURDERED YET, AND I'M ON PAGE 338!

Oh, the book has talked about everything under the Russian moon, from religion and politics to servants and masters. And *spoilers* the priest is dead but there was a whole section about his life that I thought would never end . . .

Sigh. I feel like I'm close to the actual murder so I keep pushing through. If it weren't for that carrot, I would have quit reading this book weeks ago.

The next book I'm going to read is going to be shorter, written by a non-Russian, and more entertaining.

 I hope.

Oh, I really, really hope.

Just keep reading! Just keep reading!

Side note: Whenever I look at the cover, the drawing of the man floating in the background reminds me of an angry David Tennant. What do you think?

"The Year Is Dying in the Night"--Life Lessons Learned in 2013

Another year is almost gone, and I'm once again wondering how to slow time down. This year went by so fast! Yet, at times, it felt like it was never going to end. And I'm beginning to sound a whole lot older than what I really am. Without further ado, here are some lessons I learned in 2013!

LESSONS LEARNED IN 2013

(in no particular order)

1. God is aware of me and personally cares for me.  I think this is a lesson I learn every year, but it was particularly evident in 2013. From answering my prayers to putting people in my life at the right time, God was a huge part of my life. Even when I felt unnoticed, unwanted, and perhaps even unneeded, he made sure that I knew he did not feel that way about me. Those moments when I felt God's love and acceptance helped me through some tough times. 
2. Sometimes you meet your deadlines and others time you won't. Don't beat yourself up when you don't. I found that by evaluating what I could and could not control in situations was the best antidote for feeling like a failure. And by pressing forward, doing the best I could, and making up for any fault on my part often led to positive results.
3. God has a sense of humor . . . or impeccable timing. Or both. Just when I decided to transfer to the family ward, I get a stake calling that allows me to stay in my singles ward. I still laugh about this sometimes. Okay, a lot.
4. Exercise works. One reason I stopped blogging was because I joined a gym and then signed up for Group Training with a personal trainer. Three times a week for an hour. Three hours of a lot of sweat. Best decision ever. Second best decision was to involve my doctor. Through my efforts and regular checkups with the doc, I've lost 35 pounds this year, most of them in the last six months. I'm feeling great.
5. The last two miles of a half-marathon suck. But the feeling of crossing the finish line is exhilarating. Which means I'll be doing another half-marathon in 2014. I hope to be a few more pounds lighter and have a faster time. 
6. Turn to others for help, especially the Savior. Why wait until I'm absolutely miserable before asking for help? Well, that's the way I've done it in the past, but I can't say it's been the most effective. I learned that it was better to turn to others for help rather than waiting. And the biggest source of help was the Savior. Relying on him more has been life changing. 
7. Choosing kindness is a better way to live. Perhaps this is an ongoing lesson, but it's a good one. Being kind to others, even when it's inconvenient or frustrating or when I don't really feel like it, is a better way to live, one that I think the Savior did. Trying to see the other person's perspective helped me to choose kindness, and I feel it's helped me to connect with others. I'm not perfect, of course, and I've had my share of being impatient and hassled. But choosing kindness doesn't take much and it's made me feel happy.
8. Use a little less sarcasm and a little more sincerity. Sarcasm can be funny, but it can also be hurtful. Sincerity goes a long way to building a relationship.
9. Take time to study topics you're interested in. I discovered Audible and some of the books I've listened to are topics I'm interested in. And that leads to reading stuff online and checking out books at the library. I love learning and when I have a chance to study favorite topics or learn new things, I get so excited. And it makes me happy. And I feel educated. 
10. Take a chance and do something you've never done. You'll be surprised by what you learn and can do. Some things I've done this year that are firsts: run a 10k, run a half-marathon, watch Doctor Who (and now I'm a huge fan!), go on a road trip to Nevada, go to an Imagine Dragons concert, and got an Audible subscription. I've had a pretty good year.
11. When you get depressed, it's best to find someone with empathy. I've also had a year of up-and-down emotions, and I was depressed  a few times. It's those moments that I could use lesson #6. And the best people to turn to were those who are empathetic. My dear friends who helped me when I was low, thank you for your support.

Evaluation of 2013 Goals:

1. Finish editing my novel and get it published. Can we say crash and burn? I made a few feeble attempts—they were really feeble. My novel will have to wait, I suppose. The biggest blockade? Time. Most of my time was focused on health, calling, and family and friends. 

2. Have a 30-minute scripture study session weekly. Did really well at this until August. Yeah, August was a crazy month. It's been spotty since then.

3. Lose 15 pounds in 4 months. Success!!! 

Bonus goal: complete a half-marathon. Check. :)

2014 Goals:

1. The Year of Reading: this year I'm not buying any more books until I finish reading the books I've already bought and haven't read yet. The idea is not to ban book-buying but to encourage reading more. I'm excited about this one. 

2. Hike Mount Timpanogos. I haven't felt physically able to do this, but by August 2014 I plan to be in good enough shape to do it. And when I stand on the top, I am going to be so happy.

3. Find an ancestor's name and do the temple work for her. I've been wanting to do this for a while. Might as well do it this year.