Of Reflections and Progress

We may not understand the Lord's timing, but we can certainly enjoy the journey just as much as we enjoy the top.

My dear friends, it has been nearly a year since I last posted on this page. I’m surprised that blogger didn’t close the account, and I’m very grateful that they didn’t!

Let me explain part of the beauty that is in a three-day weekend. It’s refreshing. Yes, it’s true that we have been in school for only two weeks and I know it’s only going to get crazier (and with one more three-day weekend, our Winter Semester transforms from a sprint to a marathon.) Nevertheless, an extra day to get stuff done is simply divine.

I was pleasantly surprised when I received various messages from people wondering when my next post would be. I’ll be honest; I’m not a huge social media junkie. I don’t tweet every hour of my day or post every footstep I take on Facebook. I have slowly discovered that I like to keep my personal affairs private until I feel the necessity or the prompting to share them with others. This is one of those times when you, the most important person in the world, get s a glimpse inside of my life. Lucky you!

Many have wondered what has happened to me since a year ago. I’m sure you all have caught some of the more significant bits and pieces of my life but have missed some of the smaller and often more inspiring events. Just a disclaimer before I begin. I do not intend this post to be short, nor do I intend for it to be long winded. I expect it to capture what I intend it to capture. With that said, strap yourselves in and enjoy the ride!

So much has happened since that last post. I was in the middle of my second semester since being home from my mission and was trying to decide what I wanted my major to be. I was training for my current job, had a great church calling, and had this burning desire to get married. Life certainly wasn’t easy but things were going like I planned. At that time, I couldn’t imagine anything better and I was very excited for what the future held.

About that time, a lot of things in my life took some pretty radical turns. The disorientation that occurred was similar to that of pinning the tail on the donkey after being blindfolded and spun around three times. A lot of the plans I had were gone in one quick instant and I suddenly found myself wondering what my next step should be. I’m fairly certain that everyone has felt that way one time or another.

When I face times of trial and disappointment, I rarely like to spend a long time dwelling on my misfortunes. I often find something to focus my time and block out the rest of the world.  My refuge became school. I was taking classes with one of my good friends so we spent a lot of time with each other working finance problems or programming things in excel. That lasted for a solid couple of weeks. Finally, the time came when I needed to do something other than learn about the Weighted Average Cost of Capital or VBA. That was when I wrote my last post. Life’s dust had settled a little bit and I was able to see some things a little more clearly.

Life continued on in a different way from that point on. The semester turned out much better than I was expecting, I officially declared myself as a pre-accounting major, and work was going well. Dating was dating. Unlike a lot of my friends (which is even a bigger case now) I did NOT have a lot of success with that aspect of my life. It frustrated me then but with the perspectives I have now, I realize that it’s not that big of a deal. We simply continue through life putting more foot in front of the other. This is no different.

Spring term was an adventure in and of itself. I was going to school full time finishing up my last University GE and taking my last prerequisite class for the Accounting program. Though everything turned out well and I ended up getting the grades I needed, I started having second thoughts about my future. Did I really want to do accounting forever? Finance seemed like a lot more fun. And what about Organizational Behavior and Human Resources? Unsure, I took my questions and concerns before Heavenly Father. We discussed the pros and cons of each option, the goals I had for my life, and the expectations he had for me. I finally decided to apply for all three programs, force ranking them from Accounting to Finance to OB/HR.

The time came. I got into all three programs. I chose Accounting and my life again took on a whole new path. I filled the rest of my summer rest of summer with work and had the goal of enjoying myself while my freedom lasted.

A few weeks before school started I went with my family to Colorado. Fishing, hiking, and spending time with family away from the craziness of real life is some of the best stress medicine in the world if you ask me. I could be fishing on a stream back in the mountains any day and be perfectly content (well, content as long as my hands are warm). Can I just say how interesting it is to be the youngest of five children? It is so fascinating! We are all so unique in some very different ways and it takes teamwork and patience to be able to accept the others as who they are. We may have this inherent skill of somehow getting under each other’s skin when we are together, but I will never ever doubt the love we have for each other. I mean, what more can I say? Family is great!

The summer ended and the time for school came. I did a team triathlon here in Provo with my best BYU friend Cameron Collins and his (now wife) Emily. My best friend from home, Ray Lehnhoff, also surprised me with a visit at the first of August. Then I started my first semester of the Accounting Junior core. Honestly, I was terrified me beyond all reason. Let me briefly explain this program to those who may not be familiar with it. BYU’s accounting program is currently ranked third in the country and, generally, only accepts 250 students a year.  EVERY student I talked to told me to accept that fact that I would be doing homework for eight hours a day and have no personal life.

Yep. Kind of intimidating.

Well, the Core held up to its hype. I have never had to go through such a hard semester in my life. I pulled long days (usually 6am to 12pm) with limited breaks, I had a big church calling, and I tried all that I could to do fun things on the weekend so I could keep my sanity. To say that it was a fun experience would be a blatant lie. However, I will say that I have rarely done something so rewarding ever in my life. I learned so much, my professors were incredible, and the members of my group were outstanding. I love each of them so much (which may or may not be attributed to the 40 hour Warren Case we had to do at the beginning of the semester.) Though it was one crazy three and a half months, when it was all said and done, the results absolutely surprised me. I was reminded of just how much the Lord had taken control of my situation.

That brings us to today. So, what is happening now? I just took you on this long (but extremely abbreviated) version of the past 10 months and now you are wondering what my next adventure will be! (Ok, maybe not. But at least pretend you are interested.)

In the middle of last semester, my Audit professor told us about a Study Abroad he does for the Accounting students to France, Belgium, and England. With no significant dating plans in place and no internships lined up, I played with the idea of going. I met with him and asked him the questions I had about it, took the idea to the temple, and prayed about it on different occasions. I decided that I would fill out the application and then, if I could find a way to pay for it, submit it for their decision. That was in December. I did everything over Christmas break but still didn’t feel super good about putting it in. Knowing that the deadline was coming up, I decided to take my questions to last week’s CES Fireside with President Uchtdorf. There, I allowed myself to write and record any impressions I received. I won’t go into detail but, simply put, I got my answer to submit the application and trust in the Lord. So, I did. AND I GOT IN!!! I’M GOING TO EUROPE!!!!

Otherwise, things in life are really simple. The semester isn’t going to be as mentally taxing as the last (now I have more time to meet people other than accounting nerds like me) and I have become an absolute BYU basketball maniac! Life is good!

Now that you have the background info, I want to change tones a little bit and hopefully provoke some thought. I hope that these help at least one of you along in your own personal journey back to our Heavenly Father.

Looking back to the last 18 months or so of my life (since I’ve been home from my mission) my perception of life has changed significantly. I seemed to go so far by making goals and plans and I felt almost invincible. I will be the first to tell you that I’m very proud and grateful for my past accomplishments. Though I won’t say that I earned or even deserved everything that has happened to me, I know that the Lord expects us to make hard decisions and to really strive to make things happen in our life. He wants to see hope and faith demonstrated in our actions.  Sadly, we often fail to see just how much His hand was in everything that we have done until the time has long past.

Such has been the story of my life. Such WILL be the story of my life. And you know what? I’m perfectly content with that fact. I love having a Heavenly Father that will let me work hard to accomplish my goals. I will be forever grateful for a Savior that helps me complete my mortal and eternal picture. We cannot fulfill our greatest potential without their help and I will forever stand by that fact.

One of my favorite theatrical lines comes from a movie titled “Dan in Real Life.” If you have never seen it, watch it. It’s great! Anyway, the very last line of the movie says, “Prepare to be surprised.” What a great piece of advice! Can anybody else see the comfort and optimism of that statement? We may never understand the Lord’s timing but we can have faith that he knows what is best for us. For myself, who knows what the future has in store? Who knows when I will find “the one?” Who knows where I will be 10 years from now? Though those future things are important today, they are not more important than what I do right now.  This life was made for us to live and enjoy in righteousness. And the best part is, we have the most powerful being on our side to help us accomplish that!

If there is one thing that I could have you take away from this ghastly long post, it is this. Life is complex, confusing, complicated, and sometimes extremely frustrating. But don’t let those times keep you down. If it seems like your world is crashing down in a fantastic blaze of glory, hold your head high. You are in great company! When those times come, take a break and return back to the basics. Think of all of the blessings you receive every day. A breath of fresh air (even if it is -4 degrees outside). The smell of fresh pine trees. The sound of a mountain stream. Our Father in Heaven is aware of you. In a very literal sense, he has known you for an eternity and definitely knows you a lot better than you know yourself. Take some time to strengthen your relationship with him. Open the scriptures. Listen during your prayers. Test his promises.

Who knows? You might just learn something about yourself.

Roll On --Andrew