John McCain is arrogant

I have been watching the republican debate from last night and I am developing the impression that McCain is an arrogant SOB. (SOB is not something that I would normally write, let alone say, but it seems to fit.) Anyway, He keeps saying, "So and so and so and so and 4 so and sos are backing me. Person A is supporting me so look how great I am. I was in the Military and so I would make the best commender-in-chief(something I do commend, but I do not think that past service in the military is necessarily indicative of future effective leadership of the entire military). The man is driving me crazy and Huckabee is such a snob. He won't leave the race because he sees it as a blow to the Romney campaign. I was not a huge Romney supporter because I did not want to join the "Mormon bandwagon" of supporters who bear their testimonies about how wonderful it is to have a member of the church running for the highest office in our country. (These people are a little crazy!) However, with the ridiculousness of the other republican candidates' high school like tactics, my fire is being fueled in that direction. I really like Ron Paul and a lot of his libertarian ideas, but do not feel that he is at all electable. He doesn't exactly have a commanding presence. I hope that others will see through McCain and not vote for him come this Super Tuesday!

Kindness

It has been a while since I last entered anything in here and perhaps it is because I really wasn't feeling quite like myself during that time. I still struggle a little bit, but I feel that I am better prepared to deal with those feelings and rise above a lot of the depression that sometimes gets to me. I am ready to feel empowered; to take control of my life again and keep everything in balance like I have been able to do in the past. I suppose that all of us go through times like this to some degree in our lives although we may call it different names and deal with it in our own unique and personal ways. Some of reach out to others to help us and pull us out of the mire where we have fallen. Others of us hold it deep inside of us and choose not to share it with anyone. We put on a happy face to the world, one that says, "I can handle this, I can handle anything." Then, when friends and acquaintances find out the truth about what we are hiding, they are surprised. That might be our fault to some degree, if not entirely. There are so many ways that we all deal with our struggles and the important thing is to not judge each other. If we could all assume the best in each other and never underestimate the power of our kindness to others, I really believe that a lot of the suffering that occurs in the world would be alleviated to some degree. I know that those who have been unconditionally kind to me have made the most difference in my life. From the kind doctor in the ER, to my dear family, and devoted friends, they have all buoyed me up in the darkest hours. Thank you.

Wednesdays...

This will be quick because I need to be on my way out the door to YW. Actually, I need to grab an entertaining movie and the DVD player in the hopes that it will keep the children entertained while the Laurels learn about Scripture study from the RS president. This should be interesting. It is funny how even though the primary worry about me having this calling was that Marc deploys so frequently it turns out that he has been out flying almost every Wednesday since being home from his deployment. I guess that just makes Wednesday evenings a little more exciting. Not to mention that I have to worry about the safety of my children because of the rogue youths who just wander around the chapel with nowhere to go and no one who is responsible for them. Yikes! I guess that tonight I really don't have anything too entertaining to write about except that time seems to be moving very slowly along. I don't know what is wrong with me lately, but I have felt it difficult to be motivated to do the things that I normally do without so much as a thought. Today I considered writing a chore list for myself in case I found myself staring into space wondering what comes next. Life can be funny at times!

Conflicts

I am certain that in every organization conflicts are bound to arise. Some events are supposed to be scheduled a year in advance so that entities within the organization can plan their own meetings and events with the organization as a whole in mind and without conflicting with those already planned events. So, what do you do when the leadership at the top has failed to plan an important training meeting a year in advance and informs you of it only nine days in advance when the lower entity has already planned something? You write off the other one and tell them to plan better next time! I just had to inform someone that their lack of planning was going to negate our entire branch of the organization from attending their training that was supposed to be planned and placed on a calendar a year in advance. I am a little bit worried about the backlash just because I know some of the people involved and they are nit-picky. I suppose that I am used to nice invitations being mailed a month in advance informing me of the important event and it not conflicting with things already in the works. Ugh. While I wish that everyone would do things how they are supposed to be done, I need to have patience with others because I certainly screw up things pretty good on my own sometimes.
In other news....One of the youth I work with told me that she just doesn't feel like attending our meetings. That's it??!!?? You just don't FEEL like doing something? What kind of adult will she be if she just writes things off because she doesn't feel like doing things? What would the world be like if any of us with any responsibility just decided that we didn't FEEL like taking care of those things entrusted to our care? I am regretting not firing back at her with those comments. Instead I simply said, "You have your agency, but you are making a poor decision." Her mom had already talked to her about not attending and then returned to her own class. Week after week it is the same thing with this mother and daughter. Maybe soon they will FEEL like doing the right thing, but hopefully before it is too late.

What is the use of non-competitive sports?

Okay, I just got a call from John's last soccer coach while he was enrolled to play at the YMCA telling us of an upcoming game this Saturday. I had to break the news to him that he would not be playing at the Y anymore. I neglected to tell him why, but it is simply because of the noncompetitive nature of the entire program. I understand that it is because they want everyone to feel good about playing and learning sports, but it is ridiculous to not teach kids how to win and lose appropriately. When John did t-ball this past spring, it was an absolute joke. John didn't even enjoy it because his coach didn't feel the necessity of teaching the kids the rules of the game because they weren't ever going to keep score and everyone had a turn for every game. We have vowed never to be in that league again for t-ball. We were also irritated when we attended a meeting for the YMCA soccer. We found out that because the league is so small, the teams play the same teams over and over. This brought back memories of t-ball. How are children ever going to learn how to lose and not be devastated? If they win all of the time and everyone is good, the desire to achieve will be squashed and advancement will cease. Thankfully, John will be in the league he was in last year which actually inspired confidence!