Dirait-on

"Abandon entouré d'abandon, tendresse touchant aux tendresses... 
C'est ton intérieur qui sans cesse se caresse, dirait-on; 
se caresse en soi-même, par son propre reflet éclairé. 
Ainsi tu inventes le thème du Narcisse exaucé."

Timpview Choir, you make me cry. 
Music is so beautiful; thank you for sharing of your sweet spirit.
Thank you for giving that to me.

Dirait-on tel amour mon coeur,
Pour la musique est tel amour.
(Yes, I did write that just for you.)

Everything is Beautiful

Everything is beautiful if you care to look. The things that people have done are absolutely amazing, and this world that God has created is far more incredible than most realize. Why be sad when you live in such a fantastic place and time? Smile. Look outside; look how incredible everything is. Get ye into the mountains and look at the amazing autumn colors, and feel the cool breeze making that beautiful rustling sound among the trees. Look at your phone, your camera, your computer; how can they even exist? Do you know how it works? Do you know how complicated it is and how much time and effort has gone into that? Look at the magic around you, the magic that we have been allowed to use and create; fresh water from the sink, preserved food in the middle of summer due to a refrigerator, fruit that grows on trees, vegetables that spring up out of the ground. Look at the people. See them give when they have but little for themselves, see them do silly things just to get others to smile, see them love each other; what greater gift could there be? The love of Christ is most precious and desirable above all other fruit, and it's growing on a tree in front of us. Why be sad? 2 Nephi 9:52: "Let your hearts rejoice." It does not say "make your hearts rejoice" it says "let your hearts rejoice." You know deep down that there is so much happiness, so much goodness, so much joy and perfection around you, and you want to be happy, you're naturally inclined to be happy. Let yourself be happy. Why would you let something get in the way of that?
So much beauty in the gospel, in the world, in others, and in yourself. Let it shine through the clouds. You're all beautiful. I love you.

Three Things

I am very thirsty for chocolate. (That doesn't mean I want to drink it, because drinking straight liquid chocolate sounds like terrible damage, it just means that I would love anyone who felt it in their hearts to bake me a chocolate cake or something.) Speaking of Chocolate, the chocolate that Kristen gave me was very amazing. Thank you, you wonderful person. I've come up with a bartering system for favors: you give me chocolate, I'll do anything you'd like me to (granted that the chocolate was of high enough quality and you gave me enough.) Except if you don't give me chocolate and ask me to do you a favor, I'd probably do it anyway because I love you. But the chocolate would still be appreciated.

Sometimes when you take a walk with no destination in mind, you end up halfway up a mountain with the sun almost gone down. It's beautiful, and glorious. Chillin' with the deers and watching a beautiful sunset with the wonderful smells of spring blossoms drifting through the air, while standing on top of the very world and seeing just how small your life down below really is, and realizing just how many lives are happening down there, and how much you didn't even know existed before--does anything really get any better than that? I love adventuring. Probably more than I love chocolate. Chocolate is gross after you eat a pound or two, but adventuring just keeps getting more sweet. Only thing that would be better is if people would come with me!

Despite my many flaws, for some reason Kat still agrees to go on dates with me, so last night we had a wonderful time going to see my little brother Robert be Pinocchio at the Scera. Obviously because Robert was the star of the show, I was able to secure 4 cost-free tickets for myself, Riley, Kat, and Kenzie, which led to a wonderful and inexpensive date. Robert is quite the talented little kid, and I very much enjoyed the show. It was very well done, with quite the extravagant array of props and things. It was actually really sad in parts, and exciting in others, and scary in some (pleasure island) and epic in the curtain call. (Why are not all curtain calls dance parties with dubstep disney music and flashy neon lights? I don't know. Let's not try to know.) Anyway, after that we ate ice cream at Macey's and then went over to BYU campus to talk, and hang out, and look at starts, and abberantly run past the statue of Brigham Young to make him look like he's dancing. (Don't ask.) It was a pretty wonderful date. Thanks Kat!

One Day, This Will Be My Life

The world is so beautiful. 

I want to see all of this so badly. And one day I will. Whoever my future wife is, you'd better like to travel, because this is where we're going, and more.

 I love dolphins. We get along well.

 Look at that water.

 Parrots are cute.

 Wow.

 Ice palaces. Almost as great as ice cream palaces.

 I have to see the Aurora Borealis. 

 Ice skating, anyone?

 This place is real.

 Northern Iceland, not a painting.

 The World is my favorite color.

 All of this is so amazing. I hope it's making you contemplate life more deeply.

 I love temples! I want to go to all of them.

 And there's more. So much more.

 Remind me to play a grand piano underwater some day.

 I've always liked marble.

 I also want a castle

And now you love the world more. Hopefully. If not, go look at all these pictures again. While listening to rain http://www.rainymood.com/ and listening to inspirational music. 

This post was inspired partially by Kristen Blair and her awesome Austrian adventures that she's been having without me. 

Disclaimer: most of these pictures are not mine. I may not have rights or whatnot to put them on my blog. If they are your pictures, feel free to revoke them or something if the fact that people are enjoying your wonderful photography and living ever grateful to your wonderful soul because you anonymously shared these wondrous gifts with the world bothers you. That's the end of my disclaimer. I'm done. You can stop reading now. Most people don't read the small text anyway, so whatever's possessing you to continue should probably be ignored. You're free to go. You know, I really don't want this to detract from that beautiful post that I just posted, so if you just had to keep reading this and finish it, go look at your three favorite pictures again, and then go do something else.