Inside the Fishbowl

Sunday Tunes: The Sabre Rattlers

In April I saw my Uncle David at a family wedding.  The day after the wedding, while we were all assembled at another uncle's house, David handed me a CD marked Sabre Rattlers and told me that i had to listen to it. I trust David's taste in music implicitly.  He was the one who introduced me (through my Dad) to The Wailin' Jenny's, who have been on my daily playlist for the last three years, and Otis Taylor.  So, of course, I put the CD into my sister's CD player when we were driving to the hotel that same evening and when I did, I knew I'd been handed a treasure.  The first song on the CD is a rocked out version of "Now Let Us Rejoice."  A few seconds into the song an electric guitar starts to whine, evoking emotion that only an electric guitar can.  At the time we listened to a few tracks, but not the entire CD.  I wanted to listen to this in private, without my sister, whose tastes tend more toward Top 40.  I wanted to be able to savor the experience and not have to coninually shush my children.

Back at home, I did a bit of searching and found out that the CD is titled "Twixt me and the Peaceful Rest" by Texas-based (I think) band The Sabre Rattlers.  It is a surprising mix of classic hymns all rearranged to reflect the influences to be found in traditional American music--country, bluegrass, folk, jazz and early rock n' roll. Where "Now Let Us Rejoice" is definitely rock, "The Spirit of God" has more of a bluegrass feel with the banjo and fiddle taking center stage.  It's gorgeous.  All of the songs are gorgeous and unforgettable, and will most likely be recognizable to a broad audience of Christians, since many of the hymns Mormons sing are also sung by other Christian denominations.  My favorites, "Let the Lower Lights Be Burning" and "Jesus, Savior, Pilot Me" are not in the LDS hymnal, but still carry messages of the Savior.

This is definitely not your grandmother's Sabbath music.  Don't get me wrong, I like The Mormon Tabernacle Choir.  But there is more interesting music out there, preformed by many talented artists who are doing incredible interesting things with our traditional hymns. 

Give The Sabre Rattlers a try.  Below you can listen to the CD in it's entirety.  If you like it, I encourage you to buy it.  You can buy it for download on The Sabre Rattlers website, or on iTunes.  If you prefer you can also buy a hard copy directly from the website.  You can also find them on Facebook and Twitter and of course, Youtube.

 

Patience

Last weekend I had the opportunity to watch the General Conference of my church.  There were so many great lessons taught.  I am grateful for the opportunity we have twice a year to sit at the feet of prophets and to learn from them.

Many of the talks spoke to me and to the things I'm going through right now, but the talk that spoke to me the most was President Dieter F. Uchdorf's from the Priesthood session (the session that only men attend).

Here are three quotes from his talk on patience that I loved.

"Patience, the ability of put our desires on hold for a time, is a precious and rare virtue.  We want what we want and we want it now.  Therefore the very idea of patience may seem unpleasant and at times bitter.  Nevertheless, without patience we cannot please God.  We cannot become perfect.  Indeed, patience is a purifying process that refines understanding, depends happiness, focuses attention and offers hope for peace."

"Patience [is] far more that simply waiting for something to happen.  Patience require[s] actively working toward worthwhile goals and not getting discouraged when results [don't] appear instantly or without effort.  There's an important concept here.  Patience is not passive resignation. Nor is it failing to act because of our fears.  Patience means active waiting and enduring.  It means staying with something and doing all that we can, working, hoping and exercising faith, bearing all hardship with fortitude, even when the desires of our hearts are delayed.  Patience is not simply enduring.  It is enduring well."

"Knowledge and understanding come at the price of patience.  Often the deep valleys of our present will only be understood by looking back on them from the mountains of our future experience.  Often we can't see the Lord's hand in our lives until long after our trials have passed.  Often the most difficult times of our lives are essential building blocks that form the foundation of our character and pave the way for future opportunities, understanding and happiness."

The last five minutes or so of this talk are also wonderful, and very quote-worthy, but much to long to transcribe here.  If you'd like to watch the talk in its entirety, follow this link.  At the bottom of the screen click on "Priesthood" and then scroll across to President Uchtdorf's talk.  It's about 20 minuts long, but it's very illuminating.  Incidentally I also really enjoyed and felt inspired by his Sunday AM talk. It was amazing!  If you want to listen to it follow the link above, click on "Sunday AM" and scroll over until you find President Uchtdorf's talk.  It's really beautiful! 

I don't usually get religious on my blog.  But right now I feel very close to God.  I know He knows me. He knows my troubles.  I know that Jesus Christ suffered for me.  He has experienced the anguish that I now feel, and I feel his love as he lifts the sadness from my heart and helps me to move forward.  President Uchdorf's words are inspired and true.  Patience is not an easy thing, but it is necessary for our growth.  We need to have patience to be able to grow closer to our Father in Heaven and to align our will with His.  I am grateful for this knowledge.  I am grateful for the wonderful men who lead and guide the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints according to the will of God.

In 22 hours it will all be over!

Have I mentioned that I was called to serve in the Relief Society presidency at church?  Well, I was.  Right before I went to India.  It was a calling that I knew was coming, so it was no surprise.  I am loving serving in the Relief Society, and know that this is where I am supposed to be at this time in my life.

That being said, the Progressive Dinner that we are having tomorrow night has turned into a lot more work than I ever dreamed it would be.  Tomorrow at this time it will be over.  I will be at home comfy in my jammies, having just finished watching the midseason finale of Glee.

Now I am off to bed.  I just finished writing the talk that I'm giving tomorrow night.  I'm excited.  I think it's going to be a really fun night, despite the many, many glitches we have run into.

Good night all.  Thursday the Christmas crafting can begin!

There you have it: a justification

I've been reading the November 2008 Conference Issue of the Ensign this week.  I plan on reading all of the talks from Conference to prepare for April's Conference coming up.  This morning I read Elder Uchtdorf's talk from the General Relief Society Meeting titled, "Hapiness, Your Heritge."  Here is my favorite section from the talk.  I think that what it means is that I no longer have to feel guilty about all the time I spend thinking about, planning and carrying out the various creative projects that I have in mind. Right?

The Work of Creation

"The desire to create is one of the deepest yearnings of the human soul. No matter our talents, education, backgrounds, or abilities, we each have an inherent wish to create something that did not exist before.

Everyone can create. You don’t need money, position, or influence in order to create something of substance or beauty.

Creation brings deep satisfaction and fulfillment. We develop ourselves and others when we take unorganized matter into our hands and mold it into something of beauty—and I am not talking about the process of cleaning the rooms of your teenage children.

You might say, “I’m not the creative type. When I sing, I’m always half a tone above or below the note. I cannot draw a line without a ruler. And the only practical use for my homemade bread is as a paperweight or as a doorstop.”

If that is how you feel, think again, and remember that you are spirit daughters of the most creative Being in the universe. Isn’t it remarkable to think that your very spirits are fashioned by an endlessly creative and eternally compassionate God? Think about it—your spirit body is a masterpiece, created with a beauty, function, and capacity beyond imagination.  (This is me--isn't this the coolest idea?!?)

But to what end were we created? We were created with the express purpose and potential of experiencing a fulness of joy.⁴ Our birthright—and the purpose of our great voyage on this earth—is to seek and experience eternal happiness. One of the ways we find this is by creating things.

If you are a mother, you participate with God in His work of creation—not only by providing physical bodies for your children but also by teaching and nurturing them. If you are not a mother now, the creative talents you develop will prepare you for that day, in this life or the next.

You may think you don’t have talents, but that is a false assumption, for we all have talents and gifts, every one of us.⁵ The bounds of creativity extend far beyond the limits of a canvas or a sheet of paper and do not require a brush, a pen, or the keys of a piano. Creation means bringing into existence something that did not exist before—colorful gardens, harmonious homes, family memories, flowing laughter.

What you create doesn’t have to be perfect. So what if the eggs are greasy or the toast is burned? Don’t let fear of failure discourage you. Don’t let the voice of critics paralyze you—whether that voice comes from the outside or the inside.

If you still feel incapable of creating, start small. Try to see how many smiles you can create, write a letter of appreciation, learn a new skill, identify a space and beautify it.

Nearly a century and a half ago, President Brigham Young spoke to the Saints of his day. “There is a great work for the Saints to do,” he said. “Progress, and improve upon and make beautiful everything around you. Cultivate the earth, and cultivate your minds. Build cities, adorn your habitations, make gardens, orchards, and vineyards, and render the earth so pleasant that when you look upon your labors you may do so with pleasure, and that angels may delight to come and visit your beautiful locations. In the mean time continually seek to adorn your minds with all the graces of the Spirit of Christ.”⁶

The more you trust and rely upon the Spirit, the greater your capacity to create. That is your opportunity in this life and your destiny in the life to come. Sisters, trust and rely on the Spirit. As you take the normal opportunities of your daily life and create something of beauty and helpfulness, you improve not only the world around you but also the world within you."

So, this means it's ok for me to spend countless hours in my craft room, right?  Do you think he would approve of me neglecting my children and "forgetting" to make dinner because I'm creating?

But in all seriousness, I really loved this talk.  It cements Elder Uchtdorf as one of my favorite speakers at Conference.  His talks are so relatable.  His experiences are things that we can all imagine ourselves experiencing.  The reality presented in his talks most closely represents the reality that I experience.  I truly feel like he is talking to me individually when I hear him speak. 

I am so glad that I decided to take on this little self-imposed reading assignment. I already feel so uplifted and it has only been three days!

Enrichment

The only way to have a friend is to be one. -- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Last night I went to our monthly Enrichment dinner group. In case you don't know, Enrichment is a church activity for women only. It takes place on a weekly or monthly basis--different activities for different weeks. I have been going to the Enrichment book club for months. But that wasn't really a stretch for me. Book clubs are definitely fall within my comfort zone. I feel confident talking about books. It's the one thing of value I gained from my English major at BYU! Well, that and the ability to write a dang good essay discussing the human condition as reflected in Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale.

There are those of you who will know that this was a huge step for me. I tend to be a complete recluse. I dread leaving the house to put myself in unfamiliar social situations. I almost never make phone calls. The phone inspires dread akin to what you might feel if you knew you were going to be forced to get a perfectly healthy limb amputated without ansethesia. I can hardly call stores to ask for their hours of business. It's bad. (Incidentally, my grandmother shared the same phone phobia. Could it be genetic?) So, why did I decide to go? Well, for a few reasons. First, our ward split about six weeks ago. Most of the people have only lived here for less than a year, so we're all pretty new. I'm determined to meet new people. Second, these are my neighbors. I go to church with them. It's inexcusable that I don't know most people's, if not everyone's names. Seriosuly, it's so bad, I have neighbors who live two houses down from me that I don't know. It's not that I haven't gotten to know them, I don't even know their names. Third, I'm tired of sitting alone in Relief Society. Seriously, it's embarrassing, very awkward! Finally, I'm in need of a major attitude adjustment lately. I've been in a funk that I can't shake. These dinner groups have been a major source of irritation for me. I don't think they are what was intended when the new Enrichment program was announced. So, I boycotted them. But, I admitted what I'd known all along--my boycot is useless. I'm not hurting anyone but myself by not joining in. I'm only isolating myself from people who could potentially become great friends. So I bit the bullet. I went. And you know what, I had a great time! A really great time. I talked to people I don't usually talk to. I met up with one of the girls I visit teach. It was nice to see her away from home and without her kids. She looked great--so different without a spitup stained shirt! (By the way, I can say that without being snarky, because my shirt is always spitup stained!) I made a standing date with my next door neighbor to have dinner every Tuesday night with her and her kids because our husbands both work late Tuesdays.

I'm feeling good--this is just what I needed to get the fog to start lifting. It's interesting, though. When I was childless I thrived on alone time. The more the better. Now that I'm a mom I'm begining to see the value of having a network of friends who live close with whom I can associate often. One would think it would be the other way around. I should be craving alone time now, shouldn't I, since I spend all of my time with a two year old who constantly begs me to make her a "maydough switch" (playdough witch). Life's funny that way. Full of surprises. I think this is a good surprise.