Safety Net

Life; a truly beautiful experience.

Many things before me;

chances to find joy.

Experiences to teach me the

lessons of life.

The opportunities of life are

all around me.

Risks to take.

Mistakes to make.

Thoughts of risking myself

frighten me slightly.

Mistakes have never been the

most welcome experience.

Afraid of embarking on new journeys,

where there is much unknown,

I find myself lingering directly above

the safety net.

Yet, there is stronger fear.

Fear of life I may be missing.

There is a bountiful supply of

opportunities before me;

doors yet to be opened.

So many options,

yet who is to know which is best?

I seek the doors withholding experiences

that will fulfill me;

bring me joy and allow me to look back

on my years on Earth

and feel that I truly lived.

So, which is it?

Do I cling to the tight rope and never

soar on the trapeze,

staying within the comfort of the safety net?

The way of definite success?

Safety is appealing.

I could find happiness that way.

I feel, though, I will always wonder what

would have happened had daring

overcome me,

and I had taken the chance:

if I had let go of the trapeze and flown.

So here I am,

at a cross road.

I Have Never Regretted Kindness

I try to be a good person- as I think we all do- and sometimes it's easier than other times, but I feel like I'm on the right track. I don't find it hard to be nice to people, but when they have hurt me repeatedly sometimes I struggle to keep the same feelings of kindness that I had before towards them. I definitely think this is something I need to work on. I think that when I focus on the hurt I feel instead of being kind to those who have caused me pain I am being slightly selfish. I am not going to allow people to hurt me, and I do not have to spend time with those that do hurt me, but I don't have to be mean to them in return. Kindness can still be shown to them.

There are a few quotes that I have found that are partly what got me thinking about this. The first that I found came from a the most recent General Conference talk given by Henry B. Eyring. It reads:

"The joys we experience come from putting the joy of others before our own, and our sorrows come from selfishness...

Pray for the love that allows you to see the good in your companions. The love that allows you to make the mistakes and weaknesses seem small."

The next came from the same conference in a talk given by President Monson, stating:

"I have never felt any regret

for being a little too kind."

So that is my goal. I want to be kind to everyone, no matter what they have done to me. I have not had too hard of a time doing this in the past, but I have found that recently there have been people I trusted that have hurt me, and I find myself being less than kind to them occasionally. I don't want to be that type of person. So I am changing now.

Learning Experiences

In the past couple months or so I have had some very interesting experiences. Within a matter of weeks I went from completely blissfully happy to utterly miserable, and then, gratefully, back to happy. Some of the experiences I went through were pretty tough, but life goes on, and I have learned SO MUCH.

Throughout these events I have learned many things, which are as follows:

1- Easy come, easy go. This applies to many things in life; relationships, friends, jobs, possessions, money, etc... In this case I am referring to friendships/relationships. I have come to realize, in my short time on this Earth, that the friendships worth keeping are the ones that you worked to establish. The relationships that last are the ones that took some time to create. The friendships in which you are "instant best friends" or relationships described as "love at first sight" rarely last. I have a greater appreciation than I had before for the friendships that I can depend on; the ones that are true friendships.

2- Just because someone says you can trust them, doesn't mean that you can. Liars are liars. Flakes are flakes. Enough said.

3- Love can be blind. Do not let your feelings for someone over rule the goals and standards you have set. Just because you love someone does not mean that you have to support or justify whatever it is they are doing. Sometimes you have to love them from a distance.

4- God is ALWAYS there for us. No matter what we are going through the Lord will always provide a way for us to get through it. The trials we are given here in this life are for our benefit; to make us stronger and to help us learn. Our trials are a testament of God's love for us. God hears and answers our prayers. It may not be right away, but when the time is right God will always answer our prayers. The Lord is in everything. We just have to take time to notice his hand in our lives.

So there you have it. Those are some of the things, among many, that I have learned over the past couple months. I am happier for it, and now have more of the tools that I need to get through life and find true happiness.