Since I moved to college, my mom moved a ton of her stuff into my room. One feature is this framed letter on my headboard on the top shelf (about a foot and a half above my head if I lay on the bed). Attached to this frame is a clip-on tiny lamp. It really is a balancing act waiting to give out. Ya well it gave out. There I was sleeping at three a.m. like a normal person and the acrobat team fell on my face! It scared me so bad! I yelled and threw it on the ground along with everything else I could find in the dark on my headboard. Oddly, none of my family heard any of this even though I was throwing a fit. To be honest, I fell back asleep after a minute or so haha. This morning I was thinking about what happened and why my family didn't rush to my rescue. First thing you need to know about the Baker's is that we are pretty deep sleepers. They probably slept through the whole thing because they were in another world.  They were probably all in their classic sleeping positions. For example :

Mom: either she is caught red-handed or is doing the YMCA very slowly

 Dad: classic dead-man's stance

 Sarah Jane: rock-climber. If I was true to myself, my face would not be injured.

 Coleton: he starts out normal but he always ends up like a possum at the end of the night.

Names

The concept of a name is universal. Everything has a name along with everyone.  Did you know that names from the beginning has had meanings and symbolism?  Hebrew was the language for the Old Testament; the following are commonly known Old Testament Characters. The name Esau is Hebrew for "God Hears," Saul means "Asked," and Elijah means "Jehovah is my God." We learn that Abraham's first name was Abram which means "Exalted Father" and Abraham means "Father of a Multitude." Each of these characters didn't have their name because their mom thought it was cute. If you study these characters, you will find that their name's match their missions in life (their moms were inspired!).

 My name also happens to be old Hebrew. Sarah means "princess" and Jane means "merciful." So even though technically my parents named me after my great grandma who left a marvelous legacy, perhaps I should consider what my name means and strive to be a merciful princess.

I am a daughter of the King of Heaven and Earth so I already have the entitled to be princess, but I need to step up if I want to reclaim and maintain my divine nature (which everybody has fyi). Heavenly Father has given us specific commandments and standards. Wouldn't I be the best princess ever if I learned how to keep all of His commandment continually?!

Now for Jane (merciful). As the Savior taught the people on the Sermon on the Mount and the Nephites when He visited them, he talked about mercy. The Savior taught, " blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy" (3 Nephi 12:7 & Matt 5:7). I want mercy, so I need to give it meaning I need to be forgiving and judge righteously. What a great reminder to have that in my name.

So basically, my name reminds me of my divine nature, what I need to be working on, and what my potential can be. I challenge you to look up your name and give it a meaning to help motivate you. If your name is something odd and you have a hard time connecting it to something, remember that when you were baptized (assuming you are LDS) you took upon the name of Christ. You are reminded of this each time you take the sacrament. Your name has meaning. This life has meaning. You have a purpose.

After reviewing what I can remember from my prayers lately, if I would not have even "woke up"  to enjoy the things I did say thank you for because I said nothing about being thankful for a body. I want to claim all the blessings that Heavenly Father gives to me daily by having a more grateful, productive life. When I was a child, my dad would say, "Sarah if your room is not clean by dinner, I am going to take everything left on the floor to the dump." It was kind of harsh I thought, but now I can kind of see Heavenly Father saying the same thing about being grateful for the blessings he gives me that I sometimes leave unclaimed on the floor.

{sweet thing}

I learned a lesson today that I have looked over many times before. I was babysitting my younger cousins today but mainly the one who is two. He is a gabber box that doesn't stop unless caiou is on the tv; he even talks while he sleeps. He asks lots of questions, or yells "Sarah watch this" or "Buh-buh- bananas!" He also only has two volumes: louder and loudest (just normal loud doesn't cut it). He is also always in motion and into something he shouldn't be. If you ask him what is name is, he says "Danger."  A few times tonight he would completely stop, look me in the eye and say, "Sarah, I promise." in a very sincere whisper. This caught me off guard because I didn't expect something so reverent from the boy who named himself Danger. He meant what he said even though he never mentioned what he promised, but he promised it. I can be pretty busy sometimes. It seems like I have a few solid productive things, but the majority of my busy is just "gabber." I want to be like my two year old cousin and stop all the nonsense for a moment of reverence and remember what promises I have made such as those found in the Sacrament prayers. He is only two, but he is  onto something ;)

Gratitude

One Sunday in Relief Society, a young woman made a comment that went something (not exactly) like this:

 " How many women do you know when they are complemented on their hair or make-up or outfit say 'oh I just rolled out of bed' or ' I really didn't spend much time on it'? I am guilty of this brush-off. I wish women would just take the complement and say 'Thank You'. I think if women did this, more women would be confident." 

I agree with her. I am guilty of this almost everyday (I made note of it for a week now). Not only did I "brush-off" the complements on my appearance, I pushed aside the complements towards tasks I had completed, character attributes, and time I invested in projects. Maybe if I accepted these complements, I would be more confident about who I am and what I do because I recognized a kind gesture from someone else. Now, if graciously receiving complements contributes to my emotional health, wouldn't it make sense that honestly complementing others would have the same if not a greater affect? On a broader spectrum, wouldn't it make sense to express more gratitude to attain more confidence?

There are more benefits than just confidence when you make an effort to be grateful. "Two psychologists, Michael McCollough of Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, and Robert Emmons of the University of California at Davis, wrote an article about an experiment they conducted on gratitude and its impact on well-being. The study split several hundred people into three different groups and all of the participants were asked to keep daily diaries. The first group kept a diary of the events that occurred during the day without being told specifically to write about either good or bad things; the second group was told to record their unpleasant experiences; and the last group was instructed to make a daily list of things for which they were grateful. The results of the study indicated that daily gratitude exercises resulted in higher reported levels of alertness, enthusiasm, determination, optimism, and energy. In addition, those in the gratitude group experienced less depression and stress, were more likely to help others, exercised more regularly, and made greater progress toward achieving personal goals"( Marelisa Fabrega, How Gratitude Can Change Your Life)(emphasis added). 

There was a difference between the people who did nothing and the people who made a list of things they were grateful for. They took action! Gratitude is not a noun, but a verb, an action word. Modern day prophets and apostles have advised us to keep "gratitude journals." This can be as simple as writing a list of things you are grateful for in that little notebook you bought that you don't know what to do with because it is so little.  Try saying a prayer in which all you talk about things you are grateful for and why. I like to make thank you notes or letters. These things can take some time. One of the easiest ways to show gratitude is to simply say thank you when the occasion arises. When you say thank you, it gives the recipient an opportunity to accept it and feel  confident as I mentioned at the beginning. Your kind gesture, your action, could brighten someone's day as you help them feel important, needed, and happy.

Circle "yes" or "no"

I feel like I am an option, not an important person. Employers see my name at the top of a job application. It seems like my family views me as a person to do a specific job that  I don't necessarily want to do in the first place. My friends turn to me when they have a problem, no one else to turn to, or when it is convenient for them; they will come back from the summer and will have to decide if I am the best option for them at that time. The school has to decide if I am the best option to award a scholarship to. This is exhausting because I never know what people want to do with me. Who are they to judge if I am the best anyway. I do good things and I work hard. I put in lots of time and energy in things for other people and causes that I love. I am tired of standing in the line waiting to be picked for a team; I have been the last one to be picked since first grade literally and theoretically. It would be so nice to be someone's first choice. I recognize that I should be thankful that I am even picked to be on a team. It is hard to be patient and be happy being patient. I wish people would stop leaving me hanging waiting for them for months sometime to make a choice. I am a good choice. I am important. Please, stop playing with me; I don't want to be your maybe or I don't know yet.