A Testimonial

I got my Conference issue Ensign in the mail the other day and I promised myself that I would read at least one talk from from it or the scriptures each day. Last week I was listening to a talk given by President Uchtdorf from April’s conference and he talked about being a true disciple of Christ and not a ‘spectator disciple’.

Yeah, I’ve been a  ‘spectator disciple’ for a really long time little bit. But from what I can see in my big comfy chair, you guys are all doing great! Pass me the popcorn!

I am trying to change that, thus the promise of reading good things each day-at least before I get on to the smut I usually read like, Stephanie Meyer or Anita Stansfield. (she says laced heavily with sarcasm. Just to be clear.)

I’ve done really good. 3 whole days in a row. I know, amazing.

Anyway, did anyone else notice how much talk there is about feeling the Spirit and sharing testimonies? Well, I did. And it got me thinking about my own testimony and how I got it.

I was struggling with what I believed just after high school-did I want in or not? This was when I fell in love with a particular musical. I loved the music, how the story went and the movie of it was done in the 70s-need I say more. Oh yeah, and it was a disco rock opera. That’s right, you guessed it: Jesus Christ Superstar.

Image taken from here

Now, for most of us in the ‘Mormon faith’, this isn’t exactly a reverent telling of the ministry and death of our Savior. But for some reason, at that time, this musical filled my soul. I watched the movie and I listened to the soundtrack over and over again. No one hits that high note like Ted Neeley.

Well, guess what came to town to our little Capital Theater in Downtown Salt Lake. They even had Ted Neeley playing Jesus. I had to go and I did. Right in the front of the top balcony. Ted/Jesus was not quite so waifish as he was in the movie but he could still hit those high notes.

Oddly enough, during this irreverent musical something happened to me. I came to know that Jesus Christ was real and that He is my Savior. I always figured that I didn’t give God much to go on to speak to me so He was alright with using this rock opera to touch my soul.

I still have the soundtrack but I feel differently when I listen to it. All I can think of is how beautiful it is and yet slightly off the mark. I tried to get rid of it-I’ve grown a bit, spiritually, amazingly enough-and I realize it’s a smidge sacrilegious. But I couldn’t bring myself to get rid of it. It really means too much to me for what it gave me so long ago.  Every now and then I sneak a listen like sneaking a Diet Coke into Sunday School in a brown paper bag.

My BFF just told me it’s coming to San Diego-near her home. Guess who’s playing Jesus-Yup, my man, Ted Neeley. Man, I want to go! Not only would I get to see my BFF, I would get to enjoy a lovely rock opera near the beach. Could anything be any better than that??

So basically scriptures, church, prayer just aren't enough for me to get the point. I guess I need to be entertained in the process. You wouldn’t believe how I first got my testimony of Joseph Smith-no not from reading his account, not from Sunday School, not even from that horrid movie “Legacy”(barf)! It was Bro. Gerald Lund and his Work and the Glory series! Again, I was young and still trying to figure it all out but, it’s true those books gave me something that nothing else had-insight into who Joseph Smith was as a man and a Prophet.

I guess being a very empathetic person, I have to see things on a very personal level. I have to feel and experience with the person to really get it. The scriptures and other accounts are wonderful and true but for me to see someone’s rendition of Christ talking with God in the Garden, his struggle, it made it much more real to me. The same with Lund’s books-you saw the struggles Joseph and the early church had but they (most of them) kept going, kept trying. It really brings it all home for me.

I guess this is where I bare my testimony of media and other fine sources of clean(ish) entertainment.

I so get that from my dad!

Post-Its Tuesday: what would you say?

 

Click to get your own! It’s become all the rage! Seriously!

A penny for my thoughts? Around here, they go for a dollar at least! Well, here’s a few, at least the appropriate ones…

 

 

   

 

 

The late night sticky notes

Why am I always a day late and a dollar short? Oh yeah, I wouldn’t be Mindi if I wasn’t.  I am so glad that Halloween is over! I love to have a reason to have a party but 4 days straight of celebrating the strangest holiday is a bit much for me.

On Sunday I watched the NYC marathon while eating Halloween candy. I was trying to give the runners energy through the TV. While we all felt like vomiting, I am sure it was for different reasons.

I woke up Monday morning with a Halloween hangover. I thought I was going to die. So I went for a 6 mile run. One of the best runs I’ve had in a long time. Weird. I went this morning with my friends and it totally kicked my trash. Even weirder.

I was in the shower this morning and Annie came running in to wash her hands. I asked, “What are you doing?”

She said, “Washing my hands.”

I asked, “Why?”

“Because “Hip Hop Harry” is on!” She said as though it was so obvious.

“uuummmkay….”

“Hip Hop Harry said I should always wash my hands because it gets rid of germs!”

“Annie, why is it when I tell you that you ignore me but if this Hip Hop Harry freak says to you run in here and do it?”

With her “I’m so damn cute” smile of hers she said, “Oh, just be quiet, mom!”

See? What’s so wrong about TV?!! It’s apparently doing a better job teaching my kids than I am!

And since it’s Tuesday we will now have Post Its Note night, hosted by SupahMommy!

 

 

 

 

Just one of the many classic jokes I have been enjoying around my house!

Goodnight and Big Balls.

Family Sunday Dinner

In an attempt to be connected with my ever growing independent kids, I try to ask them about what they learned at school, what was great about their day or what their plans are for destroying me in a slow ignominious death.

Tonight we sat down to potato soup in pumpkin bread bowls. I was hoping to balance out the sugar high with some salt and maybe add some swollen ankles to the stomach ache and spinning room.

Totally beside the point.

Anyway, I asked the girls what they learned about in church. I always know what Annie learned in church since I am involved-every week it’s the same-“how do I make my mom so crazy that by the time we make it home she just stares at the wall and says ‘ba ba ba ba ba’ until someone hands her a Diet Coke and a cookie?” Of cousre, what she actually says is, “JESUS” but we all know what it really means.

Audrey said, “Swearing.”

To which I replied, “swearing, really?”

Audrey: “Well, to not swear, it’s bad, you know like swear words.”

Mom: “Oh yeah, you shouldn’t swear.” (The lesson was on Choose The Right, so I’m guessing that was a major topic.)

Annie: “Yeah, like dammit. you shouldn’t say damn. Unless you are talking about a beaver’s dam.”

Man, cheesy potato soup really hurts coming out your nose!

The Big Topic

I know there are much more important things to be talking about tonight like the evilness of Halloween, what you are going to dress up as:half naked mermaid or naughty cop, the Energy crisis, economic crisis or any other crisis.

But where is the fun in that??

I am going to talk about Biggest Loser. Why do I love thee so much?? Is it Bob yelling at the ladies and then sitting in their laps and crying with them? Is it the drama of who said what and who’s playing the game? Or is it just plain motivating and fun to watch people drop the lbs right before my very eyes? 13 lbs in 2 hours? Freak! I can do that!

I totally watch it with a grain of salt. I realize it is a ‘reality’ show and most of it isn’t really reality. I wish they would focus more on how they all adjust to the changes. I mean they all say they were eating 1000’s of calories and not exercising at all and all of the sudden they are having around 1600 calories and exercising all day and there isn’t any mention of cravings or soreness from all this! They have got to be dying from that drastic of a change! I am also pretty sure a lot of stuff is rigged. Especially a couple of weeks ago when Tracy won control of the game AGAIN and then she wasn’t voted off even though everyone was saying she was gone. I am pretty sure there were some sneaky producers involved there!

It is highly motivating, though. I find myself saying to myself, if these guys who have never worked out before can go to the gym 5-6 hours a day, I can do 10 more minutes on the treadmill or I can add 5 more lbs to my weights.

Plus, Bob is pretty. Not as pretty as my hubby, but close.

You know what I love best about it? I love the ads! I mean 30 minutes of commercials to forward through isn’t enough! I am so glad they have started putting it in the show, too! I walk away wishing I had a stick of Extra SugarFree Gum or a Brita Filter. And I always have a hankerin’ for some Jennie O Turkey after. In a Ziploc bag.(You can purchase these fine products at your nearest WalMart, always low prices, always…) I mean do they think I’m stupid and I won’t notice the blatant ad?? (Milk, it does a body good!)

I don’t watch other reality shows, this is about as much drama as I can handle but I can just imagine the ads they would do in Survivor. “When I am not searching for a rat to stew or some grubs to swallow whole, I always love me some Jenni O Turkey!” “Since all I have to brush my teeth with is my grimy finger and some sand, I always chew Extra SugarFree Gum! It’s almost like eating real food!” Or my last one, “Whenever I take a drink from that stagnate pool of water, it reminds me of my Brita water filter back home. And when I didn’t have constant diarrhea!”

I don’t know if they have tried any of my ideas, but I think they are golden!

I guess the whole point is to get their product known by the masses. And that they do, even if it makes me want to kick someone in the crotch!

I gotta go. My juicy Jenni O Turkey is perfectly cooked in it’s Ziploc bag. I may even have me a stick of Extra gum for dessert!

What’s one of your favorite shows?

It’s Tuesday.

Annie came home from school the other day with this:

Very cute. She came up to dad to show him and said “Dad, look at my pumpkin… wait, where did my triangle nose go? And there was glue all over here and on the eyes…oh well…”

We praised her in her Jack O’ Lantern creation abilities. The perfect Jack. We put it with her school stuff and didn’t think about it again.

A few days later she came home with this….

“Mom, dad! This is my pumpkin! I picked up someone else’s by mistake. See? Here’s my triangle nose!”

Now that’s more like my Annie.

It’s quite artistic, really. She has eyelashes, and rosy cheeks. She may even be the next Picasso!

Now for (drum roll….) Post Its Tuesday!

CLICK NOTE TO FIND OUT HOW TO DO THEM

Do you guys like when I do these? I think it’s kinda fun but I didn’t know if you enjoyed it as much as I do. Let me know. I might or might not care. teehee You should check out Chief’s and SupahMommy. They always have great ones!