cliche creativity

Yesterday I had the wonderful opportunity of cheering on a good friend as she made her debut as a fashion designer in Provo Fashion Week. Michelle Whitaker was my freshman year roommate, and we've remained good friends since then--while I was on my mission she wrote me more consistently than my own brother!

A couple summers ago, Michelle decided that she wanted to start sewing as a hobby. With a lot of time and a lot of effort, she refined her skills to the point where she now runs a profitable Etsy shop (ClicheCreativity). Check out one of her most popular designs in the picture below!

Super cute, right? Like I said, Michelle debuted as a fashion designer last night at Provo Fashion Week.  It was so much fun for me to be there and to see what Michelle had accomplished; I also took home a valuable lesson.

Michelle simply decided that she was going to do this and she did. She didn't let anyone tell her no, she didn't let deadlines stress her out, and she never gave up her passion. Michelle taught me the importance of going for it. One of my favorite quotes is by Henry David Thoreau, who said, "Go confidently in the direction of your dreams." To me, this quote captures what Michelle exemplifies. Last night at the fashion show, I relearned that if you want something, you should just go for it.

Because of this lesson, I want to be more confident in my pursuits. I have been thinking about how this especially applies to internships and jobs. I should not downgrade myself or my abilities, and if I want to apply for a job--or simply try something new--I should!

I am grateful for good friends and life lessons.

retirement plan

My dad is really good with money; he works hard, he saves, and he thinks about the future. I have learned much from his example. Growing up, he would often give me bits of advice regarding finances that I would need to know later in life. One in particular that I remember is about retirement; Dad would look at me and say, "Lexi, if you save $100 every month starting right now, by the time you retire you will be a millionaire." I understood something about interest so this statement made sense to me, but as a 16-year-old, I definitely was not thinking about retirement.

This past week, my finance class reinforced this principle taught by my father. I learned about the time value of money. We discussed bonds and annuities, learned how to solve for variables on the calculator, and then at the end, my professor brought up retirement plans. Working a few problems, he gave us the key to retiring as millionaires: start saving now. With 45 years until I retire, the payment I would have to make now in order to have a comfortable retirement is significantly less than what it would be if I started saving twenty, ten, or even five years from now. Having the background context of the time value of money helped me to understand fully my father's advice.

I think it's hard for most people to look so far in the future and stay committed to a course of action, but in this case, I think it's worth it. I can't say that I'll specifically set aside a part of my paycheck for retirement, but I will look over my finances to see if I'm saving an adequate amount to get started. I'm grateful for the good example of my father in managing finances; he's always right!

the intentional family

This week, I read a book entitled The Intentional Family, written by family therapist and educator William Doherty. The purpose of the book is to strengthen relationships within families through the use of everyday rituals. Doherty defines a ritual as something that is repeated, coordinated, and significant. For example, parents and children can have a bedtime ritual of reading a story together before the child is tucked in for the night; couples can have a ritual of sharing a kiss and a meaningful conversation every day after coming home from work. Rituals can be simple, but the point is that they are intentional.

As I read this book, I realized that my childhood was riddled with rituals that strengthened my relationships with my siblings and parents; I would like to share just one with you. Every Sunday, my family would get together to have "Family Council." We would discuss our upcoming plans for the next week, establish goals, and review our family principles. While this is in and of itself a ritual, my favorite part of family council was something we named "Front and Centers." Each person in our family would take turns standing front and center, and then everyone would share one or two things that person had done well during the past week. It was a way for my family to reflect on the merits of each family member, and celebrate each other's accomplishments.

Front and Centers always made me feel that I was important and had something to offer, even when I was still very young. This mattered to me because I knew that my parents (and older brothers) were proud of me. Recognizing others vocally for the things they do well or for the attributes they possess is a sure way to strengthen relationships.

I don't live at home now, I'm not in a family setting, and I don't participate in a weekly family council, but I am surrounded by people. I can use my words to compliment my roommates, classmates, and other people I come in contact with. This week I will give a sincere compliment to someone each day, a version of Front and Centers. By extending this Garrett family ritual into the rest of my life, I will hopefully brighten someone's day and build stronger bonds of friendship and connection.

Леся Українка (Lesya Ukrainka)

This week in my Ukrainian class, we were assigned to give a presentation on any Ukrainian topic. After living in Ukraine for 18 months, I grew a deep love for the Ukrainian people and their culture. One thing that I especially love is their devotion to the arts, specifically to literature. In fact, most of the historical figures celebrated in Ukraine are writers, whether of poetry, novels, or operas.

I decided to create a presentation about Lesya Ukrainka, arguably Ukraine's most famous female writer.  Born in 1871, Ukrainka was raised by educated parents who taught her the importance of the Ukrainian language and culture. She wrote her first poem at age eight, and was a published poet by age 13. Throughout her life she struggled with tuberculosis of the bones, but she worked through the pain and wrote many works, including dramas, compilations of poems, epics, and essays. She championed the legitimacy of Ukrainian literature in a Russian society, supported Ukrainian nationalism, and created a legacy for Ukrainian women. Her influence is still felt today; every city in Ukraine has a street named after her.

After I presented my information, my professor included a few comments of his own. He remarked that Lesya Ukrainka was doubtless inspired by the Spirit in her work. This simple comment caused me to think about all of the cultural and political achievements that have occurred in world history. Sometimes I think we forget that God inspires good people everywhere to do good things, and we mistakenly assume that only Latter-day Saints are led by the Spirit. This is simply not true. The scriptures teach us that all good things come from God; there are no caveats to that statement. No matter who you are, where you live, or when you live, God can touch your life, and you can be an influence for good in the world.

Because of this knowledge, I have decided to act more quickly when I have a prompting to do good acts. This week, I will try every day to consciously do at least one good thing for someone around me. We each have the ability to create goodness, and we should use this ability every day.