First of all, I can’t believe it has been a whole year! When I first started The Life in Progress, I figured that it would maybe last for a couple weeks and then I’d get bored of it. But now that it has been a whole year, I can’t imagine what I would do without it. I love everything about blogging. I love writing my posts. I love making headers and putting in quotes. I love sharing my testimony. There is nothing I don’t like about blogging.
I have always wanted a way to share my faith with people, but never felt really comfortable with talking to people about it. I mean I would talk to people about my faith sometimes, but I had trouble putting how I felt into words. Being able to sit myself down and really think about what I believe has not only helped me to share the gospel, but has helped me build my own testimony. You see, when I take a minute to think of what I believe, it becomes really clear what I know that I believe. All of these things that I testify of on this blog, are things that I have had invaluable experiences with. I know I am always up for a little advice, so I figured that maybe other people feel the same way. I’m not saying that my views and advice is for everyone, but even if it helps one person in some way, I’m happy. So much has changed since I wrote my very first blog post, never in a million years would I have guessed that I would experience all that I have. If you were to tell 16-year-old me that I was going to experience all the things I have this year, I probably would have said no way, José! I probably would have thought there was no possible way I could do a huge amount of what I have done this year. I have never been good at keeping a journal, so it has been really cool to be able to go back into my archives and see how much I’ve grown in the last year. I think the first three months of having my blog were probably some of the hardest, but looking back on my posts from those months, they remind me that I can do hard things and that there is nothing Heavenly Father will give me that I can’t handle. If I hadn’t ever started a blog, I probably wouldn’t even think about how much better my life has been since then. Having had this blog for a year has taught me not to be ashamed of certain things that I am not necessarily proud of. One of the biggest things that have fallen under this category is my CP. I don’t really talk about my disability with anyone but my mom and even then, I kind of beat around the bush. But on my blog, I can just write about it and it has been so cool to have had people ask me questions about it. I used to be so embarrassed about it that I would get super uncomfortable when people ever asked about it. But now, I think it’s really cool when people want to know more about my CP. I actually had one person tell me that because of one of my posts, they befriended someone with CP and it was super cool to hear about. It has no doubt been a long year filled with lots of different experiences. I still can’t believe it’s already been a year! Don’t worry, I don’t plan on stopping any time soon. In fact, I don’t plan on ever stopping. The other day, one of my readers emailed me and asked about starting her own blog. If you are ever thinking about starting a blog, do it for sure! Just know it takes a bit of work, but it is so worth it. I’m so grateful for the people that read my blog, you guys are awesome!
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As a society, we tend to put most everything into two categories; good and bad. The problem with looking at everything like this is that we refuse to accept the lessons from the things we deem as negative. When something bad happens we tend to close it off, as if to say, “Oh no that was a bad circumstance, I’m not going to accept anything from that and pretend that didn’t even happen”, when in reality we know it did happen and rather than turning it into something positive, we shun the memory into a dark corner. This, however does nothing but make everything worse because it eventually builds up and comes rushing back to the front of our mind all at once. But if we take both the good and bad as it comes and just confront it as it comes, it’s easier to balance. I was born with what is called cerebral palsy, which basically is a disorder that affects my movement, muscle tone and posture. I’m going to be honest with you here, I really struggle with this. It makes things that should be easy a lot harder sometimes. But it has taught me so many valuable lessons and has given me opportunities to see things differently from other people. Here is a couple of the most valuable things I’ve learned from having CP. 1. There is nothing wrong with asking for help.I think we all want to be self sufficient, especially being teenagers turning into adults, we want to feel that we have control over our own lives. But when you are physically unable to rely on yourself, like me sometimes, you have to know how to ask for help. In a weird way, it’s really a blessing because you realize that Heavenly Father has got your back and that He’s going to take care of your needs through other people a lot of the time. Over time, I’ve come to know that asking people for help when you need it, isn’t that scary either. I used to be scared of asking for help, especially when I was around new people. I was afraid that they would judge me for not being able to do whatever it was I needed help with. But that is never the case and if it was, who cares? I know what my needs are and if I cannot fill them myself, it’s so much better to ask for a little help than not be able to do something. 2. Be nice to peopleBeing nice to people saves your life. It’s kind of a safety mechanism in an odd way. I rely a lot on other people, so I’ve learned that in order for them to want to help me, I need to be kind. Even if you aren't looking for help, being kind and happy makes people more likely to be happy too. When I was little, I used to play this game that I’ve never told anyone about. It’s basically where you go to a place with lots of people like the grocery store or the mall and when you make eye contact with people you smile. Now of course you want them to smile back, so you don’t do it creepily or anything. But it’s really cool to see how many people actually smile back. 3. Your body does not have to be perfectly functioning to work or for you to be proud of itI have very low stamina; my muscles are weak and get tired very easily. Because of this, I cannot do a lot of things that require dexterity or strength. That being said, I there are many things still I can do, but they require a bit more concentration and effort on my part. I used to get frustrated with myself when I could not do these things that demand the strength or coordination that I don’t have. But that just makes everything a lot harder because I would think to myself, I’m never going to be able to do this, so why try? But then I realized that not trying gets you nowhere. A little while ago, I adopted this mindset in which I would push myself and do what I could, but if there was something I couldn’t do, I wouldn’t stress myself out about it. I can tell you it’s rough not being able to do everything that your peers are able to do, but sometimes I surprise myself and do things that I thought I’d never be capable of. And when I do something I thought I’d never be able to, it makes for something to celebrate.That’s another upside, when I am able to do harder things, I get to celebrate every victory. Even if it is little, like if I can walk down a flight of stairs without having to grab on to the railing, I go into celebration mode. Because that means I was able to keep my balance longer than normal. 4. Listen to Your BodyWe receive messages from our body constantly, whether it’s hunger, pain, sickness, emotions or thirst. But sometimes we ignore these signs and that’s where some big problems can begin. As a person with CP, I have to be really in tune with what my body is telling me. If my muscles get tired, I need to relax them or they will start to give out. When I’m around people, I don’t like to eat, but then I don’t have energy to do anything. So when you listen to your body, you end up saving yourself a lot of stress and time. 5. There is nothing in life that you can fully predict.You’re never going to know what’s going to happen to you next, you’re never going to know how your mind and body are going to handle the world around you. I’m never going to be able to accurately predict when my muscles are going to be tired. This life is unpredictable and while that’s a little intimidating, it sure keeps things interesting. I think some of the best experiences I have had were completely unplanned. I have been blessed with experiences that have taught me many valuable lessons. I believe that life teaches you more than you could ever learn inside a classroom. Each hardship we endure is a new lesson learned. Though my trials were not always easy to endure, in fact most were very hard to overcome, I would not trade them for the world. The philosophies I have acquired from these trials are well worth their tribulation. Today, I'm sharing with you a couple of the most valuable ones I have learned throught my life. 1. Don’t Bother with Hypocrites.Never allow yourself to be exerted with hypocritical or judgemental people. There are always going to be people who criticize you and put you down. Remember the only reason why they do this is because they are too shallow to acknowledge their own imperfections. It is easier for them to make others feel worthless than to look in the mirror and see their own pathetic behaviors. 2. The only person responsible for the quality of your life is you.We live in a world where people are almost always unhappy with their circumstances. If something goes wrong in someone’s life, they automatically believe that unless something or someone comes into their life to pull them out of the dumps, they are doomed. Notwithstanding, I have found that even if your circumstances seem dire right now, if you do the best you can with what you have and don’t complain, things will get better. I know that the outlook you have in life deeply affects your happiness. I promise if you keep smiling through your trials, things will get better. 3. When you plant a seed in faith, don’t dig it up in doubt later.We are all going to have ups and downs in our faith. Some days, I doubt everything I have been taught in Sunday school, seminary and young womens. But I have recognized that after that doubt comes a reassurance that whatever it was that I had questioned has manifested itself through the Spirit. Sometimes, it does not come in the form of something tangible, most often it comes in the form of a warm tingle in my heart. Faith is an extraordinary blessing and if we have faith in something, we must remember that if we stay firm in believing, we will be blessed. 4. Don’t fret about those who talk behind your back; they are behind you for a reason.As a girl who has been through both middle and most of high school, I can tell you that it is very difficult to deal with the gossip that floats around. I’m sure everyone at one time or another has fallen victim to gossip. Usually, the rumors come from someone who is holding a grudge against you. To this, I have one and only one solution: keep your head up and act in a way that if someone spoke badly of you, no one would believe them. 5. Everything is a choice.Each action we take requires some sort of reasoning on our part. You choose the people you hang out with and those people greatly influence your choices. You choose what music you listen to and which movies you watch, which in turn affects your opinions and attitude. It is up to you to discern which parties you go to and the atmosphere at those parties affect you. Everything is a choice; choose wisely. In one of my favorite movies it is said, “Good decisions don’t make life easy, but they do make it easier.” The decisions we make can either add to or take away from our lives. 6. Loss is the best teacher for understanding the worth of something.As a someone who has been very blessed in many ways, I take things for granted all the time. Everyone says that you don’t know what you have until it’s gone. This is so true. Every once and awhile, I get a little sick or my seasonal allergies kick in which leads to having my nose be stuffed up for a couple days. Every time this happens, I think about the times that I was able to actually breathe through my nose. I know this may sound a little stupid, but it applies to some of the bigger things in life too. For example, when I was in elementary and middle school, I had something called an independence facilitator. This is basically someone who would sit with me in my classes and help me with things I was unable to physically do myself. She would help me with things like taking notes, staying focused and helping carry my things when I got too tired. At the end of my eighth grade year, it was decided that I no longer needed an independence facilitator anymore. At first, it was very hard to manage physically on my own, but not having someone to lean on all the time helped me be independent in school. I later look back on this and I realize that even though at the time it was hard to do things on my own, I learned how to fully rely on myself in school. Sometimes we lose something because there is something we need to learn from it. 7. When you are down to nothing, God is up to something.In my life, I have found that it is at my lowest points in life, that I come to a stronger knowledge of my Father in Heaven. I know sometimes, He brings us down so that we can soar higher than we had been before. One of my favorite articles in a magazine produced by the church is called, “The Currant Bush” by Elder Hugh B. Brown. He talked about when he was a young farmer in Canada and one day came accross a current bush that failed to produce any fruit. As a farmer, who wanted the bush to grow fruit to eat, he decided to prune the bush, leaving only a small stump. In doing this, he observed that a tear-like drop had emerged from the stump, as if it were to ask, “Why are you doing this to me?” The farmer answered that he was the gardener and he knew what he wanted the plant to be. Months later, the bush was once again fully grown, but this time laden with plenty of fruit. The bush thanked the gardener for loving him enough to cut him down. The same is true in our own lives. God knows what he wants us to be and sometimes, He cuts us down because we are not growing in ways he has planned for us. 8. There are going to be so many people in this life that say you can’t, prove them wrong.Throughout my life, there have been people who have told me that there are always going to be certain things that I’ll never be able to do. Sometimes, those people are right, but most often, if you have enough determination, you can make it. Every so often, there have been people who have told me that because of my physical limitations, there are things that I just can’t do. When people tell me things like this I sometimes get irritated and take that energy that would be used to fuel that anger to do whatever they said was impossible for me to do.
I’ll be honest with you, some people can be really hard to deal with. I have trouble adhering to this philosophy. I tend to take the people that I have trouble getting along with and think only about their negative traits. I forget that just like me, they too have flaws, but they also have good traits. We are all progressing towards being better people and some people are just faster in their betterment than others. I have found that the more patient you are with people, the easier it is to tolerate them. Another thing I have grasped is that the more you accept that everyone has flaws that you can’t always fix, the better your relationships will be. 10. Eschew the Norm.I think one of the most important lessons I’ve learned in my 17 years on this earth is that normalcy is boring. I also know that not being normal is very hard. I was born with cerebral palsy (CP for short). CP is basically a disorder that affects my movement, muscle tone and posture. When I was younger, I had to use a walker and have braces on my legs in order to walk. I do not need them anymore, thankfully, but due to my CP, I really stand out in a crowd and I used to be really self-conscious about it. Then one day, I read a book about a boy with CP in which he talked about how everyone strives to be “normal” and to “fit in” but this kid’s goal was to stand out and show people that being different was not a particularly bad thing. After reading his philosophy, I decided to embrace it. Though it is hard at times, the choice I made to accept being different from my peers was one of best decisions I’ve ever made.
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My name is Ellie. I am a sophomore at BYU Idaho. I am excited to live life and to share a small piece of it with you!
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