Mesa Temple

Yesterday I had 2 sister-in-laws over to make these photos/paintings. This was the one I made. It was fun to hang out and make these. I can't wait to get furniture so I can find a place for this on our wall. In the mean time, it will end up in our storage room with all the rest of our things...

I made this one for my sister-in-law Krystal last week. She was sealed this past weekend to her husband and two babies. I wanted to give her something to remember the day. I am so happy for their family!  

A few tips for anyone who ever plans to do something like this:

     •The paint looks more natural if you paint over the modge-podge, not under it. When I   
     went back and made touch-ups after I finished, I realized that. 

     •It's easier to glue the picture if you cut it smaller than your canvas.

     •For a more "antiqued" look, paint a splotchy black pattern coming off of the canvas and 
     onto the picture. (My sister-in-law Roxy did that and it looked AMAZING!)

     •Use the darker paint around the edges and gradually get lighter the closer you get to   
     the temple.

Offensive

It seems like the theme for this month for me is being offended.  It started with seeing  some shocking behavior from someone (I don't know who reads this but I'm sure it wasn't you, call me and I'll shock you) and it ended with a co-worker asking if he did a routine to The Book Of Mormon if I thought that would offend anyone.  He of course had no idea I was mormon when he asked me, which makes it all the funnier. 

He chose Beauty and the Beast instead.

Last night after watching 4 straight episodes of a pretty scandalous show, I was a bit disgusted and decided to never watch it again.  Not because of the horrible context of the show (which makes me feel worse), but because I liked it despite it's horrible context.  If I like anything too much I immediately hate it.  I don't like the feeling of being addicted to anything.  (Except of course Arrested Development, things that make me laugh are a HUGE exception)  A big reason why I disconnected Facebook from my phone. 

Too much.

I've long believed that too much t.v. leads to apostasy.  I'm not going to explain that comment or my reasons for believing that, or my reason for stating that. 

When I responded to my co-worker about the play The Book Of Mormon, I tried not to offend him about it offending anyone because it is offensive. 

??

Sometimes it's good to take a break from Facebook, TV, or anything else that's distracting in life to remember that it's okay to stand for something.  Any statement that starts out with "That's horrible, but..."  is wrong.  Or it's a good movie, there's just the one scene (HP7, pt1)  

There are no exceptions.  If there were, then there would be no need to repent/change.

That schocking behavior I mentioned?  That was followed by, "Well, she's really nice, maybe she had a horrible upbringing, who knows..."

But in reality, life is black and white.  Gray doesn't exist. (That concept doesn't demand perfection)

So when I said "I'm sure it wouldn't offend, I've never seen the play but are the lyrics really bashing mormons?  If not I'm sure you'll be fine.  I think it's funny that you're asking a mormon."

"Well, the lyrics....maybe I'll pick something else.  You're mormon?" 

When someone commented that he should have gone with The Book Of Mormon and not Beauty and the Beast he replied he didn't want to offend anyone.  (kind of a sheepish look at me) 

The other guy responded, "Why not?  If you're going to offend anyone, offend the Mormons!!" 

The shushing and whispering that followed was hilarious.  I couldn't help but say, "and this is where you hush him and whisper, Melanie is a mormon!"  And after I said that, laughing, the moment was priceless.

 The second co-worker was not ashamed and repeated, "I still think it's best to offend mormons if it's going to be anyone."

"Why is that?"
"Because they don't get offended easily."

That was so funny to me.  But it did get me thinking.  I am proud to be part of a religion that has accountability.  I love that despite our different pasts and varying issues, we are accountable for who we are and what we do today (so shocking behavior girl, no excuses!).  I love that a play is made that is a comical spoof on the Mormon religion, exaggerating our weaknesses, and is insulting because of it's sarcastic, derogetory message of who we are. 

I love it because it shows that we as a religion aren't perfect, because we aren't.  But we do have perfection no other religion can claim.  The restored gospel of Jesus Christ IS perfect.  And despite my love for horrible shows (and my double standard of many of them) I believe in standing for something, that modesty takes self control and courage (and sometimes humiliation - curse womens fashion), that it's not easy attempting to do what's right.  I've had ridicule my entire life about my beliefs, about how narrow minded I am, how exclusive I am, how stuck up I am (all of these referring to me being mormon), and I am sure I am no exception. 

That's probably why my co-worker thinks mormons don't get offended.  We are so used to others being offended by us that we don't notice our own right to be offended at others. 

With all my worrying about offending others, I must admit that I kind of like offending others too, so if no one is offended by my post, I might be a little offended in return...

Remembering Lot's Wife

My cousin Karren wrote a great post about Lot's wife from another post she had read. Check them out! If you're too lazy, here's a poem from one of the comments. Very good.
Lot's Wife - Alice Morrey Bailey
She merely turned for one last, stolen look
Before her woman's lingering mind forsook
The home her hands had decked, her smile made sweet,
The memories of her children on the street.
A spirit, set on right, must keep front-face
Forever rigid toward the chosen place
And eyes firm-narrowed in the lane of duty.
No wayside resting place and no lush beauty
Should tempt the soul to longing, no lost
Love or glory, and no treasure mete their cost
In nostalgic indecision, not even pity
For a wanton, doomed, and wicked city,
Lest the will be drawn into the sucking blaze,
Consumed to smoke and ash. The backward gaze
Can bend desire, compel the step to halt,
And slowly, slowly turn the heart to salt.

Boycotts

My SIL and I had an interesting :) conversation the other day about HBO. She sent me a link to this article and I thought I'd share because it's good. The article can be found at http://newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/commentary/the-publicity-dilemma Highlights include: "Certainly Church members are offended when their most sacred practices are misrepresented or presented without context or understanding. Last week some Church members began e-mail chains calling for cancellations of subscriptions to AOL, which, like HBO, is owned by Tim Warner. Certainly such a boycott by hundreds of thousands of computer-savvy Latter-day Saints could have an economic impact on the company. Individual Latter-day Saints have the right to take such actions if they choose.The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as an institution does not call for boycotts. Such a step would simply generate the kind of controversy that the media loves and in the end would increase audiences for the series. As Elder M. Russell Ballard and Elder Robert D. Hales of the Council of the Twelve Apostles have both said recently, when expressing themselves in the public arena, Latter-day Saints should conduct themselves with dignity and thoughtfulness. Not only is this the model that Jesus Christ taught and demonstrated in his own life, but it also reflects the reality of the strength and maturity of Church members today. As someone recently said, “This isn’t 1830, and there aren’t just six of us anymore.” In other words, with a global membership of thirteen and a half million there is no need to feel defensive when the Church is moving forward so rapidly. The Church’s strength is in its faithful members in 170-plus countries, and there is no evidence that extreme misrepresentations in the media that appeal only to a narrow audience have any long-term negative effect on the Church."

Priesthood

Clark received the Melchizedek Priesthood on Sunday. His grandad came up from Casa Grand and gave a good prayer. Because it was REALLY short he was able to remember everything he said and wrote it down for Clark to keep, which was really thoughtful.

If you're wondering about the picture, I googled Melchizedek Priesthood and this was the first picture to show up. (the strange man is supposed to be J.S.) Enjoy!