Angels

When I was little, my favorite bed-time song my mom sang to me was called "Angel Lullaby." I still vividly remember how safe it made me feel as I drifted off to sleep.

In my New Testament class this week, a quote from Elder Holland was given about angels--about how we need to talk about angels and bear testimony of them. This struck me because I recently was able to have a very sacred experience where I felt the presence of a specific angel, my sweet, stillborn niece, baby Jane. I've also had other experiences where I've felt a specific angel helping me or comforting me and I've definitely seen angels in people around me.

Elder Holland has given amazing talks about angels, and I want to add my testimony to His that I know that angels exist, and that they surround us, helping us more than we realize. They are Divine Signatures from God.

"From the beginning down through the dispensations, God has used angels as His emissaries in conveying love and concern for His children."

"Usually such beings are not seen. Sometimes they are. But seen or unseen they are always near." 

 "I testify  of angels, both the heavenly and the mortal kind. In doing so I am testifying that God never leaves us alone, never leaves us unaided in the challenges that we face...the Father of us all is watching and assisting. And always there are angels who come and go all around us, seen and unseen, known and unknown, mortal and immortal." 

"May we all believe more readily in, and have more gratitude for, the Lord's promise as contained in one of President Monson's favorite scriptures: 'I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left,..my Spirit shall be in your [heart], and mine angels round about you, to bear you up.' 

In the process of praying for those angels to attend us, may we all try to be a little more angelic ourselves--with a kind word, a strong arm, a declaration of faith and 'the covenant wherewith [we] have covenanted.' Perhaps then we can be emissaries sent from God." 

Elder Holland, "The Ministry of Angels," 2008

#Hallelujah

Happy Easter, everyone!

I love the video The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints made this year. It is a great reminder to me of the love our Savior has for us, and the miraculous gift of the atonement available to all of us. "Jesus Christ died for us, and lived again. Follow Him and find new life. Discover how." 

I am so grateful for my Savior. 

Hallelujah.

Feminism

I never really liked saying I was a feminist, because I've always felt like that word implies extreme feminism. But really, I'm a supporter of women and #fairnessforall.

A few weeks ago, I watched a video in one of my classes that really changed my perspective and was a Divine Signature of direction for my life. It was called Miss Representation, and is a documentary about sexism in the media and America. 

This movie made me want to be more active and involved in my community, family, and church. It just made me want to be a better, stronger, smarter woman! It made me want to teach others about the sexism in American media and start a movement to change the world! Such a great movie. (Warning: we watched it edited. There is pretty extreme content in it)

Here are some of my notes from the movie: 

• 65% of women and girls have eating disorders, and depression doubled from 2000-2010
• Women spend more money on makeup than on their entire education. 
• The media makes girls learn to see themselves as objects, making them more likely to be depressed and have lower GPAs, self-worth, political efficacy, and cognitive abilities
• While women are 50% of the US, only 17% of Congress are women
• There are 34 female governors compared to 2300 male governors
• Iraq, Cuba, and Afghanistan have more women in politics than the US does
• There are hardly ever girl protagonists, and even chick-flicks revolve around men's lives. It's always about getting a man 
• When women are shown as action heroes, they are still objectified and for male viewers
• If female leaders are shown, they sacrificed their family and life to get there
• 70% of all characters on TV are men
• TV was part of re-domestication (getting women back in the home) after WWII when women had taken over the jobs (Think I Love Lucy)
• There is a media gender bias. In news articles, journalists introduce male quotes as "stated" and female quotes as "complained" or another emotional adjective. Women are 2x more likely to be described as emotional
• Female newscasters are always objectified! Katy Couric tried to change this by being modest, and all of her reviews were about her appearance 
• Congress is comprised of the fewest amount of women in 30 years 
• In G rated movies, the women are just as likely to be wearing as revealing clothing as shown in R rated movies

So here is what I've gotten out of this. I need to be engaged in my community and church. I need to be a strong, confident, educated woman to be an example to those around me. I need to be a critical viewer of the media and the gender bias so that I can teach my future children to do the same. I need to be more involved in politics. Lastly, I need to share this information with others (hence the blog), because informing is the first step to fix all of these problems. 

Is Harry Potter the Solution to all Your Problems?

I originally wrote this post for Bookroo, and it looks way better there :) Check it out! 

I’m currently reading the Harry Potter series...for the first time. I know, I know--what took me so long?!

Coincidentally, in one of my Human Development classes I recently read a research study called “Putting Harry Potter on the Bench” by Colman Noctor. It proposed something that intrigued me: Harry Potter is the solution to our problems.

Now that sounds a little funny.

The study is from a clinical psychotherapy treatment center where they use Therapeutic Story Time. Early on, the director was having trouble connecting to the youth. But it was all changed for the better when the he brought in Harry Potter. Suddenly, the youth opened up about problems they had never discussed before. They talked about their biggest fears and made significant, life-changing goals because they were using Harry Potter to describe their situations and help them overcome their problems. Here are some examples of how the youth applied Harry Potter:

• The Patronus Charm: This taught the youth to think of the happiest thought they have when they are feeling depressed or overcome by sadness (a.k.a., the dementors).
• The Mirror of Erised: The youth talked about what their hopes and dreams are. As the weeks continued and they revisited this topic, their goals helped them improve and work through their problems.
• The Boggarts: In a group discussion, everyone took a turn saying what the boggart would form if they were in front of it. With this prompt, they began sharing their greatest fears. But instead of focusing on the problem, they would say, like in Harry Potter, how to “solve” the problem. Just as Harry learned to use humor to cope with his greatest fear, the teenagers verbalized how they could similarly implement humor to help them cope with their greatest fears.
• Lord Voldemort: Everyone has bad things in their lives they have to defeat. The youth discussed how these hardships are part of us, but overcoming them makes us stronger.

This study amazed me. It reminded me of the power of books. Now, Harry Potter most likely won’t help you through all of your problems, but other books can. Pride and Prejudice can help you learn to not judge others. Les Miserables can inspire you to become a better person, like Jean Valjean. The books you read are always teaching you something.

Here’s a personal example. I couldn’t say my R’s until second grade. I vividly remember reading Wodney Wat (a book we sent out a few months ago in our picture book boxes), and how it made me not to feel alone--that there were others who struggled just as I did.

Now, I’m not saying all that all books teach healthy lessons. We need to be careful about what books we read because they all impact us.

So what are your children learning from their books? Maybe they’re learning knowledge, such as numbers, colors, and animals. Or perhaps they’re learning manners and kindness when they read about friendship and respect. Have they learned how to stand up to bullies from Harry standing up to Malfoy?

Books are powerful. Their messages help us cope with problems and challenge us to be better.

What is your favorite book, and how has it helped you? What about your child’s favorite book?

Research and Thoughts on Pornography

I recently had a lecture in one of my classes regarding sexual media and pornography. I felt a prompting during the class to write a post about what I learned, because this information is too important not to share.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has so many valuable resources to help arm us against pornography. Yet Latter-day Saints have a stigma about pornography that isn't quite right. Pornography is shamed because its effects have scared us. But we can't let it scare us anymore! We need to be informed about the negative effects of pornography, but we also need to realize that SO many people are struggling with it. Yet it's not often that someone shares their experience of struggling through or overcoming this trial in Sunday School, Relief Society, Priesthood, or Sacrament Meeting. Why? Because of the stigma. We need to change our culture to be more understanding, accepting, loving, and helpful; to "mourn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort those who stand in need of comfort." (Mosiah 18:9) 

Pornography is everywhere. Every single person will be exposed to pornography at least once in their lifetime--so EVERYONE needs to learn how to combat it. If you don't struggle with it, your child, sibling, spouse, or friend will.

This is some of the research gathered at Brigham Young University regarding pornography use among Latter-day Saints that we talked about in class:

• Among BYU students, 35% admitted to viewing pornography in the last 12 months (Nelson et al. 2011). (This is more likely estimated to be 80%, but many are not willing to report their use.)
• These people also reported lower levels of identity development and self worth, and higher levels of depression. 
• Pornography use is rising among women.
• Religious men use pornography less than non-religious men.
• Religious men are less likely to have an addiction to pornography, but more likely to call their use an "addiction" because of the pressures and shaming in the religious culture. 
• A minority of pornography users are truly addicted to pornography: 10-15%.

So how do we combat pornography and help safeguard our families? 

• Elder Oaks has recently placed more emphasis on the use of pornography. He talks about the levels of usage and what actually constitutes an addiction--Latter-day Saints are too quick to use the term "addiction" to describe someone's struggle, which can worsen their situation and make them feel trapped. 
• Elder Oaks also gave four suggestions regarding our attitudes about pornography:
• Acknowledge the evil
• Seek the help of the Lord and His servants
• Do all that you can to avoid pornography
• Do not patronize pornography
• Use this Family Home Evening lesson to teach your family about pornography. 
• This video is a great, recent tool to teach children how to react to seeing pornography.
• Here is a helpful "Can do" motto to remember what to do if you see pornography: