Evaluation of Blog

 As I thought at the beginning of the semester to who my audience would be, I was at a loss.  But strangely every time I wrote on my wall I thought about Jake Hansen, and started to write as if i was telling him these things.  So Jake Hansen is my audience.
As I have gone back and looked at my blog from this last semester, I realize that I have had an awesome semester!  I have been super busy, but my time has been filled with things that I love, like Lindsay, school, my job at the MTC, and doing research.  Writing about these experiences has been a great way to reflect on how I have felt at different points during the semester.  When I was super stressed writing on the blog about it was a good way to vent.  When I wasn't stressed writing on my blog was a fun expeience.  One thing I like about it is that you can include pictures that go along with what you write! At the same time, sometimes, when I wasn't writing about things I wanted to write about, the blog seemed like an extra burden that I was falling behind with.  We need so many comments, so many posts, it has to be stylized, etc.  However, once I added pictures and a cool background I enjoyed looking at my own blog much more.
 I think I will continue writing on this blog in order have a fun way to keep a journal.

Personal narrative, final draft.

Daniel Stephenson

English 150

Lori Steadman                                                                 

12/1/11

                                                Lessons from Batsaikhan

            There she sat, a large woman, wearing a brown fur coat that made her look almost like a grizzly bear.  She was in her mid-forties, but could pass for a woman much older.  Her hair was unwashed and matted.   I looked at her through the window of the mission office as she sat in the foyer on the couch that had been placed there for people waiting to have an interview with the mission president.  She caught me looking and got a huge grin on her face as she motioned frantically for me to come out and talk to her. I had heard about her before from my companion.  Her name was Batsaikhan, she always came into the mission office when we were too busy to blink, saying that she had just walked 5 miles to meet with the president.  She never set up an appointment; she just came and expected us to drop everything so that she could have time to talk to President.  The problem was that President did not speak Mongolian, so each interview with a Mongolian required either me or my companion to sit in and act as translator.

            I threw a frown at my companion and slowly opened the door and stepped into the foyer.

            “Hello, Elder.  I need to speak with President,” she said as I walked up to her.  It had been long day of interviews and constantly answering our cell phone to find out about some new problem that missionaries thought they needed our help with.

            “What do you need?” I asked curtly.

            “I need some help from president” she exclaimed.  I knew what she meant by ‘help’.  What she wanted was money.  That is the only reason she EVER came in to talk to the president.  She hardly had enough money to ride the bus into the center of the city usually. 

            “President is really busy right now.  We have 4 other people who set up appointments to meet with him still waiting to get in.  You will have to come back some other time” I said, in an annoyed tone.

            “Oh, just tell him I will take 5 minutes” she said with grin that revealed only 15 teeth or so.  I nodded at her and turned to walk into the office.  I knocked on the door of the separate room that was the mission president’s office.  He opened the door a foot and poked his head out.  I had obviously interrupted something.  He looked at me expectantly.

            “President, Batsaikhan is here, she said she needs to meet with you really quick.  She said she would only take 5 minutes of your time.  I can just tell her that we are busy and she needs to set up an appointment for some other time” I said, trying to show that I didn’t think we had time to meet with her. 

            “Send her into my office in 10 minutes” came his reply after a 10 second pause. 

            I turned and walked towards the foyer.  I had no idea how in the world President ever expected to get all of his work done if he met with her.  I opened the door to the foyer and poked my head out to tell Batsaikhan that President would see her in 10 minutes. 

After close to 30 minutes of Batsaikhan going on and on about her financial troubles, I escorted her out of the office.  She had an extra 50,000 Tugriks (approximately 35 dollars) of President’s personal money in her pocket, and she was happy as could be.  President went back to work; he didn’t seem bugged by her begging at all.  I walked into my office, baffled by his lack of irritation, and feeling like I had a bit of soul searching to do.

One month later I walked out into the foyer in front of the mission office to get a drink.  On the couch sat Batsaikhan, wearing the exact same outfit that she had been wearing a month before.  “Hey Elder Stephenson, How are you?” she slurred through her toothless grin.

“I am doing great, how are you?”  I said as I sat down across from her on a chair. 

“I have been, okay.  My daughter has been really sick though” she said as her mood dampened. 

“Oh no!  What can we do to help?” I said.

“I need to meet with President, and ask him for help.”

“I will get right on that!” I said as I stood and walked quickly back into the mission office to ask President when he could meet with her.  I returned shortly thereafter to inform her that president could talk with her in 5 minutes.

After about 30 minutes of the same, sad story filled with financial trouble, I was once again escorting Batsaikhan out of the mission office.  President returned to his work, unfazed.  Batsaikhan was smiling big, this time with 20,000 tugriks, (approximately 15 dollars), in her pocket.  I walked back into my office, thinking about what had just happened.  I sat down behind my desk, and sighed loudly. I was feeling pensive.  My companion walked in and asked me how the interview went.

“She sure needs a lot of help.  It is great that we have a chance to help her, isn’t it?”

My companion grinned at me.  “Now you’re getting it” he said.

Decisions

     One of the apostles, (I don't remember which one, maybe Elder Oaks), said that most of life's biggest decisions are made in hte 10 year period from age 20 to age 30.  I, like most of you who are reading this post, am realizing that he was right! 
     Lindsay  graduates in August, after which she would like to do an intensive year-long internship in order to become a registered dietitian.  I am trying to finish up and graduate by August also, but the problem is that I decided that I want to minor in statistics, and i would need ot have that done by August also!  I am planning on going to graduate school to get a PhD in clinical psychology, with an emphasis in neuroscience.  I recently heard that clinical psych PhD programs are some of the most competitive programs around, including more competitive than most medical schools. This scares the pants off of me!  Maybe I should have chosen to be something that pays better and won't include another 4-6 years of schooling.  I am trying to figure out how to give myself a leg up on other applicants now, and I am getting nervous about applying!

The gospel

I was born into the church.  I have been taught from the time I was young the things that I need to do in order to be happy and to be close to God.  Something that i have learned is that the concepts thjat seem the simplist are the ones that take the most effort to learn.  My parents taught me from the time that I was little to read my scriptures and say my prayers during the day.  I started out when I was 8 reading 3 verses a day.   As I got older there were times when I would read longer passages and learn a lot from it.  I also went through times whe I didn't read as diligently.  I was taught to pray since I was a very young tyke.  There have been times that my prayers have been really sincere and times when they have been less sincere.  As a teenager I was really good about it sometimes and not so good about it at others.  That is not to say that there are times that I am not reading or praying at all; I have always read and always prayed every day.  There are just times when it is more sincere than other times.  I spent two years teaching people that in order to come unto Christ they need to read the Book of Mormon and pray.  I currently teach missionaries at the MTC every day that in  order to help their investigators they need to help them read the Book of Mormon and pray about it.  I know these things are super important, but sometimes I am not the best at praying as sincere as I should.  The last few weeks, however, I have been studying with purpose and praying with real intent, and it has made all the difference.

Thanksgiving break!

School has started again after the best Thanksgiving break of my life!  I worked over Thanksgiving break, so I was still busy...sort of.  I have never felt so relaxed in my entire life.  There were multiple hours everyday to relax and just be with Lindsay, which is something that we have not had much time to do since the beginning of the semester.  Now I am ready to hit the books hard again for 2.5 weeks until the end of the semester.  I learned a great lesson during break;  take time to relax.  Even though Linds and I both had homework to do, we were able to take time everyday to sit and talk, to go on a walk, to take a nap, or any other relaxing activity we wanted to do.  This was extemely rejuvinating.  We were also able to take time to talk about marriage.  We only have 22 days left as un-married, and neither of us can hardly wait.  Even though life has been so busy this last semester, it just keeps getting better and better!

Pray

Tonight as my fiance and I did homework she suddenly exclaimed "Oh no!" 
I asked her what was wrong and she said that she had accidentally deleted 5 hours worth of work on a project she was working on for one of her classes.  Her heart dropped to her stomach and so did mine.  She looked as if she was going to cry, and I started to feel terrible for her.  She works so hard, and sometimes feels like she is barely keeping up with her schoolwork, so I knew how much this hurt.  I had no idea what to say to comfort her.  So I bowed my head and said a prayer that she would be able to redo the work that she had already done very quickly.  She worked away, and continued to look as if she could cry any minute, for about an hour.  Then, all of a sudden, she said, "I am already past where I was before I deleted it!"  It was a small miracle!  She was able to do the work she did in 5 hours before in one hour.  It could be because she had already done it once.  Or it could be that she got better at it from practice.  I, however, attribute it to the fact that the Lord was helping her.  Once again, I have been taught that when there is  a problem, pray.

Personal narrative- A change of heart

There she sat, a large woman, wearing a brown fur coat that made her look almost like a grizzly bear.  She was in her mid-forties, but could pass for a woman much older.  Her hair was unwashed and matted.   I looked at her through the window of the mission office as she sat in the foyer on the couch that had been placed there for people waiting to have an interview with the mission president.  She caught me looking and got a huge grin on her face as she motioned frantically for me to come out and talk to her. I had heard about her before from my companion.  Her name was Batsaikhan, she always came into the mission office when we were too busy to blink, saying that she had just walked 5 miles to meet with the president.  She never set up an appointment; she just came and expected us to drop everything so that she could have time to talk to President.  The problem was that President did not speak Mongolian, so each interview with a Mongolian required either me or my companion to sit in and act as translator.

            I threw a frown at my companion and slowly opened the door and stepped into the foyer.

            “Hello, Elder.  I need to speak with President,” she said as I walked up to her.  It had been long day of interviews and constantly answering our cell phone to find out about some new problem that missionaries thought they needed our help with.

            “What do you need?” I asked curtly.

            “I need some help from president” she exclaimed.  I knew what she meant by ‘help’.  What she wanted was money.  That is the only reason she EVER came in to talk to the president.  She hardly had enough money to ride the bus into the center of the city usually. 

            “President is really busy right now.  We have 4 other people who set up appointments to meet with him still waiting to get in.  You will have to come back some other time” I said, in an annoyed tone.

            “Oh, just tell him I will take 5 minutes” she said with grin that revealed only 15 teeth or so.  I nodded at her and turned to walk into the office.  I knocked on the door of the separate room that was the mission president’s office.  He opened the door a foot and poked his head out.  I had obviously interrupted something.  He looked at me expectantly.

            “President, Batsaikhan is here, she said she needs to meet with you really quick.  She said she would only take 5 minutes of your time.  I can just tell her that we are busy and she needs to set up an appointment for some other time” I said, trying to show that I didn’t think we had time to meet with her. 

            “Send her into my office in 10 minutes” came his reply after a 10 second pause. 

            I turned and walked towards the foyer.  I had no idea how in the world President ever expected to get all of his work done if he met with her.  I opened the door to the foyer and poked my head out to tell Batsaikhan that President would see her in 10 minutes. 

After close to 30 minutes of Batsaikhan going on and on about her financial troubles, I escorted her out of the office.  She had an extra 50,000 Tugriks (approximately 35 dollars) of President’s personal money in her pocket, and she was happy as could be.  President went back to work; he didn’t seem bugged by her begging at all.  I walked into my office, baffled, and feeling like I had a bit of soul searching to do.

One month later I walked out into the foyer in front of the mission office to get a drink.  On the couch sat Batsaikhan, wearing the exact same outfit that she had been wearing a month before.  “Hey Elder Stephenson, How are you?” she slurred through her toothless grin.

“I am doing great, how are you?”  I said as I sat down across from her on a chair. 

“I have been, okay.  My daughter has been really sick though” she said as her mood dampened. 

“Oh no!  What can we do to help?” I said.

“I need to meet with President, and ask him for help.”

“I will get right on that!” I said as I stood and walked quickly back into the mission office to ask President when he could meet with her.  I returned shortly thereafter to inform her that president could talk with her in 5 minutes.

After about 30 minutes of the same, sad story filled with financial trouble, I was once again escorting Batsaikhan out of the mission office.  President returned to his work, unfazed.  Batsaikhan was smiling big, this time with 20,000 tugriks, (approximately 15 dollars), in her pocket.  I walked back into my office, thinking about what had just happened.  I sat down behind my desk, and sighed loudly. I was feeling pensive.  My companion walked in and asked me how the interview went.

“She sure needs a lot of help.  It is great that we have a chance to help her, isn’t it?”

My companion grinned at me.  “Now you’re getting it” he said.