Table of Contents

1) Thou Shalt Not Idle Away Thy Time
2) The Strength of Family Ties
3) Analyzing President Kennedy's Inaugural Address
4) Research Paper Thesis
5) General Conference Analysis: Elder David A. Bednar October 2014
6) Updated Research Thesis
7) Research Paper Reflection
8) Don't Mess With Momma or Papa Bear
9) Turkey Bowl!!
10) Disappointed in the Cowboys
11) Food Family and Football!!
12) Time to Hit the Gym
13) The Grand America
14) I'm a Working Man
15) My Bestie Quigz
16) My New Baby
17) Merry Christmas!
18) Equation to Success: Cheesecake and Fudge
19) How Speaking Helped Me Open My Eyes
20) Dating was Surely Missed on the Mission
21) I Have Been Changed for the Better

I Have Been Changed for the Better (21)

          My experience this semester in Writing 150 has been great. I've learned a lot have grown a lot as a writer. I use to look at writing as a drag, but now it's not so bad. I don't think I'll ever enjoy writing a research paper that's 8 pages long, but now I know I can do it! Confidence in writing is half the battle in my opinion.
          I didn't blog much at the beginning of the semester, but towards the end I made a lot of blogs and I actually enjoyed writing them. It's fun to talk about yourself and your life achievements, and to express it in writing and pictures. I think blogging also gives me the opportunity to open up and be myself in writing. I don't have to meet certain criteria for the teacher to grade. I love school, reading, writing, and learning in general, but I hate that we have to be graded on how we are at certain things. It's important to be graded to test our progress and comprehension, but it's a bummer when you feel good about a piece of your work and you end up getting a terrible grade.
          This may be the end of the Writing 150 chapter of my life, but it's definitely not the end of my writing. I look forward to using my writing skills in the future now that I understand writing more and have the confidence to write. I'm sure there will be some very boring papers I will have to write, but I will definitely be thankful for all that I've learned in Writing 150 about writing and about myself.

Dating was Surely Missed on The Mission (20)

          

          It's a blessing to be able to be close to girls again. 2 years away from girls is a long time. Tonight I went out with Kennedy for the first time and had such a good time. She is awesome. She came over at 7 and I taught her how to play Don't Worry by Bob Marley on the Ukulele. It's a very simple song. We're going to play together for my ward's talent show next week. The plan is to wear Jamaican wigs and act like Bob Marley and a made up character, Barbara Marley. We practiced for a little less than an hour and a half.
          After practicing the ukulele we went to sub-zero for some ice cream. It was delicious. The server also froze some of the gummy bears and showed us how they break into pieces when you drop them. He also froze some marshmallows and let us try them. They were gross at first, but then pretty good once they melted in your mouth. Kennedy and I talked for about an hour about each others lives and got to know each other. It was great.
          After ice cream we went back to her place and talked with her roommates for about an hour. Her roommates invited me to do cross-fit with them. They allow you to go five times for free, so I'm gonna give it a try and maybe a few tires more after that. It's $75 a month after the free trials, so I'm not sure if I'll continue to go or not. It would help me stay in shape and have a better looking body, but I also need money to buy food. After talking with Kennedy's roommates I said goodnight and went home. I shared with my roommates my version of how the night went.
          I really like Kennedy. She's extremely pretty and has a wonderful personality. I look forward to hopefully going out with her again. I'll probably ask her out on another date the next time we practice. I don't see any signs telling me she doesn't like me, so I'm gonna keep trying with her. Even if it doesn't work out, I'll make sure she's a part o my life as a good friend.

How Speaking Helped Me Open My Eyes (19)

          A few weeks ago I had the privilege of speaking in Sacrament Meeting. I admit that I not the best at attending my Sunday Services. I always go to church, but I don't always go to my church. I often go to church with my grandparents in Sandy, or with someone else up near Salt Lake City. I couldn't tell the Bishop's Counselor no, and as a matter of fact, I was hoping to have the opportunity to speak in my ward.

          I was asked to speak on a talk given by Thomas S. Monson on January 16th, 1973 at a BYU Devotional entitled: Four Words to Guide You. The four words that Monson uses are Listen, Learn, Labor and Love. I found some great parables to share about a few of these words, which I felt went really well with my talk. 

          I believe that the one who learns the most from a talk given on Sunday is the person who prepared the talk. So many times I have either been on my phone, dozed off, or just didn't pay attention resulting in me not learning from the speaker. As the speaker, I had to pay attention to what I was studying so that I could deliver a well prepared talk. As a result, I learned of the importance to listen before judging, learn from my life experiences, labor when the Lord needs me, love others as I love myself and my savior, Jesus Christ. 

          I am eternally grateful to be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I cannot express the joy that I feel knowing that my family is eternal and that my future family will be eternal. I know I'm not perfect, but that doesn't mean I can't be perfect in striving to be perfect. The Lord asks for our best. Nothing more. Nothing less. 

Equation to Success: Cheesecake and Fudge (18)

          Last night my roommates and I made dinner for some of the girls in our ward. Eric made Curry for dinner and I made cheesecake for dessert. We invited an apartment of six girls, but only three came. The other three had other things to do. I was happy though, because the girl that I'm crushing on was able to come. We had a great dinner and some fun conversations. My cheesecake was a big hit! The girls loved it. My roommates loved it too. I made mini cheesecakes. It's nice because you don't have to cut up cheesecake, and you don't have to worry about someone getting too big or too small of a piece. 

          I also made some fudge that the girls took home with them. They loved the fudge. I made a few others to give to different people and everyone has liked it so far. That makes me want to make more! I'm sure everyone else is just like me when it comes to fudge. I can't have just one piece unless I'm absolutely full or I'm feeling fat. if I feel good, I may eat the whole thing! There's something special about chocolate when you add a few things, warm it up, let it cool, and then call it fudge as you put it into your mouth. 

          The reason I say that cheesecake and fudge lead to success is because at the end of the night I asked the girl I'm crushing on if I could take her out the next day. She said yes. I was so happy and have been excited all day. The plan is to teach her how to play the ukulele then probably go get ice cream at Sub Zero. I hope those who read this are wishing me luck in their hearts!

Merry Christmas! (17)

          My roommates and I are too poor to afford an actually tree, so we made one out of Christmas lights on our wall! My roommate Eric had the great idea to do it. Tis the season!
          One of my favorite things about Christmas is giving away gifts and seeing the smile on the recipient's face. I need money to purchase the gifts though... It's this time of the year that I go completely broke. There's a lot of people that I care about and want to get gifts for. I've just gotta find nice gifts at discounted prices. That's what Black Friday is for!
          I actually didn't go Black Friday shopping though. I'm a little behind because I just started working and haven't made much money yet. I'm looking forward to the next few paychecks though, because after I receive those then I will have the money I need to buy the wonderful gifts for everyone.
          I want to wish everyone a very merry Christmas! I hope you all can be with your families to celebrate the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ. What a wonderful season of the year it is. I'm looking forward to all of the Christmas music and Christmas movies throughout the month of December.

My New Baby (16)

          My roommate, Eric, started teaching me how to play the ukulele a few weeks ago. He has two ukuleles so I borrowed his for a while until I got my own. I've been practicing a few songs that I really enjoy. Examples are: I'm Yours, Hallelujah, and Don't Worry.

          I'm actually going to be performing in my Ward's talent show next week. I'll be playing Don't Worry by Bob Marley. The plan is to wear a wig and act like a Jamaican. It's gonna be awesome. Eric was going to do it perform with me, but it turns out he has to work. So hopefully I can find someone else that can help me out. i could do a solo and just use someone else as part of the act. 

          Playing the ukulele is very easy. It took me about ten minutes to learn how to play. The hard part of playing the ukulele is switching your fingers to play different chords. It becomes easy after a little bit of practice. The ladies seem to like a man that plays the ukulele and sings to it, so hopefully I have better luck with the ladies now that I'm a ukulele player! 

My Bestie Quigz (15)

         

          While serving in Nevada I was blessed to be in Reno proper for over a year. While I was there I was in the same zone as an Elder Quigley for three months. We became the best of friends and then I was transferred. We stayed in contact for a while before he was transferee to the East side of Nevada. We had made plans to be roommates at BYU because we were going home on the same day and became best friends. He emailed me and told me that he forgot that he made plans to room with some of his buddies from his freshman year and that they already had everything finalized. I was a little bummed and didn't talk to him for a while. Then towards the end of our missions we got back in contact and we were homies again.

          Now Quigz and I are at BYU. Quigz's first name is Brandon, but he goes by Quigz. We usually hang out at least once a week. We'll play basketball, go to a BYU sporting event, or do something else that we consider to be fun. It's always fun to watch college football with Quigz on Saturday as well. We've gotten to know each other a lot better now that we're not missionaries and can sit around and talk for extended periods of time. We can also stay up later, which is usually when someone opens up and wares how they really feel about things.

          Quigz and I have had some great bro to bro talks and we're working on setting each other up with some ladies. We know each other pretty well so we'll probably do a good job finding a nice girl for each other. Then it's up to each of us if we're gonna win the girls heart or not. We've both sort of struggled with confidence a little bit when it comes to girls. Quigz is afraid of offending girls on a date and I'm afraid of girls not liking me. I've realized though that I need to be myself and if a girl doesn't like me for me then she's not the one. So, Quigz and I do a pretty good job of picking each other up when the other one is down.

I'm a Working Man (14)

          I got my first job at BYU, which is also my first job since I've been home from my mission. I work in the back of Chick Fil A at the Cougareat in the Wilkinson Center. So far everything has been great. It does get very hot in the bcd though, which makes me super thirsty. I only work 2-3 hour each time I work so it is not bad at all. I wanted to get a job so I would have a little bit of extra money for gas, dates, and Christmas presents. The people that I work with are cool people, which makes work fun.

          I also work at L&T in the Cougareat which is located adjacent to Chick Fil A. I actually enjoy working at L&T more. It's not very busy so I'm not pressured while working. Also, there's no back so I'm able to interact with the customers. The people that work with me at L&T are also cool people. It's fun to get to know other people and become interested in their lives.



          One of the benefits of working in the Cougareat at BYU is that I get 50% off of purchases under $8.00 and $4.00 off of purchases greater than $8.00. I usually go to Jamba Juice after work and get a large smoothie to quench my thirst. It's so refreshing. I'm sure once I start spending the money that I make I'll be looking forward to every pay day.

The Grand America (13)

          

          This time of the year is when all of the yummy gingerbread men come out and start going into my stomach. They taste so good. My family and some of my extended family went to Salt Lake Saturday Evening to see the Christmas lights and to ice skate. The line for ice skating was extremely long, so we went to The Grand America hotel and saw the Christmas things they had on display. One of the things they had was a giant gingerbread house that was completely edible except for the garlands. Even the windows were edible. They were made of sugar. It must have taken a lot of time and very careful work to create such a large gingerbread house. 

          That night we also had the privilege of seeing the Christmas lights on Temple Square. They were excellent. I loved all of the nativity decorations around the place. The Spirit of God is very strong on Temple Square around Christmas time. It's a wonderful feeling. I'm very grateful to be in Utah and to have the blessing of being near so many beautiful temples and so many wonderful people. It seems like every young woman or young man in the Church makes his or her way to Utah at some point in their young lives. Utah is a wonderful place. I'm very happy to be living here so close to my extended family.

Time to Hit the Gym (12)

       



          My Dad has quite the belly. When he was my age he was skinnier than I am. I guess he let himself go once he got married and now he's pretty fat. He's been trying to lose his belly, but he can't do it. He works out and eats healthier than usual, but it isn't going away. My guess is that he can't lose it because of his age.
          I once told my Dad that I would never be as fat as him. Yes it was a little rude, but I was just speaking my mind. The oldest cousin on my Dad's side used to have a solid, hard six pack. Now he's got a belly almost as big as my Dad's! He probably said he would never have a belly like his Dad either. He has gained a lot of weight because he stopped going to the gym and he started eating out more due to work.





          I have stopped working out on a consistent basis. I may work out once or twice every two weeks. I also am one of the biggest soda drinkers I know. I haven't gained much weight, but I know it's gonna happen soon. So, I've gotta stop drinking soda and start working out consistently. Otherwise, I'm gonna end up being fat and made fun of all of the time by my Dad.
          On my mission I did a healthy living challenge for a little bit and I also worked out hard in the mornings and ate healthy when we weren't eating with the members. I lost 10-12 pounds when I decided to start eating healthy and working out hard. Hopefully I can do that again. I don't want to lose weigh, just fat. I would love to turn that fat into muscle. I think the thing holding me back from working out is that I don't have a workout partner. So my motivation to work out has been close to zero. It's starting to go back up now though as I can tell I'm getting fat again. Hopefully I can find a workout buddy that can motivate me to keep going.

Food Family and Football!! (11)

          This Thanksgiving was great. I was very blessed to celebrate it with my family. They came from Texas to be with my brother and I. A lot of my extended family on both sides lives in the Salt Lake area, so we were able to share Thanksgiving with lots of extended family. We ate dinner at my Uncle's house with my Mom's side of the family, and then we went to my Dad's parent's home for desert and to be with them for the evening. The food was delicious all day. I particularly liked the green bean casserole. I love cooked vegetables. Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays because you can eat a bunch of food without being judged or told to stop eating.





          The boys in my family love football. So, Thanksgiving is a big holiday for us. We are Dallas Cowboy fans, so we make sure to watch that game every year. There was plenty of football on this Thanksgiving. Three NFL games and two college football games. I loved it. I didn't see much football on my mission because we weren't allowed to. I guess I missed it a lot because when there is a good game on, my eyes are glued to the television. Especially if it's a team I like. There's not much more I could ask for when I'm with my family eating lots of food and watching football. It's like a day in Heaven.

      

Disappointed in the Cowboys (10)

          

          My family has lived in Dallas for about 10 years now. I have become a die hard Cowboys fan, but they are still not my favorite team. My favorite team is the Denver Broncos. The only thing keeping the Cowboys from being the number 1 team for me is their quarterback Tony Romo. He is absolutely awful. I have been a Romo hater ever since he fumbled against the Seattle Seahawks in the first round of the 2007 NFL playoffs. That year was Romo's first year as the Cowboy's starting quarterback. He's started for the Cowboys ever since that year. 

          

                                       

Tony Romo has a winning percentage of 58.5%. That means he wins more than he loses, but not the type of numbers that will lead you to a Superbowl victory. The Cowboys have never won a playoff game with Tony Romo as the quarterback. That makes me seriously wonder why Dallas continues to pay Tony Romo tens of millions of dollars a year. He does have good passing stats, but no one cares about that unless you've got Tony Romo on your fantasy football team. What us Cowboy fans care about is wins, and Tony Romo does not help the Cowboys win games, especially the games that are important to win.

          Yesterday I was pumped to watch the Cowboys take on the Eagles. I was very disappointed after watching them lose 33-10 against the Eagles. The Eagles are a very good football team, but there is no reason they should've won by 23 points. Tony Romo had what many believe is his worst Thanksgiving Day game in is career. I love the Cowboys, but I am embarrassed to be a fan at times, especially after the game yesterday.

Turkey Bowl!! (9)

          I was not able to play in a Turkey Bowl for two years because my Mission President didn't allow us to for safety reasons. Boy was it fun to finally play in a Turkey Bowl. We had a good group. The two teams were the Young Guns vs the Old Farts. I was a part of the Young Guns. I was lucky to be the fastest one on the field. As a result I had four touchdowns out of the six on my team.  The old guys couldn't keep up so I blew right by them. I did drop a few catchable balls, but I played well overall. After the game one of the bigger players on my team said after the game, "what's your forty? Three seconds?" Haha. I guess they weren't used to having someone as fast as me on the field.
          Football is one of the greatest memories of my childhood, so it was a huge blessing for me to be able to play again. I was very happy to have actually been one of the best on the field. In High School I was a very good football player, but I didn't get much attention from colleges because I'm a little guy that doesn't weigh much. This year after watching the BYU football team have a disappointing season, I have a little desire in me starting to kindle. I know it would be very tough for me to make the team because I'm small, but I would love to play football again. I've given it a little bit of thought and will continue to give it some thought as to whether I will try to get back on the gridiron or not. I now my Dad would love to see his oldest son in a BYU Football uniform.

Don't Mess With Momma or Papa Bear (8)

            

          “That was the scariest movie I have ever seen,” I said to my friend Grayson as we were driving to his house. We went to another friend’s house to watch a scary movie for Halloween. I kept looking in my rearview mirror checking the back seat to make sure no one was there. I was paranoid after watching Insidious. I knew I was going to have a tough time sleeping that night. I would definitely need a light on in the hallway. I tend to take scary movies a little too serious and bring them into reality. After dropping Grayson off, I became even more terrified because now I was completely alone. I continued to look into my rearview mirror making sure that no one or no thing was in the back seat. I hated having to stop at stop signs and stop lights because that just meant I would have to be alone in the car longer, So, I did the California rolling stop at the stop sign so I could make it home quicker. I probably set a personal record for how fast I got home that night.

            I parked the car in the street and headed for the front door. I heard a movement in the bushes and that caused me to stop. It sounded like a tree branch broke, which means something must have stepped on it. I waited for a second and then continued my route to the front door. I was almost there when I heard a tumult of noise coming out of the bush. Rawr!” my Dad shouted as he jumped out of the bushes. He scared me half to death. I gathered myself ad laughed off my fear. “Now do you know to not come home so late?” he asked me when we got inside. I nodded in agreement and then headed to my room.

I was finally home and knew that nothing bad was going to happen. I hurried into my room, making sure to leave the hallway light on. I normally slept with the closet door closed, and it was already closed so I didn’t think anything of it. I laid in bed facing the wall, comforted by the peace of my home, but terrified by the movie. I kept thinking of different scenes in the movie that scared me the most. I couldn’t keep my eyes closed for more than a minute. Each time I would try to close them I would think of a different scene from the movie.

            As I laid on my bed trying to fall asleep, I heard my closet door open . . . At this point I was more scared than I had ever been in my life. “Boo,” my mom said at a tone just above a whisper as she made her way out of the closet. My heart was beating so fast that I was struggling to catch my breathe. My mom laughed as she watched me gather myself from being scared so badly. My mom then asked me the same question that my Dad had asked me fifteen minutes earlier, “Now do you know to not come home so late?” I now figured out what my parents were trying to do. They wanted to punish me for coming home so late, especially since it was a school night. Their punishment for me was to scare me half to death! They got me good. That Halloween will always be remembered as the scariest Halloween I have ever experienced.

My parents had a house rule that cell phones must be left downstairs at night. Well I knew I wouldn’t be sleeping much that night, so I convinced my mom to let me keep my cell phone in my bedroom with me for that night. She hugged me good night and went downstairs to bed. I made sure to keep the hallway light on. I was up for a long time before I finally fell asleep. I woke up relieved that the previous night was in the past.

            I thought that my worries of being scared were over, but boy was I wrong. The next day I came home to an empty house after football practice. I was a little nervous and hesitant as I went towards my room. No one else was home and I was still a little scared from the events of the previous night. I headed to my room to change and get started on some homework. To my surprise my mother had left a hideous, scary, Egyptian mask lying on my pillow. She must have thought she was so funny. To add to her humorous act, she laid out a shirt and pants as if the mask had a body. I was so freaked out that I didn’t even enter my room. I called my mom and she answered the phone laughing. She had yet again gotten me good for coming home so late. I stayed in the clothes I had on and did my homework in the game room. I didn’t dare enter my room without anyone else in the house. I was still freaked out when it came time for bed.  I knew it was going to be a tough night of sleep again, so I chose to sleep on the extra bed in my brother’s room. I felt less scared that way.

            My scares were finally over the next day. I didn’t have to worry about my parents or anyone else pulling tricks on me. They had scared me half to death more than once and knew that I had learned my lesson. I wouldn’t have to worry about my parents scaring me anymore, but I would always remember them scaring me two days in a row. They taught me to be home by curfew in a very clever way. I planned on never being late for curfew again. If I were going to be late I would make sure to ask for permission, and if I didn’t get permission to come home a little later then I would drop whatever it was that I was doing and head home to make sure to be home by curfew. I did not want to find out if my parents could come up with another clever way to teach me the importance of being home before my curfew.

I had learned my lesson and would not need to be taught that lesson again. I’m grateful for the lesson my parents taught me, because they kept me out of a lot of potential trouble. Nothing good happens when evening becomes early morning. It is best to be home where you are assured of safety from the outside world. I’m grateful to understand the importance of being home earlier rather than later. I’m also grateful for the wonderful idea that my parents have given me and that I can use on my own kids in the future.

Research Paper Reflection (7)

I chose to focus my research paper on how faith helps people overcome serious illnesses, because my grandfather is battling leukemia right now. Doing this research paper allowed me to better understand my grandfather's story. I had know the basics of the story, but not the whole thing. This topic gave me the added push I needed to discover more about my grandfather's story of battling leukemia. I also learned from other sources that there's different roles that faith plays in helping someone overcome a serious illness. Faith can help a person be positive, have better mental health, and have a better quality of life as they go through the illness. The thing I loved most about this research paper was getting to know my grandfather better. I know him very well, and he is one of my best friends, but this research paper helped me to get to know him even better. I now understand the role that faith plays in his life now and has always played in his life. I understand why he lives his faith. He is a great example to me and to all those who see him and hear of him.

A struggle that I had doing this research paper was finding sources other than the interview I had with my grandfather. This is the first research paper I've done in a long time, if not the very first research paper I've ever done. It was definitely the longest research paper I've ever done. I wanted to find out more about my grandfather's story and other stories and this led me to more stories and information as well as more room to make personal comments. This research paper helped me to increase my personal faith, and I know that faith helps a lot when faced with the adversity of an illness.

The research paper wasn't my favorite thing to do, but as I continue to write more papers, I am discovering that I'm getting better as a writer. That helps me to be more interested in writing. I don't like to do things I don't enjoy, so writing at first was a challenge. Now it's not so bad. I'm developing writing skills and improving them, which helps me enjoy writing a little more. I look forward to the future papers that we will be writing in my Writing 150 class. Sister Steadman says we have the toughest paper out of the way, and I love hearing that. The rest of the semester should be very fun in this class.

Updated Research Thesis (6)

People who are engaged in spiritual or religious practices are more positive about their illness, and have better mental health and well-being. Those who believe in a loving God have better mental health than those who believe in a stern God. Those who look at their illness in a positive manner have a better quality of life than those who look at their illness with hopelessness, helplessness, fatalism, etc. Faith in God creates a positive and optimistic attitude towards one’s illness. 

People who have faith in God, believe in a loving God, or are active in religious activities have better mental health and well-being, a better quality of life, and are positive and optimistic while going through an illness.

General Conference Analysis: Elder David A. Bednar October 2014 (5)

        Elder David A. Bednar's main focus in his talk was why members share the Gospel with their non-member friends, acquaintances, and strangers. He directed his message at those who are not members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is often hard for members to share the Gospel because of the fear of rejection. Non-members may not understand the real reason why members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints share their beliefs so openly. Bednar creates pathos by using a parable to help non-members better understand why members share the Gospel.

        Elder Bednar uses a parable about two young boys playing with their friends. One of the boys gets hurt, and his older brother uses ointment to help him clean up his wound. They then take the ointment and share it with the other boys. Elder Bednar relates this parable to the gospel. Once the ointment begins to relieve the pain of the wound, our wound feels better and we want to share that feeling of relief with those around us who are physically wounded. It's the same with the Gospel. Once we have felt the relieving and soothing feeling of the gospel, we want to share it with others. This parable is a perfect example of the why in sharing the Gospel. By sharing this parable, Elder Bednar helps non-members understand why their member friends are wanting to share the Gospel with them so badly, and why they are persistent. It is because they want those who are not of the LDS faith to have the same relief and happiness that they, the members, enjoy.

        Elder Bednar does an excellent job in appealing to the emotions of non-members to help them understand why members of the LDS faith share the Gospel. Non-members don't have to continually ask why their neighbors or friends keep inviting them to Church activities. They now understand that it's because those neighbors and friends want their non-member neighbors and friends to experience the blessings that they enjoy.

Research Paper Thesis (4)

I am thinking that I want to do my research paper on "Why come to the United States?" I would like to learn if there are more reasons people come to U.S. other than searching for work. I have a few ideas of other reasons that I think I could research and find out if there is evidence for those reasons. Also, it will be interesting to research if there are different reasons to come to the United States now than the reasons that the pilgrims and early settlers had. Some ideas of reasons that I think of off the top of my head are seeking religious freedom, hoping for a better life, hoping for better opportunities for your children, seeking better health care, joining your extended family, etc. These ideas seem very logical to me and would be reasons I personally would come to the United States if I lived elsewhere.

Is there a specific group of people that you want to study?  There are many groups who came, so maybe focus on one group.

Ammon Boone:
I agree that you need to narrow this down dramatically. The topic is too broad to get sufficient detail on all those times, places, peoples, and reasons. Hypothetical research has to be supported by specific research, and taking a snippet of Asiatic family reasons and trying to mesh them with World War II era European better opportunities reasons would be hard. 

Hello

your group is way too big. All sorts of people came for all sorts of people. You might think about looking at a specific time period or people from one area

People who have faith in God, believe in a loving God, or are active in religious activities have better mental health and well-being, a better quality of life, and are positive and optimistic while going through an illness.

Analyzing President Kennedy's Inaugural Address (3)

I thoroughly enjoyed analyzing President John F. Kennedy's inaugural address. He is a very power speaker. It would have been awesome to live at the time in which he was President. I fully trust the guy after only reading his inaugural speech. He demonstrated love and support to everyone which is something that the world lacks. Analyzing this paper helped me realize that I'm a better writer than I thought I was. I'm definitely not a great writer, but I don't consider myself a bad writer either. Analyzing what made President Kennedy effective in delivering his speech helps me understand what I can and need to do in order to be an effective writer. I know it's important to use effective rhetorical tools in order to connect with the audience, keep them interested, and gain their trust. I look forward to more opportunities to analyze other people's work and improving on my personal writing skills.

The Strengths of Family Ties (2)

Knowing your family stories and history can help you overcome every day challenges. There are many trials that we face that our parents, grandparents, or other extended family members have had to go through which can give us strength knowing that if they made it then I can make it as well. An example that I want to share is about my Uncle. He was addicted to pornography and it got to the point that he found himself sitting in jail. His addiction was very strong. Working through it with his wife, family, and most importantly the Lord, he has been able to overcome this addiction to pornography. Seeing this turn around for my Uncle gives me strength to know that I can overcome any addiction or sin that besets me. Another great example is my sweet grandmother. Her husband, my grandfather, was diagnosed with with leukemia a few years back. He was very very sick. I'm happy to say that he is doing much better today. He is still not 100%, but he is happy and healthy enough to be the grandfather that I've always known. My grandmother has been so strong in the past few years. She always maintains a positive attitude, always expressing her gratitude that we still have my grandfather with us today. My grandmother's positive and grateful attitude keeps me positive and grateful. There's many more examples that I could share that have made and continue to make big impacts on my life. My family stories give me strength, courage, and determination to be the best I can be and create my own stories.

Thou Shalt Not Idle Away Thy Time (1)

I really like how Elder Bednar talks about the attack that Satan has on our bodies. Satan doesn't have a body, so our bodies are one of the focuses in his attacks. It's important that we don't misuse or under use the blessing of our bodies. God gave us physical bodies for a reason. We need to learn how to use our bodies in the way God has instructed and we need to overcome the temptation from Satan to misuse our bodies. Elder Bednar points out that when we dedicate all our time to cyberspace we are under using our bodies which is misusing our bodies in a sense. We've been given bodies to experience life as mortals. We should take full advantage of that by learning as much as we can about life in a mortal body while we have the blessing of our bodies. We won't learn much if we are on the internet all day every day.