Change

I've been thinking a lot lately about improvement. Personal improvement to be exact. Do any of you have things about yourself you would like to change? I do. yes.

But you know what? I believe in change. REAL change.

I remember a conversation I had with my dad about change. The basic summation was that change, REAL change, is possible but not easy. In fact, I think the two main ingredients in real change are time and, because I believe in God, my Heavenly Father's help. It starts with a desire to do something different, usually involves messing up a few (ok, LOTS of) times and having to fight the temptation to just give up, and becomes finally becomes, as all good things do, work. Diligent, enduring work. Consistent work, to be that something different.

So how do you know if the change "took"? I mean, isn't the definition of change that you are in essence different. You no longer do what you did or want to do it. I have decided that only time will tell. And when I say time, i mean a life time. There is something about looking at a long positive tract record that really shows who and what you are.

What prompted all this thought? Well, it started with my reading of Louisa May Alcott's book "Little Men" and ended with me looking at myself (Little Women or really any of the books in that series always has a pretty similar effect on me. Try it--they're better than any self help book) And the result. I want to change. I want to be healthy, happy, rested, and better. Kinder. More thoughtful. I want to slow down and play with my kids. I want to really love them and teach them. I want to improve my little knowledge and talents. I want to be strong and supportive of my dear husband. I want to become the kind of person that is quietly serving and sees what needs to be done (thank you Tara for being such a great example of this to me!)

So, I've started my work and I feel good. Now come the diligence part. And sure, this is just now, the beauty of this life is in time, I will want to be better again. Hopefully,(and I do have hope) at that time, I will be building on the foundation I'm trying to lay now and not rebuilding it.

Well, moral of the story, I love LOVE getting inspired. No, even more specifically, I love encountering that spark of truly divine truth and goodness anywhere and enjoying the desire it gives me to truly change. It feels good.