homehercontact i believe

6.19.2016

Earthly Father, Heavenly Father //





Today is Father's Day and I am very far away from my Father. And yes, I wished him a good day. I wish I could have done more. I feel like I have so much to say. - rather - so much to thank my Father for . . .

My Dad is amazing, first of all. He is strong. He is kind. He is the smartest person I know. He knows how to work, and he knows how to work hard. He loves the gospel. He is honest. He is dedicated. He is humble. He provides. He takes good care of us. He is an example in all things. He is passionate. He is caring. He is respectful. He is shy. He is sweet. He is loving. He is amazing and he is my Dad. 

I am lucky to have him has my Dad. He taught me all those things. I may not have listened to all of them all the time, but the example was always there. It continues to be there and I am grateful for that. I know who I am because of my Dad. I get a lot of my personality from my Dad, whether he will admit it or not. I may be more outgoing than him but I get my dedication and work ethic from him. 

And my height ;)

I love my Dad. I love what he believes in and what he stands for. I love that we essentially went to the same mission - him Little Rock, Arkansas - me Bentonville, Arkansas. I'm lucky that he has taught me so much. He taught me to work and to enjoy work. He taught me to love baseball. He taught me to travel and explore. He taught me to hike and see new things. He taught me about money and how and when to spend it. He taught me about cars and where to put my windshield wiper fluid. He taught me about the scriptures and about a Heavenly Father who loves me.

My Dad taught me to love through how he loved his kids and how he loved my mom. They didn't always say it, but they always showed it. He has shown me a glimpse of what Heavenly Father must be like . . . 

Because I know that Heavenly Father
loves
knows
understands
feels
cries
rejoices with me.

He knows. And because He knows, He can help me. He can literally pick me up and give me the strength that I need to push through one more day. Because He knows what I am capable of and He has incredible things in store for me. 

He loves me.

And He loves you.

I'm grateful to a Daddy that loves me and taught me to love. Especially to love my Heavenly Father.


Happy Father's Day.




















6.06.2016

it is better to be kind than to be right //

One of my favorite people ever from my mission in Oklahoma once told me after a long discussion of an offended member

“Sister Bailey, regardless, it is always better to be kind than to be right.”

And that has stuck with me ever since he uttered those wise words.

Yeah the situation wasn’t ideal and they stopped coming to church; however, someday they’ll remember and crave that sweet spirit the gospel brings. No matter what, I love them . . . even if it’s from a distance.

With my mission experience as a backdrop I hope I can elaborate more on this concept.

My mind moves 3,000 miles per hour.

I’m always thinking a million different thoughts. And maybe that’s why I have a hard time sitting still for too long.

I like to think I’m

A hard worker.
Passionate.
Smart.
Kind.
Loving.
Genuine.
Right . . .

I also realize that sometimes I may be kind of

Prideful.
Inconsiderate.
Mean.
Judgmental.
Hypocritical.
Loud.
Crazy.
Dramatic.
Emotional.

The list goes on and on but you get the idea.

Maybe it’s just me or maybe it’s our generation but it can be pretty hard for me to take criticism.
I want to be told that I’m right and that I’m great and special and beautiful.
It’s hard to hear that I’m too much to handle or too loud or too self-centered.
Whatever you make think about me could be right; or, it could be completely wrong.

Regardless

I do not know what goes on in your life every day.
I do not know the hard things in your life.
I do not know how you are really doing.

And maybe, just maybe, you do not know what is going on with me.

So how about we stop telling each other everything the other is doing wrong.
What if we just loved our friends, families, coworkers, neighbors . . .

Sorry, I just went all missionary on you.

But really.

I am perfectly aware that I do not always make the best decisions.
I am only twenty years old.
I know that’s not a completely valid excuse.

I also know that this life is about testing and trying and trials.
And I’m going to mess up sometimes.
I may not know all the answers to life’s questions.
I may not even know most of them.

But I do know these things for sure:

God is real
Prayer is real
Faith is real
The Savior is real
The Adversary is real
Happiness is real

And

The Atonement is real

We aren’t just given one chance, or two, or even three
We can always start again and try to be better

Remember that part about “enduring to the end”?
What about enjoying to the end?

And realizing that life comes with ups and downs
And sometimes you’ll get confused and overcomplicate things
I know I do

But when it comes down to it, what is really important?
For me, it’s family, God, the gospel, and finding your own happiness.

Another rant I often go on is that it’s important to be happy with yourself.

Yeah, sometimes you’re going to fall short.
I know that I expect too much of myself sometimes.
Then I get frustrated.
And sometimes I kind of just want to give up trying.

It’s just important to realize that you aren’t going to be perfect.
You’re going to mess up.
And you know what, you can keep on trying.

That’s all that He asks of us.

Just know that other people definitely bring happiness into your life.

My family brings me happiness.
My friends bring me happiness.

But it’s so important to me that I can be happy on my own.
I don’t have to rely on someone or something else in order to be happy.

And also, I’m learned that it is okay to be sad.
It’s okay to not be okay.
It’s okay to cry about it.

And at some point you just have to get over it and realize that the sun will come up tomorrow.

My new favorite phrase is “happy when it rains”

My point is simple. And I’ve found it true in my own life.

Happiness is a choice.
Your choice.
It’s your life and you can make it whatever you want it to be.
So work hard, be kind, be honest, realize that you don’t have to be right all the time, it’s not all about you; although, you should take care of yourself.

Lastly,

Love is always the answer.

That was cheesy.

Oh well.

I enjoy some classic sharp cheddar.

Don’t worry, be HAPPY.

And remember,

It’s better to be kind than to be right.


xoxo