perspective

So, here we are! The end of July, middle of summer, and definitely not rainy season! But, despite the 99 degree weather we had yesterday, mother nature decided to throw a rain storm our way today. Well... if you don't know much about me, one of my absolute worst fears is thunder. Don't ask me what it is about thunder that scares me more than the typical fears of the world (spiders, snakes, tight spaces...), because I have no idea. I'm just a strange one, I guess! :) So as you can imagine, when it started raining I was not a happy Kamper. I hurriedly turned on the computer and started blasting music as loud as I could, and preceded to wrap myself in a blanket huddled on the couch. (typical Lexi during a thunderstorm) 

So as I was sitting on the couch waiting for the storm to pass, my little sister, Gracie, came over and sat by me, and began to sing the song, "Rain, rain, go away. Come back another day!" Being the sarcastic person I am, I started singing "Rain, rain, go away, DON'T come back another day!" Cute Gracie just looked at me, smiled, and said, "but Lexi, rain waters the trees! It's good. We want it to come back." That made me smile. I then told her, "alright, the rain can come back. Just not the thunder!" Then she told me, "Uhhhh no. Rain comes with thunder. But... if you wait a little bit there will be a rainbow!"

That simple statement hit me so hard, even though she didn't mean for it to. She was simply telling me that if I waited another half hour or so, the storm would be over and there would be a rainbow. However, I took it much more literally than that.

As much as we may not realize it all the time, life is our rainstorm. Every rainstorm comes with thunder, just like every life comes with hardships and trials. Some thunder is barely noticeable, just a little bump in the road. But some thunder is so tremendous that it shakes our foundations. How wonderful is it that whenever I focus on the thunder's of life, there is a little child reminding me of the rainbow's. When Christ was here on the Earth, he asked us all to "become as little children". I never really understood that statement until now. True, every rainstorm does come with thunder, but eventually we will be grateful for it, because it gives us rainbows. "The trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Chirst." (Peter 1:7)  I love that scripture. 

I am so grateful for my little sister, and the rest of my family, for always reminding me of the bigger picture. I'm not just a random girl from Utah, I am a Daughter of God. He loves me, and I love him. He loves all of his children with an unimaginable indescribable love, and I have felt that so much this summer. As I have been preparing for my mission, and trying to focus my life around Christ, I have experienced such a change in the way I look at people. I no longer see a homeless person begging for money on the street, or a criminal locked behind bars. I see a child of God that He loves unconditionally, no matter what, and because of Him, I immediately love them as well. "Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart." (1 Samuel 16:7)

I have the biggest testimony of my Heavenly Father, and his love for all of His children. I love the gospel, with all my heart. I am so grateful for the Book of Mormon, and the strength it has given me. I am grateful for my friends and family. I am grateful for the little things, like the huuuge spider I found in my rain boots today, or the smile I got from the old man on the highway. I'm grateful for that last drop of lemonade in the bottle that no matter how hard you try, it refuses to come out.

 I am so grateful for my little sister, reminding me of rainbows. 

And, as crazy as it sounds, I'm grateful for thunder.

 Gracie and I, waiting for Rainbow's

be the change you wish to see in the world

     There is no better way to start out this post than by saying how incredibly blessed & lucky I feel to be on the Copper Hills student government with the most amazing group of people. It is so humbling to work with such an amazing group, and I honestly cannot think of a more rewarding way to spend my senior year than serving the students of Copper Hills. I can say with complete confidence that every single person on student government loves you, Grizzlies, and we are so excited to serve you this year. 

     As a student government, we had the opportunity to go to the amazing Dixie Leadership Conference in St. George this week with the People of the Pacific and Latinos in Action of Copper Hills, along with many other high schools. I will never forget what I learned and felt this past week.  

     I learned more this week about being a leader than I have in my entire life. I was able to be a part of so many inspirational experience's, and I have my friends, advisor's, principal, and the instructor's at the conference to thank for that. 

     It's difficult for me to summarize everything I learned this week into a few short paragraphs, but I will try my absolute best.

     First and foremost, I learned that being a leader is all about love and service. Anyone can say "I love you," (I mean... I can say it in like seven different languages, right?!) but it takes a lot more effort to prove it. There are many ways to prove that you love someone, however, one of the most truly rewarding ways is to serve them. "Only a life lived for others is a life worthwhile." -Albert Einstein. I've always heard that the best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others, and I could not agree more. 

     Secondly, I realized "attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference." It's amazing how much waking up with a smile on my face impacts the rest of my day. Not only does a good attitude make my own day better, but it impacts the day of those around me as well. Everyone is struggling with something, and even if a simple smile in the hallway is the biggest service you can give someone, I promise it does not go unnoticed. I am in charge of how I feel, and today... I'm choosing happiness. 

     I also learned that there is a huge difference between success and significance. Success is being the best IN the world, while significance is being the best FOR the world. If you want to be remembered, choose the path of significance. When we focus on significance, success is often part of the package. It all comes down to having the courage to reach out. Dreams don't work unless you do, and you can do anything you put your mind to. So, after 20 minutes of listening to a motivational speech, I, and the rest of the 407 kids at this conference, broke a wooden board with the palm of each of our hands, because we believed in ourselves. We were not strong enough to break the board because we lift weights, we were strong enough because everything that had ever knocked us down in life was written on our boards, and we were strong enough to defy them. It was an amazing experience that I will never forget. "Doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will," so put yourself out there and go change the world for the better. 

I could not have asked for a better group of people to share the last week with, or a better group of people to be able to serve this next year. Everything I learned this week will carry me through the year, and I am so grateful for this experience. I'm so grateful to the students of Copper Hills for electing me to be a part of leading this amazing school this year, but leadership is an action, not a position. Have confidence in yourself, and "be the change you wish the see in the world." -Gandhi

The group as soon as we arrived in St. George.

Our outfits for our Dixie Idol performance, ow ow!

I love my lady SBO's 

Copper Hills holding up the Snow Canyon "W" and Snow Canyon holding up the Copper Hills "CH". We love our new friends!!

The group after we broke our boards

annnnd to end the day, hanging out at the pool!

Jeg elsker dig, venner.

(I love you, friends!)

begyndelsen

In Danish that means "beginning". The way I see it, a first blog post should start at the beginning! Kind of as an introductory post :) So, here goes nothing.

When I think of things I want people to know about me, the first thing that comes to mind is family. I have a wonderful family; they mean the world to me.

 My mom, Jennifer, is the most beautiful person I know, inside and out. In these past 17 years, she's taught me so much about life, love, and virtue. Abraham Lincoln said it perfectly. "Everything I am, I owe to my mother." She taught me that a great attitude becomes a great day, which becomes a great year, which becomes a wonderful life. Attitude is everything. It's up to me to find beauty in the ugliest days. She sparked my undying passion for photography, and I love being able to share that passion with her. My mom didn't teach me to be incredibly concerned with money, like the rest of the world seems to be. Instead, she taught me to be happy. Because of this, I've grown up knowing the value of things, not the price. She taught me to be ambitious, adventurous, humble, loving, grateful, forgiving, and positive. She taught me that God gave us mouths that close, and ears that don't, and that must mean something. But one of things I am most grateful to my mom for, is for raising me in the gospel, and making sure I know of Heavenly Father's eternal love for me, and all his children. I owe my testimony and love for the gospel to my mom, and I love her for that.

 My dad, Jason, is the perfect example to me of how every man should be. I must admit, he has set the bar very high for the boys I date and eventually the man I marry. When I was little, and obsessed with disney princess's, I asked my dad (in that innocent little girl voice), "Daddy, will you be my prince?" and no matter what, he always will be. My dad is the most hardworking man I know. Anyone that knows him will consider him a hero; he is a firefighter. He risks his life every day to save those he has never met, and he does it willingly. He is also a full time dad. When he is home from the fire station, he spends every second he can with me, my mom, and my 3 beautiful sisters. It's not a rare sight to look out the back window and see my dad jumping with my sisters on the tramp, or riding the horses with them. He loves our farm, and spends every day outside, being his farmer self. :) I owe my love for the outdoors to my dad. He taught me to be adventurous, and not be afraid to get my boots dirty. He taught me to never settle for anyone who treats me less than a daughter of God. His love for my mom inspires me every day, and I hope when I grow up I can marry someone who will look at me the way my dad looks at my mom.

 I have 3 beautiful little sisters: Emily, Jessica, and Gracie.
 ~Emily is the cowgirl of the family. She is always out riding her horse Ryker, shooting her recurve bow (future Katniss Everdeen right there), or playing with the dogs. She loves animals, (probably more than she loves humans) and is an AMAZING artist. If I had her artistic talent, I would be like a 2 year old running through the house coloring on all the walls! She has the most tender heart, and is always trying to be the best she can be. Did I mention she's the biggest book worm I know? Well, she is :) She's probably read more books in the past week than I have in my entire life.

~Jessica is the dancer. She is incredible at dancing! Her dream is to be on the Drill Team in high school, and I have no doubt that she will accomplish that. :) She loves playing with her friends, and spending time with family. She is going to be the best mom when she grows up, as she already has developed a love for cooking. (Mac N' Cheese & brownies, but hey, what little kid wouldn't want to live off of that??) She is a fashionista when it comes to what she wears, and I love it. If I could fit in to her clothes, I would wear them every day.

~Gracie is the baby of the family, and she pretty much does everything! She's started to develop a passion for soccer (yessss, mini me!), as well as art. She is absolutely hilarious, and has been making me laugh since she could talk! She loves spending time with our family and her friends, and always has a story to tell. Her dance moves are hilarious, and she's not afraid to show them off. Oh my goodness, and she has perfect eyebrows. No joke. So jealous.

My sisters are amazing, I couldn't have asked for any better. :) I can't wait to watch them grow up and see who they become.

 My best friend's name is Lucy Anderson, and I seriously have no idea what I would do without her. She is wonderful, and such an example to me. We met our freshman year on the CH soccer team, and have been inseperable ever since. I don't know what I did to deserve such an amazing best friend, but I am so grateful for her! She's always there for me, whether it's a good day or bad. If you were to look up the definition of a best friend, that describes Lucy to a T. :)

 As for me... hmm... I'm currently 17, a soon to be senior at Copper Hills High School. I love that school, and am so honored to be SBO Secretary next year! Copper Hills is my home away from home, and everyone there is like family. :) I couldn't have asked to go to a better school! I play soccer for the high school, and absolutely love it! It's been one of the best experiences of my life. Aside from soccer, my passion is photography. I am a photographer at a studio called 'CameraShy Photography' and absolutely love it. I'm so lucky to have the job I do, and feel so blessed every day! I live on the cutest little farm, and I absolutely love it! We have 3 horses (DaisyRain, Ryker, and Katori), 3 dogs (Noble, Kyenna, and Breeze), a cat (Ariah), 2 goats (Buttercup and Belle), 8 chickens (don't even know all their names!) and 2 rabbits (Mikodo and Bambii). I'm one spoiled girl right? :)

 As you can probably see, I'm an incredibly lucky girl, and life is pretty great. I'm so grateful for everything I have, and can't wait to share it with you! See you in post number dos!

 ~Me

Emily & Ryker

Jessi after her dance recital

Firefighter Dad

Photographer Mom

Gracie (perfect eyebrows...)

My best friend Lucy

Mi familia

My sisters & I

Family