callings

It's October first!! yay! So begins the 3 best months of the year (besides Summer which is also the best!)

Yesterday morning I was walking Ziva and I got a text, "could I come in a see the Bishop". So I said yes, headed back and got ready and off we went.  Rob and Grace had stake choir practice anyway so I just went with them.  Of course R came with me first, then went to practice while the Bishop and I continued to chat.
Anyway, I got a new calling.  Surprising since I have been activity day leader for one month but the Lord's timetable is certainly not ours and that's completely fine with me. Since no one here knows I blog I can say what it is. I am going to be the ward YW President.  My favorite calling.  I think probably the week after conference I'll be sustained and set apart.  So now begins the somewhat arduous process of picking counselors and seeking the Lord's counsel on who He wants serving, and what He wants us to do.

This morning while I was walking Ziva I was reflecting on the different callings I've had.  And the growth and joy I have experienced while serving.  Sometimes joy, sometimes growth, sometimes both:)
My first calling, after YW where I did get to serve in class presidencies, was as a RS teacher.  I hated it. I was called the month I graduated from high school and taught for a few months.  Each time was the worst.  Eventually I told the Bishop (my dad) that if I had to keep teaching I would stop coming to church.  A little dramatic, but in my defense I was only 18 and pretty lame. Then I was called to teach primary.  I was fine with that.  The kids were cute and I could be creative and fun.  I didn't love it but it was fine.  I did that for the next few years, I showed up.

After that I had a kind of a blur of a few years.  First I told Mark I wanted to go to the temple, be a real family, be all in.  Sort of in ultimatum form.  He agreed and made lots of life changes and we had a crazy, whirlwind but good (our best) year.  We went to the temple, got pregnant with Sierra, got diagnosed with cancer, bought a house and in the middle of all that I was called to be the Primary President.  It was overwhelming but good and I loved serving and working with the kids and my awesome counselors. I think it was a little over a year until I got asked to do something different.  RS President.   So I went from a little overwhelming to really overwhelming and I thought I was very inadequate for the job.  My counselors were both a lot older than me and they were the most awesome, amazing, supportive women.  I am sure they did most of the work! I was only the RS Pres for a couple of years and I never felt like I could do all that needed to be done.  During that time Mark's and my "good year" ended, we had Jenna, I went to college and did daycare, and tried to find time to do all the things good RS ladies do.  Mark lost his job and after a short period of unemployment found another that made it necessary for us to move to Palm Springs.  I was released and we went off to a new chapter. I was glad, sad, had grown a lot, and a teeny tiny part of me thought if I ever get asked to do this again (much, much later in life) I hope I will do better.

I don't remember if I had a calling in Palm Springs. We were only there a few months until Mark and I separated and I moved back to Lancaster with the girls.

I then had a variety of callings.  Homemaking leader (not my fav), primary teacher, primary counselor.

Rob and I got married and in our new ward I was called to teach Gospel Essentials, which was super fun.

Then we moved to TX and I was asked to be in the YW presidency.  I was excited, I think, but felt the weight of responsibility.  Julie Stark was the president and she was amazing to work with.  We lived in TX for 12 years and most of that time I was in YW.  There was about a two year gap where I served as ward "party princess" (activities committee chair).  I was even very briefly the YW President in TX.

Then we moved to MD and I was called to first be the ward YW President. Then the Stake YW President. Both of which I love love loved.  It was super fun to serve in the stake and so interesting to visit many wards and see how things went and to work with such amazing, talented, committed people, both the sisters and the brothers.

Then we moved to CA, where I taught primary for like 2 months and then was called as a counselor in the stake YW, and then as ward YW president.

Then we moved to FL and here we are.

So it's been such a joy. I love the youth and want to serve them well.  To help them know the Savior, and to learn what they need to do to be His disciple. I am looking forward to serving here.  One thing that has been so so extra nice for me is to have been in YW with the girls.  Dani, Sierra, Jenna and Hannah all liked having me there.  Grace doesn't but it looks like she too is stuck with me as a leader.

The one bummer, if there is one, is that I won't be able to go to RS.  I have to say that this ward has been my favorite for 2nd and 3rd hour lessons.  They are really top notch with lots of participation.
Our lesson yesterday was on ministering. It was really good.  Rachel, the teacher, had us sit in a circle and share something about ourselves.  We each had to say something serious, something funny and something no one knew about us.  The idea was the better we know each other the more we will see we have things in common and have needs we can help meet.  So I really enjoyed it.  I loved hearing from several other moms about my age and stage how hard it is to see their last kids get ready to leave the nest.  I definitely feel that and I still have 5 years left.  It's just flown by so fast and I will miss having kids at home. There were many confessions of loneliness and feelings of inadequacy, of being overwhelmed with little kids, and messes and trying to be perfect.  Of being overwhelmed with teens and husbands and jobs and trying to be perfect. Many health problems and family problems and hard pasts to overcome. We are all in the same boat, just plugging up different leaks! I am grateful for the sisterhood of Relief Society.  It really does a take a village, not just to raise our children, but to raise ourselves as well.

We were supposed to have the missionaries over for dinner but yesterday our stake formed a new Chinese branch and the elder's whole afternoon & evening was dedicated to that and to training and learning. (Instead we are having them over tonight). So then we had more food than we needed and decided to invite the Cottle's over for dinner.  We've been wanting to start having families over to get to know them, plus we all always enjoy dinner guests. They are a cute family and have two darling little boys.  We had a fun night and the dinner and the conversations was good.