Hilltop Star

Thursday, February 16, 2012

thoughtful thursday: life's change agent

"Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything -- all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure -- these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important.

"Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.

"No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because death is very likely the single best invention of life. It is life's change agent.

~Steve Jobs, 2005 Commencement Address to Stanford University via cnn.com

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

my epic valentines

this year was an epic valentine year.

brother R2's kids sent me artwork. their mom only wrote what they said to her.

i'm a love star! woohoo!

(so, i play this game with him where i pretend i'm a brain sucking alien...)

this one is from a friend...

who really likes zombies. ugh!

and this from brother R1's family totally captures my love...

of all things star wars!

(apparently their household is going through a light saber phase.)

plus, i need all the force i can get these days...

thanks for the great valentines. they really made me smile.

hope you had an epic valentine's day as well.

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

love is...

“ Love is a temporary madness. It erupts like an earthquake and then subsides. And when it subsides you have to make a decision. You have to work out whether your roots have become so entwined together that it is inconceivable that you should ever part. Because this is what love is. Love is not breathlessness, it is not excitement, it is not the promulgation of promises of eternal passion. That is just being “in love” which any of us can convince ourselves we are.

via

" Love itself is what is left over when being in love has burned away, and this is both an art and a fortunate accident. Your mother and I had it, we had roots grew towards each other underground, and when all the pretty blossoms had fallen from our branches we found that we were one tree and not two. “ ~Louis de Berniers

Monday, February 13, 2012

love is...

via

Love means to commit oneself without guarantee, to give oneself completely in the hope that our love will produce the love in the loved person. Love is an act of faith, and whoever is of little faith is also off little love. ~Erich Fromm

things that made me smile this week

* chopping vegetables with my new knives. i love how much easier it is to cut things with good knives. these knives were a much anticipated christmas present from my mom, who bought them from my kitchen gadget enabler, my sister. thank you, thank you, thank you.

* a return visit to the washington, dc lds temple with a great friend who was going for the first time. i was at her baptism almost 6 years ago and it was so great to be part of such a beautiful experience for her. i loved listening as she talked about what a difference joining the church has made in her life. the thing that has stuck with me is that she was ready to give up and die before she was baptized a member, and that afterwards she felt she now had so much reason to live. the gospel of jesus christ changes lives--it really does!

* this weekend i had my own private alarm clock each morning at 0730. josiah let me know he was also in the house and that roomie had put him in the kennel when she left, by howling. i swear, if you didn't know better, you would think this dog was dying because he wasn't in the same room as me. well, in our house you don't get your way if you throw a tantrum. so, this morning i put on a mean face and went into the bedroom to let him see that i wasn't going to fall for it, and then left him there for a few hours while i did my thing. i love that dog, and love that he loves me so much, and while i do indulge him every chance i get, he's starting to really push his limits.

* ordering thai food and having dinner with roomie always makes for a great evening.

* supporting my friend MP at her dance performance. she was amazing and danced her heart out. it was fun to be a part of her own private cheering section. plus, it was great to catch up with JP before hand. i love these two people and am so glad they're in my life.

* talking with my sister on the phone. i love that we can give each other advice about things in our lives and do it without being judged by each other. she is so wise and supportive.

* my dad's heart procedure went well this week. and my sister said that there was immediate improvement in my dad. yay!

* i have this friend that i chat with regularly throughout the day. if i'm frustrated, bored or content, he just makes me smile. it's a good thing.

* it got really cold here finally and we got a little snow. winter made a brief appearance this weekend.

* i'm on pinterest and i'm finding the coolest project ideas as well as lots of stuff that makes me laugh. (click here to see my boards and then click on the board you want to see. if you want to see more detail about something, click on the photo to enlarge and then click again on the photo to go to the source website.)

* speaking of pinterest.... a friend pinned a recipe for homemade peanut butter cups for valentine's day and invited a couple of us over to make them. we had a great girls night, making yummy treats, singing whitney houston songs and talking about guys. fun times.

* and speaking of whitney houston. i love her music. i wanted to sing like her when i grew up. my all time favorite song of hers was this one. what a great performance this is, and there's even a Sailor! i hope she found her greatest love.

here's another great performance with all the words.