Water-coloring is Relaxing

7 September - 13 September 2020

Hello my friends! (Well, I guess I should say family, cuz I'm sure they're the only ones reading this... haha). What a week. Another week of school has passed by, and I am finally getting into the rhythm of my schedule. I cannot express how much I love my classes this semester! Especially Positive Psychology. My teacher is SO COOL. He does amazing photography and videos of nature and the night sky. He is so knowledgeable and inspirational. Plus, I'm learning so many amazing an applicable skills that are improving my life and mindset. 

Monday: Since it was Labor Day, there were no classes. I already don't have classes on Monday, but I still held my office hours and worked in the morning. That afternoon, I took a break to go over to Whitney's house and watercolor. Just because it sounded fun and relaxing. I just painted some simple flowers.

Tuesday: I enjoy attending my classes, and I am slowly relaxing because I don't think some of my classes will be as much work as I was thinking. I am definitely more tired and have had headaches frequently (I guess I'll just blame the fact that I not only do my homework on my computer, but I also now work AND attend my classes online. So my poor eyes have been strained lately). But meditation is always a good time to relax all the tension I've been feeling.

Wednesday: I went into the HCEB to work in the morning, went home for lunch, then got ready to do the TA review. In my afternoon class, I was put in a group to talk about the reading, and one of the students in my group is a student I TA for in Behavioral Neurobiology. He complimented me on the reviews that I hold and said they were very good and helpful! That made me feel good.

Thursday: Wow, talk about the longest day ever! I made myself lunch (lasagna) in the small break I had between classes, but didn't have time to eat it before I needed to leave to go to campus and attend Zoom classes. I then had my evening class. Then... I slept. ZZzzzzzzz

Friday: I spent the day doing homework, and then that evening went over to Whitney's to watch a movie. We ended up watching the animated version of Aladdin (a girl in our friend group had never seen it before) and then we just chatted afterwards about the gospel. Quinn played with my hair while she told us about her conversion story, and then she asked each of us to share ours. I love how even those who have grown up in the church have a conversion story.

Saturday: I caught up on some homework that I didn't do the day before (not that I'm behind, mind you. I'm actually very ahead, but I just want to keep it that way). I went down to the library for a couple of hours, and I found a comfortable spot in a building that was completely empty, so I didn't wear my mask! I went home and ate lunch. But I just did NOT feel like doing homework anymore. I was feeling antsy, actually, and just wanted to do something. I decided to put my creative juices to work and did some water-coloring. I really like the final result of my starry night painting! That night, I had a couple of friends over to play games, but mostly we just ended up talking. I made Whitney dinner! Also, it was super cool because I got to share my mission book with Quinn, and retelling stories from my mission and sharing about people I met and loved made me SO SO happy. Wow, missions are just the best. They become a piece of you forever.

Sunday: I enjoyed going to church with all of my roommates. Afterwards, I made an effort to go around and meet some people. I don't like how isolated I feel from the ward. Half the ward meets at 11, and the other half meets at 12. We all wear masks, so I can't even recognize people I know (made that mistake twice... lol). And we aren't supposed to congregate and talk. But hopefully this will change soon!! After church, I had a thought to serve, so I decided to cut out some cute hearts, and I went and heart-attacked the Bishop, my friends, and a lot of apartments in my ward. Afterwards, I took a fat nap (cuz Sunday is a day of rest, after all!) and then went over to Whitney's apartment for Come, Follow Me. We had a great discussion about how lasting happiness comes from living the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Sin may grant instant gratification, but it doesn't last. If we remember that, it is slightly easier to resist temptations. After that, I went to an apartment of sisters in the ward to watch the Face to Face Devotional with the Rasbands. One of the girls there, Rachel, is also gluten and dairy free! She made us yummy corn bread (she was going to do cookies but didn't have the ingredients). We talked afterwards about how pain and living in the tension of not knowing the answers to gospel questions we have is an important part of life because it allows us to connect and bond. There is a purpose in all things.

Much love,

Emily Burnham