Just For Today

 24 April - 30 April 2023

Hello, my friends! Another week, and I am honestly reporting that it was not as "happy" as the weeks before it, but it was a good week. Physically, I was not feeling up to par, but it's normal to have your physical highs and lows, soreness, exhaustion, hunger, etc. And what's cool is that despite not feeling my best physically, I still got to practice feeling my best mentally. What do I mean by that? Well, take Sunday for an example. It was fast Sunday, so I was abstaining from food and drink on top of physical exhaustion from all the service from the previous day and other minor things going on with my body. At one point, I was feeling very hungry and my stomach grumbled, and I kind of felt frustrated that I felt like crap and was fasting on top of it, but then I reflected, "Do I need food to be happy?" Can I skip a couple of meals and be hungry and still find joy in life? Can I have aches and pains in my body and still choose to do things that bring me peace or happiness or enjoyment? And I decided to believe the answer is yes. So what if my stomach is grumbling a bit. So what if my legs are sore. So what if I feel a bit loopy and tired. Those things don't need to bring my mood down because they are not permanent, nor are they the foundation on which my happiness rests. I'm in control of my happiness, not external circumstances. Not other people, and not even a sick or afflicted body. So was I bouncing for joy, giddy with happiness and excitement and passion for life? No. But that emotional flood is not all that defines happiness. What about having peace of mind? Or contentment? Or a willingness to keep pushing forward and stay in the present moment without dwelling on present or future cares? Chemically and hormonally, my body is not made to feel flooded with strong emotions all the time, and it didn't have the capacity to keep feeling "on top of the world," but the determination and optimism are still there.

Okay, so here are some highlights of my week: I got to see lots of clients this week, and am feeling incredibly blessed by the amount of relational hours I am getting. Looking at my current hours and the projectory for the rest of the year, I am right on track in all areas. I started making my therapy social media a priority and hope to make a big impact with that and gain a lot of followers. So far, I made a TikTok video and got a follower from it, and when I looked at her TikTok, a lot of it talked about her depression and cutting herself, and it just made me so grateful for the opportunity to be able to reach a wider variety of people and ages from multiple platforms: YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and TikToc. I plan to post every Monday and am grateful for the opportunity I have to start making an impact NOW. I had a youth from one of my FSY groups reach out and thank me for my Missionary Approach videos; he says he's been following them and has felt the Spirit and been strengthened by them. That came at a time when I was thinking of quitting so I could put my focus into other areas, but now I feel like (with God's help, of course), I can do more and juggle more things. I've also been helping with the social media at my sign job, and even started a YouTube channel. I've filmed some print jobs on my phone and sped them up and we're going to be posting those for people to watch. I'm excited to start getting more creative and to help bring in even more clients! On Friday, I went to the Touch Angels office to meet with my clients there, and I fortunately only have three clients now! What a blessing. I feel like I can handle that much in the day. I had really good sessions with each of my clients, and one client went to show me all his key chains he has earned and collected from being sober for over a year, and it was super cool, and the group facilitator even gave me my own key chain! It's the very first one you get after one day of being sober in the group home. Little does he know I've been sober my whole life, but I'll take the "Just For Today." It's actually a really good motto and reminder to take life one day at a time and focus on what matters most for that day. 

An old friend from work has been canceling on me a lot lately and hasn't been the best at responding to text messages, and it's kind of frustrating. I'm not sure what to do. A big part of me feels like, "Well, if she's being a crappy friend, don't reciprocate or try so hard" and the other part of me feels like, "You know she's struggling and could gain a lot from a genuine, Christ-like example and friendship, so just keep trying and ministering." So I just keep inviting her to things, but I also don't have high expectations that she'll actually show up or follow through with the invitation. But at least she is invited. Saturday was a long and exhausting day. I woke up early to attend a stake service project at House of Refugees or something like that. They house homeless families for a year while the family works to get back on their feet. It's an incredible program and I wish we had more like it in place. We raked wood chips around the playground and shoveled up weeds for a couple of hours. 

Then I left with a small group to go set up for the multi-stake Luau activity. Dallin, me, Valerie, and Jasen all carpooled together over there, where we spent another two hours putting up chairs, tables, and decorations. Jasen was pretty tired and loopy, and kept making all sorts of jokes and tried to get Val to laugh a lot. It was pretty fun, but towards the end, my blood sugar was dropping from not having lunch or breakfast, and I was completely wiped. I got to take a small nap when I got home before attending the temple. Then I attended the Luau that evening with my two beautiful sisters, which was an AMAZING feeling. That I just have two best, eternal friends who I can do things with and know they always have my back. Sean and our two cousins, Cody and Collin, all carpooled over as well! It was really good to see them all. We stayed for pretty much the full 4 hours... CRAZY! I was so tired and sore by the end of it, but I was glad we stayed late enough to help take down chairs and tables. I woke up on Sunday with a headache and ruptured ear drum (which I believe is only temporary and will heal itself with time, and I think it came from this rowdy group of girls sitting on my left on the row behind me, shrieking every time the shirtless Samoan dancers were on stage. RIP my ear). 

I got to attend Lucy's ward to hear her speak, and I really enjoyed hearing her experience of turning to Christ and focusing on Him to help her stop worrying so much about the unknowns of college. I went back to sleep after that, then got up for my own ward. Which was good, despite me feeling a bit out of it still. And dinner was SO SO SO delicious. We had chicken pineapple burgers with all the fixin's. YUM. Then Val and I went to stake choir practice. Aww yeah! So, all in all, a pretty great week :).

And of course, I get to see baby periodically each week, and sometimes I actually remember/think to take pictures!

Much love, 

Emily Burnham