What's Next?

It's snowing outside. I LOVE snow. I'm in my favorite sweats, the coacomotion has been used, the Taylor Swift Pandora station is on, I have the apartment complex to myself, and The West Wing waiting for me. I'm so content, comfortable, happy, _____________(insert description of someone who's world is about to be turned upside down.)

Done

October, where'd it go? October consisted of Homecoming, two Thunder Thursdays, three home football games, one weekend concert, and that little thing I like to call the Howl. A little over two thousand people attended/participated this year, we broke even after significantly dropping prices, and the LDSSA Activities VP left his own activity for mine.

HOWL=Success!



Football team winning Conference Championship= Success.



Homecoming= Epic Success.



Statistics= Epic Faliure.
Well there's always 1050 next semester right?

The toughest thing about this year? All the people who really knew the non SUUSA Emily are gone. Don't get me wrong, I feel truly blessed for this experience but I didn't realize how lonely this year would be. When it comes to work I have the BEST support system in the world but I just want to be Emily sometimes. Not Activities VP. I need me some Hillary Jayne, some Dan Dan, some Michelle, some Carrie Colton, and most of all some Ghetto Fabulous Roommate.

She got to come down for homecoming and it was perfect. Everyone that week kept asking me if I was okay like they expect the Activities VP to have a breakdown during homecoming but I knew my GFR was coming and that's all that mattered. Once she got there it was like she never let, she was pre-Nauvoo Shani. Exactly what I needed.



But now it's November which means, all the procrastinated assignments, ice on my windows in the morning, and the awkwardness of thanksgiving break. I want nothing more than to go home this weekend and be with my fam but no one can go this last minute. To put the cherry on top I found out my oldest brother is going to be there so I truly will be the only one not there.

I love Cedar, I truly do, but I'm done. I'm ready for the next adventure. I feel like Cedar has offered me everything it can and I'm just killing time here.

I had the best day with you, today.

I had the BEST afternoon with Nat: perfect weather, good food, slight gossip, talks of Mexico, Boston, a hammock, and all with in a stone's throw of Juniper. Love her.

Southern Utah University Student Association

When I graduated High School, I was going to go to Law School. I was going to be a prosecutor. I was going to fight for the constitution. It took me approximately 3 weeks at SUU to realize that wasn't really what I wanted at all. I lived in Juniper and took full advantage of that. My RA was on StAB (Student Activities Board) and suggested I get involved in one of their committees. Due to the bitter taste Student Government in high school left in my mouth I had no desire. I took my generals and just went along living; figuring that one day I would decide a major. My second year I really felt that Communications was the route to take but I didn't know why. Then the spring semester of my Sophomore year I decided to take an Event Management class because I'd heard good things about the teacher. I interned for the teacher that following semester thinking I would leave on a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints that December. My Father in Heaven had other plans for me and I stayed in Cedar.


At that the end of my third year I decided the idea of doing events for a living sounded enticing as I truly loved it. More experience couldn't hurt so I applied to be on StAB and was blessed enough to be appointed to a position. I had the most amazing people to work with and LOVED the experience. The people in the picture to the right became some of my best friends. I learned from Amy Shupe, the then Vice President of Activities, to never give up on someone. From Jeni Jones I learned you can find common ground with anyone if you just put in the effort. From Laurel I learned what really matters in life and how to not care about what doesn't. From Sam I learned how to breathe when I talk. :) Sara Shupe taught me to always have a smile and Tarl, well that for a whole other post. The point is I knew that was where Heavenly Father wanted me and while I still wanted to be on a mission I was truly blessed to be a part of that board. I love being able to create the atmosphere for other students that I grew from here at SUU. And that was what got me to start thinking about running to be the SUUSA activities VP.

The whole idea scared me. I knew I had a lot to offer but the thought of running for office made me want to crawl back into bed. Being a human being and a female one at that I've struggled my whole life with learning to not care what people thought of me. But to run for office you had to put your whole self out there and ask for people to like you, to vote for you.

However, I was blessed to run with three of the most amazing men I have ever met and seven fabulous senators. We decided in the very beginning that we wanted to worry about what we would do if we got elected, not on how to get elected, and work back from there. It was important to all of us that at the end of the day whether we won or lost that we felt good about ourselves and the kind of campaign we were running. I learned that politics can bring out the worst in people, and it shocked me how come people I considered good friends acted. But never the people I ran with. I was SO BLESSED to be in that kind of atmosphere with such good people. If I had lost I would have felt like it was a worthwhile experience just to work with them. But, we didn't loose. :)


On April 8th, 2010 I was sworn in as the 2010-2011 VP of Activities and I have the opportunity to work with some of the most amazing people this upcoming year. We sat through many an interview and I'm pretty sure I have 5 of the sweetest event directors for my StAB this school has ever seen! Some I've know for years and some I just barely met but I love them all and I know this year will be one for the record books. My executive council (the student body president and the other two VPs) are perfect. I couldn't have asked for better. So now my one follower (love you chelsea!) is updated on the most significant thing to happen in a while and I feel better about this blog . Hope your baby is happy and healthy :)


Some of the people I get to work with next year...

Hear You Me

I believe families are eternal. I really truly do from the bottom of my heart. I've always known it. It's something in my spiritual soul searching that I never doubted. I know I'll see my grandma again, even though she's passed. Her funeral was hard just because I had to watch the rest of our family who doesn't have that knowledge. I am just ecstatic that she was happy now and with her mom, dad, brothers, and sisters.

And with that as my preface, tonight was Relay For Life. I went down to the football field before it even started to buy a luminaria in honor of Jeanne and as soon as I started to write her name, the tears came. Jeanne Smithers is the mother of my bestest friend back in El Centro, Abby Smithers. I've known Abby since 5th grade, and with everything we've been through, I know she'll be in my life forever. I think it was 8th grade Jeanne was diagnosed with Breast Cancer, but she fought it back into remission. Then right after 9th grade it was back, and she was gone before Thanksgiving. Jeanne was just one of those people you never forget: kind, Christ-like to everyone she met, she just glowed you know? I miss her, I really do, but I know she's up there doing her thing, enjoying her dad and Brandon.

I remember one night after she was gone sitting on our old couch in the living room just crying into my Mom's lap. While I missed her, I was crying because I just couldn't stand to see Abby in so much pain, there was nothing I felt like I could do. I want to just tell her that families are forever, that her mom will always be her mom. I want to tell her all about this perfect gospel that gives me hope and peace in my life, but I'm so scared. Our friendship is built off respect for each other because we are on complete opposite ends of the social spectrum. She doesn't have many stable friends in her life and I would never want her think I'm not going to be there for her. It even sounds stupid as I type it but these are my fears. When I walk at Relay For Life, it's in memory of Jeanne, but it's also a constant reminder of my fear. A reminder of the pain Abby goes through every day and that I just can't muster up the courage to help her. For that I walk.

I don't know this kid, we didn't talk, but the purple shirt means he's a survivor and that amazes me. Some day they really will find a cure. And some day I'll figure out how to talk to Abby. If he can survive cancer, I can tell Abby right? Right.

Juniper Lovin..

Life is uber stressful right now and that will all probably come out in a blog later but tonight the new SUUSA constitution passed and then I got to hang out with J McKay and Louie. Both of them lived in Juniper my freshman year and I can't help but love them both! You just can't help but be happy when you're around them.

A picture's worth a thousand words...

I'm quite bored in good old Comm Theory. Sometimes I wonder if Suzanne knows that we're not learning anything. Anyways I thought I'd update my blog with a couple pictures...



This is an a capella group we brought in for Bread and Soup Night. I met them at EFY and they're just a bunch of High School Seniors form Ogden, maybe someday I'll figure out how to upload a video of them..




Then we had a sweet 80's dance that looked like a giant pac man game...everything was painted in black light paint and then we brought in the black lights!


I got to watch Baby Ze while his mom was in a prodution meeting...loved it. So much.



And last, but certainly not least, who doesn't love an EFY wedding? Cheri and Jaren met at EFY in Ephraim this summer and we had a nice little reunion at the reception. Please note that they are wearing their EFY polo's in their center piece pictures.

Semester 8

Today was the first day of my 8th semester and I have not been looking forward too it. There are a lot of choices to make this semester and I'm at the point where I have to wait for other people's responses. I hate waiting, sooooooooooo impatient. Most of my classes are needed, not wanted, and at the end of this semester I have to give my best friend up, even though she's been gone for awhile. Heavenly Father and I had a nice big chat about this last night, and I woke up and went to class knowing that he would take care of me. My classes were brutal, things were rough in SUUSA, and my optimism was heading out the door fast. Then I had the opportunity to host a performing group that I met through EFY. It was 6, 18 year old boys that are in an a capella group. After they performed they asked me it I wanted to pray with them. "POT" is what they called it, prayer of thanks. So yes, I did pot with my EFY participants. The fact that they would think to pray before and after every performance just touched me. The prayer they offered was beautiful and it was the first time I had felt peace all day. It was at the time I knew, He was gonna take care of me. Sure, life might be hard, but that's the point. Bring it on!