The First Day

Friday:

The bus arrived around 7: 30am. While on the bus I read from the current Ensign: Start Moving. I just finished reading when I reached my stop in order to catch the next bus. I stood at the bus stop for about ten minutes and the bus had not arrived (it was due five minutes after I got off). The article was still reeling in my head, thus I decided to walk to the previous street .I waited and the bus still had not come. With the article still in my mind I walked to another major street and the bus still did not show up. Another bus arrived and I asked the bus driver if I was in the right spot and he told me yes and that my bus was stuck at the Transit Center and should be there shortly. The bus finally showed up 25 minutes late.

I finally arrived to work (miraculously on time). There were eight of us and three managers. Tony (a manager) gave us an overview of the warehouse and his needs. We were each (Me, Brenda, and Andrew) given a box cutter and a price gun. I and Brenda were put together with Mary as our supervisor. Both Brenda and Mary are amazing. Brenda and I are the ultimate duo. We just instantly clicked. Two hours into work two high school girls were added to our group. We became their supervisors (because Mary left) and they were not very good listeners. But after awhile it was smooth sailing. Our job was to put the boxes (two 16-wheelers worth) in the right department and then to price check all of the miscellaneous items put into boxes (and items that were not priced).

After work Brenda was nice enough to give me a lift to the mall to catch the bus. She stayed until the bus arrived (6: 50pm). However, it was not in service. I ended up waiting until 8:10 before the bus came. A woman got on after me and told the bus driver that she got on the wrong bus and she didn’t have the twenty-five cents needed for a transfer. The bus driver got so angry with her and yelled. She, in turn, got angry with him and yelled. I gave her the quarter but he wouldn’t stop yelling and so she started back yelling at him. Luckily nothing happened.

While waiting for the last bus, I met the cutest seven year-old boy. The boy said that he wished that they had two cars so they wouldn’t have to get on a bus. The mom asked how they would get the car and the boy answered: “When I’m Mayor I am going to give everyone free cars and free gas for five months.” I and the mother started talking about work. He chimed in “Well when I’m President I will give everyone jobs and I will lower taxes too.” He said: “I am going to be an entrepreneur and I will make up good companies, not the ones that will hurt the country but very good ones.” While on the next bus (it came at 9:20pm) there was this HUGE Fish fly on the bus! It had two long wings and was just gross. As we were riding down Kercheval, the stores were crawling with those things: they covered businesses, lights, streets, and sidewalks (can you say creepy?). Then I ran home.

Miracles do happen and I have proof

After crying my eyes out every night (and day) for the past two and a half months a miracle happened. About twenty minutes ago I received a phone call that I had been longing for. I received a job. I had been nervous that I would have to live off of or depend on others for my basic needs but that is no longer the case. Just yesterday (literally 30 1/2 hours ago) I went to a job fair for the company 'Five Below'. The job fair lasts until tomorrow. I was interviewed by the best woman in the world. She is in her late thirties and is very funny. She commended me for being the only person to bring a cover letter with their resume. She then asked me two questions.

1. "Why do you want to work for my company"? To which I replied: "I must admit I did not know anything about your company when I heard about the job fair; however, after researching your company and looking at the website I feel that this will be a fun environment not only for your teen age customers but also for me as an employee- the layout of the store will be (since it does not open until July 17th) fun for me to be involved in helping to create. Also, I enjoy helping young people in any way that I can, I have worked with children since I was 11 years old as a nanny and I feel that I will fit right in.”

2. "Since you do not have any retail experience how do you think that you will fit in a company that is fast paced and in need of capable employees"? I said: "While I do not have retail experience I have excellent customer service and administrative skills. Again I worked as a nanny for close to 7 years and I occasionally received requests for babysitting every summer since and I have maintained close relationships both with the children but also with the parents...."

She then told me that by Wednesday she will call everyone who received the job and she went on to advise me not to look for any more job opportunities!

Today, again 30 1/2 hours later, she called me to let me know that I had the job!

While I am grateful that I have a job now, this would not have happened had I not listened and received help from others. David, Supervisor at the Resource Center, has helped me since January when I contacted him to tell him that I had to come back home in February to have surgery and I needed help finding a job after I got off bed-rest. He offered me a partnership/paid internship at the office, which gave me tremendous knowledge of Microsoft Office and other software that helped land this job. He also proved amazing at helping me to get the skills and courage to go out there and search/ seek a job. He called to check-up on me numerous times and also gave me advice on the job hunt. Mike and Hallie have been here for me more than anyone else. They have helped me also to get the courage to go out there in this scary world. When doors closed they promised me that windows would open and to not give up. Mike even lovingly pushed me to really go and put my face out there. If it was not for that I do not think that I would have been able to go to the job fair (after all there were tons of doors slammed). Hallie told me: "You are going to get the job." Mike, Hallie, David, and countless others helped me to improve my interview skills. James and Sean provided extra help and comfort; Sean even called a friend of his to give my resume personally to them in order for me to get some sort of job. Linda, a career specialist at Macomb Community College, gave me the lead about ‘Five Below’.

Of course none of this would have been possible without Heavenly Father. He provided this miracle. He prompted me to call the Resource Center in January to tell them that I was coming back home. He prompted me to move out of my parent’s home and into Mike and Hallie's and everyday they pushed me a little more to keep at it and not give up. He prompted me to go to the college's Career Services when I got out of class early which helped me to find out about the Job Fair. He definitely prompted me to go... I had just received five rejection emails the day before.

Yes miracles do happen. Heavenly Father really does know me personally. Often times I wonder if He really is there, if He sincerely cares about me... and then things like this happens. He may not show me in a big way, like getting a job, but He does let me know He's listening. I find it quite humorous to see how many times we, as humans, ask why me or please show me that you care when things go wrong but then just like that we forget (read about Laman and Lemuel in the Book of Mormon) him and do things our way. Of course I do that often but then, like this, He continuously gives me His answer: "Diamond, I never left"! or "I'm right here"! or "Why can't you just be patient... there is obviously a job that I think is better for you"! or my personal favorite that I think he says just to me: "Get off my nerves and just let other people help, that is what they are for"! I recently found the later to be true. The previous people mentioned are only a hand full of people who have helped me along the way (hence "TEAM DIAMOND"). He has brought so many wonderful people to help me. I am new to this whole "having faith" thing but boy it is real and it works.

Nothing to blog about...

However, since it is Father's Day I thought that I would post the main points of the Religion paper that I did in Sociology (I received an A). I thought it fitting since it is about marriage.

“Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh” (Genesis 2:24 King James Version). The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2010) noted that in 2009 there were 2,077,000 marriages in the United States. However, in this world the lines of marriage and family have become blurred. Many people are opting out of the traditional family roles and instead are making new and sometimes costly ones. The media has turned love into lust. More people are becoming single parents or choosing to abort their family. The world is slowly losing out on the most important thing: family.

Many people are attacking the family roles. The mother is no longer being seen as gentle, and some mothers work outside of the home; the father is not always the sole provider, and some fathers choose not to help in rearing their children. Extended families are sometimes the ones rearing the children of parents who are avoiding taking direct responsibility themselves. Gordon B. Hinckley, former President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (1995) said, “HUSBAND AND WIFE have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children. . . . Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children.” In 2009, Maria Shriver (2011) reported, “Women now make up 48% of the US workforce and ‘mothers are breadwinners or co-breadwinners in a majority of families.’”

Latter-day Saints believe that marriage is extremely important; however, the media says the opposite. Gordon B. Hinckley, former president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (1995) stated: “Marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children”. In the LDS religion the temples are the most important. The most important thing that is done is being sealed for time and eternity to your family. Although, the “Mormon” religion believes that marriage is important, many people are finding out the world simply does not agree. For instance, Bleakley, Hennessey, and Fishbein (2011) found that 50 percent of teenagers actively search for sexual content using the mass media. Many television shows depict women and men in sexual manners.

The world would lead people to believe that getting married to start a family (or getting married at all) is useless. Many people point out negative things about getting married, such as the cost, divorce, adultery, and so on. They question getting married when people can have sex without the official title. Sue Christensen and Ann Rosen (1996) found that the American pop culture glorifies sex. Music videos and television shows show women being lusted after. Many unwed people are fast becoming parents; people are having sex at a younger age and, as a consequence, are having children before they are twenty years old. “In 2002, 12% of all pregnancies, or 757,000, occurred among adolescents aged 15-19” (as cited in Ventura SJ, Abma JC, Mosher WD, Henshaw SK, 2006). The CDC also stated, “In 2009, 46% of high school students had ever had sexual intercourse” (Health Topics, 2010). Many people are opting not to wait to have sex, and as a result the idea of "marriage" has become lost.

To conclude, the family is important to the Latter-day Saints religion; however, if the world continues to put importance on others things such as having sex before marriage, they will risk losing the morality that we once had. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believes that the family is essential to their salvation; however, the negative way that the family is depicted in the world will have a negative impact on the family. The youth should learn more about the consequence of their actions; only parents can teach them that. Love is clearly different from what the world shows it to be. People should not look to celebrities or the mass media to define love or family. Mothers, fathers, children, and extended family roles are important and should not be belittled or thrown away. The Latter-day Saint religion needs to stand firm in their view of the family and help put an end to the attack of the family roles. If we fail to do so, the children (next generation) will grow up without the beliefs needed to raise their family.

The End of Sociology

Today was my last classroom discussions day in Introduction to Sociology (although I have to go tomorrow to get my grade). It was a wonderful three weeks being in that class. I learned a lot about how important and the impact that sociology has in the world. My teacher Dr. Bonner was a interesting person. The students got away with a lot; although, I managed to learn more and do exactly what he asked. I did 3 presentations and papers: The LDS family versus the world; Choose Celibacy Instead of Moral Sin; and The Story of the Acadians. I also did 3 current events: Osama Bin Laden's Death; Naomi Campbell and Cadbury Chocolate; and A father's involvement in his son's life (Utah father embarrasses son). I enjoyed that the class was a discussion-centered classroom. I had not really had that before, we only read out of the book once.

Most importantly I was able to incorporate my religious beliefs into the classroom discussions. Although I was picked on by some of the students, I was able to stand firm in my beliefs- just as missionaries do (wink, wink). I was even able to give a Book of Mormon to 2 individuals (my teacher and a student studying to be a preacher). I have another Book of Mormon to give to a student tomorrow. I have learned just how much my religion has shaped who I have become. This is very remarkable. Just 3 years ago if you asked me about cohabitation, premarital sex, etc, I would not have a problem with it. Now I see the harm that it does and I was able to give that insight (and much more) to the students and teacher.

Yep, Sociology was an eye opener. Now I hope Introduction to Chemistry will be as well. I just bought my books for the class online! It really will happen. Wish me luck!

Memorial Day

This Memorial Day hit me very hard. I do not know why. Maybe it is the hot and humid weather that got me going. All I can do is think about the wars (past and present). Sometimes it makes me want to cry, other times it makes me proud to be an American. In politics every one says "I want my soldiers home" or "I am glad that they are fighting for our freedom". I have no idea what the soldiers think of fighting a war.

So every Memorial Day, I talk to my uncle on the phone and thank him for his services in Vietnam. I thank him for giving up his time and protecting us. It almost becomes automatic- no feelings behind it.

But today as I for the first time went out to eat. Seeing the flags on poles, homes, and buildings, seeing other people walk around as if today is any other day. I am inclined to well...

What makes a soldier a hero?

One's strength?

One's courage?

A big gun?

A fast plane?

A heavy ATV?

A willingness to give anything

to protect their country?

Their beliefs?

What makes a soldier a strong?

Overpowering the weak?

A strategic plan against disorganization?

Outsmarting the ignorant?

Fighting the cowards?

Facing the unknown?

Ignoring Pain?

What makes a soldier memorable?

The noticeable battle scars?

A missing limb?

A slight limp?

Mental instability?

Sleepless nights?

Crazy rants?

Unrecognizable face?

Neat attire?

Nameless graves?

What makes a soldier a soldier?

Getting in the Swing of Things.

So I just finished writing 2 Papers! Oh how I missed school... NOT!! I had my first class Monday. Macomb Community College is not as bad as I thought. I love my interesting Sociology Class. There is never a dull day there. Everyday we talk about all of the controversial things that are going on in the world. Of course everyone has their own opinions- that's what makes it interesting. My class is very eclectic: a convicted felon, a few Detroiters, 2 Nigerians, 2 Bosnians, an Iraqi, 2 Afghanistan/ Iraq soldiers, 2 Police Officers (studying), an aspiring Priest (seriously), 2 Pre-medicine students, 3 Communication students, 2 know-it-alls, and a female Middle-east American. Yep. I love my class.

Because it is only a 3 week class, it is a fast-paced class. I have a Current Event due every Friday (3), a group Presentation and paper due this Tuesday (done), and three papers. I finished my first paper (that is due Wednesday). The paper is about the importance of family in religion and how it is different from the worldly view of family. It is a 5 page paper (including title page). I think it is pretty good; however, I am going to ask Mike to read it over for me. I do not quite like the way the teacher does things. I LOVE structure and order, I freak out when I do not have that. He is extremely unstructured. His idea of giving us a grading rubric is "Paper must be objective and subjective and must be in APA format." That's it!

The other 2 papers "Homosexuality" and "Race" are due June 6 and June 8 (2 days from each other). The group presentation is due Tuesday. Our group received the problem "Socialization from the perspective of life" meaning the problems that people have as they age. My subtopic is Toddlers- young children (basically 2-10). I decided to do my part of the presentation on stuttering. My nephew Shaun has that speech impediment. I only have 5 minutes to talk about it and about how we "as a community" can help children with speech impediments become more social.

I have had a ton of things to think about. Right now, I no longer have a job. My temporary job ended May 20. I do not know what I am going to do financially. I have applied everywhere and I am getting the run around. I need a job so bad. I am also thinking about other stuff and so far I keep getting answers that does not make since. There is just so much going on in my head. I worry way too much.

So far so...

So for whatever reason, I have yet to give an update about my life. As usual life is well, life. However, there have been some HUGE changes- for the best I hope.

I am no longer a Detroit resident. No. I am now a suburban girl. Well only by a few blocks. I am now staying with Hallie and Mike. For those of you who do not who they are, well they are like my rescuers. They have been here for me since I first began looking into the church. Mike was the Branch President when I was baptized and Hallie just has that nurturer mentality. I think she could sense that this new convert had TONS of issues and needed someone to lean on. Living with my parents just became so unbearable. I will not go into that. I have been here for almost 3 weeks. They have two adorable children who I just love to pieces. So far it’s been good.

I start classes at Macomb Community College on May 23. I will take Sociology (South Campus) until June 10. You say but that's just 3 weeks. Well it is for 4 hours everyday! Now I bet you aren't jealous. Then I have Intro to Chemistry (Center Campus) June 20- July 13 a 4 1/2 hour class. I am excited for them though. I need intro to Chemistry to prep me for the real thing. I think I will rather enjoy them.

What I will not enjoy is the 1 1/2 hour bus ride everyday. Especially like days today. I had the most interesting/ angering bus rides today. I went to Macomb Mall to look for jobs and then I needed to go to the college to get my Sociology books. The bus ride to Macomb was funny. The woman was talking to everyone over the sun! She told all of her business and other people’s business as well. I do not like it when people talk about me to other people- even if it is the truth. I am not that open of a person. Hearing this woman talk about herself (not in a good way) and other people just made me irritated. Good thing I brought a pamphlet/ excerpt, “The Holy Temple” by President Boyd K. Packer, with me or I would have exploded. I then went to the Mall to apply for jobs. Then I thought that the bus that I needed to get to the College was already at the bus stop so I ran (as best I could with two bags) to the bus stop. I tripped and smacked my face on the ground (kind of funny, no scars) only to find out that my bus wasn’t coming for another 10 minutes. That bus ride made me furious. I asked the bus driver if she would be able to tell me when we got to my stop. She said sure and another woman was getting off there too. The whole time she was arguing with someone and talking to someone else. The she said “Hayes” and people started getting off the bus. I asked her if this was my stop and she said “no, this is Center Campus”. Only after we passed the campus did she say oh this is South Campus… and she kept driving! I had to tell her that I NEEDED that stop. Finally she let me off. How is it that people like them can get jobs and not me? Oh that’s not the end of it. I ended up waiting over 30 minutes for the bus to get me back home; however, the bus that was suppose to come broke down. I need a car. I need a job so that I can get a car.

I will get a job- eventually. I love and appreciate all of the people who have helped me and continue to help me. I am very grateful to Mike and Hallie. They literally have been my angels in disguise. They have done so much for me. In less than 2 months they went from a house of 3, to a house of 4 (baby girl Eliza), to a house of 5! They had her little room/ father’s office all set up for Eliza and then they had to change it to my room/ Mike’s office. I know that it’s tough for them, especially with me being unemployed. I have to rely on them for everything. I hate it! I hate feeling like a freeloader. But I am thinking positive. I mean things are working out. I need this house. I need the Spirit that I feel here. For the first time ever I was able to just go downstairs and ask for a blessing. I obviously did not have that at my home (me being the only member) and it such a wonderful feeling having the Priesthood here. I just enjoy having that.

I also appreciate everyone who has been so wonderful to me. I find it difficult to tell people face to face what problems I am having. No one in my Branch or Stake knew how bad it was at home until the Spirit warned me that if something didn’t change I would go down a road that I would possibly not be able to return from. It is nice to be able to tell someone “Hey I’m having a bad day, can you help me”? I also appreciate my wonderful Branch for making things happen. Random but although I hardly ever speak to them just the thought of that wonderful Christmas Break in Utah, just makes me smile. No I am NOT moving to Utah- Idaho yes, Utah NEVER. Kaili has no idea how much of an impact her parents have had on me. They are so funny and so very spiritual. I think about my first “Father’s Blessing” and also wonderful talks I have had there. I actually still read it; although, I probably should have found someone else to give me a Father’s Blessing for this year. But still it has helped me.

I think that his year will be something great… maybe even extraordinary. No I am not getting married… at least not yet.