Happy Christmas Harry!

Happy Christmas Ron....ok I just had to put that one in. Who doesn't love that line? Tomorrow marks a very important date that I have been waiting for...well....since like forever. It is bittersweet. I feel like my childhood is ending, which I haven't really come to grips with yet. I mean I was 9 when I started reading Harry Potter and 11 when the first movie came out. After many midnight showings and staying up late reading the books (and many other nights rereading and rereading the books), Harry Potter is coming to an end. I do not know how I feel about this, but this much I do know...I feel like I grew up with Ron, Hermione and Harry. I experienced their joys and heartaches and of course their quest to defeat the ever evil Lord Voldermort. I feel as if I got to experience Hogwarts. I will never be the same. So, thank you for spending half my life with me Harry. You are one special character. Don't mind if I cry throughout the movie (which is a given). It is just bound to happen because this has been one heck of a ride.

Oh so young and naive!

Now, off to defeat Lord Voldermort and saving the Wizard community. 

I will also be dressing up as Professor Trelawny which is epic in itself. I cannot wait. Harry Potter here I come!

I only hope to be like them someday.

Tonight, I had the unique and special opportunity to go and visit the gravesites of many LDS prophets. As we went to each one, we learned a little bit about their lives and their work as a prophet. I was touched by each of their sacrifices and dedication to the work of the Lord. 

I promised myself that I would not get all mushy-gushy as we approached the Hinckley's. There is just something about them that always makes me want to cry because I loved them dearly. I grew up with President Hinckley and his awesome wife. He is my prophet as I like to call him. I always remember listening to him and being so excited when he would announce new temples. I credit him with helping me gain a strong testimony of the gospel. He always had a way of making you feel loved and special and I always felt I knew him personally.  The light of Christ was always shown through his actions and deeds. He found a way to make you laugh but at the same time stayed serious. His devotion to temples and temple work is astounding. I have a special place in my heart for temples and hope to be able to go someday and I will be reminded of the great work President Hinckley did.  I still remember where and when I was when he died. It was not easy for me to accept that he was gone and it took me awhile to adjust to a new prophet. I know that he was and is a prophet of God, and he will always have a special place in my heart. He had a way of speaking profoundly with the littlest of effort. Many of his quotes are short yet simple. Just the way they should be. "The time has come for us to stand a little taller to lift our eyes and stretch our minds to a greater comprehension and understanding of the millennial mission of this, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints" His remarkable way of telling us that we have a mission here on Earth could not have been better put. If we stand a bit taller, we will know our potential. What an inspiring man. 

Don't get me started on his wife. Everytime I see pictures of her, I also cry. She is a woman that I strive to be like. A couple of years ago, my friend Carlie taught a young women's lesson using Sister Hinckley's biography and many of her quotes. I didn't think anything of them until last summer when I had this strong desire to read her biography. It completely charged how I viewed women in the church and allowed me to gain insight into the life of a prophet's wife. What I loved the most about Sister Hinckley is and was her ability to serve others. She always had a smile on her face. From her I learned of my potential and how to understand my divine worth as a Daughter of God. Her outlook on life was incredible. Happiness in everyday can be achieved! I love her dearly. One of my favorite quotes from her book and her life was, "I dont want to drive up to the pearly gates in a shiny sports car, wearing beautifully, tailored clothes, my hair expertly coiffed, and with long, perfectly manicured nails. I want to drive up in a station wagon that has mud on the wheels from taking kids to scout camp. I want to be there with a smudge of peanut butter on my shirt from making sandwiches for a sick neighbors children. I want to be there with a little dirt under my fingernails from helping to weed someone's garden. I want to be there with children's sticky kisses on may cheeks and the tears of a friend on my shoulder. I want the Lord to know I was really here and that I really lived." This made me realize that life was not about material things but about our actions and the people I spend each day with. How grateful I am for her wisdom and love of womanhood.

As I was standing at their grave, yes, I did get teary eyed and I am not ashamed to admit that. I owe a lot to this couple who loved each other so much that I can only hope to one day have the same kind of relationship and love with my husband. Their love for each other was refreshing and allowed me to see what love for eternity looks like. They were also quite adorable if I say so myself :)

Till we meet again President Hinckley. You are dearly missed.