Can I get some air please?

For the past three weeks I've noticed that Stella's tires are not as full as they should be. Now usually I'm lazy and just ride on them even if they are a bit flat. The only problem with doing this is that as bike tires become flat, it becomes increasingly more difficult to ride the bike (especially up hills). So, this week I decided I should fill them up (mostly because I was having to gear down so low to get up the hill to my house that I was embarrassed for myself).

(an example of a flat tire like mine)

On Monday after work I biked on over to my favorite local gas station (the only one that I'm aware of in the area with a free air pump). But alas! They had their pump disconnected because they are repairing the car wash. (I honestly don't understand why the air pump has anything to do with the car wash, but I've learned not to mess with Bostonian logic). So, I decided to bike a little bit further down the road to the next gas station (mind you, I was now biking directly away from my house). When I got there a nice man who was filling up his car tires let me use the last little bit of his time on the air pump, which is fortunate because I realized after arriving that I didn't have 75 cents in quarters for the machine.

For some reason though, the air pump would only fill my tires to 30 psi. (Now, just to give you an idea of how flat my tires were...when they are full they are supposed to be at 60 psi, I was riding around with them at 20 psi, and then the silly pump would only fill them to 30 psi). Needless to say I was quite frustrated. So my solution? Just bike home and deal with it later.

So today after work I decided that I would give it another try because I was pretty sure that I was back down to 20 psi again. Sadly, as I pedaled past the "free-air-but-not-anymore-because-of-the-broken-car-wash station" I noticed that they still didn't have the hose connected to their air pump so I continued on to the other station, pulled up to the pump, reached into my bag to retrieve the 75 cents I was sure I had put in there, and I couldn't find it! So, yet again I left the station air-less and decided that I was just fated to ride on flat tires so just biked home defeated. Maybe I'll try again tomorrow.

How it actually went down

Ok, so I know that graduation was a while ago, but recently a few people have reminded me that I still haven't given them the final version of my speech. Considering that there are quite a few rather horrendous versions out there (including on this blog), I thought I would set the record straight by posting the final version of my speech. And as a bonus I've included some pictures too!

Here is me giving the speech. I know it's not the greatest picture, but I promise it's the best one I have (my mom had to zoom in quite a bit). The dean guy (or whoever he is) behind me looks really excited about what I'm saying!
The funniest part of the whole thing is that I (the giant that I am) spoke right before this crazy midget. I honestly thought that the podium was gonna break as it rushed from the lowest possible setting to the highest (it made an awful straining noise). Kev and I had a good laugh over it though.

Yay! I'm graduated! (Actually I think I was making a "Y" here for mom...I can't remember...but I was really happy regardless).
Alright, enough of this picture craziness. Here's the speech. I wish I had a really cool title for it, but I don't:

Good morning everyone! So the other day I was thumbing through a Calvin and Hobbes book and came across a comic in which Calvin makes the following observation:

“Know what’s weird? Day by day nothing seems to change, but pretty soon, everything is different…You just go about your business and one day you realize you’re not the same person you used to be.” (It’s a Magical World: A Calvin and Hobbes Collection by Bill Watterson p. 132)

Recently I had one of those moments of realization—other than still being a nerd, I’m really not the same person who came here to BYU as a shy, naïve, awkward, nerdy freshman who thought she had her life all planned and figured out.

But what exactly caused my gradual but drastic transformation over my years at BYU? Was it the opportunities I had to study abroad? To participate in mentored research? To go on internships? Was it the classes I took? The things I learned? The places I went? The service I did? The jobs I had? …the list goes on and on…(I was here for a really long time).

As I thought about it more though, I realized that in a way it was all of those things. But more than the actual experiences or circumstances, it was the people I encountered along the way who helped shape me into who I am today.

C.S. Lewis’ observation explains perfectly why the people in my life have had such a profound affect on me. He said:

“There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations—these are mortal…but it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit” (The Weight of Glory and Other Addresses [1980], 19).

I think we can safely add that…assignments, exams, grades, deadlines, jobs, money…these are mortal. And even though these “mortal” things are necessary, it is so critical to remember that the people who surround us every day of our lives—from the janitor we share an elevator ride with, to the friends we see every day, to the professor who inspires us during a lecture—are all immortal souls who each have unique experiences, perspectives, and insights that we can benefit from…if we choose to overcome our own prejudices, fears, and insecurities.

Since “there are no ordinary people,” it follows that there are no ordinary moments in life…or at least there never has to be.

As Elder Maxwell said, “We must look carefully…not only at life’s large defining moments but also at the seemingly small moments. Even small acts and brief conversations count, if only incrementally, in the constant shaping of souls.” He continues by asking, “What will we bring to all of those moments small and large? Will we do what we can to make our presence count as a needed constant in such fleeting moments, even in micro ways?” (The Pathway of Discipleship, Ensign Sept 1998, 7)

I will never regret those moments when I decided to choose immortal encounters over pressing mortal demands. When I chose to spend all night talking with my roommates about precious gospel principles instead of studying for the big test I had the next day. When I chose to spend Saturday throwing a barbeque with the girl I visit taught who was having a difficult time feeling like she fit in instead of working on a project that was due on Monday. When I chose to extend my office hours to help a student struggling with the material in the class as well as personal issues instead of finishing the assignment that was due in my next class.

Those, among many others, are the encounters that have shaped my soul over these past few years. And those pressing mortal demands? The test, the project, the assignment? I honestly don’t even remember what happened with them, because in the grand scheme of things they didn’t even matter.

I will also be forever grateful for those who took time to help me learn and grow despite their own mortal demands. The professor who, even though he was overwhelmed by more important matters took the time to go over a paper line-by-line to help one frustrated underclassman understand how to improve her writing skills. My friend who would always drag me out of the lab at lunchtime to make sure I got something to eat despite my protests that the Wilkinson center was just too far away from the Widstoe Building to make it worth it. The famous scientist-physician who interrupted his conversation with James Watson (of Watson and Crick) to talk with and later offer a position to an intimidated undergraduate from BYU who wanted to work in his lab.

These people are just a few out of hundreds who have made their presence count in my life in small and large ways whether they were aware of it or not.

So what is my advice? That memorable bit that I hope you’ll actually take away from all of this? For that I’ll turn to Horace’s famous directive “carpe diem.” Though it’s usually translated as “seize the day” I prefer the alternate translation “pluck the day” or my favorite, “harvest the day.”

So go out and harvest today because it’s a good, good day! But please don’t forget to harvest tomorrow, and the day after, and the day after. Whether you are going from here straight into a high-powered, high-paying job, graduate school, medical school, or to flip burgers at McDonalds, remember that those circumstances are merely mortal…but what you do with the immortal encounters in life on a moment to moment basis will shape your soul and the souls of those around you.

These soul-shaping opportunities are there if we will only pluck them! It is so easy to get discouraged by the fruits that haven’t yet blossomed in our lives, but if we’re constantly waiting by the tree that hasn’t born fruit yet we’ll miss out on all of the moments and encounters that the Lord has provided for us today to help us become who we need to be to harvest the fruits of tomorrow. And hopefully in that distant tomorrow we’ll be able to look back on today and realize that we aren’t the same people who walked across this stage, but we are better, stronger, smarter, more fearless, more compassionate, more humble, more loving, more Christ-like.

Thank you.

Eulogy to an Unnamed Fishy

You made me so happy that day when Heather and I first met you in the Petsmart. I was really excited to get a new fishy because it was something I had been saving until after I had passed through that trial by fire otherwise known as “the MCAT.”

The way you gleefully wiggled around the tank made us smile, which is why we chose you even though Heather really liked the black fish with the googly eyes (but they kinda give me the creeps which is why I said "no" to Heather and chose you instead).

We spent the whole ride home trying to think of a good name for you, and I almost got into an accident because even though it was raining I kept looking at you trying to figure out what to call you.

When we brought you to the apartment you seemed to like the new big tank. You were shy at first though, and you used to hide under the rock or behind the plants in the corner. But after a few days you came out more and seemed to have fun swimming around with Shubu and Eddy. The three of you always made me smile when I came home from work and would see you riding the current from the filter or letting the bubbles carry you to the surface over and over again.

This week I was already sad about having to kill so many of my poor tumor-ridden mice, then tonight when I came into the living room and found your tiny dead body stuck to the filter my heart broke even more. You seemed so healthy and happy just this morning as I was calling you by several different names during feeding time to see if any would stick. Sadly, you weren’t around long enough for me to know which one you liked. (Just for the record Danni, I never called him Willy).

Maybe we'll never know why you died. I don’t know whether to blame it on sickness (which I really hope it isn’t or else Shubu and Eddy might get sick too) or the awful heat wave (even though I’m pretty sure that the water temperature didn’t change that much…you know water, with it’s high specific heat and all…). Maybe it was just your time to go.

What we do know is that you’re in a better place now, probably with Cleo and that fish that Heather threw in the dumpster that one time because she thought it was the spawn of Satan and then tried to cover up her crime and then worried that the fish was so evil that it would just keep growing in the dumpster until one day when she was bringing out the trash it would be big enough to eat her alive.

So little unnamed-yet-known-by-many-names fishy just know that even though you were only on earth for a short while, you were loved. And even though I didn’t cry when I found you like I did when Cleo died (don’t worry Anne, it definitely wasn’t a repeat of that experience) I was really, really sad and I’m going to miss you. RIP.

Freedom is...

Not having to spend every waking hour on your computer analyzing data, writing your thesis, or studying for the MCAT!

As much as I love my new little mac I have been more than happy to abandon it these past few weeks and have been enjoying my new-found freedom. It has been so nice to be able to do the things I want to do with absolutely no time constraints. I had honestly forgotten what a beautiful thing it is to be able to spend all day reading in the park, meeting a friend for a long conversation over brunch, or just being able to walk around the city discovering new haunts.

And, the incredible thing is that I have been so productive! I really think that I have been able to effectively channel my study energy into getting all of the things done that I have had to put off.

Some of the fun things I've been up to:

Right after the MCAT Sun took me out to Chipotle where I downed a child-sized burrito (seriously folks...these things are massive). I hadn't really been able to eat for about a week and a half before then, so the burrito provided needed sustenance.

The next day I washed about a month's worth of laundry, cleaned out my closet (the Salvation Army was very happy), went shopping, and then got to chillax with HB who came to visit me!

Among the many other super-fun things we did, we had a lovely picnic in Mt. Auburn Cemetery...

and freedom-trailed it...
(Honestly, I love visiting the Constitution. It is one of my favorite things to do in Boston. I don't know why, I just do...maybe I was a sailor in my former life. I was probably in charge of firing this cannon.)

I finally changed my license plate. (I'm officially no longer handicapped!)
OH! I also got another little boy! Isn't he cute! (He still doesn't have a name though...I'm open to suggestions.)

These are my other adorable little fishies just in case you haven't seen them. This is Shubu...

and this is Eddy (he is named after the Black Prince, Prince Edward, who was a big military man because he has black-tipped fins and when I first got him his entire fin was ripped--probably in battle--but it has since healed and he has a nice scar now).
I have also been busy voraciously reading, slowly making my way through paperwork that has piled up, deciding what schools to apply to, working on fun projects, and trying to decide what lab I want to work in next year. Overall life has been good and just keeps getting better!