Childhood Memories from an ^Almost Adult

Life
By Benjamin Kotey

It takes a day to day to make a dream,
But it takes many nights for a seed to become a tree.

Life is a ladder that must be climbed.
But in every stage,

There are many rivers and battles to fight
And our hope determines our future.

Life is a trip through the wilderness 
And everyone must survive for success.

And without a determination
We can never reach our destination.

There are many roads in life,
But choice

Stands between the broad and the narrow.
But the world is not only what we see

But what we hear
Life is time and time is tide.

We are making an endless journey
But no ladder is without an end

Problems may fall like rain
But every seed has its seasons.


~~~

Today is my last official day of childhood. I graduated high school, left home, and went grocery shopping for myself for the first time months ago. But tomorrow I will be 18 years old. The idea of being 18 seems foreign to me: I won't have to call my dad when I'm on a date at Low's because I'm not old enough to decide if I can handle jumping into giant foam pits; I won't have to have my mom tell my hairdresser that she has permission to cut my hair from 1500 miles away; I can vote; I can even elope! I probably won't, but the point is, I could.

In 24 hours, I won't be a different person then who I am today. But this upcoming age has given me a chance to reflect on my childhood memories that make Anne Katherine who she really is.

I entertained the idea that my mom was an alien for a week, laid under my piano's keyboard when I needed to clear my thoughts, and recorded jokes with my brother on a tape cassette. Lion King hyenas lived in my basement, a donkey resided under my bed who ate my blanket if they hung off the end of my bed, and an alligator escaped from the zoo, traveled through the sewer system and tried to break into my room to eat me. I remember sitting on a circle chair in Hawaii watching girls dance with ribbons to a song about lollipops. One Fourth of July, my baby blanket started on fire from a little sparkler, and some nice lady in my ward patched up the whole with a heart.

I remember sitting on my parents floor when they called us to tell us that Camille was a girl, and not the Timothy that they were expecting; I saved my pretty red and white striped dress for when I got to visit her  for the very first time. Playing with bendy-fox, bendy-lion and bendy-gator on the carpet protector in our living room with Simeon and Christian. Wearing a Chinese outfit for Halloween and feeling Simeon's felt lion costume. Falling asleep every night holding Camille's hand through the crib; telling my mom that it was Camille who wanted to hold hands, but in reality, it was me who couldn't bear the thought of waking up with my sister not being there. Going to D.C. and walking into our house at the end of vacation, seeing all the presents under the tree and knowing that Santa Clause was real because my parents had been in a different state.  Duct taped whiffle balls and family truth or truth games that unfailingly ended in tears. Cardboard noodles, SPAM, pickle surprises. Tag around the main level, hiding Lorenzo in a laundry bin. Locking the babysitter out of the house and Kelsey Parkinson giving us cough drops as rewards for good behavior. "Joseph Smith Hide and Go Seek," "Preach my Gospel," and family trivia. Zachary Tyler. Queen Jane. Percy Jackson. Fielding falling asleep in my arms for the very first time. 6 years later, helping him read the Magic Tree House books. Text audits by the parents where they learn about their daughter's dating life. Sneaking into Abe's room when he was crying in the middle of the night because I was sick of hearing him scream and my parents were training him to sleep through the night. My mom catching me.Threatening my mom that I would quit piano; her responding that it was my choice, fully knowing that I never would.

Becoming friends with Angie because of an offer to bring the croutons to a salad. Going to primary in the Andover Ward for the first time, and desperately wanting Nick notice me as much as I noticed him. Meeting Lexi on the first day of 8th grade and wanting to someday be as friendly as she was. Weight training with Andrea sophomore year and developing an awesome friendship as we lifted and skipped running days. Jenna inviting me to a sleepover at her house for the first time for freshman year homecoming. Singing Sk8r Boi on the monkey bars with Marissa in fifth grade. Walks home with Brittney. Playing ultimate with Ellen, climbing over dressers with Shemaina. APUSH with Grant and Joe, chemistry with Max and Tom. Phil's "tooth hurty" jokes, Jack's Al Gore imitations. Plan Las Vegas at that one park with Marc. Beth's inventive hanger purses. Awkward lunch conversations in Nauvoo with Kevin, Jake and Chad. Pretty and witty Bennett sisters, backstage moments and Caribou runs with the theater kids. Tater tots and eye candy with the best choir nerds in Minnesota. Learning from my roommate's signature dance moves. Rachael's celebration of life. Prolly having well grammar with Brad and Austin. Zeegan and Greg's Iowa-Utah caucus confusion.

Skipping kindergarten, winning my first piano competition, making all-state, being the Witch, graduating from high school, getting Personal Progress, attending BYU.

Sister, daughter, student, musician, thinker, prayer, joker, creator, philosopher, friend, best friend.

This is who I am. I am inspired by the thousands of people that have influenced and nurtured me, laughed with me, and prayed with me. I hope that in the next 18 years, I will be able to take everything you have taught me and start to apply it to the world. I wish to make as much difference on others as you have on me.

To laughing, to loving, to living.

AK

~~~

Blue Suede Shoes

Merry ChristmaseveChristmasNewyearseveNewyears! Yes, that is a word in the dictionary. Look it up, I dare you. I hope whatever celebrations you participated in over the last few weeks were peaceful and enjoyable. Mine definitely were! I seem to like numbering off things that happened or lessons learned, so I suppose I will again right now that give a recap of my break.

1. I went to Ohio for Christmas to spend time with my family, grandparents, cousins and aunt and uncle. What I learned: My grandma was born with a tooth coming out of the roof of her mouth and my grandpa went to Homecoming his senior year of college with the Homecoming queen; ankles swollen up to the size of Texas don't fit well in heels; (common sense, but the lesson still learned,) when playing ping-pong, screaming at your opponent every time they try to hit the ball can increase chances of success, and Santa can consistently deliver presents to the right state. 
2. I met Chuck E. Cheese. Lesson learned: Sometimes childhood dreams do come true. Also, his favorite dance is the cupid shuffle. 
3. I watched the Muppet Movie. If you haven't gone to see this movie, drop everything and go and watch it. For real. Many a people think they are too old or cool or mature or precocious for talking muppets with unbelievably unrealistic facial features, accents, and relationships. I mean in real life, a frog and a pig simply cannot be married. Most bi-species relationships don't work. (That's my common sense coming out again.) But in this movie, everything is possible. Lesson learned: I don't really know what I learned from this movie that you would benefit from me sharing. So you should probably go watch it.
4. I played a very long game of Life with my family. Lesson learned: when the 6 year old demands to be banker for the entirety of the game, expect to have the game last about as long as an actual life.
5. On a tad more serious note, celebrating the birth of the Savior is a sure-fire way to invite added happiness and peace into one's life. Without him, I would have little knowledge of who I am or why I'm here. With him, I know where I'm going and how to get there. Once you have that figured out, everything else seems to fall into place. Truly developing a relationship with Him will not bring immunity to life's temptations and trials, but His strength makes all things manageable and worthwhile.

So, that's about it. To end the year, I've included a website with some of the most stunning pictures taken in 2011. Click Right Here!

May the new year bring happiness, peace and wholeness to all. 

Love, 

AK

P.S. Story of My Life. And probably yours, too. You should probably click on that link...

P.P.S. The title of this blog is another one of my favorite Christmas traditions. Basically, my dad comes up with really... unique riddles that us kids have to figure out before we can look at the tree on Christmas morning. One of this year's riddles was: What is the type of shoe that reflects it's mood accurately when stepped on? The answer: Blue Suede Shoes. I forgot to tell you earlier! 

Have a GREAT day!

Egg Nog Ice Cream... Awk.

Tonight I had the ultimate dilemma: To sleep or not to sleep, that was the question. Let me explain...

Well this week is finals week. I've had four finals in the last two days, and when I came home tonight, I was exhausted. So at about six, I decided to take a nap. I slept until 7:30, an then my roommates came in and tried to force me out of bed so I would be able to fall asleep later tonight. I thought I was really tired and would be able to sleep through the night. I was wrong.

I woke up about half an hour ago to an extremely hot body (temp wise :) ) and delightful laughter coming out of my kitchen. I tried to go back to sleep, and failed. I got water and shed some blankets. Then I tried to go back to sleep, and failed. I put a pillow over my face, tried to go back to sleep, and failed. I counted sheep, tried to go back to sleep, and failed. I went through all of the elements according to mass number in my head, tired to go back to sleep, and failed. That's a lie, I didn't do that. But I just thought of that and  had I have thought of that half an hour ago, it probably would have put me to sleep.

So now it's 10:30 and I just took a four hour nap. So, if anyone is still up at like three this morning, you can give me a call. Because I probably still will be up, memorizing the periodic table, trying to get me to sleep.

My roommate is drinking Sunkist before she goes to sleep. This is ironic because she was the one who tried to get me out of bed.

My other roommate really wants me to talk about her. SO, her name is Rachael Davies. She is blonde and being OCD about her studying and reading our whole physical science book in three days. I think this is a dumb idea, but it's probably more entertaining then making hundreds of flashcards. Also, I have her for Christmas Secret Santa! Except now that I think about it, none of it is really secret. Hence me posting who I have on the internet. Anyways, she is going to get the best Christmas present of her life from me! So Rach, gf, be prepared.

Okay, my favorite part of Christmas tonight is people buying egg nog ice cream from the Creamery. I think this is disgusting and funny at the same time. Some people honestly spend $5 on EGG NOG ice cream. Think of all the other things you could get with $5! You could get 5 episodes of Pretty Little Liars, 5 matchbox cars, 5 packs of gum, a late testing fee from the Testing Center, 2 loafs of bread, or a partridge in a pear tree. Any of those would be a better way to spend money then getting egg nog ice cream. I'm clearly not judging these super weird people though. I'm over it!

Here is my favorite Christmas song right now. It's brilliant.

Things I Should Have Learned Years Ago... With a Dash of Christmas Lights

Today is a very important day. This is where if I could hear you, I am sure you would be asking "Why? Please tell me!" So I will tell you. First of all, in 1980, John Lennon was shot. Second of all, in 1941, the United States declared war on Japan. Third of all, the Bears beat the Redskins 73-0 in an NFL Championship game back in 1940. These are all very important things. There's another reason today is important though... Drumroll please.... I have officially finished classes for my first semester of college! This is what I have learned from my first four months of living away from home:

1. The perfect turkey-cheese ratio on a sandwich is 3:1. Now that I know this, my culinary skills have indeed improved. People come all over the Heritage complex to eat one of my delectable sandwiches. 
2. If you are one of those weird people who work their best under extreme levels of stress, you really need to get that checked out. And probably fixed.
3. The best way to get a guy to stop hitting on you in the middle of class is to pull up facebook on your computer and start stalking all of your most attractive guy friends. 
4. Life always gives you what you want right after you decide you don't want it anymore. I suggest you just realize this and develop a sense of humor. It's really the only way to deal with the situation.
5. There is room to care for everyone in your heart. You just have to decide whether you are going to let them in or not. 

I've also learned a little bit about philosophy, history, physics, art, religion, chemistry, service, you know. However, the lessons learned on the list is the real reason I'm paying tuition. 

Okay, time for some Christmas cheer! :) One of the things I love most about Christmas is the way my mom decorates our house. She has these gorgeous garlands covered in lights and other pretty things that get hung throughout the main level. The first night we have those hung and our Christmas tree set up and decorated, I stay up late until everyone else is asleep. Then I go downstairs and turn all of the Christmas lights and just look around at the shadows playfully being thrown on the wall by the hundreds of light bulbs lighting up the rooms. When we have the decorations set up and there's snow on the ground, that's when I know it's Christmas!

We also have these Christmas blankets that decorate the couches and chairs in our living room. One of my first Christmas memories took place when I was sitting on one of the chairs the blanket was thrown on. I thought that those blankets were so cool. Like one of the coolest things of my life. Cooler than... cool whip! So I got my two youngest brothers and started a Christmas club with them. The main rule was when we had club meetings, we all had to be sitting on one of the blankets. I'm pretty sure we met for like three minutes and then my mom started coming down the stairs, so we playfully attacked her to preserve the secrecy of our club. And now I'm posting this on the internet. My 8 year old secretive self is killing my conscience right now! Anyways, I can't wait to go home and see all of our beautiful Christmas decorations everywhere! 

Poisoning Santa is Just Plain Rude

Pluto had this thing called the Form. Essentially, it is the perfect form of something on earth. Nothing is perfect on earth, so Forms are on some Form planet living with Form people living Form ideals. I feel like there are a lot of ideologies in the world that are just Forms. Stuff like democracy, world peace, wise time management, a chick flick that doesn't make you horribly depressed about your life, you know. They are all just theories that would make the world a better place but never going to happen. Though let's be honest. If there ever was such thing as a chick flick that makes you happy about your life, why spend time watching it? You've got it better than the movie which completely defeats the purpose. So. I've decided to give up on expecting these to ever become realities, and to embrace the world's imperfections. If the world was perfect, you wouldn't appreciate it because you wouldn't have the imperfections show you why the world is perfect. Hmm, I'm not sure that made sense. It did in my mind, so I'm keeping it. 

Next item of business: It's CHRISTMAS time. So I've decided that my posts leading up to Christmas are going to tell you my favorite parts of the season. 

1. Christmas music. Except Frosty the Snowman, Rudolph, and Jingle Bells. I think I overdosed on those songs as a child, and now I cringe whenever I hear their overly jolly tunes coming from my Pandora station. Let's just analyze Frosty for a second. First of all, who honestly cares about Frosty? He ends up melting into a puddle. What is that supposed to teach children? Oh hey, you can make friends with giant, talking, frozen chunks of H20, but he's probably going to die in a couple of days. Just FYI. And Rudolph? It doesn't matter if you are made fun of for having red noses! You will probably meet a old, fat, jolly man who will realize your full potential and make you carry him across the world once a year. It's either that or go back to being a social outcast. Okay, I'll be more positive now. My favorite Christmas songs this year though are My Grown-Up Christmas List, O Holy Night and the Nutcracker Suite. Love everything about them. :)

Yea, that's good for today. Take home lesson: Appreciate the imperfections that make your surroundings unique; if you meet a talking snowman, don't get emotionally attached to him; Josh Groban is the king of singing. I don't think I mentioned that last one yet, but now I am. So just accept it and move on! 20 days left until Christmas!

Finally, just something to start your Monday on a happy note. :)