Vent Session Coming Your way

I think I am having another mental breakdown. They suck. I have five finals in two days and they are all scheduled. I hate Shakespeare. I hate William Blake. I hate having to learn everything for my religion final because it cumulative and we didn't even touch on the majority of the material in class. I hate that culture class even has a final. I hate that I have to take a British Lit. final at 7 pm until 9 pm on Wednesday night. I hate that all I want to do is sleep. I hate that all I do is study. I hate when I don't retain what I am studying. I hate that my pile of study guides is as thick as my "Complete Works of William Shakespeare" book. I hate that I still haven't found my glasses. I hate that it's Tuesday and I won't even be done with this wretched business of finals until Thursday night.

Ok there. Now I will tell you what I like/love. I love London. I love the weather right now in London. I like Legally Blonde the musical (saw it last night and was pleasantly surprised. However if you are very intellectual this isn't a show for you). I love Tangfastics and Percy Pigs. I love Coke Zero. I love lambs Kebabs from Notting Hill Express on Bayswater. I love the idea that I will get to wear something besides the same five outfits in about two weeks. I love that I will have some personal space besides my bottom bunk bed. I love tennis. I love free time. I love sleeping (but maybe that's because I am feeling bi-polar because of finals). I love my family.

A few hours later...
I realized that complaining gets me knowhere, but still since this is my journal I have to put some thoughts up. Sometimes I think I stress myself out so much and put a lot of pressure on myself that I end up crashing in the end and I feel stuck. So in hopes of raising my spirits I read some conference talks. I'm still feeling overwhelmed and a little discouraged by all that lies ahead of me but I found some wise words from our prophets that are extremely applicable to my current state in life. This one was especially good:

"Brigham Young taught that when something came up which he could not comprehend fully, he would pray to the Lord, “Give me patience to wait until I can understand it for myself.”5 And then Brigham would continue to pray until he could comprehend it...Often the deep valleys of our present will be understood only by looking back on them from the mountains of our future experience. Often we can’t see the Lord’s hand in our lives until long after trials have passed. Often the most difficult times of our lives are essential building blocks that form the foundation of our character and pave the way to future opportunity, understanding, and happiness. " -Dieter F. Uchtdorf

For the link to this wonderful talk from the Priesthood session click here.

And I want President Monson's closing remarks to be mine for today. He said, "My counsel for all of us is to look to the lighthouse of the Lord. There is no fog so dense, no night so dark, no gale so strong, no mariner so lost but what its beacon light can rescue. It beckons through the storms of life. The lighthouse of the Lord sends forth signals readily recognized and never failing.
I love the words found in Psalms: “The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; . . . I will call upon the Lord . . . so [I shall] be saved from mine enemies.” The Lord loves us, my brothers and sisters, and will bless us as we call upon Him."