knock yourself out haha

I read this the other day in a wonderful book that tawny gave me. It knocked my socks off.. haha seriously though. Not only was this passage a complete answer to prayer but it is so inspirational to me. The simplicity of this is outstanding. That literally all of these blessings can be attained by having the spirit with you. Having it live within you and manifest itself in these ways. This is everything that i want. its so simple. thats why i love this gospel so much.

In the words of Parley P. Pratt, we begin to grasp the powerful impact of the gift of the Holy Ghost in our lives. “It quickens all the intellectual faculties, increases, enlarges, expands, and purifies all the natural passions and affections and adapts them by the gift of wisdom to their lawful use. It inspires, develops, cultivates, and matures all the fine-toned sympathies, joys, tastes, kindred feelings, and affections of our nature. It inspires virtue, kindness, goodness, tenderness, gentleness, and charity. It develops beauty of person, form, and features. It tends to health, vigor, animation, and social feelings. It invigorates all the faculties of the physical and intellectual man. It strengthens and gives tone to the nerves. In short it is, as it were, marrow to the bone, joy to the heart, light to the eyes, music to the ears, and life to the whole being.”

BBY

This past week i was a counselor at the BE THE BEST YOU GIRLS CAMP. wow. no words. i had ten thirteen year olds and i love each and every one of them so much. it was such an amazing week. i learned and grew so much. I learned that i am nothing without the Lord, i learned to rely on him and his spirit. I learned that the holy ghost and a connection to Christ can really transform you and i saw it blossom in these girls. they helped me so much and i loved them like little sisters. i will miss them so much. they are such great examples to me. they are strong and courageous spirits that just shine.

gav

you made my day. you made me laugh. the laughter came easy. which is surprising at a time when i really was inclined to think that laughter was unattainable. fond fond memories of that day. i love that our friendship comes so easily. love you

new hope academy

Ever since i came upon the attachment scene i have wanted to work at a school for children with reactive attachment disorder called New Hope Academy. It is run by an excellent woman named Kasey Harmer. While i waited for a position at the school i worked full time as a respite provider for families with children with R.A.D.. Recently i discovered that I finally have the opportunity to work at this school. I am really enjoying it. It is really nice to work with a variety of R.A.D. children and all of their tricks, games, and difficulties. I do not function well in chaos, mostly due to my anxiety, so working in this nicely structured and organized environment is going to be swell. Especially since i was getting pretty darn burnt out with doing straight respite full time in a somewhat chaotic environment. Its been really neat to work along with my father also.

what?!

calif and tender mercies

i went to california with the Cassani family and had a remarkable time. i got to live right on the beach, fly in a little plane and touch a cloud, meet great people, and see extraordinary wildlife. hooray for Pajaro Dunes. Thanks Adri for everything you did and allowed me to come.
so i have been working almost 24 hours a day for a few weeks now and its really taking a toll.. oh boy i cant wait to have some personal kelsea time.
Sunday morning i was able to cruise down the famed provo canyon at around 8 am to get to dear Ryan Graham's farewell. Anyway i had just listened to Elder Bednar's 2005 conference talk on tender mercies and wow my father in heaven sure blessed me with a breathtaking vista of his outstanding creations. man-0-man i had NEVER seen provo canyon so green or so beautiful. there was still remnants of the morning fog clinging to the heighths of the canyon walls where above them rose the snow-tipped crests of the mountian range. The vibrant greenery and life was stupendous and i was just in awe as i strived to drink it all in. for me this was definitely a tender mercy as i had been having a difficult time and losing sight of what really matters. God is definitely mindful of us and every now and then he sneaks in a little tender mercy here and there. Especially during those times when he is teaching us a lesson. i have been in Patience 101 ha ha and his gift of tender mercies certainly help rejuvenate inspire and provide a little pick-me-up for his students. :)me on the Bbbbbeach....scarf compliments of TC. love you.

park city

park city. wonderful place that i come to visit with my dear mother and sister and wonderful girls in my family. bonding. laughing. speed scrabble. many movies. scrapbooking. i miss katie. i have had time to look at myself. somethings i dont want to see or face and some things i am disappointed in but mostly i love introspection and i am so glad that i have my mother and sisters there beside me. allergies. sneezing. (lauren ricks los hermanos.... haha). llaaaazzzzzzzzzzzzzy dayyyyzzzzz.
shopping.

ps. too lazy to even form full sentences. haha putting periods between words seemed to sufice.

home again home again lickedy split

well i am home. its kind of weird. it will be better when i finally get unpacked and situated. first year of college done. summer is at my front door and i can' wait. last night i reunited with most of the pentagon and it was wonderful. We went to Michele Peterson's wedding which was spectacular and so beautiful and she is a stunning bride. this is kind of a lame post but i am updating on here and trying to catch up in my brain too. AND Gavin. when you read this. haha i still can't believe how weird bowling was.. i talked more to Brother Wing than those wierdy kids haha and they would NOT laugh at my jokes...yikes. fun time though
kelsea

I was doing my laundry...and i needed a bra. but the one i had was hanging to dry. I put it on wet. and you know what. i didnt care. i kinda liked it.

While this was going in on i was listening to regina. she is swell and she sure does know how it works:

This is how it works
You're young until you're not
You love until you don't
You try until you can't
You laugh until you cry
You cry until you laugh
And everyone must breathe
Until their dying breath

No, this is how it works
You peer inside yourself
You take the things you like
And try to love the things you took
And then you take that love you made
And stick it into some
Someone else's heart
Pumping someone else's blood
And walking arm in arm
You hope it don't get harmed
But even if it does
You'll just do it all again

If i were to be a room...

today i was in a dressing room hopelessly trying to find a pair of shorts somewhere in-between yucky and shorty-short disgusting (a daunting task) and i heard a saddening sound. the sound of a heart breaking, the sound of short tearful breaths, the sound of a cry. At that moment i thought that if i were to be a room, i would never be a dressing room. So much tragic disappointment, so much crushing of hopes and ideals, so much self destruction and image erosion takes place in dressing rooms. Why do we do this to ourselves? Yes there is sporadic satisfaction here and there that only keeps the fire of hope in our hearts that we keep going into dressing rooms, trying one thing on after another, trying desperately to boost our beauty and confidence with an item of clothing. I admit fully to participating in this futile charade. I cannot wait until the women of the earth graduate from this vile black hole of Satan's ever present depleting, negative, destructive messages until we are finally free to embrace ourselves and each others images and souls for what and how they are no matter what. And we will do it gladly and wholeheartedly.

true story

attention: attention seeking-scandalously clad-lowly standard-skanks.

You might want to consider the fact that your home-cut mini-skirt and shorts are too short when half of the fabric of your pockets is protruding past the hem of this disgusting garment. You might as well just cut the pocket too because i doubt that you will utilize the use of this commodity. Furthermore, how on earth do you perform simple daily functions such as sitting, walking, and oh gee i dont know, breathing in this attire?

Thank you,

Kelsea Park

a friend recently returned from a mission. so much can occur in a year and a half span and yet it seemed that so little time had passed. Something was there that had lay dormant for a short time and re-awakened as lives were once again united. all those trivial events that had occurred in her absence seemed to fade as they were replaced with matters of true importance. Relationships are an interesting phenomena, almost like living organisms that need to be fed and nourished but seeing their potential for endurance gave me hope for some of my more valuable relationships that have been put on hold for a time.

i have a problem. I disappear. After a time, i tend to blend into those around me. My substance, my soul, my personality slowly seeps into the background leaving this hollow form of matter. I hate when i disappear. I know its happening, and i don't know how to stop it. I can have such a vibrant personality and be so involved and vivacious when i am in appearance.. however i lose myself as i dissolve in disappearance.

general conference. there's nothing like it.

missythoughtszupas

im not going to lie. missy higgins is pretty much my all time favorite. i am in love with her and her music.

today i was asked a question. What do you want in life? and sadly i couldnt really find the answer. sure i could come up with little traditional answers but of course the real kelsea needs to answer these questions with something phenomonal, from the heart, meaningful. and i couldnt find it. im going to be thinking about this because i thought i knew what i really wanted. and i do. but there is more to it. this isnt really making sense sorry. tawny i love ya :)

zupas makes me so happy

:)

1. classic skating= one swell experience

2. grrr every once and a while this certain thing occurs and it makes me really frustrated but i hate that i get mad because its not that big of a deal and im sure i do it to other people too.. its still hurts though

camp connect

last Thursday i embarked on a remarkable journey. destination: Texas. I was a team member/counselor on the staff for the great Nancy Thomas' Camp Connect. Not only was it an honor to meet and be taught by her but i got to work alongside her at this extraordinary camp. I dont even have a clue where to begin to paint a picture of what this camp is about. basically families come with their children who have Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD). Many of these children suffer other disparities such as Oppositional Defiant Disorder, ADD, ADHD, Turrets Syndrome, Bipolar Disorder, Autism, and FAS (Fetal Alcohol Syndrome). These families came to learn how to parent these children with a strict structure and discipline that Nancy Thomas has developed which works miracles with these kids. The main goal is to create a bond or attachment between the parent and the child which most often has been adopted with many other contributing factors to their RAD such as maltreatment, abuse, neglect, etc.. Over all i made many wonderful friends and it was an exsquisite, extremely difficult, rewarding, heat-warming, heart-wrenching experience that is one of the greatest things i have ever done. I learned so much and it was remarkable to guide these children and parents and to watch the growth and progress that they made. Some of these mothers face such a daunting, trying, overwhelming burden and it was an honor to be with them. It was a very humbling week. I got back on Saturday night and it was so hard to leave these wonderful people. I am full of gratitude for what these relationships, encounters, and experiences gave me.
Because of my training and experience at this camp i am now a trained and qualified respit provider which is so wonderful and i now have a few positions over the summer which was a blessing and answer to prayer. My father in heaven is so mindful of me and all of his children and it is so wonderful to see his hand at work in all of our lives.

these dont need words :) haha

i forgave you even in the moment that you hurt me.
i kept making excuses for your short comings
all along i knew how this would end
and yet i dared to hope and try to change its course
i thought that at this moment i would be more heartbroken
but im mostly disappointed in myself and what i painted you to be
i know its wrong to question what made you leave
but i cant help thinking it was me