To My Downtrodden Friends

My friends, sometimes life is just plain hard. Sometimes it is going to be a monster. And this monster is going to beat you down to nothing, and let you up a little just so that it can hit you again and again until you fall back down again. Then, after you believe that you have nothing left, that monster will leave. Life will no longer be in the form of a monster, but in the form of a person, or idea, and it will come back and pick you up again. And you will heal, and forgive that monster for what it did to you, and you will be stronger. Then life will change from that person or idea and once again become that monster. But this time the monster won't look so big and scary, because you will be stronger, and more experienced, but it will still be stronger than you. And it will once again beat you until you believe you are broken. But you will learn, and grow stronger. And so the cycle will continue until that glorious day when the monster returns, and you look at it with all the certainty and confidence that comes with past adversity and say, "No more." And that monster will look back at you with all the fear in the heart of a damned soul, because it knows that from that point, it will never be stronger than you again. Then, on that day, you will be unbreakable. Yes, the monster will hurt you still, that is inevitable. But it will never again break you. It will never again look down at your mangled and bloodied soul and laugh with that deep, evil laugh that always used to scare you so badly. You are then free of this monster.
So, to my poor, downtrodden friends: please don't give up. Please don't let this monster destroy your life, because it will if you let it. It cannot hurt you past what you can bear. So no matter how painful the beatings become, persevere, and know that there is someone waiting to help you at the end of the beatings. Please know that God has a purpose for you, so keep the faith! And know that God is there. He anxiously watches, hoping that you will make the right decisions, wishing that you wouldn't have to go through as much pain as you do to become as strong as you need to be, weeping because of your anguish. Please know you are loved. And, if you believe that nobody in the world loves you, know that I do. But, more than I ever could, God does. And if you don't believe in God, please do some honest, open minded study of the Bible and the Book of Mormon and if you really are honest and sincere in your study, and you ask God for yourself, you will come to know for yourself of the truth that God lives.
May God be with you through the pain you must endure, and may you learn to defeat your monster quickly.
Love,
Dallin Ward

Home

My friends, the last two weeks have been quite an adventure. :) I spent a week in Veyo, Utah at Elevation (A camp that my school does 3 times during the year) and it turned out to be one of the best weeks of my life. I went climbing, repelling, ascending, swimming, caught crawdads, played a ton of koosh (Which, by the way, is one of the coolest variations of dodgeball that has ever been played :D ), did a service project, did a super intense simulation, spent a night alone in a canyon with only the clothes on my back, ran a 5:25 mile, spent 4 hours alone on a large rock overlooking a clear stream while nature moved around me, did yoga and meditation, had deep philosophical conversations with some of the coolest people alive, and with the same people stayed up until 2 in the morning laughing my head off. Then, after it was all over, we met again at Cafe Rio for one last meal with each other, and went and asked hair salon people for mosquito itch cream in a French accent and then watched the confusion on their faces while we accidentally busted out laughing. Needless to say, it was an amazing week. :D
Then, almost on a whim, I stayed another week in Utah with some cousins of mine, and went to BYU education week. Oh, that was so wonderful. I got to see the BYU campus which, by the way is amazing. I got to observe spectacular people such as John Bytheway and Hank Smith as they made me laugh, cry, and feel everything in between while helping me to realize what I need to do with my life, and how to change to fulfill my mission in life. I got to meet so many new people, people whom I have learned to love. I learned how to smile and really be happy, like, sincere happiness, nothing fake. It was funny, and kind of sad to see how shocked people were when I asked them how they were, and really cared to know instead of asking simply to be polite. I learned how to do the two step, the fox trot, the New York hustle, the three step, and the cha-cha in a dance class and at the dance itself. I met a girl named Amber who seemed happier than even I, which I did not think to be possible. I met a guy named David who taught me that appearances mean nothing, it is what's inside that counts. And I met so many other people who changed my perspective on life. I went to Legends Grill (Which I highly recommend) every day except Monday for lunch, and I learned that if you treat people with respect and kindness, they will treat you the same. I walked into Legends Grill on Wednesday and confidently walked right up the the cash register with a huge grin on my face to order my food. I walked up to the man at the counter and I said, "Hello Sir! How are you?" and then proceeded to order my food. Oh, the smile I saw on his face when I walked in the next day made me so happy. :D I walked in the next day and before I could say a thing, his face lit up and he said, "Hello Sir! How are you?" And he meant it! He really did! Oh, happiness is contagious, and it is something that I and determined to spread. :) It was so great to watch a girl's face, a girl who had sat on her phone in a corner for most of the dance, it was so amazing to watch how she smiled when I asked her to dance. And playing Monopoly with your cousins while making up new, fantastic rules as you go? That's the best. :) This, as well as the week before, was an amazing week. :)
But, yesterday morning when I woke up, I realized that it was time. It was time to come home. As much as I love adventures, I would choose home over endless adventures any day. I love my family too much to be gone for that long. Because I missed some things too much. I missed holding baby Nathan. I missed Rachel yelling "Dallin! Dance with me! :D" I missed how Rebekah would run up to me yelling "Dallin!" when I would walk in the door and give me a great big hug. I missed Ben's smile that never goes away. I missed Enoch's hilarious jokes. I missed talking with Spencer. I missed my Mom's muffins, and her loving care. I missed working with my Dad, and the example he sets for me.
Put simply, I missed home.
Now, I'm home, and I'm very happy to be here - it's where I belong. :)

Remembering

 My friends, how are you going to be remembered?
What is going to be the first thing to pop into a person's head when they hear your name?
I, for one, want to be remembered as a person with a sincere love of all people, and no regrets. I do not want to leave this life wishing that I had said or done something. I want to be remembered as a teacher, a mentor, a guide and an enlightener. I want people to say at my funeral, "Dallin was a man who changed my life."
So, having said that, allow me to exclaim to the world.
I don't care who you are - I love you. I want to help you. I want you to succeed. I sincerely hope that I have not hurt you. I pray for you. I want you to be a better person than I am.
So, when I tell you that I love you, I mean it. And I say it so that if something happens to you or I, I do not have regrets about not telling you how wonderful you are, and how much I love you often enough.
I refuse to leave this life with any amount of shame.
God bless you, my friends.
Now go spread joy.
Love,
Dallin

The Brilliance of Children

My friends, children are brilliant. It's just that simple, they know how to live life. And then, as we grow from children and become adults, we learn self destructive habits that, when we finally regain our senses, we spend the rest of our lives lives fixing. One of these habits is the constant need for stimulation of some kind to keep our brains moving. We desire this stimulation for many reasons. Maybe it is because we hate to spend quiet time examining our character - because that hurts. Maybe it is because we have regrets. Maybe we are dealing with other kinds of pain. But, how will your inner brilliance release itself if you don't ever make time for it to grow? This, my friends, this is why children are brilliant. See, they haven't confined themselves yet to this addiction to stimulation yet. They go outside, they spend time alone.
They think.
Today, my little brother Ben came to me with a thought. He is 9 years old. Here's what he said, (With slight revision for clarity. :) )
"Dallin, the word natural shouldn't exist. See, Jesus Christ was a man, right? And he created the world. So, technically, the world is all artificial."
Wow! That's brilliant! Let me tell you, in the world of stimulation that I spend far too much time in, I would have never thought that deep. This is the kind of thinking that has changed the world.
So, let me challenge you. This is something that I intend to do as well. Be more like a child. Spend time alone examining your character and the deep concepts and mysteries of life. And, if you can't stand to be alone with yourself, fix that. Whatever is making it painful to be alone - fix it. I promise that you will be more at peace if you do. And, who knows? Maybe the next thought that will change the world is waiting inside of your head for a chance to cross your mind.
Now go do.
Love,
Dallin :)

Thank You

Hey guys. :)
I just want to say thanks. :) It doesn't really matter what for, just so that you know, I mean it.
Thank you.
Thank you for all the good ways that you have influenced me, whether you know it or not. By reading this, you encourage me to write more, and make me feel like what I do is noticed by at least you. So, for that, thank you.
Thank you for taking time out of your busy day to read my posts, and for caring enough to leave a comment now and then.
Thank you for being who you are, and for your efforts to become a better person in a world full of sin.
Thank you for all the good you have done for me without my noticing. And, I'm sorry that I did not notice.
And for anything else where thanks is due, thank you.
God bless,
Dallin :)