Semester Done

Yet another semester done and finished. The long nights, the constant pressure, conflicting desires and loyalties all competing for a finite amount of time, and it is all finished. The other day, as I finished my last final I took a few moments to think about this semester and some of the trials Megan and I have faced as we have come out to this "foreign" Land and some of the enormous blessings we have received.

Moving to CO was one of the hardest things we have done as a couple. When we first moved to Louisville we were still grappling with being new parents to our beautiful son and were coming off of an intense two years as I finished up school. Uprooting our family and transplanting us 800 miles away from any family or support systems was a risky move. When we made the decision to go to CO we didn't have any jobs lined up. I'd been sort of promised an annotation job on campus but it would have been a 40% cut in pay and a 50% cut in the amount of hours I could work. But we trusted the strong promptings we'd received and did it. During the week before our move an opportunity presented itself for me to work from home at a decent wage and that carried us through the semester.

After we got here we went through the whole making new friends spiel and for a while Megan and I felt rather alone. Our ward was going through a lot of changes (lots on new people) so it was tough to get to know anyone. Most of the people in my program are very much not like me (which is both good and bad) so it has been difficult to make friends there.

However, all these trials aside things have gone really well for us. Last week I was offered a research assistantship which will not only pay me but help offset my tuition a great deal. I've made friends with the local hacker / DIY community (solidstatedepot.com FTW). I've even started a friendship with one of my classmates (we study together). I've enjoyed being able to utilize the blessings of technology to be able to video conference with my parents and other family so we've felt connected that way.

Most of all I feel like this first semester was a trial of faith. It was a time where my commitment to following the path the Lord has set was sorely tested. At no other point in my life have I felt such strong feelings about what I should be doing and that I should accept the situation and push forward. When we left Utah we felt sort of like how the Saints must have felt leaving Nauvoo. We'd made a home here, had friends, a nice place to live, and I had a great job / scholarship at BYU. But I know that following the Lord's will is more important than following your own. Life will continue to present challenges and what we've been through now will probably seem pretty easy compared to what may come in the future but I'm grateful that I've been granted the chance to grow personally and to grow closer to both the Lord and my wife. A great friend suggested I read a talk by President Uchtdorf called "continue in patience" Of which I'd like to share a quote"

We must learn that in the Lord’s plan, our understanding comes “line upon line, precept upon precept.”⁶ In short, knowledge and understanding come at the price of patience.

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.

Thanks everyone who has carried me and supported me and my family as we have moved through this chapter of our lives. Life is tough, I'm trying to get over it.

Ross