publishing peace

Oh heyyyy. You are probably wondering about the title of this, so let's start there. This was inspired by 2 things: 1) my brother is currently listening to the David Archuleta Christmas album, and David Archuleta was 300% my junior high crush (and if we're being real, I'd probably say yes if he asked me on a date) and 2) General Conference. This post was NOT inspired by: 1) my upcoming marriage. I got the idea for this post from this October's General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. If you've ever watched General Conference, you know that a lot of things were discussed. However, one of the coolest things about General Conference is that it is a time for you to hear the words of living prophets and receive revelation from them, but it's also a time to directly connect to heaven and receive revelation that doesn't necessarily have to do with what is directly being said. Watching General Conference opens you up to a special spi...

I love to take pictures of other humans.  I love catching people in moments with their friends and family, smiles on their faces, eyes all crinkled in a laugh. I love it when I can make a dumb joke that helps someone laugh and get it on camera. I love noticing these little things about people. Recently on all platforms of social media, I have been bombarded with opinions and images and all sorts of things, much of them directed in some way toward the worth of a person. Some of these are even accusatory, claiming that certain people's value is dependent upon their beliefs & religion, their "good" or "poor" decisions, or even (shockingly, incredibly, unbelievably) their outward appearance. I hope to address you today in quite a different spirit. I don't want to attack anyone's beliefs or ideas; rather, I hope to share mine. A significant portion of this will be founded upon the principles of the religion I have chosen to live, but I ho...