Judging

I wrote about this yesterday, but I just want to talk about it a little more.
The world is too judgmental. And it HAS to stop. A prophet of the lds church tells this story:
A young couple, Lisa and John, moved into a new neighborhood. One morning while they were eating breakfast, Lisa looked out the window and watched her next-door neighbor hanging out her wash.
“That laundry’s not clean!” Lisa exclaimed. “Our neighbor doesn’t know how to get clothes clean!”
John looked on but remained silent.
Every time her neighbor would hang her wash to dry, Lisa would make the same comments.
A few weeks later Lisa was surprised to glance out her window and see a nice, clean wash hanging in her neighbor’s yard. She said to her husband, “Look, John—she’s finally learned how to wash correctly! I wonder how she did it.”
John replied, “Well, dear, I have the answer for you. You’ll be interested to know that I got up early this morning and washed our windows!” (2010 October General Conference, Charity Never Faileth, Gen. Relief Society Meeting - Thomas S. Monson)
A couple years ago I was at girls camp. Everyone was asleep. But I heard the girls upstairs talking. And they were crying. One of the girls (I could have heard it wrong) said that she was being abused. This girl had always annoyed me. And I didn't like her. But after I heard this, everything clicked. I understood why she was annoying like she was.
The next thing I am going to talk about is listed like this: we see, we think.
We see a teenage girl pregnant, we think she is a slut. But what if she was raped.
The friendly guy stopped talking, he hates life and is emo. Really his sister just died.
The girl over there that's fat. She doesnt care about her body. But she can't excercise, she has a disease.
The person who doesnt eat, they are anorexic. But really, if they eat it will kill them because they have a disease.
The boy with a black eye, he is violent. But really he was beaten up.
The girl who cant make up her mind, she is annoying. But she can't because she is sick of being told her decisions are dumb.
The girl who is wearing the same thing as yesterday has poor hygiene. But maybe she had to run away from an abusive parent.
That girl who is always happy, has life good. But really she cries herself to sleep at night.
The person who constantly checks her phone, she is addicted. But she is waiting to find out if her kidnapped brother was found.
The person on the street is insane. But he was abandoned by his family.

I have read a couple of quotes about judging.
"judging someone doesnt define them, it defines you"
"everyone has a story. A reason they are the way they are. You have no right to judge someone you don't know. For all you know, today could be their last."
"if you judge people, you have no time to love them."
Keep on Criticizing, Insulting and judging people. Someday, someone will do the same to you"
"don't be so quick to judge, you only see what I choose to show you"
"you know my name, not my story"

Think about this. Is what you think of others what you want them to think of you? Do you want people to look at you and think things that aren't true? If not, then why do you do it to others?
I challenge you to do your best during the following day to not judge. Don't beat yourself up over failure, it will happen. But when you do have a judgmental thought, correct yourself. Tell you that you are wrong about them.
I will be honest, just talking about this, makes me cry. Because it is something horrible that happens every day.
Now, I understand that judging is something that comes naturally. But everyone needs that least try and stop.

What I think is wrong with the world

Recently, I have been noticing issues. I don't know why, but I have. And I have been thinking of things that I see wrong with the world. 1. We have to have an explanation for everything. Have you ever broken a bone? I almost guarantee that you we asked how at least once. I cannot tell you why, but this drives me insane. Why dont you like that? Why aren't you participating? Why are you sad? Why are you so happy? How are you going to do that? Seriously, there is a why question for everything. And I hate them. Nothing can just be. 2. War Why is America at war with Iran? (see? A why question) Tonight I was reading the book of Mormon with my parents. The basics of the story: 24 daughters were kidnapped. One tribe thought it was another tribe, so they started a war. They didn't know if it was them. They just assumed. Was it really worth war? Tell me, what is war for? Can't we get along? And the people we are at war with are far away. It's not like they are our next door neighbor killing our dogs one after another. We don't even have to have contact. So why are we fighting? 3. We judge too quickly. We see someone fat, and we look down on them. Maybe they have a disease. Maybe they can't excercise. We see someone with a black eye, they are violent. Maybe they got beaten up. We see someone crying, they are week. Maybe they just had a loved one die. Maybe they have cancer. We see a pregnant teen, she is a slut. What if she was raped. We see someone with out an arm and we stare. What happened? Maybe they were saving someones life. Maybe they were at war. We see someone who looks Mexican. We assume they are like the annoying ones who think they rule the world. The list goes on. Those are the three things That I think would definitely change the world if they were gone.

Turn off Your Mind

Holy cow! It has been almost a whole month since I blogged... I just haven't had any good ideas, and (sadly) I have been lazy. But! It is summer for me now, so no more excuses. Anyways. A few weeks ago I went to Ruby Valley to visit my aunt. Ruby Valley is a little countryside out in the middle of nowhere, and I can honestly say it is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. I went with my brother and sister. While I was there we went camping with my cousin. We left pretty early and had a couple of hours until dinner time. We decided to go hike up to a waterfall. But wait... The trail was over grown. And there were thick 7 foot tall bushes. With thorns. At one point I was stuck. I couldn't move and they had to come help me. It was also steep. But, knowing my family, we must continue! After about an hour and a half, I spoke up and told them I was done. I was worn out, and we had really only gone half a mile. And apparently, everyone was waiting for someone to say that, because everyone came back with me. And we tried a different route this time to avoid the bushes. What did we get? Rocks and boulders to climb down. Lots of these had drops that go past my waist. I have never been one to love heights, and when you have drops like that with thorny bushes, it's a perfectly good time to freak out. (Here is where the title fits in) While I was in that situation, I had to shut off my mind. I couldnt freak out. What good would that do me? I really had to tell myself that now is not the time to think about "what if I fell?" or anything like it. The reason I am talking about this, is because I realized that sometimes we over think. We may be in a troubled time, or angry, or offended, or anything. And we are irrational. I am guilty of irrationality. A few weeks ago, while I was in the chamber callbacks, I had another experience like this. I was with a bunch of people I didn't know, and honestly I was scared. But I couldnt be scared, because I would fail if I was, and I knew that for a fact. I had to tell myself to get over it and sing as if you know everyone here, and you sing together all the time. And I did. And I got in. You all know something you are guilty of with things that you should either get over, or something similar to what I said earlier. I want to challenge you for the following week, to find something where you need to shut off your mind. It will help you, and I encourage you to at least try.