The Full Monty

It was back when Robert was in dental school and I was feeling trapped at home that I got it in my head to take a drawing class.  I wanted to be able to draw beautiful portraits of my children (fanciful thinking) and so I settled on taking a figure drawing class.  I looked over the art school syllabus and found that in some of the class descriptions, there would be nude models.  Well, I thought, I'm definitely going to avoid that so I picked a class that specifically did NOT mention nude models in it's description.  The first day of class, I was nervous because I knew that many in the class would most likely have drawing experience, which I did not have.  There were 6 of us in the class and so we all set up our easels for the front row experience.  The teacher explained the class objectives and then much to my HORROR, introduced the male model who nonchalantly walked in, in his plush white robe and promptly disrobed, dropping it on the floor.  What the WHAT?!  I was red, sweating bullets, averting my eyes, and looking for the nearest exit.  But wait, wouldn't it be offensive for him to disrobe, for me to see him in all his glory, and then saunter on out?  Wouldn't that be like me saying, "I have seen you, taken it ALL in, and find you simply reprehensible."  I pretended to take it all in stride like my classmates, who seemed to think that seeing a stranger stand 6 feet in front of them completely naked was a normal daily occurrence.  Oh but it got worse, much worse my fine readers.  Apparently, we needed to learn to see and then draw the human body in MOVEMENT!  And my, what strange positions the body can take when it wants to.  I will never forget the following week's class model which was a middle aged man with completely flat buns, totally covered in hair like a wooly mammoth, and confidence to spare.  He decided to challenge our drawing abilities by doing a freaking HEADSTAND for the class!!  I'll let your mind explore what a naked wooly mammoth man would look like standing on his head.  The class would intermittently pause so that each of us could observe each other's sketches and that was always the worst.  Mine were the only drawings in the class that completely avoided all private parts.  My classmates would have constructive criticism for me like, "Hmmm.  It looks like you're missing some vital components in your drawing."  Me:  "Yep."  Now you may be wondering what Robert thought about all of this nakedness.  After I had decided that I couldn't possibly leave the small class, perhaps insulting the naked man in front of me, I came home to tell Robert of my art adventures.  Me:  "Funny thing . . . Turns out it is a NUDE drawing class.  Thoughts?  Concerns?"  Robert, rolls his eyes.  "Let me see your sketches."  After seeing that the sketches weren't half bad, and weren't drawings of only male genitalia, he gave his support and approval for me to continue.

A couple of weeks later, we were at dinner with another dental school couple who were even more prude than me, which by now I wasn't so prude because I was fully tainted from what had been a  wonderful experience with nude drawing.  It's actually really hard to learn to draw the human body if you haven't ever really seen much of it.  Anyway, the wife mentions in conversation how she would NEVER allow her child to tour this particular art school for a field trip because she had heard the rumor that nude drawing classes were there and that was just so evil.   I thought about mentioning how we had anatomically correct human body books that our children regularly read, or that we had art books with famous nude sculptures in them that we allowed our children to peruse at home, or perhaps, that I just happened to be taking a class there at that very school, but at Robert's not-so-gentle nudging under the table, I put on my mask of horror and extra high voice and exclaimed with the appropriate disgust, "That's just terrible!"  And "Yes, I wholeheartedly agree with you!"  And I realized that sometimes, lying by omission, is absolutely the right thing to do.

Malala: Fearless

I can't get this girl out of my mind:

In case you haven't heard her story, Malala Yousafazi is a 16 year old education activist from Pakistan. She is known for her activism for rights to education and for women, especially in the Swat Valley, where the Taliban had at times banned girls from attending school.  In early 2009, at the age of 11–12, Yousafzai wrote a blog under a pseudonym for the BBC detailing her life under Taliban rule, their attempts to take control of the valley, and her views on promoting education for girls. The following summer, a New York Times documentary was filmed about her life as the Pakistani military intervened in the region, culminating in the Second Battle of Swat. Yousafzai rose in prominence, giving interviews in print and on television, and she was nominated for the International Children's Peace Prize by South African activist Desmond Tutu.  On 9 October 2012, Yousafzai was shot in the head and neck in an assassination attempt by Taliban gunmen while returning home on a school bus.  She has recovered and is now the youngest nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize.  Most astonishing, she holds no animosity towards her attackers and only wishes that their children be educated.  She is fearless and full of light, even expressing "I am afraid of no one."  This statement from a girl that was shot in the head twice.  She was 15 at the time of the attack and here is a quote from her description of the day she was targeted and shot:

"The teenage girls chatted to each other and their teachers as the school bus rattled along the country road. Students from a girls’ high school in Swat, they had just finished a term paper, and their joy was evident as they broke into another Pashto song. About a mile outside the city of Mingora, two men flagged down and boarded the bus, one of them pulling out a gun. “Which one of you is Malala Yousafzai?” he demanded. No one spoke—some out of loyalty, others out of fear. But, unconsciously, their eyes turned to Malala. “That’s the one,” the gunman said, looking the 15-year-old girl in the face and pulling the trigger twice, shooting her in the head and neck. He fired twice more, wounding two other girls, and then both men fled the scene."

And here is her bravery in a speech after the attack:

In early September, Malala addressed the United Nations General Assembly.  Her speech was was filled with a tone of determination.

"Dear sisters and brothers," she said, "we realize the importance of light when we see darkness. We realize the importance of our voice when we are silenced. In the same way when we were in Swat, we realized the importance of pens and books when we saw the guns.

"The extremists were and they are afraid of books and pens," she said.

"The power of education frightens them. They are afraid of women. The power of the voice of women frightens them."

In an interview with The Daily Show, she explained that "Education is the power for women."

When asked about the moment when she realized that the Taliban was making her a target, she explained that her initial reaction was anger. However, it didn't take long for her to understand that you can't fight evil with more evil; you need to be smarter than that.  When asked what she would do if attacked again by a Taliban gunman she replied, 

"I would tell him how important education is and that I would even want education for your children as well," the Pakistani girl said. "That's what I want to tell you, now do what you want."  Just wow.

Education for girls worldwide, I believe is one of the only ways to stop evil government control and endless wars.  In fact, I think education of all people is the answer to most of the world's ills.  I see the hand of God moving through this girl to inspire change, and I am filled with love and awe that people like her exist in this world.

Just Ask

Sometimes life spins out of control
And you feel like you are barely treading water
And you think, it would be so nice if someone would stretch out a hand
But you don't like asking
In fact, you don't know if you even know how
And you falsely think, maybe someone will just notice
But you realize that if you want a different result, you must choose to act differently
So you put on a brave face . . . and Ask
And guess what?  You get what you needed so much,
In fact more than you ever expected
And you realize
I am loved.

About a week ago, I told Robert that I really needed a pick-me-up.  It felt awkward and unnatural, especially since he was equally burdened at the time.  He does so much for me, but lately it seemed like we just divide and conquer and flop down in bed at the end of the day, too exhausted to have any sort of meaningful conversation.  I thought perhaps he would get me flowers, but instead he created this really elaborate romantic scavenger hunt for me.  I got clues via text all day long and small gifts along the way.  He set up a massage for me and got Hunter to babysit and then that evening we had a dinner at the Roof restaurant in Salt Lake which is where he gave me my engagement ring many years back.  It was a breath of fresh air and renewed me so that I could carry on with a lighter load.  I realized that it's okay to ask for what you need, especially from those closest to you.

The beginning of the scavenger hunt

Clever hiding places

Clue under Jazzy's dog bed

A letter in Italian that I had to translate

Our view at dinner

Ashton drew this picture during Conference.  I love it so much.

Christian all dressed up for Homecoming Dance.