Happiness and long lost family

First of all, I need to publicly thank my dear relatives out in Maryland for equipping me with a 72-hour kit. The extent of their generosity didn't end there. They've now hosted me at their home 3 times, and have sent me home with a full stomach and an overflowing heart. I am so thankful for the chance I have had to reconnect with my Bowcut cousins while I've been on the East Coast. Our strengthened family ties have become one of my most treasured experiences in D.C. and I see each one of them as a tender mercy in my life. 

Next item of business, I can now say that I am a survivor of Sandy! My thoughts and prayers are with those still feeling the affects in New Jersey and New York. Sandy's tantrum at the Barlow Center left a few fallen ceiling tiles and bubbling wallpaper that will need to be replaced. I consider these minor scrapes compared to house fires, power outages, and even loss of life experienced to the North. 

Being under a sort of house arrest for the last 48 hours has given me a lot of thinking time, and it's so funny that it's taken me until 9:24 p.m. tonight to come to some pretty important conclusions to concerns that have been churning in my head all weekend. Tonight, I thought back to being on splits with the Sister missionaries a couple of weeks ago. That day, we had the chance to teach a young man at American University. Sister Bowman brought up a really important point that tied three scriptures together for me quite nicely:

1. 2 Nephi 2:25 says, "Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy."

So if the purpose of man is to be happy ...

2. Moses 1:39: "For behold, this is my work and my glory-- to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."

And if a loving Heavenly Father wants to give us Eternal Life (a.k.a. More happiness than we can generate by our frequently failed efforts...)

3. D&C 14:7: "And, if you keep my commandments and endure to the end you shall have eternal life, which gift is the greatest of all the gifts of God."

...Then by following the Spirit, and living His commandments, we will be happy. 

Moral of the story: I worry many times about my choices, especially the ones that have significant consequences. Are they the right ones? Will they bring me happiness? Will they lead me to the kind of life that I've always dreamed of? When I stop this self-induced anxiety attack long enough to let the Spirit whisper to me, I am guided to happiness. That is, the kind of God-given happiness that leads me to rejoice in this life, and to look forward to happiness in the next. 

So, in the words of Elizabeth Barrett Browning: 

"Earth's crammed with heaven, 

And every common bush afire with God. 

But only he who sees takes off his shoes. 

The rest sit round it and pluck back berries."

Good night world. <3