Assignments

If you're a student, you will feel my pain.

I have so many assignments at the moment! But I am slowly getting through them :D

Some have been quite interesting, while others have been down right horrible.

Especially referencing...that is the real killer!

I am just putting the finishing touches on a written aspect of a group project I am doing for one of my classes. I must say I do like putting things together into a package.

I also had to actually present today in another class...something I seriously hate!

But all went well and the lecturer seemed pleased.

So glad it's over though.

So while I'm studying here in Australia, what are you doing?

Are you studying as well? About to wrap up the semester and planning for summer?

Are you working hard to earn a living?

Staying home with kids?

What do you do?

I want to know more about my readers, so let me know what you do and where you do it?

Courage and Forgiveness

My friend JK shared an awesome quote with me today:

"Courage does not always roar, sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying 

'I will try again tomorrow'".

- Mary Anne Radmacher -

And just before that I was reading a talk by James E Faust called "The Healing Power of Forgiveness"

Both things I needed to hear. 

It's hard to forgive other people, truly forgive myself and want and gain forgiveness from others.

It is still a process for me and right now I really need the courage to get through it. 

Sorry that I've been absent lately (internet failure at my parents) and now you get to hear me blabber on about the trialling stuff, but my life is far from perfect, so I write about the bad too.

So here's to courage and forgiveness! 

Purchased!

I have just purchased a ticket for myself and a friend to go and see 

THE HUNGER GAMES next Thursday! :D

YAY!!!!!!!!

Via

That's right...I get to see it before America! :D 

And we are going to gold class...so I'll be enjoying this splendid movie, in a comfy chair with a pillow, blanket and food if I so desire.

It will be amazing! 

2 weeks

It's been 2 weeks since I returned from Japan...

this is rather a depressing thought :'(

I loved my time in Japan!! 

So today I present to you just some of the many things that I learnt while in Japan...in no particular order!

1. Being stared at for an average of 1.5 hours a day on a train and countless times while walking around helps you to get over your insecurities and just roll with the whole situation.

2. Learning a language while in the country that speaks that language is the BEST way to do it! I can not even explain how much you pick up just being there!

3. Be more adventurous with food. Sure there are times when this comes back to bite you but in most cases I got to try some amazing food. 

4. Be more adventurous in general! I found that I was a bit more confident in Japan and was more willing to try out new things. It's good to be outside your comfort zone. Occasionally :D

5. You get out what you put in. I realised how much effort I should have been putting in earlier! Especially with studying the language and really getting the basics cemented in my head. Would have helped me out a lot more in situations. It also helped me to get motivated to study harder this year.

6. Making mistakes is ok. I made plenty while in Japan. I also just learnt to laugh it off and when you don't know how to say something...just try...or look it up in the dictionary and go from there.

7. Everything can have a little musical tune attached to it... I swear SO MANY things had little tunes in Japan. The street crossings, the vending machines, the school clock, the real estate agent down the street...so many things! I had a love/hate relationship with this. I loved it...but then sometimes it starts to get on your nerves...such is life.

8. Hand gestures and body language can be your best friend! There were times when my hands were doing the talking in trying to describe what I wanted etc. Judging people's body language is also very useful...particularly when selecting people to stop and ask questions. 

9. Some times acting like a tourist when you are one can be a lot of fun! Plus you can get away with doing weird things and not caring what people think.

10. Life is meant to be lived. I really realised that the things that I want to do while I am young and don't have children need to be done now. I am quite free at this point in my life and I really want to take advantage of it. I changed some of my goals and had a lot of time to really think about the things that I want to do. 

These are only a few of the things that I learnt from my 5 weeks in Japan. It has been a real eye opener to me and has changed me for the good. 

As the year is coming to an end I have been evaluating my life...as most people do this time of year...and have made some plans and have some ideas flying around. 

Over the next year you will be hearing about them. 

Not long now till 2012...bring it on!

Christmas Week: Day 3

Tonight we went...Christmas Light Looking :D

We didn't go for as long as I would have liked, but I did get to see some really good ones. 

There were some that were ok...

Then they got better...

and better... which we almost missed because they turned them off just as we were leaving.

I may have done a dance in front of the owner without meaning to...oops! :P

With the best being...

It was amazing! I love watching the lights go.

Thank you random people that put in the effort to put all these lights up.

I remember when I was little, I used to go with my neighbours (who were like grandparents to me) to see the lights around my town. There was a street right near our houses that basically everyone put lights on their house. It was an entire experience! I miss those days.

I am really getting excited for Christmas now!! :D

Gratitude Sunday Series

This week I am grateful for:

- Speaking to my family and introducing them to my Japanese one

- Having the courage to go to the Onsen

- Trying new food, despite it making me almost vomit

- Technology!

- Karaoke...it is just so fun!

- Cheap food...saves me a lot

- Funny partial english signs

- Visiting so many new things in Japan

- Finding a bit of Christmas...and an orchestra playing for the public (AMAZING)

- Cute kids that try to talk to me....and I try to understand

- Awesome Japanese people! They are so nice!

- Life

- Faith

- Trials

Oh and so much more...just no enough time to write it all!

Who I Am Wednesday

I am a sister

To these four awesome people:

Erin, Adam, Ryan, Me and Rhys
At the temple for the first time all together

I'm glad that now we are all older we get along more. Yeah we fight, just like most siblings.

But we also love each other :D

Erin:

She's the oldest of our bunch. She and I are exactly 7 years apart. So sharing a birthday wasn't much fun growing up because we would fight. But when I was in America last year for my birthday it freaked me out not sharing it with her. She is a very talented singer and loves the Wizard of Oz.

Adam:

He is the 2nd oldest. Bit of a rebel in his younger days. Now he is the father of 2 gorgeous children and he does a great job. He likes to go cycling and sailing. We both love the Smurfs. He works in my dad's pharmacy and is married to Janita (Jay).

Rhys:

The middle child. He served a mission for our church in Kiribati for 2 years. He is over 6 foot tall. Luckily he lives down here with me so I get to see him fairly often. He has been married for 8 months. He currently works as an orderly and is married to Amy. Hopefully supplying some more nieces or nephews soon!! A girl can dream :D

Ryan:

He is the baby of the group. Always full of funny things to say. Farts too much and thinks it's hilarious! He plays the guitar, very well I might add. He is going to be a pharmacist like our dad. We nearly lost him in a car accident just before his 7th birthday. Definitely glad to still have him around :D 

I also have a half sister Tammy who was adopted before my parents met and while I don't get to see her often, when we do it is a lot of fun and we have a ball.

Waiting in heaven in also a younger sister of mine. I didn't get to spend this earthly life with her, but I look forward to meeting her in the next life and love her dearly.

Then there are the in-laws:

Jay:

Married to my brother Adam and the mother of my niece and nephew. Also a Smurf lover and a fellow Queenslander. Really good at drawing, as well as making and decorating birthday cakes.

Amy:

Married to my brother Rhys. Mother to Fross...her beloved dog. Obviously also lives here so I get to see her a fair bit too. She is a nurse and a darn good one at it. She also likes to play badminton when she can.

Can't wait for my sisters and little brother to get married to add more to the clan...oh and one day my own husband of course :D

I love them all so much!! I can't even begin to describe how much!!

How many siblings do you have??

Mistakes...the hard way

Learning from your mistakes the hard way, is just that; hard!

I am frustrated at myself because this mistake is definitely my own fault.

Without going into too much detail, I am going to fail a unit this semester.

The main point is...I should have done better!

But I will learn from this mistake. I WILL!!

Note to self: Just work harder next time!!

Gratitude Sunday

Lately I have been in a funk. I have taken it out on others and today I had the opportunity to stop and think for a while about the many ways I am blessed and the ways I can improve.

So,

This week I am grateful for:

- A loving Heavenly Father

- My Saviour who atoned for my sins

- My parents, who still sneak in kisses when they think we're not looking

- My life

- Knowledge

- The Spirit

- Sweet moments that make everything else worth it

I just want to keep it brief this week. 

Despite the many thousand things I could list if I really thought about just how much there is to be grateful for. 

Dear...

Dear people that comment,

You make my day every time! :D I love reading what you have to say and try to answer questions or comment often. Knowing you took the time to write something is really appreciated.

Dear glow in the dark world map beanbag,

I am so glad that MJ gave you to me...you are so comfy!

Also good for chilling in and performing air guitar :D

Dear awkward moments,

You are seriously SOOOO awkward at the time, but make for funny retelling and laughter later! :D

Dear itunes,

Sometimes you do an awesome shuffle and manage to find the perfect songs for my mood...not matter what it is. Sometimes you suck. Let's keep the good shuffle sessions up :D

Dear :D symbol,

You are official my trademark :D see, there you are again!

Dear current project,

Please work out! You are a christmas present and I really don't want to have to come up with something else

Dear lounge room,

You are awesome for random dancing sessions! I envision many more over the coming months :D

Dear instagram,

You are awesome. Enough said :D

Follow along: lisatrav

Let me know yours to follow along too!

Ahhh to be a kid again...

Tonight I got to hang out with some of the Primary kids for achievement night. It's not actually my calling but Jess needed some help so off we went. 

First we got to decorate cupcakes for Darby's birthday...how fun is that?!

Then the kids played Twister.... while I laughed at their funny positions...great leader I know! 

I even tried on some midgets teeth...super attractive right?! :D

Ahhh to be a kid again...they are so much fun and care free....well MOST of the time anyway :P

I'm being released from my actual primary calling soon as I got a new calling. So I will be sad when I can't do this anymore... :'( 

Census Party of 1...and some honesty

Jess and I were supposed to have a Census Party...complete with Fronti and forms...but she's off at her parents house resting her foot, so alas here I sit alone.

& now I guess you're wanting some honesty...

Well, here you go:

- I am extremely self conscious. Not all the time, but a fair chunk of it. Something I constantly have to work on.

- I watch a lot of crime shows...I even wanted to be a detective at one point.

- I like a clean house, but my room is often an organised mess

- I'm clucky, but not ready to have my own kids right now

- Realisations are awesome but when they hurt, they hurt.

- I have a lot of fears...but I'm trying to overcome them...one at a time

- I'm a girl...I over think things...enough said

--------------------------------------------------

Also the giveaway has ended and the winner will be announced tomorrow night at 7pm :D

Who Says...?

I'm loving this song at the moment!

I hate when people try to tell me I can't be something or put me down.

Who says I can't be me?

Gratitude Sunday

Hello Peeps...yeah I'm calling you that!

Another week has come and gone so quickly!

This week I am grateful for:

- Random moments under the bridge

- Trips to Richmond with my bestie :D

- My Perth Bestie coming to visit!! <3

- Making masks

- Masquerade balls...

- the kids I look after

- my life

- The most work this week for the year!!! YAY!!!

- prayer

- Discussions with people investigating my church

- my testimony

- Music time going well with the kids in Primary

- Exciting new opportunities

- (I am actually grateful this week for) my need to always accept doing things that are asked of me

- having room to grow and improve

SO many things I can be grateful for...which makes me feel so blessed :D

Heavenly Father is too nice to me sometimes!

Who Am I?

I am:

- Lisa D'Arne Travers

- A daughter

- A sister

- A Child of God

- A procrastinator

- Most of the time pretty random

- Addicted to movies

- Unhappy with my weight

- A lover of books

- A girl trying to find out who she is and where she is going

- Not trendy

- A student

- Both terrified and excited about changes

- Hopeful for a happy marriage and family one day

- Very insecure

- Able to achieve more than I think I can

- Scared I won't find love and will be a bad mother

- A lover of childish things

- A travel bug

- A constant thinker

- Often defensive

- Temperamental a little too often

I am many things...but as I go through this journey that is life I realise more and more that it is ok to be who I am. In this moment...or who I am as I grow.

I am not perfect. I have many faults. But I also have many good things about me, and I am starting to see that in myself.

Growing and Learning is such an important part of life.

I want to be the best person I can be.

Confronting Experience

You know it's going to be an interesting class when your lecturer basically singles out missionaries from your church for an example....and not necessarily a good one.

I am not ashamed to say that I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Today I had the opportunity to stand up for those beliefs and to be honest I was surprised at how I reacted. As soon as my lecturer mention the proselyting missionaries and asked if any body had heard of them, I kinda blurted out "I'm a mormon". It was a surreal experience. All eyes were immediately on me.

My declaration was quickly followed by a new boy in the class who said that he had previously been a Mormon and that he no longer practiced. Of course my lecturer first gave him the opportunity to speak. I was kinda shaking this whole time because I had just opened myself up to a whole lot of criticism. I felt like I was then representing not only myself, but also the beliefs of others in my church. I don't know what would have been said, had I not been there.

To cut a long story short...we basically discussed the pros and cons of missionary work as volunteering work. I was pleasantly surprised that when asked at the end if anyone had changed their opinion on missionary work or at least had to stop and think more deeply before judging missionary work, that particular boy said that "unfortunately it had. (jokingly) I was quite happy with my stereotype."

I personally, as an individual..not representing anybody else, believe that missionary work is a good thing if performed correctly. I hope that before judging me on my beliefs people would at least try to understand them.

I don't want this post to be a big do-da about me but I felt like I needed to get this story down and share it in some way. I will never try to force my beliefs on anybody. We all have our agency to choose what we will, but I feel that I should still be able to share what I believe with others.

I have not been in a very good place lately and have really struggled with some trials. I think that it is in our darkest times that we are really tested. This is the first class of the week that I have been to because I have just stayed home and tried to deal with how I was feeling. I am really glad that I went because I learnt that I do have a testimony and I am willing to stand up for my beliefs. I also really enjoyed discussing differing opinions with a class full of my peers.

I'm sorry if this all doesn't make sense. I just needed to get it out. Thanks for making it through all this text!

Little Bit About Me

Jess tagged me for this questionnaire

So here goes...a little bit about me

1) What is your dream job?

I've never really thought about what my dream job would be. I would love to have something though that would allow me to travel the world. I would kinda love to be a photographer that gets to travel around or something like that.

2) How do you take your tea or coffee?

Neither actually. Haven't even tried them. I drink a lot of Hot Chocolate though :D

3) What is your most important beauty secret?

I'm not really one to have a beauty 'routine' so I'm probably not the best to answer this question. I always think that natural is best. I feel most beautiful when my skin is clear and I've been looking after myself properly.

4) If you had an all-expenses paid vacation to anywhere, where would you go?

My ultimate holiday at the moment would be to fly to Japan, work and live there for a couplemonths, then fly over to Europe and backpack/work for at least 3-6 months, then road-trip around the United States and work if I can. I am slowly working towards this but I think it'll be a while off yet. A girl can dream...

5) If a genie popped up right now, what would your three wishes be?

I) Go on my ultimate holiday

II) To have enough money and time to get out there and do all of the things I want to.

III) Find my eternal companion and live out our lives together

6) If you could only have one type of food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Fruit. I love it! I wish that I could get any type of fruit whenever I wanted it. Though it would have to NOT have a laxative effect for me to do so.

7) What one talent do you wish you had?

I wish that I could take really good photos. I wish that I could capture the moments around me in as beautiful way as the moments themselves are. If only our eyes had an inbuilt camera to be able to capture and remember all the beautiful moments in life.

8) Who is your biggest celebrity crush?

My current celebrity crush is Alex Pettyfer. Loved his current movie I am Number Four and am really looking forward to seeing Beastly. He is seriously good looking, fit and is rumoured to be engaged to Dianna Agron who is so sweet and pretty. So at least we know he's got good taste.

9) If you could look into the future, would you?

As much as I'd like to know a few things about the future, I wouldn't do it. I think that we need to work through things as they come...no matter how hard they are. Plus who wants to ruin all the surprises??

10) What made you start a blog?

I mainly started because I wanted to put my thoughts down somewhere and I am not always the best at writing a journal.

My Tags

Dree at Defining Dree

Christine at Bun and Borough

Cath at Lollie Pops Place