Seventh Grade Memory #2: The Land of The Question Marks?

Okay, so this isn't from seventh grade. It was from sixth. But it's all the same thing, right? This is a short story that I wrote in sixth grade for no apparent reason. You can either read it or listen to the audio. Either one is pretty darn ridiculous.

"The Land of the Question Marks?"

      By:Benjamin Nelson?
           

            Once upon a time in a 1982. There was a land of Question Marks. In this Land there was a Question Mark Castle A.K.A Question Mark Castle. In this castle was a Queen and a King. The King A.K.A Kyle is a big fat question mark. He's such a big Question Mark he doesnt even know his wifes name. The Queen A.K.A Linzlu is not like the other question marks. She’s very smart. She tries to teach Kyle a few manners, but its hopeless.
            Well one day King Kyle called in his servant A.K.A Bangers A.K.A The King's servant. (Bangers is a very stupid question mark.)  The King then told him to say "Question Mark." (Heck. The King couldn't even say it.) Well Bangers ended up saying I think I messed my pants. They sent Bangers to jail.

            Bangers is now stuck in his jail room. He had no way to get out. He then grabbed a stick from the floor and hit him self upside the head. “Oh gosh that hurt!” Bangers thought to himself. I thought hitting myself would send me to heaven. He thought again. Well Bangers in now stuck in this jail so next paragraph.

            Kyle and Linzlu were recently trying to win a war. This war was Question Mark Castle versus Exclamatory Hills. Well they couldnt to anything at the moment so they needed to get help from Commas. They then sent out there finest soilder A.K.A Chetter the Fierce Warrior. Chetter is about to enbark on a journey to save Question Mark castle!
            Before Chetter could embark on his journey he had to find a servant. Well he thought to himself. “A servant should be in the Jail.” So Chetter walked down to the jail rooms.  Chetter then heard a helpless voice. Which was saying “Help me.” Chetter then went down to the Jail room 5. He then busted the door down and saved Bangers. They then left the castle side by side.
            When Chetter and  Bangers were resting in a valley they wre attacked by percent signs. The percent signs were well trained. They then killed Chetter. Bangers then ran for his life. He came across Chetter's axe he picked up the axe and killed all the percent signs. The barely made it out alive.
            When he got to the City of Comma's he fell to the ground. When he awoke he found the king by his side. What happened he thought to himself.  The king then ask him why he was there. Bangers told him everything. He also told him about Chetter's death. The king then sent Bangers and some comma's back to Question Mark Castle.
            When they got back they took out a lot of the Exclamation Points. Then the entered the castle. When they got to the castle they found out that Queen Linzlu was queennapped. (Of Course Kyle couldn’t do anything about it. He was clueless.) So then Bangers became a knight and went to save his queen, Linzlu. He took question marks and commas with him by the way.
            When they found the Exclamatory Hideout they took out every exclamation point that got in there way. When they finally found the King of Exclamation Points they found the Queen. The King of exclamation points was about to finish Queen Linzlu. But Bangers jumped in front of the bullet and with his last strength finished the King of Exclamation Points off.
            When Linzlu and the men got back to the castle they were having a funeral for Bangers. They gave him a medal and Linzlu gave him a kiss. (Woah!)  

The End?

Seventh Grade Memory #1: GENIUS (8-14-03)

The following is something I wrote nine years ago in seventh grade. It's proof that I was living in my own world. And still do sometimes! ;) The below link is a hilarious audio. The transcription is below that.

GENIUS (8-14-03)

It is now my third day of seventh grade. It is going really well. My study hall is very nice. But P.E. is the worst. But I will live. 

I wonder how Brent is doing at work. Good, I hope! Because he has to help me build my computer. 

Kelli is lucky because she gets another few days of summer. Of course, I am luckier, though, because I get out earlier. I wonder if Mom was able to get a hold of a stamp? I need one of the junts for Kelli's letter. I really enjoyed/loved her letters. They were the victory-ness-er-est. 

Speaking of Toots...That stink nuggets needs to get online. He must be having a good time. And that's all. That traitor! We aren't cousins anymore. Now my best cousin is Jonny Brunner. He married my other cousin Theresa, and he took the title of Brunner. What a sight that was! 

Well, Mom gave me a dollar when I was young. Too young so I ate it in one bite. It was good. I wonder how Dad is doing? *fluffs* Well, my computer comes today. That will be great. But I will need some more supplies. I shall need:

1. Five stink nuggets.

2. Fifty honey buns.

3. One chicken bone.
*fluff*

4. Six fresh-baked undies.

And that's about it. But mostly those undies. I keep fluffing. Haha. "For the kids! The greatest!"-Skittles and Seth in my head.
 

Well, THE END.

Randomize Me

Who reads this thing anymore?

I have a lot on my mind, and I actually have no idea what I want to write. But I feel like writing. So I am going to do it. Because I want to, and I can.

The Four Freaks (a club of which I personally belong) are living the dream. Like I talked about in my last blog post, I made it a goal to help prepare my little brother Timmy and our friends Skyler and Levi prepare to serve missions. I think it's been something that very few people understand, but as stated in my last blog post...I know without a doubt that it has been the right thing to do. Timmy and Skyler are still in the early days of their missions, but they continue to press forward with a lot of faith and humility. The day after Skyler left us for the MTC, our good friend Levi received his call to Spain. I am so proud of all three.

Many of you (if you're still reading this) might remember my obsession that came along with my many viewings of The Dark Knight four years ago. And as I am sure you're all aware, the Batman trilogy is now complete with The Dark Knight Rises. Like I did with The Dark Knight four years ago, I'd like to label this gran finale as another masterpiece. Although, I must admit that I have been troubled and disgusted the last couple of days by the massacre that took place during the midnight showing of that very masterpiece in Auora, Colorado. It's hard for me to understand how someone could do such a terrible thing. It saddens me. My hearts and prayers continue to go out to the seventy people and their family members who were affected, and my only desire is that justice is served on behalf of the twelve innocent lives that were taken.

Today while I was working at the Las Vegas Convention Center, I experienced something that I haven't experienced since I was a missionary. I won't go into specific details on what was said, but to make a long story short...I was helping a co-worker haul a shelf across the gigantic building that is the Convention Center, and as we are carrying this big old thing, I learn that he is a Seventh Day Adventist, and he learns that I am LDS. And out of no where (as I experienced many times in my mission), this co-worker of mine tries to convince me that I am living a lie. Again, I won't go into detail about what was exactly said, but I will say this: I said a silent prayer as soon as he started bashing my religion, and I am grateful that I did because my prayer was answered. I wasn't afraid, I didn't panic. I held my ground. In the end, he wasn't very pleased with what I had said. He didn't believe me that I received an answer from God Himself that The Book of Mormon is indeed true. And although he didn't like or appreciate what I had to say, I was just grateful for that opportunity that I had to open my mouth and testify of the truthfulness of the Gospel.

I will end with this:  I look forward to Matt and Jessi's wedding next weekend. I am in great need of a break/vacation, and it will be great to spend some time with my family as we celebrate this new life that Matt and Jessi are beginning. After the wedding, I will be spending a few days with my brother Brent and his family in Seattle. It'll be an exciting way to end the summer! :)

God Is In Charge

I've had the opportunity the last few weeks--perhaps months--to kind of just sit back and look back on my mission. Almost every single time I've done so, a similar question has popped up. Again and again and again. "What now?...Okay, now: How? When? Where?" The valuable lesson that I have learned by pondering these things is this small, but powerful truth that an excellent seminary teacher once taught me: God is in charge. He does indeed have a unique plan for each and every one of His children.

Tonight I feel impressed to share a few of my thoughts/feelings about what God's plan has been for me personally since arriving home from my mission. As many of you know, one of my life's goals is to attend and graduate from BYU. It's been a dream of mine since I was kid; it started small, but my desire to reach that dream/goal has only grown throughout the years. And so naturally I was a little upset when BYU didn't accept me before my mission. And then at the end of my mission--when I was working on my personal five-year plan--I decided I would apply again for BYU. I was confident that they would accept me this time around. Well, to my surprise I was declined again. And then I was rejected a third time once I applied when I had arrived home

However, I have remained fairly confident that I will eventually achieve my goal of graduating BYU. I know it will happen, and I won't accept defeat. At the same time, I've always known that the Lord has a special assignment (for lack of a better word) for me to accomplish before arriving to my dream destination of BYU. Since being declined by BYU, I've felt strongly that I was to stay here in Vegas--despite other opportunities to leave and go study at other locations. But for months I was clueless as to why.

A few weeks ago it finally hit me. I don't say it to boast or brag, but I share the following experience with everyone to add another witness that God is in charge, He loves us, and He knows what is best for each and every one of us. The simple answer that I finally received was this: The Lord has had me stick around here in Vegas to help my little brother Timmy and our two best friends Skyler and Levi prepare for their missions. If you're reading this, you might not understand how powerful this answer was for me when I received it.

I know without a doubt that my purpose since arriving home from my mission has been to love, support, and get these guys excited for their own missions. And words cannot describe the joy that I have felt as I've seen each of them progress toward that goal of serving a mission. Timmy is out there in Nebraska giving it his all. Our good friend Skyler departs to England next week and Levi will receiving his mission call either this week or next.

I am so grateful for God's love and for His unique plan that He has had for me. I can now honestly say that I understand why a dream such as graduating from BYU has been put on hold. And I am so grateful that I was rejected those three times.

Recorded Call: Lies

Simply hilarious. I never did get those slurpees!! ;)

Voicemail: From Father To Son

Three months ago we were dropping my little brother Timmy off at the MTC. My good friend Kyle Birchall (my trainer) found out I was there somewhere in Provo and left me the following message. It gave me a pretty good laugh, so I thought I'd share it after all these months.

BDN Update: The Power of The Book of Mormon

Well, wow. It's been a while, and so I decided to write a little "BDN Update." I don't know if it'll be much of an update, but I do have some thoughts and feelings that I would like to share with all those who stumble upon this small blog of mine.

I finished The Book of Mormon again a few weeks ago, and I KNOW that Book is true. I have no doubt in my mind. I love it, and I am cherishing it now more than I have ever cherished it before. If you are reading this, and you have not read The Book of Mormon, I encourage/invite you to do so. I promise you that it will change your life. And I am not saying that just to be cliche or just to say it. This Book will change you if you will let it. I've seen it change my own life and the life of many others. I also testify that God will confirm the truthfulness of this powerful Book through the power of the Holy Ghost. If you pray to God with faith and real intent--asking if this Book is true--you may feel something different. It might feel peaceful, warm, or comforting. But no matter how He makes you feel, the Holy Ghost will testify of the truthfulness of this Book.

One reason I truly love The Book of Mormon is because of the way it helps us during each phase of our lives. It may be different for each and every one of us, but tonight I would like to share some examples from my own life. These examples are personal, but very simple, special, and powerful to me.
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#1: When my family first moved to Mississippi a few years back (I was about nine-years-old), I remember my older brother Matt and I got in a huge argument/fight on a Sunday. I remember feeling really bad about it, and so I went up to my room and pulled out my personal copy of The Book of Mormon and I began reading in 1 Nephi 1. I read maybe two or three chapters that day, and I remember thinking, "Nephi was a good brother. I need to be more like him." I obviously wasn't the perfect brother after reading those chapters, but--yes--those chapters did point me in the right direction.

#2: As I struggled with my parents' divorce as a young teenager, I was strengthened and comforted greatly from the words of King Benjamin in Mosiah 2:41, which states:  

"And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness. O remember, remember that these things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it." 

Every time I read this scripture I knew that I just needed to trust in God and keep His commandments and all would work out for me--no matter what trial or challenge came my way.

#3. As I struggled as a full-time missionary, I found great teachings and insights on how to be a powerful missionary by reading the words of Mormon as he recounted many stories of remarkable missionaries such as Abinadi, Alma The Younger, the sons of Mosiah, Captain Moroni, and Samuel The Lamanite in the Books of Mosiah, Alma, and Helaman.
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Those are only a few examples, of course. But I hope you all understand/see where I am going with this. I just love how each time we read that powerful Book, it can help us with whichever phase we are facing in our lives. I saw that again as I finished The Book of Mormon a few weeks ago. I was so moved by every single thing I learned, and I know that by reading that inspired Book once again, I have been blessed. And I am an even better person than I was six months ago.

I look forward to the day when I have my own family, and I will be able to pick up The Book of Mormon and learn how to be a better husband and father from people such as Lehi, Mormon, and Christ Himself. I have no doubt in my mind that The Book of Mormon will continue to help me as I continue to progress and go about the rest of my life.