Baby's Back

Dear Grace,

Not gonna lie, I'm pretty smashed tired right now. We left on our flight to Dublin I don't know how long ago, and we flew overnight and landed at about 8:30 in the morning here. After stowing our luggage, we took a bus into the city, where we immediately got off the bus and went shopping. I've been wanting to replace my Oxford shoes, and now I've finally gotten to do it. Honestly though, why is it cheaper to go shopping over here than anywhere else I know in the states? Anyway, I took Marne to see Temple Bar and Dublin Castle. Walking around these streets again, I felt so happy to be back in the UK again.

We also went to Fitzsimmon's pub for some Irish fish and chips, and then wandered some more.

 (Christchuch Cathedral)

Later we were feeling pretty trashed, so we found a Starbucks to hang out in while we waited for our bus back to the airport, and where we realized we could get free wifi, so I was able to call Mom and let her know Marne and I are alive.

Oh! Also, other hilight of my day, we found a Marks & Spencer where I got to get my favorite cranberry cheese (it's really no good in the US because it's not fresh like it is here).

Last of all, we got checked in for our flight to Paris and found these:

As a major part of our jobs deal with making PODS, Marne and I thought it only fitting that we chill in them for a minute.

Well, I'm too exhausted to write anymore, so I'm calling it a day. More adventures to follow!

For the First Time, I have Hope...

Dear Grace,

Ooooooh my goodness, have I been a slacker. This is going to be the biggest rushed through blog post ever, because a lot of crap has gone down these last six months and I have been seriously neglectful in writing to you about it all. So to start, I came back from London, and Lyssa and Hannah took me out for a night on the town to try to cheer me up.

Let me tell you, to be honest, I didn't update the blog at all because I was having the most difficult time in my life adjusting back to Utah. There were literally days where I would come home from work and burst into tears and yell things like, "I hate being here!" and "America sucks!" Because the thing is, they never tell you about the reverse-culture shock you go through when you come home. I had a nasty taste of what missionaries go through when they come home from their missions, and let me tell you, the whole adjustment period SUCKS. That's why I didn't write, because it would have been nothing but big sob story letters that talked of nothing but how much I wished I could go back and couldn't stand American attitudes.

Anyway, the one shining star in the bleak night sky that was my life those first couple of months back was my job at Studies Weekly, which I was so grateful to go back to when I came home.

The people and the work really helped me with the adjustment back, as well as the enormous encyclopedia-sized scrapbook I worked on all summer (which was very therapeutic).

The other thing that helped more than anything, though, was this:

I've never put up posters in my room before, and I feel a little proud that maps were my first posters. I then proceeded to cover them with pins of all the places I've been and all the places I want to go, and then I promptly began planning my next trip over to Europe. When I found out that I'll have an entire week for the Thanksgiving Holiday this year, I booked a flight out to Dublin, and will be frolicking around France and England with my dear friend, Marne, in a just a couple of weeks!

Over the summer, a couple of exciting things happened, the first being that Kurt and Megan had their baby!

A wee little babbie whom they have christened Jackson Rick Mooney, and he's an adorable little nephew (Gus is super jealous).

You may have also noticed that my hair is a little red in the photos, and yes, I did dye my hair red. I think it suits me better :)

Next, my darling bestie, Lyssa, got engaged this summer! Hannah and I got to help her fiance propose to her, which was super sweet, and oddly enough, she will be getting married the day before I leave on my next European adventure.

A couple of weeks after she got engaged, we tried to take a trip up to Park city together, but Hannah's car imploded and we got stranded on the side of the highway while it spewed out a river of oil. Fortunately, Lyssa has AAA, so they were able to come tow us and give us a lift back home. That actually ended up being a really fun adventure, and Lyssa bride's-maid-proposed to us on the side of the road while we were hanging out, so that will definitely be an adventure to remember.

Next, I got moved into my apartment and have hands down the best roommates in the universe! I really don't know why all of these blessings are coming to me, because I know I don't deserve them, but I'm so so so grateful for them all the same.

My roommates are all so much fun (as I'm sure you can tell), but more importantly, they are all so strong in the gospel, and they inspire me to do better and focus more on the little things that keep you on the right track. I love that I can be lying in bed, and my roomie, Bailey, will suddenly say something like, "So, I was in my Doctrine and Covenants class today, and we were talking about this principle..."

I feel like this spiritual boost has been exactly what I need, and their love and support have saved me from some things I've had to get through this semester. I really don't know where I'd be without them :)

Next, I took a little road trip down over one of the longs weekends to visit Michelle and the kids.

It was so nice to be on the road again. I'd sorely missed those hours and hours in the car where I could just sing and listen to music and think for a while. Michelle and I drove down into Nevada (through Arizona) to look at a piano, and then we got to just drive through the desert and talk for a few hours.

Next, fall is here! Andrea and I celebrated by driving the alpine loop and taking about a billion pictures featuring my red hat and scarf and vaguely alluding to something like Little Red Riding Hood.

Next, Bailey, Sydney, and I all had the opportunity to go to the temple together, and then afterward, I took them to the beautiful park across the street from the Timpanogos Temple.

Next, I got to go on the Halloween River cruise with the family...

...and on Halloween night, Bailey, Sydney, and I all went to the dance on Center Street in Provo. I decided at the VERY last second I decided to dress as a Hell's Angel. Bailey and I were at Savers, and I spotted the wings and the halo, and decided that they would go nicely with my leather jacket.

Now, onto my last bit of news, and unfortunately I'm afraid to say that it isn't happy news. My sister, Brooke Seegmiller, died on October 26th while we were down in St. George for the weekend. This whole experience has been such a roller-coaster of emotion, but so much good has come of it that I don't know how to explain it without sounding like I feel her death was a blessing.

The truth is, though, all my life I always believed that I would never get to be with my family in the next life because of their circumstances in this life. I always thought that when death came, there was nothing more you could do, and that your fate was sealed. But Brooke's death forced me to take a step back and really think about what the atonement is for, and for the first time in my life, I realized that we can still use the atonement to heal and learn and grow, and that death is not the end. For the first time in my life, I have hope. For the first time in my life, I have the hope of a life yet to be, where I can be with all of my family in a world free of drugs and anger and pain. For the first time in my life, I've been shown what the healing power of Christ's love can do, and it's not only given Brooke, but myself as well, another chance at life.

I was also forced to question why she was taken from us and her children when she was, and I've come to this conclusion: Brooke knew how to love people and how to forgive the way Christ wants us to learn while we're here on Earth, and when she was too exhausted to carry on anymore, the Lord said, "It is enough. You can come home now."

I always worried that she would die and be lost to us forever because of the drugs - because of the unresolved mistakes in her life. But I know now that I'll finally get to be with my sister in the life to come. That's the beauty of the atonement - Christ will make up the difference for her mistakes, because she gave everything she had every single day, in spite of all her struggles.

I've felt so much love from so many people who have reached out to comfort and support me since Brooke's passing, and I really don't know how I would have gotten through this without my roommates and my friends and more than anything the sustaining and comforting power of Jesus Christ.

At the funeral, this poem particularly touched my soul. It gives me so much comfort to know that there are other hands reaching to embrace my dear sister and to guide her along the path back home again. I'm so grateful that she is at last out of the grasp of those who would hurt her and use her, and that she is in the hands of those who will work only for her good now.


Gone From My Sight
By Henry Van Dyke

I am standing upon the seashore.
A ship at my side spreads her white
sails to the morning breeze and starts
for the blue ocean.

She is an object of beauty and strength.
I stand and watch her until at length
she hangs like a speck of white cloud
just where the sea and sky come
to mingle with each other.

Then, someone at my side says:
"There, she is gone!"

Gone where?
Gone from my sight. That is all.
She is just as large in mast and hull
and spar as she was when she left my side
and she is just as able to bear her 
load of living freight to her destined port.
Her diminished size is in me, not in her.

And just at the moment when someone
at my side says, "There, she is gone!"
There are other eyes watching her coming,
and other voices ready to take up the glad shout:
"Here she comes!"

And that is dying.

Here Today, Gone Tomorrow

Dear Grace,

At the moment I am sitting on the plane that is taking me home, and so far I’ve managed to keep myself entertained for five hours. Now I just have five more to go! So, I thought I might as well update my blog, as the plane we are on has an outlet for me to keep my computer plugged into, so I’ve been busy editing my photos and putting together one last video for this trip.

So, the last few days of our trip: first off, we drove up to the French Wine Road, which is a road that runs along the border between France and Germany. Here we stopped to walk around and take pictures and just enjoy the scenery.

I don’t know why, but I’ve never had a strong desire to visit France or Paris, and as we were walking around I found myself resenting how pretty these little villages were. When Mom asked me why I wasn’t freaking out about how pretty it was like I normally would, all I could tell her was that the villages were prettier than anything I’d seen in England, but I didn’t want to admit it. She then suggested that it was probably because I’d feel like a traitor if I admitted to that, and I believe she is exactly right.

I am basically British, and since the French and Brits hate each other, that would explain my general disinterest in France, as well as my sense of British pride and strong desire to defend my beloved island against anything that dares to be prettier or better in any way.

But I digress.

Anyway, these villages are set in the middle of miles and miles of vineyards that stretch and roll way as far as the eye can see. I admit that these villages were indeed the most picturesque I’ve ever seen, but Britain is still better.

Next, we drove over to Paris (well, just outside of it) and rode the train into the city, where we went to our first stop: The Louvre.

 

Holy freaking crap. What a mob. We seriously couldn’t get close enough to the Mona Lisa to get a decent picture! Still, it’s cool that I can now say that I’ve seen the real Mona Lisa.

Next, we shoved our way through the crowds of Asians (if you don’t believe me when I say that like 90% of the mobs consisted of Asians, I will prove it. I have video evidence) and went to see Venus de Milo, who is supposed to have been the pinnacle of beauty for centuries.

I was surprised when I saw her face and her figure and realized that she wasn’t what would be considered a classic beauty today. She had a rather masculine build and plain features. I guess it just goes to show you that beauty is entirely cultural.

Next, after a lunch at a little French Café, we took a bus and headed on over to see Notre Dame. It was so cool to get to see that cathedral, and my only regret was that I didn’t get to climb around on the towers or make any gargoyle friends while we were there ;)

Next stop: The Eiffel Tower!

Dad was SOOOO excited because last time he and Mom were in Paris they hadn’t gone up inside, but this time we actually got in and got to ride all the way to the top. My favorite part of the whole experience was that it got dark by the time we reached the top, so all of the city lights were on. It wasn’t until that moment that I realized the charm of Paris.

Then the lights of the tower itself came on, and when we got back down to the ground and stood underneath the tower again, I learned something; it sparkles!

Day two of Paris consisted of us hauling ourselves over to the other side of Paris to pick up my big suitcase, which Rose so kindly took care of for me while we were trekking around the continent, and then we headed on over to see the grand palace of Versailles.

Holy mother of monstrosities. Poor Crazy King Ludy’s Herenchiemsee was dwarfed in comparison with this place. I’m telling you, it was ridiculously huge, and even more ridiculously crowded with – you guessed it – Asian tour groups.

  

When we were told that there was a two hour wait just to check through security, we opted to go exploring the gardens first instead.

The gardens were HUGE, as I’m sure you’ve been able to deduce from the photos, but we seriously walked and walked for at least 30 or 40 minutes to get out to Marie Antoinette’s little getaway house clear out on the far northeast end of the estate.

  

We didn’t spend much time in the palace itself, because it was so crowded that you literally couldn’t move your arms most of the time, and you had to go down the hallways by awkwardly shuffling your feet and throwing hate-daggers with your eyes at people who would purposely bump and shove you, even though you clearly had nowhere to go. So yeah, when it got to the point that both Dad and I were ready to start throwing punches, we got out of there and headed into the city to see a certain famous film site:

I felt rather duty-bound to visit this site #1 because I once danced the lead part in Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend back in junior high, and #2, because my darling bestie, Lyssa, recently discovered it, and I felt I should go pay homage on both of our behalves.

Random thing I’d like to throw in here: the metro station signs are mega creepy in Paris!

Seriously though! The signs look like something straight out of a horror movie or something that point down into a dark hole in the ground, as if to say: “Monster pit, enter at your own risk,” and the farther down you go into the tunnels, the creepier and sketchier and dirtier it gets!

Well, on to my very last thing to tell about my amazing adventures in Europe, and I’m extremely glad I got to end this trip on such a high note (no pun intended): I went and saw the original Paris opera house!

Childish and silly, though it was, I couldn’t keep myself from singing a little Phantom of the Opera while I was walking around, and then of course snapping a few photos of myself using my hat as a mask (I was insanely disappointed to learn that none of the souvenir stands in the vicinity sold any kind of Phantom paraphernalia).

What an incredible experience. I’ve always been terrible at writing endings to things like this or saying goodbyes, but I guess the point in having endings is to give way to new beginnings. Although this semester is over and this fairytale has finally come to a close, my life will go on, and the memories I’ve made on this journey are treasures that I’ll carry in my heart forever. This experience has also taught me this: my life doesn’t end today because this adventure is over. No. My adventure is just beginning. Every morning that I wake up there’s a new adventure waiting to be had, no matter where I am. All I have to do to find it is to set foot out the front door.

Rockin' On Top Of The World

Dear Grace,

Oh so so much to write and oh so so so little willpower to write much about it, as my brain has decided to shut down for the rest of this trip it seems.

So here you go.

We checked into the absolute cutest little hotel in Garmish, Germany which I can sum up for you in three photos:

The place had a flipping piano in it. I can’t tell you how nice it was to just sit and play and sing for a little bit while we stayed there.

The morning after we checked in, we got up early and set out for a long day of castle touring. First, we started with Hohenschwangau Castle, where Crazy King Ludwig was born (Ludwig is famous for the amazing castles he built in his lifetime).

It was such a beautiful castle, and very different from other palaces I’ve toured in the past, which was refreshing. Next, we saw the one and only Neushwanstein.

I have to say, Neushwanstein was without a doubt my favorite castle! All my life I’ve gazed longingly at pictures of this fairytale castle perched on a hilltop in the mountains, white towers glowing brightly against the forest, but I could never have imagined that one day I would get to see it in person – let alone walk the halls of this beautiful treasure. I felt like I had stepped straight into Beauty and the Beast the moment I set foot on the castle grounds, and as we toured the inside the whole time I kept thinking, “I can’t believe I’m really here…”

The view from the balconies was just as stunning as the castle itself. I think it’s such a shame that this castle was never completed and that no one really ever lived here. I felt like the stories of those who could have made this their home were the only things missing.

The last stop of the day was Linderhof. The smallest of all the palaces I’ve seen, but perhaps the most beautifully landscaped.

After seeing all of his castles and the grounds of this last castle, I suddenly realized what all of Looney Ludy’s palaces seemed to cry for: escape. Although every surface of the palace was lavishly decorated and painted and gilded, I suddenly realized that each place Ludwig built was like a page from a storybook. Neuswanstein was dedicated to bringing the works of Richard Wagner’s operas to life. Herenchiemsee was like stepping straight into 17^th century France.

At Linderhof the inside of his tea house was like stepping into an Arabian lounge straight out of Aladdin or something. Ludwig even had a special underground cave with a lighted lake and sea-shell boat constructed at Linderhof simply for the purpose of imagining himself into one of Wagner’s operas. The man literally had servants row him around in the shell-boat in his opera-hole.

You can’t get much crazier than that.

The next morning we got up and rode the funicular up to the top o the alps, where we were greeted by this sight:

 

Admittedly, it was a bit discouraging when we couldn’t see more than a few feet in front of us for a while, and we worried for a bit that we wouldn’t get to see anything while we were up there. Fortunately the cloud cover changes as quickly as the sea at that altitude, and soon enough our patience was rewarded with this:

Snowboarding Mecca, I’m telling you. So that was awesome to get a view of the Alps and the valley from all the way up at the tallest point in Germany. After that we went to check out the town of Oberammergau, which has a lot of awesome wall paintings on the buildings. My two favorites were the story of Little Red Riding Hood and Hansel and Gretel.

We visited another town called Mittenwald, which we liked better than Oberammergau because it was waaaay less touristy and a lot cooler because the town was originally established because of a violin factory or something. A town founded because of music? Say no more. It’s awesome.

The next day we got up and headed out on the long drive down into Switzerland to see the valley of waterfalls: Lauterbrunnen. We checked into our awesome hotel room in Interlaken (just down the road from Lauterbrunnen), which I’ll give you a video tour of:

For dinner, we stopped into a hotel restaurant and had a lovely little dinner of cheese fondue.

Served with bread that was divided up like a chocolate bar:

Which was delicious, but I don’t recommend making cheese fondue with alcohol (which the chef apparently did); it gives it a very bitter taste that nearly drowns out the cheese flavor.

The following morning we woke up to the most beautiful thing ever: sunshine.

I couldn’t get enough of the tinkling of the bells on the sheep and cows there – it was absolutely charming! Thanks to the mostly-clear skies, we took the funicular up to the tallest peak. Apparently one of the James Bond movies was filmed up at the restaurant/lookout point at the top, and the minute the tram car started to move, to my delight, the James Bond theme started playing. It made the experience ten times more epic for me :)

On our way to the top, we passed through a discouraging blanket of fog and clouds that hid everything from view, but at last we broke through the clouds and saw this:

Once again, snowboarding Mecca.

Another plus I hadn’t counted on was the James Bond interactive museum that was up there. So we had quite a good time getting pictures with Mr. Bond and playing with the video and photo machines there.

Last stop for the day: Trummelbach Waterfall. It is literally a waterfall inside of the mountain. We took a lift up most of the way into the mountain, and then we walked up into the tunnels the rest of the way. You seriously walk through tunnels inside the mountain to follow the path of the waterfall through solid rock.

When we got out of the waterfall, we decided to take the trail down instead of the lift, where I finally got the view of Lauterbrunnen’s breathtaking valley.

Switzerland is everything I ever hoped it would be. I always looked at the pictures and postcards of this view and thought there was no way it could really look like that in real life – but it really and truly does.

Well that’s all I’ve got energy for today, but here is my latest video. Cheers!