Create!

My Aunt Shannon forwarded me this in an email. I usually scoff at and delete forwards without reading them, but this one really inspired me. I figure if it's got Elder Uchtdorf in it, it must be worth looking at, right?

The talk this was taken from truly inspired me. On the one hand, the small amount of time I spend on creative things often daunts me and leads me down a spiral of self-criticism for not making time for myself, not cultivating my talents, and so on, until I collapse in an uncreative, exhausted heap on my living room floor and spend yet another night on Facebook. However, I doubt that's what Elder Uchtdorf had in mind.

On the other hand, he's totally right - everyone is creative. I remember thinking similar thoughts when I tried to convince a discouraged teenage sister of mine that yes, she was indeed creative. She has since discovered scrapbooking and no longer needs any convincing. But creative does not necessarily mean artistic or musical or eloquent. Creative means you can create things - all sorts of things. Smiles, children, cleanliness, friendships, organization, peace, consolation, patience, habits, flowers, compliments, faith, hope, encouragement, laughter, testimonies - all these things need creating, perhaps even more so than songs or paintings. One of my favorite quotes that I posted on my wall in college encompasses a lot of what Elder Uchtdorf is talking about:

To laugh often and much;
To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children;
To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends;
To appreciate beauty, to find the best in others;
To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition;
To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived.
This is to have succeeded.

~Bessie Andersen Stanley (often misattributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson)

One of the chief reasons I scoff at and delete forwards before I read them is because they contain rants that just make me feel angry or guilty without any invitation to do anything about what I've just read. So, if you've actually read to the end of this very long post, congratulations - now get off my blog and go create something!