Create Joy

The name for this blog has been something that has been close to my heart for years.

I love to create and to make my house a home and bring joy into my children’s lives.

I heard years ago that happiness is not a destination but a way of life.

This blog is my way of happiness, my way to share my joy.

The following quotes are the catalyst that lead me to choosing the name for the blog.

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The desire to create is one of the deepest yearnings of the human soul. No matter our talents, education, backgrounds, or abilities, we each have an inherent wish to create something that did not exist before.

Everyone can create. You don’t need money, position, or influence in order to create something of substance or beauty.

Creation brings deep satisfaction and fulfillment. We develop ourselves and others when we take unorganized matter into our hands and mold it into something of beauty—and I am not talking about the process of cleaning the rooms of your teenage children….But to what end were we created? We were created with the express purpose and potential of experiencing a fulness of joy.  Our birthright—and the purpose of our great voyage on this earth—is to seek and experience eternal happiness. One of the ways we find this is by creating things…..You may think you don’t have talents, but that is a false assumption, for we all have talents and gifts, every one of us.  The bounds of creativity extend far beyond the limits of a canvas or a sheet of paper and do not require a brush, a pen, or the keys of a piano. Creation means bringing into existence something that did not exist before—colorful gardens, harmonious homes, family memories, flowing laughter.

What you create doesn’t have to be perfect. So what if the eggs are greasy or the toast is burned? Don’t let fear of failure discourage you. Don’t let the voice of critics paralyze you—whether that voice comes from the outside or the inside.

If you still feel incapable of creating, start small. Try to see how many smiles you can create, write a letter of appreciation, learn a new skill, identify a space and beautify it……As you take the normal opportunities of your daily life and create something of beauty and helpfulness, you improve not only the world around you but also the world within you- Dieter F. Uchtdorf

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“Anyone who imagines that bliss is normal is going to waste a lot of time running around shouting that he has been robbed. The fact is that most putts don’t drop, most beef is tough, most children grow up to be just like people, most successful marriages require a high degree of mutual toleration, and most jobs are often dull than otherwise. Life is just like an old time rail journey… delays, sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders and jolts, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride.”

~President Hinckley

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“Give your child a compliment and a hug; say, ‘I love you’ more; always express your thanks. Never let a problem to be solved become more important than a person to be loved. Friends move away, children grow up, loved ones pass on. It’s so easy to take others for granted, until that day when they’re gone from our lives and we are left with feelings of ‘what if’ and ‘if only.’ … “Let us relish life as we live it, find joy in the journey and share our love with friends and family. One day, each of us will run out of tomorrows. Let us not put off what is most important.” – President Thomas S. Monson

Why an Elephant?

I have loved Elephants for most of my life.

When my husband and I were dating we went to the San Diego zoo and I think he must have thought I was crazy (he still married me) because I sat outside the Elephant enclosure for over an hour watching the mother and her new baby together. I remember crying because of the raw emotions I felt and saw between the two of them. I was watching a love story between a mother and a child. I would have sat for much longer but if I wanted my love story to continue between me and my future hubby I had to move on. I have never forgotten that day with that mother and her several day old child. A few days before I had my first child my husband gave me a huge print of a Mother elephant and her newborn infant and on the day I had our oldest I remembered that beautiful, emotional pair of elephants from years before and I finally knew what that mother knew… I would do anything to protect my child and I would never forget the unbreakable bond of love between a mother and her child.

When babies are first born the mother Elephants of the herd will take over caring for the baby will the mother gets healthy and can consume enough food to provide milk for the baby.

The herd of elephants bring a whole new meaning to the saying, “It takes a village to raise a child.”

I love that they take care of each other and provide the nurture and support to each other that they all need.

Infants have few survival instincts (like human infants) and are instead taught by their mothers and the more experienced members of their herds. They are blind when they are born and identify their mother by touch, scent and sound. This reminds me so much of when my own babies are born and they cry until they hear my voice or are laid on my chest. They knew me from spending so much time with me, just as a baby elephant knows its mother.

Elephants are some of the most intelligent animals on Earth. They commonly show grief, humor, compassion, cooperation, self-awareness, tool-use, playfulness, and excellent learning abilities.  Elephants have a more developed hippocampus, the region of the brain responsible for emotion and spatial awareness, than any other animal. I love how much emotions elephants feel. I love that they cry, laugh, and grieve together. They really are a terrific example of how we should live our lives. They work hard and they play hard and I am sure they experience an immense amount of joy in their journey of life. For them to feel as much as they do, they would have to understand true love and true joy.

These creature are so amazing and can teach us so much.

I love that the females gather together to protect and raise the young. When its time to sleep the female Elephants will form a circle around the smaller, infant elephants, sick and elderly to protect them during the night. If a threat comes upon a herd of Elephants, they immediately take action. The young, the sick,  and the elderly are all herded into the middle of a circle. The other Elephants stand shoulder to shoulder, facing outward toward the threat. The Lions (usually the threats) will circle the herd, snarling and at times leaping at the Elephants. The Lion will try to intimidate even just ONE Elephant so that it will break rank and run. Once that happens, those in the middle which are easy prey are suddenly vulnerable. The standoff comes about when the Lion realizes that if it gets too close to the outward facing Elephants, they will be squished like a bug. So it is a matter of stamina, intimidation – and standing your ground. Most of the time, the Lions will become weary of the fruitless efforts, and wander away. So it is critical that the herd stick together – shoulder to shoulder – in order to survive and protect the sick, the elderly and the young.

I think this is what the powerful force of women, mothers and parents can do. We can stand united, shoulder to shoulder to protect our kids from the dangers of the world. Its critical that we do not back down and that we continue to stand our ground to protect our loved ones.

There are many reports of elephants showing altruism towards other species, such as rescuing trapped dogs at considerable cost to themselves. I can only imagine what the world would be like if all humans did this as well. You know the saying, “We can’t help everyone but everyone can help someone.” Elephants live this saying. When those they love die they go into a mourning phase. There have been reports of elephants traveling to the homes of humans who they connected with. They have a memory that lasts forever and even after years of being separated will reunited with those they have bonded with in tearful “trunk” embraces.

The elephant uses all of the emotions it feels to care for others and to show its love. The female elephants truly embrace their roles as mothers and never leave the herd until they die. They spend their whole adult life caring for their young and the young of others within the herd.

Elephants remember and mourn loved ones, even many years after their death. When an elephant walks past a place that a loved one died he or she will stop and take a silent pause that can last several minutes. While standing over the remains, the elephant may touch the bones of the dead elephant (not the bones of any other species), smelling them, turning them over and caressing the bones with their trunk.

They truly love forever.