Why I don't wear make-up

In truth, I remember my excitement at opening my first tube of mascara. After watching Chanelle and Brooke for years, I was sure I could do it perfect. I'm sure, now with my much more experienced hand, it looks a bajillion times better, but that's besides the point.

I felt magical walking into my sixth grade class. I could see the girls noticing and I felt important. I felt special. There were a select few of us allowed to wear make-up and it felt like we were a band of important outsiders. Who huddled together in the hall discussing what mascara's we used.

Ah, then Centennial. Naturally when a young girl is trying to gain the attention of the male population I felt it necessary to add eye shadow to the mix. As far as I was concerned, the plan worked splendidly. I mean, I had people talking to me. In fact, I had boys HUGGING me. I hung out with them on the weekends. I was practically the coolest thing since sliced bread.

Then came the freshman year when I started Drill Team. I had practices early in the morning and forgot to bring my mascara to school. I felt naked, walking through the hallway on those days. I felt different.

I was startled, however, to find that people weren't shunning me down the hallway. Rather, the opposite. My friends still greeted me before classes and hugged me in the hallways. I wasn't immediately shunned for my lack of eye wear.

Thus came the realization - my make up doesn't make ME. I'm still Aubrey. I'm still loud, I still love to smile and love to hug. I'm still crazy and sporadically break out in song.

Each morning before I go to school, I look myself in the mirror.

I smile.

That to me is beautiful.

Happyness. Confidence. Laughter.

And the knowledge that I am a child of God.

Because that's what makes me up, not a bunch of powders in little containers.

I am beautiful. No matter what anyone says.

How do you know?

"Hey, Aubrey?"

"Yeah?"

"You've read this, right?" He stabs his Book of Mormon with his finger

"Yeah."

"Well.... ummm.... Did you like it?"

I giggled quietly to myself "Yeah, I liked it a lot" as I tried to contain the huge smile spreading across my face

"Is it true?"

"What?"

"Umm... is it true?"

"I can't speak for everyone else. But I certainly do know it's true."

"How?"

"Because this little book has brought me more joy in my life than I could possibly imagine. Through it, I feel Christ's love constantly radiating in my life. Because the prophet's in it have the exact same struggles that I do, and through their example I can overcome all things. I can't imagine what my life would be like without it. Because of it, my dad became converted. He went on his mission, and he came to BYU where he met my mom. It has blessed my life in so many ways, that there is no way I possibly could, or ever would deny it."

~~~~~~~

"....So, do you think I should read it."

"Yes," I said with a smile. "I absolutely think you should."

Incredible

Car singing 101

In case you weren't aware, my favorite color is red.

Also, I have a hobby called Car Singing.

hob·by

¹ [hob-ee]

noun

1.

an activity or interest pursued for pleasure or relaxationand not as a main occupation: Her hobbies include stamp-collecting and woodcarving.

I know what you're thinking, it should have said coin collecting right?

For cereal, have me show you sometime.

Moving on.....

Big Brother and Bells and I used to go on these lovely Sunday Drives that inevitably involved Jason wasting much gas and seeing who could sing the loudest and dorkiest.

Even after JKS moved, Belly and I continued this tradition and it is because of these drives that I have the adorable habitat of listening to my music a teeny bit louder than the norman human bean.

But I digress.

I had gotten so used to car singing, that when others joined in my car, they seemed quite startled by my stereo and voice box blaring. So, people of the world, I thought y'all should be edumacated in car singing.

How to Car Sing

By:Aubrey Noelle

1. Have a car. I'll try my best not to question where you suddenly came upon the Mercedes that you didn't have the day before, but I'll forgive you if we can get an ice cream cone from Mickey Dee's. While car singing.

2. Have a way to hook up an iPod, or for the less ghetto ones, actually have a CD player in your car. I suppose one could car sing to the radio. In theory, but, wouldn't you rather have a guaranteed playlist of good car singing songs?

Which brings up the next point.....

3. Have delicious car singing music. It can be anything. I mean, if loudly singing The Weepies or Enya is your thing, then man, go with it. I personally prefer the type of songs that make you want to sing. In fact, they absolutely demand you to sing at the top of your lungs while car dancing.

Some personal fav's include:

Good luck! What are your favorite car singing songs?

And if you ever need an example, feel free to car sing with me, anytime. :)

A new species

Note: to be read in a British accent

And thus we see the unique creature, Chubby, who is native to this land in his natural habitat. Currently we can see him here eating his usual meal of ice cream straight out of the carton. He is performing his traditional "ice cream dance" all around his environment, the kitchen.

An interesting 32 years....

"Sweetheart? I hate to bother you, because I know how busy you are...."

"Yes dear?"

"There are more leaves in our room than on our front lawn."

"Now, are you sure?"

"Well, last I checked.... So maybe we need to... rake our room...."

Gotta love em :)

The Living Christ

In July or so, we got a new Young Women's presidency. Our president was young and wanted to tackle anything.

"Guys, Young Women's in excellence isn't until December, but I want each of us to do something different this time. Instead of just standing up and saying something we did for personal progress, I want each of us to pick something that will help us grow closer to Christ."

A week later.

"Oh, and we're memorizing The Living Christ."

If any of you know my Papa Smurf, you might know his knack for memorizing. In his mind are a plethora of inspiring poems, conference quotes, and scriptures. When we travel, all he brings is his phone and a conference transcript. In his phone, he has saved a list of quotes he wants to memorize, and one by one, by that end of the plane ride, he usually has knocked out ten or so.

So as my mother and I embarked on the daunting task to memorize such a large and sacred document, I hoped that maybe my dad's "sponge memory" would shine through.

It didn't.

It was more difficult than I hoped. We were supposed to memorize a paragraph every two weeks, and each Sunday I'd go to church feeling inadequate and unprepared.

As we go halfway through, a leader saw our struggle and invited us to go to her house each Sunday after church to practice together. We went over the parts we stumbled on, and made up silly signs for the things we couldn't remember.

For a few months, each morning when I got up, I recited The Living Christ along with a man reciting it in a podcast. Those early moments in my bathroom were, and are still precious to me. Simply because of the love of the Savior that I felt in there, his sweet spirit saying, "Aubrey, I am here. I am the Living Christ. I will always be here when you need me."

Last Wednesday the youth went to Temple Square. As we squished on couches surrounding The Christus, sweet Abbie leaned over and said, "Sister Clark? Could we recite The Living Christ in front of the Christus?"

After a thumbs up from the missionaries, we all stood up there, and began.

"As we commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ two millennia ago, we offer our testimony of the reality of His matchless life and the infinite virtue of His great atoning sacrifice."

Tears began welling up in my eyes as I stared around the room. I looked at the moon and the stars, the world beyond measure. I stood next to my Savior, as the realization filled my soul that of all the immeasurable people in this world, He knows me. He loves me. He will never forget me.

The words that I had uttered almost robotically for months now had a divine purpose, to bear testimony that He lives. That He is our Lord and Savior and that, after this holiday season, we can never be so foolish as to forget that.

"...Jesus is the Living Christ, the immortal Son of God. He is the great King Immanuel, who stands today on the right hand of His Father. He is the light, the life, and the hope of the world. His way is the path that leads to happiness in this life and eternal life in the world to come.

God be thanked for the matchless gift of His divine Son."