One Shli in a Pod: Bittersweet

Okay, the past few days (mostly yesterday) were fantastic! I did get another lesson plan written on Friday. But only one. Go figure. That night, Daisy and I went to the IMA stoplight dance. It wasn't as great as the last institute dance we went to, but it was better than most of the others. As in you could actually dance to the music they played and the music was actually good. I even got to waltz with some totally random guy. The only downside to that? My legs are so blasted sore today! (It took me until today to even figure out why they were hurting in the first place.)

Yesterday, I got to go down to Salt Lake with my IWA chapter. Our first stop was the Salt Lake Cemetery. We visited Mary Fielding Smith's grave since our chapter is named after her. We also stopped by David O. McKay's grave as well as Gordon B. Hinckley's. While driving we passed James E. Talmage, Heber J. Grant, Joseph Fielding Smith, and a few others that I can't remember at this moment in time. I forget how much I really enjoy walking around a cemetery until I do something like that. I could spend so many hours walking around the one in Salt Lake! I think I'll try to go back sometime this summer. Then we went to eat lunch at The Garden in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. I've never eaten there before and boy was it tasty! I definitely want to go back sometime. The rest of the girls hung around and went to the visitor's center and got to watch Legacy before coming home, but Christina, Elise and I took off around noon to go to Ephraim.

We got to good 'ole E-town around 2pm. Just in time for the very last LD's concert ever. We met up with quite a few other people there too. The concert was fun to watch, but it was a little strange to see them doing different choreography to songs that we did when I was there. As always, Coach invited all the former LD's up to sing the final number, Nothing Left to Say. By the middle of the song I could already hear so much sniffling. And when it ended, that was all you heard. But I managed to not even get tears in my eyes. Which was a little strange, because that song always makes me cry. I had fully expected myself to cry, too, as I knew that it was the very last time I would ever get to sing in that setting. The big guys in Salt Lake made the decision to make all the institute show choirs non-traveling and sing only spiritual songs. More like a fireside choir than a show choir. So LD's will be super different next year, and under the direction of Brother Boothe instead of Coach. Anyway, after the concert we all stood around on stage chatting, etc with everyone as there was so many people there that we hadn't seen for so long. Then we went to the Malt Shop. That place is fantastic! It was also gorgeous outside so we ate outside. And by the time we were done my face was hurting from laughing so hard. (On a side note, life at Snow was easy and laid back compared to life in Logan.) When we were done at the Malt Shop we went to go visit Coach and Mama Scholes before we left. It was so good to sit in his living room and talk like old times! And it's always so hard to leave. Coach (and Brother Boothe and Jenkins, actually) said I should go teach school in Ephraim when I graduate. Maybe I'll consider it.

Speaking of school, I have to go back tomorrow. I mean, I get to go back? Haha. Really, I think once I get back into the flow of things I'll be excited to be back. Plus, there's only 3 weeks left. I can do that. That's why it's bittersweet, though. The end of LD's, leaving Ephraim, and spring break has ended. At least the weather has been better. And we have spring training for IWA on Saturday and it's going to be a blast!

A small look at my times in LD's:

Spring 2006: