What I've learned from Disney Characters

Here is a confession: I still cry when I watch Disney movies. Of course, when I was little I'd cry because Maleficent in dragon form scared me like none other. Now, I cry because Anna just wants to build a snowman with her sister. The point is, Disney movies make me feel empowered, they give me the optimistic attitude, the feeling that I can accomplish anything I put my mind to. I've learned a lot from these Disney characters. And each time I watch a movie, I learn something more. I couldn't list them all, but here are some lessons I've learned from Disney characters.

Anna: Don't give up on people. Ever.

Elsa: Don't let fear hold you back or keep you from discovering your potential.

Mulan: Take risks, but remember, family comes first.

In other words - Family first, safety second. ;)

Merida: You are in control of your future.

Elsa: Share your talents, no matter how scary. Learn what you can do.

Tiana: Dreams can come true, but you have to work for it. 

Anna: Follow your instincts and trust.

Pocahontas: Everyone will die one day. Might as well fall in love along the way.

Cinderella: Continue to serve, even when those you serve don't necessarily deserve it.  

Alice: It's okay to be a little crazy.

Rapunzel: In order to accomplish your dreams, you must try something new.

Simba: The past won't go away even if you try to run from it. So don't run, learn. 

Alice: Keep your imagination alive. 

Esmeralda: Look beyond appearances. 

Woody: Friendship isn't something that can be brushed aside. 

Flynn Ryder: You don't have to pretend to be someone else in order to succeed. 

Rapunzel: Go outside of your comfort zone and you will find you can have the best day ever. 

Belle: Smart girls are pretty, too. Plus, reading is fun!

Peter Pan: By thinking happy thoughts, you can fly! 

Aladdin: Being yourself is important - lying will get you nowhere. 

Buzz: You aren't really a space ranger, but that's okay. 

Hercules: A true hero understands sacrifice. 

Ursula: Don't underestimate body language. 

Belle: Don't let people treat you badly just because they can.

Anna: You are awkward. Just deal with it. 

Vanellope: Being different doesn't mean there is something wrong with you. Learn to use your differences to your advantage. 

Ralph: Titles given by others don't define you, it is what you do that defines you. 

Aurora: Everyone starts out as a stranger. Meeting someone new can change your life. 

Peter Pan: Never grow up.

And 10 Years Later...

I like to think that we would still be best friends. There are times that all I want to do is talk to her.

I wonder what she would be like. She'd be twelve now. That's about the age I was when she passed away. I think of what I was like at twelve and I really hope she would have more common sense than I did.

One of the things I regret most in my life is the way I acted with Gracie before she died. We had a fight. And we never fought. It was hard to get mad at such a darling little girl, I mean just take a look at that face! But it happened. I was sick, home from school, and all I wanted to do was watch a movie and fall asleep. She didn't want to let that happen.

You know those rubber popper things? The ones you turn inside out and wait for them to pop into the air? She had a pink one and couldn't turn it inside out on her own. I had been playing this with her for what felt like hours. I was done. She obviously wasn't. I couldn't fake enthusiasm any longer, so I turned it inside out one last time and quickly moved off of the floor and onto the big couch. She didn't like that. Screaming and yelling, she took her hands and pinched my face and began to spit all over me, her signature move when she is upset. Hopefully she's forgiven me for that.

I could tell stories about her all day. In fact, I was reading a poem I wrote about her when I was in eighth grade (I'd share it, but let's just face it, I've never been good at poetry and I don't want anyone to make fun of me) and it said that I planned to write children's books about her. I'd completely forgotten about that, but I'm going to make it happen.

She had such a bright personality. We all loved to see her laugh and do anything we could to make that happen. And once she did laugh, we would too. Her laughter was infectious, even to those who didn't know her. Perfect strangers would smile just by looking at her.

 I know it has been ten years, but sometimes I just don't want to deal with the fact that my little sister died. I struggle with it, and I'm sure I always will. But, thankfully I have the knowledge that I will see her again. She is on the other side, leading me and guiding me, waiting for me to come play with her again. :)

"In the gospel of Jesus Christ you have help from both sides of the veil, and you must never forget that." -Elder Jeffery R. Holland.

Service Leads to Happiness

My dad has always been the best example of service to me. I remember waking up on Saturday mornings to find that he had already helped the new neighbors move and was working on a batch of cookies to bring to them later. He's always been willing to help with anyone, anywhere.

I could give many stories of how I have seen him serve in the church, in the family, and in the community. But the story I want to focus on today is how others have served my family.

Almost ten years ago (it will have been exactly ten years in ten days from now), my little sister passed away. I wrote about it here and hinted at the service we received when I also wrote about it here.

We left the hospital and I don't even remember much of what was said until we reached the house. This may sound crazy, but I remember pulling into the driveway and feeling different. I was only eleven, but I knew that life wouldn't be the same. It didn't feel right to go inside. It would be empty. She wouldn't be running around, filling the entire house with her infectious laughter. She was gone. And I didn't want to deal with that.

However, my parents had something else on their mind. They knew we would be having people come over and they knew the house was a mess. With six kids who had all been sick, of course it wasn't going to be clean.

We pulled up and my parents started to make plan. They gave us each a job and explained how we needed to make sure the house was presentable even though it wasn't what we wanted to be doing. We agreed to help, knowing that people really would be showing up soon - word spreads quickly in a small town.

We climbed out of the car and headed into the house. I remember walking in the door and being amazed at how clean it was. The counter was already covered in flowers and dishes full of food. The house smelled amazing and I realized I was hungry. As I moved into the kitchen I realized what the smell was coming from - there was a ham cooking in the oven.

It wasn't just the kitchen that was clean. I walked back to my room and found that everything had  been put away. The only room that hadn't been touched was Gracie's. We left it that way for a while.

My parents were right; people did come. They didn't stop coming for what felt like forever. We all sat in the front room as face after nameless face walked in, offering a plate of food or flowers or simple words of "I'm so sorry for your loss!" I hated it at the time. I wanted nothing more than to go somewhere faraway and take my family with me.

My parents finally allowed us to leave, realizing it had been enough for us to sit through so many people talking. To this day I'm still amazed at how my parents handled the situation. I know I wouldn't have been so grateful and welcoming had I been in their place.

Throughout the rest of that first night, when people came over, we were called back to the front room. A previous teacher would be visiting, or someone wanted to see us. The last time we were called to come back out that night was one of the most amazing things I've ever experienced. We walked out onto the front porch and saw that the entire front yard was full of people. Most of the people I had never even seen before. But they were there, willing to support a family in the community who needed help. I'm not sure how everyone had heard or what made them decide to come, but I'll never forget it.

As soon as we were all out on the porch someone started to sing Families Can be Together Forever. To this day, I can't sing that song or even hear it without tearing up.

I said before that I hated how everyone kept coming over. But it didn't last forever. Eventually we were left with a freezer full of precooked meals, a counter full of flowers, and time to spend with just the family. I look back on it now and realize how much of a blessing it was to have so many people come over. I regret that I wasn't so grateful for the experience as I was living it.

But the point is, people are generally good and want to help. When you accept that service or give that service, it brings happiness. And doesn't everyone want to be happy? So get out there and SERVE! :)

Family is Everything

I've written posts about my wonderful family before.  This isn't something new. I really love my family and I enjoy talking to them and talking about them.

One thing I've always worried about is letting people meet my family. Not that my family isn't great, but that they are too great. Meeting the entire Goodworth family all at once can be a little overwhelming. Just ask Chelsea. After only knowing her for a few months, I took her to a Goodworth family party. She got to meet a lot of crazy people in just a short amount of time.

In one of my classes this semester I get to write a family history paper. I thought it would be a perfect chance to talk to my grandma about it all get some awesome stories. So yesterday, I kidnapped Roz and we took a drive up to my grandparent's house.

I lucked out. Not only was my grandma there to tell me stories, but her mom and two sisters were there, too. It was a great chance to hear about where I come from.

I really wanted to hear about my grandma Sorine Christine, mainly because I'm named after her and I really don't know that much about her. I was able to hear stories from my grandma and her two sisters and some input from my great-grandma, who was the daughter-in-law of Sorine Christine. I left with a few files full of pictures and, believe it or not, a CD recording of Sorine Christine talking about her life. I am so stinkin excited to listen to this! :) She was quite an amazing woman and I can't wait to find out more.

Basically, I love my family! They are the most welcoming, loving people I have ever met. They can be a lot to take in, but it is worth it. Example: as soon as I walked in the door, I had four kids hanging off of me. But I know it is because they love me.

Remember the ten-year-old cousin I mentioned here? She is one of the kids who was hanging off me all day. She played 20 questions with me to find out what guy I'm interested in now. Let's just say, its a good thing she lives two hours away and her voice doesn't carry over to Logan. ;)

I could go on and on with stories about the few hours I spent with some of the family. Suffice it to say, they are some of my favorite people in the world. I am so thankful I am a Goodworth. :)

What's in a name?

Lately, there seems to be a lot of confusion about my name. This really shouldn't surprise me, my name has been the same my entire life and it has confused people of all ages. However, what is surprising to me now, is that people I've known for a very long time, suddenly no longer know my name.

When I was born, my dad called up his mom and asked "How do you spell my daughter's name?" I am named after my great, great grandma. Sorine is the Danish spelling of my name. The e is pronounced as an a so it says "Sorina." And that is where the confusion sets in.

I've always just kind of let my name flow. If people don't say it right, that's okay. If I'm going to become friends with them, I can correct them later on. I've been called Serene, Sore-eye-knee, Sigh-knee, Soar-in, and many other versions of Sorine. If people ask, I'll tell them "It's the Danish spelling." and, usually, they will store that information away somewhere in their minds and from that point on they remember how to spell and pronounce my name, even though they may have to think about it for a while first.

However, it is those moments where the people don't make the connection that are most troubling. For example, I worry that people think I just don't know how to spell my name. Maybe they think I made a type-o once and it stuck. Maybe, and this is stretched, they think I have some weird hiccup that only occurs when I say my name "Sorin....UH!"

There comes a point when I just don't feel like correcting people anymore. Especially if it is someone I've corrected many times. It just becomes awkward and embarrassing for the both of us. Instead, I just let them call me what they can remember and I respond to it. Perhaps this isn't the best way to go about it, but it has worked for the most part.

My first year at school, my entire ward called me Soar-in. After introducing myself over and over again (obviously using the correct pronunciation of my name), I got tired of correcting people. I just dealt with the fact that my ward didn't know me very well. It doesn't bother me.

At the beginning of the summer I went to have a camp fire with a group of people. I knew most of them, but I had never really hung out with any of them enough to consider us great friends. However, those that I had met before had gone to high school with me, had classes with me, and should have known me well enough to know how to pronounce my name. Unless they were one of the few I gave up on correcting. We all loaded into one car and as a boy jumped in next to me, he said "Hey Serene! How are you?" I noticed a few of the others give me a look, like how is she going to handle this? I just answered with a "Good, how are you?" This is the same kid who had called me Sabrina the majority of high school. I just figured it was okay, at lest this way he was saying it how it was read. Later, as we all sat around the fire and there was a lull in conversation, he said "Hey, Serene? Remember when I used to call you Sorine (saying my name correctly)? It's a good thing I figured out your real name, huh?" I wasn't sure what to do, so I just said "Actually, Sorine is my real name." It has become a little joke now and since then he has managed to say my name correctly.

Some of these same people have been coming to a YSA family home evening we have every week. Throughout the summer  I've felt myself cringe and seen others cringe as I've heard all the variations of name, wondering how and if I should correct people. A few weeks ago, someone approached me. "So," he said, "is your name Serene or Sorine? I've heard it both ways and whenever I ask people they tell me something different." I realized that maybe I need to start correcting people more. I mean, it doesn't bother me much when someone calls me something else, I'm used to it. But maybe it bothers others to not know my name.

Anyway, the moral of all this is, whatever is easier for you to remember, you can call me that. I will answer to all versions of my name. I won't be offended if you say it wrong or spell it wrong. And I probably won't correct you. So unless you ask, I'm sorry. We'll both have to deal with the awkwardness.

I'm going to be an aunt!!! :D

It is official - the news is out! Whitney and Quint are going to have a baby! :)

Our entire family has been wanting this for a while. So much that some of us (not to mention any names, but Spencer...) even constantly asked them when they were going to make us aunts/uncles. The conversation has turned to babies almost every time we see them. Yet, somehow, we didn't figure it out.

Whitney, however, was sure that everyone knew. While her and I were driving to go do some shopping, she randomly said "So, you know I'm pregnant." It wasn't even a question. I was shocked. I honestly had no idea!

She enlisted me to help inform the family of the great news. This, however, was not an easy task. She wanted to tell them and she wanted it to be sooner rather than later. Since Father's Day was almost here, she came up with a cute idea to write a poem for my Dad telling him that he would soon be a grandpa.

Our family has never really done much for Father's Day. The most exciting Father's Day was when we went to the mountains and ate burnt lasagna and peanut M&M's. So, trying to get the entire family together wasn't easy. Whitney had tried many times to bring it up. But she didn't want everyone to notice that it was a big deal this time.

After much work, we finally got the family together the day before Father's Day. Mitchell was off with his friends, but Whitney called and told him he had to be home for our early Father's Day celebration. He of course didn't know it was so important so it took some work to get him there. He arrived with two of his friends. I looked at Whitney, trying to get her to read my mind. Was she okay with his friends being there for this? She gave me a look as if to say it was as good as it could get.

After opening his other presents (the usual socks, peanut M&M's, and a few other things), she handed him the card. Inside was this poem.

Here we are at the kitchen table,

To understand your humor, some would be unable.

But with the nerdiness we’ve all got,

It sends us running to the pot!

You’ve taught us how to laugh, how to give, how to smile

And to make snickerdoodles every once in a while.

Your teaching did not stop there,

As we sat again in this chair

Studying math, I thought we were done,

Then you said “one more, just for fun."

Outside this time as we played some ball,

Not knowing when I played with other I wouldn’t be good at all.

The confidence stayed with me through life,

Even now, when I am a wife.

You know what next will come,

We’ll be adding to this family some!

With this announcement don’t fall down!

You will soon be the ugliest granddad in town!!

I thought the poem was perfect for our family. Whitney did a great job!

I still don't know how I didn't catch on earlier. At one point, when we were talking about babies and whether we want to know if we will have a boy or a girl and she said "I want to know what I'm having now! ... with all my kids..." And I didn't catch on... haha!

Whether it is a boy or a girl, we are very excited! And we can already tell you this baby will be extremely spoiled! I've already bought a present for it and have planned out other things I will get later on.

So there you have it! The news is out - I'm going to be an aunt! :D

PS You can read my dad's version of this here.

 

 

 



A date, or not a date...

When I started this blog, I didn't think it would become one of those annoying blogs that always posted about dating. However, as I look over my posts, that is what I tend to write about.

After reading just the title to my post "The Way to a Man's Heart", my brother said "Wait, YOU wrote this?" It is hard for him to believe that I have so many thoughts on something with which I am obviously not even slightly successful.

A little background: Since graduating high school three years ago, I've been on four blind dates. I've had one guy ask me on a date. And I've spent a lot of time giving advice to both boys and girls on how to act when it comes to dating. I'm not saying I should become a matchmaker, but I have seen the advice that I've given actually work. Whether that means the couple ended up married, or they ended up FINALLY breaking up. I kind of like to think that I had something to do with it.

Which brings me to my next bit of advice. This is for you, boys.

You see how up in that background it says I've only had one guy ask me on a date? Well, there might be a few people reading this thinking, um, excuse me? I know that isn't true. But here is the deal - it is true.

Guys - texting a girl does NOT count as asking her on a date! And neither does a Facebook message. Technology has ruined the true art of socializing. I know several people who have ended or even started a dating relationship over social media. Whether that is texting, Facebook, or even email. That is just plain stupid! Man up! Call her on the phone, ask her in person, something! We aren't in high school anymore, no need to hide behind a bush waiting to see her response to the heart attack you just left on her lawn. And girls, I don't know about you, but I'd much rather have a guy saying he wants to spend time talking with me rather than spend time texting me. Let him know that! Don't accept a date in that way. Simply say "why don't you call me and try asking that again." And more importantly, don't expect to get away with using technology to turn a guy down. If he had the respect to ask you on a proper date, you'd darn well better have the respect to politely turn him down face to face. Or, better yet, go on the date! Don't turn him down at all.

Think of it this way, boys, if you ask her on a date in a setting where she can hear your voice, she will be more likely to say yes. In the written world, she can easily turn you down without having to hear the disappointment in your voice or have a guilty conscience. When she can hear your voice or see your face, she will feel the fear and must say yes. That's right, you are understanding me correctly - scare her into going on a date with you. It just might be crazy enough to work! ;)

One of the reasons I don't count a "text date" as a real date is because the word "date" is rarely even used. So many girls have come to me saying "He just texted me. Asked me to a movie  - is it a date?" or "He wants to hang out tomorrow, just us, is it a date?" It is so confusing to try and decipher whether or not a guy is interested in you, let alone whether or not he is taking you on a real date or if he just wants someone to talk to. The sad part is, this doesn't happen just in the written world. The confusion can also come through a phone line or even, believe it or not, in a face to face setting. Boys - don't be afraid. Take the girl on an honest to goodness date and let her know you are doing it.

Remember - a date with a girl is no commitment. It is okay to take us on a date when you are only interested in being friends. It is okay to take us on a date and then realize "hey, this girl is boring, I don't think I'll date her again." Or "Man, that girl was just too much! She needs to back off. Think I'll be seeing less of her." Just remember, ask girls on dates and for goodness sake, don't do it in the written world.