Conclusion

I learned that you have to think about who may be reading your blog. You need to picture your audience and kind of put yourself in their shoes. Think about if they will have any questions, or if you need to explain things in better detail. You need to make your blog interesting otherwise you wont attract any followers. Also, our blog needs to catch the readers eye, make it look exciting and creative.... and you need to make sure your blog is readable and doesn't have "to much", causing your audience to move on to someone else's blog.
Through doing this assignment, I learned how to blog, because I never have before. I also learned that you can read and learn about interesting topics, and that there is a diverse number of topics that anyone in the world can post about.

Party Time!

So this past weekend was the best weekend EVER!!! I met so many awesome people, had walking dead marathons, went to a party, played Gatorade pong, went to a dance party at a friends house, went hot tubing and swimming, and tried my first ever ENERGY DRINK!! It was the night of the party and my best friend Melanie and I had already had a really long day, and we needed a pick me up. So, being the rebel that I am (haha), I tried a 5-hour energy drink. It was SOO GROSS! But, it sure did work! Haha... good times, good times! :D

Festival of Colors

The Festival of Colors was SOOOOOOOOOO much fun!! I would recommend that everyone go at least once in their life time, it is soooo worth it. What is it? you might ask... well I'll tell you. "In India Holi announces the arrival of spring and the passing of winter. It is a festival that breathes an atmosphere of social merriment. People bury their hatchets with a warm embrace and throw their worries to the wind. Every nook and corner presents a typically colorful sight. Young and old alike are covered with colors (red, green, yellow, blue, black and silver). People in small groups are seen singing, dancing and throwing colors on each other.  Colors are thrown every 2 hours." - Wikipedia. So, pretty much, everyone wears all white and you throw a bunch of colored chalk at each other, its great!!

Personal Narrative

On the Road to Surgery

 “Rachel Hollan?” the teacher questioned.

My eyes bolt to the door, am I in trouble, I don’t remember doing anything wrong, and why do I feel guilty?

 “Gather your things and then come down to the office. There’s a message for you from your mother,” she continued.

I drag my feet over to my chair, eyes fixed on the blue colored carpet that had bits and pieces of red and green, the same carpet that every school invests in. I wave goodbye to my friends as I exit the choir room. I had been in directed study, one of my favorite classes because it was pretty much just a free study period, and my teacher, the choir director, let us do whatever we wanted. It was the time of the day that I got to spend with my two best friends and just talk, braid each other's hair, make bracelets, and help Ms. Nugyen organize and put away sheet music.

I’m almost to the office by now, I stopped at my locker to put my books away, I didn’t want to carry them, too heavy! I round the corner and glide through the office door as it swings open and hits the wall, “woops” I announced.

I searched the office for a face that had the explanation for ruining my perfectly good girl time with my friends. I looked at Mrs. Wakefield, our middle school receptionist. The look on her face puzzled me; she looked worried and really sad. “What was going on” I thought.

“It’s time Rachel, I’m so sorry,” Mrs. Wakefield released.

My heart dropped and I felt like my stomach was going to burst through my throat, I started balling. My head fell to meet my shaking hands as I sat on a small, rickety chair against the wall. She came over and put her arm around my shoulders, it was kind of awkward since I didn’t really know her to well, but it was nice having someone there. After gathering myself back together, she started walking me back to my locker to get all my school books and belongings.  As I was approaching my locker, I saw my two best friends, Sadie and Rachel walking down the hallway in a swift manner; they had come to see what was going on. They saw that my face was raw with tears and ran to my side.

“What’s wrong Rachel?” they both asked in unison, one on either side of me.

“I’m going to the Mayo Clinic.” I answered, only wishing those words hadn’t been true. Both the girls looked down to the floor with the feeling of agony in their eyes, they knew this day would come, they just didn’t know when. Sadie helped me pack up my backpack as Rachel stood close to me, keeping her hand on my shoulder, comforting me with the fact that she would always be there for me. Us three girls walked with linked arms together to the entrance doors of the school, Mrs. Wakefield was tagging behind. I gave my friends a HUGE hug, not wanting to let go. Mrs. Wakefield opened the door for me, wished me luck, and said goodbye. I waved behind me as I walked down the chalky colored sidewalk to my mom’s car. I hopped in the passenger seat and starred longingly out the window, wondering when I would return back to my friends, my teachers, my school… my normal life.

“I started packing some things for you,” my Mom said, breaking the silence.

“Mmmk, thanks” I puffed. We pulled into the driveway; I wobbled out of the car and went inside to get something to eat.

“Dr. Moir wants to see you today, so we need to leave in less than an hour. Do want to bring your things up to my room and then we can pack them together?” my Mom sweetly asked.

“Ya that’s fine, what do I all need to bring?” I asked.

“Well, enough clothes to last you a couple weeks, comfy clothes, we can do laundry there. Your toiletries, homework, anything else you want to bring to work on,” my Mom stated.

“K, I’ll start bringing my stuff up then”, I replied. I went to my room, turned on some music and started emptying my closet; I tend to over pack, especially when I’m in a rush or stressed. We got the car packed up, my brothers and sisters came home from school, and my dad came home from work. We gathered in the living room and my dad gave me a Priesthood blessing. Everyone was in tears; the spirit was so strong that day.

“Everything is going to be fine, Rachel. I’ve been through it and I turned out alright didn’t I? Haha” Olivia smartly remarked.

“I’ll miss you Rachy!” my little brother Matthew cried.

“Everything is going to be alright Rachel” my older brother Michael reassured me.

We all hugged each other goodbye as tears were still streaming down our faces. Even though I would be seeing my family in a couple days when they came up to Rochester, Minnesota, I still didn’t want to leave without them.

On the road we went, it was silent in the car. Mom was driving speedily, and by speedily I mean she was speeding…. A LOT! I was staring out the window, watching the fields of corn and wheat flow with the wind as we whooshed by. About seven hours later, accompanied by lots of junk food, numerous Brian Regan CD’s, mother daughter chatting in the car, and singing along to the radio… we finally made it to Rochester, Minnesota and got checked into our hotel.

“Hurry and change, we have to get over to the hospital as soon as we can, Moir wants to meet with you today!” My mom stress-fully informed me as she hurriedly unpacked her suitcases.  

“OK”, I replied as I ran to the bathroom to start getting ready.

Our hotel was right across from the hospital, so we just walked over. The hospital was breath taking, it was so elegantly decorated. I couldn’t stop turning my head back and forth finding new things to gaze at. I felt like I was at Disney World or New York or something. But the fact that I was there for a life altering surgery brought me back to reality and the emotions started welling up. We arrived at the elevators and headed to the fourteenth floor. We checked in and got in with Dr. Moir within about ten minutes.  

“Well hello! You guys made it!” Dr. Moir brightly exclaimed.

“Why is he so dang happy” I thought, I’m in a terrible mood.  

“Yes, we did!” My mom sighed. The people in the room gave off a chuckle.

“So things aren’t going to well for you, are they Rachel?” Dr. Moir questioned.

“Yaaaa…” I shortly responded.

“Well I guess we knew this day would most likely come, we just didn’t think it would come so quickly compared to your sister. So tomorrow will be a prep day and then Friday we’ll do the surgery. I don’t know how much you will enjoy tomorrow, most patients don’t enjoy it, but maybe you will. Haha!”  Moir smirked. “You’re going to be drinking a lot of cleansing fluids to get your body completely drained out. One of the solutions tastes like lemonade, so it shouldn’t be too bad. We don’t want any waste left in your body, so you will be in the bathroom for a good chunk of your day. Your nurses have medication prescribed by me that you will need to take throughout…” Moir continued on.

“Ugh, I hate doctor visits. When you’re sitting in their office, they always go on and on and tell you every single, little, tiny detail about your procedure. And yes I know it’s all important information, but let’s be honest, am I really going to remember all of this information. That’s what nurses are for, right?!” I thought as Moir kept lecturing me about the next few days. All I wanted to do was go home, I hate hospitals so much.

Finally after a couple hours of constant conversation and friendly banter between my mom and the doctors, we were finally released and my mom and I headed off to dinner. After dinner, we got back to the hotel, gathered my things, and went back to the hospital, where I was admitted to my room in pediatrics. Nurses were in and out all night, connecting things to me, giving me IVs, waking me up every couple hours to give me medication and take my blood pressure, etc. It was finally morning, six in the morning that is. I barely slept; I’d been dreading this day all night… the Prep Day.

“How’d you sleep last night Rachel?” a nurse thoughtfully asked.

“Alright,” I plainly said.

“Well, Dr. Moir said to start prepping you as soon as possible, so here is the plan. We have a lemonade substance that you will need to drink all day, it’s going to clean every last bit of food or substance out of your body. Also we have…” the nurse proceeded to give me a shorter version of what I had already been told by Moir the day before. “So start drinking! Haha!” she exclaimed as she left the room.

“Well Rach, you heard the nurse, start drinking. We don’t want any complications like what happened with your sister, so make sure you do everything and anything the nurses tell you” my mom commanded.

“I’m scared to taste it, what if its super gross like the other stuff I had to drink?” I sacredly admitted.

“Oh Rach, come on, it’s just lemonade” my mom added.

“Fine” I said.

I poured a glass of the substance and took a big gulp, I was pretty thirsty. As soon as the liquid passed my taste buds, I jumped of my bed, almost pulling out one of my IVs and ran to the sink to spit it out.

“RACH!!” my mom exclaimed.

I was almost throwing up in the sink.

“That was the worst thing I have every tasted in my entire life Mom!! You try it!” holding out the cup to my mom. She took a sip and also had the same look of disgust on her face, but willingly swallowed her gulp.

“See Rach, if I can do it, you can do it. But I will admit, it is pretty bad. I’m really sorry hunny, but you have to drink everything Moir prescribed or else you won’t be ready for tomorrow. And we don’t want any more complications do we?” my mom added.

“Ughhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, alright. Whatever! This is stupid” I groaned with an attitude.

Hours passed, as liters and liters of the disgusting substance went through my body. Soon the sun was setting and the rest of my family had arrived. As I finished up the last doses of all the medications and fluids, my brothers and sisters wished me luck and said goodbye for the night. I told my mom that she didn’t have to stay overnight with me in the hospital again, so my dad stayed instead.  My mom talked to me for a while and then kissed me goodnight and said “See you soon sweetie, I love you so much.”

Everyone was gone except for my dad. We talked for a while about my experiences thus far since I had arrived, and we shared a few laughs. Then he talked to me about what to expect when I wake up from everything in a couple days. I was scared out of my mind, I was pretty much going to be in a-coma for two days due to morphine and other pain medications.

“Everything is going to be alright Rachel. The Lord will be with you and will send His Spirit to comfort you. The Lord knows what you are going through and how you will feel when you are done. He’s been through it all and is here to ease your pain and stress. I love you Rachel, just as our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ does. Every trial you encounter has a purpose. The Lord only gives us trials that He knows we can overcome and He believes in you Rachel.” my dad testified. As he finished up his testimony I was already balling my eyes out. We sat for a while, just holding each other in our arms, crying tears of sadness, because of how scared I was, and tears of joy, because of the great blessings of the gospel that we have in our church. My dad gave me a final priesthood blessing before we headed off to bed.

“RISE AND SHOUT THE COUGARS ARE OUT ALONG THE TRAIL TO FAME AND GLORY!” my dad shouted to wake me up.

“Uhhhhh,” I groaned, as I sat up in my extremely uncomfortable hospital bed. “Today’s the day” I thought to myself.  “Thanks for that dad,” I smirked.

“Alright here is you last dose of medication and then we’ll wheel you off in about thirty minutes,” the nurse informed me as she entered my room.

Soon my mom arrived and we all waited patiently for the doctors to come.

“Are you ready Rachel?” Dr Moir asked as he entered my room with his surgical staff, all dressed in their light blue scrubs.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” I replied.

I got on my transport bed and was wheeled through the long hallways of the Mayo Clinic. My parents followed close behind. Soon we neared my exit.

“Alright mom and dad, you can’t pass any further than this point, so I’ll leave you all to say your goodbyes” the kind nurse informed us.

I was strapped in my bed, lying on my back, cords going in and out of me.

“You’re going to do great Rachel, we’ll see you soon. We love you sooooo much!” my parents reassured me. They both gave me a big hug and kiss goodbye, with tears streaming down their faces.

The nurses wheeled me off and I watched my parents disappear. As I got into surgery, I was overcome with this wonderful feeling that everything was really going to be okay. My parents were right, the Lord was watching over me. And at that moment, I knew that families were made for a very important reason, to help us and comfort us through the trials we have to face in our lives. The love and support we receive from our family members can never be replaced.

General Conference Analysis

Our Homes and Families Need Reforming

M. Russell Ballard, a member of the Quorum of the 12, was the second Speaker in the Sunday afternoon session of the 2012 April General Conference. The main topic he focused on was how our homes and families need to be reformed. He talked about how the priorities in homes today have changed throughout the years. For example, he explained how more and more families have two working parents, and how family values are being degraded. He said, “It is our homes and families that need reforming in this increasing materialistic and secular world.” He also talked about how there is an ever growing gap between the rich and poor, thus causing troubling trends to increase, such as: inequality in schooling, health care, the work force, etc. He brought up the issue that more than half of all marriages in the United States end in divorce. He noted that when families attend church, keep gospel doctrines and show more love towards those around them, divorce rates will decrease. He emphasized how we need strong families who will stick together through thick and thin. He said, “Society at large is strengthened as families grow stronger. Commitments to family and values are the basic cause, nearly everything else is effect.” He then listed four points about how we can strengthen our homes and families. First: give your children responsibilities in the home. Don’t force your children to do things; give them the responsibility to do their own work so the power rests in their hands. Second: we need to do things in the right order. He specifically mentioned how we need to marry first before we start a family. By doing that, families will be happy and healthy. If you have children before you are married, complications may arise, involving if you plan on marrying your partner and if not, who will keep the child, and so on. Third: husbands and wives are equal partners. Both the husband and wife have equal responsibilities to fulfill when starting and raising a family. Fourth: use the family resources of the church. He said that the church is the scaffolding with which we build families. We will always have a spirit guiding and directing us. He talked about the liahona and how it was used to guide and direct those in the olden times, but it only worked if those who wished to use it were righteous. He closed his talk by talking about how through the Savior and His atoning sacrifice we can return back to our heavenly home, which ultimately is the greatest illustration of a righteous, loving home. He said, “Brothers and Sisters, the most important cause of our lifetime is our families. If we will devote ourselves to this cause, we will improve every other aspect of our lives, and will become as a people and as a church, an example and a beacon for all peoples of the earth.”

April Fools Day!

Soooo... today was April Fools day. And we pulled a prank on the boys apartment. I WAS SOOO MUCH FUN!!!! So after ward prayer, the boys had a building meeting so they all were down in the RA's apartment. We went upstairs to the boys apartment and took all of there dirty silverware and duct taped them all to the ceiling. Then we went into my friend dan's room, took his mattress and put it in the shower, piled ALLLLL of his clothes on his bed underneath his comforter, put a star wars clone head at on the pillow and  put a caution cone in his door way. We opened all the blinds so we could watch everything happen. Then we all snuck out the front, went to a different apartment across the street from dan's, and then watched eagerly for their reaction. Finally the boys building meeting got over and dan and his roommates headed into their apartment. Their reaction was THE BEST!!! They were mind blown, they just kept walking around the apartment wondering who put all their silverware up on the ceiling. Then they closed the blinds and we didn't get to witness anymore. And surprisingly, none of the boys from that apartment ever figured out it was us girls who pranked them. It was a great day!

I dont know the title yet...but this is my Personal Narrative.

Teacher 1: “Rachel Hollan.”

My eyes bolt to the door, am I in trouble, I don’t remember doing anything wrong, and why do I feel guilty?

Teacher 1: “Gather your things and then come down to the office. There’s a message for you from your mother.”

I drag my feet over to my chair, eyes fixed on the blue colored carpet that has bits and pieces of red and green, the same carpet that every school invests in… I wave goodbye to my friends as exit my choir room. I had been in directed study, one of my favorite classes because it was pretty much just a free study period, but my teacher, the choir director, let us do whatever we wanted. It was the time of the day that I got to spend with my 2 best friends and just talk, braid each other’s hair, make bracelets, and help Ms. Nugyen organize and put away sheet music.

I’m almost to the office by now, I stopped at my locker to put my books away, I didn’t wanna carry them, too heavy! I round the corner and glide through the office door as it swings open and hits the wall, “woops” I announced. I searched the office for a face that had the explanation for ruining my perfectly good girl time with my friends. I looked at Mrs. Wakefield, our middle school receptionist. The look on her face puzzled me, she looked worried and really sad. “What was going on” I thought.

“It’s time Rachel, I’m so sorry.” Mrs. Wakefield released.

My heart dropped and I felt like my stomach was going to burst through my throat, I started balling. My head fell to meet my shaking hands as I sat on a small, rickety chair against the wall to my right. She came over and put her arm around my shoulders, it was kind of awkward since I didn’t really know her to well, but it was nice having someone there. After gathering myself back together, she started walking me back to my locker to get all my school books and belongings.  As I was approaching my locker, I saw my two best friends, Sadie and Rachel walking down the hallway in a swift manner; they had come to see what was going on. They saw that my face was raw with tears and ran to my side.

“What’s wrong Rachel?” they both asked in unison, one on either side of me.

“I’m going to the Mayo Clinic.” I answered, only wishing those words hadn’t been true. Both the girls looked down to the floor with the feeling of agony in their eyes, they knew this day would come, they just didn’t know when. Sadie helped me pack up my backpack as Rachel stood close to me, keeping her hand on my shoulder, comforting me with the fact that she would always be there for me. Us three girls walked with linked arms together to the entrance doors of the school with Mrs. Wakefield tagging behind. I gave my friends a HUGE hug, not wanting to let go. Mrs. Wakefield opened the door for me, wished me luck, and gave me a nice huge goodbye. I waved behind me as I walked down the chalky colored sidewalk to my mom’s car. I hopped in the passenger seat and starred longingly out the window, wondering when I would return back to my friends, teachers, school, and my normal life.

“I started packing some stuff for you,” my mom said, breaking the silence.

“Mmmk, thanks” I puffed. We pulled into the driveway, I wobbled out of the car and went inside to get something to eat.

“Dr. Moir wants to see you today, so we need to leave in less than an hour. Do want to bring your things up to my room and then we can pack them together?” my mom sweetly asked.

“Ya that’s fine, what do I all need to bring?” I asked.

“Well, enough clothes to last you a couple weeks, comfy clothes, we can do laundry there. Your toiletries, homework, anything else you want to bring to work on” my mom stated.

“K, I’ll start bringing my stuff up then”, I replied. I went to my room, turned on some music and started emptying my closet; I tend to over pack, especially when I’m in a rush or stressed. We got the car packed up, my brothers and sisters came home from school, and my dad came home from work. We gathered in the living room and my dad gave me a Priesthood blessing. Everyone was in tears; the spirit was so strong that day. My mom and I walked down the stairs and out to the car.

“Everything is going to be fine, Rachel. I’ve been through it and I turned out alright didn’t I? Haha” Olivia smartly remarked. “I’ll miss you Rachy!” my little brother Matthew cried. “Everything is going to be alright Rachel” my older brother Michael reassured me. We all hugged each other goodbye as tears were still streaming down our faces. Even though I would be seeing my family in a couple days when they came up to Rochester Minnesota, I still didn’t want to leave without them.

On the road we went, it was silent in the car. Mom was driving speedily, and by speedily I mean she was speeding…. A LOT! I was staring out the window, watching the fields of corn and wheat flow with the wind as we whooshed by. About seven hours later, accompanied by lots of junk food, numerous Brian Regan CD’s, mother daughter chatting in the car, and singing along to the radio… we finally made it to Rochester Minnesota, and got checked into our hotel. “Hurry and change, we have to get over to the hospital as soon as we can, Moir wants to meet with you today!” My mom stressfully informed me. “K”, I replied.

Our hotel was right across from the hospital, so we just walked over. The hospital was breath taking, it was so elegantly decorated. I couldn’t stop turning my head back and forth finding new things to gaze at. We arrived at the elevators and headed to the 14 floor. We checked in and were in with Dr. Moir within about ten minutes.  

“Well hello! You guys made it!” Dr. Moir brightly exclaimed. “Why is he so dang happy”, I thought, I’m in a terrible mood.  “Yes, we did!” My mom sighed. The room chuckled. “So things aren’t going to well for you, are they Rachel?” Dr. Moir questioned. “Yaaaa…” I shortly responded. “Well I guess we knew this day would most likely come, we just didn’t think it would come so quickly compared to your sister. So tomorrow will be a prep day and then Friday we’ll do the surgery. I don’t know how much you will enjoy tomorrow, most patients don’t enjoy it, but maybe you will. You’re going to be drinking a lot of cleansing fluids to get you’re completely cleaned out. We don’t want any waste left in your body, so you will be in the bathroom for a good chunk of your day” he stated as the other attendants in the room gave off a little giggle. “One of the solutions you will be drinking from when you wake up till you go to bed tomorrow night is called ____________... it tastes like lemonade so it shouldn’t be too bad. Your nurses have medication prescribed by me that you will need to take throughout…”