No pictures on this post. Just many, many words.
I arrived a few minutes late to Creative Nonfiction today, which frustratingly knocked my grade from 100% to 99.6%. But at least I showed up, and with all my peer review assignments stapled, too.
We finished class early today, and then I headed over to Institute for Mission Prep. Stockton and I made plans to meet on Saturday so he could drive me to the DMV for my driver's license renewal. We'll probably have lunch together, then watch "Much Ado About Nothing" and finally wipe our hands of that play and all the boring assignments that go with it.
I ate in the Aggie Marketplace today. To my surprise I bumped into Stockton there, since I'd assumed he'd gone back to his apartment. He could only stay for about twenty minutes, but it was cool to see him. I ended up staying in the Marketplace for several hours, working on assignments and just generally passing the time until my marketing class at 3:00.
The marketing class revolved around the importance of Pinterest, as told to us by some guest speakers from Pinterest itself (including some holders of high marketing positions, as well as some USU graduates who had gone on to get jobs there). Personally, I don't use Pinterest because it targets a different market- the market of people who like to "plan ahead using aesthetic pictures" and "don't want to do a lot of reading when they shop, because no one wants to spend hours researching a product before they buy it." I'm meticulous about my spending habits and actually do enjoy doing that, as evidenced by the days of research I poured into picking out the exact thermos I wanted to buy myself as a self-indulgent birthday gift.
I'm not in the group participating in the Pinterest case study, so most of the lecture wasn't geared towards me, but it was still interesting to learn why people even bother with Pinterest in the first place, especially since I've always found the website clunky and frustrating to navigate. At the end of class, we were given a heads-up on our next major group project. We were given time to meet and exchange contact information, which was when I realized my phone was nowhere to be found.
Of course, this definitely wasn't good- losing not only my brand new phone and my new wallet case, but all the cards that were IN my wallet case- my student ID, my (now expired) driver's license, and of course, my debit card. I couldn't imagine where I'd left it. I'd thought it was in my hoody pocket, or maybe in my backpack. I'd only spent time in two rooms of the business building, and I couldn't find it anywhere.
I spent the next hour searching frantically. I remembered setting my phone on the table at the Marketplace, so I traveled to the TSC to search for it. No luck. Next I tried the main office next door. No luck there either. Logging into the Find My iPhone site showed me my phone was still in the business building. Thankfully, that app had transferred to my new phone along with the rest of my stuff! I suppose I should have checked it first. One option on the site allows you to send a message to your phone that shows on the screen, so you could say, "This phone is lost, please call my brother at [his phone number] to return it." Unfortunately, I couldn't remember Stockton's number at the top of my head. Instead, I decided to send the message, "Location tracking tells me where this phone is. If you've already found it, please bring it to the main office ASAP and I will be SUPER grateful. Thanks!" Hopefully the fear of being tracked would deter someone from making off with my phone... Though my debit card was still fair game.
I headed back to the business building and searched around again. I knew my phone was still here, because the Find My iPhone site constantly updated its position every minute. The site allows you to click a button and set off a loud pinging noise on your phone at full volume. First, I checked to see if there was a class going on in the marketing classroom (there wasn't) and then set off the noise. No luck, either in there or in the hall just outside. I tried the "office" (Well, the desk) on the fourth floor to see if it had been turned in. No luck there, either. Again, I tried the couch on the first floor where I'd sat down while waiting for class to start. Still no luck.
Frustrated, I opened my laptop and, for some reason, opened my email. I don't even know why I did that, since it was so random, but I found an email saying that someone had turned my phone into the third floor office, and they would only be open until 5:00. I checked the time. Yikes! It was 4:56. I rushed upstairs and made it just in time. The old woman behind the desk handed me my phone and said that she had "Turned it off for me." Whoops. My guess is that the full-volume pinging got on her nerves. I flipped open the wallet and to my delight found all my cards still there. It would have been so, so easy for someone to steal my debit card. Who knows? Maybe they jotted down my information, but really, I'm just glad to get it back. With my phone snuggly in hand, I headed out to catch the bus back to my apartment.
Recap: At the beginning of the semester, I struck up a friendship with one of the bus drivers who usually drives the evening shift. He's wanted to write books for a long time and he's considering majoring in marketing, so one day I grabbed a note card and wrote him some advice about the marketing classes I've taken. Hopefully that was useful for him. We also found out he was driving buses in Juneau, Alaska at the same time my family were vacationing there this August, which is pretty cool. When he introduced himself as Quinton, I laughed because for a long time now, I've wanted to name my future son Quinton. Seriously, it's the only name I've "decided" on for my children at this point and it's not like it's a super common name, so what are the odds? Quinton and I have since become friends and our paths cross on a regular basis- sometimes on the bus and sometimes randomly around campus.
Today, I missed the Purple bus by just a few seconds. The Blue bus was just pulling up. Disappointed that I wouldn't be dropped off right outside my building today, I waved my fist in the air and shouted Quinton's name. I wasn't sure if he was driving at that time, especially that particular bus, but it turns out, he was. I rode the Blue bus to the Stadium, and as I crossed the crosswalk to my apartment, the Purple bus pulled to a stop at the stoplight. Quinton was in the driver's seat, so we exchanged enthusiastic waves.
I returned to my room for only a few minutes to grab the mail key, as well as the recycling bin since the dumpster is right next to our mailbox. The thermos I ordered as a birthday gift for myself was supposed to arrive today, so I was disappointed that it wasn't there. When packages are too big for the mailbox, they get delivered to the front office. I doubted the thermos would be that big, but it was worth a shot. Turns out, my home teacher / minister Gable was the RA on duty. No package for me, but it was cool to check in with him. Plus I finally had the chance to empty the recycling bin, so at least it wasn't a wasted trip.
After returning to my room, I did a lot of thinking. General Conference was this last weekend, of course, and in the final talk, Russel M. Nelson emphasized the importance of referring to members of the Church as exactly that- Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Not Mormons. It's weird how many members I've heard express surprise at this information, since it definitely isn't new. The same instruction has been given for several years now, and I for one have made an active effort to avoid using terms like "Mormons" ever since. Maybe my peers were just too young to remember.
Now, so far in Creative Nonfiction class, we've peer-reviewed several essays that mock the Church. I've complained about this to Stockton a few times, because it seems to me like it definitely wouldn't be viewed as acceptable to write an essay about how all Jews are evil, abusive, and deserve to die. Not with the Holocaust in our past. And it seems like people would react equally badly if you wrote an essay about how Islam is 100% terrible and you hate all Muslims. Some viewpoints are seen as socially acceptable, and sadly, when you live in Utah, hating "Mormons" is definitely one of those acceptable viewpoints. I just don't think I could stand to live in Utah any longer than I had to. I would absolutely prefer to live in an area where the Church isn't well known if it means I don't have to deal with being the "majority group" that's socially acceptable to bash. It will be interesting to hear what viewpoints Stockton comes across while on his mission in Arizona.
The experience of leaving the "cruel, sexist, bigoted constraints" of the "Mormon Church" was a popular essay topic in Creative Nonfiction this week. We peer-reviewed a particularly bitter essay on Tuesday. And of course, the word "Mormon" was thrown about constantly, from the atheists in the class to the Catholics. The other students in the room constantly told the author that they were so glad she had written this strongly-worded essay because it was "all the things they had always wanted to say about the Mormon Church" and how, "No offense to you Mormons, but from the perspective of an outsider, this is exactly how your Church is."
The entire time, I sat in my chair, wracked with guilt. It had literally been two short days since Conference. The prophet had just given us a long talk on the importance of correcting those who choose to use terms such as "Mormons" and "Mormon Church" instead of "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints." After all, we don't worship Mormon. We worship God and Jesus Christ. It was obvious the other members in the room were uncomfortable too, but no one said anything. I agonized for a long time over what to do. Raise my hand and request that everyone switch terms mid-discussion? Quietly tear off a corner of notebook paper and leave an anonymous note on my teacher's desk on the way out?
In the end, I stayed quiet. After all, we HAD to use the word "Mormon" in this discussion, right? It was all over this 10-page paper- It was meant to be from her point of view- The discussion was already messy enough with all the explicit sexual content we were shuffling through- Feelings in the room were already heated- It just "wasn't" the right time to bring it up. Et cetera, et cetera. Besides, it was just one essay, and now it was over.
So I groaned this morning when I checked to see next week's essays to peer-review. You can guess what the topic was: The story of a missionary (who happens to be very closely related to Dallin H. Oaks) who decided to leave the Church without leaving it alone. Which was fine, but a few pages in, his bashing really begins to wear on you. And that word was everywhere. Mormons. Mormons who belong to the Mormon Church.
This didn't feel right.
I spent some time thinking. I watched some cartoons and ate some chocolate, and continued thinking for awhile. Finally, I grabbed my laptop and wrote a message to my Creative Nonfiction teacher that went like this:
Professor,
Before we review [Name]’s essay on Tuesday, I was hoping you could respectfully ask the class to refrain from using terms like “Mormons” and “Mormon Church.”
“Mormons” is officially considered a slur, and hearing the word tossed around last week was notably awkward for many of us in the class. The appropriate term to use is “Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.” “Members” would be acceptable during our Tuesday discussion. Our religion is not called Mormonism, and we worship God our father and his son Jesus Christ, not Mormon. I am perfectly fine with objectively discussing essays that happen to critique my religion, but I would prefer to do it without the slur attached.
I understand that the rest of the class may struggle to make the switch, especially since [Name]’s essay does use the term “Mormons,” but I thought it would be more appropriate for you to address the issue than for me to stand up and do so. Bringing this up will make several people in the class 100% more comfortable, and we would immensely appreciate it.
I realize I am emailing you on Thursday and you won't see us again for several days. If you forget to mention it on Tuesday, I won't hold it against you, but I and several others in the class would be very grateful for your support in creating a comfortable environment for everyone.
Thank you very much,
Maysen Smith
Later he responded,
Thanks, Maysen. I will.
(I really appreciate this email and will have to adjust!)
I was pretty satisfied with that answer. I felt a lot better after the message was sent. After thinking it over for awhile, I wondered if Heavenly Father helping me find my phone - and everything in my wallet - might have been a blessing granted to me because He knew I would make a stand for Him and His church tonight. I don't believe there was necessarily a cause-and-effect relationship there, but I was very grateful I could prove to Heavenly Father that I am willing to follow His commandments, even when I have to step outside my comfort zone to do so. We'll see how things go on Tuesday.
The rest of the night was spent finishing some assignments ahead of time and working on these last three blog posts. I have two projects due on October 18th, the day before Fall Break, and one class project due Fall Break at midnight. Those will all require time and energy, so it's nice to knock the small assignments out early and focus on my daily readings.
This post is nice and big, so I'm glad I got it done tonight and didn't push it off any later. Despite my months of inactivity on my blog, I felt especially prompted to tell the story about this day. Not to mention, I just had a birthday I could share as well. I really do believe it will be a blessing for me to get back into the habit of blogging every day. So far, so good.
