I found our last discussion of the semester very enlightening. The part that I found most useful as we talked about aging was that Life is a journey and aging is a part of that journey. There are many challenges that can and do arise as we age in life but there are so many opportunities that we have to grow a better relationship with ourselves, our spouse, children, and our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. I loved as we watched the video of Jon Schmidt and Steven Sharp mixing love song and viva la Vida and the different meaning we can pull from it. such as when we first start out in our marriages we we have this love story going on, we have fallen in love with such an amazing person and we are building that love with each other as we go through our marriage, and then as the song changes to viva la Vida, which means to live life, and we live life through the good and bad, trying to make the best of it and have fun at the same time. than the song switches back to love story suggesting that either we are re-building that love as it has been all over the place throughout the years or we are just continuing to build and strengthen it as we now have new opportunities with our aging years. 

     This week we are talking about divorce, and the many challenges that come as well as the trends that are going on with it today. One thing that we talked about at the beginning was how divorce seems like such a gloomy topic but yet the more that we learn about it, the trends, and issues with it the better off we are in our own marriages. Brother Williams my professor talked about it like this; he said it is like finding out on the news that there has been a road closure, now is that a good or a bad thing. well I said that it could potentially be a bad thing if that is where you were going to travel and now you have to go out of your way. He enlightened me by saying that not only is it not a bad thing but it is in fact a wonderful and amazing thing because now that we know about it we are able to make adjustments and will save a lot of time and even be a little safer in the long run.
     This is the same way with divorce. If we can gain a better knowledge and understanding about divorce, warning signs, and even help methods than we will be able to prevent against it. Not only that but we will also be able to share that knowledge with our children and those around us who might be struggling with their own marriages or who just might be curious.
     Wow isn't that Amazing!!! Just by understanding we can strengthen our marriages and help strengthen others as well, it is a win win situation. We are then able to be better tools in our Heavenly Fathers hands to the blessing or His children.

     As part of our discussion last week on parenting we read an article that had to deal with ministering angels. I have always known that there are ministering angels as well as have heard many stories dealing with that topic but I haven't felt that it has pertained to my life. After I read the article I started to think about all the times that I have received help to make it through something hard or challenging in my life. I know that those who have helped me are those who love and care about me, but being that I don't personally know any of them it hasn't really had much of an impact. Well since my grandpa's passing I have thought about it more and I now wonder how many times he is there helping me and feel great appreciation for him and for my Heavenly Father.
     We are never alone in life no matter how dark it might seem, there is always someone there  to lift our burdens and make them lighter, and Heavenly Father does that through ministering angels, those family members who love and care for us are there cheering us on, and giving us help. This is such a comforting thought to think about and I love it.