FOL - Orangejello and the Oranges

I have not been good with writing in my journal or on my blog this summer. I have not done that much with life since I moved back to Utah, but I need to start. The 22nd of August through the 24th were among the best days this year. I finally became an FOL counselor. I was assigned a group of four boys and seven girls. They would soon become the coolest freshman in the world. From the ropes course to the Aspen Follies activities, we learned how to become a team and trust in one another. The purpose of FOL is to teach one another that we can all be leaders. I watched and admired the courage that each of them took as the accomplished task after task. I was impressed with there attitude and behavior that I was jealous of who they were going to become. The football rally made me more jealous because being a freshman is the best. However, I turned my behavior into an opportunity to harness the freshman spirit this year. Our night activities consisted of a dance the first night and then a trust walk on Tuesday. It was an experience I will never forget. I never had been on one before, so it was interesting that I was leading one. Corrine and I took them around and split them in groups and created situation were they had to be alone. One moment stuck out above all others. I had spaced each kid out on my side of creek, so that each of them were alone. I stood in the middle and sang "Come Follow Me." The only person to come was Stephen. When he came over, I asked him to take of his blindfold and join me as a shepherd. We worked together to safely escort the rest to a log. It was amazing to watch Stephen become that leader among men.

Sadly, FOL had to end sometime. However, it ended with a bang as fears were broken in order to accomplish the goals behind them. All of this is better explained in my video that I made for my kids. Another event that stood was Jenessa! I told three groups to vote for Jenessa Hutchins for the purely positive award. Guess what!!! She won it! I went nuts!

Story #2

(Ryan) On a mid-morning's eve, Hutch had risen early to accomplish his chores. Though his chores would not take long, he still wished to be finished as soon as possible. For this single purpose, he thought of various activities that he could do throughout the day. He first thought of going on a stroll through Hyde Park after grabbing a bite at Beth's Bakery. Beth's bakery was one of the most delicious bakeries in the valley. As hutch approached Beth's bakery, he noticed that Beth was working. That might not come as a surprise to you since it is her bakery; however, her sister usually is working the floor. Hutch strolled in nervously and walked right up to Beth. Beth was busy working on preparing some pastries, but with the ring of the door's bell, she paused. Hutch was slowly approaching the counter when he noticed her gaze. The first words out of Beth;s mouth was how can I help you?

(Sarah) Beth realized there was nothing she could do to help the situation. So, she ran into the mountains and began performing a Sound of Music ballad all by herself. In the mean time, Hutch realized he had an undeniable need for a pet elephant. His best opinion was to kidnap one from the zoo. So, he headed towards the zoo. (Ryan) When Hutch arrived to the zoo, he no longer saw Beth. He was lost among raging animals. Raging sounds strong, but the monkeys were loud and obnoxious. Sister appeared around the corner and told me that Beth had been kidnapped by the Gorillas. The first thought that came to mind was Tarzan, but reversed. Beth would soon become a Gorilla women and Hutch would be the man who is just fascinated with primates. As soon as sister told Hutch, Hutch ran to the aid of Beth. Hutch knew he could help her, but there was no time to lose. Hutch ran for hours until he arrived at the cave of wonders.

(Sarah) Upon reaching the cave, Hutch realized he was the murderer. oh no!! Luckily, he was able to find the goblet of fire in the cave. This would come very useful in the future. Beth and Hutch took the goblet and ran to find sister. They got caught in a terrible storm. Luckily, Zadie had shared her pet monkey with them. The monkey had magical powers and saved them from the storm. Now the question was: what to do about the murder.  (Ryan) Who the heck is the murderer? Hutch obviously the first pick, but was on his way to find Beth. He could not have done it. Hutch was finally able to slip past the police. He kept searching for Beth by a tree. Beth was overlooking the city. I asked her how she managed to escape the zoo, but she would not speak. I made my way to the front of Beth and noticed the blood. I asked, but no word. The girl who I had admired my whole life could not have done it. I justified every reasoning in my head  before I continued to speak. Hutch was distraught, but could notice that Beth was worse. He aided her and id what he thought he had to do in this time of struggle. She was everything I knew to be true, but she came as a thief in the night and I knew there was nothing I could do. I had to turn her in.

Story by Ryan and Sarah

The point of this game was to write two sentences, fold the paper, so that the next writer could only see the last line. Based off of this information, the writer must continue the story.


Here is the first of two stories:

(Sarah) It was the best of times; it was the worst of times. Because this made no sense, everyone just decided this time was the best. Beth and Hutch were on a vacation across Euro pe. (Ryan)The trek across Europe was obviously going to be hard, especially, since Beth would ask for piggy-back rides every thirty minutes. However, Hutch did not care. The trek began in my homeland, actually our journey began in Edinburgh. But suddenly there was a change of plans. (Sarah) Hutch's flight was delayed by wild dragons, snakes on the plane, and Jell-o across the runway. What was to become of the trip? (Ryan) The better question is what is going to become of Hutch and Beth? The trip has been worthwhile; however, I heard the Romans still practice slavery. (Sarah) Hutch saw this as a great opportunity. He totally turned his back on Beth and sold her to a senile school teacher who would force Sarah to sell sea shells by the shore for the rest of her sucky life. Beth was furious! (Ryan) of course Beth was furious that I would not makeout with her. ha! I would have kissed her if she was a Roman. Hutch was a slave who aspired to overthrow the Romans. (Sarah) What Hutch did not realize is that there was no way he could overthrow the Romans because the senile school teacher had cursed him for being so mean to Beth. Hutch began to prepare provisions while in Florence. Naturally, he was distracted by the appealing leather man purses sold there. (Ryan) Hutch is in love with man purses; however, his new love is capris. As a slave, you cannot own any items such as capris, but Beth would allow Hutch to have them. Good thing Beth is soon to be noticed by Caesar as his daughter (Caesar tried to deny it for years, but he is the father). (Sarah) Beth was so happy to find the school teachers father. They quickly became so enthralled with singing opera about embracing each other that Beth was able to escape. Oh sweet freedom! Now, she just needed to get revenge on Hutch. (Ryan) Why would Beth want revenge? War, what is it good for...absolutely nothing. Love is a battlefield.

Pictures of Rome

Rome then Home

I do not know where to start. I have not wrote a blog entry for some time now. I had mix feelings about Rome. I loved it and at the same time I wish I was back in Florence. From the Vatican to the Forum and Coliseum, Rome has it all. Besides the sites, I found other reasons to love Rome: Sarah Beth. However, I learned that Rome is a city with too many people in it. A city that has millions of tourists a year should have more than two metro trains. In the end, I believe I loved Rome. Some of my favorite events occurred when I was off by myself. When my group and I were walking around the forum, I walked ahead of the group and just thought to myself. Following that time of solace, we ran into a gay parade that reminded me of the importance of the family.

Another event that I enjoyed while by myself was in the gardens near Flamino square. We had a large group that had planned on having a spiritual meeting, but instead of sticking with them, I walked off. I wondered around the park and took picture after picture until I found a bench to ponder on. My last wondering event occurred on Monday night at the Coliseum. I decided to walk around the Coliseum instead of sitting on the wall with everyone else. I reflected on the trip and how I was going to miss it, but I thought about the adventures to come and how much fun life is going to be because of this trip.


In conclusion to my trip, Rome was a great end to something that was well worth the time and finance. I will always remember this experience and I hope to reflect on it in the future. I learned much and have been blessed for the knowledge that I have gained.

Pescara to Rome

Our drive from Parma to Pescara was incredible. Besides the fact that we were on a bus for a couple, the journey was worth it. We were blessed with a business visit along the way, so the drive was not that bad. We met with Brioni. Brioni functions much like Ducati. The whole factory line was interesting to see due to the fact that only humans deal with production process and not machines. I do not think I would have the patience to do what any of those women and men were doing. I did not understand all the random stitches, but the final product was incredible. I would not be able to tell the difference between a suit and a Brioni suit unless I could wear the suit. Our tour guide allowed me to try on a suit jacket and it felt amazing. The weight and the feel of the material made my missions suits look like play toys. ha! The suit jacket alone was $3,000 dollars, so I do not think I will ever be buying one soon, but it was nice to at least try one on.

After Brioni, we made our way to Pescara. The drive to Pescara was fun. I had planned on sitting next to Sarah, but instead I sat next to Christina. We talked the whole way there about the temple and other gospel topics. I feel like I have talked about the gospel a ton on this trip due to individuals like Christina and Adam. Adam loves to bring up the gospel and just talk about what prophets and apostles have said.

When we finally arrived in Pescara, we were all blown away. Out hotel was located across the street from the beach. Pescara is located on the eastern coastline of Italy. Everyone was excited to jump in the water due to the fact that we were at a beach and who can say they have swam in the Adriatic Sea. Sarah, Ashlyn, Bristal, and I enjoyed dinner before we jumped into the water. Where we ate was very convenient. The pizza shop was just a couple yards from our hotel. From the pizza, we went to the water. The water temperature was perfect as well as the sunset. Swimming was very easy because of the sodium levels.

At the conclusion of the night, we all went to a gelato shop that was yet again near our hotel. It was by far the cheapest place we have gone to this whole trip. It was good, but not the best that we have had though.

Italy Photos