He had been swimming all day and refused to take his swimsuit off when it was time to go to dinner. His reasoning was very simple, "I am who I am and I don't care".

I wish that was the first thought that came into my head when doing things I want to do. I wish it was easier to just accept ourselves for who we are regardless of what anyone thinks. We don't need to change anything about ourselves to fit in or be accepted in the world. You are who you are and that's exactly who you need to be. 

As I sat there thinking about what he said I realized he wasn't wrong. I'm no exception. Life isn't fair. Not for me. Not for anyone. 

Especially not our savior Jesus Christ. He was completely innocent, yet he had to suffer the most.

As an imperfect person, I am so happy life isn't fair. 

"If life were truly fair, you and I would never be resurrected; you and I would never be able to stand clean before God. In this respect, I am grateful that life is not fair." (Elder Renlund, April 2016)

But the best part is that because of the atonement of Jesus Christ, in the end, there will be no unfairness. Everything that is unfair in life can be made right.

Christ took more than just our sins upon him in the Garden of Gethsemane. He took upon himself ALL our pain and suffering.

Every migraine I've ever had that reached a 10 on the pain scale and left me crying in a hospital, he has felt. Every moment of sadness that made me question my will to live, he has felt. The atonement may not remove trials or take away our infirmities but I believe if we use our gift and rely on our savior Jesus Christ, he can lessen our pain and the unfairness we think we are experiencing. I have felt the relief the atonement can bring. I know of its comfort and peace. Though I may not deserve it, I know that my body will be made perfect. 

I am so grateful that "Through God’s compassion, kindness, and love, we will all receive more than we deserve, more than we can ever earn, and more than we can ever hope for." (Elder Renlund, April 2016)

My mom recently told me the story of the infected toe. A father was going through a very hard time in his life, he had been praying to God for a relief of his suffering and he felt like he hadn't been getting answers. He took his kids to the beach on vacation and the first day he was here, his son cut his toe. After four days at the beach, the cut didn't heal properly and became infected. The father eventually had to go to take his son to the doctor. Through great wisdom the little boy's father told him, "It has to hurt before it gets better." As he told his son these powerful words, he felt God tell him the same thing. It has to hurt before it can get better. 

All I can say is, boy does it hurt right now. But as Elder Dallin H Oaks said in conference today, "Our mortal life was never meant to be easy or consistently pleasant... Opposition permits us to grow towards what our Heavenly Father would have us become." 

The experiences I've had over the past few months have been painful and unpleasant. Often I have felt as though I was losing progress, back tracking, and being cut down but I know I've experienced these things for a reason. I know that it has to hurt before it gets better. I may feel small for a short amount of time but when I am as big, full, and beautiful as a rose bush who has experienced similar pruning shears, I will be thankful for the pain I had before the relief. I will thank my master for the trials I faced that made me who I am.

I echo what Elder Jeffrey R. Holland said today.

All things work together for those who love God.

So keep loving.

Keep trying.

Keep trusting.

Keep believing.

Keep growing.

Heaven is cheering you on today, tomorrow, and forever.

xo, jaymo

 1. Learn to accept the apologies you never got. This is how you move on.

 2. Enjoy the rain without it we would have no rainbows.

 3. Home is a feeling not a place.

 4. You are not searching for your "other half" because you are not a half. You are a whole. You are enough.

 5. You will never pass the "test" of life with 100%. 

 6. Never regret anything. Every mistake is a new chance to learn something.

 7. Your relationship with God is just that, yours. Don't let anyone try and tell you what God says you need to do. Listen to him yourself.

 8. You can find just about any excuse not to do something. Try and find reasons to do it!

 9. Nothing in life is coincidence. Everything happens for a reason.

 10. You are exactly where YOU need to be. It doesn't matter where your best friend is or your worst enemy. Never compare your life to others. Your path in life is your own. It will never look the same as anyone else's.

 11. Never compare yourself to others. We are all unique in our own way.

 12. Social media is not real. We only show others our very best self and that is all they show us. Don't compare your bloopers to some else's highlight reel.

 13. It doesn't matter where you're going as long as you're trying to get somewhere.

 14. Don't waste sunsets with people who won't be around for the sunrise.

 15. I think God has a sense of humor and I think life is meant to be funny. People take it too seriously.

 16. There are people who genuinely care about you and there are people who are just curious. The sooner you know the difference the better.

 17. It is not selfish to focus on yourself. Sometimes we focus so hard on what other people need, we forget to focus on what we need.

 18. Sometimes what we think we need is completely opposite of what we really need.

 19. Make plans but be flexible. Life seldom turns out the way we plan it.

 20. Trust in God. He knows what he is doing.