Week 5 Blog

This week we have been discussing preparation for marriage, there are many things that need to be prepared for marriage but not just material items but there needs to be a lot of important mental and spiritual preparation involved too. Marriage is a really important part of life but has been distorted and changed throughout history, i believe that marriage is only between a man and a woman. I know that my beliefs and views aren't the same as those that are in this world. I believe every person is welcome to their own beliefs and opinions but it gets to a point where it gets out of hand.

During this week, I have celebrated with my sweet heart few years of marriage and it has been a great 4 years but there have been some challenges too. Before we got married, there were many that told us that marriage is never going to be easy and that we will experience many of these things together as a unit. Marriage is not an easy thing to be a part of but it has been some of the most fun times of my life and I get to experience these things with my sweet heart.

As a member of the LDS church, there are certain things that need to be done before we can be sealed for time and all eternity in the temple of our God. We need to be worthy to enter the House of the Lord and we also need to keep and maintain a current temple recommend to be authorized to enter and take part in the sacred work that goes on there. One thing that we need to do to prepare for marriage is to go through a series of interviews to determine our worthiness and it also determines if we are in fact allowed to enter His house. The things that take place in the temple of our God are very sacred and are not to be taken lightly, the work that happens there is a very important part of life and the mission that us at LDS members have.

On October 19, my wife and I were sealed for time and all eternity in the Las Vegas LDS Temple, we made sacred covenants that we will continue to keep throughout our lives and throughout the eternities. The things that we have been a part of in the holy temple are not be taken lightly and are very sacred between us and the Lord. As an LDS member, I have sacred obligations to the Father and I can not really go into more detail about what goes on in the house of the Lord. I am extremely blessed that I have had the opportunity participate in the temple ordinances and be able to further benefit from these sacred experiences.

There are also many financial and material things that need to be done or accomplished before marriage. One of the financial things that associate with weddings or marriages is that "Weddings are expensive", it is a well known fact that weddings are not a cheap thing to carry out. Weddings require a lot of attention to detail and there are a lot of decisions to be made when it comes to getting married. Marriages require a lot of things that can potentially cost quite a bit of money and the effort to bring these things about can require the money and attention of many involved. Weddings require dresses for the bride and bridesmaids, it also require clothing for the men such as tuxedos, suits, ties and fancy shoes. The bride and groom in weddings want things to be perfect and they don't want anything to go wrong but that is not always the case. A big part of weddings is the flowers and decorations for the reception location, flowers are really important because that is what the bride and groom and their parties wear in association with their roles

In conclusion, marriage is the most important part of life and it a very sacred part of the things that we are a part of too. Marriage can bring happiness to many and marriage is the only way that this happiness can be brought to those individuals involved. Marriage for me has been some of the best times in my life and I wouldn't want to spend eternity with anyone other than my wife, she is a really important part of my life and I don't know how I could go about it with anyone else.

Week 4 Blog

Throughout this semester, we have covered a lot of controversial topics but I think that this week's topic was the most controversial that we have covered and will cover. The topic of this weeks discussion was Same Sex Couples and Same Sex Attraction. I am not making this post to start a political debate or fight, the purpose of this blog post is to inform and discuss the opinions or insights of the people that might benefit from this. As many of you know, same sex attraction is a big trial for some and a lot of these individuals struggle with this and it can potentially confuse them in this difficult time.

For my personal beliefs, I feel or believe that people are free to make their own decisions and they are allowed to do whatever they feel necessary. I do not believe that this can allow them to marry people of the same gender and compromise or change the view of the family unit and change the definition of marriage. I feel that these actions are trying to threaten the family and take away from what most of us know about marriage and the way that it should be carried out. I know that many in this world do decide to marry or become partners with someone of the same gender but in my opinion, marriage is between a man and a woman and that is how it should be. There are many in this country that are advocates for same sex marriage but I feel that their efforts should be construed in others things that would better benefit our country.

There are many states in this country that have made same sex marriage legal but there are also others that have not and I hope that these other states know that they are doing the right thing for our country. I know that there are those that think that same sex attraction or marriage is a right and legal to take part in and there are those that disagree, they do not share the same beliefs. I believe that everyone is allowed to make their own decisions and I also believe there are consequences for such actions that are not in harmony for God's plan. People in our country are free to do within the law but they also know that their are consequences for what they choose to do.

As a member of the LDS church, I have the knowledge that families are together forever through the sealing power that is bestowed to many on this Earth, I also now that marriage is destined to be as between a man and a woman. I know that this is the only way that is accepted by God and this is the only way that acts in harmony with Him and what He has revealed through a living Prophet. I know that as part of His plan, marriage is only to be meant for a man and woman and that is the only definition of marriage that is correct. As a faithful LDS member, I have had the opportunity to marry my eternal companion in the holy temple of God and experience the beauty and happiness that can only come from an eternal marriage. Yes, marriage has not always been the easiest at times but we get through it with each other and become stronger and closer to each other. Personally, I believe that this is the only way that is in harmony with God's plan and it the only matter of marriage that matters in life. This form of marriage is the only form that allows us the opportunity to live with our Father again.

In conclusion, throughout this week I have learned many things about the topic of same sex marriage or attraction but it has not changed my political or religious views, it is always important to learn about these things and educate yourself so that we can defend the family and allow others the opportunity to learn about the family and the correct definition of what marriage is in the eyes of our Father.

Week 3 Blog

For this week in Family Relations, we were discussing a family that lived in Mexico. The father had a really great job, he was making pretty good money and the mother was a stay at home mom with their two kids. They were trying to cross the border into the United States but they were also having some complications with that process. One of the problems that they were encountering is not having the money necessary to get a Visa or a passport of those sorts, instead their only option was using a "Coyote", a person or group that helps those across the border but it is a very expensive and dangerous option though. The whole family couldn't go along at the same time so the father had to go first and get established so his family could come shortly after. The father used the "Coyote" and he was able to get across to experience the American dream but it wasn't quite that way. He had to live at a hole in the wall place with other immigrants who are in a similar place. During this time, he was also not making a lot of money and his wife had to go back to work in Mexico. There had been a lot of time that has past before then and when his family joined him in America, the mom and the daughter had become closer and the son had become very distant with no male influence in the house. The wife and kids eventually were able to join him and they also had to do so with the use of a "Coyote". They were all now living in a similar situation as the dad before, they were living in a small place with families in other situations. With the absence of the father for so long, the mother and father had become distant from each other and they did not see eye to eye, this caused a lot of friction in the family unit. They all eventually became closer as a family and they were able to live in harmony.

Learning about this experience, it has reminded me of a family while as a missionary in Ecuador, they were all in a similar situation as this family. They were in the process of relocating to a different country so that they could have a better life. They were also not in the best financial situation too, they had to find a way for all of them to gain a better life, like the other family, they had to hire the assistance of a "Diablo" or "Coyote". They also went through similar times with employment, housing arrangements, and other aspects of life. They all eventually moved to their new country and had the opportunity to start a "new life".  They went through a lot of trying times in their new digs and the father and mother were fighting a lot and it wasn't helping the situation at all. The kids involved were also having a hard time adjusting to their new life and were not making friends as easily as they thought they would. The son of this family eventually stopped going to church and became very involved with drugs and the drug community. The daughter also stopped going to church but was not involved in any illegal activities like her brother. After some time had passed, the family became closer and they began to love their new life together and gained experiences that allowed them more time together and become closer.

Through learning about the experiences with these families, I had the opportunity to get closer to my family and my spouse and grow closer together and develop a deeper love of each other. Hearing and learning about these experiences will give us a better perspective in life and we will not take advantage of our situations and gain a better understanding of each other.

Lesson 2 Blog

During this last class, we had an exercise where Brother Williams called for 3 volunteers, one a male (father) and two females (mom and daughter), I was willing to volunteer to be the Father. It was an exercise where it was a therapy session where the daughter had been experiencing an asthma attack and we were working to figure a way to help her with that. During this exercise, the mother and I had to act out what we would possibly do during these attacks, it was amazing to see how each of us handle different situations whether real or pretend. The mother that volunteered actually has a child with asthma and it was very interesting to hear her real life experiences with this certain situation and also the daughter involved has asthma too. While the daughter was giving us her perspective about her day to day life with asthma, she shared a story about the times where she would encounter an asthma attack and she stated how scary it was to go through that and the reaction of her parents during the attacks. From this experience, I learned that there are so many factors when it comes to someone having one of these attacks and it can be frightening for all those involved during these times. It has given me a better perspective and outlook on life and I will never take for granted on my ability to not have these day to day struggles.

There have been a lot of things that I have contemplated and learned throughout this first week. One thing that I have learned is from one of the sample group researches, I learned that this sample group research survey is very inconclusive because they didn't have parts from all companies involved. This survey was very one sided and in my opinion it was very irrelevant and shouldn't have been considered by this committee and research group. One thing I have also learned is that some sides of this survey might not be willing to be a part of the survey because it might not do the best good or benefit each side involved. There is also a certain part of this survey that kind of gets to me, I think that these kinds of surveys should require more research and require more participants from each side of the spectrum.

I am doing this blog as part of a Family Relations class that I am taking this semester. I am very new to blogging and don't really know how a lot of this works but I am going to give this a dedicated try and I hope that anyone who reads this will be benefitted from the message that I want to convey and that it will further benefit your life and the lives of those that you share this with.