{3} Analysis Response

Well... that was a little more rough than I thought it would be. I have never written an analysis essay before so it was a very different experience to write about what the author, or in this case speaker, was feeling at the time and how they made their audience feel. To prepare to write my essay, I read President Reagan's speech over and over, looking for hints that would give away his emotions. After reading the speech, I watched the video of it. I paid close attention to his tone and facial expressions. Both of those are dead give aways to the emotions that are felt within. After so many readings and viewings of the speech, my mind was closed off to any new thoughts concerning the content. To solve that problem, I had one of my roommates read what I had written so far and give me feedback. Her thoughts on what I had already said helped me to gain momentum to move into my next points of topic. I also had a roommate listen to the speech with me. I asked her how it had personally made her feel so that I could get an idea of how Reagan's speech most likely affected his audience the first time that they heard it. Both of these techniques helped me to see the speech from point of views different from my own. It helped me to be able to see as others do and understand how the speech could affect people differently. Next time, I plan on utilizing the resources that I have here. The Writing Center is always available to me but I never even thought to go in and get help. That is a valuable tool that I hope I'll use more efficiently in the future.

{2} The Old Piano Bench

Every child in the Owens and Lewis families grew up spending time on Grandma Roxie's piano bench. Actually, most kids that grew up in the town of Show Low within the 40 years that she lived there had spent some time on that bench in the family room. Along with learning to play the piano, we learned all the crazy stories of our family. We learned how she had sold sewing machines door to door to help support their young family, that a "Norris Bowl" is an ice cream bowl completely full (because if you're going to eat ice cream then go all the way right? None of this small portions nonsense.) and that the Dancing Doll was powered by the magic of our Christmas caroling. Reading Bruce Feiler's research on the family, "The Stories That Bind Us", reminded me how big of a part of my life that my family stories have been. Without the stories that I heard on the piano bench growing up, I wouldn't have any idea where my family came from or the trials that they had to go through to get us to where we are today. I wouldn't be involved in timeless traditions passed down from ancestors. Being a part of such a big unit, that I know goes back for generations, has helped me to keep an eternal perspective. It reminds me that there were people before me and there will be people to come after me, so I need to make the best decisions that I can to best benefit them, as well as me. It is a testament to me that God has a plan for each of us and that He would never send us here alone, that we have a whole support system both on earth and in heaven, if only we will build our relationships with them.

{1} As They Are or As They Should Be

In Elder Bednar's talks "To Sweep the Earth as with a Flood" and "Things As They Really Are", he talked about the positive and negative sides of using technology. He gave examples of the many different ways that technology is used and the effects that it has on those users. There were positives, such as pre-design for temples and sharing news with family, but also negatives in meaningless relationships and past-times. While good uses will bring us up, inappropriate and improper use will only bring us down. In my (and many others') opinion, too many of us today are using technology for things other than its greatest purpose. Sharing the gospel. What could be a better use than that? Along with technology, he spoke about Easter of 2014 and the video "Because of Him" and the effect that it had. Members' posts online were shared worldwide and largely aided in the efforts of spreading the word of Christ. It was amazing to see so many examples in the video of things that were made possible because of Christ. Things from technology and freedom to spiritual advances like the Atonement and Resurrection. It made me realize that all good things really do come from God, but our use of what He gives us is what ultimately makes the difference.