I recently was out with my mom where I saw a sign that said, "There is gold in every piece of your story." That resonated with me. I thought about all of the beautiful times in life whose memories have a golden hue. But, I also thought about all of the dark, hard times in which I can look back now and see how I have forged gold from them.
Before I turned 15, I had a plan at church. When my birthday came around I was going to move up with all of my friends, my classmates, to the next level class that was for girls 16+. I had skipped a grade in junior high, and it just made sense. My parents had spoken with my bishop. Everything was going well... Until my birthday. The decision was then reversed which threw me through a loop. All of my friends were moving on without me. It was a struggle. I felt wronged. It took me several weeks to go back to my Young Women class. I would patiently wait for that class to be over and then go to Sunday School with my friends. But, looking back, when I finally went back to class I was made Mia Maid president. My friend, Emily, and I had so much fun. She, along with the Young Women leader we had, was exactly what I needed before heading off to college.
My internship for my grad program is still one of the most difficult times of my life to date. I had no friends. The internship was insanely difficult. My roommate was literally crazy. My supervisors were not helpful and didn't seem interested in teaching me. Everything seemed stacked against me, and I was so stressed I made myself sick. I learned in meetings to put up a wall between me and those in the meeting with me. I became a blank slate that no one could read. There were countless nights full of tears. But, I had quality time with my cousin. I learned valuable skills on my own. I hope I was a good influence on my roommate. And, I got to share the magic of Christmas in Utah with my parents when they came to pick me up.
In my previous job, where kindness and consideration for others was not at the front of people's minds, I again struggled. I was drained at the end of each and every day. I was tired of people taking credit for my work and my ideas. Tired of people being so rude. Tired of people in leadership not taking responsibility for things and for not putting in the work. But, I kept going. I put in my all. I connected with my volunteers. I made a difference. And, when I finally got so tired of it all and decided to leave, all of my hard work payed off. I had learned valuable skills. I had been taught valuable lessons. Someone saw potential in me and how hard I worked. I now see a whole lot more gold in each day, but I see the gold flecks in days past that got me here.
There is gold in EVERY piece of your story.
Much like the scripture that tells us all things will work together for our good, all of the dark and all of the light contains gold. After Joseph Smith's time in Liberty Jail, he said, "It seems to me that my heart will always be more tender after this than it was ever before." Find your gold. It's there.
Your story is gold. You are golden. Because you are His.
