I Spy with My Little Eye...an Apostle!

The highlight of my week was getting to hear from an Apostle of the Lord...in an intimate setting of 400-500 people haha (vs. 20,000+ at a BYU devotional). Out of all the apostles, I feel like I most relate to Jeffrey R. Holland because he worked as president of BYU (my beloved alma mater!) and Church Education System commissioner (big fan of CES Firesides and education in general), AND he got a M.A. & Ph.D. in American Studies (what I'm striving for someday). Furthermore, he happens to be the author of some of my favorite church talks ("Of Souls, Symbols, and Sacraments" and "The Best is Yet to Be"). Appropriately, Elder Holland's remarks focused on George Washington's legacy, whose birthday is in 3 days.

His son Matthew Holland gave some interesting comments beforehand about the major changes in immigration/population growth and higher education slamming Utah state, including the recent change in mission eligibility age. I absolutely loved taking American Heritage from him as a freshman at BYU and felt super lucky to be a TA for the class 3 years later, tho Professor Holland had gone on to be president of Utah Valley University by then. Elder Holland must be such a proud papa :)

This was the rotunda of the Cannon House Building, where they spoke -

Now let's rewind to the beginning of my weekend - Friday night. I feel seriously blessed to live so close to so many friends since I don't have a car. I was planning to go salsa dancing but had time to stop at a couple friends' houses first. Mitchell invited me to his house for "acai bowls", a treat he often made at BYU Hawaii.

I was able to stay for part of a fun game called "Bubble Talk", similar to "Apples to Apples". Pretty hilarious, tho I was not very good at it cuz I didn't know the other players' senses of humor very well -

Trudged thru the rain to my former roommate & current friend :) Tara's birthday party

Then Jeff, Ben, Karlie, and I got to go to The Salsa Room for my dance fix (serious withdrawals this week). Met Doug, a new salsa friend! Danced my heart out and earned my blisters :D

Saturday - met Cory at Eastern Market, a popular place for brunch in DC. All our other friends who were supposed to come couldn't make it and there were alot fewer vendors than summertime but it was still fun to walk around (I love going from the new kid in town to tour guide haha). I got the spinach/mushroom omelet, potatoes, & toast -

Took our time walking to the Holland event but found we still had time to kill, so we walked thru the Botanic Garden, where I got to experience a mini "Hawaiian vacation" in the middle of winter :)

As a foodie, I loved the section about herbs/spices used in cooking

My cactus impersonation in the dessert section (I think I deserve a ribbon or medal for dorkiness)

Went to be inspired at the Holland event and recruited Ben & Andrea to join us for our afternoon adventure at the International Spy Museum (hence the blog title).

Greg, Ashley, and Ben met us there :)

If you read the rest of my blog, you know I love museums. But this was the WORST museum experience I've ever had, and it cost me $16! (unlike all the other free Smithsonian museums) It's a tiny claustrophobic museum and the way they conducted people thru was chaotic and stressful. Unless you really love spies, I wouldn't recommend it.

We stayed til closing and were exhausted and starving by then, so we crossed the street to Amorini Panini, where Jeff joined us.

I warmed up by chowing down on my turkey panini and crab soup

After that, some had to leave and the rest of us borrowed a movie, bought some treats, and plopped down at Ashley's cozy condo. We watched the Oscar-nominated film Beasts of the Southern Wild, a raw documentary-esque fantasy about a small community in the Louisiana bayou trying to survive after a huge hurricane floods & destroys their homes. Don't really know what to make of it but the acting by the novices in the starring roles were exceptional!

Church was utterly inspiring and humbling today, with lots of messages I needed to hear about humility, charity, mercy, and repentance. I'm grateful to belong to a Church that helps me continually improve myself.