Quiet Dignity

This topic has been on my mind a lot lately, although I haven't really known it was called "Quiet Dignity" while I've been thinking about it. But this morning I realized that the thoughts on my mind lately have actually been summed up in these words - quiet dignity.

Quiet dignity is something LDS missionaries are instructed to seek for on their mission. I think it's in the little white handbook we carried around. Or maybe it was just in my mission rules.

Either way, it's doing what's right without making a big deal out of it. It's flying below the radar, but still living true to your testimony.

I've had a calling change at church recently and I have the opportunity to work with some women who are great examples of quiet dignity. They have a calming presence that makes the stress and weight of the world go away. And that says a lot as I study for the bar exam!

At the same time, I've noticed a lot about LDS people in the media that seem to be very flashy and shocking and really in-your-face. It's kind of bothered me. Not what they're doing, but just how they're doing it. I guess I almost feel disappointed that there's such a stir about just being a good person.

And then there's part of me that feels like it's about the attention and not what they're doing. While I agree with some of what I've seen in the media about LDS people, I don't think they need to make a media scene to live what they believe. I can't help think that more meaningful than a blog post, a march, a angry rant on Facebook, or anything of the like, the more meaningful thing is being a friend, listening to a person who is struggling, having dinner with someone you know needs support, etc. etc.

And what I see in the media is not quiet dignity. I'm kind of disappointed in that.

Now, I am also an old lady. Well, I think I have the soul of a grandma. I've come to not care to be a spectacle or a freak show. I don't want people in my life who want to just see the drama of my life. I just want a few good friends and family members to peaceably live out my days with in laughter, tears, and lots of tasty food.

I feel like I've had my day in the sun. The other day I was thinking about how excited I am to turn 30. Well, I still have a couple years before that, but I feel like I have completely exhausted my 20's. I feel as though I have lived them to the fullest and I am ready to be old. And boring. And mature or whatever. Maybe I am just really tired from studying for the bar. Although I am far from prepared for it.

And somehow this all relates back to my original thought of Quiet Dignity. I am inspired by these women I spoke of earlier. I want to be like them. I want to be a person who quietly goes about her life and just does what's right without being loud.

So that is what I am working on now. Aside from the bar exam and everything else in life, I am striving for quiet dignity.

Also I've been addicted to Fredericksburg peaches lately.
So tasty.