mads in france: uplifted.

uplifted [uhp-lif-tid] adj. 1. improved, as in mood or spirit 2. raised or elevated, as a beam. simple enough. all it takes to be uplifted is to be improved. even the slightest bit. i find myself improved, as in mood or spirit daily. finding a new pastry can lift my spirits. trying on a fun pair of shoes. taking extra neat notes in class. finishing a sudoku on the train. finding a silly horoscope in the paper. having another grand adventure with emily. sunshine. skyping with my mom and j for two hours and sharing cookies together. catching up with mallory haze on the phone. thrift store prom dresses. lizards in castle gardens. stain glass windows. macarons from laduree.

but today i was able to be uplifted in a different way. a more sacred way. i had the opportunity to watch General Conference, which is the big semiannual meeting of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day-Saints in which we gather to hear words and testimonies of the current leaders of the Church. i got to hear about service, about love, about sacrifice and about revelation. i got to hear beautiful music performed by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. i was uplifted in mood, in spirit, in knowledge, in every sense of the word. granted, watching conference at 18,00 and 22,00 (6 and 10PM) is a little different than watching it at 9AM and 1PM, but it was nonetheless great. it was a testimony to me that uplifting can happen no matter where you are or what time you are tuning in. that uplifting, that feeling of the spirit, is still felt. i love General Conference.

today was the very first day em and i did not ride the metro/train. a bit bizarre, but it was nice. we took a walk up to st. ger to take advantage of the free museums every first sunday of the month, and visited the M.A.N. or the musee d'archeologie nationale. we got our money's worth.. (haha), explored the town a bit, then came home to get our spiritual fill with GC. luckily i bought some macarons at Laduree last night so we could have a little pastry-like snack for our Conference watching pleasure. great day. uplifted in every way.

on the walk to st ger.

quality museum shots

spring time in st. ger

finally made it inside our castle

back at home for conference, notes, and a treat

check that cute laduree box

flavor listing: chocolate, orange and passionfruit, pistachio, vanille, rose, and green apple

taste rating: good, bizarre, could be more pistachio-y, best vanilla ever tasted, flowery goodness, and tart and really just like a green apple, in a good way.