Millennial Mormons: Where Myth and Reality Meet

A note from the editor: I gave one of my friends some advice this summer that was part facetious, part wisdom: " To live a happy life, have low expectations and high hopes. " We practiced what that looked like. He told me that he expected to die alone in a basement working on an impossible computer program, but he hoped that he would be the world's youngest billionaire and travel the world. Hopefully reality hits somewhere in the middle.  Expecting one kind of life that you don't get can lead to confusion and disappointment, but learning to love your life regardless of whether it's alone in a basement or traveling the world, married or single, is a valuable skill.  LDS blogger Ariel Szuch wrote, "Just because I love summer mornings doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy a walk on a winter evening too. Every stage of life is a season, and with each transition, we trade one set of joys and struggles for another. T he trick is to develop the habit of choosing happine

A note from the editor: Experiences, things, people, faith, and absences define us. Those of us who have made religion a large part of our lives can hardly fathom where we would be without it. For me, faith is how I make sense of the world. Mormon feminist Cecilia Konchar Farr wrote regarding her upbringing that " Mormonism was then and continues to be my conduit into the universe , my access to personal spirituality , to healing faith , and to empowering theology . It pushes the limits of my intellect, reminding me that there are many ways to construct and perceived truth, many, many of them beyond my power of understanding." I know that not everyone raised in or converted to the LDS faith stays such, and I recognize the choice to leave is not an easy one, though neither is staying. Regardless of whether one is a "practicing Mormon" or not, I believe that experiences with our faith never completely leave us. That whatever faith we had at one point is ne

A note from the editor: All of us have different items inside our basket of life, some of which we choose and some of which we are given. Let's be mindful of experiences we've had and others have not. Let's not judge what is inside other baskets or flaunt the contents of our own. As M. Russell Ballard taught, " If we are truly disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, we will reach out with love and understanding to all of our neighbors at all times." Regardless of their baskets. And regardless of our own baskets. Or perhaps because of them. This particular story focuses on the pressures of serving a mission and the choice not to. Let's practice the doctrine of inclusion and take time to understand the baskets of our neighbors, friends, and family. All of us have different paths of getting to a similar goal. story 7 of many. The dreaded question. The one that came when people were trying to be polite, trying to make small talk, trying to be curious

A note from the editor: Depression, anxiety, shame, and perfectionism can make us think we have to chose between being Superman and being Worstman, but in the end, maybe we all just need to find Normalman and work on making progress from wherever we are. story 6 of many. I have always been someone who puts my whole soul into things. When I love something, it’s all-consuming. When I dislike something, I want it completely out of my life. You can see how this could be problematic, especially in regards to spirituality. During my high school years, I felt like Superman at some times, coming home from church youth conferences with crazy spiritual highs, determined to be a perfect Mormon. I’d get up at 5am and read my scriptures for an hour, I’d rave about uplifting talks I’d listen to, I’d try to be super nice to people. And then sometimes I felt like Worstman, dreading waking up at all let alone in time to read scriptures, binging on video games, yelling at my siblings an

A note from the editor:  Planning a life is exciting. Planning a life is stressful. Planning a life can be disappointing because things never go according to plan. It's frustrating when circumstances beyond our control, such as illness, interfere with the "perfect life" we have planned for ourselves. While reflecting on the unexpected trials she had faced, LDS speaker Tiffany Webster said: " With Christ we are enough. We are powerful. We are more. My life of striving for perfection wasn’t about what Christ could make me; it was about what I thought I needed to be in order to be enough. It was about glorying in being busy while worshipping checklists. There was no room for error, no room for flaw, not enough time, not enough talent, and never any grace. When God let my life crumble, it wasn’t because He didn’t love me. He let my life crumble because He wanted me back. He wanted to teach me. He wanted to change me. Fifteen years ago I made a list of what I thought m