Nerd-Bucket: July 2024

Our prophet is turning 100 soon! So I created a challenge leading up to his birthday to celebrate him better in my heart. About the challenge...

I woke up yesterday with an idea of something I wanted to do and because I'm a nerd I spent the day making a chart to help me track my progress. The idea expanded more today and I created a calendar to keep up with it day to day and a little notes table to write up my thoughts as I go. Whenever I have this much fun I can't help but want to share it. So here it all is- for free! I'll have the downloadable link at the bottom.

Are you like me and have to have something on in the background while working or creating art? I like to listen to music, audiobooks and podcasts or have shows on a side screen nearby that I can listen to and glance at periodically. It actually helps my ADHD brain stay on task with what I'm doing. Some of you can relate, I'm sure. Lately, as I've been working on my art, I have felt a little more down- like I give up more easily when I get stuck or just don't feel the same amount of joy working on it as usual. I thought through it and realized I've been having a few shows on that don't exactly uplift. They are exciting, but dark, and overall I was just getting more and more down- it was affecting my ability to make art. So I began throwing in some conference talks at the start of my day. As I listened to those I felt inspired in lots of areas of my life and began to be less attracted to things that were dark. I didn't listen to them all day long. Just a little burst at the beginning of the day and it sets things in a good space for making better media decisions. Anyway, yesterday, I woke with the idea that it would be fun to listen to every General Conference talk that President Nelson has given before his 100th birthday on September 9th.

I looked at my calendar and the talks he has given and realized that's 112 talks in 55 days (starting July 17th)- about 2 talks a day (with an extra talk on Aug 13th and Aug 26th). Totally doable for me when I listen to stuff for 4-6 hours a day while I create and have been listening to 1-2 talks a day at the start anyway.

I felt a burst of excitement thinking about how much I would get to know him better and how it would bless my life. A few years ago, I was able to give him a piece of art I had made of paper cut layers building the scene of Joseph Smith's first vision. He had my piece placed in the Conference Center and he wrote me the sweetest thank you letter expressing how much he loved my art, my heart, my testimony, and expressing God's love for me and my family. It came at such an important time in my life and made a huge impact on me. I have been blessed to feel his goodness and have a testimony of him as a prophet, but that experience made him my friend. :) Just for fun, here is the picture that he sent me of him with my paper cut piece. If you want to see it in person, it's just in the main lobby of the LDS Conference Center in Salt Lake City.

Back to the idea though- This download packet has a coloring chart to fill in as you listen to or read all 112 talks. I make these kinds of things all the time and it's so fun to see me progressing. There is also a breakdown of each day going from July 17 - Sept 9th and which talks to study each day in order to finish in time to celebrate his 100th birthday. When I study talks I like to have a journal near me to write the following: Talk Name, Speaker, Teachings, Insights, Promptings, Promised Blessings, Warnings, etc. and then a section at the bottom of how I can apply this talk to my life. It's something I've done since I was a teenager. Anyway, I've also added a printable to the end that follows that order if you'd like to take notes that way too. I get it, that might be too over the top, or maybe just over the top enough if you are a nerd like me. :)

So... come join me! It's free! Please note, that just because I'm giving this out for free doesn't mean that you can use it to sell it. I want to offer this to anyone and I put in a lot of work making it. Thank you! Click on the download button to get your sheets.

For reference if it helps to find the talks later I will make a list of them right here with the links to each of them when you click on the talk name. :)

1. Call to the Holy Apostleship (Apr 1984)

2. Protect the Spiritual Power Line (Oct 1984)

3. Reverence for Life (Apr 1985)

4. Self-Mastery (Oct 1985)

5. In the Lord’s Own Way (Apr 1986)

6. “Joy Cometh in the Morning” (Oct 1986)

7. Life after Life (April 1987)

8. Lessons from Eve (Oct 1987)

9. Keys of the Priesthood (Oct 1987)

10. “With God Nothing Shall Be Impossible” (Apr 1988)

11. Addiction or Freedom (Oct 1988)

12. The Canker of Contention (Apr 1989)