Sunday, July 10th

Sunday, July 10th was Cameron's mission farewell in our ward. There was a very large crowd as many friends and family came to support him and listen to him speak.

The youth speakers for that day turned out to be Hallie, Cameron's cousin and Whitt, Cameron's best friend. Funny that it was their assigned week to speak.  Hallie gave a speedy talk on one of her ancestors Gobo Fango. Then Whitt gave a talk on family and how friends can become an extended family.  He spoke a bit on how having these really close friends have an influence on you in making good and bad choices. Good choice - He talked a bit about how he and Cameron tried to rid Declo of the skunk population. Bad choice- Putting fish in the swimming pool at Indian Hot Springs. M'Kenzie sang One Voice, she has a beautiful voice and did an awesome job.

I watched Cameron while Kenz was singing I could tell he was moved. I also noticed that all through the meeting he had a different glow about him. I could see him as an eager young man ready to embark on a new and exciting adventure. He spoke on Peer Pressure and how it can be used to influence you for good and for bad. 

Peers influence your life even if you don't realize it. It's only human nature to listen to and learn from other people in your age group. It is tough to be the only one who says "no" to peer pressure, but you can do it. Paying attention to your own feelings and beliefs about what is right and wrong can help you know the right thing to do. Inner strength and self-confidence can help you stand firm, walk away, and resist doing something you know is wrong.

It can really help to have at least one other peer, or friend, who is willing to say no. This takes a lot of the power out of peer pressure and makes it much easier to resist. It's great to have friends with values similar to yours who will back you up when you don't want to do something that is not right.

You've probably had a parent or teacher advice you to "choose your friends wisely." Peer pressure is a big reason why they say this, and then you probably won't be as likely to be led astray. Hang with people who feel the same way you do. Choose friends who will speak up with you when you're in need of moral support, and be quick to speak up for a friend in the same way. If you're hearing that little voice telling you a situation's not right, chances are others hear it, too. Just having one other person stand with you against peer pressure makes it much easier for both people to resist.

Even if you're faced with peer pressure while you're alone, there are still things you can do. You can simply stay away from peers who pressure you to do stuff you know is wrong. You can tell them "no" and walk away. Better yet, find other friends.

Peer pressure is not always a bad thing. For example, positive peer pressure can be used to pressure bullies into acting better toward other kids. If enough kids get together, peers can pressure each other into doing what's right.

I know in my life I have had numerous good friends who have influenced me for good. Most of them are here today. From being out on the football field or sitting at the dairy queen drive through my friends have influenced me more than they know.

As you become more independent, your peers naturally play a greater role in your life. As school and other activities take you away from home, you may spend more time with peers than you do with your parents and siblings. You'll probably develop close friendships with some of your peers, and you may feel so connected to them that they are like an extended family.

Besides close friends, your peers include other kids you know who are the same age, like people in your grade, church, sports team, or community. These peers also influence you by the way they dress and act, things they're involved in, and the attitudes they show.

It's natural for people to identify with and compare themselves to their peers as they consider how they wish to be (or think they should be), or what they want to achieve. People are influenced by peers because they want to fit in, be like the people they admire, do what others are doing, or have what others have.

You already know that the teen years can be tough. You're figuring out who you are, what you believe, what you're good at, what your responsibilities are, and what your place in the world is going to be.

Nearly everyone ends up in a sticky situation at some point. No matter how wisely you choose your friends, or how well you think you know them, sooner or later you'll have to make decisions that are difficult and could be unpopular. It may be something as simple as resisting the pressure to spend your hard-earned money on the latest MP3 player that "everybody" has. Or it may mean deciding to take a stand that makes you look uncool to your group.

But these situations can be an opportunity to figure out what is right for you. There's no magic to standing up to peer pressure, but it does take courage Listen to your gut. If you feel uncomfortable, even if your friends seem to be OK with what's going on, it means that something about the situation is wrong for you. This kind of decision-making is part of becoming self-reliant and learning more about who you are.

It's not always easy to resist negative peer pressure, but when you do, it is easy to feel good about it afterwards. And you may even be a positive influence on your peers who feel the same way. Most of the time it just takes one person to speak out or take a different action to change a situation. Your friends may follow if you have the courage to do something different or refuse to go along with the group. Consider yourself a leader, and know that you have the potential to make a difference

            One of the hardest things to recognize is how truly strong you are and how others silently respect you. You don’t need to compromise your standards to be accepted by friends. The more obedient you are, the more you stand for true principles, the more the Lord can help you overcome temptation. You can also help others because they will feel your strength. Let them know about your standards by consistently living them.

            The summer after I graduated Jeremy Jenkins and I and few kids from burley had the opportunity to go work at a fish processing plant in Valdez Alaska. While we were there nearly every day we were be asked if we wanted to smoke or drink. But having the standers that we had been taught living in Declo made making saying no that much easier. Is funny how the devil works. I could always here a voice saying no one would find out what you did, your 2,000 miles away from home no one would ever know. But I knew what was right and so did Jeremy. And the people that tried to tempt us started to relies that we were different and then they would ask us why we didn’t want to drink or smoke with them.  All we would say is we have been taught different and it’s against our religion. After a while we started getting comments on how much they respected us and admired our courage for standing up for something we believe in. About midway through the summer we had one kid that came and sat down in our room and asked us what makes us different? He could see that we were different and he wanted to know why. This was a missionary experience for the both of us. A couple nights after working a 17 hr shift we would do our best at explaining our religion to him and we tried to set him up with the missionaries.  Unfortunately our time was up in Alaska and we had to return home for school I do not know how his missionary experience ended up. I hope he found what he was looking for and that he might be able to experience the joy that the gospel brings.

            Now my next mission is in Richmond Virginia. I’m going to be going from a town with a population of 350 to a city over 200,000 people. It’s going to be a change and a challenge for me but I’m up for it. Richmond will be a great place to serve not only because of the different cultures but also because of all of the history that there is back there. My mission will be a biking and a car mission. Let’s hope there is more car and less bike. Also there are a few kids from the area already serving in Richmond. Over spring break of my senior year I had the opportunity to go back to the coast and we went to Virginia and I’m more than excited to go back.

He then shared his testimony, I know he will be a great missionary and will have a profound affect on many lives.

 The rest of the meeting was very touching as Brother Kidd shared his testimony and Dad had been asked to share his. I know Cameron was very touched in hearing his grandfather's testimony as were the rest of us. I don't know how to put into words the spirit I felt throughout the meeting or to explain the glow that surrounded my son as he sat on the stand. All I could think was, he is no longer a little boy he is a courageous young man.