Day 17: Mark Twain vs. Thomas S. Monson

Mark Twain said,"when angry count four; when very angry, swear." He also said, "let us swear while we may, for in Heaven it will not be allowed."

President Thomas S. Monson said, "How you speak and the words you use tell much about the image you choose to portray. Use language to build and uplift those around you. Profane, vulgar, or crude language and inappropriate or off-color jokes are offensive to the Lord. Never misuse the name of God or Jesus Christ. The Lord said, "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain"


So who do you follow? Mark Twain or President Monson. Obviously, Mark Twain's quotes are intended to be humorous and they are funny. However, after being barraged with profane language all week, it seemed like this would be a good forum to vent. Now it is not a surprise to me that I hear some vulgarity from a bunch of Navy sailors. Even less so am I surprised to hear Army soldiers swear. However, the amount of vulgarity has been somewhat overwhelming. I knew we were in trouble when a senior officer in the Army, while giving a presentation, used a four letter word (starting with an F) twice. Again I am not surprised that he used the language, but I was surprised that he used it while in the base Chapel! How much more respect I have for people who can lead without needing to resort to filthy language. I am grateful to have been taught to reverence God and use my language to uplift and strengthen others. I like the quote that says, "profanity is the attempt of a lazy and feeble mind to express itself forcefully." Luckily, I have a good group of guys on my team who speak relatively cleanly. It was impressive that several guys, not of my faith, found the swearing in the chapel incident offensive.

Here are a few pictures of our classroom. We have spent the last 3 days in here and will be spending at least 3 more here until we move out and start doing more hands on stuff.