Make. Believe.

Life is a tremendous adventure, and I am in the midst of a beautiful journey. A few days ago I got lost in a world that I had not visited for a while. Where you may ask?


The Land of Make-Believe

You know the place where you can be a Pirate, or an Astronaut? A Princess, or a puppy? That place where there is total freedom to be who you want, and no one is telling you what to think. Un-less your older sibling forces you to be a different character because he or she already is that character.


Three year old Ellie and I found ourselves amongst dragons, drinking sleep poison, playing Princess, running through forests, and talking to invisible characters. I was whisked into a world where Reality was galaxies away. My imagination was pryed open, and though a little rusty at first I felt my rigid, boxed mindset breaking down. I was able to create, explore, and experience a place outside of the boundaries that my life sustains. Finals, jobs, relationships and so much more can be incredibly time consuming. It's so easy to become overwhelmed and focused on things that will fade away. Escaping those burdens felt liberating, and afterwards I felt energized. Maybe that sounds exaggerated but I'm being honest.

I don't want to miss the little things that make life so worth living. I don't want to be afraid to imagine, and create, to laugh at myself, to be out of the ordinary, to dance, to sing, to live my life broken free from the restrictions I think I need. It's not that I'm hating the responsibility that comes with growing up, but I don't want to forget the need for balance. It's okay to be a dork and laugh at mistakes. Sometimes I get filled with fear of the future, and I can't see past what's right in front of me. The funny thing is, today is the the day I was worrying about yesterday, and worrying about today didn't make it any better. Perspective is a choice, and the way I tackle obstacles will make me who I am. So good bye to fear, hello to joy. 

I'm learning to cherish people, and experiences (even the small, seemingly insignificant ones). Even though people have the potential to be absolutely hateful and violent, they also have just as much potential to be beautiful. We were all young and full of innocence at one time, though the world comes to beat it out of us as soon as possible. I remember when I was about 6 or 7, I was riding a carousal in the mall after eating at Red Robin. I remember watching all of the adults, in their suits, holding briefcases, and shopping bags on the way to accomplish their tasks for the day. I looked at my Grandmother and told her, "They just need to stop and watch the kids on the carousal." The everyday problems we encounter will never cease. One set of problems will trade themselves out for the next, and so the cycle will continue. We can embrace the problems as a part of life, or continue to be taken off guard and allow them to burden us. I don't want to miss out on how yummy life is because of bitterness. Shake it off!

Love and play like a child, it will heal your heart. Stop for a second and breathe, you can still make believe.

Stand Up. Care,

Hello:)
Recently I had to write an argumentative paper on how I believe the U.S. Government needs to loosen it's tight grip on the oil industry. I became very intrigued with how articles and information sources can be so biased towards one way of thinking. It almost scares me how un-informed people of this Country are because the information provided is so one sided. To be honest, the research I had to do in order to prove the side of my argument was extensive and difficult.

While I was writing my paper I realized how much i did not know.
It's much easier to pretend that the problems in our world are just stories we watch through our TV screens, or events we read about on the web. Politics, and government are sore subjects with young people today. The youth of this nation are extremely passionate and creative. We are the future, but I'm afraid that we are allowing apathy towards the government to seep into our very way of thinking.

I myself have thought that getting involved in politics is a waste of my time, that my vote really won't matter, and found that ignoring the issues is so much easier than facing them.

WE CAN'T MAKE A DIFFERENCE IF WE DON'T MOVE.

While writing my paper I began to research other issues that are relevant in our society today. I had no idea who was in the running for the next presidential election, what the Keyston Pipeline project was, or the demands of protestors on Occupy Wall Street. I was dissapointed by the protestors, and their lack of knowledge. Many had no idea why they were even there. When asked, they didn't have any valid reasons and ended up looking pretty ridiculous. After watching some of the videos of the protests I felt like I needed to make a change in the way I thought about politics. I have been pretty obsessed with figuring out where I stand on issues since then, and finding information to back up my beliefs.

I'm not writing this for any particular side, though I have my beliefs and am not afraid to express them. I'm wiritng this because I truly believe that the youth of today need to be interested in the happenings of this country. I want to have a voice, but I when I speak I want my words to be meaningful. We need to pay attention and we need to care about what goes on in this country. We need something to stand up for.


Stand Up For What You Believe In - Picture Quotes

The end of November 2011 is near and I just cant believe December is only a day away. This year has gone by incredibly fast. It feels unreal to me how much my life has changed in the last 12 months.

Anyways something I have found about myself is that I truly enjoy things in life that often don't get enough credit. There are so many people, places, and experiences I've yet to come in contact with! I hope to make Jesus the focus and center of my heart as well as my mind. I guess I have this burning desire to share with others the joy and beauty of Jesus Christ. He has provided a fullness in me that I can't describe in words or even in physical terms. It's a supernatural occurrence that is absolutely relevant to my life.

Some of my thoughts about Jesus today are not necessarily new thoughts, but they are fighting to get out into the open. I have to write them down (in this case type them) or my heart may explode.

Jesus IS. Period. Simple? Yes, but oh so profound. There is a depth to Christ that we will probably never reach here on earth but I believe that is what makes a relationship with Him SO WORTH IT! He's a fountain of never ending love.
How often do we miss out on the opportunity to bask in the Son? He is so willing and ready to share with us His love, acceptance, compassion, time, energy etc. Unfortunately I've been feeling lately like my time and energy has become consumed with things that revolve  around me.

The truth is that my life is not my own, contrary to popular belief. My life belongs solidly, and totally to Christ. My time should be devoted to Him because He gave up everything for me. Though isn't it interesting that He never forces that upon you? He is always encouraging me, but never once has He forced me to do anything against my will.

Distractions are always going to try to block your pathway, and detour you somewhere you don't need to be. Recently I have been struggling with feeling complete or whole without a "relationship" to fill in the blank. And yes, by relationship I mean a boyfriend. I believe God gifted me with a strong sense of independence and security in who I am, but that doesn't mean I don't dream about having someone in my life to share my heart and soul with.

My mind was becoming very focused on finding someone, and not even the "right" someone. I reasoned that it wouldn't be so bad to casually date people, as long as I kept my emotions un-involved. I even got to the point where I was believing it might be okay to date someone who didn't believe the way I did. This of course was a terrible idea, and soon found out that this way of thinking was causing me to compromise my beliefs not to mention leaving me empty. The people I was involving myself with were not only distracting me from Christ, but also from other relationships in my life that matter so much more then a few texts, or a couple minutes of attention.

Jesus wants my full attention because He loves me and knows he can fill me with all the love I need. He wants me to desire Him and seek His presence everyday. I came to the realization that there is no way to spend time with someone, talking with them, and getting to know them without becoming emotionally involved. I had been investing precious time in people who were truly a dead end.
Jesus wants to see me in a healthy relationship with a man one day, but right now He is drawing me closer to Him. I don't want to become distracted by the things of this world, or the lies the Devil tries to whisper in my ear. I don't believe I can have a good relationship with a guy if my heart is not fully devoted first to Christ. This may seem crazy to some but Jesus's love is crazy! It's wild and adventurous. He is everything I need.


Isaiah 40:11- "He will feed His flocks like a shepherd. He will carry the lambs (us) in his arms, holding them close to His heart..."

Isaiah 58:11- "The Lord will guide you continually, giving you water when you are dry and restoring your strength. You will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever growing spring."