Identity part I

Every day that I live and breathe, I am defined by the world around me. What I do, what I say, even what I eat are all influenced by others. it's funny how much culture today screams at us to be "individual", yet at the same time, encourages us to wear the same clothes, speak the same lingo, and listen to the same music. We're all like sponges, soaking up what we see and hear. "Through others we become ourselves." -Lev S. Vygotsky. Our identity, everything that makes us "us" comes from something outside of ourselves... (to be continued)

Breathe

I have found that the older I get, the more hectic my life seems to become. My time fills with homework, filming, writing, and just trying to keep my dorm room clean. Sometimes it seems like that's all my life has become. Just do, do, do. Run, run, run. Go, go, go. A list that needs to get done. It's in times like these that I need to just get outside and breathe. It's simple, I know. But it works. Just being out in God's creation refreshes the soul. Sometimes, a simple thing is the only way to stop the big things from overwhelming me. Just breathe.

Don't just be a raindrop...

Remember when you were little and you got excited when it rained? You'd run to put on your rainboots and coat, dashing for the door and the puddles that awaited you. I have to admit...I still love splashing outside when it pours. I don't wear rainboots anymore, and I have decided that a coat takes away the complete experience of being drenched in nature; but never has my love for splashing around in puddles ceased. When I see a puddle in the rain, I see a hundred tiny raindrops trying to make their mark. They make tons of ripples, but they collide with other raindrop's ripples and die out. They never seem to make much of a difference in the big picture. ... Okay, so maybe that's not the first thing I think of. To be honest, all I see is a puddle that needs to be splashed in. The deeper, the better. It's this uncontrollable urge to make my mark. To make a difference. Or to drench everyone around me. Usually it's the latter. But what I'm saying is that each one of us has a purpose for our life. We can try not to ripple the water as to not effect anyone around us, or we can make a splash and change the world in a radical way for God. Which will you do?

Make Each Day Count

Ten years. A decade. To be honest, I don't really remember where I was when it happened. I was in second grade. I watched it on TV and wrote a report on it. It never really hit my young heart and the meaning didn't set in for a long while...say four or five years. When I look at what happened that day, I see a tragedy. The most catastrophic terrorist attack on US soil. Families ripped apart, friends gone, and all through what started out as a normal day. But I also see something else. Hope. The hope of new growth, a greater appreciation of freedom, and the realization that we must make each day count.

Oh give me a home...