Deal With It

        What do students in business wear, dancing, and the shaking of many hands, have in common? All these things took place during Harriet Turk's speech during Speak Hard Youth Conference 2013. This conference is an annual gathering of student leaders to learn new things and gather information to take back to their schools. Harriet, a professional speaker, was the Keynote speaker of the 9th Speak Hard. Her keynote presentation was titled, Deal With It!

        Deal With It, but what is it exactly? She meant we have to deal with not being perfect and being judged. Everyone has their own definition of perfect. To some the definition of perfect is being athletic or being smart or being beautiful. Each and everyone of us gets to write our own definition of perfect. We can choose for it to be something that we will never attain and that tears ourselves down or we can choose something that we are and brings us up. People may judge and scoff, but we must breakout of our comfort zones and take that risk. As stated in Harriet Turk's chant --

I am somebody Special. If you don't like me, TOUGH.  

Cause I am Cool enough, Smooth enough, and Doggone it, 

I am Hot enough to be who I want to be. 

        We all CAN achieve our dreams, but we must work for them to be. We have the power to first dream and then strive to succeed. At first we may fail, but always try again and yet again. Others may laugh at your dreams, but choose to just to go for it and believe in yourself. Harriet Turk brought into realization that we each have our own dreams and when looked down on for them just quote her and say, "This ain't your dream!"

It's been three years . . .

It's been three years, Daddy. I'm a Junior in high school and top of my class. I know you are proud of me even if you aren't here. I am still swimming and won a medal at state this year. I plan to continue swimming in college. I have started my college search and wish you were here to help me with this huge decision. I enjoy making pancakes on Saturdays just as you and I did, although it does not take place very often. I follow the stock market, but I still don't understand it quite as you did. You will always be my hero Daddy. I really miss you and sometimes fear I am forgetting your voice. I know you are up in Heaven looking down and I can't wait to see you again some day next to Jesus. It's been three years since I have said "I Love You" before you passed. I still say it all the time and I'll say it again now, I love you Daddy!

Christmas Lights

 My little sister always says that all lights at Christmastime are Christmas lights, since they are lights and it is Christmas. She really does know how to make me laugh.

I love Christmas lights. Just the other evening a friend, my sisters, and I drove around town just to look at the Christmas lights (and take a few pics too). I've always heard that people light up their houses around Christmastime so Santa doesn't miss them. This is a novel idea, but to me people light up their houses for other reasons. To me house are decorated with Christmas lights to light up the world just as the star did that very first Christmas. 

If it wasn't for the star that first Christmas the wise men would not have been able to find and be changed by Jesus. That star announced the birth of our Lord to the world. 

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem  and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him." 

Matthew 2:1-2

As I enjoy the Christmas lights I remember that very first Christmas and the gift God sent down to us.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Do Not Worry About Tomorrow for Tomorrow Will Worry About Itself - Matthews 6:34

     Walking the halls of school where there are few students and just trying not to be noticed. Being scared to leave the classroom by yourself. Planning ahead if anything were to happen. These were common scene at my high school today.
      Word got out that a shooting threat had been made for Nov. 28th after teachers received a call and numerous emails on the matter. I heard about it yesterday and assumed it was just going to be a drill and that people where trying to scare me. Over one hundred students missed school (which was unexcused.) The kids in school were taking it lightly, just wanting some action, or not afraid and striving to be a hero. There was no lock down drill and no real shooting, but several people were kept in the office and questioned.
     I praise God that nothing happened and no one was hurt, but I can't help but think why all this fear. (Yes, almost everyone fears dying; whether a Christian or a believer of any other religion.) Rumors worked their way into the minds and clouded people's thoughts. What if I were to go around saying that a shooting could happen everyday, as this could be true? That everyone is dying as we speak, since just living brings us closer to death?
     As a Christian I find peace even in the storm -  "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."Jeremiah 29:11 NIV. -  I know that God's plan for me will follow His will and I know where I am going to spend eternity. As a Christian though I need to share this peace with others so they no longer have to live in fear, even though at times it is a very taxing job. Everyone deserves to know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose - Romans 8:28 NIV.
     

Little Things

Today I had to work a pool party. The pool had been rented out by a church to try to reach kids in the area and get them to attend church on Sundays. I normally like to work pool parties, but today I was not amused. I had other plans that I didn't know about until after I had been scheduled to work. The other plans were me going to see my cousin and her group present on their trip to Cambodia. I did go for about 15 minutes but then I had to rush off to work. When I arrived on job it was kind of frantic as someone decided not to show and we were a lifeguard short. Things were figured out and I headed to my favorite stand, stand two. Stand two is the top of the slides. I enjoy this stand as all you have to do is tell people if they can or can't go and if there really isn't a chance of you having to rescue anyone. The slides and the diving boards are really popular so it was pretty crowded; a constant stream of people climbing the two flights of stairs, waiting in line, sliding down, and doing it again. "You can go now," I said time and time again. For just a few moments I found myself alone, the sun was setting and the sky was beautiful. Soon I saw why there was no line, it was making itself up the stairs. A boy (he was nine and a half) with his father were in the lead and traveling quite slow, but no one seemed to care. As they reached the top I saw why the journey up around 20 steps had taken so long, one of the boy's legs was bowed and so he couldn't walk without support. I didn't stare but I really wanted to tell him how proud I was of him for climbing up all those stairs by himself. His father asked me if they could ride down together, a privilege allowed to parents with young children, and I couldn't say no. He sat his son down and then took a seat behind him. I nodded my head, letting him know that they could go. Laying down is the fastest way to travel down the slide, but with the two of them they had to sit. This made them travel down the slide quite slow. I know I don't like going down the slides slow, but as the boy came around the first corner his face was beaming. He was squealing and giggling with joy the rest of the short trip down to the water. I felt tears coming to my eyes. Twice more the scenario I just described played out. On his third and last trip the people in line behind him were cheering him on.

Something as little such as going down a water slide brought him so much joy. To me going down those slides is something I do almost everyday that I work. To me walking around with out leaning on someone or using special crutches is not a big deal, but to him it would have been. I've heard the saying, 'Take joy in the little things, because to someone else it's big.' A nine year old really taught me that today.

Singing

Sing- to make melodious sound; with or without words.
Singing a thing practically everyone can do. Some can sing
well, some can't. Some enjoy to sing, some don't. I am
a person who can sing well (at least I think) and enjoys
singing. I sing everywhere, such as, at home, work, school.
Tomorrow is my first day of participating in my school's
Show Choir. I have been a part of the 2012-2013 Treble
Effects, which is my high school's all girl choir, since may.
We haven't done any singing and some of us haven't even
met. We begin vocal camp tomorrow where we will be
singing for almost 3 hours. I am really excited to be in
Show Choir with a bunch of other kids who enjoy music
and love to sing.

Panama #2

Panama official language is Spanish. Over 90% of people in Panama 

speak Spanish. The second common language is English. There are 

also many native and indigenous languages spoken through out 

Panama. My sister left for Panama with a little Spanish under her belt,

but not much. She really went to speak in love, a universal language 

that requires no words. You speak love through simple acts of kindness 

and showing you care. Although  haven't had a chance to speak to her 

since she left I know that words are not always needed.                

My attempt on outlining Panama