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Saturday, December 26, 2009

December 26

So, it's the day after Christmas. Mine was a beautiful one. I stayed home, and I talked with my family. I recieved beautiful presents wrapped in love, and I gave a some myself. Jesus Christ is born, and the hype is slowing down. Christmas candy is on sale, and the radio station that was playing Christmas music is now playing "positive, encouraging, and uplifting" music to "lift you out of the post-Christmas blues". Why is that? Because we're all sad that Christmas is over? That there's nothing to look forward too? That there's no more presents?! Well, get out of your Christmas blues by yourself, is what I say! Why be sad? Jesus is born! Our Savior is here! He's still alive, and he came and made it possible to live forever with the Creator of the Universe in paradise! Come ON!
Not only that, but its almost a new year! Yeah, yeah, sounds cliche, but I think nothing says fresh start like a new year on the calendar. New stuff to do, new stuff to use, a fresh start to look at things differently. I know what I'll be doing differently this year! How about you? Get up! Go outside! Christmas is every single day! We can celebrate the birth of Jesus every day! It doesn't have to come wrapped in shiny paper! "JOY to the world, the Lord is come! Let Earth recieve her King!..." It doesn't say anywhere in any Christmas carol that the joy stops on December 25. Happy Day After Christmas, everyone.

Saturday, December 19, 2009

Beauty

I just finished a marvelous book. It completely took me by surprise; I wasn't expecting anything. That's probably what made it so great. I tend to be disappointed by honor books, but this isn't one and is fantastic! The book is Beauty: A Retelling of the Story of Beauty and the Beast. Honour is a plain young woman who has the ironic nickname of Beauty and two knock-out sisters. She and her family are forced to leave their comfortable city life for the country, but they are together, so all are content. The forest they live near is supposedly enchanted, but Beauty's father discovers just how enchanted it is. He makes an unfortunate mistake, the penalty for which is death, but Beauty intervenes and sacrifices her life with her family for the life of her father. A Beast lives in a beautifully mysterious, and Beauty goes to him to pay her father's debt. The Beast is a true gentleman, though he is never described, and Beauty lives comfortably, waited on by charmed servants. Her life, however, is never completely whole without her family. And after several months with Beast, she is allowed to return home temporarily, and everything changes.
Truly, the story isn't written for children, though it could have been; it was refreshing change from the books filled with profanity and unnecessarily thorough descriptions written in for the shock factor. Also refreshing was the character of Beauty herself. She is a strong woman who, for once, plays the heroine and isn't pretty. Not only that, but her feelings for Beast are so wonderfully gradual. The book is beautifully written, and connections (which I love) are made throughout the story back to the familiar tale everyone thinks they already know. This is not just another fairy tale with a twist; its a classic fairy tale in itself.

Thursday, December 10, 2009

A List

In the spirit of Relyn's post, I was inspired to write my own list. These are things I'm thankful for. And not just oh-that's-nice-life-is-good thankful, but true, deep, heartfelt thanks. Strangely, I made a list already, just a couple of days ago in Algebra II. Hm...what got me thinking about that then, I wonder? :) Who knows. Here we go...
  • I can actually take a class like Algebra II, and I'm not completely confused yet.
  • No one is out to kill me.
  • My parents love me.
  • The Creator of the universe loves me. (This is more than true, deep, heartfelt thanks. Seriously. This is part of my soul.)
  • I have my own space to sit back and relax.
  • There are options in my future; it's not set in stone like others'.
  • My family and myself are healthy and in good spirits.

Okay, now for some oh-isn't-that-nice thanks.

  • My school has less than 500 people in it.
  • I can sit in a house decorated with lights just because, not because I need them to see.
  • The ball team is currently undefeated.
  • I played a song on the piano for jazz band. Without stopping and squinting at the notes.
  • A penny was lying heads-up in front of my locker this morning. I put it in my shoe.
  • I don't have blisters from the penny in my shoe.
  • It's almost Friday.

That's not all, but that's the basics. Excuse me, please, while I go give my mother and father (and even my repetitively-Christmas-caroling brother) a big hug.

Saturday, December 5, 2009

Jeans



I was just thinking...surprise! I thought about how our society is so color-oriented. Our living rooms have color schemes, our bedrooms have their own decorating palette. But its not just in our houses. Clothing. Oh, clothing. I love clothes and putting outfits together as much as the next teenage girl, but I realized how much we wear jeans. Magazines, fashion experts, and department stores describe jeans as being a "wardrobe staple", but they're blue. Our colorful society thinks of a rough blue cloth as being normal. We wear jeans with every single color in the spectrum! Oh, sure, there's lots of different colored jeans out there now. We got pink and orange and zebra-striped and holey jeans. But they were originally a burlap-y color, invented by a man out in the West for the hard workers out there. Somehow, they evolved into blue jeans. I just find it strange that when our living rooms wear blue and black and orange together, it's odd, but when we wear them on ourselves, we're styling a staple.