Getting on my soapbox. . .

I'll be honest: I generally try to stay away from politics on the internet, and here's why.
1) Things get easily misconstrued.
2) The internet is great for many things, but a political debate - where body language, tone, and physical gestures are very important - is not one of those things.
3) People don't forget, but even if they do, your name is there along with your thoughts forever. Facebook comments are never really deleted.
That being said, I'm going to stand up on my little soapbox and put my name next to my thoughts and opinions.
Okay, now that being said, I am not here to make anyone mad.
I am not here to make enemies.
I am not here to step on anyone's digital digits.
I am here to try to persuade you to come around to my way of thinking, which - to be fair - is what every one does.
That's how people respectfully agree to disagree.
Now.
I am going to give my opinion of what's going on in the government of the United States right now, which you and I have every right to do: we're paying for it.
To do this, I will be heavily referencing the Phantom of the Opera, so buckle up and grab your capes -- we're going for a ride.
This may read a bit like a literary interpretation essay, but I promise you it's not.
I'd never get a grade on this.

Now, let's start at the very beginning.

For those who may not be Phans, I shall give you the bare, bare bones of what's actually a somewhat convoluted plot.
The Phantom has long since seduced Christine Daae into thinking that he is heaven-sent. She performs for him, she adores him, and she'd do anything for him. The pinnacle of their success is when she's at the top of her game. He takes her to his home (not for the first time, curse you Webber -- mea culpa, but your score was fantastic, every pun intended) and she begins to see what he truly is: not the angel he claimed he was, for starters.
Her childhood love, Raoul, shows up as a foil (contrast) to the Phantom. He truly loves Christine, and is more than a little worried about her obsession with some 'angel', even though she swears he's really what he says he is.
The Phantom does not get his casting choices approved for the next opera. He decides to show his acute displeasure by dropping the giant, 7-ton chandelier on the audience, killing some random woman. A freak accident.
Christine begins to really see who he is, though part of her still loves him. Raoul takes steps against him, and plans a way to show everyone what he really is. Long story short, it works. He's exposed, and slinks away, and the opera house is freed of his terror.
There are stories he fled to New York, but that's another subject entirely.

Where am I going with this?
Here.
I'm gonna name names, so if this offends you, I'm sorry, but this is my honest, thought-through opinion.

Obama has ideologically seduced mainstream media to follow him blindly, just as the Phantom seduced Christine. The mainstream media - like Madame Giry - sheilds him, makes excuses for him, and gives out his instructions. The first chandelier crash? I'd say that was Benghazi, the first 'mistake' with consequences of lives lost. That's when people kinda started to wake up, but it wasn't enough. I think this whole healthcare thing is hitting close enough to home that people are beginning to really figure out what is really going on.
The make believe is at an end.

The real question is, though, what's next?

"But I just wanna help. . ."

I'm pretty sure we've all said that at some point in our lives.

To most of us, the desire to help seems natural, almost impulsive.

We have to do it.

We want to do it.

And sometimes most of the time, we can't.

Not in the way we wanted to, not as much as we wanted to, or sometimes just not at all.

I saw this the other day on Pinterest:

It reminded me of a time where I was trying to help two individuals, but it just seemed like every time I tried, I hit a brick wall. I felt like I was giving, and giving, and giving, and giving, and it was just going nowhere.

One simply wasn't listening to advice - and instead making me their personal shrink complaining about problems they could have prevented, not if they'd listened to me, but if they'd used a bit of wisdom and common sense - and the other was simply convinced they couldn't forgive themselves for mistakes made in the past and that they couldn't change.

Needless to say, the fact that I wanted to help them so badly and I couldn't didn't exactly make me feel like a very good friend.

I felt like crap.

And that didn't help anyone.

That period ended, and those two friends and I just sort of . . . stopped.

Stopped everything.

Whether or not their situations got better or not, I don't know, and I'll probably never know.

I hope so.

All I wanted to do was help.

Fast forward about ten months.

I see that pin.

And I start thinking.

I realize that whoever made this pin is right.

You can't help everyone.

That's not to say your desire to or advice you may give isn't worth anything, but it just may not be what they need right then.

You may not have the experience, the knowledge, the skill, or the wisdom at that time to really help that person where they are.

But there's Someone who can.

And last time I checked, He takes referrals.

But there are people you can help.

People that need your experience and wisdom from where you are to help them where they are.

You may find those people to be few and far between, but they're there.

While you may not be able to help everyone, you can help someone.

And it's the someones of this life that count the most in the next.

If you won't learn from your own mistakes. . .

. . . at least learn from someone else's.

Namely, MINE.

Okay, freshmen, listen up: no, you don't want to cram your first two years full of gen-ed classes because you don't want to be slammed with whatever classes are required for your major. 

You'll go crazy.

But don't slack on your gen-eds . . . Like I did.

Namely, I was really good in taking my foreign languages while they were still fresh from high school.

I waited about four years to take my math.

I waited about five years to take my sciences.

Ten out of ten would not recommend!

So if you're one of those stubborn people who doesn't learn from your own mistakes, at least learn from mine.

(Oh yes, and I also have to take speech; ironically after I've given the bulk of my class presentations.)

(Un)Happy Happenstance?

Sometimes everything goes just how you want it to.

And sometimes . . . okay, usually it probably doesn't.

That can't be the end of everything.

You can't let it beat you.

Beat it.

Try harder.

Change your plans to work with how things are now.

And win.

Who knows?

Things might turn out better this way. . .

Staying in Love ~ Part 2

For Part 1, click here.

We've already discussed just Whom we're to be falling in love with.

And as everyone knows, the "honeymoon" phase is wonderful.

But it doesn't last forever.

That's because the "honeymoon" phase is fueled primarily by feelings.

But love isn't just a feeling.

(I'm not going to tell you love isn't a feeling, because I'm 99% sure there are chemical reactions for 'love', making it basically a feeling. I'm fairly certain hormones play a pretty big part, too.)

True love is a commitment.

God's committed to us.

How committed to Him are we?

Would you go a day without talking to someone you love? Or even someone you like, for that matter?

If they wrote you letters, wouldn't you read them? Several times? Become so familiar with them that you knew the words by heart?

Well . . . we have that.

It's hard for us - being humans - to grasp having a relationship with someone we can't physically see or hear.

I'll admit that wholeheartedly.

But it can be done.

I'm sure you know people who have a great relationship with God and, like me, you're kinda jealous of them.

We can have that, too.

We just need to talk to Him.

We just need to read His love letters, as well as His letters of instruction.

We need to realize that a relationship takes two.

God's ready and willing.

How willing are you to stay in love?

First of the Last Days

Oh my . . . that sounded much more bleak and apocalyptic than I meant it to.

What I'm talking about is the first day of classes tomorrow.

Tomorrow, I'm a senior.

It'll be the first day of the last days of my college education.

And while I'm really excited about that, I'm kinda bummed, too.

I feel like I've just hit this point where I'm ready to have a degree and start being a productive member of society, but I feel like I want to do so much more.

I want to go to Europe.

I want to own a salon.

I want to learn fencing.

I want to go to the beaches in Florida.

I want to see snow. (Not in August, obviously, but I do.)

I want to write what I want to write, but I don't know what I want to write.

I guess tomorrow is one step closer to all of that.

Yep, I suppose it is.

My, Oh My

It's August 15th. 

Summer is over. 

My, oh my, where'd the months go?

My younger sister started her dual enrollment at the local technical college this morning. My younger brother starts his freshman year at the Citadel this weekend. I start my senior year next week. 

My, oh my, where'd the years go? 

I guess all we can do is honor God with our hours, and trust Him in the moments, because He sees the years behind us and the years before us. 

Those years are made of months, weeks, days, hours, and moments. 

Live them well.

Learning to Let Go

Normally, this is the time of year people are flooded with "OMg its like finalzzz peeps so scared lol" posts.

And this is sort of one of them, but not really.

I'm not really worried about finals this semester. I've already done three, and I only have three left, and only two of those are actual tests. 

No, I'm gearing up to learn a really hard lesson that they can't teach you in a classroom.

I'm learning to let go.

I'm not talking about a relationship, though this lesson has infinite applications.

No, for me, it's my GPA.

I'm not bragging here; I'm stating a fact: these past two and a half years, I've earned a 4.0.

And I'm really scared I'm going to lose it.

I know a B and / or a 3.9 is nothing at all to sneeze at.

And I wouldn't be letting anyone down by getting a B.

Except me.

And that's what I'm struggling to let go of.

I don't want that to be my idol.

I don't want that to bug me.

I want to have peace about it.

And I can.

It's just a struggle.

But it's a good struggle to have.

I mean, at the end of my life, God won't be judging me on my grades.

He'll be judging me on how I lived for Him.

And that's worth so much more thought than a GPA that only matters for four years.

I’m Short

I’m short.

I used to want to be tall, but I’ve heard from tall people that it's not that great being tall. 

For instance, jeans just aren't long enough.

. . . Ummm, well then, you can have my problem: even the petite short jeans are about 3-4 inches too long. 

I remember a few years ago I bought a pair of jeans and I went to get them taken up by this Japanese lady who does alterations down the street. I went into her store and stood on the box and she starts laughing at me when she rolled up the ends. 

She's all "Oh you so cute and so short not tall at all" and I'm all "But I'm taller than you!"

It was pretty funny.

But yeah, being tall may be no walk in the park, but being short isn't too awesome either. 

Subjects of Songs

I just gotta say . . . I feel really sorry for the people other people write songs about.

Like, basically for pretty much every guy Taylor Swift or Adele has ever dated or crushed on.

Take "Teardrops on my Guitar", for example.

Now, don't get me wrong, I love that song. It's part of the reason I respect Taylor: it's not a catty song about her liking a guy and trying to steal him. It's about her liking a guy and wanting him to be treated right and loved, even if it's not her being loved back. If fact, she tries her best not to interfere.

I really respect that.

But I hope she went by the whole "the names have been changed to protect the innocent" thing, because if she really liked some guy named Drew . . . somebody really felt awful when that was released.

Or say, Christina Perri's "Jar of Hearts".

I love that song, too. Actually, it seems like I've been living some of the songs from "Lovestrong" lately, but that's slightly irrelevant. 

If you watch the music video, it's heartbreaking, but beautiful in a bitter, sad sort of way.

It's like she hates him for what he did to her . . . but knows he's going to end up hurt in the end, too.

That guy must feel pretty bad too.

I guess I just feel like I'd have to walk on eggshells around my friend if they were a songwriter - I wouldn't want to end up the butt of a song.

Though, in a way, I guess it's sort of a nod: they meant enough to them that they wrote a song about them.

Anyway, it's just interesting.

And sad.

And sweet, sometimes.

Contentment and Letting Go

I actually wrote this in a random notebook almost a year ago and just now found it - thought it might be good to share. 

It's not just "the Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want".

It's "the Lord is my ___, I shall not want".

The Lord is my friend, I shall not want.

The Lord is my protector, I shall not want.

The Lord is my comforter, I shall not want.

The Lord is my provider, I shall not want.

The Lord is the lover of my soul, I shall not want.

The Lord is my guider, I shall not want.

The Lord is my study buddy, I shall not want.

So why do I still want?

Because I'm not satisfied in Him.

I'm not filled with Him.

I want to be.

I thirst for Him.

I am weary of my burdens - He alone can give me rest.

Why don't I give them to Him?

Why don't I just surrender everything?

Because I like to be in control.

I never was.

And honestly, I don't want to be in control anymore - I don't know what I'm doing.

Ever.

I want Him to be in control.

It might not make things easier. . .

But it will be better.

Convictions

I've been convicted about something lately.

Okay, well, many somethings, but I'm only going to talk about the one.

We've been going through Romans lately at church, and yesterday in Sunday School, someone taught on accountability. This wasn't the aim of his lesson, but I think it's a good application.

He asked somebody to read part of Romans 12, and as they were, I saw this section:

9 Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good. 10 Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor; 11 not lagging behind in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; 12 rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer, 13 contributing to the needs of the saints, practicing hospitality.

Nope. Not convicting at all. . . 

But here's the big part: "Give preference to one another in honor" (emphasis mine).

Not just "give preference".

"Give preference in honor".

You know what that really means?

It means don't roll your eyes when you let them pick the TV show that night.

Don't mutter under your breath when you clean up behind them.

It generally means don't be spiteful when you let somebody have their way.

Now, I do have to point out that "turning the other cheek" does not mean you have to be a door mat.

Because it doesn't.

But the point still stands.

. . . And the point still pricks. . .

Blah Blah, Valentine's Day, Mush Mush

If you were expecting a beautiful, mushy Valentine's Day post, you're not going to get it.

Sorry.

This is for those of you - like me - who are 'alone' for Valentine's Day.

I say 'alone' because you're not really alone, and here's why. 

Do you know the story behind Valentine's day?

The real story?

Well, I do.

And while I don't remember the specifics, I can tell you the gist of it.

There was a man named Valentine (Italian, probably) who was going to be hanged at dawn, at the first ringing of the bell.

Don't ask me what for, but I think it was murder.

Dawn came, and he was led to the scaffold.

Per the order, the executioners waited for the ringing of the bell.

They never heard it. 

One of the officials went to the bell tower and demanded to know why the bell hadn't been rung yet.

The bell ringer explained that he had been ringing the bell, but it hadn't been working. 

They went to examine it, and when they looked up at it, they saw Valentine's young wife clinging to the clapper: her body had silenced the ringing.

By the time they got her out, she was half dead. They asked her why she had done that, and she replied simply that she loved her husband. She died not too long afterwards.

Deciding the debt owed the state had been paid by one life, the official released Valentine, who - I assume - went on to become a saint somehow. 

Does that story ring a bell?

It's a terrible pun, but the question stands.

Valentine's Day isn't about roses and cutesy poetry and chocolate and sheepish grins and Cupid and pink hearts and dates.

It's about sacrificial love.

It's about laying one's life down for another.

And hopefully, that sounds familiar to all of us.

And that's why you're never alone.

I understand that it can hurt to be without a significant other during Valentine's Day: I didn't think I would be 'alone' this year, but I am.

And that's okay.

I'm not really alone.

And neither are you.

We are loved beyond measure by One who will never let us go.

We are loved by One who took our place of punishment and death.

So Happy Valentine's Day.

For God so loved the world

that He gave His only begotten Son

that whoever believes on Him

should not perish

but have eternal life.

John 3:16

"Come Unto Me"

I just need to post this, both because I need it right now, and I'm sure there are others who could too.

A Realistic Self-Image

I'm sure a lot of us made New Year's Resolutions to lose some extra pounds.

I know I did.

But what do we really want?

To have a smaller number on the scale (which nobody knows but us), or to look slimmer?

If I were to be honest . . . it would have been the latter last year.

But not this year.

What changed?

My self-image.

How I see myself has changed, and for the better.

This is really hard to do, and took a while for me, but it's worth it.

And pretty simple. 

Skinny does not necessarily equal healthy.

For some, it might, but not for everyone.

For years, I thought I'd have to be skinny to be healthy, or pretty, or anything, but now I see that's not the case.

Now, I'm not one to get my advice from Hollywood, but I kinda like Jennifer Lawrence as a person (and no, I haven't seen the Hunger Games, nor do I plan to).

This quote is from Pinterest, so if it's not really her, sorry, but it sounds like something she'd say. 

In Hollywood, I’m obese. I’m considered a fat actress. I’m never going to starve myself for a part. I keep waiting for that one role to come along that scares me enough into dieting, and it just can’t happen. I’m invincible. I don’t want little girls to be like, ‘Oh, I want to look like Katniss, so I’m going to skip dinner.’ That’s something that I was really conscious of during training. I was trying to get my body to look fit and strong, not thin and underfed.

Now that is a good mindset.

But think about it.

How many models, actresses, and normal girls look like they haven't eaten in days?

Too many, I think.

Seems like everyone thinks it's cooler to be thin.

Don't get me wrong; it's not bad to be thin - it's just . . . well, a bit overrated.

It would probably surprise you to learn that less than a hundred years ago, curvy girls were considered "more beautiful".

That's not entirely correct either, but do you know what makes everyone change their minds?

The media.

All of it.

Ever see some of those "plus size" models?

Ever notice how they look . . . well, normal?

Since when was that not attractive?

Since when was that weird?

Since when did preteen girls care about how many calories they had?

To say it's only the media's portrayal of weight and obesity would be a lie, but I'm only trying to make one point here, and you have to admit that that's certainly a large part of it.

Anyhow, what I'm trying to say is that even if you do lose all the weight you said you would, and even if you do fit into your high school jeans again . . . will you really, honestly be happy with yourself? Or will you never be slim enough or light enough?

God made you as you are for a reason.

Heck, maybe you're the way you are just to encourage someone like you who may struggle with the same thing. You never know.

And while you may not like it now, He does, and He doesn't make mistakes, nor is He ever mistaken.

I once heard someone (I think Chip Ingram, but I'm not sure) say that the trick is you have to think of yourself correctly: you shouldn't think of yourself too highly, but you shouldn't think of yourself too lowly, either.

Thinking of yourself too highly results in pride, arrogance, and a general sense of annoyance to everyone around you.

Thinking of yourself too lowly results in depression, bitterness, and a lack of joy, which will be felt by everyone you're around, believe me.

Thinking accurately about yourself allows you to 1) see what areas might need improvement and 2) see what's genuinely great about yourself.

So no, you may never fit into that size you wanted, or see the number you wanted when you step on the scale, or get picture perfect skin, or have hair that actually does what you want it to, but you're still made in the image of God, and as long as you're taking care of your temple, you're beautiful, even when you don't feel like you are.

Waiting.

I will be the first to admit it: patience is not one of my strengths.

It's not easy being patient.

And something's occurred to me lately that I thought I should share.

Shouldn't it be (theoretically) easier to be patient on God?

That's not to make Him sound slow or anything, just our perception of time.

I mean, we know He's promised to provide for us.

We know He'll bless us.

And we know He has our best at heart and in mind.

So why are we so antsy?

We know the answer, but just in case you don't want to own to it, I will:

we want what we want when we want it.

I do. And I'll bet you do, too.

And nothing's wrong with wanting something (assuming it's a good thing).

But when we let that get in the way of trusting God, we end up making the thing we want - or sometimes even the wanting itself - an idol.

If God wants us to have it, we'll have it.

If He doesn't, we won't.

Waiting's hard.

I know it is.

But if you're waiting in God's time with a good attitude . . . it'll be worth it.

Always.

What are you waiting for?

Cuffing Season

"All I Want for Christmas is You" . . . "Blue Christmas" . . . "Last Christmas" . . . Honestly, what are these gals expecting? A man tied up in ribbons under the tree for them?

Unfortunately, no - they have to catch one themselves. 

Or at least, they feel they do.

I think that's pretty sad.

I know it'd be nice to have someone to dote on you, to take you places, and to just be with, but - as I see it - someone you just flirt with and pick up just because you don't want to be alone probably won't stick around for the long-haul and isn't that what we want in the end?

The way I see it, you'll be saved a lot of heartache if you just wait for the right guy. 

Waiting isn't easy, but then - I know it's cliche - but great things usually aren't easy. 

I know a few girls who insist they're trusting God for everything in their lives, but they chase after guys like there's no tomorrow. 

Every time I feel like I need a guy to make me happy, I just remember that He's far more than enough to make me truly happy.

God knows what He's doing, and that's something, because most days I don't know what I'm going to do.

Sometimes I would think about how it'd be nice just to have a guy to study with and spend free time with . . . but I realized that that's very selfish. Think about it: if you don't have the time or energy to invest in a relationship, it's cheating the other person. And if you only want them around for the perks, you probably wouldn't want to stay when things get tough, either. And what if they realize the only reason you wanted them around was for what they could do for you . . . can you imagine what that would feel like? 

Unfortunately, I do. Not from a guy, but friends. Or rather, 'friends'. And people I'm very close to have felt the same, and I promise you, that will not only affect you and your significant other, but also friends on both sides. It's not something to take lightly. 

Anyway, you don't need a guy or a girl in your life to be happy, especially during the Christmas and New Years seasons. It's a time to be with good friends and your family. That time doesn't last forever - enjoy it while you can . . . with no distractions!

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My Thoughts on . . . Fidelio

Fidelio is one of the best operas ever.

Like, legit.

It's awesome.

The plot's a bit convoluted, and I don't want to spoil anything by trying to explain it, so I'm just not going to. 

It sounds kinda rough, but that's just because it's in German. After a while, you get used to it, but there is this really funny part right at the beginning where this guard's trying to woo the jail keeper's daughter, and she's so sick of it that she pounds the table over and over shouting "Nein nein nein nein!"

Funniest. Opera scene. Ever. 

And it only works in German, so yeah.

But it's an awesome love (and sort of a spy) story, but not mushy. Totally not mushy. 

I'd give it a 5/5.

It's really that great. 

Any thoughts on my review? Did I miss anything or not give it enough praise? Comment below!

My Thoughts on . . . Carmen

So, Carmen's pretty much one of the most famous operas ever. 

Meh.

What would I rate it?

Gosh, probably a 2 or a 3 out of 5. 

I'm really not a big fan of it.

Why?

Well, not because it's "too mainstream" -- that really doesn't bother me. 

It just feels like there's something lacking in the ending, and if you don't know the ending, I'm certainly not going to spoil it for you. Go watch it yourself.

(Though I did stick a hint in the tags . . . )

The music is wonderful, and although the overture and music from the first and last acts are the most famous, there's some pretty good stuff in between, too. 

I have to admit, though, that the first time I watched it, I was struck by the irony . . .

It's an opera set in Spain, where they speak French, performed in Germany, while I was watching it in America, with English subtitles. 

(Oh yes, I do suggest watching operas with subtitles - very helpful. Unless you're actually going to one, in which case I'd suggest sticking a libretto in your mother tongue in your bag.)

But yeah, something just seems missing to me. And it's a bit overused (not the same as mainstream).

Overall rating: 2.5/5

Any thoughts on my review? Did I miss anything or not give it a fair shot? Comment below!

Next . . . Fidelio . . .

You know that feeling?

That feeling when you've accomplished this great and awesome feat?

That feeling when you know the worst is behind you?

That feeling that you look forward to during the hard times?

That feeling that's euphoric?

That feeling when you finish a four page paper on the Odyssey?

Yeah, me too. 

And yes, I am perfectly aware that this is a TON of gifs, but it's nearly 1 AM, and if you'd spent an entire day on this paper, you'd be using all these gifs too.