As the title states, the weather is a great topic to choose when none others are available or perhaps when no 'nice' topics are available. If you've ever seen 'Sense and Sensibility' with Emma Thompson, you might remember the part when the three daughters and their widowed mother are coming back from a day with their relatives (My brain has gone a bit foggy with the names so please excuse me) and Margaret (the youngest) starts talking about a subject that her older sister finds distressing. Her mother says that if she has nothing nice to say, to please restrict her remarks to the weather.
I do have many nice things to say so i won't restrict my remarks to the weather but i shall start out that way, as we all must start at something, someday.
A little while ago we had quite a few days every week where the weather was warm enough to go swimming at the beach. My brother and i enjoyed those days and took them whenever offered. Alas, those warm, sunny days are gone now only to be replaced with miserable, dull gray skies and rain. Not that I'm complaining! I love the rain! In fact it was quite good today when i spontaneously decided to go for a walk around the block and ended up getting very nearly soaked. The dull sky's have been great inspiration to a clouded mind such as mine... strangely enough the sunny, warm days seemed to have locked up my brain with a key i didn't have and now that the rain has come with early nights i've been given back the key and my mind is free to roam over every topic i find remotely interesting... including blogging. It's quite relaxing to be honest. I feel more at peace now than i have for a while... whether thats due to the weather or resolved problems i'm not too sure and i dont think i want to find out (it means more thinking - that's strictly forbidden in my house).
Now my thoughts may wander...
There is something very interesting that my mother came across today that i'm so happy she decided to share with me... (this is mainly for Christians)
When someone comes along in our lifes that doesn't believe in God, yet their such wonderful people and we hold them with great regard, we tend to pray for them to see God in their lifes and come to realise Him. Yet an interesting point is that if we were to continue doing this with everyone in the world, we'd only be chipping through the cement block little bit by little bit. What do you want to do when there's a block in your drain? Do you want to sit there for hours picking out the indavidual blockage or grab a tool and yank the whole thing out? Probably not the best metaphore to use but i think you get the point.
There are so many powerful people in this world. They hold great influence over the rest of the population on Earth. What happens when more and more laws come in to stop God being mentioned? To stop 'Merry Christmas' being said and 'Happy Holidays' being your greeting? What happens when the athiests in charge set even more powerful athiests in charge? They hold such influence over the population of this world that many people will find themselves falling away from God and those that don't know Him will become more and more convinced that He doesn't exist.
Do you think, to break apart this cement block, we might have to aim for its core and not the outer crust? Wouldn't it be better to go at it with a pickaxe instead of a spoon?
Start praying for those people in power. Those in the media, presidents, prime ministers, billionaires with opinions. Pray for them to let God come through in everything. It will make a huge difference to have a 'free country' rather than a 'God restricted' country.
America wasn't formed as a Christian state yet 80% of the youth say their Christian. 3/5 of them say that religion helps define who they are. What's going to happen to these people if God is completely irradicated from society? If he stops being mentioned and even worse, when he's not allowed to be mentioned? The world is getting worse as the years progress and things are going to get worse before they get better. I think it would be better to strike the centre of the block and break it into little bits by praying for those people who hold 99% of the worlds money rather that chipping away at the edge of the block, praying for those indaviduals.
Don't get me wrong, we still must pray for the people we care about. We must still pray for those that need God in their lives but we can't just focus on them. We need to find the problem, and fix it. Like pulling out a weed; Get the roots, not the leaves. The leaves can always grow back.
God bless,
Elizabeth
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Before the end
Well at least i'm making another post before the end of the month!!! I consider that an accomplishment!
It seems every time i come to write a post my mind goes blank and i can't think of what to write and get excessively miserable. Then i decide to think of something to write about and bring out the broom to clear everything out from the deepest darkest corners of my brain and find that something. Well... that doesn't always work so well because i come across quite a lot of things i'd like to share and yet can't take the time to write them all out so i have to choose. What a dilemma... Today i have picked a certain topic to write about and if i stray from that topic then so be it... but it wont be intentional. ;)
I have finally got a job! Finally!
I have been applying at every known place in this little town for months with no result. I have been praying for months and months and months for a job and no result until a couple of weeks ago... I'll start a few months ago (perhaps more. I think it was before Christmas) i applied for a job at a lovely restaurant/cafe near the beach (considering our town lies along the whole beach that's not saying much) and yet, no result. Then i will speed up to a couple of weeks ago on a lovely Wednesday afternoon after my brother and i had been to the library to play some chess. He walked off to his favourite store (eb games) to peruse the new xbox games and i met up with a friends sister. She looked a bit lonely and had just finished a long shift at work and asked me out for a coffee (knowing me, i couldn't say no). During our lively chat over iced coffees, mochas and ice cream, the topic of work came up. She worked at this little cafe/restaurant i so wanted a job at and offered to put in a good word for me with one of her boss'. The next morning my family head out the door and i receive a txt from Becca asking if i was able to come to the cafe/restaurant for a job interview. Naturally i was very happy and mum and i said a quick prayer, asking God to let this all go well if it was meant to be or let it finish quickly if it was not. I'm not the most confident of people so walking to a deserted part of the cafe/restaurant with Jody (boss) made me extremely nervous. I thought i hid it well though and remained calm, keeping eye contact and smiling throughout the interview. I was asked to come in that saturday morning to see how i went with the other staff. No surprise, i showed up 15 minutes early and by the end of my shift i realised that it was not in fact as Jody had first said a 'day to see how i went' but in fact my first day at my first job. The day after my pay went in, mum and i went shopping. How could i resist... i bought three new pairs of shoes! How wonderful it felt to be able to buy something with money that I had earned for myself. I had another shift last friday on a 37 degree day. It must have been at least 40 out the back where i was doing the dishes so when the bell rang i was the first to pick up the meals and take them to a table outside... but just as i was walking out, who should i see except my parents! At that moment i had a mental blank and completely forgot which table i was taking the meals to. Doubling back i checked the docket again and when i came back out my parents were seated at table 25 (other side of the cafe/restaurant to where i was taking the meals to). It was actually rather funny. I just need to remember the table number next time i come across my parents walking in to the cafe/restaurant so i don't look like a stone statue with a shocked expression clearly plastered across my face.
Sorry for ranting on about this but its my first job and i'm so thrilled!!! I have two more shifts this week and i can hardly wait.
God bless,
Elizabeth
It seems every time i come to write a post my mind goes blank and i can't think of what to write and get excessively miserable. Then i decide to think of something to write about and bring out the broom to clear everything out from the deepest darkest corners of my brain and find that something. Well... that doesn't always work so well because i come across quite a lot of things i'd like to share and yet can't take the time to write them all out so i have to choose. What a dilemma... Today i have picked a certain topic to write about and if i stray from that topic then so be it... but it wont be intentional. ;)
I have finally got a job! Finally!
I have been applying at every known place in this little town for months with no result. I have been praying for months and months and months for a job and no result until a couple of weeks ago... I'll start a few months ago (perhaps more. I think it was before Christmas) i applied for a job at a lovely restaurant/cafe near the beach (considering our town lies along the whole beach that's not saying much) and yet, no result. Then i will speed up to a couple of weeks ago on a lovely Wednesday afternoon after my brother and i had been to the library to play some chess. He walked off to his favourite store (eb games) to peruse the new xbox games and i met up with a friends sister. She looked a bit lonely and had just finished a long shift at work and asked me out for a coffee (knowing me, i couldn't say no). During our lively chat over iced coffees, mochas and ice cream, the topic of work came up. She worked at this little cafe/restaurant i so wanted a job at and offered to put in a good word for me with one of her boss'. The next morning my family head out the door and i receive a txt from Becca asking if i was able to come to the cafe/restaurant for a job interview. Naturally i was very happy and mum and i said a quick prayer, asking God to let this all go well if it was meant to be or let it finish quickly if it was not. I'm not the most confident of people so walking to a deserted part of the cafe/restaurant with Jody (boss) made me extremely nervous. I thought i hid it well though and remained calm, keeping eye contact and smiling throughout the interview. I was asked to come in that saturday morning to see how i went with the other staff. No surprise, i showed up 15 minutes early and by the end of my shift i realised that it was not in fact as Jody had first said a 'day to see how i went' but in fact my first day at my first job. The day after my pay went in, mum and i went shopping. How could i resist... i bought three new pairs of shoes! How wonderful it felt to be able to buy something with money that I had earned for myself. I had another shift last friday on a 37 degree day. It must have been at least 40 out the back where i was doing the dishes so when the bell rang i was the first to pick up the meals and take them to a table outside... but just as i was walking out, who should i see except my parents! At that moment i had a mental blank and completely forgot which table i was taking the meals to. Doubling back i checked the docket again and when i came back out my parents were seated at table 25 (other side of the cafe/restaurant to where i was taking the meals to). It was actually rather funny. I just need to remember the table number next time i come across my parents walking in to the cafe/restaurant so i don't look like a stone statue with a shocked expression clearly plastered across my face.
Sorry for ranting on about this but its my first job and i'm so thrilled!!! I have two more shifts this week and i can hardly wait.
God bless,
Elizabeth
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Love
There is mostly one person in our lives to whom we hold closer than everyone else. This person will generally be someone you learn from, who inspires you, who you can trust and who you know loves you abundantly. For me, the person whom i hold closer than every human being alive, who has always been there for me and i hope always will be, is a woman who shows her love through every kindness possible, who radiates care and compassion, who strives to make my life easier and take away the pain however she can, who also gave me life:
My Mother
Dear Mother, I love you.
This woman is the one for whom i would do anything, who's opinion is the only real one that matters to me, who listens even when she has so many errands to run, who can give the greatest hugs in which i feel so safe and reassured. Her love is the thing that keeps me going when i get so down i don't want to come out of my hole. being on the receiving end of her kindness is so wonderful it makes me think why God blessed me with her. She is the most beautiful (both inside and out), compassionate, loving, caring, giving, wise and most wonderful woman i know. To her i owe my life on countless occasions (including birth), my (what little i have) wisdom, my 'academic smarts', virtues, morals and my heart. It's not as sin free as she deserves but she has it.
Dear Mother, I love you.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
March
Another long time since i have last updated BUT i have a good excuse!!!
I have been redecorating my room in the shabby chic style... i'm very much on the white side with large floral prints and pale pinks. Makes it so much easier to relax which i must say i've needed these past months. It's amazing the insights you get as we walk along the road of life. I've had many lately but they take so long to explain when talking let alone writing.
One of the easier ones however is very easy to explain but not so easy to comprehend until you come to that very tall, wide and hard brick wall in life.
Yesterday doesn't matter. Do what you can with today and make the most of it as though it were your last.
See? Very simple. It's always coming around in life, whether it be a quote in a book or a friendly voice telling you but it always seems to get lost... luckily for me it's always coming back around in my life. That's one of the reasons i've been refurbishing. You can sit in gloom (i call it gloom because my walls are brick and i hate brick for some reason... its so depressing) and take life as it comes without being truly happy OR you can get up, do something you might not want to with the end result making you extremely happy and a good sense of having accomplished something... i love that feeling though getting to that feeling can be a rather hard task i don't brave too often.
When things take a downturn, naturally you need the time to process whatever's happened and to pick yourself up again but the best help i've found to overcome grief or shock or some sort of strong emotion (besides happiness) is keeping yourself busy. Staying occupied with SOMETHING. Not only do you keep yourself from straying into the red zone but also accomplish something. I found that painting is a very good tool. The way the brush strokes back and forth across the surface of whatever your lathering paint over is quite soothing. Its easier to think and can help you process certain information. It's a good thing i found this out at 14! Should help later in life if i ever find myself in a sticky, miserable situation.
Ever had the feeling of tiptoeing around eggshells when suddenly you step on one and the room is so quiet the 'crunch' sounds like a cannon blast?
I think i just typed that to see how it sounds written down.
I've also been doing quite a bit of graphics editing lately. I used to hate GIMP with all the little buttons and tabs but once you take the time to learn what they mean (through trial and error. I don't like manuals) its an amazing piece of technology! The bad part is if you don't know anyone who understands what your talking about and can't appreciates the work and time that went into the picture but the end result (how i love saying that) is rewarding in itself i suppose. Like a 3yo who drew a picture and is eager to show it off to whoever happens to walk by... but noone walks by. POOR CHILD!!!
I guess teenagers can't get away with the puppy dog eyes. :(
Another thing i've found rather... whats the word... fun? no... rythmic! Another thing i've found rather rythmic is making rugs. The ones where you plait together long strips of fabric then wind it round and round in a circle (or any shape really) and stitch it together. It's rather like knitting a square... one thing you have to keep repeating is quite often very good for the brain when already stretched to maximum. Not exactly the best idea to do something with an intricate pattern. If you miss a stitch you might explode.
Speaking of stitches... i didn't receive any participants for the pay it forward so randomly picked out three people i know to send gifts too. One has already been sent out and i'm working on the second. Again: Something has been accomplished, completed.
God bless,
blackberry swirls and custard are calling me,
Elizabeth
I have been redecorating my room in the shabby chic style... i'm very much on the white side with large floral prints and pale pinks. Makes it so much easier to relax which i must say i've needed these past months. It's amazing the insights you get as we walk along the road of life. I've had many lately but they take so long to explain when talking let alone writing.
One of the easier ones however is very easy to explain but not so easy to comprehend until you come to that very tall, wide and hard brick wall in life.
Yesterday doesn't matter. Do what you can with today and make the most of it as though it were your last.
See? Very simple. It's always coming around in life, whether it be a quote in a book or a friendly voice telling you but it always seems to get lost... luckily for me it's always coming back around in my life. That's one of the reasons i've been refurbishing. You can sit in gloom (i call it gloom because my walls are brick and i hate brick for some reason... its so depressing) and take life as it comes without being truly happy OR you can get up, do something you might not want to with the end result making you extremely happy and a good sense of having accomplished something... i love that feeling though getting to that feeling can be a rather hard task i don't brave too often.
When things take a downturn, naturally you need the time to process whatever's happened and to pick yourself up again but the best help i've found to overcome grief or shock or some sort of strong emotion (besides happiness) is keeping yourself busy. Staying occupied with SOMETHING. Not only do you keep yourself from straying into the red zone but also accomplish something. I found that painting is a very good tool. The way the brush strokes back and forth across the surface of whatever your lathering paint over is quite soothing. Its easier to think and can help you process certain information. It's a good thing i found this out at 14! Should help later in life if i ever find myself in a sticky, miserable situation.
Ever had the feeling of tiptoeing around eggshells when suddenly you step on one and the room is so quiet the 'crunch' sounds like a cannon blast?
I think i just typed that to see how it sounds written down.
I've also been doing quite a bit of graphics editing lately. I used to hate GIMP with all the little buttons and tabs but once you take the time to learn what they mean (through trial and error. I don't like manuals) its an amazing piece of technology! The bad part is if you don't know anyone who understands what your talking about and can't appreciates the work and time that went into the picture but the end result (how i love saying that) is rewarding in itself i suppose. Like a 3yo who drew a picture and is eager to show it off to whoever happens to walk by... but noone walks by. POOR CHILD!!!
I guess teenagers can't get away with the puppy dog eyes. :(
Another thing i've found rather... whats the word... fun? no... rythmic! Another thing i've found rather rythmic is making rugs. The ones where you plait together long strips of fabric then wind it round and round in a circle (or any shape really) and stitch it together. It's rather like knitting a square... one thing you have to keep repeating is quite often very good for the brain when already stretched to maximum. Not exactly the best idea to do something with an intricate pattern. If you miss a stitch you might explode.
Speaking of stitches... i didn't receive any participants for the pay it forward so randomly picked out three people i know to send gifts too. One has already been sent out and i'm working on the second. Again: Something has been accomplished, completed.
God bless,
blackberry swirls and custard are calling me,
Elizabeth
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