Bliss

         We watch all these tv shows with best friend characters and we all say "I wish I had a friend like that!" Well, maybe we do. Sometimes we get so caught up in other people's lives: what they have, don't have, who they are, what they look like - that we forget to appreciate not only who we are but what is around us and what we are blessed with. Maybe the friends that you are looking for are right there beside you but you are too busy looking at everyone else's #friendshipgoals posts. Some friends serve different purposes in your life, too. I'm not referencing that cliche post that everyone has seen saying that some people teach you what good friends are and some teach you bad things. I am saying that friends are different. Sometimes the person you would call for advice or the person you would call for a laugh are different people. That's the beauty of it.  The point of my post is to say: appreciate the people you have in your life for who they are a...

                They say most teenagers go through an identity crisis. That they can't figure out who they want to be, but why is it so important to figure out everything right now? Sometimes it is hard to balance all the things you want to be so, given a little space, we can grow these characteristics we desire to be. I want to be seen as someone who is sarcastic, with a dry sense of humor, who doesn't look at the world through rose colored glasses but through a realistic lens, but also who is sweet, and caring, who will give you an honest answer and opinion but who is understanding of situations. I want to be encouraging and someone who is desirable to hang out with, but I don't want to be the sunshine-y, everything-is-great girl who just pretends everything is always good, because it's not. Life sucks on occasion. But you know what? Life keeps going and if you don't keep going with it you're going to be left behind. So stop trying to figure eve...

            Sometimes the best thing you can say is nothing. Everyone thinks that ideally you would always have a really good comeback to someone being rude or such but that's not always the case. Sometimes you say more with your silence then you ever will with your words. For example, when someone is being snarky with you and you reply with the same level of vileness then they feel justified. Even if they were in the wrong from the start. The same goes for people who just don't appreciate you. If someone isn't giving you the amount of respect you deserve then it is not up to you to make them like you. Remain silent and don't lose your dignity over a situation that is beneath you anyways. I was just thinking of this so there it is... something to mull over a little bit. ;) "Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen." -Winston Churchill "Never assume that loud...

           I am honestly a tea fiend. I drink so much hot tea it's insane! If I go a day without tea it's weird; right now I'm working on my third cup, which isn't as bad as some people I know with coffee... you know who you are. ;) Anyways, I used to drink chai tea all the time and it was my absolute favorite but a few months ago I started drinking more Earl Grey and I am absolutely addicted! Years and years ago I tried Earl Grey and Lady Grey and I hated them both but suddenly I love Earl Grey. I have to add milk to it, though, so maybe that was the catch for me then... I don't know.        But, yes, tonight is one of those lovely nights where you're laying in bed with your laptop, a nice cup of Earl Grey and a sleeping dog beside you. It couldn't get much better than this. <3 "Come let us have some tea and continue to talk about happy things" "When your day seems topsy turvy and as stormy as can ...

     I've said this before but I'm going to say it again: I love to read. It's such a simple pleasure in life! I have been trying to read more lately because before Christmas I wasn't getting much reading in, and I'm still not reading as much as I would like, but I found myself getting busy with work and CLEP stuff, and not reading. So, the week before Christmas I decided to read A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, because, I mean, it's A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens! What better reason than that?? Also, this past year I read The Old Man and The Sea and fell in love with Hemingway's writing style, which means that I requested some of his works for Christmas and received The Sun Also Rises and For Whom The Bell Tolls . I've finished The Sun Also Rises  & just recently picked up For Whom The Bell Tolls . I didn't start FWTBT right away because I wanted to space out my Hemingway novels, for some reason, and so I started A Connecticut Yan...

       I love music. And I feel like I'm pretty eclectic when it comes to my music choices. I like all kinds of different things - not just one genre. Sometimes I'm in the mood for pop, sometimes country, sometimes I throw it back to the 80's, and sometimes it is all that and more! Last year I took up playing the piano, which, I think, gave me more of an appreciation for music, because I notice things that I never noticed before about the tunes of songs. Anyways, my point here is to simply say how much I love music. I think it is a beautiful expression of who we are and it is such a God-given talent to be musical. :) "Music to me is like breathing - I don't get tired of breathing, I don't get tired of music." -Ray Charles

    Wow. It is officially 2017. How crazy is that?! I'm excited about it being a new year. I know there is no set rule to when you can set goals for yourself, but there is something exciting about starting a new year with goals and waiting to see them completed by the next year. I have a few 'New Year Resolutions' and I'm really excited, to be honest. I think it will be wonderful looking back on how I started 2017 and then how I'm going to end 2017! "If you want 2017 to be your year; don't sit on the couch and wait for it. Go out. Make a change. Smile more. Be excited. Do new things. Throw away what you've been cluttering. Unfollow negative people on social media. Go to bed early. Wake up early. Be fierce. Don't gossip. Show more gratitude. Do things that challenge you. Be brave." ... "It's not what you are that is holding you back. It's what you think you are not."... "You are your only limit." ... "Gr...

      So, I'm a dog-lover. As I write this I am lying on the couch with my dog stretched out beside me sleeping! And honestly what could be more relaxing? Seriously tell me what could be more relaxing than lying on your couch, nice fluffy pair of socks and comfy pajamas on, and your dog stretched out beside you. I mean, add a cup of hot tea and you're in paradise!    Anyways, I love my dog. She is a treeing walker coon hound and I think she is just adorable. Stubborn at times, and anyone who has ever owned a hound will know what I'm talking about, but a complete sweetheart. I gave her a bath tonight, which she hates and for a while she laid on the couch with my dad and ignored me, haha. She quickly got over her grudge, though. She's a handful... but I love her. Excessively. ;) "Every once in a while a dog enters your life and changes everything." "Home is where the hounds are." "Everyone thinks they have the b...

Today is the day. Today is *your* day. Try something new, go on an adventure, stretch out your muscles, achieve a new goal, write a story, read some poetry, drink some hot tea... the possibilities are endless! Sometimes life happens to you and sometimes you make life happen. So, today, make life happen for you. "maybe it won't work out. But maybe seeing if it does will be the best adventure ever." ... "I will never apologize for being me. You should apologize for asking me to be anything else." ...

      Everything in life can teach you something if you let it. It is always useful to look at things from a new perspective. And what it teaches you can be something simple, but something you needed to recognize. Many people have showed me many different things. Like how important justice alongside mercy is, or how "being real and saying it to your face" is not the same when you never actually say it to their face, or being respectful also means not always saying what you're thinking because, even if it's true, it's disrespectful. There are so many things to learn in life and it's time we fully grasp that and begin living life in a way we ought to. :) "A wise man once said nothing." ... (unknown) "You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry." ... (Abraham Lincoln)

    Recently I had a very interesting experience. A few weeks ago my cousins were in town, they live in another state, and they had a baptismal service for their daughter. At a catholic church. Obviously, not being catholic, I did not know what to expect!     It was a chilly morning and mass started at 11:30. We left a little early, of course, to get in there in enough time to find a seat. After finding space and getting situated, I could actually look around and I quickly realized the church was beautiful! The ceilings were cathedral type and there was huge stain glass windows, all depicting a saint or biblical scene. I can't properly explain the beauty of the church because it is something you need to see for yourself. Anyways, the first thing that happened, and I'm not sure if it was happening as I walked in and I did not notice or if it started just slightly after getting situated, but a man in the church began... I can only describ...

   I love to read. I have always loved a good book and the older I get, the more I fall in love with the classics. My reading has slowed a little here recently, since I've been studying for college CLEP tests, but I continue to always have a book going. :) (I am currently reading Silas Marner by George Eliot.) Anyways, the point of this post is to give a book suggestion/review of one of my *favorites*. It is not considered a classic, like a Jane Austen novel, but it is certainly a classic to me! The King Raven Trilogy - Hood , Scarlet , & Tuck       This series is absolutely incredible. The storyline is based on the legend of Robin Hood, but the details of all of our beloved Robin Hood "facts" have been changed. Robin's name is not Robin but instead Bran (Rhi Bran y Hud, to be exact), the story is set in Wales, and there is no Prince John or Richard the Lionhearted. After reading it in this new light, though, despite everything being changed, this is...

Let's talk about fear. Fear is not of God. "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind" 2 Timothy 1:7 We need not be afraid when God is on our side. When He is the One fighting for you, you will win! Doubt and fear will try and creep into your mind, and when they do, you need to rid yourself of those thoughts. They are from the devil. Just a little thought I wanted to share tonight. :)

  Ok, I don't know the 'official' way to blog... so here goes nothing. :) A few facts about me: I am eighteen and studying for college. I am a Christian. I believe that Jesus died for my sins, that He rose again and one day He is coming back. I have a dog named Mimz. & I love chai tea.        This blog is not for my own personal gain. I don't care to have tons of people reading what I'm writing and following me. This is just because I have always wanted a blog, and when is a better time to start then now? :)