The write stuff

Homer : "Bart, with $10,000, we'd be millionaires! We could buy all kinds of useful things like...love!" Homer: "Trying is the first step towards failure." Homer: "Here’s to alcohol, the cause of — and solution to — all life’s problems." Homer: "Oh, people can come up with statistics to prove anything, Kent. 14% of people know that." Homer: "Lisa, if you don't like your job you don't strike. You just go in every day, and do it really half-assed. That's the American way." Troy McClure: "Don’t kid yourself, Jimmy. If a cow ever got the chance, he’d eat you and everyone you care about!"

I spent some of this weekend thinking about the word redemption and what it means. Not necessarily the religious context of it, but the taking a wrong and making it right idea. I think this stuck with me because I watched a few movies over the weekend in which the themes were about making things right and using your pain to help others. Like everyone I have had some painful things happen to me and have struggled with the anger and despair that often accompanies being hurt. In the book The Shack the author calls his main character's pain (due to the murder of his youngest daughter) "the Great Sadness." This makes sense to me because some of the bad things that can happen in life seem so consuming that they haunt you no matter how hard you try to ignore them. I am often reminded of this fact when something new in my life causes me pain (a conflict. a death, etc). All of a sudden the floodgate of old pain re-opens and I find myself back at the beginning of my pain...

I woke up this morning and had to shake my head at my latest dreams. I don't know how many people even remember their dreams at night let alone take the time to think about them, but they are fascinating. I'm one of few people who have vivid and often intense dreams everyday and actually remember them. According to studies that have been done on this topic, everyone dreams every time they sleep (whether they remember it or not). The brain takes the last 24 to 48 hours worth of material (everything you see and experience) every night and processes it in the filing cabinet that is your memory. My dreams sometimes have similar themes to my day to day life, or are full of childhood memories, or are recurring and nightmare-like with no direct connection to my everyday life. It is clear that the world of dreams is a world of symbols. You would think this would make it easy to interpret them, but certain symbols can mean one thing to one person and someth...

I wanted to take a few minutes to write about someone who became very dear to me in a very short time. Jonathan and I had been exchanging regular e-mails asking each other everything about our lives and hopes and dreams. I tend to be a very private person (runs in my family), so I wouldn't normally share this much with someone I've only known for such a short time, but after reading his first few e-mails I found myself surprisingly comfortable with this partial stranger. Over the months of getting to know each other I learned about his past, his hopes for his future, and even the sweet little details like what he wants to name his first child. We talked theology, philosophy, literature, movies, and anything else that popped up. Eventually we made plans to get together and went out for tea at a local tea house. Despite live music that, though well performed, made conversation difficult, we talked and enjoyed our time together. We continued to dat...

Alright so on the subject of random blogging, it has been a little while since I wrote anything on here. It's not because I have nothing to say or because nothing interesting has happened over the last few months, but because I am a self proclaimed random writer. I've never been good with deadlines or journaling or anything that takes follow through. I'm more of a in-the-minute, flying off the seat of my pants, motivated by inspirations and emotions kind of writer. So maybe I will give everyone a brief update on what has happened since July. 1) Enjoyed my trip to Pender Island (didn't see any whales on the whale watching excursion (boourns), but did see the biggest grossest jellyfish ever!) 2) Went camping with Danaya and her family along Kootenay Lake and survived a 16km hike up a mountain and back and hours of huckleberry picking (had a blast) 3) Cooked lots of Huckleberry goodies when I got home to share with family and friends (cobbler, pancakes, muffins, etc) ...