Why it has been so long...

Hey howdy!

I am so sorry that I have not blogged in like FOREVER! I do have an excuse. Not a good one, but it is still an excuse... drum roll, please... I forgot my password. yep. And you are probably wondering why I did not just get my password sent to my email account. Well, I kind of forgot which email address I used too. But do not fear! I am back! :D (aren't you just thrilled?!?)

Well, I have a bunch of great stories to tell, but now is not the time. But hey! Soon. Very soon. Get excited!

ohhh! You just got burned!

Hey guys!! Sorry that I have not posted in a LONG time... this is not really my type of thing and it is hard for me to remember. Anyway, I got to get out of class early (finally!) and decided to write about something that happened to me the day before I came back to college...

I have a problem. I think I am decently smart... I worked really hard in high school and I graduated Valedictorian of my class (it was out of only 160ish people, so don't get too impressed). I do well in most of my classes at college (Spanish is a different story...). But the problem is that the years go by I think I am getting stupider (is that even a word??). Let me tell you what proof I have for that statement.

I, without any outside influence, stuck my thumb on a cigarette lighter in my car and gave myself a second degree burn. Yep. I am an IDIOT! It hurt so bad! Oh my gosh! (On a side note...sticking a burn in mustard helps A LOT. I did not want to take it out. And did you know that there is Antibiotic Cream with Pain Reliever!?! The wonders of this world!)

It now has been almost three weeks since the incident and almost all of it has healed (it is still red and puffy, but does not hurt). I actually realized how much I use my thumb for...it's crazy!

You know one thing, though? I can promise you that I will never touch a cigarette lighter again! (yeah, yeah. laugh it up.) Anyway, it is a lot like life lessons. Sometimes we have to make our own mistakes in order to fully understand the impacts they cause. That is also why some of our parents are so protective of us...they have made those mistakes and don't want to see us hurt the same way they were. But there does come a point where we need to make our own mistakes and find our own way in the world.

You know the saying:

A smart man learns from his own mistakes,

but a wise man learns from the mistakes of others.

So, there is a fine line between knowing when we need to obey others and when we have to make our own choices... sometimes we have to be burn... I don't know if this makes any sense at all, but there you go.

A Cookie Cutter Life

I have spent most of the day making cookies with my older brother. At Christmas time we always make cookies. My favorite ones are the sugar cookies (I don't like chocolate!). You know, the ones you cut out with cookie cutters? We cut out candy canes, trees, bells, angels, reindeer, santas, churches, and a random bear or two. :D

Well, I got to thinking about stuff. (scary, I know!) But you know the phrase a "Cookie Cutter Life"? Or maybe I just made it up. Anywho, it is a life where everything is perfectly arranged. There are different types of sizes and shapes, but I think most people today are trying to make their lives the perfect cookie! The reasons we have cookie cutters is to make the cookie pretty and more appealing to the eye. Isn't that what we are doing to ourselves...making our lives pretty and appealing to the world??

I have recently completed my first semester at college, and it has been AMAZING!! I love it there. I have great friends who love Jesus, brilliant professors, and a fantastic environment. Yes, I am in love! :D But there are many things going through my head when I think about college. I am a declared math major and I have decided to double major in chemistry (I just haven't signed the papers yet!). When I tell people my majors most of the reactions are ones of shock, speechlessness, or exclamations of "that is crazy, better you than me!" The thing is that math comes pretty easy to me and I really like chemistry (well, we'll see after organic next year...). People have been asking me what I am going to be doing after college. MAN! I barely know what I am doing IN IT!!!

There is a point for that tangent... Questions keep flowing through my head... What job can I get that I will enjoy and get enough money? Will I be able to travel in my career choice? When I go to graduate school, will I choose math or chemistry as my field of choice? Where am I going to live? Will I have enough money?? See! That is the thing!! I really think the world is brainwashing everyone! The world (or US) expects me to be successful, have a pretty house in a neighborhood or subdivision, have a nice car, and get as much money as possible. I don't even know if any of this is making sense...

I guess I want to know is this: When did we start letting the world set our limits? (You have to make over $_______, you need all the technology gadgets, you have to like this person and this person, you need to go to all these parties, date the right person, and talk to your Mom every Sunday!) uhhhhh! It just frustrates me!

The thing is that I think I am trying to think about my future and make it fit within the metal boundaries of the cutter. What I really want to do is just be a clump of dough that falls on the cookie sheet...letting GOD form me. I might not be as pretty to the eyes as others, but I will still taste AMAZING!!

I hope anyone who reads this is following my thoughts... I guess what I am trying to say that people need to stop living by the World's standards and start living by God's! I will be the first to stand up and say that I am not doing that, but I am going to give it a try. I love math, chemistry, and traveling. I also believe that God is going to use those things in the most amazing way (something that I never could do by myself...). It is scary to let go and let God take control, but the reward is so much greater.

So, let go of the cookie cutter and let God mold you. It might not be what you had in mind, but you know the saying: We make plans and God laughs. Trust him. He is the Potter, and we are the clay... or the Baker and the dough! :D

First Ever Blog...

So, this is my first ever blog (my friends got me into this...). Just for the record, I am horrible at English grammar and constantly make up my own words. :D In other words. Be Patient! I will learn eventually and maybe have insightful things to say.

I just got back from a trip out west (Texas and New Mexico). We drove home on Christmas Day and today (the 26th). It was really rough not having our "traditional" Christmas... But one thing that amazed me throughout this trip is the beauty of this world we live in! I am constantly floored by how AWESOME and TALENTED God is!! To think he created all that is around us... The flat plains of Texas, the Rocky Mountains, the snow, the sun!! He created it all. Man! And I thought I had an imagination! :D But the world is a beautiful place... I recently finished a book, Captivating, and it said that nature is one way that God showers us with his love! So, as I was driving and riding countless hours, I was floored by how much God really loves me! It is an amazing feeling, really it is! It makes me happy inside.

There we go for now. I will probably talk more about that later. I am learning...