Quote of the Day 2/9/14

“It is always the simple things that change our lives. And these things never happen when you are looking for them to happen. Life will reveal answers at the pace life wishes to do so. You feel like running, but life is on a stroll. This is how God does things.”   [Donald Miller]

Rat Race

     As I sit on my plushy queen size bed, stretch my legs and begin the oh so glamourous process of overnight teeth bleaching , I cannot help but reflect back on the conversations that took place 24 hours ago. My friend Christy had made a surprise appearance in Santa Barbara and it was only fitting and proper (for us former Southern Belles) to get together over tea and biscuits (okay... Coffee Bean and loud bar noises of downtown) and catch up on life. Christy and I were once just debate team acquaintances but after roughing the life of Knoxville, Tennessee, super sized Walmart, and fried chicken... well simply put, we were pretty much friends for life. 

     Our 5 hour long conversation started with the usual- the "how are you doing?", "aren't you glad its summer?,"how is he doing?" and "I can't believe he said that!", but 24 hours later, I kept reflecting on one simple phrase. So simple, but so, completely and utterly honest: "it's like a rat race."

     After getting through the surface issues of life: not enough sleep, not enough money and not enough sane men, we got to the nitty gritty. What is life and when does it actually start? Christy's words could not have hit the nail on the head more perfectly, for me, for her and probably most of the rest of the world. By dictionary terms, a rat race is a term used for an endless, self-defeating or pointless pursuit and in visual terms, its like a rat in a lab cage, who tries to escape by furiously running around in its wheel, but realistically for little purpose. 

     I know especially, that being a student, and a part of the rising work force, you really do get thrown into a rat race. In school you are pressured by yourself, or someone close to yourself ,to do more, to do better, to get internships which will get you better connections and jobs in the future. You have to take 19+ units and do 5 extracurriculars and be the homecoming queen and be ASB president and the fasted runner on the track team and volunteer for the animal shelter and raise 25,000 dollars a month for cancer research and score in the top percentile on the MKATs or LSATS and triple major and get at least a 3.8 gpa all while somehow maintaing your health, sanity, credit card bills and personal relationships. Somehow even writing that all out made me exhausted, let know trying to figure out how to fit that all into a 24 hour day. 

Quote of the Day 12/11/11

"Let us be very careful not to fall into the trap of the world. The world views things only relative to man and to self. The Word of God views things relative to the Father, Son, and Spirit. Mankind is not the center of all things. No matter how great anyone's name might become, it is still far behind His. Our name comes from His life; the name of our Lord comes from the resurrection--the event unique to Him. The world has a problem; it seeks to honor, uphold, exonerate and generally praise itself. Our place and the place of the entire world system is to praise and exalt God. When people of the Bible caught a glimpse of Him, their lives were changed. Perhaps our lives remain stagnate because we do not spend enough time looking at Him."         [Roger Anderson]

Quote of the Day 9/30/11

"it is in all of us to defy expectations, 

to go into the world and to be brave,

and to want, to need, to hunger for adventure,

to embrace change and chance and risk,

so that we may breathe,

and know what it is to be free"

[mae chevrette]