“It's fine to live in the now. But the best thing about now is that there's another one tomorrow. I'm going to start making them count."- The Spectacular Now
I watched a weird movie tonight: “The Spectacular Now.” It wasn't a movie that I would normally watch. I'm not a fan of stereotypical teenagers. The main characters both started out that way, a drunk party-goer 18 year old, Sutter Keely, who doesn't want to think about life after high school and a more conservative“nice girl” Aimee Finecky, who likes sci-fi. I almost turned it off a few times, in the first few minutes. I wasn't eager to see a young guy stumbling around drunk and mourning his recent break up with his girlfriend (who had already moved on). But despite the latter and a large amount of “awkward teenager” talk, it quickly became obvious that beneath the party-boy exterior that he is extremely thoughtful and downright sweet. Even when he's drunk, he's really deep. Sutter and Aimee both struggle with thinking that nobody could ever really love them, or that they could be good enough.
There was a lot of things that really stood out to me about their story. First, Sutter really just wants to help Aimee out. She's living in a rut and just doing the same old thing. He doesn't actually want to hook up with her at first. Even when he realizes that he likes her, and she him, it's still not his goal.
Second, Sutter doesn't care that his friends think that Aimee is lame. He's seen her and has actually taken the time to get to know her and talk with with. Yes, Sutter, the seemingly stereotypical party guy loves the unloved. He loves everyone. In his pain, he helps and loves others.
Third, even when Sutter and Aimee fight (because every relationship has conflicts), Aimee proves that she loves him more than anything. Even when his inevitable drunk driving almost kills them both. She immediately asks if he's okay. “I almost just killed you and you wanna know if I'm okay?” He yells at her. “Yeah, I wanna make sure that you're okay.” She replies. Aimee is so selfless with her love. I imagine that I would be a “little” ticked off if that happened to me. But time and time again, no matter what Sutter does, Aimee loves him unconditionally.
Finally, their story is awesome because it is unique. I don't like stories where you can predict the ending, or even the next scene. This movie totally blew me away. It made me laugh and it made me cry (for unpredictable reasons), like a good love story should. I have always believed that God has a perfectly unique love story for anyone who is brave enough to answer the call. Aimee could have ignored the drunk guy who passed out in someone's yard. It only took that one action to set them both on a life changing adventure.
Now, I feel like I do have to say that there was a lot of cussing and crud in this movie. I've never been comfortable with the idea of teens dating and giving their heart (and virginity) away on a whim. But I also like to look past those details and embrace the story as a whole. But I liked that they both matured and took on life together, no matter what. I realize that it's uncomfortable to accept a story like this as the reality of many people. We look at it and go “sin, sin, sin” and “shame, and “shame, shame, shame.” But guess what? This stuff happens. It's reality. Whether we “like” it or not, it's the world around us. And the harsher reality is in God's eyes, sin is sin.
“For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.”
-James 2:10
Sins like teenage sex make us uncomfortable. It's hard to love people that we're uncomfortable with. But why are we uncomfortable with other people who sin? We all sin. We're not better than them because we didn't make “that choice” or do “that sin”. We all sin. And we're all held accountable for our sins. We're also held accountable for not loving people who sin differently than we do. Yeah, I learned a lot going to college in Portland. I talked to people that I never would have before I had the realization that if God loves us, sin and all, then He loves everyone else, sin and all. I realized I grew up thinking that anyone who commits a sin of a sexual nature is a bad person. The first time that I talked to a gay guy, I was surprised that I was talking to him in the first place…..then, I realized that he was a human being, no different than me. He was friendly and polite. He lives differently than me, but I live differently than anyone else reading this. It hit me: “SO WHAT?! He's made choices in his life, I've made choices in my life. Does God love him any less? Does God want him any less? Did Jesus die less for him? Um.... no.” Not one bit. It dawned on me that God's unconditional love for every person ever to live means that He actually loves everyone.
And then comes Sutter and Aimee. Two teens who both make bad choices and commit sins. But both love people for who they are, just because that's who THEY are.
Word Count: 900
Friday, September 19, 2014
Thursday, September 18, 2014
A Few Quick Things
I know, I know. I've already written today. But a few quick things popped into my head and I wanted to share.
1. The real reason that I started this blog is because an email from NaNoWriMo suggested it. It was the easiest sounding thing on a list of suggestions on "how to prep for NaNoWriMo".
2. I picked the whole "improbable dreams" quote because there are two improbable (but not impossible) things that I hope for this year. First, a job. Second, a Prince Quirky-but-Charming in well-worn armor (and a freaking awesome sword). I hope for both of these dreams to become realities by the end of 2014. I've been hoping since January 1st. And I won't stop hoping. Who knows? Maybe I'll meet him right before the ball drops on New Years Eve.
3. I was inspired to write this blog because I just watched “Julie and Julia”. It was awesome. I liked it better than I did the first time, when I saw it in theaters (and thought it was terribly inappropriate, which was before I went to college. Read: Nothing was taboo in Portland).
4. I also want to learn something every week. What I learned today was that if you tell an almost-four year old what sap is and point it out … be prepared to say “No! Don't touch that!” fifty times in the course of ten minutes.
5. Since my first ear surgery in July, I've grown to hate doors. Doors cause me a large amount of pain unless they are purposely closed quietly. Every door is cruel. Microwave doors and front doors, especially.
6. You may be wondering why my posted name is Emily Forest. Well...that's a long story. It's actually part of a story, too. In 7th grade we were supposed to write a short story. Mine lasted the rest of the year.... I can't believe I let my teacher read it. It was ...well, I don't let too many people get the experience of reading THAT. My story took place in a world and in that world was a forest that was very, very green. Emerald is my birthstone and I have always loved it, so I named this forest the Emerald Forest. Emerald Forest is often my pen name. Although no one usually sees my stories besides me. :) Other names that you might see scattered through time and space are Nessa Lynnette, Nessa Emerald, Daisy, Daffodil, and Larceny. No, I am not going to explain each one, or any of them. Much too embarrassing.
7. Out of nowhere, I remembered that my very first fanfiction was written as a very young child. Possibly first or second grade. About Little Women.
8. Explaining who “The Doctor” who's not an actual doctor to Z (who sometimes doesn't like doctors) is very, very difficult. But very touching when she asks if we can watch it.
1. The real reason that I started this blog is because an email from NaNoWriMo suggested it. It was the easiest sounding thing on a list of suggestions on "how to prep for NaNoWriMo".
2. I picked the whole "improbable dreams" quote because there are two improbable (but not impossible) things that I hope for this year. First, a job. Second, a Prince Quirky-but-Charming in well-worn armor (and a freaking awesome sword). I hope for both of these dreams to become realities by the end of 2014. I've been hoping since January 1st. And I won't stop hoping. Who knows? Maybe I'll meet him right before the ball drops on New Years Eve.
3. I was inspired to write this blog because I just watched “Julie and Julia”. It was awesome. I liked it better than I did the first time, when I saw it in theaters (and thought it was terribly inappropriate, which was before I went to college. Read: Nothing was taboo in Portland).
4. I also want to learn something every week. What I learned today was that if you tell an almost-four year old what sap is and point it out … be prepared to say “No! Don't touch that!” fifty times in the course of ten minutes.
5. Since my first ear surgery in July, I've grown to hate doors. Doors cause me a large amount of pain unless they are purposely closed quietly. Every door is cruel. Microwave doors and front doors, especially.
6. You may be wondering why my posted name is Emily Forest. Well...that's a long story. It's actually part of a story, too. In 7th grade we were supposed to write a short story. Mine lasted the rest of the year.... I can't believe I let my teacher read it. It was ...well, I don't let too many people get the experience of reading THAT. My story took place in a world and in that world was a forest that was very, very green. Emerald is my birthstone and I have always loved it, so I named this forest the Emerald Forest. Emerald Forest is often my pen name. Although no one usually sees my stories besides me. :) Other names that you might see scattered through time and space are Nessa Lynnette, Nessa Emerald, Daisy, Daffodil, and Larceny. No, I am not going to explain each one, or any of them. Much too embarrassing.
7. Out of nowhere, I remembered that my very first fanfiction was written as a very young child. Possibly first or second grade. About Little Women.
8. Explaining who “The Doctor” who's not an actual doctor to Z (who sometimes doesn't like doctors) is very, very difficult. But very touching when she asks if we can watch it.
Day 2 of 22
Today is Thursday. On Thursday's, I babysit an amazing almost-four year old. Today she put her toy dogs down for a nap because “They're not being polite.” She is very creative and very, very intelligent. Anyone who knows Z is amazed/terrified of her intelligence. She remembers things from when she was crawling. She makes up elaborate stories about how my cat walked to her house and bit her arm....or how the garbage cans went up the mountain and got caught in spiderwebs and the only way to save them was with nets, “wipers”, swords and (bless her heart, I've only told her about them a couple times) lightsabers. Every week we do a letter theme, today was H is for Horse. We danced along to this wonderful lady who does Musical P.E., named Patty Shukla (look her up on Youtube, it's cute, so much fun and wears Z out really quickly).We said “I love you” back and forth a hundred times. We also made muffins. Apple cinnamon muffins with Greek yogurt. I added vanilla to the muffin mix and substituted salted caramel peanuts and put them in topping instead. So delicious. Even my picky sister said so.
This brings me to another goal that I hope to accomplish via this blog. To cook something every week. To taunt you (if it turns out edible) with my creations. I've already made pitas and fondant (with no Crisco!!! And it tasted yummy!) . I don't care if no one else at my house will eat it. I WILL cook!
All day I've been thinking about writing a story that I made up and told to Z while we were waiting in the car to pick up my sister. It was spring and we had been looking at cherry blossoms. Z loves princeses. So I very quickly (despite being horrendous at Improv) developed a story about Princess Cherry Blossom. And because I am who I am, this pretty blonde and girly princess could not stereotypical or incompetent.
Part of this story came from a quote that was bouncing around in my head. I've been reading and rereading a book called “Walking on Water” by Madeleine L'Engle. It's life changing. It talks about faith and art, especially writing “children's books”. Madeleine, an author that I have loved since I was a kid, doesn't write books for children like anyone else does. Her stories are often about children, but they are not immature and the topics and the wording are not dumbed down. Her books can be enjoyed by anyone of any age. She talks about how her grandchildren will read anything, just as I did as a kid,
“All they require is a protagonist with whom they can identify (and they prefer the protagonist to be older then they are), an adventure to make them turn the pages, and the making of a decision on the part of the protagonist.” -Madeleine L'Engle
And so came Princess Cherry Blossom the Brave, Princess Rose Petal the Gentle, Princess Calla Lily the Happy, Page Justice Goodheart, Valiant the Dragon, Molly the Horse (we were at a stable and there was an horse named Molly there that Z liked to talk about), and Muddley the Troll. Muddley is a Mud Troll who lives a large patch of mud in the forest. He's very nice and cute, just misunderstood at first.
Well, that's all for now. Dinner's calling and my ear is ringing. I would love to hear from you! Tell me what you think or what you want to hear more of! Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoy! Or at least go enjoy one of these recipes! :D
Recipes:
Apple Cinnamon Muffins- http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=1580998
Pita Bread- http://www.halfbakedharvest.com/traditional-greek-pita-bread/
Fondant - http://www.howdoesshe.com/easy-marshmallow-fondant-you-can-do-it/
Other Recommendations:
Patty Shukla: https://www.youtube.com/user/pattyshukla
“Walking on Water” by Madeleine L'Engle
If you like art, creating, writing, or just reading...read this. Read this anyways. My dad and I recommend it to everyone.
Word Count: 639
This brings me to another goal that I hope to accomplish via this blog. To cook something every week. To taunt you (if it turns out edible) with my creations. I've already made pitas and fondant (with no Crisco!!! And it tasted yummy!) . I don't care if no one else at my house will eat it. I WILL cook!
All day I've been thinking about writing a story that I made up and told to Z while we were waiting in the car to pick up my sister. It was spring and we had been looking at cherry blossoms. Z loves princeses. So I very quickly (despite being horrendous at Improv) developed a story about Princess Cherry Blossom. And because I am who I am, this pretty blonde and girly princess could not stereotypical or incompetent.
Part of this story came from a quote that was bouncing around in my head. I've been reading and rereading a book called “Walking on Water” by Madeleine L'Engle. It's life changing. It talks about faith and art, especially writing “children's books”. Madeleine, an author that I have loved since I was a kid, doesn't write books for children like anyone else does. Her stories are often about children, but they are not immature and the topics and the wording are not dumbed down. Her books can be enjoyed by anyone of any age. She talks about how her grandchildren will read anything, just as I did as a kid,
“All they require is a protagonist with whom they can identify (and they prefer the protagonist to be older then they are), an adventure to make them turn the pages, and the making of a decision on the part of the protagonist.” -Madeleine L'Engle
And so came Princess Cherry Blossom the Brave, Princess Rose Petal the Gentle, Princess Calla Lily the Happy, Page Justice Goodheart, Valiant the Dragon, Molly the Horse (we were at a stable and there was an horse named Molly there that Z liked to talk about), and Muddley the Troll. Muddley is a Mud Troll who lives a large patch of mud in the forest. He's very nice and cute, just misunderstood at first.
Well, that's all for now. Dinner's calling and my ear is ringing. I would love to hear from you! Tell me what you think or what you want to hear more of! Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoy! Or at least go enjoy one of these recipes! :D
Recipes:
Apple Cinnamon Muffins- http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=1580998
Pita Bread- http://www.halfbakedharvest.com/traditional-greek-pita-bread/
Fondant - http://www.howdoesshe.com/easy-marshmallow-fondant-you-can-do-it/
Other Recommendations:
Patty Shukla: https://www.youtube.com/user/pattyshukla
“Walking on Water” by Madeleine L'Engle
If you like art, creating, writing, or just reading...read this. Read this anyways. My dad and I recommend it to everyone.
Word Count: 639
Wednesday, September 17, 2014
Day 1 of 22
Hello and welcome! Le suilon!
This is my third blog...kind of. Actually over the last seven years I've had about twenty different blogs. There were blogs for stories, class projects, diaries, you name it. This blog is going to do something that none of my other blogs have ever done... hold my ramblings and my writings. Up until now they've always been separate. I have no idea why.
This blog encourages me to do two things, first to write every day and second to prepare for NaNoWriMo. I don't think I've ever actually written every single day. Ever. NaNoWriMo is 44 days away. In 44 days I have to crank out 50,000 words in 30 days. If you don't know what NaNoWriMo is (and haven't already Googled it, hurry up and Google it.) I could spend hours describing it to you. I still spend hours describing it to family members, who even after seven years, still ask incredulously "Are you really going to do that writing thing again? Are you SURE? How many words do you have to write?"
The answer is yes. I am going to do the craziest thing that you can imagine and yet again, write 50k in 30 days. In order to do that, I need to get back into the habit of writing every day. For the first 22 days I am going to write 500 words every day. For the second set of 22 days, I am going to write 1000 words (every day). Then I will do a weird jump to 1667 words every single day or so help me.... I do NOT want to be grasping for words at 11 PM on Nov 31 again. That was no fun.
213 words left. I had a stapeodectomy on Friday. That was less fun than desperately trying to win NaNo. I've been rather miserable constantly. It seems like I didn't do much besides knitting, crying, and staring at the ceiling today while listening to a mix of wind and wind-chimes on an awesome app that I found called Sleepy Time Lite. I recommend it. You can customize what soothing sounds you want to listen to.
I apologize for the utter chaos and incohesiveness. This is a terrible first post. But I'm so tired and miserable-ish. Everything's been giving me a headache or causing other reactions that are followed by pain, so I had less than a cup of coffee. My normal coffee need is about 2 cups daily. Or else. Did you know that you can hear your blood pulsing through your ears? You can. Yes, I mean you. You just don't that you can because you were born hearing it and got used to it. I, on the other hand, was not born hearing such noises. So I, at age 23, have to deal with the sound of my blood pulsing every time my heart speeds up a little. And it is LOUD!!! And although it should be comforting, it is annoying. When I have it pulsing through my head, I can't hear anything else. If I get upset, move too quickly, or have caffeine, I can hear it. This is just one of the many adjustments I have to make and things that I have to get used to. There are so many. Do you know how loud a door slamming is, when you've never fully heard it before?
Anyways, I reached my goal for the day! Have a wonderful night and thanks for reading!
For anyone who is interested, I finally started a Pinterest board that is devoted ONLY to NaNoWriMo.
Check it out here: http://www.pinterest.com/nessaemerald/nanowrimo/
Key:
NaNo = NaNoWriMo
NaNoWriMo= National Novel Writing Month
50k=50,000 words
Word Count: 619
This is my third blog...kind of. Actually over the last seven years I've had about twenty different blogs. There were blogs for stories, class projects, diaries, you name it. This blog is going to do something that none of my other blogs have ever done... hold my ramblings and my writings. Up until now they've always been separate. I have no idea why.
This blog encourages me to do two things, first to write every day and second to prepare for NaNoWriMo. I don't think I've ever actually written every single day. Ever. NaNoWriMo is 44 days away. In 44 days I have to crank out 50,000 words in 30 days. If you don't know what NaNoWriMo is (and haven't already Googled it, hurry up and Google it.) I could spend hours describing it to you. I still spend hours describing it to family members, who even after seven years, still ask incredulously "Are you really going to do that writing thing again? Are you SURE? How many words do you have to write?"
The answer is yes. I am going to do the craziest thing that you can imagine and yet again, write 50k in 30 days. In order to do that, I need to get back into the habit of writing every day. For the first 22 days I am going to write 500 words every day. For the second set of 22 days, I am going to write 1000 words (every day). Then I will do a weird jump to 1667 words every single day or so help me.... I do NOT want to be grasping for words at 11 PM on Nov 31 again. That was no fun.
213 words left. I had a stapeodectomy on Friday. That was less fun than desperately trying to win NaNo. I've been rather miserable constantly. It seems like I didn't do much besides knitting, crying, and staring at the ceiling today while listening to a mix of wind and wind-chimes on an awesome app that I found called Sleepy Time Lite. I recommend it. You can customize what soothing sounds you want to listen to.
I apologize for the utter chaos and incohesiveness. This is a terrible first post. But I'm so tired and miserable-ish. Everything's been giving me a headache or causing other reactions that are followed by pain, so I had less than a cup of coffee. My normal coffee need is about 2 cups daily. Or else. Did you know that you can hear your blood pulsing through your ears? You can. Yes, I mean you. You just don't that you can because you were born hearing it and got used to it. I, on the other hand, was not born hearing such noises. So I, at age 23, have to deal with the sound of my blood pulsing every time my heart speeds up a little. And it is LOUD!!! And although it should be comforting, it is annoying. When I have it pulsing through my head, I can't hear anything else. If I get upset, move too quickly, or have caffeine, I can hear it. This is just one of the many adjustments I have to make and things that I have to get used to. There are so many. Do you know how loud a door slamming is, when you've never fully heard it before?
Anyways, I reached my goal for the day! Have a wonderful night and thanks for reading!
For anyone who is interested, I finally started a Pinterest board that is devoted ONLY to NaNoWriMo.
Check it out here: http://www.pinterest.com/nessaemerald/nanowrimo/
Key:
NaNo = NaNoWriMo
NaNoWriMo= National Novel Writing Month
50k=50,000 words
Word Count: 619
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