Be a Hobbit in an Orc World

J.R.R Tolkein is by far one of the most epic, and inspiring writers of all times. His creativity and attention to details is something to be admired. He created an entirely unique and never before imagined world including languages, cultures, and creatures. The incredible skill that takes is something that can never be taught in a class or ever again replicated. Unfortunately I think that a giant aspect of his storytelling mastery has been overlooked and that is the actual characteristics of the characters.

The Hobbits from his story are some of the bravest, most loyal, and sacrificial characters to ever be written about. Without fail, they are consistently giving of themselves to help the greater cause; to aid in something that they so easily could back away from. They see that the world is not only about them, but is about each and every individuals freedom and happiness. Over and over again each one of them shows extreme courage in the face of adversity and when given a chance to walk away they remain firm in the quest, never faltering.

Samwise Gamgee, of all the Hobbits, is by far the perfect example of the kind of people we should be. His dedication to his friends and loved ones is admirable while his constant encouragement is the driving force of why Frodo never gave up. He was spat upon, criticized, and judged and never once let that change the way he viewed himself and his purpose in life.

I think our society somehow has created this mindset that we should not be those kind of people. That instead of giving of ourselves, living selflessly, and joining together as a community we should be selfish creatures seeking only for ourselves. In other words, they want us to be like the Orcs: mindlessly wandering about destroying anything that conflicts with our desires and our goals, following blindly the direction of someone who does not have an ounce of concern for them, and would rather live in darkness and despair. When did that become the "norm"? When did it become more acceptable to be vindictive and rivalrous than valiant and respectful?

These are the faces of true heroism, goodness, loyalty, and humanity. Let us be more like them in 2014. 

An Open Letter to Men from Women.

Recently I read a blog entry by a male journalist written specifically to women from the entire male population. The purpose of the letter was to ask for forgiveness and patience on behalf of the whole gender. I was incredibly impressed and found this man to be quite admirable, but it also made me realize that the women of this generation are no better. So this is my response to the young man who went on a limb for us, this one's for you Matthew. (view original post here)

Dear Men,

We would like to start off by saying how sorry we are for not being the ladies our mothers and grandmothers raised us to be. We have allowed the society around us to dictate the way we carry ourselves, the way we dress, and the way we talk to men. We went from little girls wanting to be just like a fairytale princess to modeling our lifestyle after the most trendy celebrity. Our self worth is no longer found in the characteristics we hold, but by the way we use our bodies. 

By changing the view of ourselves, we have also changed our views on all of you. We instantly assume the worst in all men; that you are all the same. We have allowed one foul moment in our past to dictate the rest of our lives. We go on and on about the "perfect man" but refuse to act like the woman who deserves that kind of man. For our selfishness, I truly apologize.

A woman understands a man's need for respect, loyalty, love, and happiness. A woman should not constantly chastise and belittle you but it has become so natural for us to do. Please understand, as a woman, we like to fix things and we like to have things fit in to the model we created in our heads. When things are not "just right" it makes us frustrated and unfortunately we take that out on you. It rarely has anything to do with what you did, but more so to do with what we wanted you to in a specific way. We promise to be better communicators of our true feelings, needs, and wants rather than expecting you to meet them all while wearing a blindfold. 

Do not give up on us, we want to allow you to be the man in the relationship and to guide us through life. We want to be taken care of and loved by you, and we desperately want to enjoy every moment of life with you even if we do not show it. We want to respect you and all the quirks that drive us crazy, but we must first be able to love and respect ourselves despite our own imperfections which has become harder and harder to do in this day and age. 

When we feel cherished, prized, and honored we can be the best girlfriend and wife to you. Help us to feel that way and we assure you that you will find happiness with us. Thank you for being patient as our emotions are a constant roller coaster, please stick along for the ride even if it is bumpy.

Sincerely and lovingly,

Women 

Time for a Potty Break

Today, my journey consists of standing.

For the past 7 1/2 months of being a graduate I have been running full force. I have been frantically applying to every job that pops up. I have been overly active in my own personal endeavor towards my dream end goal. I never thought that being persistent and dedicated to finding a job a life plan would be a bad thing. I really believed that the only way to get somewhere was to never give up and to keep pressing onward towards the final destination.

What I foolishly forgot was, that in every road trip you have to make pit stops. At some point you are going to have to make a bathroom break, grab a quick burger, and most importantly refuel. Stopping and being still for a moment is not a bad thing, but a very necessary thing to do for the trek to be the best it can be. Making a pit stop does not mean you are giving up or being lazy, it just means you are allowing yourself to regroup before the next long haul. I have not given myself a break emotionally, physically, or spiritually. I have been pressing on so hard and pushing my little engine too far. 

To those who are reading this, you may be thinking to yourself "Gee, that Ivette girl is really smart for figuring that out". While I appreciate the compliment to my intellectual ability, I had absolutely nothing to do with this. It is all because of God that I have realized that resting, and being patient in the pauses in life are a good thing. He has been showing himself to me in my quiet time the last few weeks that I have absolutely no idea where I am going. He is 100% my co-pilot, the one reading the maps, telling me when to turn and when to stop. Unfortunately, I have been ignoring his recommendation to actually stop, refuel, and wait.

So, instead of worrying about the fact that I still do not have a "big girl job" and desperately searching for the first career that will launch me to my dream, I am going to stand still. I am going to allow HIM to direct me when He feels like I am ready.  No more driving over the speed limit to get to my destination on my time, no more thinking that I have the map figured out, and definitely no more running on an empty tank. Today, I am taking a much needed potty break on my long and far-from-over journey.

A Love Like That

There are very few things I know a lot about. I could talk for hours about Glee and hockey, hippopotamuses and Lord of the Rings, but when it comes to some things I know absolutely nothing about it. My biggest area of ignorance is the big "L" word: love.

Throughout many dating endeavors and relationships, I have tried to concoct my own version of the word love. I have been trying to wrap my mind around what that looks like, what it means, how it acts, what to do with it, but have come up very short. Understanding love is not easy when you have never truly been in a deep, passionate, all encompassing love. Unfortunately, I have not experienced that but I greatly desire to.

That being said, over the last year, God has conveniently placed church services in my life that directly correlate to the topic of real love. I have been blowing it off and ignoring it because I thought I knew better (what a joke, right?!) but today was the moment that finally broke through to me. As a new attendee to Mission Community Church, the last sermon expected at a 7,000+ church was not in regards to Song of Songs, however, that is exactly what I got this morning.

During the 30 minutes of digging in to the first chapter of Song of Songs, I got a clearer and more impactful glimpse of what a beautiful and pure relationship looks like than I have ever seen in every Nicholas Sparks book combined. At first glance, one would not think being "likened as a mare" is a compliment, or even a tad bit sexy, but when you truly delve in to the beauty and passion of the phrasing it is mind boggling. I want to love and be loved the way that Solomon does with his Beloved. I want to find a man that looks at me through the eyes of his wisdom, sensitivity, and beauty.

The sermon went even further than the compliments, and the verbal displays of love. It explained the importance of exclusivity. While this sounds like something we all learned in elementary school, our society has belittled the exclusive aspect of relationships. We are so caught up in "just talking" or "not labeling" what we are, and that completely degrades the sanctity of love and marriage. Honoring and cherishing just one person is so beautiful, and yet it seems to be so archaic. Hearing that certainly was a slap in the face because I have fallen guilty of ignoring it's importance.

This leads to the last point that was made which was in regard to the Daughters of Jerusalem in the text. The role they play in the love story is (how the Pastor put it) "the back up singers". They come behind you and your lover and support you, encourage you, praise you, chastise you, and glorify the God centered relationship you have built. I do not think I have ever done this for the people I call my closest friends, and for that, I am deeply and truly sorry. But from this day forward I strive to be that support to my loved ones, and hope to encourage them to be that for me.

One monumental moment does not all of a sudden morph me in to the model example of love. But I am so grateful for the revelation that has happened, and for God placing this time in my path. I cannot wait for the day that I have a love like Solomon so wonderfully exemplified.