[originally posted on March 6, 2015. The message of the original post is the same here, but I’ve edited it for clarity].
There are a lot of things that make me righteously indignant in life. People who don't signal when they turn left. Racism. Churches that favor talent over righteous living (I’ve written a few stories about this).
I grew up in a place where everyone I knew had jumped off at least one cliff. Generally, it was the same ocean cliffs everyone else had jumped off, and generally no one got seriously injured (I did belly flop once, but that's another story). However, when it came right down to it, your friends would eventually find a proverbial cliff (with un-proverbial water below) and tell you to jump. And, proverbially, I did.
I hear a lot about forgiveness. As a Christian, it's a pretty big deal. In fact, it's such a big deal that it's commanded. If you don't forgive others, you will not be forgiven. The Lord's Prayer says "Forgive us our debts, AS WE FORGIVE our debtors." Apparently, there's no way around it.
Even so, I think that it's not necessarily understood in the same way that other commands are understood. I know how to not murder people, or so I think. Then, I remember that Jesus ups the stakes and says that hatred is murder. So, really, I don't actually know much about what to do. However, I do know a little bit about what forgiveness isn't. I say a little bit, because I am coming to understand this daily, and much more deeply. It's still a raw and fresh place in me; be gentle with the things I have gotten wrong or phrased incorrectly.
One of the great things about life is that it will, undoubtably, happen. The sun will rise, and I will have some kind of day. Some of those days will be good, and others will be painfully difficult. Realizing that life will carry on, and that the "with or without me" thing is metaphorical (and not quite true) has dramatically changed my outlook on life. After all, my life will always continue with me. I don't have a choice on that; I simply have a choice about being passive. If time is a river, I can be a stick or a swimmer.
I love Christmas. It's my favorite holiday by a long shot; I'm not even sure what holiday comes in second (it's probably Christmas Eve, if I'm being honest). The Christmas season can be difficult for people, and I know that I haven't had perfect Christmases every year. However, with that said, here are 12 Reasons I Love Christmas.
Tonight, when I walked into my apartment, my roommate asked me what was wrong. When I said nothing, she gave me that "your pants are combusting" look. And she was right: I was upset. I hadn't gotten in a fight with anyone, I am within the normal range of the "behind on homework" bell curve that dominates college, and I have been having a wonderful week. However I was upset, and it took me a moment to place why I was stressed. I was getting stressed out about a book. A very pretty, fancy book, that I am told is rather valuable, but at it's heart, just a book. More specifically, a book that belongs to me.
I heard a fantastic quote about human beings the other day:
we are clever, but we forget.
That's exactly what we do. As a species, we figured out how the planets move around the sun, but I still ask for the date in class. As Americans, we live in a country with plenty of available food and shelter, plus resources for the sick. And yet, we need a day to remember that we are fortunate.
