History of the World Part 1

      Earth is astounding! I mean, I just can't believe all that has happened to this planet, and continues to happen. Both in nature and from mankind.

      As a student growing up in the public school system, my favorite classroom subject was (besides anything performance-related) history. I remember the activities and course material the best, and I always looked up to my social studies teachers through middle school and high school. Not to mention my household loves history. My dad knew a lot of stuff about the yester-years, and my brother was an avid reader, which lead him to be curious about history.

      I love hearing different stories about how these countries we know of now came to be. How these countries have endured great suffering, and how these countries have celebrated great triumphs.

      And the people of those countries.

      As Lincoln says (in my favorite movie, Lincoln), "We have made it possible to do terrible things to one another."

      It's true.

      From killing any baby boy for miles that is 2 years old or younger, to destroying 6 million individuals of one race and religion. From treating someone like cattle merely because of their race, to selling someone off for our menial desires. I mean, there are groups designed to hate another sect in society. How awful is that?

      Yet, we find a way to make it so that good always ends up on top. It takes a lot of fighting (in one form or another), and it is never, ever easy, but we make sure good always wins. Sooner or later. We see our fellow man suffering, we see it for ourselves and see the humanity of it, and we help to conquer the evil. Somehow. Someway.

      We mess up a lot. But we still try to take down the evil, even if it seems so much bigger than us. Sure, it takes us a while to see the evil sometimes, and even then, we just allow it to happen because "we can't fight it," or "it's too big to deal with," or "what's the big deal?" But we endure. Like we have done for thousands and thousands of years. Like this earth has done. We are designed for that. To find the good and bring it through, full force.

      We suffer, we see suffering, we fight to end the suffering, we don't stop fighting until love and goodness reigns once again. That is the human condition.

  "Let all that you do be done in love." --1 Corinthians 16:14

Woo!

Mary Taylor

 

Let all that you do be done in love.

Let all that you do be done in love.

Good Vibrations!

      I love feeling awesome. There are some times when I am living my life and can't find a single thing wrong with my it. Sometimes I just feel on top of the world! There are other times when I feel like I'm drowning in all of my first-world problems and I can't see the light. Obviously, I want to feel the former a lot more than I want to feel the latter. So, what can I do to feel as much On-Top-of-the-World-ful as possible at any given time?

      It's funny because as I'm writing this, there is an unruly child my mom is babysitting right now who is being, well, unruly. And obviously it is making my mom and I angry which is then making him even more unruly and it's just this vicious cycle.

      So, even in those events, or times of stress, sadness, uncertainty, etc. what can I do to make me feel on top of the world? Well, as much as possible.

      The more I write this, the more it's becoming a segment on TV that is the stereotypical motivational speaker. Can we get some Matt Foley up in here?

      Anywho!

      I was having an office hour with a professor who is just so awesome. She's so connected with the earth and so awesome! Well, we were discussing how to be our best selves. She, in all of her brilliance, said this thing that I feel like I should have known, but put in words was so profound and awesome, but simple. "If we want to be our best selves, we need to do things that enrich our soul and make us feel good. This includes the people we spend time with, the movies we watch, the things we eat and drink. Only eating and drinking the things that we feel good, even after having eaten it."

      Pretty cool, right?

      How many times do we hang around a friend who sucks the life out of us? Or we eat the gross buffet food, and just when the button on the unfriendly blouse is about to pop, we go up for another, knowing we are going to hate ourselves after we finish the plate, which we are going to do because "there are starving people in China who would LOVE to have that food." Or we watch a movie that makes us look at life differently, and not in a good, artsy way-- at all.

      We torture ourselves all the time!
  
      I mean, granted, sometimes it's an indulgence, and we all deserve an indulgence every now and then (my favorite is cheesecake!). But other times it can be the people we surround ourselves with, the Facebook posts we cannot pass up without throwing in our two cents, or the unruly child being unruly and letting it get to us (oh, just me?).

      But what would happen if, instead of living through it as "comes with the territory, you'll get used to it" kind of attitude (or, if you're like me, complaining about it with your parents), I change it. What if I take charge and decide that maybe this person is not good for me to be around. Or what if this Facebook post -isn't- worth throwing the computer on the floor with anger and then going back to it whispering sweet nothings to it in hopes that it works again (and the sweet nothings must have done something right, because it turned on again. Woo). Maybe this child's temporary unruliness isn't worth getting flustered over. So, maybe I scroll past the post (or, if it's someone who --constantly-- posts things like it, delete the virtual friend). Maybe I try a different approach and talk gently to the child.

      Over the summer, I had lunch with a good friend of mine. Another brilliant human being who is kind, loving, talented, amazing-in-every-way kind of person. Anywho, we got on the subject of friendships. I, being the person who cares (too much) about reputation and how others see me and liking everyone, was dumbfounded when she said a very simple phrase.

Supercalifradgilisticexpialidosious.

Kidding! I don't even think I spelled it right.

      She said "you don't have to be friends with everyone."

      Wait! I don't? I mean, it seems really simple, but not being friends with everyone is a thing that people do? I mean, I knew that they did it, but I thought not being friends with someone meant being awful to that person every time they walk by.

      Of course, I watch reality TV, so of course I thought that.

      She went on to say that one must still be loving and kind to that person, but there is no rule that you have to be friends forever.

      Unless you gave them the other half to your Best Friends necklace. Then you're in it for life. Duh.

(kidding)

      There is a friend of mine, we've been friends for years! The friendship runs deep, I mean. But, as I have changed and grown, and my friend has changed and grown, we've grown apart in many ways. So, I have started distancing myself from my friend. Not because this person is a bad person or because I hate this person, but because I no longer feel enriched and fulfilled by being around this person. Not a good or bad thing, just a thing that has grown between us. I still care about my friend's well-being and send as much love and kindness as possible. However, our interactions grow shorter and shorter as time continues.

      I guess what my friend (man, I am talking about a lot of my friend here) said about being friends with everyone was kind of hitting it right on the head for me. Since she said that, I have been really looking at my life and have noticed quite a few people who no longer leave me fulfilled.

      God speaks to us all the time. In so many different ways. Sometimes, the talks are easy to catch. Other times, you gotta search. I knew my friend was on to something with that "no need to be friends with everyone" stuff, and my professor with "what leaves you fulfilled and enriched" stuff! But I hadn't anticipated the impact they made.

      A lot of times, I see themes in a certain amount of time. I look at it as what God is speaking to me about, generally, in that specific time frame (a year, semester, week, whatever). It seems like the last couple months of 2014 and some of this 2015 is going to be about finding that (or who) which enriches my soul and leaves my fulfilled.

      Let's continue on in love, understanding, and kindness.

"For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church." 

--Ephesians 5:29

Commitment in 2015!

      As 2014 ended, I couldn't help but do the same thing we were all probably doing: looking back at 2014. I get a little weirded out, being a student, because I look at a year as a fall semester and a spring semester. But looking back at the whole year of 2014, I cannot believe how full it was! I was in my first main stage show at school, then my second, which just happened to be my favorite play of all time. I was in a show at my hometown community theater and realized I am doing this theater for me, and how freeing it was to have that realization. I said "goodbye" to mentors. I started this blog! I started a series on Instagram tracking my #healthyliving. I spoke of my story in church for the first time, and loved it! I grew in myself. I grew to know more. I grew closer to God.

      However, noticing the past few months, I had realized I gave a lot of excuses. "I can't workout now, I'm too busy," "No, I can't write a blog post now, it's too late," "I can't study now, I have to.... do the dishes." I make excuses for myself too much and give up on commitments too often.

      So, instead of kicking rocks and being bummed about it, what if in 2015, I commit? I commit wholly to what I do. Everything I do. What if I literally write a blog post every-single-day? Along with that, I workout regularly, keep track of what I eat on MyFitnessPal app. AND! I read the Bible, studying it, everyday. It seems like a hefty list. But, I know with your help, God's will, and my love of telling people "told you so," I can do it!!

      May this 2015 be prosperous to all in so many ways. May we grow closer in love and may we love wholly.

Woo!
Mary Taylor