Layers of Rock

Diversity makes the world such a beautiful place. (And this picture’s just of rocks. . . )

BEAUTY

I saw this video the other day, and thought I would share it. It’s a video of paintings that have been animated which really brings them to life. It’s awesome, though it does get a bit dark and gruesome near the end.

It’s All or Nothing.

Last weekend I spent several hours watching a T.V. show on National Geographic called Polygamy, USA. It caught my attention because it’s actually filmed near where I live. As I watched it though, I began to think about these people’s legal situation. I’m no lawyer, but the law intrigues me. Lately the push has been to overthrow conservative principles upon which the United States was founded in order to allow homosexual couples to be “married.” But in actuality, I would think that we can either accept one form of “marriage” or all. There is no cafeteria style selection to these types of things. If the overthrow of Utah’s “marriage is between one man and one woman” is upheld, it not only legalizes homosexual “marriage”, but all forms of “marriage.” Right? What effect will this prove to have on these polygamist families? Many are currently eligible for federal aide because the only taxable option for any wife besides the first is single parent. What happens when they must be listed as married? It’s possible they could lose much of their government assistance. If homosexual “marriage” is indeed legalized, and the government still does not recognize plural marriages. . . well then, what kind of “marriage” equality is that?

Just a Piece of Junk?

So there is this scene in Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs where Flint is feeling down because nothing he does seems to turn out quite right. He feels like a loser. “I’m just a piece of junk. So I threw myself away. Along with all these dumb inventions.” We all feel like that sometimes. Not good enough, not smart enough, not attractive enough, not rich enough, not talented enough, and so on. But what is ‘enough’? Who decides what is ‘enough’?

Maybe you’re trying to keep up with the Jones’. Maybe you don’t have everything they have. But then again, I am sure there are other people trying to keep up with you, and feeling worthless themselves because they aren’t “good enough”. Every person is your superior in at least one way. You can’t compare yourself to those around you and make your judgements based on what you see. You’ll never measure up that way. The only person to whom you can compare yourself, is you. Where were you before? Where are you now?Where do you want to be, and what do you have to do to get there? Sure, it will be hard. Yes, you will have failures. There will still be days when you feel like your life is going nothing like it was supposed to go. That’s life. If there were never challenges, there would never be any good stories. What if the prince need not slay the dragon before freeing the princess? Where’s the sense of accomplishment? “[You] are the master of [your] fate: [You] are the captain of [your] soul.” – Invictus, by William Ernest Henley. You are not a piece of junk. You are you and nobody else ever can be. So go, and be the best you, you can be. Happy New Year!