Stuck. Between a rock and a hard place.

It’s really not that difficult. Not as difficult as you may think it is.

When things are going wrong, never doubt yourself, never loose faith in yourself, never degrade yourself, and most importantly, never back down.

You’re 17 and you hate the world. It seems like the family has put you through a lot more than what you deserve. Well, stand back before life smacks you around a few times. You still have some growing up to do, and you might as well do it while you have the support.

You’re 41. You’re kids aren’t everything you’d hoped for. One is out of state, one is out of control, and the other two don’t know any better. You have your own life to live, with meetings, work, paying bills and such. In all this commotion, remember your place as a mother, your kids come first, no matter what they’ll put you through. If it helps, keep in mind that their day is coming, and when it comes, you get to sit back and laugh..

You’re 54, not living the dream, but you love life anyway. You have an amazing family: brothers, sisters, kids, grandkids, and soon enough, great grandkids. You put your family first, because family is the most important thing on the planet, and you are one of the lucky ones who realize this. Your granddaughter is driving you up the wall, but you’ve decided that it’s her mother’s time to shine, and you get to sit back, relax, and watch your past unfold from an older pair of shoes, while you pray hard that it works out and the stress goes away.

Your time comes and your time goes. Some things are tough, some are tougher, but they never last forever.

What happens after high school?

Here are my thoughts.

Most people walk straight into college, no second thoughts. Either they were pushed through the doors by their parents, they have their future mapped out ahead of them with full potential, or they don’t know what else to do. If a graduate doesn’t plan on college, they’re probably going to end up working until suddenly work isn’t supporting them anymore, in which case they either become a lazy bum in their parents basement, or finally start college and look like the only misfit in their classes.

Anything can happen after high school- college, work, ministry, marriage, travel, anything you put your mind to. But the biggest thing to remember, is that it’s not going to happen unless you make it happen. Things don’t just fall into place. You’re not enrolled into any college just because you graduated from high school, you actually have to go through the long treacherous hours of applying to the college, and applying for scholarships, grants, and loans. If you didn’t already work all through high school, you have to apply for jobs everywhere possible, and you’ll be lucky to get a job that pays more than $9.00 an hour, unless you know people who know people with connections. Ministry may already have been calling some people during high school, and some people choose to follow their hearts and take missions trips, take place as a leader in their church, however any of that works. Marriage is a whole different ball game. Many young couples these days are getting married right out of high school. This is not wrong, and do not judge them because they’re young, or whatever excuse you can come up with. Marriage takes courage, responsibility, loyalty, and so much more than just another step into life. This is the road I took, and I am quite happy with my decision. In fact, I am married, in college, and working.

There are many roads you can take right out of high school, just make sure you know what you are doing, and where you want to end up in the end, and you’ll do fine!

Stereotype Be

So, I met this guy today in the parking lot at Dominicks. He was tall, dressed in a light colored striped suit and slacks. I’m not one to just go and talk to random people at the supermarket. But you feel obligated to, after a slight collision.

I was carefully parking the truck, and on the other side, he was backing out. The sun was pretty low at this point, just low enough to blind a person for a few seconds at a time. This is why he backed into me. When he and I heard the collision, we parked and got out of our vehicles. I noticed he was driving somewhat of a new Hyundai, and I thought oh boy this could get ugly… I smiled and said “How’s your car!?” Right away he started to explain to me that as he was backing out, the glare of the sun got in his eyes, and how he was blinded for a moment and could not see. Then he went on to apologize, and told me how he should have checked for clearance once more. Just short of shocked, I laughed and told him my truck is alright, and it’s pretty beat up, another hit wont hurt, and again I asked about his car, the small dent he had just accumulated, and if there was anything I could do. He smiled, told me that it was no problem, and asked one more time if my truck was okay and if there was anything that needed to be taken care of. Again, I assured him it was alright. Then he said “Well ma’am if you’re good to go, than I’m good to go too.” Okay, now I was in shock!

No insurance, no exchange of numbers, plates, nothing but our first names and a hand shake, to be courteous. Just when you think the world is coming to a drastic end with all these crazies, these mindless business people, and these careless teenagers, none of which could care less about anybody but themselves, you meet someone different. Someone who cares about somebody other than themself!

This guy was in a suit and slacks, driving a fairly new–and beautiful I might add–Hyundai, dark blue with silver trim, and chrome rims. Anybody out there would stereotype a guy like this to be a stuck up jerk who thinks he has it all together, when in reality, he was the nicest man I’ve met out here in the strange town!

I wish I could decyfer an angel from a really really nice man in a suit…

Get to know that stranger, they just might know a thing or two!

WOW!

The feeling of talking to someone who sincerely cares is so refreshing!
It’s not like your daily meaningless conversation, it has… pizzaz!

There are those I grew close to, those I called best friends, and those I would call aquaintences. The ones I really, truely admire, are the ones I met once or twice, who I never really knew too well. The few that people categorize as ‘weird’ or ‘quiet,’ ‘shy’ or ‘intimidating.’ The ‘band geeks,’ or ‘theater weirdos.’ Have you ever taken your time to talk to or get to know them? They are outstanding. I think it’s because they don’t try for their lives to fit in with the rest of their peers. The way I see it, they are as normal as anyone else on the planet, only, more appealing, because they’re original! They’re the ones who add the spice to life!