What I’ve Learned

It’s cloudy and rainy today. The best days in August are the ones that don’t feel like August. Especially this time of year, with the sun so strong, I don’t like wearing shoes. I’ve noticed more and more that people find it socially unacceptable to go barefoot, which seems odd to me. We ought to…

The Year Of Rest II

What does it mean to rest? A while ago, I wrote a post called The Year Of Rest. I have long meant to write a follow-up post because I have been so excited to tell you what I’ve learned. Now that I am deep into this year, I can truly say this is the year of…

You Influence People Whether You Like It Or Not

Yesterday, I was chattering to my mother about how impressed I had been by this girl. She inspired me not as much by her talent but by the way she held herself; she had beautiful posture and a well-used smile. She inspired me with her quiet confidence. Then I had a sudden realization–I had never…

Slow and Fast: The Styles Of Reading

My whole life, I’ve been a really slow reader. My sister, my best friend, and it seemed everyone around me, zipped through books, while I read so slowly that I usually got tired halfway and stopped reading. I was good at reading and I loved reading–but my sister was the one who earned the title…

The Simple Truth Behind Every Lie

Behind every lie is a truth. Underneath every hidden pain and unacknowledged problem there is clarity beaming, unquenchable and raw.  We try to hide it beneath sunglasses and smiles but it’s there. You know it. And somebody, someday, is going to perceive it. You can find out a lot about a person by the lies…

My Adventures With Curly Hair, Part 2

It seems that sometimes I need a melt-down before my head clears and life is fresh again. After I was done crying over my hair and being illogical, I disappeared into my room and sorted myself out. Then I came back to my mother (Bless her heart.) and told her, “Alright. I’m ready for you…

“Happy girls are the prettiest”

Audrey Hepburn said, “I believe happy girls are the prettiest.”, and how true this is. I don’t know of anything more beautiful than a pure smile, a real chime of laughter. I find that beauty is its strongest when one holds one’s self well. Grace lasts longer than beauty. We’ve heard over and over that it…

The Year Of Rest

This year has been long and hard. It has been a good one but exhausting. I’ve found myself wanting to take a two month vacation to Europe and do nothing but explore the country-side and write. And so, looking at this new year poking itself into view, I began wondering what it holds for me….

Learning Through Terror; Posing Real Questions

Over the last few months, I’ve had many moments of being afraid, even more of trying  something completely new, and a few of terror. I found myself on a plane for the first time, without my close family, and going to a new country for the first time. I’m afraid that if the person next…

Gathering Light

There was one, walking on a clear, cheerful road. The sunlight simply spilled across her path and dazzled the eyes. She carried a jar with her all day to put flowers and pretty findings in. And so, with triumph, she walked about her days, happier than a princess on a violet throne. One day, as…

Why Not To Stop In the Middle

I do so enjoy starting things, new notebooks, new hobbies. It’s such a wonderful moment to write on the first line of a fresh piece of paper, to take the first bite out of an apple, to write the first half of a story. Then I reach the rest of it. It’s there for a…

Halt, You Pessimist!

I’ve wondered, which is better, to be optimistic or pessimistic? It seemed obvious to me that optimism would be the better choice, right? I didn’t know. So I began just thinking about it. Thinking is so much fun; it’s hard to stop once one has started. I also happened to have my pocket dictionary and…