Emerson

I've added a new human to my list of influential beings and great things they said. Emerson, indeed. I encountered his writing in the summer of last year, but turned away from it because I was required to read it and wasn't enjoying it so much. Now, I'm realizing his genius and his love of God all in one. I think they may be related....just maybe. Think about it for a second. Anyway, here's a couple I just read and will be adding to my wall of quotes in my room:

A hero is no braver than an ordinary man, but he is braver five minutes longer.

All I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator for all I have not seen.

Character is higher than intellect...A great soul will be strong to live, as well as to think.

Every great and commanding moment in the annals of the world is the triumph of some enthusiasm.

That last one was made for me :) hehe

Of Love and All That Jazz

My day was officially made when my little sister made a most astute observation: she said I am loveable. :) Now I'm just warning you, this is a "brag post". Every good blog needs one every now and then, or at least I think so. I was talking with her about my coworkers and about the new guy we got that started this weekend. Somehow this made her think that I'm beloved by all my coworkers (which I certainly hope is true) and that I'm completely loveable and the words she used, "Who wouldn't like you, Jessie?" Needless to say this was a very, "Awwwwwww shucks" moment for me. Still is I believe. :) So this made me think, "Being loveable and more importantly, being loved by people is so important." Of course, some would say that people can be loved for the wrong reasons and therefore being loveable is not always good, and in fact, it can be bad. Well I would say, and I'm making this up as I go, that if it is truly love we are speaking of, it is incapable of any wrong motivations/reasons. If a person loves another (any type of "love" is applicable) then there can be no wrong reasons or selfish motivation. True love is pure truth. It is unbridled, unmasked, and stands alone among all else. It can't even be associated with any grey or matter of uncertainty, untrustworthiness, or suspicion. God is love and He is none of these things. I feel like I'm having a C.S. Lewis moment or something. hehe I tell you, it is no coincidence that I can speak so easily and so passionately about love. I know God has called me to be a people-lover, a life-lover, and a God-lover. I'm just in love with love. And in all forms. The story I'm writing for National Novel Writing Month, and which will eventually turn into my senior project, is a love story nonetheless. It comes naturally and I'm not fighting it. The process is going slow, but I just mentally laughed because I know that's exactly how my "love life" will occur; slow indeed. That's just how I roll. Here's an excerpt from what I currently have in my story.

11/8/11

First I had to hit the ladies room. That interlude had somehow caused my insides to spazz out, plus I desperately needed to wash my face before anyone recognized me as the red-faced freak I was when I was a teenager. Red-faced and freckled. Not a great combination. Of course, in the ladies room there tends to be other ladies in there so when I was calmly splashing cold water on my face while taking long, relaxing breaths, Lily Jenkins comes up beside me at the mirror and shrieks,

“Oh Melanie! I thought I saw you in there! You were sitting next to my cousin, Shane!” she squealed, obviously hinting at some idea that I actually talked with the guy, found out he was single, and gave him my number because we discovered we were perfectly compatible within the thirty seconds I was there before the ceremony began. Well that’s Lily Jenkins for you.

“Yes, he did mention his name was Shane. We didn’t talk very much, Lily. I got in late and that was the closest free spot I could find. The ceremony started soon after I sat down.” I was going to have to be defensive on this one. The big guns were coming out. I wasn’t planning on playing nice.

“Yeah that’s why I got here plenty early. I scoped out all the cute single ones so I know who to dance with later. I’ll point them out to you when we get over there. You’re still single, right?”

Oh boy. I feel like a T-Bone getting marinated before I’m put on the grill. “Yes I am, but I came here because Rachel is one of my close friends, and I wouldn’t miss her wedding for the world. I didn’t come to look at handsome men in tuxes. They’re overrated anyway.”