Swords and Sailing Ships

Most girls squeal about boys and movie stars, I squeal about swords, sailing ships, and castles... But then again, I am not most girls... Nor have I ever pretended to be...

Sure, I dream about the day when my Prince Charming will come and sweep me off my feet, but that is far from the only adventure I have in mind for this story. Oh no, I have renaissance festivals to go to, a pirate island where I must search for buried treasure, and several stories of my travels (both real and imaginary) to write so I may be a published author as I have dreamed to be. I will not have the story of my life be a long and boring story. No, there will be much adventuring within the pages of my book.

Girls of today are lucky. We no longer live in the time when we are expected to sit around and wait for a man to come marry us so we can have a family and the cycle goes around again. No, we have the right to find true love. And not only that, to find adventure of our own in the meantime. Yes, I plan on marrying someday and having a family, and what a grand adventure that will be! However, there is so much life to live in the meantime! So many things to do and see while I wait on God's ever so perfect timing.

As you can probably tell, my heart and mind have been filled with tales of grand adventures. The longing to embark on some such adventures is strong, but trust me, adventuring I shall go! As soon as I save up enough money that is... Perhaps a trip to Boston this summer? Back to Virginia Beach in the fall? A trip back to my beautiful island this winter? Oh the possibilities are endless! But the adventuring does not have to be far. No, perhaps a trip back in time to the Renaissance festival in the meantime. Or a treasure hunt in our local antique shops? A trip to the beach where we will pretend we are marooned on an island! A kayak trip down the winding waters of our creek, or should I say… the jungles of South America? Oh, the adventures you can go on with just a little imagination! But now I am rambling...

My point being, there is not only one ending to our story, not even one genre. Your story can be a sci-fi, mystery, self-help, drama, fantasy, romance, adventure book if you want it to be. I hope my story will be a love story, but that's not all it will be, no that's certainly not all. I will continue to squeal over my swords, sailing ships, and castles. And yes, occasionally the sailors and princes who go with them... But for now, I shall plan my next adventure!

Ship Painting By Jessica Page

Imagination

As I look outside this April morning, and find fresh snow covering the ground, I find myself lost in a daydream of beaches, palm trees, the ocean, pirates, buried treasure and daring adventures. Adventures that, as a child, were not too far away on a fine, snowless, April day. In my imagination at least. But why must we only have imaginary adventures as children? Why do I find it so much harder to let my imagination run wild now that I am an adult, when it was so effortless only a few short years ago?

Perhaps it's because I know too much now. With knowledge comes loss of childish innocence. I know, though I hate to admit it, that the pirates I read about in stories simply do not exist in today’s world, flying is only for the airplanes and birds, and finding your true love takes more time and patience than the story books would suggest. And something as children we would contribute to magic, now has a scientific explanation. The world becomes so much darker and boring when the imagination one had as a child becomes harder to come by.

As a writer, you can probably imagine how this lack of imagination might become an issue. Every day I fall deeper and deeper into reality and it has become nearly impossible to pull myself back into the imaginary worlds of my stories. I find myself criticizing the unrealistic aspects of it all and forget why I’m writing in the first place. I don't write my stories to re-tell what "realistically" happens in the world we live in. I write to give people an escape from this boring, imaginationless life. I write to give people hope that with a little faith, some hard work, (and yes, occasionally a little magic and imagination) anything is possible. Hope that life doesn’t have to be what it seems to be.

Imagination is a crazy thing. You don't need to buy anything to have it, you can be by yourself or with a group of friends, you don't have to be good at it, you just do it. Imagine what it would be like to live in a different world, a different place, to be on a daring adventure, or a relaxing vacation. And once you start imagining, you'll realize some of the things you’re imagining have become dreams. And you know the wonderful thing about dreams? Dreams have a funny way of being able to mold themselves into reality. Dreams can come true. And perhaps it won't turn out exactly as you imagined, but with some hard work and a little faith, your imagination can carry you to a whole new reality. One where life maybe isn’t quite so... Ordinary... One where the ground isn’t blanketed with fresh white snow in April...

Finding Sunsets

So I was on my way home a while ago, I had a lot on my mind and was having a rough day. Then I saw something that brought me peace. I was driving over the hill when something in my mirror caught my eye. The sky was beginning to turn pink, a brilliant painting in my rearview mirror. It was so beautiful I had to pull over and watch the sky transform.

Ever since I was really little I have loved when the sky is pink. My mom would call to me when the sky was beginning to get that lovely rosy shade and I would run outside to watch. The pink mixing with the blue and bleeding into the white fluffy clouds creating a wonderful feeling of whimsy, like a sky full of cotton candy. As I grew older watching that spectacular painting change right before my eyes still holds just as much magic as it ever did when I was a child. I’ve seen hundreds of sunsets over the years. Brilliant ones in the Caribbean over the ocean, ones that seem to go on forever while flying over the clouds in an airplane, and ones over the field on my way home; but this particular one, as I was driving home that day, was different. This one wasn’t just another sunset.

I was upset, my plans were disrupted again and I wasn’t sure how on earth I was going to get back where I was supposed to be. But then I saw the sky. It was like God was saying "I painted the sky pink for you tonight, just to make you smile. Do you really think I'm going to let your future fall apart, just because of a few bumps in the road?" Nope, I'm going to be just fine. Because my future is in God’s hands. And if God loves us so much that he will paint the sky pink just to make us smile, why would He let us down when it comes to planning our future?

As I watched the colors in the sky that night I was reminded that God painted that sunset, and He made each and every one of us to be just as amazing and our lives to be just as beautiful as that spectacular masterpiece; because we, just as that sunset, are His creation. I also realized that sunset meant I made it through another day. It may not have been easy and there may have been a few tears, but I survived. And just as the sun disappears peacefully beyond the horizon in a magnificent display of color, only to rise new and fresh in the morning, so should we. Because God is holding all of our tomorrows, and that is what brings me great peace every night I watch the beautiful sky turn pink.

LOVE

Love, what is love? One of the most complicated questions. The question becomes even more complicated due to the limitations of the English language. “Love” can be shown and felt in hundreds of ways, yet, we only have one word for it. One word to express love for a friend, family member, or a “significant other” alike. It’s no wonder we end up with misunderstandings. Someone thinking we said we loved them with intentions of a romantic relationship rather than as a friend. This far too often leads to not telling someone you love them at all, even though you do, for fear of it being misinterpreted. I have come across this far too often. I have guys who are friends who, though I do love them, it is not in a romantic way, therefore I don’t tell them and am careful of how I show it for fear of my intentions being misinterpreted. Makes me wish we had a different word for a romantic love verses a family or friend type love. And that isn’t unheard of.

There are different languages that have multiple words for “love.” Did you know that in Greek there are 4 different words for love? Each meaning a different kind of love, from a romantic kind of love to more of a brotherly love. I’ve heard there are some languages that have 90 or more different words for love. Could you imagine? 90 different ways you could more accurately express the love you feel in different situations. Even having 2 or 3 words for love would drastically decrease the times the word gets misinterpreted.

I can love a guy without wanting a romantic relationship with him. In fact, that’s what God calls us to do. To love everyone. Our neighbors, family, and enemies alike. But that does not mean that by saying “I love you” or showing my love by the things I do means I’m looking to be romantically involved. I should be able to tell anyone I love them without having to add on so many extra words in explanation so that there isn’t any confusion.

However, I’ve decided to stop letting the fear of being misinterpreted run my life. I will tell my friends I love them, adding on all those extra words if necessary. Everyone deserves to be loved and know they are loved.

 

If you would like to continue the conversation, please do! Comment here or on my Facebook Page! Thanks for reading!