America

With the Confederate flag debate in South Carolina and around the country heating up, I have been thinking how America has a history of hiding its faults. Let's look for a second to both the Japanese Internment Camps and the Trail of Tears. Approximately 120,000 Japanese-Americans were relocated solely because of their race. They were forcibly removed from their homes to camps only slightly better than the Nazi camps in Europe. But do we teach our children about this ugly fact? NO! We focus on how Hitler killed almost 15 million Jews during the same war not to mention the soldiers that died on both sides. And yet we don't ban the Nazi flag from American markets because it is a history in which America is the hero. The Confederate flag represents the dark side of our history as Americans. About 4 million slaves were present in the United States at the time of the Emancipation Proclamation and an additional 620,000 lives were directly affected through death fighting in the Civil War. Half of the American soldiers that have died in any war died during the Civil War. Disposing of the Confederate flag means ignoring the 4.5+ million lives that were directly impacted by the war and the outcome and missing the point of being an America. In reality, both the Union and Confederate were fighting for the America they believed to be the most consistent with the founding fathers. The North was fighting for racial equality while the South was pushing for state's rights. Both of these concepts can be found in the Constitution and are part of the definition of "American." Just because one man uses the Confederate flag to symbolize the racial hate that he held so deeply in his heart does not mean that the remnants of the past can be swept under the rug. By removing the flag from common knowledge, we are creating a false sense of security and progress. We are simply ignoring the past rather than learning from it. The flag in and of itself is not evil. It can be used for wrong or good in the same way that a gun can be used for hunting game or man. For the sake of argument and irony, I propose that if the flag is banned throughout America, we ban everything related to race and conflict in America's history from common areas. For starters we have to change many sports mascots (Atlanta Braves, Cleveland Indians, Cincinnati Reds, New York Yankees, San Diego Padres (religion), Washington Redskins, Kansas City Chiefs, and Chicago Blackhawks). Tell me, why is okay to diminish an ethnic or religious group to the same level as animals. So if America is banning all things race and conflict, these systematic racial abuses must be removed. In addition to "simply" changing the names of every possible racist sporting mascot in America, all signs of slavery must be abolished. We must tear down all symbols and statues of George Washington, Jefferson Davis, Frederick Douglas, Harriet Tubman, Martin Luther King Jr., and yes, even Abraham Lincoln because to remember good old Abe is to remember that slavery did in fact exist in the United States of America. So goodbye Capitol Mall; goodbye state history; goodbye America. Oh and for the love of all that is good and holy, get rid of the History Channel and all things Nazi! So you see, America is not America without its history of overcoming slavery. We must learn from our history, not run from it! Hiding America's evils like we have in the past is the worst idea that we have had since striking a nuclear deal with Iran. (oh wait, that was last week...) Let's become a country that exposes even our own tyranny and strives for reconciliation rather than ignorance.

Thrown off the Deep End

Coming into adulthood is far more difficult than I would have imagined... For the first time in my life, this summer I am seen as a professional in the workforce. Weird. No more acting, no more dress-up, no more "hey, you look so professional! Do you have a presentation today?" No. This is the real thing with real expectations. They don't teach you this in college. Young adulthood may as well be called "pseudo-adulthood." I'm given this task "grow up" and told sink or swim. Some days I feel like I'm drowning; others I'm floating on drift wood. I know I'm not the only 20-odd year old to feel this way. I know for a fact that at least one other person on this floating ball relates because we talked about it today. In light of drowning, I came up with a three step plan to learn how to swim. Step one: Ask for a life jacket. I've been learning that it's okay to ask for help. I'm not expected to know everything at age 21. For example, I don't know how to cook much besides pasta, and that's okay. Just the other night, I was all worked up because I was broiling meat for the first time. But now I know to leave the oven door open a crack, let the meat rest about five minutes, and cut it at an angle (this part, I'm still working on). All because I asked for help. Step two: Learn to kick. Discipline in the smallest is what will keep my legs moving. God says if we are faithful in the little we will be faithful with larger, more daunting tasks he has for us. But first, we need to be disciplined in the every day aspects of our lives. For me, the hardest things to be disciplined in are the activities without deadlines such as my spiritual journey, exercising, flossing, oh and heaven help me if I have to do dishes! I obviously still have a ways to go in this area, but I believe this concept can apply to any individual of any age and any background. As I prove myself to be reliable in the small tasks, I will build trust with everyone around me. And it is trust that will provide the social safety net for the hard times. Step three: Reach out and stroke. Reaching out to someone in either a professional or personal relationship is the beginning of all relationships. Sometimes it's scary to take initiative and make a whole bunch of new friends. I'm not saying that one has to be an extreme extrovert to survive this life let alone "make it," whatever that means. Simply be a friend. Care for those in your life, whether that's 5 or 500 people. Humankind was not meant to live in isolation from each other, the planet, or the Creator. So I ask you, can you swim through this life or will you sink?

Teaching an Old Dog New Tricks

Wow, it seems like just last week that I arrived at Messiah as a first year student...And now, I have let my first year residents fly. Where does the time go? Sometimes I look in the mirror and try to see the girl who left high school to come to this place, but I only see her in remnants that have been remade into new things. Here are just a few things that I have learned this year: 1) I am an introvert 2) Respect other people's wishes and desires 3) Be me always 4) A relationship with God is most important and sustains life 5) Sometimes, I can be too stubborn and narrow minded to see the other side 6) I like knowing the process 7) Sleep is a good thing 8) Nature noises relax me 9) It's okay to spend time alone 10) There are people like me in the world and therefore not alone.

Scars and All

A couple weeks ago, my dorm floor spent a week focusing on different aspects of beauty. We covered the mirrors and wrote encouraging notes to each other full of Christ's love. My roommate and I personally spent one of those days without using mirrors. I hadn't realized how often I look at myself until then. I hadn't realized that the mirror had become an idol for me. I was subconsciously obsessed with matching that vision of beauty that I had in my head. I talk about this now and not three weeks ago because of something that happened this morning. As I was getting ready in front of my mirror, I realized for maybe the first time in my twenty-one years of life that I liked me. I didn't feel the need to cover scars or flaunt curves. Instead, I felt comfortable and truly beautiful. I hadn't been wearing make-up for a couple months because I wanted to work on accepting myself, scars and all. When I realized how I felt this morning, I didn't feel obligated to wear make-up but instead chose to because I wanted to. To me, this was a big difference. It's amazing how God can work in small ways. I felt the love and acceptance of God today. I want to experience this more often, every day even.

how to survive the drizzle, not the storm

About a week ago, I was lying in bed praying when I started thinking about the phrase "God never gives us more than we can handle." I firmly believe the complete opposite. I think of Paul when he writes 2 Cor 12:9- "My strength is made perfect in weakness." If I can handle every aspect of life, than I see no need for a god of any kind. Without thinking, I said, "God, this semester, give me more than I can handle." Realizing what I had just prayed, I took it back. I don't know if one can "take back" a prayer, but I think God understood. I was suddenly hit with the weight of that prayer, what that could actually mean. In the moment, I was thinking about things that I don't think I can handle: the death of my grandparent or an overload at school. I had been looking forward to a fun filled first semester of my senior year full of basketball games, game nights, and late night Baker's runs with my friends. Praying that God would give me more than I could handle felt like I was asking for stress, depression, and begging to get back to my safe and comfortable bed. Needless to say, this thought has stuck with me, and in a sense, has become my prayer for the semester but in a different way. My prayer when I wake is that God will give me more than I can handle...today. "Today's trouble is enough for today" (Matt. 6:34). From my position as an resident assistant, I have been blessed to enter into the lives of 41 girls, and I have seen that there are small battles of body image, idolatry, distractions, and pain that are present every day. So often, these battles can consume my thoughts during the day without me noticing. Maybe these are the things that are more than I can handle. I can't take captive of these thoughts by myself; I'm dependent on God. So as I pray that God gives me more than I can handle today, I draw upon his strength to take on the small battles that so often cloud my Creator.