This past week was a good break from the norm. I had a really horrible week in between Fall Break and the week I just had. I didn't want to be at school AT ALL! So, this week came just in time.
My parents let me go on vacation with them to Marco Island, FL this past week. I had to miss a week of classes, however, it didn't really matter. Half of them were cancelled and I just dropped one. I decided to drop my music minor. It was an emotional and hard week. But, it worked out alright.
We decided to fly out of Atlanta to go to Marco Island. We got there on Monday. We stayed at the Marriott Resort. It was AMAZING! There were tons of palm trees, two pools, a gorgeous beach, etc... One of the pools was even heated. I spent most of my time laying out trying to get some sun while I read the Koran. lol. I have to say that doing homework on the beach is a lot more amazing than doing it in Wildwood. I actually don't mind doing homework when I have the sound of waves in the background and sun on my skin. though I didn't quite get a tan like I wanted, I got to see the beach and enjoy warm weather again. It had been getting pretty cold back in Toccoa.
We also got to go on several boat trips. One was a speed boat through the everglades. It was a LOT of fun. It went really fast. And the Mangroves were really beautiful. I really enjoyed it. We also got to go on a sailboat out to this deserted part of the island and collect sea shells. Since no one is ever there, we got lots of amazing and huge shells. I also got six Sand Dollars. Which, never happens. It was a good experience. And we even got to see dolphins. That was fun!
There were lots of other random things we did and of course we did our fair share of eating.
It was really relaxing and I was reluctant to leave today to go back to the stressful life of school. God knew what He was doing, I seriously needed out of Toccoa for a while after the week I had.
Only three more weeks till Thanksgiving though!!!
I will add some pictures later though. I have some pretty ones! Right now I am just waiting on my flight back to Atlanta and not looking forward to waking up super early in the morning.
I had a friend call me this past week telling me that a mutual friend of ours was getting a divorce. After only being married a year, she decided she was in love with someone else. This saddened my heart as it reminded me of how our culture so often views love these days. Instead of viewing it as a commitment, or something we must choose to do for the sake of ourselves and the other person, we more than often view it as something selfish, as a feeling. So many people decide to quit when they end up not feeling the love any more. Instead of deciding at that point that they will choose to love this person regardless.
I think as I have gotten older love has taken on such a different form for me than it used to. No longer is it a perfect painting of cinderella, prince charming and a beautiful dress. But, it is now less glamorous. It is something that involves choice. It is something that is hard to do unconditionally. It means giving constantly of yourself, even when it hurts. It means giving up your own desires for the sake of another. And, it is even harder to find someone who will love you like this than to love someone in this way.
It gets complicated when you factor in whether or not people should be accepted for who they are now, with expectation of them changing some things, or if you shouldn't settle till you find Mr.Perfect.
So often I have stood by and watched some people be loved in a way that would seem perfect. Someone who cares about everything they are and cares enough about them to deal with their imperfections and learn what makes them thrive and why. It is the job of the lover, in my opinoin to make the other thrive. But, how often do you see people who make each other do this? Most of the time it is clouded over with focus on what YOU want. So often it becomes about what YOU think is worthy of being upset about or not instead of caring about the other person unconditionally,even when you don't understand it.
Unfortunately, we will never reach the perfection side of love until we get to heaven. But, how beautiful of a thing it is to love someone as best you can and try with all your heart to make them happy. Some people can do this because they refuse to give up their own ideas or selfish desires. Others simply don't wnat this because it is less convenient. How special it is when you do this yourself and find someone who is willing to do this for you.
It is a rare find in this day and age. People too quickly give up. People get easily angered, don't want to understand and do not try. This is the picture of what "love" is in our society. Let's not even call it "love". BEcause, it is most often based only on how one feels. That is why you get people who will be in love with someone one day, and the next they decide they are in "love" with someone else. I would venture to say none of it is love. It's just lust. Seeing something you want, using it until your through and then kicking it to the curb. I saw a lovely quote the other day, which I find to be very true:
"Love is a temporary madness. It erupts like an earthquake and then subsides. And when it subsides you have to make a decision. You have to work out whether your roots have become so entwined together that it is inconceivable that you should ever part. Because this is what love is. Love is not breathlessness, it is not excitement, it is not the promulgation of promises of eternal passion. That is just being "in love" which any of us can convince ourselves we are.
Love itself is what is left over when being in love has burned away, and this is both an art and a fortunate accident. Your mother and I had it, we had roots that grew towards each other underground, and when all the pretty blossom had fallen from our branches we found that we were one tree and not two."
I wish that people would take love more seriously. I thought of my friends wife today when I heard a song by Sanctus REal, and I wanted to share it. I think my favorite part is when it states, "Another casualty of casual love. Another soul out of place, a heart that gave up. Why do we break the promises we make?Are we living for ourselves?"
"Don't Give Up"
I heard you say you would love for a lifetime
Now you complain a lifetime just doesn't feel right for you
Another casualty of casual love
Another soul out of place, a heart that gave up
Why do we break the promises we make?
Are we living for ourselves?
[Chorus:]
Don't give up on love and throw it all away
Don't give up on love and let it fall away
When did it become so easy to run from your pain
Don't give up on love and throw it all away
I heard you say you can't change a stubborn heart
I can relate 'cause that's how I feel when I talk with you
Why should it take losing everything
to realize it might be time to change?
[Chorus:]
Your restless heart won't win 'cause you take but you don't give
And you'll keep moving on until you learn what love is
Don't give up on love and throw it all away
Don't give up on love and let it fall away
Don't give up on love
