Slang

      My dad's friend posted a video on Facebook of a German guy. He has a job here in America, so you could only imagine the cultural barrier. While at work one day he hears his co workers talking about Jennifer being a party pooper.
      Let's just say that German's do not have our slang. He could not comprehend what they possibly meant and , being a European, took it literally! He thought they meant that Jennifer goes to parties and "poops zo peoplez vill know". He goes on to say "I poop at partiez but I shut ze door zo know one vill know. Does zhe leave the door open so peoplez will zee and smell zings?". I thought I was going to pee myself! Let's just say it ended like this....."Does zhe do it by the presents or next to ze punches bowl? Does zhe poop on ze carpets? I vant to go to party with Jennifer to make observations....Zhe poops at parties!".
      Just goes to show you how much different Americans are from the rest of the world. We have a language   that leaves room for joking and sarcasm. With French and German(especially french) the way you describe things isn't so direct. Let's say you want to order a salad with tomatoes. You would say salad du (of) tomat. If you said salad avec (with) tomat, you would probably get a side of tomatoes. They be careful of what they say, whereas we slang everything!
       I took French two years of high school. Since my name is Rahne (if you don't know, it's Rain), I confused my French teacher the first day of school. Our school had traded French teachers since the old one retired, so this teacher was actually from France. I messed up introducing myself. Properly, it would be Je suis Rahne. (I am Rahne). I said J'ai Pluie, since my name in french is Pluie, but it literally means I have Rain. It took a few minutes for me to explain that my name was rain.
      Could you imagine what our every day lives would look like if we didn't try to slang everything? While some things would be less fun, like a party destroyer instead of a party pooper, some things could be a lot better. For instance, I could quickly adjust to not hearing the "N" word everyday as a friend referral. I could also do without people saying LOL or YOLO in conversations. Hello! Your talking to me, a person, in the face, not over text.
      It has even gotten to the point where teacher have to put NO SLANG in their class rules. Kids have honestly been putting LOL and other acronyms in their papers, not seeing anything wrong with it. Hmmmm. Maybe this slang business has gotten a bit out of hand.

(NOTE: If you hear someone say the slang term "slangin' ", it means they are dealing drugs.)
     

When You Tell a Lie

      No one really stops to consider how much their lies will affect others. Recently, people have made it their goal to destroy the church I go to. They have been telling lies about Pastor, lies that make no sense. For example, Robert, this ex drug addict, was staying with Pastor. Pastor wanted to do a Godly thing and help this man get back on his feet. He helped him get shoes and clothes, and bought him food every day. Yet somehow the church kids (yes, I mean the kids!) were told that Pastor was letting him do drugs. They also heard Pastor was stealing money from the church.

      May I make note, none of the above is true. If you knew Pastor, you would know the church is his life. He doesn't care about anything material, having gave the last of his money to the church to keep it alive. The church owes him salary money, but he DOES NOT care. If he can preach, soul win, and do good things for those in need, he has everything in life he could possibly ask for. I can honestly say he has the kindest heart I've ever had the pleasure of getting to know. Yet, somehow when the money came missing the man who did it named him (very credible might I add. Robert really should have considered his background working against him).

      Pastor has announced he's taking a 30 day sabbatical. It's not that I believe he doesn't want to be apart of the church anymore, I think he just needs a break to clear his head. At least we're all praying that it's only so. I don't think anyone of us knows what we would do without him leading us. Sure, we could move on......eventually. But we don't want to. We all love him dearly.

      My father attended the meeting this morning at the church. Many of the sincere members met up to discuss what they would do for thirty days, as that's way too long to be gone from church. Well, turns out the lies have extended to congregation members! People have started a war with our church, as if they are trying to completely tear us apart. Satan works in great ways to hinder Christians but not one of us were prepared for the destruction of families.

      A very dear women in the church, whom i'm not going to name, works very hard to help out pastor. Like so many other woman who have dedicated hours of time to keep it running smoothly, she spent a lot of extra hours cleaning, soul winning, and giving her time up for God's work. That makes her the next added target? Someone, who's joined the war, was telling people she had an affair with pastor. Not even true! Many of us had been there in her extra hours of effort, and Pastor and her were never even alone! Her husband and her are now going at it, since he refuses to attend church and doesn't know better like we all do. Her daughter ran away, and is now not at the house but with friends. 

      I'm so angry at whomever did this, it's blinding. I'm crying as I write this. I grew up with this women. She babysat me for many years, and helped lead my family to the Church fellowship process. I've never heard a bad word about anyone come out of her mouth, not even those spreading lies about Pastor. How could someone be so cruel to someone else, when they could learn a lot from them?

      I guess to ask that question is to answer it. People ARE cruel. You almost count on trusting no one but family, or at least them you've known long enough to be family. It's pretty depressing when a 17-year-old and a 15-year-old (my sister) have already learned this lesson. When did "adults" turn back into children? Did I miss an important memo? Someone please tell me that this won't be often for us. Call my thoughts a liar. That way, someone else can assure me it will never change. 

Saggin'?

      Where did it come from? Why is it so popular? I'd love to answer these questions!
      Sagging was actually a jail tradition, signifying homosexual willingness. Prisoners would sag their pants, telling other prisoners that they were a bottom buddy (meaning they were willing to have sex with their other male cell buddies). This let other top buddies know who to look for and who to pick on.
      Why did it become popular? Well, that's not such an easy explanation. Rappers that had previously been locked up more than likely made this their subliminal message. While people in jail, or people that had been in jail, knew what this meant, kids and teenagers had no idea. Like all naive kids mocking their idols, they quickly picked up this bad habit. Not very attractive, hu?
      When I walk down the street, on any given day, It's inevitable to see guys walking around saggin' their pants. I almost don't know whether I should laugh or not, in all honesty. It's gotten to the point where clothing lines are making pants specifically for sagging! Some lines even mask their intentions, putting smaller sizes on bigger pants so that kids unknowingly fall into this trap. It's pretty disturbing looking at third graders under-pants whenever we drive by an elementary school.
      What I do know however, is the obvious. Many parents are aware of this fashion symbolism, yet let their kids walk out of the house like this! Seriously, people??? Your child it ten and flashing himself! I'd even go so far as to say this is terrible parenting!!!!
      If you didn't know what this meant, may I make a suggestion? Buy your kids a new wardrobe. Teachers in schools are very aware of the meaning behind this. Believe me, I have seen kids get picked on by teachers and classmates for this fashion statement. It tells the teacher- "hey, this kids a jerk and I need to watch out for him". When teachers get this first appearance idea, your child will always be wrong and in trouble in the classroom, even if they aren't or don't deserve to be.
     

Sky City, Acoma Reservation NM

This is actually an oven. Many of the reservations have no electricity or water,  so this is how they cook.

Beautiful canyon below the mesa. 

The Acoma are well known for their pottery. I got to bring some home!

One style house, adobe inside with brick decor- they can use rock, grey paint, or brown paint only on houses!

Simple adobe in OK colors. My favorite is the adobe.

Catholic Chapel, gifted to them after the Spanish Inquisition.

Temptation to All

      At some point in our lives, we have all been tempted to do something. Tempted to do the right thing, though it has consequences, also; tempted to do the wrong thing, simply because we could; tempted to do SOMETHING, only because it seemed worthwhile. We all face this feeling, and we all face our fall in it. Temptation is dangerous, and often people don't realize this because it masks itself- it pretends to be something good, fun, or beneficial, to draw us into its trickery and (more often than not) destroy us. 

      The first thing a temptation usually brings about is self-seeking behavior. We are generally tempted by something because it offers us something we think we need, or believe we could be better with. While in some instances this may be true, like telling your friend the truth about something that may break your friendship (but is the Right thing to do), most times self-seeking behavior is selfish. Let's say for example sake you really want a new car. You found a great one that's not too expensive, but would put your family on a very tight budget for a while. You don't need the new car, but it's tempting to own a nicer one like your friend's. You weigh your pros and cons, and suddenly it hits you. What happens if there's an emergency, and my family needs medical help? Or a new necessity? You throw those thoughts away- That's not too likely in the next few months. 

      Your selfish temptation has now become potentially damaging and debt causing to your family. You disregarded the future security of your family to get your societal fit. This example of temptation fits for most things, also. Fill in the blank for an action (such as wanting to get drunk) and you'll see that most things we are tempted with have these exact same consequences!

      When self-seeking behaviors are given in to, the second thing temptation will bring about is a self-seeking lifestyle. Once you give in to buying the car, you find it easier to give in to the next time you want something. And the next. You are beginning to allow your temptations to get the best of you, sometimes even when your cons outweigh your pros. While you haven't completely turned over to temptation yet, your slowly moving into a life lived only for yourself. 

      The third thing temptation will bring is an insensitivity to the needs of others. In other words, you no longer care. Your heart has been hardened, and you are officially living for yourself. You don't bother to weigh pros and cons anymore- if it's good for you it's good for everyone, or so your mentality says. You will claim to love people, but that love is only present when you get something out of it. You will deliberately do things that hurt people because the thing your doing has some benefit to you. 

      The final thing sin brings about is self destruction. You don't even care about the damage things can do to you, so long as you feel good and seem to be having fun. With the case of a drug addict, your dying but don't  care. Your life is revolved around being high and feeling numbed. You steal to get the drug money you need, you cheat and lie. You will tell anyone anything without feeling even a tinge of guilt, because you are incapable of actually loving or caring for anyone, including yourself.

      Not very nice is it? Getting right down to it, temptation is evil. It is merciless. It knows no end. There is one thing that can deliver you from this- The Good News, himself. I'll be sharing how tomorrow morning, but if you have any further questions or feel a sense of immediacy you are more than welcome to message me at any time.

Finally!

      Graduation week is over! I haven't kept up on my posts because things have been so hectic....but I made it! I'll continue with my series post ASAP, but for now I will share what my last week has been like. I think more than anything i'm simply relieved it's over.
      Finals week was bittersweet. I was excited because I was almost done, but I couldn't just get out. We spent three days in block schedules. Day one was two hours in first then second, then the second same but third and fourth and the third fifth and sixth periods. Most of my finals were pretty simple. Band and office T.A. required no work, other than stuffing all the diploma holders....all the office T.A.s got the privilege of that task. English I got a b......I wonder what the rest of my class got, considering my group undoubtedly did the best (everyone told us so, anyways). Geometry was stressful. I still passed the class with a b, but sadly only got through half of the second part to the test. I Believe I got a b in government as well....I was hoping for more a's but i definitely can't complain.
      So I'm a little happier now. I just looked at my grades and it appears I finished my senior year with: A A A B B B. Not too bad of grades :)
      My graduation ceremony was horrid. Normally graduation night ends up windy and semi cold in the stadium.......it would be my luck that mine ended up 105 degrees. We were even instructed to remove our gowns because it was so hot. Before we even started walking in two kids feinted and multiple audience members passed out. Needless to say we had a couple ambulances sit through our ceremony with us.
      The grad night even was amazing, however. They had a mechanical bull (yes, i got thrown off), a fake casino set up, rock climbing, and multiple blow-up party stations. They even hired a hypnotist....I didn't participate in that, just watched. No thanks, I want to remember this night! I actually ended up winning a 20$  gift card to best buy and a beach set. God was watching my back, because i plan on spending my summer body boarding! Eventually I might even work up the nerve to learn how to surf.
      I made enough to start my car saving off good. Hopefully i'll be able to get a job this summer and add to it immensely. College would be interesting without it. I can't decide if I want my present to myself to be a camera or a gaming device....On the one hand I love taking pictures, but on the other I do love video games when I have those random bored moments.
      I guess that about sums it up, though I will get around to posting pictures soon, hopefully.

On a Personal Note

      While I am in a series of blog posts, I am currently putting together my next one. So, i thought i'd do something a little more personally meaningful, until I get home this afternoon.

      I am sad to report that our church is currently hurting. I find this to be both hurtful and intimidating. I was finally beginning to understand something in this horridly complicated world. Pastor Mark has brought love and salvation into so many lives, especially those of his congregation. We are all terrified, but comforted in knowing the Lord has our back. 

      Pastor Mark baptized me when I was just 9 years old. While I didn't understand the full extent of Christianity and salvation then, other than loving Jesus, Pastor has taught me much in these past few months. God truly put my family in his audience for a miracle, one my family was direly in need of. 

      My high school years, and even middle school, have been rough on my family and I. I put them and myself through things they should not have experienced,  me at only 12 to 15. I'd cut myself daily. Not just light cuts but multiple, and not to get attention. I was very good at hiding myself from everyone, and got away with it for months before a single person caught on.  Even after my parents found out I has my mantra- I don't want to talk to anyone, I just want to be left alone. 

      When I finally got diagnosed with A.D.D.. depression, anxiety, and sleep issues in eighth grade, I had already determined I hated myself. I was sexually harassed almost daily, and it got so bad my school adjusted their hands-off policy to no one being allowed to even hug their friends. To add to this, I was on medications because something was wrong with me. With everything happening too fast, I no longer saw a point in caring about much. 

      The rest of high school, until junior year, was spent doing drugs, being manipulative, and not even caring for myself. I could not be accused of being selfish, at least, because that would imply I did care. I got into two fights, one which landed me in Juvenile hall, the other helping to get me kicked out of my high school for a year. I got in trouble for both drinking and smoking on campus. My grades were slipping, and it appeared I was on a downward spiral. 

      By the time I landed myself in the hospital for the second time for doing drugs, my parents had had enough. I was grounded for months. I needed to learn a lesson, not one that discipline alone could teach me. I was missing something big in life and it was destroying me. 

      Mid-way through junior year, I picked up the bible. I hate to say it was a random event, but it was. My grandma had bought all the kids in the family a study bible, so I thought i'd give it a try. I'd spend hours a day in my garage, smoking cigarettes (which I did finally quit!) and reading the bible. No one would bother me during this time. They knew it was pointless because I wouldn't listen, and this was something I felt I needed to do. I learned something about myself and life in those hours- I no longer wanted to be the reckless, careless party girl. I wanted to change, to be someone for God.

      Halfway through this school year (a was allowed to return to my high school for getting straight a's on an independent study program) my father had a change of heart. He was convicted by the Lord, and had this urge to get rebaptized(story for another time). In the process, we became members of Fellowship Baptist Church.

      The Pastor was broken, himself. He would get distracted, and off topic. He wouldn't socialize like he used to. This really made his sermons stick out to me. He was more broken than I even was, yet was so filled and enthusiastic about God's love. This made me want t change further- I no longer party, cuss as much, do any drugs, and i'm changing my life plan for one of God. I even hope to start a non-profit organization. Pastor himself has gotten better, and we're all very proud of him. 

      Of course, I owe this radical change to the Holy Spirit. But Pastor Mark showed me how to get there. SO, this is my proclamation- I truly hope, for the sake of Pastor and the congregation, that we do not get the church taken by the bank. I PRAY the Lord takes care of us, if it's in his will, because if one church can do this for a long lost teenager and a broken man, what could they do for the world? For the Lord, we could do anything, and through him accomplish his plans for us.