A Review

I just listened to a CD that Bethany burned for me and it's a great CD! The CD is Jamie Cullum's Twentysomething. Now, the title track really hit home because, well I'm a twentysomething. If you like Jazz, Frank Sinatra or Michael Buble' then perhaps this is the CD for you. It's great to have friends that share the same musical interest because it sure helps build the CD collection with out spending as much. : )

Dorchet Bridge

Dorchet Bridge
Originally uploaded by Caryn_.

The wonderful Dorchet Bridge. This bridge is roughly 125 years old. It's really neat because during the years of the steamboats, this bridge was designed to swing sideways so that the steamboats could drift by.

Bayou

Bayou
Originally uploaded by Caryn_.

This was taken right next to the Dorchet Bridge. Sorry that it's not a very clear photo, it was in a pretty creepy area. The Bayou's water was very murkey and it is known to inhabit alligators that can reach seven feet long. I heard a strange noise at about the same time I took the photo. Needless to say, that once this was taken I high tailed it out of there.

Gator

Gator
Originally uploaded by Caryn_.

Like this guy. ; )

Thankfully, this guy/gal was safely tucked away behind some bars outside of Bass Pro Shop in Bossier.

Old Barn

Old Barn
Originally uploaded by Caryn_.

You can take the girl out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the girl. Today I spent nearly all day traveling the country side.

It brought back a wealth of memories. One that kept replaying in my mind was learning how to drive. My first experience of driving was on an old black tar covered country road.

The shots that follow are a select few from my experiences from today.

View

View
Originally uploaded by Caryn_.

I was driving along some desolate roads and this view caught my eye.

Sunset

Sunset
Originally uploaded by Caryn_.

This is towards the end of the day. The sun was absolutely gorgeous.

Sunset Over Lake

Sunset Over Lake
Originally uploaded by Caryn_.

This is the most relaxing place that I have found in the longest time. If you need to contact me, I'll be here.

Contemplation

I have been doing a lot of constructive thinking. It has been great! I love nature and I have found a place that allows me to connect with nature as I sit and contemplate.

If you follow the path behind my abode over the bridge and to your right, you will eventually come across an opening. It is not dense like the forest that hugs the trail. It has a few trees that possess character. My favorite tree has a branch that swoops towards the ground. It is perfect for sitting or reclining. I love this area because the tree is comfortable and at dusk the fireflies come out. There are tons of them, it makes me think back to my childhood. I remember seeing so many of them that there were too many to count. I didn't think that I would ever experience this phenomenon again. I'm glad that I was wrong, because it is truly a beautiful sight to behold.

In this sanctuary there is plenty of peace. I have lots of peace within me, that's not where I'm headed. I'm talking about peace from a busy day. A location that lets you unwind and allows the stresses of the day roll off your back. It allows me to find harmony within my environment and with my place in the world. I know it sounds a little silly, but it's true. We tend to get caught up in the rat race. We tend to lose our focus on the now because we're so caught up in a deadline or a situation that life tends to pass us by.

My goal in life is to try to make the most of my life. I don't want to be so focused on a goal (or a scenario of your choice) that I miss out on the important things in life. One thing that I dislike about my area of residence, is the drive to possess more material items. The need to obtain things in order to fulfill the void of unhappiness. Last Friday, Amy and I went to a restaurant in North Plano. We noticed that more than one family took two cars to the restaurant and that the families didn't seem like a unit. It frustrated me. There is so much more to life than what you own. If I had a mega-dollar job, I wouldn't spend the excess money on cars, homes, or gadgets. It would be spent on traveling and adventures. (I will share more on adventures in a different post. That's been circling in my brain for a few weeks)

I'm wanting to make the most of my life. When I look back on it, I want to be able to say that I did the most with what I had and I lived it to the fullest. I didn't take the small things for granted. While I'm laying back on the tree looking at the sky enjoying life. It reminds me to stay focused on what's important and to treasure the small joys in life.

Holy Moly

Tonight, I attended the first class of my GRE prep course. I've concluded in my mind, that this will either be the best $300.00 I've ever spent or the worst.

First off, my professor is scary. The first question that he presented to the class was, "Have any of you taken the GRE before?" Four brave souls raised their hands to answer his question. I have never taken the test, so I was curious about their responses. He proceeded to grill them about how terrifying the test was. Which was followed up by a long discussion with him scaring us with his tales of horror. He reminded me of a person sharing ghost stories at a camp site, where at any moment the pupils in his class would all scream in fright. He emphasized many times that this particular test doesn't test your aptitude, but your endurance to stress.

After an hour of hearing horror stories about the GRE, he finally asked us to open our books. I was hoping for a thorough overview of what we would study and an outline that stated we would evenly cover all sections of the test. Instead, I will get to spend seven out of the ten weeks working on the math portion. Even though I despise math, this actually might be a good thing. I'm afraid (no, terrified is a better word) of the math section and I might as well grab the bull by the horns.

The degree that I am seeking is a Master's in counseling. The only math class that is in my future, with my degree of choice, is statistics. I can handle statistics, I've already had one statistics class in my past and I liked it. What I don't like is Algebra. Argh! Will this thorn in my side ever go away? I've had to battle math nearly all my life. My brain does not see the numbers and figures as a game of rules, but as a huge headache.

I personally wish that my college of choice would look at GPA's. It sure would make my life easier if that was used to determine whether or not I was a strong enough candidate for the Master's program instead of a test. In the mean time your prayers and well wishes would be greatly appreciated. Thank you. : )

Scar Tissue

We all have scar tissue, some scars are visible to the eye and some are invisible.

I was talking to a dear friend today and she stirred up an encouraging conversation. I told her that I was afraid of venturing out in an area due to past hurts. My past hurt is not defeating, I'm just a little gun shy about stepping out in that particular area. She then stated the phrase, "nothing ventured, nothing gained." My response to her was that I have scars in that area. Amazingly, she started to describe scar tissue. It's tough, it doesn't move easily, it's not pliable. Due to the toughness of the scar, it makes you withstand circumstances. It makes you stronger and it helps you endure.

Wounds develop character. It's what you do with the wound that can make or break a person. The trauma can either cause a person to become bitter or gentle. Scars also help a person empathize and relate with others. If we had no idea what a particular situation felt like then we couldn't relate and be there for one another. Fortunately, painful circumstances help us minister to those who are hurting.

It was neat because as soon as I got off of the phone with her I called another dear friend. She was going through a situation and I was trying my best to be an encouragement to her. She said something to me that brought tears to my eyes. She told me that she was able to get through a particular situation because she knew that when she reached the other side, whether the outcome was good or bad, that I would be there for her. I must say that I am so fortunate to know her.

Today ended in sadness for me. My mentor teacher's husband passed away today. He was her reason for living. She was strong because he was her foundation. They shared a type of love that you don't often see in couples. It was pure, and it was one that gave the single folks hope. Now her husband was a good man and he had cancer. It's origins were rooted in skin cancer, which turned into lymphoma, then brain cancer and eventually he had a stroke that led to a heart attack. There is so much more to what this guy had to endure during his two year bout with sickness than what I shared in my previous sentence. His scars were visible. You could see them shine in the light. While hers were invisible. During my last year at the elementary school I watched my mentor change. She was a bold, confident woman and she turned into a scared wife who was trying her best to be strong for her husband. As I shed tears of grief for her and relief for him. It reminded me of my conversation with my dear friend. Scar tissue makes you stronger and it helps you endure. I pray that she finds a new strength in her.

I'm A Polymath, How 'Bout You?

I have many praises for education, I was once an educator. I love learning and I love sharing my knowledge. The state that our society is in with education concerns me. I'm not going to get political on you guys, which I could easily do, but more philosophical.

One thing that education has done is narrow the field of study. I believe that the goal for education in our present society is to define a person by a particular study or degree. One time in my life this really irked me. It turned into one of the main reasons that I chose the education field. To earn a Bachelor's at UNT in education, you couldn't get a degree in education, it had to be in Interdisciplinary Studies. For a person who loves to learn that was magical. I could learn about British, French, American, African-American Lit. along with Astronomy, Physics, and Biology I&II. I also took classes on the Renaissance, and the Spanish conquest of South America along with my education classes. It was diverse and I loved it. To sum it up I was in Heaven!

This love of learning has expanded from my classes and into my personal time. I recently checked out books on the Beat Generation. I wanted to learn about the time as well as the literary works. Along with studying the Beat Generation, I picked up some books on historical feats in photography as well as some books on Astronomy. Being the dork that I am, I pulled out my telescope to learn more about the spring/summer skies. I know more about the Autumn and Winter skies and I thought that I should expand myself on the other two season's heavenly bodies. I am constantly in the search for more knowledge because the more knowledge you gain, the more you realize that there is soooo much more to learn.

This love that I have of learning has made me a polymath. I know a lot about a bunch of different stuff, but I'm not really an expert at one given thing. I feel that I would have blended more with the enlightenment period than our present day, because they wanted to learn about different topics. With our society today, the goal is to become the best that you can be at one field. Which is good to a degree. My problem with this is that it doesn't make a person well rounded. If your world consists of science and only science doesn't it make it harder to relate to someone who enjoys painting?

99% of making it in the world is relating to people. If you can't relate you're in trouble. I remember having one student who was brilliant. He wanted to sit a corner and work on his math problems all day. The problem with that was that he wasn't practicing his social skills. I would push him to interact with groups. I'd have him work with the slower math learners in order to help him develop interpersonal skills and for the weaker math students to gain math skills. It was a win-win situation. At first the child complained, but towards of the end of the year, he grew so much. He was well liked by the children and I believe that he had the most friends. I believe that's the way it should be, he wasn't defined by his math abilities anymore, he was defined as a person. He learned to relate to all sorts of children.

When did our society change from wanting to learn about everything to something specific?