Failing to Succeed

I heard some words this week that truly inspired me. They were:

"Hey, so when do we eat???"

"Sure, you hungry for failure? Maybe a side of unemployment? Cause that's what's for lunch."

These words inspired me not because they were extraordinary, but because they'd were real. They were true. They were hilariously painful. Ouch.

I've been thinking a lot about success lately and what that means. I am the type of person who would rather be classified as successful and do little than the person who is ordinary but does much. If I know there is a potential that I may fail, you will find me heading the other direction. Nothing doing.

Yet I've been thinking recently about I can't be truly successful without the potential of failing. Every class I take at CBC, I could fail. Granted, the likelihood of that happening is slim, but still. It could happen.

What's even worse is that, in my mind, if I am not 100% successful, I've failed. For example (I can't believe I'm admitting this) I almost didn't make the Presidents List this last year. Sure I would've made the Dean's List still, but I was super mad (until I found a loophole in the syllabus and raised my grade 2%). Don't you find that slightly ridiculous and majorly obsessive? I am a straight A student, yet when I don't get 100%, you'd think I flunked. Sometimes I just feel like facepalming myself. Having one of those moments now.

It's not just school though. That I can control to some degree. Recently, as I work at a library, I've been seeing all these photos of skanky celebrities with chests bigger than coconuts (*just quoting the Bible here :)* and booties bigger than elephants and abs perfectly toned as they flaunt what they got for everybody and their dog.

I don't have a six-pack. For crying out loud I don't even have a one pack (if there is such a thing). I got curves, but I don't look half as proportional as Taylor Swift or Katy Perry. I had to look at myself in comparasion and ask, "What do I see as successful? Would I really want to be like them?"

No. I wouldn't.

If successful is being on the front page of "Rolling Stone" or "People" wearing nothing but a malfunctioning loincloth (I mean seriously, Tarzan was more modest then that ya'll), then I will be a failure in Hollywood's eyes forever. And if success is defined by how defined you are on the outside, then I'll never get there.

But if success is defined by having someone look into my eyes instead of straight to my exposed chest; if success is defined by working hard even when I'd rather be blogging (hehe... In progress :); if success is becoming the best version of yourself for the good of God's kingdom; then maybe I am more successful than I think.

And you know what? Sometimes I'm going to mess up. I'm going to stick my foot in my big mouth. I may get lazy and take my eyes off the prize *hypothetically speaking, lol*: I'm going to be dumb sometimes, like when I stay up late blogging when I work the opening shift (aka leave my house at 6:30) the next morning Sometimes I can't sleep. Sometimes I don't have time to shower and smell nice. Sometimes I get distracted and don't pay attention- like just now. Sometimes it happens. Oh well.

All I know, is I am hungry. Literally, yes (As usual, lol) and figuratively. And yep, sometimes, my meal is going to consist of failure. And ya, it doesn't taste that good. But it's that bitter-sweet taste that keeps you growing, it keeps you accountable. It keeps you humble. And I've heard humbleness tastes good with pie... :) So while I'm on the road to success by Heaven's standards, a light snack on the way will keep me going so that I may, God willing, eventually reach my destination marked by my growth and not by my status of earthly success.

New chapters

Honestly, there is rarely a time when I experience writer's block. Normally, I have a lot to say and it is natural for me to put into words what I feel in my heart. But as I try to encompass in my mind what this past year has been like, I am at a loss. There is so much there, yet so... little. It seems as though no time has passed, yet it also seems like 2014 has lasted for centuries. I look back on all the ways I have grown and see much improvement, yet still so much to be conquered in myself. I find myself glad that this year is coming to an end, and I'm ready to begin a new chapter of life.

Isn't that how it is at the start of a new year? Everyone is ready and willing to begin again and put their best foot forward to make the coming year better than the last one. For the past five years at least, that's been my goal: To have the best year of my life.

But this year is different because I'm looking at all my experiences throughout the year and wondering what defines "best"? Did I have more fun this year than ever before? No. I really didn't. In fact, my social life kind-of stunk. Did I end the year being in just as good of shape and looking just as good as the beginning of the year? Nada. Zero. In fact, it's the opposite. I started out the year playing two sports and working out in the gym, and now, I'm... well, not doing any of those things :) Did I have life-changing experiences? Kind-of. I mean I go to prom, Stuebenville, and on road trips every year. There's nothing really different about life, (MINUS having my nephew being born- the one and only exception to absolutely, wonderfully life-changing :)

So as I look back over the year, I am asking myself, "Did I have the best year ever?" Before, I would've thought that if I could count more exciting experiences that happened this year than the year before, it was a better year this year. But now, I'm thinking, "Why does having more excitement and more fun and more everything make something better?"

The truth of the matter is that 2014 was a hard year for me. I had to face a lot of things in myself I didn't like. I battled depression and anxiety. I grew closer to my family throughout the year, but it wasn't without hurt and tears. My social relationships lacked.

Part of the reason the year was so hard was because I was making changes (or trying to). I was detaching from unhealthy relationships where the year before I hadn't had enough to strength to do it. I started learning how to grow up when I got a job at the beginning of September and starting paying for some of my own stuff. I was also reevaluating my attitude, my outlook on life, and so many other things. I became a more contemplative, private person in 2014. So different from the loud, crazy, wild lady who was ready to conquer the world in 2013.

Thankfully, I still have that drive in me, its just very different. I'm learning to center it, to focus it. God wants to use that passion and love for risk for His Glory. Now I am just learning that I can be quiet and listen for His direction before jumping on a wild idea and riding it to kingdom come. I'm learning to ask. And trust. And WAIT. Which is hard. Especially when you have no clue where God is taking you. Just the other day, I was starting to stress out again that I hadn't heard from the Lord about what to do after CBC, and then I thought, "Hey! Why not think of this as one of those exciting surprises you always want instead of worrying about not knowing?" Perspective is powerful- Truly, what would be so bad about not knowing? I mean, even if He didn't tell me until the day school starts next semester, He would make a way. And it might involve me jumping on a plane and flying to Timbuktu to finish my degree as a Bone Regeneration Specialist. You never know :)

Because I don't know where I'm going or what I'm doing for 2015, I have no big goals. Except one: Follow where the Lord leads. That's it. That's all I got. For the life of me, I have no idea where or what that is. But one day, when everything becomes clear, I know there will be a beautiful, amazing story that will be a testament to the beauty of trusting God for all things.

I'm not going to make any sentimental statements about how I hope that 2015 is better that 2014 or make a list of things I want to accomplish. All I know is that 2014 was good for me. Was it the best year ever? I don't know. All I know is that I survived another year. I laughed, I cried, I grew, I wilted, I fell, I rose, I learned, I lost, I loved, and I lived. And what could be better than that? It may not have been the 'best' year, but it was the best for me. It was what I needed.

I hope that as you all reminisce about the year and look forward to the coming season in your life, you feel the freshness of starting a new chapter of your life journey.

Wishing you all a happy New Year full of life, love, and freedom!

Thankful for life (and late night bowling)

Recently, I've been thinking a lot about gratitude. Figures, since Thanksgiving was last weekend :) It's interesting how a time of thanks makes you realize how ungrateful you actually are.

I find it ironic how the day of meant for thanksgiving for what we have is now followed by a full out race to accumulate more stuff the day after. So yes, we sit down at dinnertime for the turkey and stuffing, and then take our leave to be the first in line for the "Pre-Black Friday Sales." I think this demonstrates perfectly the discontent of our culture. We're always wanting more.

 I wish I could say I was exempt from this mindset. Unfortunately, I have been plagued with the self-centered bug that makes people crave more than what they have.

I am very blessed, yet sometimes it seems as though all the blessings are hidden by discouragement from the hard things in life. But I don't want to live my life in the negative, focused on what could be better instead what is already great. I don't want to wake up one day and realize I was so concerned with accumulating more and rising to the top of the success list that I missed out on important relationships or hurt the ones I cared about.

I have been trying to make some attitude changes the past few weeks and thankfully (pun :), the Lord is helping me to become less focused on my wants and more focused on how He has provided for my every need.

I have decided that I will be grateful in every circumstance. I used to think that gratitude was "at least I'm not ______," but thankfulness is more than that. I think thankfulness is synonymous with joy. When you are joyful, you are thankful for the blessings, even the disguised ones, and you don't let a bad day hinder you from giving thanks to the Lord. And when you are thankful, you receive a joy in knowing that the Lord has provided for you.

The Lord has provided for me in so many ways. He has given me all that I need, plus more. So right now, I am going to list ten things I am thankful for.

1. My family. We are the weirdest people I know. And I wouldn't have it any other way!

 

I think Lizzy has been spending too much time at Petco :)

 

 

Typical moment. 

Lizzy does something dramatic. 

I am just like "Welcome to my world" :)

 

I will leave this photo to interpretation because I don't know how to explain what is going on.

I really don't know.

2. My friends. I literally have the best friends ever. I have had so many wonderful/wild experiences with my dear friends throughout the years. The most recent one being late night bowling (and playing hide-and-seek tag in Walmart). I had so much fun and I actually beat everyone the first game (which if you know me, you know I STINK at bowling. I will tell you, during game two, I got last place... I was just on a roll for a second :)

  

Having the time of our lives :)

 

 

Justin, Jake, Anthony, Connor, Me, Kim, and Maggie chilling out in the sketchy bowling ally.

3. My church. I LOVE my church SO much. I have grown so much spiritually, especially this year being a part of the Jr. Core team. Which leads me to...

4. Lifeteen. I've grown closer to God and closer to my fellow church members this year as a part of Lifeteen, and I'm so thankful for that! I've gotten to help lead worship and gave a testimony on modesty. I have so many great experiences, and the year isn't even halfway over!

 

MASS FITNESS! 

I actually got to lead ZUMBA on this night- I won't ever forget it!

 

Our costume/murder mystery night.

I am supposed to be Cinderella, but apparently, several people thought I was Snow White (why, I have no idea)

 

Our "Wedding Feast" Lifenight. 

I finally got another opportunity to wear my bridesmaid dress!

 

Chilling after our "Pro-life" issue night.

Me and Kim did a skit on abortion, while the boys did one on suicide. 

5. Cars. I am so thankful that I have a vehicle to get me where I need to go. I am also thankful because some people that are very dear to me live only a few hour car ride away. If we were making the trip in old west wagons... Not very efficient when you want a weekend visit!

6. Music. I love playing music and writing music and listening to music and everything about music. I feel so close to God when I am praising Him in song.

7. SNOW!! Not only do I get snow days, but I get to play outside with my siblings and get pelted in the tush with rock hard snowballs (true story!) 

 

8. Glasses. I don't know, just being able to see when a few hundred years ago, I would've been classified as blind is incredible. And contact lenses, so I can pretend I don't need glasses sometimes :)

9. Dancing. I should've put this closer to the top. I don't know what my life would be like could I not interpretive dance in my living room to Michael Buble. Life would not be the same!

10. Life in general. There are so many small things and big things and in between things that I am grateful for. And last....

11. God. I know I only said 10, but the very basis for my thankfulness and the reason why I can have joy is because of this One Guy. Named Jesus. Or Holy Spirit. Or Daddy-O in the sky. Whatever you prefer, my entire basis for praise and thanks is the fact that Christ paid the ultimate price for me sins. I can be joyful and loving because of Him. So Lord, I thank you for my life. I thank you that even though I've had a rough go, you still love me and you have a plan for me. And whether your plans for me are big, or small, I am thankful for what you have given me. May I always look to you as the source of my joy and gratitude.

 P.S. The late night bowling was a plus, so thanks for that too :)

 

 

 

 

 

Set apart sinners

I didn't quite know what his response would be when I told him I was a Christian.

"I knew you were," he responded casually.

How did you know?" I asked, interested to hear his response.

"I could tell by the way you carried yourself."

When I heard those words, I felt blown away. He acted as though my Christianity was the most obvious thing in the world. And he knew because of the way I carried myself.

I've only known this young man for a few weeks. I met him at work- he comes into the library to study, and whenever I see him around, we chat for a few minutes about our weekends and our jobs, and we go our separate ways. Yet even from our minimal interaction, he noticed that there was something different about me. Something that set me apart.

After he made that comment, we continued to have a conversation about faith. He proceeded to tell me that he was raised religiously (Mormon), but because of their lack of reverence, he left. In this five minute conversation with a man I hardly knew, I felt that he was truly wise. He didn't want a lukewarm faith. He saw the lack of passion and the boredom surrounding his church, and he didn't like it. God himself even said "I would rather you be hot or cold, but the lukewarm I will spit out of my mouth."

For a long time, I have thought that I was a crappy Christian, that over and over again, God kept spitting me out His mouth until I became the 'perfect' Christian. All my life, my focus has been on improvement, trying and trying and trying to be good enough. Good enough for God. Good enough for my family. Good enough for me. And I always fell short. Always.

But this conversation today really encouraged me. I thought that unless I was on my knees or speaking in tongues, that I was just like every other person. That my Christianity wasn't evident. But it was. Even when I thought I wasn't doing enough to further God's kingdom, my relationship with Christ was still impacting people. My actions have spoken louder than my words. And they've spoken loud enough that I don't even  have to open my mouth for others to know I'm a Christian. They can just look at me and they know.

That being said, the fact that others recognize Christ in me completely extinguishes the idea that one must be perfect to be a witness. I'm still not perfect *sigh.* I still fight with my mom. I still cry, yell, and sulk. I still turn to chocolate to satisfy my craving for love (I'm working on that one... :). I am still paranoid about money and whether or not God will provide for my needs. I still have a messy room, an unmanageable life, and dirty laundry that is screaming "Would you please just WASH me already?!?"

But you know what? God can use me in my mess. Everyday, I try. I fall. I get up. I try again. And most of the time, I don't succeed. At least not in the way I think I should.

But I hold my head up high. I persevere because I really, really, really want to live for God. I don't compromise my morals. I present myself in a way that honors God. I know that I may be the only person someone will ever meet that claims to be a Christian. What do I want them to think??

Today, I realized that I am doing alright. I keep keeping on. God is using me. And I may not be evangelizing while I check out people's books for them, but I am making a difference. They see Christ in me. They see Him in the way I dress. They see Him in the way I walk. They see Him in my attitude.

And if God can use someone so hopelessly flawed to further His kingdom, I fully believe that no flaw is hopeless to God.

"Preach the Gospel. If necessary, use words." St. Francis of Assisi

The Logic of Love

I heard once that all romance stories consist of one of three plotlines:


A. Girl likes boy. Boy doesn't like girl. By the end of the movie, boy likes girl.
B. Boy likes girl. Girl doesn't like boy. By the end of the movie, girl likes boy.
C. Boy #1 likes Girl #1. Boy #2 likes Girl #2. By the end of the movie, Boy #1 likes Girl #2. How did that happen??? No one knows.


Who knew that talking about romance could actually feel logical? Of course its logical, I often think to myself. Romance is totally logical. A leads to B leads to C leads to... and so on and so forth.


In our little heads, romance isn't complicated at all. It's all about the feelings. "They were meant to be together all along," we think to ourselves. We justify the broken engagements, the altering of personalities, because in our heads, having 'feelings' for someone means its going to work out. And we'll all live happily ever after. The end. Totally logical.


Not really. If anything, romance is like one of those algebra problems (math haters, plug your ears aka shield your eyes) where you solve an equation for x and come up with ZERO answer other than "X= y squared plus the cube root of (z plus 3) times 2i all divided by .23j plus k. Yeah. Read it again. If someone can take that equation and make it equal a nice tidy number, give me a call. I would like to meet with you and give you a psychological examination.


My point is, romance stories often don't portray the entirety of relationships. The plotline doesn't follow the fiancé whose partner of seven years just broke up with him because the girl bumped into another guy in the grocery store. Like its easy to leave someone you've been with for seven years. But no, she just bounces on to the next guy.


I watched a movie a few weeks ago with this same problem- The ENTIRE movie, this girl is trying to get her high school boyfriend to fall in love with her again. She succeeds. But then realizes, this other guy is actually the guy she wants. So she dumps the first guy. All of this happens within a span of..... ONE night. She kissed TWO guys in one night, with the same intensity, with the same feelings.


It makes me wonder if she's actually in love with either of them. Or perhaps, as we all may be, is she just in love with that feeling???


I think the reason why romance movies and novels sell is because deep down within every woman has this love for... love. We just love it. We love the thought of being romanced, kissed, held, chosen over another. We love the thought of dusty, robust cowboys or tall, dark, mysterious businessmen waltzing into our lives and saying, "YOU, my darling, are the one I want." Yet, is it that we truly become attached to that man as a person? Or do we become attached with the way he makes us feel?


My head is practically spinning. I think I'm confusing myself. Honestly, writing out that algebra problem made more sense to me than sorting out my feelings about romance. This is one of those moments when I am glad I am still single because if there were two of us trying to get into my head, there would be a problem.


On a personal level, I myself think  I am too attached to romance. I'll admit (don't you dare judge)- My heart flutters when I see Gil Blithe. Is it because I'm in love with him? No. Is it because I'm in love with romance... maybe...


I recently just read the book "The Help." I loved it. I loved it because it was about three women who dared to cross the lines, to put their lives in jeopardy, to come against the opposition of racial segregation. The book was engrossing and exciting. And it wasn't even a romance novel.


Sure, there was some romance in it. But it showed love for what it truly was. The guy she was with couldn't handle her. He couldn't support her. He didn't agree with her morals. And she accepted that and dealt with it. She didn't just hop from beau to beau. In the end, she didn't even end up with the slightest glimmer of hope for any relationship in the future (WHAT????) But she was happy. She did what was right. She didn't have family, friends, or arrays of men to support her. But she did the unthinkable.


That's what I want to do. But how am I going to do that if I spend all my single nights boo-hoo-ing in my bed cause I don't have no Mr. Darcy in my life to share his million-bajillion smackers a year? How am I going to make a difference if my butt is planted in front of the tv screen while I stuff my face with junk-food and lament at how Sandra Bullock always gets the good ones? If I can't peel my eyes off of John Travolta and his uber shnazzy dance moves for two seconds... yikes, I need to reevaluate my life.


I think its time for me to put down the spray cheese and Oreos and quit throwing myself a pity party by the fridge just because I don't have any guys to hop from so I can get my unrealistic romance needs fulfilled. I think its also time for me to stop using run on sentences, because my brain is running out of breath.


All in all, I think I need a new perspective on romance. I am not trying to belittle the wonder of love at all, I just think that our focus has become self-centered. Our commitments to one another are becoming less important and our feelings, more important. I'm not saying one should stick with somebody they don't have romantic feelings for. I just think that if you don't have romantic feelings for someone and you don't envision yourself spending the rest of your life with them, then you shouldn't be with them in the first place. If you have doubts about a relationship, instead of staying with them while keeping one eye open looking for someone new, then why waste his time and yours? I mean, its not going to kill you to be single for a while. Truly. I am not dead yet.


If there is one thing that you get out of this EXTREMELY long blog post (sorry, readers. When Dani gets on a roll, she can't stop), let it be that God has a more perfect romance planned out for you than you could ever, ever, ever imagine for yourself. For some of us, that romance will take place with our future spouse. Others, it may take the form of religious or single life. But no matter what our future vocations are, God wants to romance us, and he wants us to be romanced. There's a reason those longings are there. God put them there. God gave us the longing to be loved because He wants to love us.


So dear readers (if you've made it this far :) this Christmas season, if like me, you are tempted to indulge yourself in romantic Christmas comedies and listen to "Let it Snow" fifteen times in a row as you sulk underneath the mistletoe, remember that God is simply waiting to fill that need that you have in your heart for romance. And His love is a lot simpler than algebra.

Green-eyed Me

I am going to be honest. I struggle with jealousy. You know. The green-eyed monster. One of the seven deadly sins (or close to it). Oh dear.

My jealousy was rooted directly from my perfectionism. I have worked so hard to be perfect, yet it seemed as though any time someone else was rewarded, that it meant there was something wrong with me. So many times, I have felt utterly destroyed by another being chosen because it made me pick myself apart and constantly analyze why I was so much worse. 

I have been working constantly on this issue over the past six months. When others receive an honor I didn't or others are praised and my work left unmentioned, I have been working on being proud of them and rejoicing with them instead of wondering what it is about me that isn't good enough. So far, so good. The past few weeks, I have been digging to the root of my imperfection, and my confidence was slowly lifting. But now I've felt the ultimate test is coming.

It's funny how when you think you have something down, how a situation comes up where you have to reevaluate and rebuild everything you've been working towards. One single thing. And all the temptations to go back to the old way arise again.

Today, I asked God to keep me humble.

God answered me. And now, I don't know what to do with myself. Except call on him for His strength. Because I alone am not strong enough to overcome these feelings.

I feel them all flooding back, all the insecurities. I ask myself, was it all for nothing? Was my own time and efforts overlooked, unseen, not valued?

I feel like an underdog team. Like I worked and worked. I made it to the championship. And I lost. My emotions are jumping around. I should be happy for the other team, right? In reality, I can't see past all my wasted efforts, my time that I will never get back that was poured into something. But was it really worthless?

I don't think so.

My love still remains intact- Losing doesn't mean that my experience of training, sweating, working, crying, and repeating to get where I am today was for nothing. My experiences change me. I am not a lost cause because I am hurt. I am struggling with jealousy and anger, yes. But I am not giving into it. I will fight it with all I have, plus some. I know I will overcome this because God is with me.

I am tremendously hurt, yes. For no good reason? Potentially so. But I know that this experience of knowing that God saw everything that I desired and worked for, and He will reward me if no one else does. And that's all that matters.

He is still working on me. And He will continued to work on me until the day I die. But I will not give up. I will be happy for those who have reaped the benefits of recognition. I will be joyful amidst my hurt and I will look instead to invest in what I know will invest back into me.

Honestly, I don't know if this blog makes any sense, or even if anyone will read it. All I know is I had to get this off my chest. And I needed something to do with my hands instead of ripping or punching something as I bawled my eyes out.

God is using this as a cleansing. This is my ultimate test. I am going to struggle through it, but I will pass. God knows what I can handle- I'm going to be ok.

"You must, you must think I'm strong

To give me what I'm going through

Well, forgive me, forgive me if I'm wrong
But this looks like more than I can do
On my own

I know I'm not strong enough to be
everything that I'm supposed to be
I give up
I'm not stong enough
Hands of mercy won't you cover me
Lord right now I'm asking you to be
Strong enough, Strong enough
For the both of us"

Matthew West

Real Men

Conservative. Sheltered. Homeschooled. Innocent. Good girl. Naive. Ignorant.These are all words that I often use to describe myself when I hear others make references to inappropriate music videos that are super popular or use slang derogatory terms that I don't understand. Normally, if I don't get a reference, I will laugh, and explain to the others that I was homeschooled so I don't know what that means.

Today, I experienced a situation pretty far from anything I've ever heard discussed before. And even though they were using innuendos, it wasn't subtle enough that I couldn't understand to some degree.

I was in my theatre class, and my group was supposed to be talking to my teacher about our director's project. There were two older men, two younger men, and me. And somehow the conversation went downhill fast. The depth of the vulgarity expressed was unbelievable. I could not believe the way they were talking about women's bodies.


For a while, I felt frozen in my seat. I didn't know what to do... Eventually, the last straw broke and I couldn't take it anymore, so I left. I think the others could tell my state of disgust because as I walked out solemnly, one mentioned, "On that note..." and laughed.

Musing about this situation in my head, I got so angry. I wished as I walked away that I would've said something. I guess its better that I didn't because I wouldn't have "said" anything, I probably would've shouted it (not very nicely.)

I felt depressed, disheartened, and disgusted that those men had no respect for women's dignity. I felt angry that they talked about my gender as though our only purpose was to put on a show for them. Their derogatory remarks were mind-blowing. What was even worse is that they were older men. Like 40 years old. Yet still not grown up enough to know that women are not objects.

I know that men struggle a lot with lust and temptation, and I realize that women play a part in allowing ourselves to be treated disrespectfully. But guys, us girls need men to quit goofing around about our body parts because that is adding heavily to the problem. I have heard so many girls brush aside the crass comments and accept it because "that's the way boys are." I don't think so.

I think that we consider males to be boys for too long. I think once a kid is 14 years old (give or take :), he's old enough to start acting like a man.The definition of "a man" is a male adult. And no, the definition of "an adult" is not 18. You don't just grow up all of the sudden when you have a birthday. Becoming an adult means "to have attained full size and strength; to grow up and mature." So all those "boys" we readily excuse for disrespect have fully achieved the first part of becoming an adult, but they didn't seem to get the memo about the "growing up" part. Talking about girls like they are toys is not mature. We are living breathing human beings who need to be respected as more than the sum of our body parts.

Women need to see more men in action. I have heard way too many Christian girls say "guys are just like that." Not true. Show us different.

To be fair, for every inappropriate man I meet, I find another one who is striving for purity in his life. But not all girls have the opportunity to meet guys who are really trying. They think that all men are animals. Even I have thought this sometimes. If we saw what you were doing or thinking at any given moment, would you be showing us a man of purity or a man of lust?

If I could have the ears of all men for two minutes and 5 seconds, I would say this: Please be a real man. Instead of exercising your abs and busting it so you can have that six-pack, exercise your self control and bust it to become a man of God. Protect our dignity, not just with your own words and actions, but be mindful of other men too. There have been so many times I have been degraded and lusted after, and the men who were with me didn't do a thing to combat it. Stand up for us women, and tell us we are valued.

We need real men in this world. We need you.

 

 

"Be a man. You must be swift as a coursing river. With all the force of a great typhoon. Be a man. With all the strength of a raging fire. Mysterious as the dark side of the moon" Mulan :) :)