When Life Gives You Lemons.... BUT LEMONS ARE SO SOUR

College. College. College. Winter olympics. College. College. It's all everyone has ever been talking about lately.

Hey Amy, wow, you're so big now? So, what are you going to do with your life? 

I DON'T KNOW, YOU SCUMBAGS. Just kidding, I don't ever say that. Out loud. That would be crazy. 

My life has always been about candy, accomplishments, and disappointments. But, there's never been such a solid line between my accomplishments and disappointments. Right now is the time I'm receiving my application decisions: whether I have been rejected or accepted. My first few letters were acceptances, but lately, I've been getting some rejection letters. Granted, the schools that these letters are coming from were not my first choices, but still, it hurts. As much as I tell myself that it shouldn't hurt, it does. And I know, why should I let some school tell me if I'm good enough? I don't, I try not to, but deep inside, I still do. 

But, in spite of all of this, I think I'm failing to see the bigger picture. God does all things with a purpose. He has plans for me at a specific school and city. He's just making my path easier; He's taking out the extra routes so I can find my way more efficiently. So, I'm thankful that He's given my choices, and I'm thankful that He's the one that's guiding me, rather than me guiding myself. Because that would just be a tragic story. 

This weekend: 

I went to Calc Camp! I know, sounds absolutely terrible, but it was SO MUCH FUN. I don't think I've ever laughed so much (or did so much math). I built so many bonds and so many memories. AND, I learned a crap load, go figure! 

All I have to say is this: PTL.  

The best kind of selfie is a selfie with a horse!

Late night 7-11 run, because the camp didn't have enough junk food for all us unhealthy teenagers!

Yeah, math!

Things that I did not expect to happen: our room getting TP-ed.

Early morning run at SIX O'CLOCK, for us adventure-seekers. 

How does nature do that? Be all amazing and stuff. Man.

"A sea of clouds"

Friends make every memory more memorable. 

One of the plus sides of living in the woods: wooden family placards. Seriously though, how kick-ass are these??

Stand Taller, Shine Brighter.

Unfortunately, it's usually when I'm supposed to be doing my homework that I get these little epiphanies. Well, actually, it all started in my lovely (note the sarcasm) little biology class.

-cue the blurry waves-

My teacher is lecturing on a sub-topic of evolution and, naturally, the topic of creationism vs. evolution comes up. Now note this, I am one of the four seniors in the class; the class is predominantly made up of immature sophomores with big heads. As sophomores, these kids are so susceptible to influence, and they pretty much just take what's given to them. My teacher, a male in his early forties has made it very clear to the class that he thinks creationism is full of crap. Me, attempting to be the bigger person, I hold in my thoughts and let the people think what the hell they want to think. Or maybe I was too much of a chicken to say anything.

-Let me intervene for just a second. It's, honestly, really hard for me to tell this story without getting really pissed off. It's one of my weaknesses; when I get pissed off, I get pissed off. For example, when I don't eat on time, girl gets hangry as hell. No, seriously, I turn into this monster bitch when I'm really hungry. I scare myself. But that's besides the point. What I'm trying to say here is this: when I get really angry, it's hard for me to think clearly and make wise decisions. It's like the filter that's usually there disintegrated and burned up into flames, and I, more like the Kraken at this point, am released. Moving on:-

Evolution is one of the main foundations of biology, and so we've pretty much been learning about evolutionary processes and happenings for the last two months or so. Having said that, there's usually one kid in the class that, for reasons only God knows, thinks and says things that are neither intellectual nor funny. Most of his comments during class go something along the lines of, "Oh yeah, God put those mushrooms there because he felt like it. God made those antibiotics. God wanted to do this because He thought it would be cool". Note that these were all said with sarcasm. To me, being a Christian and a believer of creationism, these types of comments are offending, and quite frankly, make me want to deck him in the balls. 

-cue the blurry lines-

Aaand, we're back. 

I know I shouldn't be bothered with what a shrimpy little sophomore says, but it still gets me, every time. The only reason why I hesitate to say something is because I'm afraid I might go off and say things that only come with intense anger and hatred. But the reason why I most pissed is because this: I hate the tabloids because it's just a bunch of people that are trying to snag money off of other people's personal lives. Yes, these celebrities put their lives out on the storefront, but that doesn't mean that it's ours to exploit and dissect. Why do these people think that they can judge other human beings, and what's worse is that they don't even know these people, they just know about them. Two way different sides. I get ticked because this kid doesn't know shit about what thousands of millions of people believe in, and he thinks he has the right to judge and ridicule us? Oh, hell no. That is not how I roll. 

Whether your black, white, yellow, gay, lesbian, straight, a Christian, a Buddhist, a Hindu, a Muslim, or something else, no one has the right to judge anyone else; I leave that to God. Who am I to judge what sin is greater than another? 

I know I need to rise above in this situation, but that doesn't mean I'm going to cower. I don't cower. Part of rising above is standing taller and shining brighter.