TRALALALA.

Isn't it marvellous (yes. I said marvellous. In a serious context) when things that used to hurt start to not hurt? HOORAY. Things that used to sting and kind of gum your self or soul or whatever you want to call it (they don't quite bite because that would be going over the top, really now) start to stop doing that and just be. So you can lean back a little and look at them again and see hey now they're really not that bad.

TIME YOU ARE EXCELLENT.

I think it's time, anyway.

Although, if you associate that particular thing with a good time, which in my case is the case (oh my goodness I am incoherent. Apologies!), then you start to get a little bit of nostalgia for the pain. Is that masochistic? I'm not sure really XD

ANYWAY

after that rather nebulous start, let me apologise for not posting here in about a trillion years!!

A bit of hyperbole never hurt anyone :D

So. What's happened.

CAMP

was awesome. I learnt so many things. It made my everyday life seem kind of really busy and simultaneously really empty in comparison. While I was on camp, everything was about God, or somehow directly or nearly directly related to Him. It was amazing, seeing how different a huge group of Christians is compared to a huge group of non-Christians. Instead of snide gossip in the girls' toilets, there were snippets of singing, to which people would spontaneously join in, or happy chatter about how someone's day was or to do with the talks or how awesome Jesus is or something. That was one thing that really struck me. You can tell the difference :D
In relation to the talks, though, there were some really interesting, fundamental things that I learnt. They were mostly things I knew to be true already but hadn't realised. Eg! We are made in God's image. Yes. Simple. But it connects with everything that we are - and to keep to the topic of camp, the main one was that, because God is relational, so are we. We have this inbuilt desire to relate to people, to know them and to be known, properly, for who we are, and to communicate and connect with them. I don't know anyone who is a hermit. Even those who seem to not want to make friends or whatever, once you get to know them (thereby nullifying their not-wanting-to-make-friends thing), there lies that need. And therefore, whatever we do in our relationships with others, be they family or friends or definitely not friends or teachers or students or whoever, we are fulfilling this role that mirrors God's self. So we have to do it right, or we are changing what He intended. Because God loves everyone, so we must try our best to love everyone. It's not going to be possible all the time - we fail in everything else, so we'll definitely fail in this too. But it's really important to try as hard as we can to see the best in everyone, and also not to tear someone down for others - which we so easily and commonly do in gossip. I know for one that I am terrible at this for certain people: I won't have any preconceptions of people when I first meet them but if they give me a bad first impression, or if I hear a lot of negative gossip about them, it's really hard to change my mind if in fact they are a good person. And I further the gossip by needlessly bringing them up when there's a topic in conversation that relates to them.

I AM A BAD HAT, PEPITO.

However, on the flip side, when we do relationships right, then the results are amazing. By loving others, we are honouring God's creation, and therefore God.


Ummm I kinda lost track of my train of thought there. I FELL OFF THE TRAIN.
ai-yoh.

Well whatever, I'll start doing some of the talks in blog form next time :) More coherently, I promise!