Composition Essay

Krista Armstrong

Composition

Giaconia

10/01/10

Stupid Cupid?

Cupid exists. Okay- so not the diaper-wearing cupid that flies around shooting arrows at people, but the cupid that is representative of love. We, as humans, have simply created this little cherub to represent what love is, so, essentially, cupid is love. Everyone, even the skeptics, have a little bit of cupid floating around inside them. No one is insusceptible to love- and love is the most real thing in the world.

Scientists and skeptics like to say that love is just a chemical reaction in our brains; it's simply neural energy snapping across a synapse, making us feel all gooey inside. Apparently, because it's only a chemical reaction, love doesn't truly exist. Well, let's think about this for a moment; what are some other things that are simply chemical reactions? Seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting- these are all chemical reactions. When you taste something delicious, do you think to yourself “This doesn't actually taste good- in fact, this flavor doesn't even exist, because it's just a chemical reaction in my brain”? When you smell the sweet, fresh scent of lavender, do you say “I shouldn't bother enjoying this, because the scent doesn't exist- It's only a reaction in my brain”? Would you ever deprive yourself of the enjoyment of your favorite music, simply because hearing is a serious of vibrations, leading to a chemical reaction in your brain?

If you answer these questions with a monotone “yes”, (it has to be monotone, because you won't bother feeling one way or another about it- it's all chalked up to chemicals anyways) then you have full permission from me to disregard love as non-existent. If you're going to choose to discredit all your senses, you may as well throw love in there too. Enjoy (or don't, what's it matter anyhow?) your lackluster life.

On the other hand, if your answer to these questions was a stern, or emphatic, or joyful, or sorrowful, or lazy, or otherwise “no”, then you, my friend, know that love exists. It is just as much a chemical reaction as are tasting, smelling, and hearing- so why would anyone attempt to argue that it should not be embraced? Embrace the taste, smell, and sound of love- because, clearly, it exists.

Now, back to our dear friend Cupid- he has been built, structured, and framed precisely to represent what love is in our eyes. There are a few key things that Cupid is contrived of in every depiction; his arrow, his wings, his bow, his diaper, and his baby face. All of these things represent a part of love.

Cupid's arrow shows how we fall in love- sometimes it's messy or a little bit painful, and you never really know what hit you, much like getting hit with an arrow. His wings are how we feel when we're in love- that floaty, gooey, walking-on-air-with-my-head-in-the-clouds sort of feeling. The bow represents the time spent between you and your significant other before falling in love- you stretch and stretch yourself, to the point that it is usually awkward and uncomfortable, until finally you snap- and there you are, in love. Cupid is a baby, showing how innocent first love is- it's all about being goo-goo ga-ga over each other in the beginning. And Cupid's diaper can be both how love ends, and how love feels sometimes- pretty crappy.

But, crappy as it may seem at times, I know I've fallen in love. My boyfriend of nine months, Zach, and I have a relationship that is clearly encompassed by the Cupid depiction. When we were first friends, we were in the stretchy, uncomfortable, unsure bow-stage; I didn't want to date him, and then I did, and then I didn't, and then I did, and then... Well, eventually I snapped, and decided to date him. I hardly noticed we were falling in love until he dropped me off at an exam one day and I accidentally said “I love you” as I was climbing out of the car. I failed that exam- that was the arrow-stage. Then we were in the baby-stage- our love was pure and innocent and we had no idea what we were doing. Next came the diaper-stage- we had a lot of little tiffs, and a few large-scale fights, and it felt pretty crappy during those times. Now, Zach and I have finally joyfully settled into the wing-stage. We have our hard times, but now we have our head in the clouds and our feet on the ground. We're learning to love each other better and treat each other better every day, and it's the greatest feeling in the world, I believe. It's like- I feel like I could fly, but only because I know he'd catch me when I came tumbling down to earth.

Alright, enough of that sappiness. It all comes back to Cupid, and he doesn't get enough recognition for it. Think about it; Santa Claus represents gifts and presents, the Easter Bunny represents candy that comes out of eggs (what's with that anyways? Candy doesn't come out of eggs, and bunnies are mammals- they don't lay eggs) and the Tooth Fairy is all about leaving you money for your teeth (I hope she isn't collecting them to be recycled). Cupid represents love- something we all experience in one form or another in our lives, something we all value, something that every last one of us can relate to. He definitely deserves more credit than he's given.

Love is the most real thing there is- we all will experience it at some point, and we should make note to enjoy it as much as we can, because you don't choose not to enjoy pie just because it involves your brain to interpret that it is good. Cupid, in all his diapered-baby glory, is a brilliant depiction of what love is, and because of this, he exists in one form- the form of love.

Baby Steps

God made the pages of my devotional book stick together today.

Today is September 23rd.  I inadvertently turned too many pages, and read the daily word for September 25th.

And it was exactly what I needed.

"Pour all of your energy into trusting Me. It is through trust that you stay connected to Me, aware of My Presence.  Every step on your life-journey can be a step of faith.  Baby steps of trust are simple for you; you can take them with almost unconscious ease.  Giant steps are another matter altogether: leaping across chasms in semidarkness, scaling cliffs of uncertainty, trudging through the valley of the shadow of death.  These feats require sheer concentration, as well as utter commitment to Me.

Each of My children is a unique blend of temperament, gifted-ness, and life experiences.  Something that is a baby step for you may be a giant step for another person, and vice versa.  Only I know the difficulty or ease of each segment of our journey.  Beware of trying to impress others by acting as if your grant steps are only baby ones.  Do not judge others who hesitate, in trembling fear, before an act that would be easy for you.  I each of My children would seek to please Me above all else, fear of others' judgments would vanish, as would attempts to impress others. Focus your attention on the path just ahead of you and on the One who never leaves your side."

-Jesus Calling, Sarah Young

I needed to realize that my baby steps are giant steps for others, and my giant steps are baby steps for some.  We are each a unique blend.  And that's just the way our Adonai likes it.

<3 <3 <3

Cats and Their Fights

I wonder about lesbians.

Honestly, I could never like another girl.  I find it hard enough to get along with them on a friendship basis- let alone attempt a romance with one O.o

I have to say I agree with men on this one- girls/ladies/women are downright complicated, confusing, and catty. 

So, here's what's got my knickers twisted- someone wants to "work things out" with me.  We've been in a precarious place with each other for a looong time now, and I guess the time has bred anger in her... whereas, in me, time has healed some of the wounds and I've let my bygones be bygones.  She's declared that if I simply apologize for everything I've "done" to her, things will be just peachy keen between us again.  Only, haven't I been down that road before?  No matter how extensively I apologize for the things that, supposedly, I did to her, she hates me.  Even when I thought we were best friends, she hated me.

And, I mean, really I'm not even mad.  I care about this girl.  Like I said- as far as I'm concerned, she was, at one time, my closest and dearest friend.  I want things to go well for her.  I find joy in seeing her progression with the Lord.  She's growing up, maturing, finding more God, getting richer in her relationship with Christ, and that brings me joy!  I'm happy for her.  So no- there isn't even any anger in me towards her.

It's more like befuddlement.  She doesn't seem to actually want to get along, or work things out, or else she would have left her grudges in the past.  I think she just wants to "win".  I don't understand this- win what?  There's no competition here.  But I can't shake the feeling that, if I humble myself and apologize and admit everything is all my fault, it'll give her some sort of satisfaction that she is the victor.

And that's where the befuddlement comes in- if she truly wanted to work things out, with good intentions, I'd be glad to do so.  But if she simply wants to win... I'm not going to apologize just to give her a false sense of victory.  It goes back to my last few blogs- loving people right requires not seeking victory over them.  And I don't want victory- I want to give her the opportunity to learn from this situation.  I'd like to see it cause her to grow in the Lord.  But if she doesn't... then what? 

Do I apologize without sincerity- just to clear the air?

Do I not, and just allow her to keep hating me?

Do I really want to withstand the unwarranted personal attacks that I know will come with the attempt of working things out?

Well, the answer to that is clear; no way Jose. 

Lord, help me to be humble.  Help me to put my heart in the right place.  Provide me with the wisdom and guidance that I need to meet this situation in the most God-like way possible.  Thank you for having your hand on this situation- and most of all, thank you Lord for understanding women.  Amen <3 <3

On a lighter note- here's a picture of my puppy with a branch in his mouth.

Getting Deep

"Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art... It has no survival value; rather is one of those things that give value to survival." - C. S. Lewis 

There's something difficult about trying to sustain a friendship. 

It's like- can't we just love and trust each other without having to text 24/7 or hang out every other day?  There are a lot of people I feel this way about.  I love them, no matter how often I see them.  My good friend, Charlotte, is an example of this.  We've been best friends since the womb- I still remember at my 6th (or was it 7th?) birthday party; my dad told a scary story, and Charlotte grabbed me and screamed and the top of her lungs.

We still scream at the top of our lungs when we see each other- because it isn't very often that we do.  But somehow, whenever we do get together, it's almost like we've never been apart.  I know that I can trust her and be open with her about anything.

I have many friends like that- we're all too busy to see each other often, but still love each other like crazy.  And there's definitely something to be said for a friendship like that- but there's also something to be said for sustaining a friendship by seeing one another.

So, in these next 2-3 weeks, I'm on a mission; I intend to get together with as many friends as possible.  You can never have too many friends- it's a beautiful thing, how God has created relationship to be unlimited.  You can love 10 close friends, and still have more than enough love for 10 more.  I know they say you only have a few close friends when you get older, but for now, I enjoy having many people I call good friends. 

I've already scheduled get-togethers with 6 people that I love- and I'm sure there is more to come.  I seek to reconnect.  I want to get on a deeper level- delve in to the depths of a Godly love, with friends of every shape and size.   I want to know where people are at- pray for them, pray with them, laugh, joke, talk, binge, indulge, and love with someone- with everyone, if it were up to me.

It is my prayer that you will be challenged by this- to call up an old friend, go out for coffee, and get deep with them again.  Or to call up the best Friend we all have- the one who is royalty- and get deep with Him again.

Best friends & Cousins

<3 <3 <3