Random 5 ~ December 14

I haven't done this one in a while. I'm not going to commit to doing it right now. I get too busy. I will do it when I can though. Even if it's a bit late like today.


1. I am going to start reading as many books as I can and posting reviews on here. I already have one. I have more on the way!

2. I have a very short wish list this year. A karaoke machine, clothes/shoes, and a cell phone. See, really short. Not very cheap though.

3. My laptop is broken. The battery won't charge. It has to be plugged in to turn on. As soon as it is unplugged it turns off. No warning just bang. It's off. *sad face*

4. 11 days until Christmas! I can't wait! (I guess I probably should have put this under or with #2. Haha)

5. I love sci-fi. It's hard to find clean sci-fi, but there are a few I know of. Bill Myers (at least so far) and Bryan Davis. I love Bryan Davis. I'm not sure about Bill Myers yet. I've only read one of his books.

Hope you enjoyed! Maybe a little boring but better than nothing.

Writing Prompt #6

If someone discovered a formula that would enable us to live forever, would that be a blessing or a curse? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer. 

Eternal Life . . . Will there ever be such a thing? Is there such a thing now? Is it/will it be here on Earth or somewhere else?

My answer is a very firm yes! Eternal life in Heaven is very real.

So what is someone found a way to live forever with a simple pill or injection? Would it be a curse or a blessing?

A CURSE!

God is the only way to eternal life. If we found our own way to have eternal life why would we even need God? If we didn't even need or want God would he have even bothered creating us? Would he wipe us out? Then where would we be? 

Yes. Death is sad. Death hurts. We miss those we have lost and we don't want to leave ourselves. But that is the way it works. That is the price we have to pay for our sin. But if you are a Christian you do have comfort, you don't have to worry about death. It is just a door to a better place. It's like an upgrade! A REALLY, REALLY, REALLY, BIG one!

The Society Book Review

Title: The Society: Forbidden Doors Book #1

Author: Bill Myers

Number Of Pages: 150

Summary: When both Rebecca and Scott encounter kids using dangerous witchcraft they don't know what to do. When they lived in Brazil they heard of witchdoctors using the same witchcraft to control and hurt people. Do they risk their sudden popularity and tell their friends about the danger or forget about it, everything will work out fine?

Spiritual Content: Children are involved in various types of dangerous witchcraft throughout the book. During one point in the book a girl is over run by a demon. The same girl and several other kids are seen several times playing with an Ouija Board.

For these reasons parents may want to read this book before/with younger children

Sexual Content: Rebecca has a “crush” on a boy at school. In one part she thinks that is is absolutely AMAZING. That part is overboard but there are no sinful actions (kissing, touching, etc.).

My Thoughts: I thought this book was very well written and interesting. I had one issue though. I found a few things Biblicly inaccurate. For example; when the girl is being overrun by a demon Scott orders it to “Leave, in the name of Jesus Christ”, and it does. I feel like that part of the story was a little overboard. Simply commanding something “In The Name of Jesus Christ” doesn't mean you have power to remove evil. At least not like that.

Rating: 5/6

Note: I would like to note a few things from the Authors Note found in the back of The Society (The Society; Forbidden Doors. Bill Myers. Pg. 149) ;

As I continue writing this series, I have two equal and opposing concerns. First, I don't want the reader to be too frightened of the devil. Compared to Jesus Christ, Satan is a wimp. The two aren't even in the same league. Although the supernatural evil in these books are based on a certain amount of fact, it's important to understand the awesome protection Jesus Christ offers to all those who have committed their lives to him.

This brings me to my second concern: Although the powers of darkness are nothing compared to the power of Jesus Christ and the authority he has given his followers, spiritual warfare is not something we casually stroll into. The situations in these novels are extreme to create suspense and drama. But if you should find yourself involved in something even vaguely similar, don't confront it alone. Find an older, more mature Christian (such as a parent, pastor, or youth leader) to talk to. . .

Sorry for the change!

Yes, this is still A Little Spot to Write...

NEW AND IMPROVED!

 For some reason the old layout keeps messing up on me. When things aren't just right it drives me crazy! *winking thumbs up*

Sorry this is such a short post, I thought I should note the change. *another winking thumbs up*

Writing Prompt #5

Today's top professional athletes often have salaries and bonuses in tens of millions of dollars. Do you think these athletes deserve such high compensation? Why or why not? Explain your position and examples to support your answer.


There are men that risk their lives every day. Not only that but they put their families in danger too. What thanks do we give them? Not much more than than minimum wage.

At the same time men get paid millions and millions of dollars to chase a ball around. Hmmmm...

Why are men paid so much to chase a ball around while other men risk their own life for almost minimum wage!?

Let's think about this...

Which is harder? Signing worthless pieces of paper or missing Christmas with your family? Which is harder? Never getting any privacy or never seeing your son, brother, or husband again? Which is harder? Gearing up for a game or gathering guns and ammunition for war?

Our military men do deserve more but on the other hand I do think that athletes should be paid decent salaries. They do have great talent. They work hard.

I think that military men should be paid a lot more and athletes a lot less. Both deserve a decent amount.

Writing Prompt #4

Sorry I am late again. Here's this weeks prompt;

Many parents give children a weekly or monthly allowance regardless of their behavior because they believe an allowance teaches children to be financially responsible. Other parents only give children allowance as a reward for completing chores or when they have behaved properly. Explain what you think parents should do and why.


In my opinion, parents give their children too much. If a child is rude and irresponsible he/she should not be given a reward. That just tells them that they can do whatever they want. Yes, you are trying to teach them how to be responsible with money; but do you think that if they can't keep their behavior in track they will act responsibly with their money?

Also, parents go overboard on how much they give for allowance. Children do not need a ton of money every week/month. They don't need to buy a car. Just enough money to buy a little something extra. If they act responsibly it will add up in plenty of time.

In the future, when I have a family of my own, I plan on giving my children a reasonable weekly allowance. If they do extra chores they will receive more. I don't want to spoil my kids or make them think they can do whatever they want. I want them to be responsible.

Time for Some Changes! Don't Ya Think?

Alright. Time for a few changes!

First I'm going to start posting the writing prompts on Saturday instead of Tuesday. That will work better for me.

I'm going to try and keep doing the Random 5. I always seem to forget about it until Sunday!

I am also going to try and post just a regular post once a week too. I'm sure you're tired of Random 5 and ONE writing prompt a week. How boring, right!? So I'll try to post something interesting every week.

So Stay Tuned!!!

Oh Dear!

Oh Dear! Oh Dear! Oh Dear! I haven't posted in FOREVER! So sorry!

I have something to tell you though. I'm going to try and make homemade powder. I've wanted to make homemade makeup for a long time but now I'm really going to do it. I will tell you what I think and the recipe if it works.

Also, we have a business! By we I mean me, Mom, Morgan, and Taylor. It's called Jamberry. Jamberries are nail wraps that are way better than nail polish. Nail polish stinks. Jamberry really works. They are heat activated and they ROCK! WE are having an online party if you want to check it out. You can learn about what Jamberry really is, play games, etc.. LETS PARTY!

Writing Prompt #3

Medical researchers, cosmetic companies, and others often perform experiments on animals. Many people feel that experimentation on animals is wrong and should be stopped immediately because animals do feel pain, and there are other alternatives. How do you feel? State your position and explain your reasons.


I think that experiments done on animals is a touchy subject. If there are other alternatives besides animals that would be great. On the other hand something not alive may not react the same way as people. I know that animals don't react exactly the same as people but similar. And we definitely wouldn't want to experiment of people or babies. So for the present I think animals are the only sensible things to do experiments on.

Writing Prompt #2

I am really late! It's almost time for #3. Oh, well.

Today's writing prompt is: According to some people, elderly drivers should be required to reapply for their driving licenses because with age comes diminished vision, hearing, and reaction time. How do you feel about this issue? Explain what you think should be done and why.


Some people say elderly drivers should have to reapply for their drivers license and I agree. It is not that I don't like elderly people; I love elderly people! It's that as people get older they may have health problems that can cause them to not drive properly. But we do need to make sure we have easy ways for our elderly people to get around if they can't get their license. Maybe even for free. People can volunteer to drive elderly people from place to place. Although the volunteers do need to have some kind of license or permit to be allowed. We don't want just anyone doing it.


*Feel free to post a comment with your story or essay.

Randon 5 ~ October 17

1. I got a really interesting book yesterday, The Power of a Praying Teen by Stormie Omartian. I've only read the first part but it's very good.

2. I am receiving two books from PaperBack Swap. A Young Womans Walk With God and I forget the other one. It's by Bryan Davis.... of course.

3. We are going fishing today. I love fishing. How about you?

4. Bobo is going to ride in the van for the first time. We have to brush him out because he is shedding like crazy. I don't think he's going to like the new van. He likes being up front and there's no room for him. He has to go in the back.

5. We finished the Return of the King. I think this was the fifth time we've watched The Lord of the Rings in a year and a half. We've seen the Hobbit that many times in six months. (I think we are really big fans!) I like the movies better than the books. The books are harder to follow. What do you think?

Check out the host of Random 5 at The Pebble Pond (BTW, she's my mom!)

My Finished Essay

Starlighter


Are you looking for a good book for your teen? Or are you a teen looking for an awesome book? Then stop looking. You found one. Starlighter by Bryan Davis is a must read for everyone!


Koren is a slave to dragons. To her humans living in freedom seem like a fairy tale. But when the dark prince shows Koren a boy from the human world she begins to think the tales might be true. A slave free world may really exist! But can she ever get there?


At the same time, Jason lives in a world where people disappear and never come back. Some say they were eaten by bears, others say dragons kidnapped them and took them to their world to become slaves. When Jason comes face to face with the truth, he must take the lead, slay the dragons, and rescue the Lost Ones.


Starlighter is told in a third person’s point of view. It starts off with Jason and Elyssa's story:

Tibalt tapped the sign with his ax handle. “This is as far as my old noggin remembers clearly. The last time I went to the gateway, I was just a little tyke, and the dungeon spiders spun cobwebs in my brain over the years. I could try to lead us, but we wouldn't want to fall into any bottomless pits.”

“Bottomless pits?” Elyssa repeated. “That's not possible.”

“Is that so, little lady?” Tibalt raised a finger. “My own pappy told me about them, and he never told a lie in his life.”

Elyssa winked at Jason before shifting back to Tibalt. “Can you tell me who fell into one of these bottomless pits and then came back to report that there was no bottom?”

Then it tells Koren's story:

While Zena was speaking, a soft voice sounded. “Are you all right?”

Koren glanced at Arxad. It couldn't have been his voice. The call was too soft, too weak. And it couldn't have been Zena's. She was talking already. Koren rose to her tiptoes and looked behind the egg. No one was there – only an empty goat-hair bag with a long strap lay near the egg.

“Shall I take her to the Zodiac now?” Arxad asked.

While staring at Koren, Zena nodded. “If she is a Starlighter, the sooner she begins her duties, the better.”

“And if she is not?”

A blend of a frown and a smile twisted Zena's face. “Then terminate her. She knows too much.”

I believe that the story would be confusing if it wasn't in the third person. This way it allows you to see everything that is going on, since you follow multiple characters. If it only followed one character there would be a lot of holes in the plot.


Starlighter is very interesting. One way Davis made it interesting is creating cliffhangers that make you want to turn the page over and over:

In the midst of a series of lighting flashes, the figure finally came into view. It was Randall, his cloak drenched and dripping and his scowl displaying a determination he had never shown before.

“You’re alone,” Jason said as he raised his sword, fighting to keep the blade steady. “You know you can't beat me.”

Stopping out of reach, Randall pulled a photo gun from underneath his cloak and aimed it at Jason's face. “Drop your sword.”

This isn't a great cliffhanger. However, it was the only example that you don't have to know the surrounding details to understand what's happening. I'm not exactly sure what a photo gun is. I do know one thing though. It doesn't work when it's wet, but when it does work, it will kill you.


Davis also does a good job at describing the setting. I can completely see where the event is taking place when I am reading the story. It is sometimes hard to follow a story when you can't picture where the characters are.

As he swiped gravelly dirt from his pants, he scanned the chamber. A gray ceiling loomed overhead with a few stalactites just out of reach, each one dripping cloudy water at the rate of a slow heartbeat. Three brackets hung on a side wall, two holding antique swords and scabbards and the other empty.

Behind him, the river flowed swiftly past a sheer rock wall. Dim radiance emanated from somewhere, but there seemed to be no hole to the outside world.

He looked at the river – dark and deep with islands of white foam speeding by.

It's fun to read a book with a good setting out loud, then see everyone's opinion on what it looks like.


Bryan Davis is also the author of Dragons in our Midst, Oracles or Fire, Children of the Bard, Dragons of Starlight, Tales of Starlight, and the Echoes from the Edge series. After working as a computer professional for twenty years, he pursued his dream of becoming a full-time author. Davis has been married to his wife Susie for 30 years, and they have seven children. They make their home in western Tennessee with three of their children. Their first two sons live in Florida, their eldest daughter lives in India with her husband and two children, and their youngest son is going to college at the University of Memphis. Davis is a graduate of Avon Park High School (Avon Park, Florida) and the University of Florida.


He has received many awards, including:

• 2012 Family Fiction Readers Choice: #1 Speculative Fiction Author, #1 Young Adult Author, #2 Overall Author, #1 Novel (Song of the Ovulum), #1 Series (Children of the Bard).

• 2012 Darrel Award for best Young Adult Novel (Starlighter)
  

• 2010 Clive Staples Award
  

• 2010 Darrell Awards Hall of Fame
  

During an online interview Davis says, “My goal is to write captivating stories that encourage readers to embrace faith, courage, and love so that they will follow God’s light and show sacrificial love to Him and others.” Based on what his readers have told him he believes he has reached that goal.


When asked how he got the idea for Starlighter he replied, “My daughter Amanda gave me the idea. We were brainstorming to come up with new ideas, and she gave me the foundation for Starlighter. I expanded on it quite a bit, but the framework was hers.” He goes on to say, “I wrote Starlighter in about four months, including editing.”


In response to questions about Starlighter's cliffhanger ending, Davis countered that the ending wasn't really a cliffhanger. "The major part of the story was over, and the main characters were out of danger. Certainly there were many unsolved mysteries, but it’s important to leave some issues unsolved so readers will want to go on to the next book in the series." Finally, Davis' characters are not based on real people in his life: "I sometimes borrow certain characteristics from people I know, but no character matches any real individual to any extent."


I read this book for hours at a time. Every spare moment, I read it in the car, I read it while I was doing my chores, and I read it when I was supposed to be sleeping. I must admit, there were quite a few times that I fell asleep while I was reading. I don't have any negative thing to say about this book. It is safe. There is no objectionable language. Sin is shown as wrong not “okay.” It isn't filled with junk like most teen books. It may be scary to young children, though. There are battle scenes, near death experiences, etc. They aren't overpowering, but just enough to keep the book interesting.


I definitely give this book a 6 star rating for being interesting and clean. This is going on my shelf for sure! So if you are looking for a wonderful book to read that has values but is still interesting, read Starlighter, part of the Dragons of Starlight series, by Bryan Davis.





References:

Davis, Bryan. Starlighter. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010



Davis, Bryan, “Bryan Davis.” Facebook. (January 12, 2009): Bryan Davis. September 18, 2014.
https://www.facebook.com/BryanDavis.Fans/timeline



Davis, Bryan. Full time Author. September 22, 2014

Random 5 ~ October 10

I'm finally doing Random 5 on Friday on a Friday! Yay! Here we go...

1. I'm sick. We've had a bug going around and I thought I already got it, I was wrong. I'm a little better today. Yesterday I felt horrible. My throat hurt, it felt swollen and dry. I had a headache and I haven't stopped blowing my nose. I hate being sick.

2. I finished an online writing class yesterday. I even got live feedback from a writing teacher! That was great. It was really fun to do. I had to write a Textual Analysis. I will post the finished essay in another post. By the way, my writing teacher gave me an A+!

3. My Aunt is getting married! The bridal shower is tomorrow. I love bridal showers. And the guy she is marrying is really cool. They are so cute together!

4. I spent 4 hours at the mall with Mom. We had to get me an outfit to wear to the bridal shower. It's not what I had pictured, but it's really cute.

5. My brother is CRAZY! We watched a movie called Escape From Planet Earth. Never watching it again! One of the aliens name is Scorch. Whenever he is in a fight or trying to escape from humans he says, "Scorch me baby!" Carter now says it ALL. THE. TIME.. I'll tell him to stop picking on me. His reply, "Scorch me baby!" I ask him to do his chores. "Scorch me baby!" Oh well, what do you expect from a boy. Just kidding. Kinda.....

Writing Prompt #1

I don't blog much. I'm sure you noticed that. I want to blog more but I'm not sure what to blog about. So I came up with an idea. I found a list of 501 writing prompts. I will post one a week along with my essay or story. Anyone who wants to join me can comment with a link to your blog or if you don't have a blog just write your story or essay in the comments. But keep it reasonably short.

Today's prompt is: Many people believe that television violence has a negative effect

on society because it promotes violence. Do you agree or disagree?

There isn't a right or wrong answer to this. Just write your opinion. Here's my story:

Does violent television promote violence? Should we stop making violent movies? Should we stop watching them? That is the question.

This is a tricky one. Yes, violent movies may give some people the feeling that violence is okay. Do I believe violence is okay? It depends. Sometimes things have to get violent. Is a fight violent? Yes. Is fighting okay? No. Is fighting sometimes necessary? Yes it it. If a woman and child are being attacked, should a man stand by because he doesn't believe in violence or should he protect the woman and child. Protect them of course.

On the other hand people do get unnecessarily violent. Fighting for no reason, abusing women and children, etc.. Violence isn't a pretty thing.

To balance the two we need to be careful. We don't need to watch violent movies all the time. An occasional movie that contains violence is fine. Also, a movie may contain violence but it may not show it as and okay thing. The bad guys are violent. And they are punished for that. We just have to use discretion and not over do it.

Well, what did you think?

Random 5 ~ October 3

Friday again? Really? Okay, it's really Sunday. Whatever. Here's my Random 5.

1. I finished Warrior. Now I'm going back to Oracles of Fire. It's great! I only have a week to read it though. I'm not sure if I can do that. I'll try though.

2. I found this awesome website. PaperbackSwap. It's AMAZING! It's just what the title says. You trade books. I've already "sold" 5 books. So when the "buyers" get the book I will get one credit. I can use that credit to "buy" any book on the website. There are millions of people on it. So there's every book you could think of!

3. Morgan was sick a few days ago. No fever, just a really bad sore throat, sleepy, just sorta blah. Now I don't feel good!

4. Since Morgan started horseback riding lessons we have been begging Mom to come up with $200 a month so we can board a horse. I am so jealous.

5. We watched The Two Towers last night. My favorite scene in Lord of the Rings is when Gimli is hopping up trying to see what is happening during a battle and Legolas says, "Shall I describe it to you?" Then looks at Gimli and smirks, "Or would you like me to find you a box?" It may not sound funny, but if you've seen it, you know it is.

Well, there it is. I think that may have been really boring....

 Have a good week!

Random 5 ~ September 28

I stink at this blogging thing. I'm always late for Random 5. I haven't even posted very many times. I have a story to post in a few days. I have to edit it. Now on to my Random 5!

1. We start school tomorrow! I can't wait! I am like bouncing off the walls. My first year of High School. Mom says it will be a lot harder than before. I'm not scared. I can't wait!

2. I'm working on a short chapter book. It's a slow process. If I ever finish it and it's good enough I might publish it on Kindle. I'm not sure yet. I have a small book published on Kindle already. And when I say small, I mean small. Just a few poems. Like 7 or 8. Here is a link to it if you want to check it out. It's the cheapest price possible, $0.99. I only published it to see how it works. It was in 2012 or 2013. I made a little money off of it. Okay, a dollar. I wouldn't mind a few more sales, hint, hint.

3. I've been really tired lately. I don't know why. I don't want to get up in the morning. I'm sure I will tomorrow though. I think I'm just needing a more structured day. Not a carefree summer day.

4. Me and Morgan have been coming up with bloopers that could have happened in the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit. We were acting something out and Carter came in. He asked what we were doing and we were like, "Acting out Lord of the Rings bloopers.". He got all excited and asked where we watched them. We started laughing and told him we were making them up. He joined us. He was Peter Jackson, (director), Morgan was Aidan Turner (Kili), and I was Dean O'Gorman (Fili). We were acting out the scene where Kili sits on the bed and grabs his leg. I (as Dean) was making faces at Aidan (Morgan) While he (she) was trying to act. It was fun.

Last night we stayed up until ten coming up with things they do in their sleep. I came up with something Aidan does and Morgan came up with something Dean does. I made Aidan scrunch up his face, then go normal, then scrunch his face, then go normal . Morgan made Dean flop his arm up and grin, then suck on his blanket, then flop his arm up and grin, then suck on his blanket. I just hope they don't read what we're making them do. That would stink.

5. Mom and Dad are dropping off a string trimmer we rented yesterday. Mom text me asking if everything was okay. I text back saying yes and asked if they were on their way back. Well she text me about 10 minuted later, "Hello!!!???" I text Uncle Shawn, not Mom. Hehe. He's probably wondering what's wrong with his brother (I don't have a cell phone. I use Dad's when they leave.). Mom got all worried. Of course. Lol.

Well, that took me forever to write. I hope you liked it!

Bryan Davis

I've mentioned before that I am reading Warrior, by Bryan Davis, and I'm loving it. I'm even writing an essay about him.

 I emailed him asking if I could ask a few questions about him and the book to put in the essay. He said yes! I am so excited.

Then I asked him if there was any way for me to get his autograph. He said yes to that too! I will admit, I won't stop telling my family how cool it is. They're like, "I know! You said!" Hehe. I think I'm driving them crazy.

If you want to read a really cool book, check out his series. They are awesome! I read Dragons in Our Midst first. I loved that. Morgan is reading the first book in that series, Raising Dragons.

Next I started Oracles of Fire. I've only read the first book, Eye of the Oracle. 

And you know what I'm reading now.

When I finish Warrior I'm reading the second book in the Oracles of Fire series, Enoch's Ghost, while I wait for my next book to be in at the library.

I think I just confused everyone with all those book names, huh? Adults would like them too, not just teens. Dad stands there and listens when I read it out loud to Carter. It may be a little to much for younger kids. I'm not sure. Morgan is 12 and is doing fine. It really just depends.

Random 5 ~ September 21

Sorry I'm so late... here's my Random 5 for this week.

1. Is tomorrow really Fall? Ekk! I'm excited and not. I love hot weather. But I love writing in the winter. I'm torn.

2. I made a super cute jean skirt. It's messed up though. I'm not sure if I can fix it. The back is all puckered up. Blah.

3. My hair curls a LOT when it's wet then dries on it's own. Like really curly. Like a poof ball.

4. We start school tomorrow. Well, sorta. We don't do a full day of school on Sundays because Taylor has therapy in the mornings and we run errands. I can't wait though. I love school!

5. We are having chili for dinner. I love chili! It's my favorite meal. Well, one of them.

There's my random 5. Hope you liked them. Link up! It's fun!

Working Out, Halloween, Puppies

I stink at working out. I just walked about 3/4 of a mile in less than 15 minutes. I did an intense Jillian Michaels workout. And for lunch I had..... I don't want to say it.... pancakes. Ugg. Not very healthy or low in calories. This evening I'm going to walk again. That should burn off those pancakes.

Why is it Fall? I love to bake when it's cold. Baking and working out don't fit together very well. And there's Thanksgiving, my Birthday, Christmas, etc. coming up soon.

I didn't mention Halloween because we don't celebrate it. We never have. It's dumb. It's getting worse and worse every year. We drove by a house last year and there was a table in the yard. It had chopped up body parts and glasses of blood on it (fake of course). In the window was a sign; Child Care. Yeah right! I would never step foot in those wacky peoples house.

What's the point in celebrating death and fear? People put fake headstones in their yard. My Grandpa Don died a few years ago. It's wasn't fun and totally awesome enough to be made into a holiday. Death isn't a celebration. At least not in that way. For a Christian death is meeting God and being reunited with loved ones but that's another post for another time. I'm not trying to offend anybody who celebrates Halloween. That's just my opinion.

Every time it gets cold I start wanting another dog. Bobo, Taylors Service Dog isn't really for us to play with. I want a puppy to romp around in the snow with. I look on Craigslist every day but no free puppies. Dad doesn't want one so our only hope is to find a free one. It would have to be outside though, we rent and our Landlady won't let us have inside pets. Bobo is allowed anywhere. Later I will have to tell you about our zoo trip with Bobo. I will tell you one thing. It involves lions and a lot of fear!

Random 5 on Friday ~ September 12

Mom, I have been waiting forever to be able to join your linkup!! So here is my first one. Yay!

To everyone else... This is a weekly linkup hosted by my Mom at The Pebble Pond. You simply list 5 random things about yourself. It's fun. And a great way for you to get to know me. So here goes.

1. I hate gum. Any gum. Yes. I know. I'm crazy. The only teenager on this planet who hates gum. I hate everything about it. The flavor. The texture. Blah. Everything.

2. I am a huge Lord of The Rings fan. I know everything about it. Including all of the actors names, the directors names, where they were filmed. I love everything about it. My favorite character would probably be Merry.

3. We are reading Divergent as a family every night. I know, we are old fashioned, reading a book as a family. It's fun though. And an awesome book. Read it!

4. Every time my Mom starts working out really hard I start working out too. Right now I'm doing Jillian Michaels: 30 Day Shred. Yikes. I'm so sore. I'm also jogging/walking a mile. My best time has been 16 minutes. Not bad. Right?

5. We have had a full size van for as long as I can remember. We need one because no other vehicle is big enough to hold Tays wheelchair. The van we have now is an 02. It is falling apart. It has a gas leak. It's so rusty. It hardly runs. Let's just say we needed a new one a long time ago. The problem? There are no full size vans around here. They are either $80,000 or $15,000 with 100,000+ miles on it. So we have to go to our second choice. A mini van. We have to get Taylor a push wheelchair. She's okay with that. She is actually excited for it!

Okay... there was my first 5 Fact Friday linkup!

What Will This Be???

This blog is going to be a lot of different things. First off it is a place for me to post the stories I write. I will be joining a linkup soon so what I write for that will be posted here. Along with instructions on how you can link up. I will also post stories I write that aren't for anything. Just stories.

It will also be a place for me to journal my life. I will be joining my Moms linkup, Random 5 on Friday. She is going to love that. You can also link up. She would love that too! Here is a link to her website, The Pebble Pond.

Gods Way

This is a story I wrote. I hope you like it. 

My name is Beth. When I was a teenager I lived in a Christian home but I didn't live like a Christian. I never truly gave my life to God. Until it happened.

Since I don't remember anything that happened that day except for the dream this is from what my parents have told me.

I was in the car with my boyfriend, Andrew. We had been partying with friends all night and we were both quite drunk. He started screaming at the car behind us and went left to center and we wrecked into a semi truck. He flew through the windshield and I hit the dashboard, a large chunk of glass was embedded into my head. When the paramedics got to the scene Andy was already dead. I was very close. I was air lifted to a large hospital nearby. Our parents were contacted.

At the hospital, my parents were told that the glass had been removed but I was in very critical condition and the glass had severely scraped my head. They operated right away. It didn't seem successful though. I wasn't waking up. After a week of no progress the doctors gave up, but my parents wouldn't take me off life support. They had faith.

While I was considered dead I was having the experience of a lifetime.

A beautiful light. So bright I couldn't see anything. It slowly faded and my eyes adjusted. A town. A city. Roads made of gold. Fountains flowing with golden water that ran into streams with beautiful waterfalls. The clouds were so big, lined with silver and inside they were golden! Everything was golden. Mansions. The wood glowed. The doors were huge. There were flowers everywhere. But they were colors I had never seen. I can't even describe them. They were wonderful.

People lined the streets, talking and setting up stands of food. It was more crowded than any place I had ever been but I didn't have an agitated feeling of an over crowed place, I felt peaceful. Everyone seemed to care about what the people around them were doing.

A man dressed in a white robe walked towards me. No, he didn't walk to me, how do you describe it? He kind of glided to me. He just slid across the ground without moving his feet. Now that I looked, all of the people walked like that! It was very strange but it almost felt normal. Like it was that way all the time.

“Welcome, my friend! And greetings from the Most High. May I have the honor of showing you our fair city.” I nodded and he started leading me down the road.

As we came to the end of the city, I could see that there was one more mansion. It was much larger than the other ones. The man led me in and told me this was the house of the Most High and He wanted to see me. Everything was so beautiful! We came up to two very large doors. To my astonishment the doors opened by themselves.

As we entered the room my eyes gazed upon someone sitting in a large chair. The person glowed much brighter than anything else. So much that I couldn't actually see him, just his masculine frame. I suddenly felt fear. Like I wasn't worthy to stand in the same room as this man. It scared me.“Wha-What's going on? Where am I?”

”Don't you know?” The man asked standing up, his glow slowly fading so I could see his face.

I shook my head, “No.”

“You are in heaven!” He said as He raised His hands and smiled, “Well, you are getting a small taste of heaven.” Then He shook his head, “But you cannot stay.”

“What! Why?” I cried.

“You have chosen a different path.” Then it all melted away.

I was in complete darkness. I couldn't feel my arms or legs. I was burning, it slowly climbed up my body. It got stronger and stronger. My skin started to melt away but it never left my body and it kept burning. It hurt so bad I can't even describe it. I wondered why I wasn't dying. I wanted to.

Something almost like an eye staring me down appeared a little ways away. I tried to stand but my hands and feet felt like they were cemented to the cold ground. I cried for help but no one answered. I felt so alone. I'd never felt this way. I had been lonely sure, but, never have I felt so utterly alone. There wasn't anyone to help me. Not even anyone to hurt me. I started sobbing.

“Why do you cry?” A voice boomed into the darkness.

“What! Who's there!?”

The voice boomed again, “I asked, why do you cry?”

“Be-because I'm scared. Wh-where am I. Who are you?”

“You should know.”

I shivered, remembering my old Sunday School lessons,“I'm in H-Hell?”

“Yes. Sadly, you are getting a taste of Hell. But it is such a small taste. You would never pull through if you got a real taste of Hell.”

“How could this be a small taste of Hell?”

“In Hell you are completely separated from me and all good. You say you feel desperately alone but you aren't alone, not really. You can feel my presence.”

“Oh God! Why am I here? Am-am I dead?”

“That you must decide. You can fight for your life. Or not. If you fight you will get a second chance. If you don't you will really go to Hell.”

“What do you mean?” There was no answer. I called and called but got no answer.

Then it came but very faint, “There is no way but my way. My way is the way of life. But you haven't chosen that path. You chose to follow your own way. This is where it got you.”

A light shining into my closed eyes. I slowly opened them, “D-Dad?”

“I'm here, Darling. So is your Mom.”

“What happened?” I looked around the room, “A hospital?”

“We'll talk about that later. You rest now. You need it.” Dad smiled at me and looked over at the doctor.

She smiled, “She'll be fine. Just fine.”

About Me

I am so excited to have this blog! I have been begging for my Mom to let me have a blog for like, a really long time. I will start of by telling you a little bit about myself....

My favorite subject in school is Creative Writing. My worst subject is Math.

I love reading. I am currently reading Warrior, part of the Dragons on Starlight series by Bryan Davis. I am loving it! It's for YA (Young Adult) but I think everyone would like it. I talked my brother into reading the first book, Starlighter. He loves is too.

Speaking of brother I should tell you about my family.

 First there's Dad. He is totally awesome. He is so loving and caring even though his job beyond stinks. He loves taking us fishing and camping.

Then there's Mom. She is totally awesome too. She stays at home and takes care of all of us. Most moms don't do that. She loves taking us fishing too. Mostly because she always catches bigger fish than Dad... don't tell him I said that....

Taylor is 16. She has Cerebral Palsy. If you ever have a question about her disability don't hesitate to ask. I don't mind talking about it and Taylor doesn't care if I talk about it. And it's good for people to understand that kind of stuff. We love staying up all night talking about everything. Like really, everything!

Carter and Morgan are 12. They're twins. They both love being outside. The one thing they have in common. They look nothing alike. People always think me and Carter are the twins even though I'm like 6 inches taller than him.

We live in the country. We have a Service Dog for Taylor, two cats, 6 chickens and we hope to get a goat soon. We used to have one. Now we want one again. When we buy a house, we rent now, we want to get a cow, more chickens and maybe a horse or two.

Well, I hope you enjoyed this little introduction.