New Series: Anna's Archives!

Today I am launching a new series called Anna's Archives, which is essentially just me telling stories about myself and things related to myself.  I'm actually looking to start a few series, which I'll post for off and on, in no particular order, but this is the first.

So, how this works is, whenever I tell a true story about myself, Anna's Archives will go in the title with it.  I don't know how often I'll post, but I hope more.  I should have one coming out today, if I'm not too lazy, so look forward to that.

I really want to continue What Really Happened, and I will eventually, but my ideas are being stoppered up by the Wonders of Distraction.  I'll get to it.

So, about the series--the reason I'm starting so many is essentially so every post of mine is labeled, and when you see the title, you know the genre.  It may seem a little boxed to you (don't ask me what I mean by that, 'cause I'll have nothing to say), but it will make my life seem more fun to me.  And every once in a while I will post delightfully spontaneous little gems with no warning, posts that are not in any series except the series of my beautiful mind (came out weird, but whatever).

So there you have it, and I'm out of here (for now, that is; like I said, there's another post coming).

Going Numb

I don't have the energy for a long post.  I only have a few words, and I'm not going to pull any more out.

America is going numb.  Slowly, things that should matter are losing their impact, and every time I think there's a victory, it turns out that it doesn't matter.  It still doesn't change the way things are and the way they're going.

The Supreme Court legalized same-sex "marriage" and with everything else happening these days, I'm thoroughly depressed.  How can everyone ignore truth, and just manipulate things until they get their way?  Even if people realize the wrong, they just let them get away with it.  Why aren't we doing anything?  Why are we standing still while they slowly but steadily progress?

I know that more bad things will happen, and I know someday there will be an end, but now, it just seems like we could do more.  Why are we just ignoring it?

I have more questions than answers, but I'm sure once I think about it, I'll decide that there's really nothing I can do about it.  I'll turn numb, start thinking about other things, when maybe right now, with all these questions bouncing around in my head, I'm the closest I've been to the truth.

The Fourteen-mile Marker

 The River of Time

If you're anything like me, you have some weird ideas about time and people and life in general.  On this day, my fourteenth birthday, I am thinking about time.

I don't know how most people imagine time.  Maybe a golden timeline against a black background?  That's how it usually is with me.  Today, however, I had more of a mission in mind.  I wanted to find out how best to illustrate my position on ages and passing years.

See, I've never really thought of age as something that defined me.  For me, it always seemed more like a meaningless label, just a number that would soon pass and be replaced.  More like a marker, not an area of life.  So how to illustrate it?  As I paced in the kitchen, holding imaginary conversations with my librarian, the idea came to me.

It's like a river.  A river with mile markers on the sides.  However, the mistake you could make is assuming that the river is age.  Ever flowing, pretty much unstoppable if no humans interfere.  It's rather a natural assumption.  But the river is time, which is also a natural assumption and probably one you thought of before I ever brought up age.  The mile markers are age.  They don't change anything, don't determine the course of the river, they simply show the change.  They put it into numbers to be easier to understand.

Those numbers have never really effected me.  I've had people tell me I seemed older than my age, and it never came as a surprise.  But neither did I expect it.  It simply was, and I think deep down I wondered how any age was different than another.  I was slightly flattered, yes, but I was unsure of why.  And it still is slightly mysterious to me.  I think part of the reason for this is that my mind is more creative than logical.  I've never liked numbers.  I've never understood why they were so important.  I've always felt like the same person, so I guess I never let my age define me.  It never seemed to matter, because I've always been more focused on what I knew and how I was dealing with life.

So I'm at the fourteen-mile marker.  And I'm not super excited about this year.  It's just another year.  True, there will be presents, and people congratulating me, and no school for the day, but aside from that, what is a birthday?  To me, it's more like a memory, reminding me that this is the day I was born.  It, for me, serves to show me how far I've come emotionally.  But all the other years, all the other birthdays?  They numbers are all gone, and I see the past in one whole section.  I also have a really bad memory, so that might have something to do with it, but humor me, please.

Time's Markers

I share a birthday with Angelina Jolie.  I've never actually cared about AJ or what she did, but she's the only person whose name I recognized on the list of famous people who have June 4th birthdays.  However, shame on Wikipedia, I was not on the list.  Now, though, I have a goal.  To get on that list.  I will know I'm famous when my birthday is on Wikipedia.  (Does anyone else pronounce this "Wi-ki-pe-di-a?")

That is a sort of time marker.  The way people's ages really sink in, though, is Christmases, for me.  I was shocked when I realized my grandmother had celebrated eighty Christmases.  Her age suddenly became real for me.  Just like understanding I've been through fourteen Christmases.

I have a friend who uses cars to judge time.  It really sinks in for him when he realizes what kind of car a person was driving/around when he was his age.

It amuses me, the different ways in which we mark time.  In a way, I suppose it's not the past we're marking, it's the present.  Looking at the sum of everything that's happened in our lives and asking, "So where am I now?"  Sometimes, we really need the importance of the passage of time impressed upon us.  At least I do.  Sometimes I need to be reminded of all the change that happens.

But then again, I feel the change.  I think carefully about the change.  I guess it really is the past that I need to remember.

All About Me

I'M A GROWED DOLT NOW!  I'M SAILING DOWN THE RIVER OF TIME, WITH THE TOP BUCKLE ON MY LIFE JACKET UNDONE!  Dramatic?  Most certainly.  But once I start the metaphors, it's hard to stop.

I'm fourteen!  Let's throw a party.  And as a beautiful gift to the Internet, I shall bequeath upon you some time markers.

Three years ago, being self-conscious about my teeth and sporting my new fancy-schmancy eye-wear

Two years ago, holding Chuck the tree snake

A year ago I changed my fashion choices and began dressing like a business man.  Just kidding!  This was for a friend's Clue-themed birthday party.  I was Mr. Green.

A couple months ago, with my hair beautifully curled by a friend.  Note the braces and the lack of glasses.  I've upgraded to contacts!

Just a few minutes ago.  And yes, that is the best smile I could come up with.  I'm sorry, I'm just not a big smiler.  THIS IS THE SECOND PICTURE OF FOURTEEN-YEAR-OLD ME EVER TAKEN!  I didn't like the first so much.

One more thing I forgot to mention--just about a week ago I found out that my birthday is in Spring.  All these years, I thought I had a summer birthday.  How in the world could I have been so uninformed?!  All these years, I've thought about which season is my favorite.  Spring or Summer?  "I like Spring because it has my favorite kind of weather--dark and rainy and warm.  But Summer has my birthday, so I really like it!  How can I decide between my favorite weather and a holiday that's all about me?"  Y'all, the choice is now clear, and that makes me so happy.

HAPPY SPRING!

Today I Had an Ultrasound

Please don't faint, it's not like that!  It was for my leg, honest! 

Are you okay?  Do you need some water?  Okay, good, and you can lie down if you need to.  I almost felt like I needed to after they drew blood from my arm.

Another bomb!  Although that was more like a firecracker, really, lacking the shock power of a real explosion.  I mean, who cares if they stuck a needle into my vein and drew out a bunch of bright red blood?  And here's something sort of like a wimpy footstomp.  I have a prescription of bright red pills that I have to take thrice daily.

Why, you ask?  Why have you bombarded us with all this information that we don't really want to read about and yet keep doing it?

It's my toe.  For a few weeks I have felt that my toes were hurting.  I though it was just a winter thing, but I realized that it was actually only the middle one hurting and that it was red and swollen.  So I went to the doctor today.  Because the other toes were red and sometimes blue or slightly purple, Mrs. Doctor thought it might be a circulation problem.  Mommy took me to Raleigh Radiology and I had an ultrasound on my leg.  When we got back to the doctor, it turned out that there was nothing wrong with my circulation.  So she (Mrs. Doctor) prescribed some antibiotic pills to take with my meals.  But Mrs. Doctor also decided that some blood work could be done if Mommy wanted it (Mommy did) so I walked over to the lab and had them stick a needle in my arm while I spouted nonsense and tried to ignore the sting! 

I get the results of the blood work back on Friday or Monday, and hopefully I won't have diabetes (which is what they're testing for). 

I hope I didn't scare you too much.  Goodbye!

My Most Recent Piece of Writing--Satire!

To be specific, politically satirical poetry.  I've written a political poem before, but it was much more serious and pretty much a poem about what is going to happen if we keep going down this road.  This one has a more light-hearted feel and has a really weird meter that I used for convenience.

Let's Make a Rule

Let's make a rule!
A god, of sorts
That we can dress ourselves.
To be a tool
That when we wish
We can set upon the shelf.
Something rather
Reasonable
To them when they first hear.
(If they gather
The real purpose
They might not let us come near.)
A help to us
And everyone.
We, of course, know best.
And if they fuss
We'll call them names
And frighten all the rest.
We like this plan!
Just what we need
To keep everyone under control.
We'll gather fans
Show them who's boss
And say it's for the people!
There we have it.
Picture perfect.
We are on our way
To having them admit
That we're in charge.
I believe we've claimed the day.

Dystopian Literature, and Why We Should Read It

What is dystopian literature?

According to merriam-webster.com, dystopia means:  "An imaginary place where people are unhappy and usually afraid because they are not treated fairly."  Another way to say it would be anti-utopia.  That makes a lot of sense, right?  At least, if you know (as most of you do) that utopia means:  "An imaginary place in which the government, laws, and social conditions are perfect."

I'm sure that quite a lot of you have read The Hunger Games, Divergent, Legend, The Maze Runner, or some other dystopian book.  They're kind of dark.  Depressing.  In every single one that I've read, the government is very corrupted and the reason everyone is, "unhappy and usually afraid."  A lot of people die, and most of the endings are very bittersweet.  They're not something you want to spend all of your time reading.

So, why is this kind of thing being written so frequently?

Why do people write dystopian literature?

We live in a fallen society.  The America we know is nothing like what it was intended to be.  The government is attempting to gain more power.  Barack Obama is blatantly disregarding the Constitution.  Illegal immigrants are flooding in from Mexico.  It seems like America is on a downward track.  Those books I mentioned above all take place in an American future.  This is what people see as the tomorrow of our nation.  They see the government taking over, corrupted and power-hungry.  But afraid of uprising.  They see people dying as a part of normal life.  They see people giving up, accepting tyranny because they don't know anything else.  And they see people standing up in the midst of millions, saying:  "I will not submit."

In a way, it's beautiful.  Tragically beautiful, but beautiful nonetheless.  Because it's realistic.  The heroes are flawed.  There are a lot of areas that seem grey.  It's a picture of humanity that fills us with sadness and recognition.

But there's one thing that I really don't like about them.  They're Godless.  Besides Divergent, I've never seen Him mentioned.  Now, maybe you're thinking:  Slow down, Anna.  You said this is what they see the future as.  Maybe they think the future will be Godless.  Yeah, maybe.  But I don't.  Yes, I'm a Christian.  I'm biased.  Christianity is my worldview, and a worldview is the lens through which we see the world.  I believe that Jesus will return before the world is completely devoid of Christians.  And also, even without the one true God, history has shown that people will look for a god.  Someone bigger and much more powerful than anyone on earth.  Humans say that they want to be completely independent, but we look for rules.  This stems from the idea of right and wrong, but it carries into everything.

And now you probably have a question, inspired by the title of this post.

Why should we read dystopian literature?

I had a hard time finding the words to express this, but I think I've finally got it.  We should read dystopian literature in order to understand what's going on today (look for similarities and differences when you read) and to understand what to do about the future.  While I realize that the future portrayed in those books is very circumstantial and not likely to be that way in reality, there are some things we should pay attention to.  If the book talks about how the world ended up that way, look for that in our culture.  When you're making political decisions in real life, think about how this could impact the future.  Think about what you do.

There are many dystopian books that I don't like or even think are badly written.

How can we avoid a dystopian future?

It may seem like a good idea at the time to take away our guns.  But when we can't protect ourselves, who are we going to entrust with our safety?  It may seem like a good idea at the time to elect leaders who want to limit the amount of harm we can do ourselves.  But we're human, and even government is fickle.  When they control our lives, we will realize that we need to take responsibility for ourselves.  So think for yourself.  Trust but don't overtrust.  Don't give in to peer pressure when you know it's wrong.  And pay attention.  So many people expect others to take care of things for them, but everybody else is thinking the same thing!  Look at the world and see how you can help.

Now--the warning

Don't overread dystopian literature.  While it can help us see the state we're heading for, it also represents the state humans are in right now.  The writers aren't perfect unbiased seers, they're flawed and sinful just like everyone else.  So nothing will be objective, and to be honest, dystopian literature is just plain depressing.  And we do not want a bunch of informed, depressed people.  So read dystopian literature, but think about it.  Think about what is true in it and what isn't.  What could be fixed and what should, and by whom?

Think.  Because the whole point of dystopian literature is that people didn't think for themselves.

Oops, I think I've just made you really depressed.

I know I feel it about to take over.  But we have a hope in Jesus Christ, Who died on the cross for our sins!  And remember whatever happens, God has us in his hands, and nothing that happens to us happens without him letting it.  "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny?  And not one of them shall fall to the ground apart from your Father."  Matthew 10:29

To All You Perfect People (and all you real ones, too)...

I suffer from indecision.  What that means is that I don't always know what to do.  What that means is that I do a lot of different things.

So, I assume that at least a couple of you will have noticed that my blog is different.  Yet again.  Well, this is the last time.  I've finally found one I can live with.  The flower was just tiding me over until I got a better picture.

So, if you're thinking What an ugly picture.  She has no taste, feel free to leave!  However, if you're thinking That's a pretty cool picture; I'd like to see some more, look below!

As you can see, a beautiful evening!  I actually took these last night.  My dad got home from work really late, and he said the stars were beautiful, but I unfortunately was not awake to see them.

I'm no photographer, but I do like taking pictures of the sky and the woods and that kind of thing, so as we get more into Fall, I'll probably be posting a lot more pictures.  I especially love sunsets.

I hope you enjoy!  Goodbye!

Anna