ALFRESCO
Out in the fresh air, soft fluffy clouds sweep gingerly, seeping sunshine through
A pleasant breeze cooling the skin, rustles trees and gives the field a somber sway
Lying on a blanket feeling the suns warm caress the skin, drawing in clean crisp drafts ripe with heavenly mixtures of outdoor smells
A rainbow of butterflies flutter, floating from flower to flower, birds reptiles and insects join one other in their choral tune
Fading into the moment, soaking in easy exquisite, peaceful, dreaminess, Alfresco
Out in the fresh air, soft fluffy clouds sweep gingerly, seeping sunshine through
A pleasant breeze cooling the skin, rustles trees and gives the field a somber sway
Lying on a blanket feeling the suns warm caress the skin, drawing in clean crisp drafts ripe with heavenly mixtures of outdoor smells
A rainbow of butterflies flutter, floating from flower to flower, birds reptiles and insects join one other in their choral tune
Fading into the moment, soaking in easy exquisite, peaceful, dreaminess, Alfresco
Christine
Schwab
Simply
Seeking
I see the ways my life can be used
Which can leave me so confused
Simply seeking your guidance oh Lord
Give me a Symbol, a sign or a word
Lead me with your loving hands
On the narrow path that you demand
Let my light shine throughout my days
With kind hearted wisdom of your ways
Simply seeking your guidance oh Lord
Bend my will to your humble accord
My broken spirit has taken flight
Another heart is bursting with your light
At times my vision will get blurred
Give me a Symbol, a sign or a word
Simply seeking your guidance oh Lord
In your punctured hands lies my reward
I see the ways my life can be used
Which can leave me so confused
Simply seeking your guidance oh Lord
Give me a Symbol, a sign or a word
Lead me with your loving hands
On the narrow path that you demand
Let my light shine throughout my days
With kind hearted wisdom of your ways
Simply seeking your guidance oh Lord
Bend my will to your humble accord
My broken spirit has taken flight
Another heart is bursting with your light
At times my vision will get blurred
Give me a Symbol, a sign or a word
Simply seeking your guidance oh Lord
In your punctured hands lies my reward
Christine
Schwab
Love
Justly Defined
by Haley Robison
Love: something so real that it can
nearly be felt when the ties between two people are strong enough. One cannot
simply explain love without first experiencing the attributes it possesses.
Young girls long for the day that love is proven to them, the day they can
finally feel for themselves that it does, indeed, exist.
Such are the thoughts of a teenager who
had never experienced even the slightest sliver of affection from any man in
her life. To her, love was impossible, unreal, abstract at best. From as far
back as she could recall, she had never been hugged, kissed, or even
encouraged. Therefore, she asks herself, “What is love?” The example set for
her at home was nothing short of despicable. A father who rushed out of the
picture before she was born, and a stepdad who lashed her for every mistake she
made were the examples she had set before her by what she called her family.
The unforgiving question lingered in her
mind for years, but she continued to push it to the back, refusing to let it
get her down. When she came of age, this particular girl decided to engage in
the biggest quest of her life: she was going to answer her own question.
Leaving everything behind, she began the journey of a lifetime. As she set out,
she promised herself that no matter what happened, she would find the answer
not only for herself, but also for every other young girl who suffered from a
loveless life such as herself. Her mission was to do a little bit of good any
way that she could, and this was the best way that she knew how. So it began. She
read books, magazines, articles, everything she could get her hands on. But
still, she was no closer to the meaning behind love.
Almost desperate for answers, she did
all that she knew to do: experiment. At the age of now 20 years old, she just
knew that time was running out. If she did not find love now, then she never
would. Taking frantic measures, her world was about to perform an about face.
She made a hasty decision to turn to the “popular” things to do, seeking love
in all the wrong places. Continuing her journey, she began to hit up all of the
pubs, clubs, and hangouts of local teens. Many nights she spent in the house of
strange men, or wherever she could find the alcohol and drugs to make her
happy. Guys began giving her the attention she always longed for, and finally
she told herself that she had found love.
One time, the night began like all the
others, with drinking and partying and carrying on, when suddenly a man asked
her to go back to his house for the night so he could show her a good time. For
some reason she had an uneasy feeling and told the man no, and he seemingly
accepted her answer and walked away. However, later that night, as she was
walking home, she was attacked and taken by this same man. After he had his way
with her, she was released, thrown out, with nothing but the clothes on her
back left in her possession. Not only had he robbed her of her purity, but of
her dignity and self-worth as well. Hurting and heartbroken, she told herself
that she had, after all, gotten no closer to love, but further from what she
had originally set out to do.
Deciding that beating herself up over
the matter was useless, she reverted to the one place she had previously
refused to search: the Bible. Swallowing her pride, she attended a church
service and then another, and another. Eventually she had this overwhelming
sense of identity and realized she had discovered something so real that she
was baptized and vowed that day to seek refuge in the Lord. Although she took
this step, she still was blind to the authenticity of love. As her journey
continued, she asked herself once again, “What is love?” By this time in her life, she had tried it
all. Catching her off guard, the very next Sunday was a sermon on God’s love for
each and every person alive. As the tears began to flow, she realized that
finally, after all these years, love had been proven to her. From this moment
on, she looked at each day as a new beginning, another opportunity to make a
difference and live for the only One who had loved her from the start.
The most important thing for her was no
longer to find love in earthly things, but to experience it in God’s house, and
to show as many other people the unconditional love that is out there for each
and every one of them. The rest of her life was dedicated to His work and
eventually she fell in love with a man who not only religiously followed
Christ, but who treated her with gentleness and respect; something she had
never felt before.
If you were to ask that same girl today,
“What is love?” she would respond, “It is something so real that it can be felt
when the ties between two people are strong enough.” However, she would add
onto the end that this tie is felt between someone and the Lord, and that no
one here on Earth could ever appropriately display true love the way He does
each and every day.
You may be asking who is this nameless girl? I
would respond: It is you, and me, and every other girl who has taken extreme
measures, some more so than others, and searched in unthinkable places for a
love that is not hidden, but omnipresent. It is called Jesus Christ, and His
love is ready and waiting to be accepted by you. “We love, because he first
loved us.” 1 John 4:19.
