Last night I drove out to the Blue Ridge Parkway to sleep under the stars. The moon was full and beautiful, but shone so brightly that none of the stars were visible.
This is probably the beginning of some meaningful allusion referencing the frailness of plans and the virtue of potential. However, right now I don't have my head on straight enough to attempt such a subject.

I'll try again later.

woah

If you want to make a mind-blowing prophetic connection, read Psalms 22 in conjunction with Mark 15:34 and consider the following:

Jesus cried out from the cross, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?" which is, being interpreted, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" Many people believe that this was expressive of his lamentation at the Lord turning away from Christ as he took on the sins of the world.
However, there may be an alternative explanation.

Please take the time to now read Psalms 22 in its entirety:
http://www.gnpcb.org/esv/search/?q=psalms+22

The Pharisees were standing around the base of the crucifixion site and heard these words spoken. These were men who had dedicated their lives to memorizing the Hebrew scriptures. Although Jesus did not have the strength to recite every piece of this prophecy that was recorded over 1000 years prior, they were able to fill in the blanks.

Mark 15:
"38 And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. 39 And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!”"

Note: this was written on July 3. Thank you.


And so, ladies and gentlemen, we've come to the 234th anniversary of our country being declared an independent nation.
I know that there are a lot of problems within the infrastructure of this great nation. I am also aware that there is sentiment aplenty worldwide that we are handling our business all wrong.


Let me tell you why I love America.

I love the Southeast. I love boiled peanuts. I love the Appalachian mountains. I love looking at pictures of places out west that I have never been to, but would like to see. I love fishing. I love Ford trucks (particularly mine). I love the freedoms that we enjoy and the people that fight to protect them. I love being able to walk down to a Hardee's and have a cup of coffee on any given morning. I love the gift of an accessible education. I love grilling Sunday dinner with my dad on our back porch. I love a well-stocked hardware store. I love the smell of apple pie and peach cobbler. I love a good Arnold Palmer (both the drink and the man). I love sitting in a rocking chair and watching the sun set. I love Levi's bluejeans. I love waking up early Saturday mornings to eat cereal and watch cartoons. I love sports. I love dressing up for church, then hurrying home after service to get into some real clothes. I love barbecue.
I love that anyone on any given day possess the inalienable right to disagree with anything that I say.

I know we have our problems, but this is still the greatest country on the face of the earth.

It is, and will always be, my home.

New 1-mile personal record: 5 min 18 sec

I am not a smooth individual.
I get tongue tied. I stammer. I cannot properly articulate my opinions in unfamiliar conversation. I still get nervous around a pretty girl (really).
This blog has been a good way for me to say things in a way that I could not otherwise say them. As strange as I feel about writing my thoughts on an internet page, I find that I can be much more collected and linear with my thinking if I write it out. It's nice to have a medium on which I can record my deliberations, if for no other reason than to straighten them out in my own head, and move along.

Thanks for reading this little page of mine. I hope it has brought you some entertainment, at the very least.

All the way

Those of you who don't know me very well might be a bit surprised by the outset of this next post:


These are the United States Army Rangers.
They are cool.

For the past year and a half I have been considering joining the military. My ultimate goal would be to become an Army Ranger and see how far that course could take me. This possibility did not form overnight. It was one result of several events and considerations spanning a decent period of time. I do not doubt that I am capable of military life and all of the challenges, physical and mental, that it may immediately present. Additionally, much of my family served in the military at one point or another. I ran the idea past my parents. My mom was not necessarily excited.
No surprise.

I knew that this could be an important, potentially life-changing, decision. In light of this fact, I've taken the past two months to seriously consider whether or not I felt that a career in the military was really the right way to go.
Recently, I have been making an effort to talk to a few available resources. I have also been praying, which has not yielded any notable response.
Or so I thought.

Two days ago, a question latched onto me:
"What do you want most in your future?"
My response: "A family. A wife, children, a dog (maybe two). To care for them in the best way that I can."
From that, I had to consider whether or not I would be able to properly devote myself to both raising a family and to a career serving my country in the armed forces.
No, I honestly do not think that I could.
Don't get me wrong, there are many individuals that are quite capable of fulfilling the obligations of both stations to the best of their abilities. However, I do not believe that I am among them. Balancing has never been my strong suit.
I cannot imagine a half-way commitment to the military in the same way that I cannot imagine a half-way commitment to my family.
So, in short, I do not intend to become a soldier. I do hope and pray that one day I can have the incredible opportunity to become a father.

My cousin:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRRF_M2T-vY&feature=related