Wait...You Mean They're NOT Real??

This happens to me all the time. I read good books, and the characters seem so alive, so real, that you can't help falling in love with them. And then, for me I find myself thinking, "I wish I could meet him" And then reality comes crashing down on me, and I remember that they aren't real. I think of all the characters I love, they don't seem to me like the inhabitants of an imaginary world made up by another human. They seem like real people who I could actually meet if only I could manage to run into them. There's always a moment, when I think about my favorite characters that I feel like they ARE  real, a moment when it seems that I could meet them, and sit down with them and talk to them. And then after all to short moment, I remember that they're not real people. I always find it heartbreaking that as soon as I close the pages of a good book the characters vanish. They remain, forever encased in some thin sheets of paper and ink letters. They don't follow me out of that world into the other., and it is only in this world of paper and ink that I can find these dear friends. Because that's how I view them: Not interesting characters, but as dear friends that I feel as though I've know all my life. And in that moment, when I remember that they're not real, or the moment I remember they will stay encased in ink, or that the series is over, I realize by the empty feeling inside me, how much I love fictional characters. There is a pleasant side to all of this, however. When I close the pages of a book, however sorrowful it may be that they cannot come with me, whenever I re-open those pages, those friends will be waiting for me, no matter what. We can pick up just where we left off. And no matter what happens, these people will stay the same, in the pages of a well worn book, unchanging, just waiting for me to return to them and pick up where we left off.

Does anyone else have thoughts like these, or am I just really weird??

Until I manage to travel to other dimensions and meet fictional people,
Robin



Harry Potter: Magic, not Witchcraft (Also, a Few Pictures From the Croatia Trip)

Pictures first! Jar of Wonders suggested that I post some pictures from the trip, so here you go! None of these were taken by me, (I didn't have my camera with me) but by my photographically talented friends.

Part of our team in the Amsterdam airport

The other part of our team in the airport

The Campers!

Flag Tag!

My team! GO YELLOW DETECTIVES!

Now for the second part of this post: Harry Potter. I realize some people don't want to read these because of the use of witches and wizards. But sometimes, I get frustrated when people assume it's bad, just because it has those words in it, without knowing what it's really about. Saying that Harry Potter is evil because it has witches and wizards to me is like saying that Hunger Games is evil because it's about children killing children. They're the same basic assumptions, and the same lack of knowledge. Now, if you feel that it goes against your conscience to read them, then fine. I'm not telling you that you have to read them or anything else. I just want to explain a little about them. You don't have to read them!

First, the terms witches and wizards. Most people, which seems strange to me, don't seem to have a problem with the word "wizard". Also people seem to forget that many of our favorite characters in other stories are wizards. Merlin from King Arthur and Gandalf from Lord of the Rings are two examples. But as to the term witch. In Harry Potter it absolutely does not refer to the people we think of when we think of witches. We tend to think of witches as creepy old ladies who ride around on broomsticks making witches brew, cackling cursing people, and generally being evil. In Harry Potter, however witch simply denotes female. Like actor and actress. Wizards are male magical people, and witches are female magical people. It's nothing more than a way of differentiating between genders.

This brings me to a second thing. The school is called Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Alot of people also seem to have a problem with the word witchcraft. When I think of the word "witchcraft" outside of Harry Potter it brings to mind something evil. When people pray to demons and stuff like that. But when I think of the word magic, (I know this seems a bit off topic, but bear me with me) I think of all the cool things in the fantasy books I love to read. The prophecies, magical creatures. Take Eragon for example. They cast magic spells all the time. Spells, by the way, seem to be another thing that bother people in Harry Potter. But the fact that those spell require a wand, (nothing more than a magical object, which are found in all kinds of fantasy books) does not make them any different from the spells cast in, say, Eragon, which are don't require anything but speech. But back to magic and witchcraft.  In Harry Potter, the word "witchcraft" is just like a term for what a person does. Like a forester learns woodcraft. A witch, (female magical person) learns witchcraft. A wizard, (male magical person) learns wizardry. In Harry Potter witchcraft is nothing more than magic. I realize that this is not the way it works in the real world, but I also realize that Harry Potter is a work of fiction, fantasy fiction at that. So it's not the same as in the real world. In the world of Harry Potter, witchcraft is a fancy term for magic. And come to think of it, I don't remember the term witchcraft being used at all in the series. They used the word magic the whole time.

The main point of this post is that before you say a book is bad to read, find out a little more about it. And then, if you still feel like it's something you shouldn't be reading, then don't. Anyways, thanks for listening to my semi-orderly ramble. Only one rabbit trail! Yay!

Adios, love you!

Well, I'm Back!

I came home from Croatia today. I spent 10 hours on a plan in cramped postions. 'Scuse me, plane. Also eplease excuse my lousy typoing, I'm rather tired and typing, )(let alone thinking) isn't going so well at the moment. Humr humor also, now that you mention it! I'm to lazty and tired to edit this, soooo yeah.
Anyways, I'm tire, did I already say that? :) The mission trip was wonderful, I enjoyed myself alot, and I think God is doing a good work there. While I'm on this track, let me ask you to pray for the people there. It's pretty much all Catholic, with very little Light.
Ten nhours on a plane does weird things to your brain. Earlier, I went to dinner with some people who went on the trip and some other friends. Evverything is funny! We played spoons, WITH OUR NOSES!!!!!!!!!!!! HOW AWSOME IS THAT??? Also, I drank lots of coke. ANd Croation bread is better than American bread. No debate involved. Also there ice cream. It. Is. Wonderfull. Perioin=d. Period. End of story.  Also ther e piza. It is heaven! There's this one pizza, whih sounds gross, but it is sso good! As in delisios so ggood! It has ham and then sheese and salomi on too, and (this is the gross sounding, but bset tasting part) sour cream. Itys sastarts with a "z". Mmmmm! So much goodness!
Wow, my tyoing i8s getting worse as I go! hahaha! Oh, and there chocolate? Yeah, its waaaaaaaay better than ours! Also....I have...oen one....last... message....
DOBRE PALENCHINKE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
That means "good pankakes" in Croatian. I spelled it wrong probabaly. heheheheheheheehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehe!
Okay, I should probably be done neo, I'm getting loopier as I speak! So Bok, volim te, dear readers! (Bye, love you, in Croation) HOPefully my next post will be more coherant!

Guest Post by Robin's Mom

I am sure, readers, that you are aware our sweet Robin has spent the last 15 days serving the Lord in Krapina, Croatia.  She comes home tomorrow—I can hardly wait to get my “mama” arms around that girl!  So, yes, it is about time (and almost too late) for me to fulfill the request she made of me to be a guest poster on her blog.  (Does that make me a poster child? J )!

Procrastination has not made this any easier!  Staring at a blank screen, especially one with an audience, is quite intimidating.  A smart “mama-guest-poster” would have posted the very first day and asked the followers of this blog to send in their questions about the blog-holder.  Ahh, the wealth of topics about which I might have written!  But alas, apparently I not a smart “mama-guest-poster.”  (Does that mean I lose my status as a poster child?L)

On the other hand, this is a great day to post on her behalf because today would have been Robin’s grandmother’s 83^rd birthday.  Sadly, Robin never knew my mom.  I have often told Robin that Grandmother would have enjoyed her so, soo, sooo much.  Grandmother loved to laugh. Sound like anyone you know?  Grandmother also loved purple (well, actually, lavender, but close enough).  She did not wear the color because she felt her complexion had too much of a yellow undertone to go well with lavender.  Now, consider Robin.  Loves purple, and looks good in purple…and with her complexion bolder, brighter colors are best.  Grandmother loved to read.  She also was a very creative poet—of the humorous variety, mostly.  (There’s that love of laughter again!)  Is it just me? Or does this remind you of anybody you know?  And Grandmother was a seamstress extraordinaire.  SCREECH.Gasp! I can see each of you backing up to re-read that…..or possibly rushing ahead to see if I am about to tell you that Robin is a closet seamstress.  Right? Haha   No, Robin is not a seamstress; I mention the sewing because when Robin was about 4 years old she would sit at the table next to me while I was sewing.  She would take my scraps and line them up exactly so. Pin them in place with my straight pins and pass it to me with very specific instructions as to where I was to stitch.  I’m still not sure what we were making, but I KNOW Grandmother would have been proud!  (And laughed her uniquely joyful laugh!)  So, happy birthday, Grandmother! 

Back to Robin’s love of all things purple (except eggplant).  Robin has loved Purple at least since kindergarten, possibly even preschool.  Her kindergarten papers were ALWAYS written in purple.  The director of our church preschool/kindergarten specifically selected Lilly and the Purple Purse to read to Robin’s class.  For years I have harbored the secret fear that I might possibly be responsible for this obsession great attraction to all things purple (except eggplant, and lipstick) because when we moved her to a big-girl bed I painted her room a very soft……yes, purple. But now that I’ve given it some, a-hem, serious consideration…..clearly the fault lies squarely in my mother’s lap! J

Since I was not timely in coming up with the idea of asking you to send in your questions about Robin, let me leave you with a few questions you can ask her….

What is a skinny Mickey?

Just when, exactly, did this obsession with having socks unmated in your drawer begin?

Was there ever a time you didn’t love purple?

What are please coins? (And the related question, “Can you say stubborn?”)

What is a round part that you don’t have to comb?

Do you want to play the F-U-N game?

What is the first story* you ever wrote? 

Robin, you are good medicine! Proverbs 17:22

Thank you, Robin’s readers, for bearing with me through this, my first ever, blog post.  Go ahead and send in your questions….perhaps I will be invited back another day!

*I came across it while cleaning the school room this week!

Guest post by Joanna

Photo Credit: Google Images

Hey readers,
As you can rightly assume from the title of this post....I'm guest posting for Robin while she is doing missions work in Croatia. (How exciting is that?)

I thought long and hard about what I would guest post about. Different topics swirled through my head as I tried to capture one and think about it long enough in order to write an intelligent post. I finally managed. In fact, the topic I am going to write about today is something that has been on my heart for a long while. (now getting that to my brain was the issue)

My discussion is about a book called, "When People Are Big and God Is Small", written by Edward T. Welch. The main idea of the book focuses on overcoming peer pressure and the fear of man - something I continue to struggle over. Why do people fear man?
Welch states that people fear man because:
1. "We fear people because they can expose and humiliate us."
2. "We fear people because they can reject, ridicule, or despise us."
3. "We fear people because they can attack, oppress, or threaten us."

Yes, yes, and yes. I fear all three of those...
I especially feel the pressure of 1 and 2 when I'm around my youth group or peers. I often find that I get way too caught up in what other's think about me rather than what my heavenly Father thinks of me. Why? Because I fear man more than God. Typing that last statement on my keyboard made me feel stupid. I mean, of course I know that I should fear God more than man. But so often I don't put my knowledge into action. How can I when I constantly am surrounded by people who have the ability to judge me? The answer is simple. Know what it means to fear the Lord. The only way to do that is to read His Word - to get an understanding of who He is, and what He does.Getting to know this perfect, holy God is the key in fearing Him vs. man.
           Another sad truth that hit me was this: When I fear man, I ultimately am being incredibly selfish. Cliques are one of the biggest ways a person can show their fear of man. I used to be in one...and while I felt completely secure... I was deluding myself. When "my" clique fell apart, and I was forced to interact with other people who I had rarely talked to, I suddenly realized how fearful I was of everyone. I realized that I had been ignoring others because talking to them would have made me feel insecure. I was completely focused on myself and what would make me feel the most comfortable. But I chose to ignore others, and would consider it helpful to come home every Sunday and complain to my mum that, "No one likes me. They never talk to me. Everyone ignores me. They always judge me and I feel left out!"
In response, my loving mother handed me, "When People Are Big and God Is Small".
In short, she was communicating, "Stop thinking about yourself! How can you show love to others by talking to them and making them feel comfortable. You know all those lonely, unpopular girls at church you talk about? Go and try making them feel wanted."
Can you say WAKE UP CALL?

Photo Credit: Google Images

I was shocked at how selfish I had become...and all because I had feared man, instead of God.
I mean, how stupid can a person be? Pretty dumb, obviously.
I instantly regretted all the years I had ignored people...how I had cast them aside in order to hang with people who made me feel comfortable. With my head hung low, I began a new mission. I purposed to show Christ's love to others...not because they needed me...but because I was called to do so by Christ. In fact, I've realized that nine out of ten times, nothing ever really happens. I don't "gain" a new best friend, I don't get labeled with "most popular girl in church", but it really doesn't matter.
But you know what I do get? I get the joy of seeing the smiles light up those girls faces when you say "hey, how have you been doing?"
And that's more than enough.
Don't get me wrong. It's not all grins and giggles. Sometimes I feel ignored, sometimes I feel frustrated that the person I (those stupid i's) wanted to come up and talk to me didn't. Nevertheless, the message I continually have to refocus on is this: God commands me to fear him and NOT man. Therefore, I can talk to people and show His love to them...and that is the best way to heal from a bad case of a self-centered attitude. If I focus on fearing God more than man, I am suddenly free to interact with my peers and not feel judged by them, because God's opinion of me is the only one that matters.
And just think! What if everyone made an conscious effort to love everyone like this. How well everyone would get along! So try it, guys!
Try including others, showing them Christ's love, and just being friendly to everyone! It's not like you have to become their best friend. Just show an interest in their lives. It really pays off. The joy I experience by getting over myself and showing love to others is one of the greatest rewards. So don't fear man...fear God!

Well, my time is up...I am afraid to say. My chores call.
Sorry I rambled...I sort of went from fearing God vs. man....to how that ties in with youth groups, cliques, etc. They are connected....somehow. Trust me on this one. I've given this plenty of thought even though my post resembles a giant, tangled bowl of spaghetti.

Photo Credit: Google Images

Until next time....or tiny green aliens invade, and the world as we know it ends....
Joanna
www.thecastlesintheair.blogspot.com

3 Hours and 32 Minutes!!!!!!!

Well, in exactly 3 hours and 32 minutes I will be leaving for the airport to go to Krapina Croatia on mission trip with my church. We're going to do an English camp, for the kids there, and share the Gospel through an assembly each morning, crafts, English lessons, and games. It is going to be a wonderful time of service and fellowship! Please pray for us, that we would be willing servants, despite being tired and worn out. That we would be a light to these kids and their families.
Needless to say, I won't be posting for a while (10 days to be exact), but Joanna from Castles in the Air will be guest posting for me at some point, and maybe even my mom, who is an awesome and amazing lady, and hopefuly she'll post so you all can meet her!!
Adios my wonderful readers! Have a great week!

Good Christian fiction?

A few days ago, I was at a pool party with good friends, good food, (it was delicious) and obviously, a pool. My friend Joanna (from Castles in the Air) and I were sitting in the pool enjoying a pleasant conversation about books. And one of the things we talked about was the serious lack of good Christian fiction.
 It seems like most like a lot of Christian authors these days fill their stories with a bunch of fluff. Then they tack their good values and ideals onto the surface of their books so that they can say it's a "Christian" novel. But, as far as ideals go, they shouldn't be plastered all over the surface of the story. That makes them seem fake, or cheep. They should run deep, be demonstrated in the characters, their lives and struggles, inward and outward. Then these ideals seem like real things, an actual part of the story world.
Also with these ideals/virtues it seems that the non-christian authors understand what they should look like better than the Christian authors. Leadership for example. I read a book recently that was extremely well written, and it was not by a Christian author; it was by a Mormon. But this novel, written by an unbeliever, showed better biblical leadership than any of the Christian novels I've read. Two characters specifically, one, the leader of a bridge crew, the lowliest of the low. Another a noble man; uncle to the king. The second man, the nobleman, lived by the principals in a book called The Way of Kings. The principals were things like, don't ask your men to do anything you wouldn't be willing to do yourself. It told stories of past rulers, one who had traveled cross country on his own two feet rather than in luxury in order to see what life was like for his subjects, another where the king saw, as he went down the road, a peasant struggling to carry a heavy rock, and the king carried it for him. The first man, the bridgecrew leader, was always an encouragement to his men, never let them loose hope. In order to get them to practice carrying bridges so they wouldn't get killed, he did it himself. When they had to carry the bridges into battle, he made sure he always stood in the most deadly places, risking himself instead of his men. If these characters don't show biblical servant-leadership, then please tell me, what does?
Another thing that's been bugging me about Christian fiction is the quality of the writing. Set aside for a minute the morals and values and all that, and look at the actual quality of writing. To be honest, it's not that great. Once, in a sermon I heard that "Christians should be the best at whatever they do" best teacher, student, whatever it is you do, you should be the best at it because you are doing it for God. For His glory, in His service. But the Christian books I've read usually pale in comparison (with the exception of C. S. Lewis) to secular authors. The secular books I've read have been much better written, pull me into the world of the story with a force much stronger than that of a Christian book.
Alot of this has to do, I think, with the portrayal of the villain. The non-christian books I've read have me curled in a ball, my nose an inch from the page, expecting every moment the villain to jump out from behind me and attack. The Christian books I've read, however, have not been that scary. Their villains are usually some dude who lives in a far off country that we never really meet but everybody says he's really terrible. It's like they're afraid to show their villains as horribly evil bad guys because they think then they won't have a so-called "Christian" book anymore. Because it's to dark, and "we're Christians, we can't have stuff like that in our books!" Well, I hate to burst the bubble, but bad people exist in real life. And, since writing, even fantasy writing, is a reflection of real life, then bad people (villains) are going to exist in fiction to. And if you want a good story you have to make him believable.
Now, I am not saying that there shouldn't be a clear line between what is good and what is bad. There should be a distinction between the villain and the hero. What I AM saying is that the villain should be shown for what he is. The reader should be terrified of him, and yet feel a burning desire for his defeat.  This just doesn't seem to happen in Christian fiction. The job of a writer is to skilfully evoke the emotions of his/her reader. Emotions of love, joy, sorrow, fear. And you don't create fear without something to be truly afraid of. If we are going to be good writers, with good stories, not just OK stories, we need to be able to pull on our readers emotions, not just any one emotion, but all of them.
Anyways, thanks for listening to this long-winded post, and I hope I haven't made anyone mad, I don't want to be chased by angry readers armed with tomatoes! =)

P.S. Followers make my day! So pleeease, if you haven't been scared away by my excessive weirdness, pleeease follow me!