Synergizing Religions

First the background:

I was sitting in my Art History class a few weeks ago, looking at slides of Islamic art and architecture (which is beautiful by the way), and I had a very interesting thought--I should read the Quran! Ok, so I put it on my list of books to read. The next day, I was talking to my sister on the phone, and out of the blue, she said that she bought a Quran that day. How ironic that two nice, Methodist girls decided to read the Muslims' Holy Book!

So, I brought the Quran back with me after Thanksgiving, and I started it today. Random? Yes!

Here are three things that I've learned so far:

#1: The word "Qibla" came up about six times during my reading, and I had no clue what it meant. It turns out to be very elementary: it is simply the direction in which a person should pray. Ok, easy enough.

#2: I had no idea that the Quran would reference so many Old Testament stories such as Adam in the Garden of Eden, Noah's Ark, Moses in the desert, etc. It also had the Virgin birth of Christ to Mary.

#3: This is my favorite:
"And they say: 'None shall enter Paradise unless he be a Jew or a Christian.' Those are their (vain) desires. Say: 'Produces your proof if you are truthful."
"Nay--whoever submits his whole self to Allah and is a doer of good, --he will get his reward with his Lord; on such shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve."

--Surah 2: 111-112

I love the inclusiveness of those verses.

The Complexity of Simplicity

Who doesn't love fall break? It comes at the perfect time in the semester, and it is truly a lifesaver!

My fall break was amazing for several reasons, but really one aspect was my absolute favorite.

A little background: I live on the quiet end of the river, and we have a boat and three canoes. It is surrounded by trees and bluffs, and it is really a beautiful spot.

On Thursday, Sylvia (who came home with me, because we were going to stay with a friend in Columbia too) and I decided to take one of the canoes out on the water. We paddled out to the middle of the river and then just sat there. It was beautiful.

The water was clear and crisp. The wind was blowing through the trees causing the leaves to make that wonderful rustling sound that is so familiar to autumn. The sun was bright and beautiful. It's warmth was like caress on my face. The leaves on the trees were vibrant yellows, oranges, and reds. I could smell the fall air. It was the kind of day that makes a person fall in love with autumn all over again.

Usually, I am not thrilled when fall comes, because I know that it will soon be winter. Thursday was the perfect fall day.

Now to relate all of that to my title. It was such a simple activity, but it seriously had a huge impact on me. It was the first time in so long that I was completely relaxed. Now, I am looking for other simple things to do every day that can give me just five minutes of that bliss. Today I woke up and saw that it was rainy and cold. My initial thought was, "Today's gonna suck." But, it is the perfect day for a big mug of hot tea, and that makes me very happy.

It is so hard with our current lifestyles to find a time to relax and enjoy the simple things. I know that I'm going to make an effort to do it, though. It's not going to happen everyday, but I'm sure it will make me more productive and happier.

If you're too open-minded, your brain will fall right out

In all honesty, I did not think I would be on this again so soon. However, I have recently been thinking that perhaps I am not passionate enough about some things.

Ok, to start at the beginning, I am currently in a situation where one of my friends (and roommate) has very definite ideas about how things should be. She is very strong in her faith, and she definitely has her opinions about what is right and what is wrong. She also (occasionally) tries to see the other side of the issue, but she does not understand why it does not align with her idea. While I respect some of those qualities, I find it difficult to talk with her about any subject, because it is so frustrating. I tend to play the devil's advocate, and she just does not even try to accept another point of view.

That being said, I am trying to figure out if I am doing the right thing in being so open-minded about things. I have no definite stance on really any subject. I can see both sides of the issue. Well, that's not true. For example, I'm against the death penalty, I am pro Gay rights. However, there are many more issues that I am really quite fuzzy about. Another example, I'm not pro-choice, but I'm also not pro-life. Now, those are definitely hot topics that many people are fuzzy on. What about faith?

I haven't decided. I have grown up Christian (Methodist), and I have been fairly happy with that up-bringing. I felt as though my faith was strong; I was always encouraged to have "an open heart, open mind, and open door" (which consequently, is the Methodist motto). That being said, I am not confident that Christianity is "the way." I think it works for me, but I'm not even sure about that.

Oh geez...I don't even know where to go from here. I guess that's all for now. I better stop before my brain falls out...

The first time is always hard

I already have two different sites. Why start a third? Well, let's see...I want more out of this whole blogging thing than what I'm actually getting. It seems that most of my "readers" are more concerned with current annoyances, loves, hates, popularity, etc. It's not exactly an enriching experience to read through these things.
Don't get me wrong, I tend to do the same thing. However, it's very superficial and well, to be quite honest, lame. I want to write something that actually matters or means something--not just go on and on about a person that happened to piss me off on a certain day. Also, the people who read my other posts tend to be very judgmental...I feel as though I really have to watch what I "say" so that I won't be unfairly judged.
Now, all of that being said, I am a visual communications and religion double major. I have no idea what I'm going to do with either of those. Yes, it disturbs me to think that in a year and a half, I'm going to be graduating and doing (fill in the blank here...your guess is as good as mine). Hopefully through this blog, I will be able to work through some questions, problems, etc.
That's all for now, folks! G'Night!