What are you willing to do?

        Our world is ever changing. It seems like every new day comes with a new revelation of how fragile our way of life is. This week alone, in but a few minutes, an entire country was devastated and will never be the same again. In another part of the world a large area is in upheaval and unrest that may bring change to the very structure of many countries. The financials of our country seem to be hanging in the balance and our way of life may no longer be able to be maintained. The future of the world is in a crucial turning point.  
        What kind of a future do we really want?My generation seems to be crying out for more then this current life. We long for peace, security, equality, hope, love, and most of all truth. These things seem to be lacking in the world. We all have heard people complain about the economy and the government then you ask them what they have done to make a difference and all you get back is a blank look and an excuse that it doesn't make a difference what you do it wont change anything. Many people are doing what they can and many more just don't know what to do to make a difference, but for the rest of you it is time to take a hard look in the mirror and honestly ask yourself am I doing all I can to better the world?
         Sacrifice is what is needed to make a real change. There has never been any real change or advancement without sacrifice. Our own country was set free by the sacrifice of its people. Our founders, men and women alike, all made tremendous sacrifices to stand for freedom and truth. They put their lives at risk for themselves but even more importantly for future generations. Somehow we have walked away from this selflessness into selfishness and single generational world view. If we hate our present circumstances how can we not push forward to bring change for our offspring? Do we really want to pass this current world to our children? The sacrifice required to bring real change is not easy and will not always be pleasant. We will have to live in lack and will have to work hard. Our patterns of thought and priorities will have to change and we cannot be focused on what we have lost but on what we will gain. We will have to live a life of generosity and put our pride aside for the betterment of the whole. If we choose not to sacrifice we will be forced to live without. Our children will have to pay for our unwillingness. Keep this in mind next time you cry out for change, because all change is coupled with sacrifice but we will gain so much more then we ever sacrificed. 
        
                        

Your How Old?

            “WHAT? Your how old?” yelled the eighteen year old friend of my roommate’s when I told her my age. When did twenty-six become old? As a twenty-six year old woman living in the dorms of a major university some days you can feel the years creeping in. When I was eighteen I had a few friends who where in there mid to late 20s’. I would think they had plenty of time to get married, have a career, or have kids. They would talk to me how they should be farther in life and how they felt lost or behind. I thought they were crazy. In my mind age was just a number and as long as you were living your life for the moment then who cared what society thinks and what other people think you should be doing with your life. Fast forward eight years, I’m twenty-six, single, and a sophomore in collage living with people straight out of high school. Sure most days there is hardly a noticeable difference between myself and the younger students. We have a connection with the same goal in mind that evens the playing field. The average student usually never even knows I’m eight years older than them. Until I listen to there conversations about there lives and I realize they haven’t even begun to live. They are all standing at the beginning of life and looking forward to a future that looks so far away and not that important yet. They all want that future or at least know something will change someday but they aren’t at the place were they realize they have to do something to get to that future and they want that future, whatever that future is, badly. I was in collage looking for a future and I was surrounded with people who didn’t even know they were supposed to be looking for one. Not to say I would want to be them again with the constant pull of uncertainty of who you are and who you should be. Nor do I fell like I know more because I’m so much older and lived so much life, but I do know that your view of the world changes so drastically between eighteen and twenty-six. I remember looking forward and seeing my older friends and wishing I was where they were in life and wondering how in world did they get to that point. Now being at that point I am stuck between my youth and full fledged adulthood. My heart is ready to move forward but my head is completely confused. My head is still working in a childish view of adulthood but my heart is pushing me to have roots and expand. With this battle happening within I can't help asking myself, "Your how old?". Realizing I have no idea how I got here and how to move forward.