My Purpose

But for this very purpose have I let you live, that I might show you My power, and that My name may be declared throughout all the earth. Exodus 9:16

I really can’t think of a better way to explain all of the “purposes” of my life than to make a list and explain. I feel like there is no one person on this earth that is limited to one purpose. Of course, for most religions, like my faith in Christ, there is a one main purpose. That is to be a disciple of your beliefs to others around you, but that provides another bigger list with the purposes associated with your faith.

Purpose # 1: Like I said before, I believe that my main purpose is to share the Word of the Lord. My Savior created me to share His love to ones who don’t believe. I am here to always honor his name in EVERYTHING that I do! Also, it is to trust in Him. I may fall and I may be down, but He is always there, knowing and understanding every single part of me. He knows me better than I ever will know myself and my love for Him is indescribable! I’m brought to tears just trying to write my love for Him down!

Purpose # 2: Though my number one is my entire life and eternal purpose, I know that I have earthly purposes as well. The biggest one for me now is my love for my friends and family. After going through some rough times, (death of a friend, break-up, etc.) I've truly begun to start realizing how much friends and family mean to me. When being tested in my life, I've learned what kind of people I want to surround myself with. My family, even though we all have our moments, is my rock. They are ALWAYS there for me when I need to cry or when I need to blow off some steam. Having such a supportive family is something I could never imagine functioning without! When I start giving up my parents are always there to give me the encouragement and motivation to keep up. Looking back on 18 years, I wish I would have listened to their advice more! (Something I will never ever admit to them!) Along with family, I've been blessed with some of the most amazing friends. The friends I've made at Aurora are ones that I want to keep forever; I want to always be the friend to them that they are to me now.

Purpose # 3: This one is something that I have started to realize while in high school; it’s leadership. Being a leader, whether silent or up-front, is never an easy thing to do. You have to be strong, bold, diligent, and trustworthy. Your values like integrity, honesty, and straight-forwardness have to illuminate in the things that you say and do. There is no margin for error, one big mistake and your reputation is out the window. You can say something 1000 times but if your actions don’t meet up, those words were a waste of breath. Leadership, to me, is a number of different things: It’s speaking your mind when you know something is not right, being an example for younger kids looking up to you, and jumping in to every available opportunity that might benefit your future. Leadership is not innate; it’s something you have to practice every day. You live it, breathe it, and speak it. It comes in countless forms and cannot be limited to any one person.

Purpose # 4: Last but not least, my purpose is to have fun in everything I do. I like to make light out of every situation I am in and to make it enjoyable for others. I don’t understand the people who can’t find good in anyone or anything. My feeling is that there is a choice to make; you can either do it with a smile on your face or not at all. I know I haven’t been perfect at showing positivity in everything I have done, but my purpose is to fix that! Also, fun doesn't have to be going out and getting high and wasted every weekend; fun is laughing and being with friends! The most fun times for me are when I know that I’m doing the right thing, I feel like I never have anything to worry about. I want others to understand that there are legal ways to have fun!

Where I am! (Part 2 :D)

                       You're probably wondering why I am writing another post on where I am. It could be one of the following two things: I have a burning passion to write 750 word essays on where I am, or my last post was the same exact thing that I wrote for an elective essay in my Composition class.... Yup! It’s the second one! Apparently you aren't supposed to do that. :/

            When proceeding to dive into a deeper explanation on the place that I live and how it has made me who I am, I won’t lie that I was thinking it would be hard for me to describe all those details in different ways. I tend to be a little redundant in my first few drafts of any writing that I do but here it goes:

            Aurora flipping Nebraska; I love it here! I can’t imagine how any other place in the world could be a better spot to raise a family. The town itself is classy, clean, and kept-up while the people who inhabit it are kind, respectable, and good-hearted humans. Most of the people here want the next generation to succeed and the leaders of the community provide numerous activities and opportunities for us students to discover who we are and what we are good at. Off the top of my head I think of the teachers at Aurora Public Schools, the small business owners who employ young adults in the community, and the parents who support the life-changing decisions that are made throughout these crucial high school years! Just about anywhere I go, and anything I do in the community I can find someone who is looking out for my best interests.

            One of the greatest, yet saddest memories that I will always associate with the town will be when I think about when my friend Jacob died. It was an miserably sad experience, but looking back I can reflect on how the whole town seemed to come together for a while! Not everyone knew him, but I would assume that at least 90% of the people knew of him! The support for his family provided by the community is something you could never get in a city.

            I have never felt like I am in danger here. Though the law enforcement here may seem a little overprotective to some, they do a phenomenal job of keeping out the bad and protecting the good. Of course, every once in a while there is a drug bust and maybe a robbery in town, but those events are few and far between. My parents truly chose one of the safest towns in Nebraska!

            When working at the local 40 room motel, located right off the highway that passes through town, I’ve met many people, different in many ways. One thing that I found almost all of them have in common is their surprise for this town. It’s generally not a place that an out-of-stater would want to spend a family summer vacation, but the activities and involvement among the community take those people by surprise. They didn’t expect a little motel with dirt cheap rates to have such simply nice rooms. This is definitely comparable to the town itself. From the outside it may seem like there isn’t a whole lot going on here, but the community involvement and activities available are almost unlimited! This is due to the good-hearted people who volunteer to provide entertainment at special events, and people who work the three dollar movie theater every weekend, expecting nothing in return!

            I love my school! I feel like I can completely fit in and be the way I naturally am when walking through these halls. The teachers and administrators want me, and the rest of the students, to develop into successful adults. They never hesitate to explain a little more, whether it be after class or during a lecture, to someone who doesn’t understand. They really go the extra mile. Some could say that they are only doing it for their glory and because they have to, but the teachers in Aurora aren’t like that. They care, and in return, most of us students notice it and decide to return the full effort.

            Aurora may not be the flashiest town out there, but it’s one that is so special to me. If I don’t return here when I start my family, I know that I will want to live in a classy town just like this one. It would be hard for an outsider to ever understand what it is like here, unless they have been here. It’s not snobby, but instead filled with God-fearing and hospitable people. The next time you pass through Aurora don’t regret not stopping by one of the museums and maybe grabbing a bite to eat at one of the restaurants, it will be worth it!

My School and Community :)

My State :)

Where I Am and The Journey That Went Along With It

       40. 87° N, 98.00° W; these are the coordinates from which anybody in the world who is looking at an atlas would identify as Aurora, NE. I’m going to assume that almost 100% of people living on planet Earth have never heard of the small, rural town consisting of about 4,500 happy people. That number doesn’t even compare to the amount of people living in the bigger Auroras in other states like Colorado or Illinois. To an outsider it is nothing more than a place to stop for a restroom break and a gas fill-up, but to someone who lives here, it’s an experience few words can describe. I truly believe that if I would have ended up anywhere else thus far, I would not be near the person that I have grown to be. 

            I haven’t always lived in Aurora. I was born in Austin, Texas and I love to brag about it despite only residing there for the first seven months of my life. After being homesick and missing their families, my parents decided to raise me and my future siblings in good ole Nebraska. Some might question why anyone would want to live in such a wide open and boring state when all the opportunities exist in bigger cities that are in flashier states. My parents knew all along what they wanted; that was to bring their kids up the way they were brought up, here in Nebraska.

            We moved to Kearney; a conservative, classy, college town where we would receive advantages in both the small town feel and the big town events. Within the next seven years three younger siblings were born. We would spend winters building snowmen and sledding with my and summers would include playing in the sandbox and backyard camping. God bless my parents for putting up with four small children at one time! I can remember every day on our way to school my dad, sister, and I would pass the University while dad would tell us stories of his college experiences and the ones that we should expect as well. My sister and I would always laugh and say that college is so far away for us. Little did we know that it was just around the corner!

            After ten fantastic childhood years my dad took a job in Grand Island. Sadly, we had to abandon our familiar lives and pick up to pursue a life 45 minutes away (three lifetimes in a child’s mind). This is the timeframe in my life that I generally like to skip over completely while I recap my past years. Even though we had bought a brand new house in a quiet neighborhood, it’s safe to say that none of us felt at home. I don’t know if it was because of the city being about twice the size or missing our good friends we left behind, but none of us were happy. I felt out of place and awkward at my new school. It took quite a while before I finally started to settle in and make some friends. I was finally getting adjusted.

            What happens next? Well, of course my parents would decide to relocate again! They hated the school we were attending and could see that we weren't coming anywhere near our academic and social potentials. Much to my disbelief, my parents decided that Aurora, about 20 miles down highway 34, would be the best place to reach those potentials. You can only imagine how livid I was with this second move. I had felt like I was finally getting used to my life and it was like BAM, we move again.

            I wish I would’ve gone in with more of an open mind. I was just about to start middle school, and may I say that people can be so mean during those years, so it only made the transition harder . . . or at least in my mind. There are only three people I specifically remember that first day, Emily Braun; with her blue plaid bermuda shorts, Natasha Hongsermeier; who let me sit by her during the first day of school kick-off, and Milayna Mckinney; my neighbor. I found myself meeting numerous students and teachers who truly wanted to help me feel comfortable. Yes, of course there were those immature boys who would pick on anyone for anything, but the girls were mostly pretty nice. I could tell almost instantly that I would enjoy spending the rest of my pre-college time in this school.

            By the time my freshman year had started, I had really come out of my shell. I realized that people are either going to love or hate me for who I am and there is not much I can control about it. I found myself making plenty of friends through sports and other activities and enjoying the new freedoms that high school displayed. I know that if I would have gone anywhere else, I wouldn’t be involved anywhere near the level that I am now. Through school sponsored activities I learned the importance of staying involved, keeping out of trouble, and remaining on good terms with everyone I met. The Aurora schools, without a doubt, stress those three main topics, hoping to receive success from each and every student. To them, we aren't a student body, we are all individual people who learn and achieve on different levels.

            Knowing now that I only have about eight months left in this school system, I contain a plethora of mixed emotions. I’m excited to start something new but it saddens me to think of what I’m leaving behind. If I could only explain to all of my peers what they have been blessed with as far as the people and learning environment we are surrounded by, I would in a heartbeat. I wish to return here once I’m getting ready to start my family in order to ensure an achieving atmosphere within my children’s’ lives. I thank God that he put me here, the happy little town of Aurora.

Family Tradition

Christmas with my mom's family :)

Butterfly Kisses by Brad Carlisle

Life Soundtrack

Deep Map

Who I Am!

My goodness… could there be any deeper of a question than who am I? I don’t know how I can describe all the little things about me in 750 words. There are definitely plenty of things that I’m not. I know I’m not a criminal, an atheist, or a liar. Who I am and what I stand for are some deep things that I have to ponder. It ‘s obvious that I am my father’s daughter, my classmate’s friend, and my teachers’ student but I am so much more than that as well. The beginning of discovering who I am was kind of like a brand-new, unopened book. I may appear a certain way on the outside and ultimately that’s the thing that will first attract people to me but there is a whole world of stories, adventures, dreams, and jokes inside.

I probably come off as an outgoing, outspoken, and fun-loving person to most people but that isn't around everyone and definitely not right away. I can be very shy and at a loss for words when I am around people I don’t really know. I love having people’s attention but not too many people.. I’d freak out. I love meeting new people and making new friends but I absolutely dread that awkward first few times I am around somebody that I don’t know. When I am trying to make a good impression I generally keep quiet and speak respectfully but when I start to really open up and show my true colors I'm a plethora of sarcasm and jokes. I love more than anything in the world to make people feel great and hearing someone laugh at the things I say couldn’t be a better feeling for me. I enjoy that moment when I realize that a friend is really opening up to me, it is sensational.

I am a bad mix of procrastination and time anxiety, but when I set my sights on something that I’m determined to finish well, it will. I get frustrated when I don’t know how to do something but it can be hard to get me to stop once I do know how. When I truly care about an outcome I put my whole heart into it and I cant help but let it completely consume everything that I do. When the reward comes for the hard work, like a good grade or a varsity letter, I get motivated to only do more, and better!

I am my Savior’s child. I love my Lord and my faith more than anything and everything.  I do it all for His glory. He put me on this Earth to spread the Word and everything I do represents Him. That is why it is so important to me to be kind to everyone. Whether we like to admit it or not, we all give and receive judgment upon each other so if I represent my faith in a good way by doing what I know is right then that reflects well on Him and possibly inspires non-believers to believe. I give Him praise and He gives me undeserved blessings. I may be discouraged at times but after I say a quick prayer I always feel better. I cant even describe in words who or what my Savior is to me but I know that I am for Him and by Him.

The recent tragic death of my friend Jacob has really inspired me to be a better me. He had the determination to do well in absolutely anything… and I mean ANYTHING! If he didn’t win it, he didn’t do it. Though I’m not near as hardcore as he is, I have been dedicated to making myself better. It’s almost been a year since he passed away but his legacy still lives on. He showed me how to look for the best in everyone and taught me a lesson on invincibility.. or the lack there of. I want to be remembered like he was… not by his disease, but by the tremendous fight that he put up for it.

I guess that in a nutshell I am nothing spectacular, but everything I do I put my heart into it. I'm not going to lie.. this was incredibly hard to write. I had never really had to explain to a stranger exactly who I am but I hope that by reading this one can get the general idea. Thanks for reading this incredibly drawn out and wordy post on who I am!