Take a picture, it'll last longer

That title had nothing to do with the post, but I saw two posts in my blog feed with the same title, so I figured that I should jump on the imaginary bandwagon.
Really, the title should be "If I don't write this, it will irritate me to no end."
We had an epic quiz bowl tournament today in Indiana. Indiana is a little bit like Ohio in that it's mostly a corn field. We came in second in our division of varsity, which sounds a lot better than it is. Anyways, on the way home, we were playing Mafia, which I trust that you've played in some form before. If you don't understand it and have a burning desire to find out how to play, ask in the comments. While we were playing, I accused someone of being in the Mafia, as did a few other people. They had a chance to make a case for themselves, in which they said they didn't do it, then made the sign of the cross and said that they didn't do it and wouldn't lie about it. We all voted to convict them anyways, and shortly thereafter, they said (to no one in particular, or maybe towards me) that people didn't take religion seriously anymore. I was kind of dumbfounded.
If you take your religion so seriously, why are you bringing it into a game? It is just a game. It does not matter. If your religion is something that you do take seriously and it does matter to you, this is not the time to talk bring it into question. I said that I thought they were full of crap for pulling the "I'm a religious person" argument. There are a lot of religious people who have done bad things, significantly worse than trying to win a game. Saying that you follow a religion does not make you a good person, that's something you have to prove through your actions, not your label. No, it has nothing to do with what religion you choose to follow. There are people who have done bad things who have followed my religion too, and I'm not a good person simply because of my religion.
I'm done now.

You

You know who I am, because everything is out there, out there for you to read. Every little thing, everything I worry about, everything I want. Everything I dream of, you know it all.
On the flip side, I know nothing about you. That worries me, a little bit.

I don't want any of this. I don't want all this crap, I don't want my life to be complicated by everything that they're trying to bring in. I just want it, and I'm scared I'm scared that I will never get closer to it, and just be stuck here when everyone else keeps on going and going.

You and I need to talk for hours and hours. We used to do that, we used to be able to talk about everything. When was the last time that happened? It was a long time ago, it was probably in middle school. I don't want to lose you, but I feel like it's already been done.

Thanks

I'm thankful.
I'm thankful for my family, even though they can be irritating.
I'm thankful for the fact that I don't have to worry about the things that a lot of people have to worry about.
I'm thankful for the chance to get an education.
I'm thankful for my books and the places they can take me.
I'm thankful for my friends.
I'm thankful for my readers.
I'm thankful for my blog.
I'm thankful for QuizBowl.
I'm thankful for the art program at my school.
I'm thankful for my health.
I'm thankful for Debate, even if it hilights my hatred of research.
I'm thankful for my writing, because it makes it feel that, for just a moment, everything might be alright.
I'm thankful for the fact that my life allows me to spend all day sitting around, writing.
I'm thankful for the fact that I just won NaNoWriMo.

Reunited

I had a most excellent time at camp. I was a counselour at pioneer camp, which was for fourth through sixth graders. I could write ten more posts about what I learned, and you'll probably see them in the next month or so. But really, the exciting part is this:
My pants are back!
That sounds very strange, so I'll explain a little more.
Last year, I went on a kayak trip to Grand Island in Lake Superior. I had all my clothes packed in plastic bags, and my the bag that contained two pairs of shorts and one pair of pants went missing. So I wore the same pair of pants for the entire trip. It was gross. I had written these pants off as lost. Last night, the people who went on the kayak trip this year got back the assistant director of the camp, who went on the trip, had found my pants when she looked in the hatch of the tandemonium. This made me laugh. A lot. This is wildly awesome. It's like getting new clothes, but without the trying on a bunch of stuff part. Here's some pictures. Because I'm a fan of pictures.Also, commies know how to party.
Also, I have trouble knowing how to react to some situations. So, for right now, we're just going to act like everything's okay, even though it might not be. Right? Right.

News

I've been at camp for the past week, being trained in how to counsel children. I had a lot of fun. I kayaked across a lake. I slept outside and saw a million stars. I joked about stealing cheese from the Baptists. I got annoyed at another camp's bell. I was amazed by a pepper. I led people. I ate an otter snack. I got a bite from something on my eyelid. I was amazed at some people's ability to pay such attention to stupid things. I put my entire group through a tire. I got mosquito bites on my scalp and the backs of my upper thighs. I understood all the Bob Ditter jokes in the world. I had a lot of fun. You can see pictures here (the Counselor in Training one). I'm planning on going to Canoe Camp. There are scholarships available. Anybody want to come with me?
Michael Jackson is dead. Today, almost 16,000 children died from hunger related causes. Which is a bigger deal?
I got started on the WH stuff today. I am strangely proud of that, even though it's not that big of a deal. Whatever.
Hilariously stupid people: Yesterday, we had family over at my house for my grandma's birthday. My great-aunt was one of those family members. I don't really get along with her for numerous reasons. We had sponge cake for dessert (there is a dessert comment for another time) and she goes on this crazy rant about how the cake is upside down. In her mind, one should take the cake out of the oven and flip it over. She then states that the part that was on the bottom in the oven is now on the top, and this is wrong. Please note that she has assessed the status of the cake wrongly. The cake is currently placed on a plate in the same orientation as it was in the oven. My grandma says that yes, we generally flip this kind of cake, but it tastes the same upside down as it does right side up. My great-aunt goes on to say that my grandma is the only person there with a brain. Please note that she is yelling about a cake. Also note that she has previously baked a cake that had a similar consistency to sawdust, as several reviewers have stated. And people wonder how I feel about having all my family near me.
In other news, I'm seeing Food, Inc. tomorrow. This is what vegetarians watch, people. Dorky vegetarians, that is.

Anger

There are three main reasons that I blog about what I blog about. Confusion, anger, and excitement.
Today's the second one.
I wasn't planning on blogging today. I figured I would take the day off, spend it with family, get presents, eat food, whatever. However, I went to church last night, and one thing that I will never fail to blog about is church. Mostly how much I disagree with everything that they're saying, but whatever. One thing that happened tonight was that my pastor said something that I would consider to be very much against my beliefs. My pastor said that the only place where you'll be told to love your enemies is church. That wasn't the whole sermon, just one small part of it, but it's the part that hit me the most. I'm not affiliated with the church. I'm not a member, and I don't share many of their views. However, I try to forgive people. I try not to be hateful. I'm not perfect, I don't always forgive, but I do my best. It's true that I've been going to church for a while, so maybe that's why I try to forgive. It's also true that my parents have tried to teach me to be forgiving. It's also true that all sorts of factors go into something like that. It's also true that Christianity is not the only religion in the world, and religions in general teach similar things.
I feel like I haven't really gotten anywhere with this post, but it made me less angry, which is good.
Have a very merry Christmas.

Telling the truth

I feel like it's time to tell everyone something that I've been thinking about for a while. It has to do with politics, it has to do with morals, it has to do with religion.
I'm pro-life.
Let's think about it. I'm against the war, against capital punnishment, for healthcare for everyone, and vegetarian.
I'm also a Christian.
It seems like there is a certian brand of Christian, a certian brand of pro-life that has decided that they should be the ones representing all of us. They seem to think that Christians should have a certian set of political beliefs, ones that I don't share with them.
Labels sure are fun.
I guess I'm pro-choice too. Pro-choice in the way that I don't think that anyone's beliefs should influence anyone else's actions unless those actions are affecting them.
Basically, do your own thing. My religion shouldn't have anything to do with it.

Thanksgiving, yet again.

Remember last year how on thanksgiving eve I blogged about the interfaith service that I went to and how warm and fuzzy it made me feel? Well, I'm not going this year. Apparently this year, it's on Hubbel and West Outer Drive, which is like...dangerous. So no warm fuzzy feelings. Instead, we shall have a rant. Who doesn't love a good rant now and then?
The biggest issue that I have with the world right now is the war. I personally believe that war is never excusable. It's never okay, especially not this one. From what I can tell, the united states invaded Iraq because we were told that there were WMDs. Which there weren't. When we found out that there weren't wmds, we stayed there. I know that this is super oversimplified, but this isn't really about that. This is about religion. I don't understand how war can be okay from the views of any religion. Every religion that I know of says that it's bad to kill people. If it's bad to kill people, then how doe religious wars start? Why can't we just let each other be? Why do we keep on using religion to divide instead of unite? I think that the real cure for the problem of religion dividing would be education. Just teach people how much their different religions have in common, and then they might stop fighting, just for a second. How hard would it be to get all the world leaders to just talk. Not threaten each other with war and whatnot, but just sit their butts down and talk to each other. Maybe the real issue is that no one knows how to listen. None of us have a clue how to really pay attention to what the other countries and the other religions are saying to us. We need to change the conversation from us talking with them to us talking to an extension of us. What's the difference between us and us? Nothing. And when there's no difference between us and us, we all realize that it's not okay to kill each other over the little things.
Have a good Thanksgiving.

Who needs a title?

I went to church today. I thought there was Sunday school, but then I forgot that it was the first Sunday of the month, so there wasn't. Which meant that when i was done realizing that it wasn't happening and talking to people about it, I went and sat down in church with my mom and grandpa. The sermon was something about giving time and money, that's what this part of the year is all about. It was about being rich in relationships and experiences rather than stuff and money, I think. There was something in the bulletin about the Nooma video series and how people need real faith more than they need to dress up and go to church on Sunday.
And then it struck me.
This is so full of bullshit. No one needs this crap. No one in that sanctuary was being themselves. That sermon wasn't helping anyone.
None of us need to hear it, we need to do it. We don't want to have religion, we want to have faith. My church isn't giving anyone faith. My church gives religion and youth group and a sermon and cookies when it's over. It's just so fake. There's so much that isn't meaningfull or personal, you expect church to be the exemption. That's how church is supposed to be. It's supposed to be about God and about loving people. It just seems like religion is used for making money and starting wars. It's not helping anyone.
God doesn't care if you go to church. God doesn't care what religion you are. God doesn't even care if you spend all day writing children's books about killing him. If your God can be killed by a children's book, that's not a very big God.
It's not about the little stuff. What matters? What matters is how hard you tried to help the world around you.
Good night.

Thinking

Since my brain is a little...fuzzy, I have a post in list. More posts really should be in lists.

Things I learned at ASP

• Mining is to Knott County as Cars are to Detroit, if not more so.
  
• My church friends have dirtier minds than my school friends.
• I can take siding down.
• I am actually very short, compared to everyone else in my work crew.
• Helping people helps me a lot too.
• Humming really annoys some people. Who knew?
• Deep fried cheesecake is really, really good.
• Apparently southern cooking must involve one or more of the following: Excessive butter, deep frying, or biscuits.
• I really don't like gravy and biscuits. Shoot me.

Things I wrote while at ASP

• I could totally feel my arteries hardening, but it was absolutly worth it.
• Dirty joke marathon...Let's just say that I have been scarred for life.
• I've always wanted to ask God how He can let poverty and despair happen in the world. What's keeping you from asking? I'm afraid he'll ask me the same thing.
• The Creeper's ManGloves
• At the end of the day, it doesn't matter how much money you have or what your hair looked like or if you went to church enough or any of that. What people care about when it's all said and done is this; weahter or no you did your best to help and love everyone around you.
• It seems like people here really know what the important things are in life. It's so much simpler here.

Another Religion Post...

Okay. I got thinking about religion, and I kind of couldn't stop (just like Doritos) and I ended up wanting to write something about it. I couldn't figure out a way to work it into the current story, so I figured I'd post it here. Be prepared for a rant. Go grab snacks or tea or something. I'm having raspberry herbal, it's too late for caffeine.I'm Christian. United Methodist, to be exact. I don't know for how long that will be true, but at the present it is, and since the only thing we can be sure of is the present, I'll go with that.What religion are you? Would you still be of that religion if you hadn't been born into your family? Were you raised in that religion? Has there been anything that has confirmed your belief in whatever you believe in? Have you ever thought of converting? Have you ever had people try to convert/evangelize you? Have you really paid attention to what they have to say? Have you ever tried to convert/evangelize to someone?
I don’t think that I would be United Methodist if I wasn’t born into my family. However, I think out of all the varieties of Christianity, Methodism suits me the best. Really though, I don’t think I would be religious if my parents weren’t. It’s always interested me; peoples’ relationship with religion. My dad’s parents made him go to church every Sunday, and he rarely goes now. When he does go, it’s Christmas, Easter, or he’s going to the UU church. My mom’s parents wouldn’t make her go to church. I never knew this before tonight, but apparently when she was a teenager, they didn’t go to church much, but my mom went to church and was involved in youth group. There’s a lot of people who went to church when they were younger, but have stopped going, found something better to do on a Sunday morning. There are also people who grew up with atheist or agnostic parents, but are now devout.
I’ve been in this class on world religions and comparing them to Christianity. It’s been pretty interesting, but the video to go along with the class is kind of narrow minded, not to mention that I could have filmed it (using my mad movie skillzzzz, of course). It only covered six major religions-Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, and Christianity. The portions on Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam were all very focused on the history and central beliefs rather than the rituals of any of the religions. This week was the finale, Christianity. I brought one thing away from the video sermon, and that was that Christianity is for slackers.
Christianity is for Slackers.
He said how all many of the other religions had some sort of work to achieve eternal salvation involved, but with Christianity, Jesus just died on a cross, so you don’t need to work anymore. Is Christianity really for slackers? We give a free ticket to heaven to anyone who can accept Jesus as their savior (easier said than done). What if God decided that if you want to go to heaven, you have to pray five times a day? How many christians would actually make a point of interrupting their day to worship god? What if god wanted you to memorize scripture, whole books of the bible? Who would actually do it? I know that I probably wouldn’t do either- too time consuming, I have other things that I need to do, I don’t think that memorizing is a good way to learn things, the bible was written by people-not the direct word of god. There’s a whole host of excuses that I would use to get out of doing anything for my religion that I don’t feel like.

Does that mean that I don’t really believe in what I say I believe in? That I’m a fake, a poser?

A whole lotta questions.

Why do I have an obscene amount of icons/avatars/whatever you want to call them saved on my computer?
Why did I just cast on for an Urchin? I don't need any more wips! It must be the new yarn daze or something.
Why do *they* tell us about how we need to choose new schedules for next year, *then* they let us go ask teachers about classes, a week later?
What parts of our lives do we remember in the end?
What's worth doing?
Is it a really terrible idea to sign up for French III and French IV next year? Should I just take French III and Health?
Why is Pandora so freeking addictive?
Why was I so surprised that the sermon at the Unitarian Universalist church didn't involve God or Jesus?
Is that the first time I've heard a sermon that never referenced the Bible?
If everyone else in the world was dead and you could live anywhere you wanted, where would it be? Frank Loyd Wright's house? The white house? The Taj Mahal?
Why are stories so fun and easy to start, but terrible to write once you pass 8,000?
Does this sound really stupid? It's supposed to be a journal entry from an annoymous teenager. It's the most recent part of the story.

May 25 8^th grade

Dear you,

Do you ever wonder why we’re here? I wonder if some people are just born knowing this, or if we all have to figure it out on our own. If everyone has to figure it out on their own, they how come I seem like I’m the only one without a clue?

Why does everyone else make it seem so easy to do stuff? I can’t think of anything that just comes to me naturally, but it seems like everyone at school just has some god-given ability to be really, really good at something. Maybe it’s soccer, or hockey, or dance, or math, or English, or science.

Where did that miss me? Why didn’t I get something that I’m really really good at? I bet that the one thing I’m really good at is something totally useless, like knowing the name of every single car I see.

I guess that might be my superpower. It’s pretty much pathetic to have the one thing that you’re any good at be knowing car names. It’s not like that’s ever going to be useful in real life or anything. It’s entirely pointless to know

If you can answer any of the questions, put it in the comments!

Ummm. well...yeah

This post shall be in bullet points, because my brain won't function any other way.

• Quizbowl meet last night. Lost two games. Had one moderater who didn't know what she was doing.
  
• Debate states were on Saturday. Bala won (no surprise there). And it has been decided that "Boehme" shall be the worst insult that one could give to a debater. I totally messed up my second speech.
• Sciencel. I'm failing Earth Science. Earth Science is the lowest science offered by my Hi!School. It's like failing General Math.
• Geometry. I was failing Honors Geometry, so I switched to regular. And I'm doing fine now.
• French 2. Not doing amazingly, but I'm okay.
• Church. There's some stuff going on at my church that's a little messed up, so my mom and I will be going to a new church on Sunday. Not sure where yet, but...yeah...somewhere old and pretty, since those are my requirements for churches.
• I finished my second pair of socks on Sunday night.
• and I don't have a picture. Yet.
• I've read like three books
• But I've been so stressy that I can barely remember them.
• But Nineteen Minutes was one of them. It's amazing. You must read it.
• And The Knitter's Book of Yarn. 'twas okay.
• And Style and Fashion design. Or something like that. It was interesting. I want to be Ysolda if I grow up.
• I'm going to work on my geometry homework now.
  

Full of questions without any answers

The title does not illustrate anything new.
SouLLooN posted about this the other day, and I know the two people who he was talking about. That made me think about who is smart, and what is smart. Is someone who gets really good grades, takes pre-calc in their freshman year (I know some people who actually do this), takes two science classes every year, and is really good at school smarter than someone who can't read, but is really good at hands on stuff (I was thinking machinery type stuff, but substitute your own hands on thing)? Are people unable to get an education stupid? I don't think so, because in LEAP, we would always talk about how all people have a potential, even if the circumstances prevent them from reaching that potential, and why education is important. The teacher always used some uneducated orphans in Africa who could find the cure for cancer as an example, but I think the kid who has a high IQ, who hates school because school thinks differently than them is just like that. What is potential? For some people, they will make great discoveries, save the world, etc., and they may not have reached their potential yet. There are other people, for whom being a greeter at Mijer will be their potential, and if they reach that, good for them.
When I was trying to test out of health this past summer (I didn't pass, but nobody else did either), one of the things I was studying was Maslow's Hierarchy. I guess that I don't take an issue with his pyramid thingie, but the real thing I had issues with was the idea that about 1% of all people reach "Self Actualization" Which is apparently the peak of their ability or something. How depressing is the idea that, no matter how hard you try, chances are that you will never reach your full ability, and my other question is: who the hell determines your potential, and when you have reached it? I don't want to be judged by them (yeah, it's the U.S. Department of THEM), and they have no idea what my potential is. Me studying this got me so angry, the last time one piece of paper made me that angry, I was asked to design my own gravestone in conformation. Then I asked the teacher if I could go to the bathroom, then ran up to the library and cried. That was insensitive of them, but whatever.
Back on topic.
Some blogger (I am thinking it was Grumperina, but I might be wrong) had posted a 100 things about me list, and one of the things was something along the lines of "in an ideal socicety, where no one would judge me for wasting my brain, I would be a construction worker. I would operate the crucher." Is it fair that people who get good grades are expected to go to college and live fruitful lives, when many people wouldn't have an issue with a smart person who doesn't apply themselves not going to college and ending up flipping burgers (like what the counselours tell you will happen if you drop out of high school.)?
So, tonight I went to the second to the last class of the advent study class. There was this part of the lesson about what kind of spiritual relationship you have. I think the kinds were Contemplative, Intellectual, Creation, Worship, Service, and a few others. The one I identified most with was probably Contemplative. I'm not really into worship, and frankly, don't see the
point of it. Yeah, I like to dance at church, but I don't really consider it worship, it's just dance. I like to help others, but it doesn't make me feel close to God or anything. I guess that leaves Intellectual, Creation, and Contemplative. I think I'm mostly contemplative. I just need my alone time, and sometimes, I just need to stop and think about stuff.
Another thing touched upon today was the idea that inside every person, God resides. I guess that I don't really think of it that way. How would we treat people differently if we thought that there was a little chunk of God inside them? Would we judge less? Would we be nicer to strangers? Would we ask "Can I help you?" Would we be more open with our feelings?
Yeah, still no clue what I actually believe. But this class makes me feel a little more...comfortable with the notion of God. I probably would never go to church if not for the minister who teaches this class, and my Sunday school class.
In other news, the Yarn Harlot is knitting crazy socks.

I love Christmas...

This is exactly how much you can knit on your modified Widdershins by bedtime if you cast on Christmas day and knit every time you want to yell at/shoot someone. I got the needles, along with a ton of yarn to dye for Christmas. I also got Socks Soar on Two Circular needles, and The Knitters Book Of Sweater Patterns, which will be pretty useful for designing.
Btw, I made up the cable pattern. It's called Crashing Cables for the time being.
See that dramatic blurring around the edges? That is courtesy of my new wonderful shiny photoshop. I love it. This is Lichtenstien chilling on the advent wreath at church on Christmas eve. My family was lighting it, and I learned that my brother is incapable of lighting a candle. 'twas hilarious.
I hope you all had a very merry Christmas.

My head is *such* and interesting place to be...and religion

That's a large piece of paper on my wall. I write my ideas on it. Is it part of human nature to have an uncontrollable urge to share things. Not tangible things, but stories, and information. What makes us like that? We're all storytellers, really. Maybe you don't write stories. Maybe you stick everything inside your head because you think that it bugs people when you go off on tangents about that one time your dog was running around in the snow and you tried to make a snow angel and then your mom let the dog out and you almost got your mittens bitten off and then the dog jumped on your chest and there was snow in your face and then you realized that there was a very small chance of ever being able to make a snow angel with your dog outside. Or something like that. See, you guys were all dozing off during that little story, and people wonder why I tend to not say things unless someone else expresses an interest in knowing whatever I have to say. Or if I get slap-happy. Which happens with alarming frequency. Why do we still tell stories if so few people out there actually want to here them? The point is, we all tell stories, even if it's just you rambling, spilling your guts to the population of the Internet, sending epic emails to friends about your ex-boyfriend and what a **** he was, making what could be considered a photo-essay all about the weird things your cat does, whatever. The point is, humans are almost made to be storytellers.
What shapes who we are? I used to be quiet. I actually used to be a shy person, and so many people are surprised by that. Someone in quiz bowl thought that I'd changed so much since I was in his class in sixth grade. He thought I was shy (I think he said this in one of those slap-happy moments).
On the list of things that bug me is this:

That's a picture of Jesus, right? What are the chances that Jesus actually looked like that? In my mind, Jesus looks much more like the kind of person who would be thought of as a terrorist than that. *I do not mean that Jesus is a terrorist. I mean that my mental image of Jesus looks much more middle eastern than he does in this picture* He looks white! Also, referring to God as "He". We have no proof that there is a God at all, much less a male God, or a God that even takes a human-like form. How can we say that God looks like that? That's almost like how there are very few women in the Bible, and most of the ones who are in the Bible are in there because they slept with someone important, or because they gave birth to someone important. Or if they're Esther or Ruth. I am now realizing the disturbing lack of facts for everything I've said here. Oh well. Feel free to refute my arguments in the comments. If you feel that I'm bashing your religion, I'll apologize in advance. A lot of my opinions about my religion were formed by the terribly closed minded conformation class that I took last year. My mentor (Who, funnily enough, had been Methodist for less time than I had) and I talked about some...interesting things. Let me go find my binder to show you.
Here it is. It's basically a worksheet of random questions to get the gears turning in your brain (or something) I've italicized all of the stuff that was actually printed on the worksheet, and my answers to the questions are written normally
4.Christian friends can help each other stay in touch with God by
Why are Christian friends so much better than just normal friends?
5.In my friendship with you, you have helped me to
Think openly
6.Friendship with god is a lot like other friendships. Spending time with God helps keep our friendship going. Prayer is a way to spend time with God. If someone asked me to describe my prayer life, I would say
Nonexistent
7.I could improve my ability to pray if I would take the time to
Pray
After you have talked about the above items, take time to pray in silence
*First, think about God's awesome love and greatness
*Express things that your are thankful for.
*Ask God to forgive you for things you have done of have failed to do
*Ask God to help you and others you know who need God's guidance.
The rest of the worksheets in the book proceeded in a similar manner, and my answers were just as smart-assed as they were here. Come to think of it, if I took conformation class now, I would be so much more cynical. Not terribly surprising, is it?
Oh my, here's an even more smart assed worksheet. Woah. I was a little...just wow
1.I believe that being active in my church will help me to
Nothing
2.I believe it's important for a person to be baptized because
It's not
3.I believe that receiving Holy Communion helps me to
Spill grape juice on the carpet
4.I believe that using my talents and financial resources in the work of god is important because
Um. Gods work-another opinion
5.I believe that it's important to be confirmed because it shows that I
can conform
6.I believe that god has given me the ability to
Think on my own
7.I believe that god wants me to
teach others to think
8.I believe that doubts and questions about faith help us to
question
From this, I think it's no wonder why I didn't get confirmed. Who knew I was so...sarcastic at such a young age?

P.S. I got my wish! SNOW!

Outside the Comfort Zone...

Woah. I just stepped way outside my comfort zone. I'll start this story at the beginning. Every year we usually go to the Thanksgiving Eve service for the interfaith group that my Church and many other churches in the area belong to. The service moves from church to church every year. I wouldn't call it a very diverse experience, as just about everyone there is Christian or Jewish. This year, they changed the Thanksgiving Eve service to Sunday night, and my Mom thinks that there should be a Thanksgiving Eve service on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, not on a Sunday night. We ended up not going to that Thanksgiving service. My mom stumbled across another, much more diverse Thanksgiving Eve service in the area. It was held at a Gurdwara (Sikh house of worship) I'd never been to one before, so that was interesting. there were people from many different religions, such as Sikh (Obviously), Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity, Judisiam, Baha'i (ism?), Islam, and Native American. It was really interesting to see all these different traditions. Most of the prayers and such had the common messege of "One God. Be nice to people. Worship God." The religion that I learned the most about was probably Sikh. It was an interesting, new experiance, and I felt pretty odd to be sitting on the floor, barefoot in a place of worship. Apparently after all weekly services, the Sikhs have a meal, which was pretty good.

Things like this restore my faith in humankind. If we realize that all these religions belive things that are so much alike, we begin to question why we fight at all. We belong to the human family.