Blue-Eyed Breather

I'm all for people getting healthy and being in shape. I think exercise and eating right are important to living a full and vibrant life. However, people are all built differently. Some have a tiny bone structure, while others are naturally curvy. Some are short, others are tall. I could go on, but you get the gist. All these different people are beautiful and unique. However, our culture emphasizes the "need" to look a certain way and fit a certain ideal. No one will ever be satisfied with his or her appearance according to the world. It honestly breaks my heart.  Below is a letter I read on the huffingtonpost.com. It talks about the pressures on people (specifically young women) to be as skinny as possible. (Some skinny women struggle because they don't have the curves of a "real woman", but that's a different topic for a different day). Read the article below and think about how you can help shift people's perspective of beauty. God did not create...

Almost every CF patient has heard CF referred to as "65 roses" at one point in their lives. But how did the disease get such a beautiful sounding nickname? After all, the rose is the universal symbol of love. When you think of receiving a bouquet of 65 roses, you may even get a little giddy thinking about the person who cares for you enough to go out and buy that many of the flower of love. CF is obviously not a very kind disease to the body or to the family members and friends who know the CFer well; you wouldn't naturally associate CF with roses. However, here we are--many children and adults easily recognize cystic fibrosis and 65 roses as both referring to CF. The story of 65 roses touches hearts around the world. Below is the story of how CF got its nickname. As you read it, place yourself in Mary's shoes. In 1965 when this story occurred, the prognosis for a CF patient was not very good--most did not live to adulthood. The CF gene wasn't even found at this p...

What a beautiful week it's been! The sun has been shining, the temperature had been perfect, and there's a certain feeling of renewed life in the air. Of course, the cold will come back for a little while soon. It is January, after all. However, right now, I'm loving spending time outside with my God, enjoying His beautiful creation. I think one of my favorite things about this time of year is the feeling of the wind blowing around me. It reminds me of my faith. I can feel the wind and see its effects, but I can't actually see the wind. Similarly, I can't physically see God with my eyes, yet I can feel His love through reading the words of Scripture, quiet times in nature, times of honesty and vulnerability in prayer, hugs and encouragement from friends and family, and deep inner peace. I see God move and see how He changes lives. The evidence of God is everywhere as is the evidence of the wind. When I'm struggling with doubts or questions, I love going outsid...

I'm currently reading a book called Breathtaking , a book about one girl's life with cystic fibrosis. The author, Amber, was born in 1986, before the CF gene was even discovered. She was diagnosed with CF shortly after birth. Amber tried her best to live a normal life and even went to a semester of college, but by age 19, her pulmonary lung function was down to 19%, and she was on oxygen 24/7. She was listed for a double lung transplant, even though she tried very hard to stay as healthy as possible. The book is a collection of reflections from her friends and family about the struggles of life during and after the transplant, as well as many personal emails Amber sent to friends and family. I'm only partway through the book, but so far, I don't want to put it down. Amber has a contagious joy and loves the Lord with her whole heart. Even as she was preparing to possibly die, Amber's faith was never shaken (She's still alive today due to the miracle of transplant...

The beginning of a new semester is at hand. People are still excited about their classes, professors are getting used to new dynamics, and you see smiling faces everywhere. Of course, all of this changes as the semester goes on and students get frazzled, worried, and sleep-deprived. But the inevitable semester slump hasn't hit yet--we're just getting started!  Like most people, I enjoy starting off a new semester. I am excited about my classes (This semester, they are all either related to speech pathology or linguistics, which is fantastic since I am very interested in those things). I take (too much) joy in writing assignments and activities down in my planner. I even like getting all of my books and skimming through them to get an idea about the class.  However, I also like finishing a class. I love the feeling of accomplishment I get when I see the reward of hard work and studying. I am thrilled when I feel I understand the content I was supposed to learn. I love adding kn...

Three weeks ago today, I came home from my fall semester at Baylor. Little did I know what my break had in store for me.  The day after I got home, I got diagnosed with the flu. (Yes, I got the flu shot. I have gotten the flu shot every year of my life, yet somehow I've gotten the flu 7 of the past 8 years.) I started on two IV antibiotics and Tamiflu. I thought I was getting better, but the fever and a horrible cough came back suddenly.  I had an X-Ray, and my doctor decided I had acute pneumonia in the lower lobe of my left lung. I ended up in the hospital from December 30-January 3. I was on oxygen at night, and the doctor added a third IV antibiotic. Due to the third IV, I have been even more nauseous than I was previously and have thrown up on average once a day for the past 8 days.  Because I've been in bed for the last 3 weeks, I am incredibly weak. So weak, in fact, that I can't walk for 30 seconds without getting winded and needing to take a break.  ...and I...