#JUST BECAUSE I DONT THINK ITS NORMAL TO SAY ALL RELIGION IS MIND CONTROL OR WHATEVER DOESNT MEAN IM UP HERE CHATTING WITH THE HOLY GHOST

[blueskittlesart]

If there is a God, what do you think He is like?

i’m agnostic babe i don’t know or care

[hexellentlearningwitch]

Witchtypes and Crafts

Merry meet. And welcome to this long long post. Since I am new to witchcraft I am currently researching a lot. And one of those topics I am researching is the Types of Witches and their Crafts. Since that is on every List for the New witch to research. Right after History of Witches. Maybe I will make a Blog about the History as well. Later, when I have more Informations on it.

Some hints for this Post:

1: this List is not complette.

2: No witch is just one Type. Labels are nice and give a good Sense of Order. But most Witches have more then one way to do their magic. So Mix Types are usual in my experience.

3: It is mostly about where the witch is focusing on and what she works with.

4: Changing your "Type" is possible and maybe even good. Maybe you will find a way for magic you didn't even new existed. Try it out.

5: If I am presenting something wrong, please tell me. I will change it. We all can learn from each other.

6: if you know another Kind of Type that is not on the list, feel free to reblog and/or comment.

7: several names for one Kind of Type happens. So dont wonder about it if you know the Type but under a different Name.

8: there are alot of them. And some go into each other. But are their own Type. So I Made some Kind of big categories. I hope you can follow me through this all.

9: I wrote all of this in my Book of Shadows. There I just got a little Checklist. Not the Text Version like I am giving you here. If you want the short Version just write to me and I will see what I can do.

Now to the actual List of Types. There are a lot of them. So buckle up.

1. Eclecctic Witch

Just because eclecctic has a negative ring to it in some languages (German for instance), doesn't mean that these Witches are uncreative. This witch Pulls their Pratcises from many other different types, depending in what they want, need and can do. No eclecctic witch is like another.

2. Hedge Witch / Liminial Witch

These witches concentrate more on the In-Between Places. Astral Projection, Spiritual Places and Dream Magic are very common for them.

3. Green Witch / Nature Witch / Garden Witch

You can meet these Witches outside. Plants and Nature are there Expertise. The Garden is normally the centrum of their magic.

- Wild Witch

A special Form of the Green Witch. This Wild Witch is not feral. No. They just love the wilderness and the nature in its free Form. Tamed and orderly kept gardens are not so their thing. She Feels much more connected to the wilderness, where humans have not meddled.

- Forest Witch

Also a special Form of the Green or Nature Witch. These Witches love their Woods and Forests. Trees are Essential for them and their magic.

- Weather Witch / Storm Witch

If it as a Storm, Rain or just the sunshine, these Witches know how to work with the weather and what enegies they can harvest and use. From what I read these Witches seem to Prefer the rain and wind, with the occasional ligthning Strike. That is why there are also known as Storm Witches.

- Ozean / Sea Witch

The first thing that comes to the mind when you hear Sea Witch would be Ursula from Ariel. (I personally have bad relationship with her... oh childhood you follow me everywhere). But Ursula is giving a pretty crooked Picture for these witches. They focus on the Tides. And who rules over those? The Moon, correct. Trying to seperate the Ozean from the Moon wont work. And these witches also use the storm magic like the Weather Witches. Of course more focused on the sea weather. Sadly bot every Sea Witch is so lucky to live near the Ozean. Other great water bodies work as well for them. A Lake or a sea work as well.

4. Kitchen Witch

One of the most well known and beloved witches today. Not surprising. Food is something we all love and cherish. But for these witches their Kitch and their food are their Kingdom and sacred place. They love to cook or bake. New Recipes and creating their own, that is something they enjoy.

- Garden Witch

This witch is equally well known and often very close with the Kitchen Witch. The Herbs from the Garden are not only being used in the tea, but also made into little bags and bundels. In German you may know here as a “Kräuter Hexe”.

- Cottage Witch / Hearth Witch / Personal Space Witch

This type of Witch concentrates her magic on her home. Cozy and Safe, that is her motto. They need a safe and sacred place, which is their home. This witch often overlaps with the Kitchen and Garden Witch.

5. Healer Witch

The Healer or healing Witch uses her magic mostly for - well - healing. Like the name indicates. Selfhealing or the healing of others: The Witch Doctor is IN and waiting for their next patient.

6. Crystal Witch

A very common witch. And don’t I understand it. These little guys are pretty and gourgeous and very useful and powerful. Crystal, Gem, Jewels or just a plain rock. These witches knows a lot about them and how to use them. You could say the crystals are the “foundation stone”.

7. Divination Witch

This Witch concentrates her magic on the subconscious and their intuition. And uses them to predict the future. Just because of that, they don’t think that everything is set in stone. They know very well of the free Will and the power it holds and wields. Tarot, Palm reading and others. There are many ways and options to get a glance into the future. But be careful, you might not like what you get to see.

8. Empath Witch

I personaly found this witch very relatable for me and found myself reflected. This Witch concentrates on their emotions and Intuition. They can pick up all kind of energies, vibes and moods (of a room, person, animal, you say it), read them and work with them

9. Mental Witch

The mental witch fascinated me immediatly, when I heard from them. And it demanded immediatly a lot of respect from me. The way they are using their magic is purely mentally. That means no physical counterpart. Complete concentration and a lot of Imagination are needed and necessary. That is why it is an incredible hard magic. I can imagine how quick bad things can turn out, just because you are not in complete control of your thoughts while you work your magic...

10. Cosmic Witch / Astrology Witch

These witches are living with the Nightsky and are constantly working with him. Not just the moon, the stars and the plantes are an important part as well in this witchcraft. With the phases it is very diverse over the year.

- Lunar / Moon Witch

They focus on the moon. And they look how it affects them. Their power comes and goes with the moon.

- Solar Witch / Sun Witch / Day Witch

This witch works only on the day and rises and goes with the sun. The night is not for them at all. The Sabbats and the Summer Solstice are their Highpoints of the year.

- Nocturnal Witch

As the name suggest, these witches are the complette opposite of the Solar Witch. The Night is their Kingdom.

11. Cultural / Traditonal Witch

This is a group of many different tipes and stiles, put under one label. From Nordic to african and egypt. The Homeland and the culture and traditions (Heritage) from there are a solid and important Part of their Craft

- Religious Witch

This one is pretty simple and normaly just an addition (like I said way up, most witches are a mix of many types). This witch gets in contact with their God, Godess or Gods in her magic, makes it a part of it. All Religions can be combined with Witchcraft. Christianity or Buddhism, a religious witch can find a way to get the higher ups involved.

- Wicca

You probably heard already from these Witches. Wicca is neopagan religion and is using a lot of old models and musters in their ways to live.

Nice sentence to remember from Skye Alexander: Every Wicca is a Witch, not every Witch is a Wicca.

- Ancestral Witch

This witch lives close with their family and the ones that came before them. A Family tree will be found somewhere, I am sure. And it will be up to date. They have a close bond with their Ancestors and are communicating with them.

- Necromancy Witch

No, this witch doesn’t raise the dead and doesn’t creates Zombies (why can I hear the sigh of disapointment...?). But they comes easily in contact with the deceased. And blood realtion is not needed for them. The Graveyard is a place of serenity and company for these witches.

- Hereditrary Witch

To be this kind of witch, you need a witch in your family that teached you their craft. Grandmother or uncle, who it is was and is, is not so important. Passed on Spells and Recipes from Generation to the next Generation. Maybe our Children or nieces and nephews will learn the witchcraft from us and with that will be carring on. (Just think, the spell you created might be still used some Generations later. Quite Impressive)

- Ceremonial / Ritual Witch

This witch loves Ceremonies and Rituals to bring their magic into the world. Rules and clear procedures, which makes them the opposite to the Chaos Witch, a Type that will be described later.

12. Elemantal Witch

Like the name says, these witches a working mostly with the elements and their spirits.

- Air/Fire/Water/Earth Witch

These Witches have specialised themself on one Element. The one they feel connected with. The Reason is only important to the relationship and how it will be expressed.

- Fairy / Fae Witch

I hardly now anything about these witches. Just that they work with the faes. That’s about it.

- Dragon / Draconic Witch

I don’t know a lot about these witches as well, saddly. Just that they work with the dragons, and with the fire.

- Pact Witch

These Witches make contracts with a lot of magical creatures and other beings. How these pacts look like differs not only from witch to witch, but is also different depending on the partner of the contract and their relationship.

13. Shadow Witch

One of the first witchtypes I looked into more. They use Shadow Work. Now what is that? It is about knowing yourself, all sides and facettes. The good and the Bad. And to shine a Light on them to work on and with them. The Subconsciousness is incredible important for them. And Meditation and Reflexion are frequently Methods for them.

14. Warrior Witch

These witche have an incredible urge to be activ and are protectiv. Like the Name tells you these witches are not afraid to fight for what they believe in. They have a strong and good Sense for what is right and what is wrong. Ethic and Morality are a Talent of theirs.

15. Chaos Witch

I mentioned this witch a litle earlie, that they are the opposite of the ritual Witch. They are untraditionel and love to think outside the box, because of that their magical praxis is nothing like the “schoolbook”. Flexibel and spontan are here a key. Also the changing of their way of magic is usual and not weird at all. The Genius overlooks the Chaos.

16. Modern Witch

- Tech Witch

If it is the Smartphone or the Laptop, this witch understands Technologie and knows how to use it in and with their magic.

- Urban / City Witch

This witch loves the Big Cities. The more people on one place, the better. The engery that exists there is easily used by these witches. But also the tram or cars are part of their everyday magic.

- Pop Cultural Witch

Who doesn’t know them? The new witches and wizards. Harry Potter, Sabrina, and who not and whereever they are. Magic always fascinated humans, even so it has it spooky side (or exactly because of the spooky side). Because of this fascination it became easily part of our stories. Fantasy. But most things in witchcraft happen in the head. Spells and Potions from these fantasy stories are brought to live and into reality by the Pop Cultural Witch, not exactly and to 100%, but you can see the connection and the inspiration they found. Maybe some even found their way to real witchcraft through the Pop Cultur?

- Art Witch

These witches are artists. Drawing, sketching, writing, sewing, singing and many other things with their Art they not only express themselfs, but bring their magic into the world.

- Music / Rythmis Witch

The sound of a heartbeat, a poem, drumbs or even just dancing and so much more is part of this witchcraft. Rythm is in their lives and their magic, a real beat. Loud or quite, it doesn’t matter. They will bewitch you with their beat and sound of their magic.

- Color Witch

The Colors of the wind. Well, yes. These witches are colorful. Their favourite color? Better buckle up for a lecture over two hours long, about colors and their meanings and the intentions they have. These witches know their colors. When you know one, look at their clothes they are showing you, the colors will gladly tell you what is currently on your friends mind and happening in their live.

- Sigil Witch

Sigils are the key and shield for these witches. If old ones or just created from the spot. There is hardly a situation this witch will not have a sigil ready to be drawn. And if they encounter one, they will create just the right one.

Well. That was the list. For now.

My head is mushy and is running in circles, I bet yours is not different.

If I did get anything wrong, I am terrible sorry. Just comment or write to me about it and I will correct it. After all, learning from each other is one of the most important things we can do.

By the way, It could be that there are spelling and gramma errors. My mother language is not english, and I was not very good while I was in school. Now I am catching up, by reading and listening and watching almost everything on english. But writing it is quite different. So just correct me and I will be able to get better at it, too.

I do hope I could help a little with this list and didn’t bring more confusion...

Until next time, my dear ones.

Your hexellent learning witch.

[bloopbyoop]

weep woop

ayo. ive read my scheduled email and its time for freewriting shit again. lmao. I want this post to be like a small light from a lit match stick inside a very hollow, icy, and numbing cave. (sounds cartoonish right? I know. Im obsessed with Adventure Time.) I want all people to be genuinely happy.  Spiritually, emotionally, and physically. Upon reaching my 24th anniversary in this world, I finally learned how to truly embrace all my emotions. Some are more overwhelming than the other, but we have to heed in our treacherous yet perplexing minds that everything is fleeting and we are in control. The feeling of extreme sadness fades, but so does joyful states. Everything can change in a matter of minutes or years. You are in control of all your emotions. You are in control of all your life choices. Your actions. Your words. Your perspective. It feels weird to actually write about it. I've wanted to talk about it. I never wanted help from anyone as I firmly believed that I was alone. Sure, I have a family and friends, but it is hard to see that when your head is clouded with negativity. I've even come to the point where I was too overwhelmed, I found being physically hurt less painful. The pain I felt distracted me from what I was thinking. My mind tended to go bonkers. lmao. But bro, I was so good at concealing my bonkers mind. It's easy to fake any emotion that you have. Slap anything sunshine-y or happy to anything and people would believe you. It went on for years. Long story short, thousands of bracelets collected, it became worse. The physical pain could no longer withhold the emotional pain. Couldn't sleep. Couldn't stop thinking. And voila! I found a good amount of self help books (from tumblr) and novels. Novels that brought me to different places. Self-help books that made me understand what I feel and what to do. I've read that taking the easy way out will leave everyone sad. AND IN THE FIRST PLACEEEEEE, I NEVER WANT THATTTTTTT. I want everyone to be happy. I would act foolish and do dumb shit to make everyone happy in a heartbeat. So, that idea made me push a few more years. Later on, the crippling shit came crawling back again to my head, sooooooo I needed new shit to keep me distracted again. Films, series, music, and short clips from YouTube helped me out a lot. Every single time that my mind is going to think like anything that can think of, even to the point that I was just going to think that I might be hungry, I'd watch something. There's just something about silence for me. Because of this new habit of mine, I've learned more about myself. I love different types of things. I like horror. I like thriller. I like comedy. I like romance. I love all types of films, but there is something about the horror genre that interests me. I still can't point out what, but I love watching horror films. With regards to music, I've learned that I love Indie, Punk Rock, Rap, and Pop. We all can't like a specific genre. It's stupid to ask "what genre of music do you like?". It's not actually stupid-stupid, it's just stupid. Ya know? Anyway, passing this phase, I needed to find something again because it's not doing the shit that it was supposed to, I tried investing more time on video games. By investing more, I mean a whole shit lot. I love video games since I was young cuz.... u know.... they keep u... try to guess it! oh yeah. you got that right! distracted! I love the aggressive plays and trashtalks that my friends and I make. The short stories we tell one another. The rants. The lame jokes. The late night we sound drunk but we are not drunk jokes. The roleplays. The lame jokes. The memes. And once again, The lame jokes. Something about lame jokes and the laughs and curses after that always gets me every single time. Oh shoot. Yup Yup. Few years later, I finally noticed the pattern that my sadness is temporary. I got over it one way or the other (or another. depends on how you wanna read it. i dont wanna say another cause i might write about one direction like what im doing now so-). Happiness is temporary as well. But, we are the ones who are actually in control of our emotions. If you wanna feel sad, be sad for a while. You're getting too sad? Try hanging out with your funny friends. Can't do that? Find an alternative. Watch a movie, knit a sweater. Anything your mind could think of as long as it will keep you mentally distracted from being physically and mentally hurt. I do have a few notes though. We cannot and should never assume what people are going through. It may be petty for you, but it may be very crucial to them. So never everrrr say things like: -Some people have it worse than you -At least you have ..... These sheetsss are annoying as heckkk and could really down someone. I know it is not your intention to annoy but people react differently. alsooooooo, it is not okay or normal to hate on things for bandwagon. that is just plainly crazy and stupid. let people enjoy things. anddddddd never suppress your emotions. admit what you feel inside and try to think of a way to resolve ittttt. keeping it to yourself will just make it worseeeeee. find your own outlettttttttt. hihihi ️ alsooooo. being more spiritually full with God's words and ideas really help me to be spiritually happy. ps. im christian but i dont discredit other religion and even applaud other religion's ideas and beliefs. this is a really long, selfish post so i might as well recommend some things I like : Songs with their lyrics that made me go through life. “I’ve got soul but I’m not a soldier” -All These Things That I've Done, The Killers “It's not too late, I'm still right here” -Breaking Your Own Heart, Kelly Clarkson "And the salt in my wounds / Isn't burning any more than it used to / It's not that I don't feel the pain / It's just I'm not afraid of hurting anymore / And the blood in these veins / Isn't pumping any less than it ever has / And that's the hope I have / The only thing I know that's keeping me alive" -Last Hope, Paramore “There is not a single word in the whole world / That could describe the hurt / The dullest knife just sawing back and forth / And ripping through the softest skin there ever was / How were you to know?” -Hate to See Your Heartbreak, Paramore "It's holding on, though the road's long / And seeing light in the darkest things And when you stare at your reflection / Finally knowing who it is / I know that you'll thank God you did" -1800, Logic "Did some things you can't speak of / But at night you live it all again / You wouldn't be shattered on the floor now / If only you had seen what you know now then" -Innocent, Taylor Swift (My bb) "10 months sober, I must admit / Just because you're clean don't mean you don't miss it / 10 months older, I won't give in / Now that I'm clean I'm never gonna risk it // Rain came pouring down when I was drowning / That's when I could finally breathe / And by morning gone was any trace of you, I think I am finally clean" -Clean, Taylor Swift “I guess I always knew / That I had all the strength to make it through.” -Believe in Me, Demi Lovato "I'm addicted to the madness / I'm a daughter of the sadness / I've been here too many times before / Been abandoned and I'm scared now / I can't handle another fallout / I am fragile, just washed upon the shore / They forget me, don't see me / When they love me, they leave me" -I Hate You, Don’t Leave Me, Demi Lovato “I'm overwhelmed / I need a voice to echo / I need a light to take me home / I need a star to follow / I don't know” -Nightingale, Demi Lovato "I'm a walking travesty / But I'm smiling at everything. // Arrogant boy, Love yourself so no one has to." -Therapy, All Time Low "I tried it once before but I didn't get too far / I felt a lot of pain but it didn't stop my heart. / But maybe I'm alive 'cause I didn't really wanna die / But nothing very special ever happens in my life / Take the blade away from me I am a freak, I am afraid that / All the blood escaping me won't end the pain / And I'll be haunting all the lives that cared for me / I died to be the white ghost / Of the man that I was meant to be" -Ghost, Badflower "Are the pieces of you / In the pieces of me? / I'm just so scared / You're who I'll be / When I erupt / Just like you do / They look at me / Like I look at you" -DNA, Lia Marie Johnson Movies and series to try : -The Perks of Being a Wallflower (The book is bomb af. if yall havent tried, ur missing out) -The Kings of Summer -Never Let Me Go -The Art of Getting By -Silver Linings Playbook -Winter’s Bone -The Lovely Bones (The script. The words) -Me and Earl and the Dying Girl -American Horror Story -Black Swan

pps. remember that every one has their own pace and point of view. don’t push yourself too hard, and don’t overthink. give yourself time, and respect all your emotions. analyze them but not more than like 5 minutes as anything beyond that might cause you to overthink and be sadder. and sad is not rad. hehe. you got this. you got you. self love is the best even though it can be tricky to do. nobody else is like you. you’re the only one of you (i just remembered me.......... i might have hummed it while typing it mid sentence). consider other people’s opinion but do not let it cloud your own judgement as you know yourself best. dont let other comment’s define you. spread love. vibe people you vibe with. ayeeee lets go!!! 

ppps this is my last post bc im happier now and know myself better. i no longer limit myself on the age that I want. I want to live as long as how God wants me to be. hehe. 

x :D

[someoneintheshadow456]

i understand the heart of where you were coming from with your response on the edelgard post. but i would like you to know that i think you have some misconceptions in your argument. firstly, korea's "religious fanaticism" especially in regards to christianic religion, is more of a phenomenon with korean immigrants, and is not reflective of the predominant religious views in korea itself.

As a korean myself, i can say that it is unlikely that koreans are inclined to be against edelgard simply because the church in game is inclined against her. speaking with various other asian poc, those who do not like edelgard are primarily against her due to much of her activities in-game calling to mind japan’s imperialistic history of invading our countries and colonizing us. 

Regardless of whether people believe edelgard’s individual motivations are justifiable or not, it must be recognized that much of the game seems to promote a very pro-imperialistic agenda. even in non-edelgard routes, the endings are very leaned towards centralizing control of the continent often with disregard of independent state’s wishes. edelgard’s position as primary antagonist means that it is easy to see her as the primary representative of this mindset. 

I don’t believe that the op is wrong in asserting that americans have favored edelgard while koreans have not for certain reasons. while the context is different, her popularity in japan versus korea can most likely be accounted for along similar lines of a history of imperialism. while fans of edelgard may not be in favor of her specifically for these views, there is a fundamental difference in perspective american and japanese fans are coming to the game with. 

I dont believe that the op is wrong in asserting that americans have favored edelgard while koreans have not for certain reasons. while the context is different, her popularity in japan versus korea can most likely be accounted for along similar lines of a history of imperialism. while fans of edelgard may not be in favor of her specifically for these views, there is a fundamental difference in perspective american and japanese fans are coming to the game with. Sorry if this was an excessive explanation. 

As a lesbian, i find a lot of traits of edelgard that i like. as a korean, however, my discomfort with her is great enough that i shy away from her. i respect who you choose to like or dislike in the game, and am only aiming to maybe inform what i felt was an argument formed on an incomplete misunderstanding of my country’s culture and history.

TLDR: The korean dislike of edelgard can be more attributed to the history of violent colonization from japan that she brings to mind. as japan executed this kind of behavior against many asian countries, this is a sentiment shared by several of my other asian peers. thank you if youve read all of these rambling messages xp, its an important topic to me and i wanted you to know religious fanatacism at the very least isnt a fully accurate description of my people 

Thanks for the explanation and I can understand where you’re coming from when you put it in this way. 

I also acknowledge that my negative experiences with Korean immigrants may have coloured my perception on the matter. In India we have had Koreans come here because of Hyundai, and the ones they sent here behaved so badly (I used to joke that Korea was using India as a garbage dump for its undesirables because there was no way the entire country was like that) that many real estate agents in India will not lease properties to Koreans. And now Hyundai has to give its employees racial sensitivity training in order to send them to India. This was in the mid-late 2000s however, so I’m sure things have changed since then. 

India has a history of colonization as well by the Mughals and British. Rhea always reminded me of Mother Theresa (who put on a maternal/loving facade to disguise the fact that her hospitals were essentially “dying houses” where she would baptize people on their deathbeds, and was notorious for grooming her patients into thinking their sickness was “a blessing from Jesus”) and other Christian missionaries which was why she left such a bad taste in my mouth. Rhea’s behaviour is how British colonists in general also behaved, pretending to be a benefactor and kind to her subjects while actually abusing them. Even though the Indian Fire Emblem fanbase is very small, the ones who I’ve talked to have a dislike of Rhea for those reasons as well. However I don’t say that people who like Rhea are religious zealots/fanatics/whatever, because your fiction doesn’t affect your morality. 

My problem with a lot of Blue Lions fans is many of them get overzealous when it comes to their path and tend to antagonize Edelgard fans, insinuating that ALL OF THEM have radfem-esque principles and only like Edelgard because she’s a woman/because she’s bisexual, or that they have White supremacist beliefs even if they’re POC themselves. They also think that if you’re a fan of Edelgard, you MUST hate Dimitri, even though many of them don’t. And the hypocritical Black Eagles fans who come under the faction that Blue Lions fans are attacking make things worse for the normal Black Eagles fans who are just trying to enjoy the content, because we get lumped in with the crazies. 

All this nonsense makes me want to join with Golden Deers even though I don’t really like Claude that much, because they’re the only group that doesn’t fight with everyone all the time. 

[memecucker]

prudencepaccard

mostly reblogging for @zoobus but also @memecucker is “ religious criticism arrived Christian Europe only after it spread in Jewish and Islamic scholarly communities” really true? I always got the impression that e.g., Haskalah and Enlightenment thought were roughly concurrent and reciprocal. Like even in the 17th century Bacon, Locke and Spinoza etc. all influenced each other no?

@prudencepaccard I’m splitting this into a new thread because the OP was getting a bit clogged hope you dont mind but anyway the scholars I was thinking of actually predate the Enlightenment and Renaissance periods as conventionally dated. 

The 14th century rabbi and polymath Levi ben Gershon aka Gersonides aka the Ralbag is a good example. Levi, who lived in southern France, argued in one of this principle texts The Wars of the Lord that it is impossible for reason to be in conflict with religion but the way he worked it out is that if one sees reason contradict religion then the flaw is with the interpretation of religion in that moment, which is to say that reason is what is given primacy when it comes to understanding truth. For example when it comes to miracles described in scripture, Levi did not deny that these events occurred but did deny that they were “supernatural” in any meaningful sense of the term. When Jacob is said to have wrestled with an angel, Levi argued that this was simply a literary description of an intense mental and psychological struggle. In Exodus when Moses and the Hebrews cross over the Yam Suph, Levi said this was not God intervening into the world to break natural laws but rather mentions how through observation of the natural world we can observe that rivers and watery areas can temporarily dry up for various reasons whether tides, drought, gusts of wind etc and says this is what happened when the Hebrews escaped Pharoah’s army. When Joshua is said to have made the Sun stand still, Levi (who was also an astronomer and thus is very adamant about how this is a complete impossibility) says this is simply a metaphoric description for how time seems to phenomenologically “slow down” in moments of intensity such as Joshua launching his attack on the Amorites. Levi’s priortization of natural science when it comes to interpreting scripture sets him apart from earlier examples of allegorical interpretors such as the Christian theologian Origen for whom scripture is to be read allegorically because reading scripture as referring to natural and material events is “too low” for matters of religion whereas for Levi it was because religion had to conform to the truths of natural science. To the modern reader these ideas might seem fairly normal especially after the rise of naturalistic Biblical criticism in the 19th century but this is in the context of the 1300′s not the 1800s and Levi’s words were seen as quite radical.

Levi ben Gershon’s willingness to challenge traditional wisdom extended beyond religion as well. 200 years before Galileo he was actually the first person to provide a refutation of Ptolemaic astronomy based on empirical observations specifically observations he had made concerning Mars’ shadow and its relationship to Venus as well as of the Moon. He did not provide a Heliocentric model to replace Ptolemy (his model was more a mixture of heliocentrism and geocentrism) but his willingness to just go “Ptolemy was flat-out wrong if you actually observe the evidence” was very significant in the history of science. Levi says of this scientific establishment “We did not find among our predecessors from Ptolemy to the present day observations that are helpful for this investigation except our own” which is to say that if the observations and calculations done by the living contradict that of received authorities then the received authorities are wrong.

One of the reasons why Levi was able to say such heterodox things and get away with it was because of him being Jewish. He lived primarily in the territory controlled by the Avignon Papacy and specifically during the reign of Pope Clement VI who actually had a fairly tolerant attitude towards Jews (when the Black Death was sweeping through Europe, Clement actually issued condemnations of angry mobs that blamed Jewish people for the plague and said that the assertion that Jews were poisoning Christians was a product of people having been “seduced by that liar, the Devil” and ordered priests to preach against such ideas). Clement, who also did not make any strong efforts to convert Jews unlike previous popes, didnt care that his personal friend Levi said such things because it was outside of a Christian context even though we can see that when Christians in Western Europe asserted such subversive ideas they did face punishment.

And we know Christian rationalists in the Medieval Era faced suppression on a more substantial scale because that was essentially what happened in the 1270′s when Pope XXI caught wind of the ideas being promulgated by monks over in France and ordered Bishop Tempier of Paris to issue a condemnation and suppress said ideas.  The rationalistic school of thought that was causing so much trouble was called Averroism (or “Latin Averroism” in some modern sources) and it was named after the Muslim writer whom the condemned scholars sought to emulate namely Averroes aka Abu al-Walid Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Rushd. Averroes was introduced into the Latin Christian tradition mainly as a commentator on Aristotle but his works on reconciling contradictions between religion and reason took root with the scholars of Paris and were seen as increasingly subversive. Some of the ideas attributed to the Latin Averroists by Bishop Tempier that were held to be blasphemous include the assertion that God cannot create logical contradictions, that Adam was only metaphorically the “first human”, that the mortality of humans is a product of nature and not sin and that sometimes religion and reason are irreconcilable (the Latin Averroist answer to that dilemma differed from the actual Averroes and was that essentially that reason and religion occupied separate spheres of truth and thus that the exercise of reason does not have to be mediated by faith). 

Though the influence of Levi ben Gerson on Christian thought was mostly minor (and would be easily dismissed by Christian writers by virtue of him being Jewish) and that of Averroes was suppressed they still were able to influence the movement of intellectual history in Latin Europe with Giordano Bruno and later Spinoza being indebted to those schools of thought

[agape-philo-sophia]

Those of us who have less conditioning -- who don't obey the chain of authority; who have less attachment to falsity -- recognize that the so-called "authorities" in our way of life are stupid and idiotic in their actions. We have truer, higher and realer conscious awareness and self-development making us more authentic and capable of recognizing the authority of truth -- of what is right, good, true and moral. The "authorities" and their supporters are falser, lower, and unrealer selves; unaware and unconsciously living, doing wrongs as though they were right; or transforming what's right into a wrong. Conscience is the internal guiding system humanity is blessed with having. It is literally your compass to living in the Right. Police and Military side swipe their consciences by following orders from their masters. Police make all kinds of justifications and excuses as to why they follow through with immoral orders but there is no legitimate excuse. Justifications for burying the conscience are null and void. As it is the conscience itself that will direct us toward what is moral, right, justified, and true. The Ancient Mystery traditions considered the conscience the home dwelling of the Higher self. To sell your soul means to disobey your conscience. The immorality of government is obvious once we start being honest with ourselves. It’s very clear to see that not only politcians are not to be trusted but also the foundation of government itsself even if the politicians were to be trusted is wrong. The foundation namely consists of violence, incarceration and theft. Theft is theft, also when government does it. When someone or some entity claims you MUST pay them money or you will be incarceted and means you are a slave. Back in the days they took 100% of slaves labour now it’s about 30%. Even if it’s used for collective purposes doesn’t make it any less of an act of theft. Government has a monopoly on violence. If you would act like the government you would be arrested. What grands government the right to be above the people and to rule other people. It’s an illusion of self proclaimed control. Just a group of thugs with their minions in blue who are the modern day houseslaves that rather inslave their own brothers and sisters for a paycheck than actually become conscious and start thinking for themselves. It’s really pathetic and pittyfull. The level of unconsciousness is so severe that they think what they actually are doing is a virtue and they see themselves as brave people. Nothing could be further from the Truth. Following orders is not a virtue at all. It means you’re deeply asleep to a world of immorality and chaos. Apart from the immoral actions they commit everyday by stealing from their brothers and sisters for their big boss government and incarcerating their own brothers and sisters for victimless crimes because some words of a piece of paper says so that has been written by their slavemasters they are actually very much being mocked by the people behind the government who have set up this system of control. Many of the pole ice off eye seers are being covered in dark occult symbols. Terrorists dressed in fancy clothes with pseudo weaponry forcing the man made law down people’s throats and stealing and harming people with unrightful violence all over the world where in many countries. oke its understandable that they try to calm the peace of rioteers but you dont do that with violence. Police shouldnt be with protests because they make rioteers out of peaceful protestors when they start to taunt them and intimidate them with their costumes and often very authoritarian behaviour, wich they get training in and theyre expected of to behave in this way. Ofcourse also them can be themselves but they have to abide by the man made law wich is immoral and relative in many ways and is different everywhere on the earth and everywhere there comes more violence from the police and also the people rioting in many countries is often because of government interference or against the government. Government does nothing but trying to control violence for the betterment of their agenda’s of control and control because thats where they are steering towards for totalitarian control and that is definitely not something you want i can assure you because I am out of the mind control programs (or at least many of them but still having to deal with the programs themselves all around you and yes it’s designed that way. The police has also a big say on the centralisation of protection because in the end that’s what a non psychopathic cop wants to do for joining the cops but that’s also a powerful reason why people still believe in the pole ice. Because they might think that’s all the police does. This concerns naive and ignorant people that ignore all the negativ and unrightful and immoral actions the order followers pursue. They have to because those are the pillars of the entity that is controlling them and telling them what to do with the hyrarchical pyramid shaped organisation and protocols and information accessability. They’re out of alignment with Natural Law and/or the Universal one’s whatever you would like to call it everyone who is inner knowing and understands the logics of the universe and what it’s made of and what life itsself’s building blocks are of reason. Because then you get the understanding that the universe and this planet’s purpose is to live free truthful and with Love as foundation. They know not what inheritent rights are. Your natural right is basically everthing as long it doesnt bring harm to other sovereign beings. That’s it you know and if you are breaking those you’re fooling yourself and become addicted eventually to the Ego that consists of the wanting for suffering so people can have attention from others and self pitty. They have given up on their true dreams and Passions and talents and basically are too passive or too active in things that dont really matter and are distracted by mindless sports games and videogames and going out and get wasted kind of dissuations of Truth by the Ego of pleasure. Not many truly want to understand the matter of the fact, the objectivity of Truth that this universe and planet and dimensions consist of because not everything is relative and unknowable and that’s beauty of it you have to find these powers in yourself and connect with the higher mind wich is the Neo-Cortex and have the left and right brain hemispheres in balance. Intellectually merged with creativity is true intelligence but many do not know this and tend to be in unbalance by one of the halves of the brains and this also shapes their worldview and way of being in a deep way. Statism is a religion. The believe in a corporate organisation that has taken over the control of the people to do what they plan. And believe me they got plans. If you can connect the dots of what is going on in the long run in the past and in the future its all very obvious and people still making fun of people talking and discussing and recognizing the Truth in these games they play and how they manipulate the minds of the masses into ways of thinking and choose between options they both have given you as if you may not think outside of the box unless its for financial ways and they can make money off of your taxmoney then suddenly you can work with them. Theyre taking so much of our money . With that money still intact in our wallets we can do alot of things we would normally give the government for doing what we dont know they pay and you just get thrown in the collecetive money box and they decide where they use it for it doesnt really have a worth. Everyone should make up for themselves wich organisations they support with their money or they start their own business without government interference but in the times we live in that is still a hard thing to do because we’re still under all these legislations and rules and buracrocy it’s unbelievable how deep they have spun their webs to back their fundamentals of control over the people

[commentairesnegligeables]

On the saying “be aware of your mental health”

⚠️Warning: triggering post ahead⚠️not for people with weak mind⚠️

Note that on this post everytime i said “help” it means therapist/people who say they are expert on mental illness. Of course, though, to seek help and company from people around you—friends, family, siblings, close people you know, when youre in doubt or struggling or feeling down or in need of support emotionally or anything, this doesnt have to be questioned—it is something of a must. Why? Cause humans are social beings. They are dependant to others. Therefore everytime i say “help” on this post i really just mean mental help (therapist/people who will diagnose you with mental illnesses).

The thing that i observed, of what causes mental health issue, is the inability to know the identity of oneself.

In order to live, the first thing one should know and make peace with isnt the environment, or family, or ones brain, or anything, but themselves.

Once someone cant do this, they simply become questionnable as an individual.

How can you be born in this world, have the ability to think of cracking down things to even the simplest, and yet you cant even deal with, understand, and know your own self—the thing closest to you? The thing that is actually yourself? The thing that matters the first?

It might seem like a pity, but more than it is a pity, it is an individual choice.

Every individual should deal with themselves. No one should tell them how, no one should tell them they “cant” and that they need help of drugs in order to deal with themselves. I feel that the moment they feel they cant, and that they need help, is the moment it becomes their choice, and that they have lost themselves.

Is losing oneself something good? Is it that when someone is depressed, i should have pity on them and treat them differently, even when its their choice?

People say its not their choice, but it is. It is ones fault that one lost temselves. Everyone is given intelligence, ability to think. What is this world? What is the purpose of this world? What is the purpose of me? What is right and wrong? With the ability, if someone still cant figure out life, once again, it is their choice.

One of the phrase that i found very dislikable is that we should be aware of our mental health.

What does that even mean?

We should be aware of our mental health, and then what? When i am sad, i can be sad, if i want to cry, i can cry, if i want to be upset and angry, let me be upset and angry, if i am happy, then let me be, if i feel deep sadness, no one can stop me, but someone can do all this without having to lose themselves. Someone can do all this while controlling it. What is this saying we should be aware of ourselves?

Should we be, sad and crying on the floor, sad and crying on our pillow, and then we question ourselves: am i in deep sadness? And then we seek the answer to someone else? Is this what “being aware” means?

How can someone else know us better than ourselves? Why should i believe someone who thinks they “studied” human psychology, whilst i myself am human and i am given the ability to control my psychology, telling me i am like this and like that.

No one can control their physical stuff, virus gets inside your throat and makes you sick, your kidney is worn out and you dont take care well so they malfunctioned, but how can mental—something that doesnt even have physical form, something that cant permanently unchange, wear out and leave you be just like that? It is not even something separated from you. It is you.

We should be aware of our mental health, that is right, but it means nothing. Everyone has done this ever since the first time human existed. It is not something new. Theyre always aware. Are they sad? Are they happy? Are they raising their chin high up and being brave?

The only difference is instead of questioning their ownselves, they control their own selves. Is controlling your ownself something forced?

No, it is naturality.

In the past, people seek for immortality, tales were told about this thing and that which can make someone immortal, in the past people lost their parents in young ages, go to war, and in Islam a hadith said one of sign of the end day is that people look at grave and say “if only i was the one that is in that place”.

I am not at all saying what happened in the past was all good, most were even bad, i will say. I am just saying people in the past lived in worse condition but they managed, and whats “glorified” is of cherishing life.

So, what caused everything to change?

1. The idea that people have had mental issues since long time but they “hid” it.

2. Glorification of mental health issues as if its really something urgent, when its not even something new (in the sense that, in most times everyones “mental health” is fine thats why we never thought about it much and only in this mOdERN thInkInG ScHEmE we are told to figure whether we are fine or not).

3. Individualistic, materialistic, atheistic, way of life.

My opinions on those:

1. Once again mental health is not diagnosed and then unchangeable, it is controlled. Someone can be a whiner and if theyre told to go to army they will be strong. It is built, it is trained, not given. In the past, in the future, this concept still hasnt changed that it thrills me whenever someone thinks mental health is not part of them and that they need someone else to “fix” it. If mental ilnness is such a big deal in lives of people of common society we wouldve heard much about it in the past about people who couldnt “function” or live like other people normally. We dont hear about them, much, because they were not told that they mightve had mental issues, instead they just lived usual. In other hand we know well that people in the past had physical illnesses—black plague, or anything, it was physically there and we heard it a lot. Or we mightve heard in some tales about people who were insane, crazy, outcasted. But NOT mass of people who couldnt function normally and deemed abnormal. Its because the truth is mental illness is nothing. Someone might have severe depression, or someone might have depression in lives, but chance to have severe depression is very low, and chance to have depression that makes you need medication is as low. You dont need medication. Just live.

2. The one that made it widespread, as ever, are leftists people. I just recently played tumblr but i have heard a lot about this tumblr movement that happened long time ago, lets call them SJW. SJW are social justice warriors and they went to tumblr, but i heard now theyre dominating twitter. So when they were in tumblr they think they were “quirky” and “unique” and they mostly were weird people. And on basis of political correctness they started bring about the idea that LGBT is fine. But not just that, this “be aware of your mental health” and post-modern feminism and “abortion is a choice” also started. Political correctness is so much of people who are too emotional and they use their brain and logic less. I know i sound biased, you can do research on your own if you want. I also have theory on how these people who played tumblr mostly were women, cause as far as i know around that time men played video games usually. But that will make it long.

Just im saying that this “be aware of your mental health” stuff doesnt just occur naturally as evolution/progress of advancement of thoughts. It was brought about politically, by people who think they are the most right, when they are the ones knowing things less, romanticize everything, they are like toddler who figure out new things and think that is what is most right, you can go to twitter and figure. This all though, is just my conclusion based on my own observation of the world.

3. Say no more, these all are just characteristics of the west, unfitting for outside of west world. Individualism rarely happens outside west (with exception) and people always have someone to tell problems to—friends, family, close people. Individualistic society will be more prone to not having anyone and therefore has to go to therapist to talk about their problem. Someone once said though religion cant stop mental health but that is such a joke. As i have stated, to know and control your own mental is to know yourself and your identity. If you are an ugly person and you dont think youre ugly, if someone says to you that you are ugly, then you will not even feel bad for yourself. If someone tells you we are living in void and that this world is so bad and that theres no point of living, if you understand those sayings are wrong, then you will not drown in the same bitterness as they do right? In this world and life everyone and everything will tell and say many things to you throughout your life, and if you cant even think on your own whether theyre right or should you listen to them, i dont even know how you live. Anyhow, the right religion will tell you purpose of life so if you are given purpose of life and you still feel life is so pointless, you are not taking the religion seriously.

I have quiet grown tired of writing, so i will just state what to do to help yourself so you wont eat all these pointless “be aware of your mental health” slogans:

1. Understand that psychology is not exact science and therefore not completely reliable. Sorry to break it to you. I myself am a hardcore unbeliever of psychological study. Unless someone cant think straight (insane), theres no need to rely on what psychology says about oneself. Its not even science. If biology says youre having cancer, then youre having cancer. But if psychology says youre diagnosed with this and that, its just cringe. How do you know? Is the “depressed cell” there and shows themselves to you through microscope? Psychologists dont even know sometimes that psychology is not exact science.

2. Psychology is not a unique or unreachable field. In the sense of its not worth to “understand thoroughly” about it that you think you need to ask expert if you dont. Rule about psychology is just: humans are divided into two, people who can think straight and cant think straight (sane and insane). As long as youre sane, you have the ability to control what you do and yourself. Thats all.

3. Know yourself and your identity. If you are asked, who are you? What is your identity? You should know. If not, youre a confused person and you will for sure think for nights if someone says to you “you are narcissist”, you will think you really are even when its not true.

4. Dont rely on forced positivity to escape fear of having mental illness. Forced positivity dont help😐just acknowledge out there people live normally without having to have so much positivity to survive. Why? Because too much positivity is not normal.... just be yourself and live

5. Fix yourself. Do you feel youre a narcissist? Do you feel you have one of those traits of being mentally ill? Then make those traits gone. Dont think that you are permanently mentally unstable and therefore need help. No. Help yourself first.

6. To feel is ok. Be sad, be happy, be angry, cry all you want. But just acknowledge that you can control yourself, cause you have ability to be sane. After letting those all go, youre fine again.

7. Everyone makes mistakes. Did you make mistake just yesterday? Did you make mistake that made whole world hates you? Its totally fine. Just promise to yourself, instead of to people, that you will improve and will not make the same mistake again. That is right, it reminds me,

8. Everyone feels what you feel. Do you some times feel deep sadness? Do you some times feel so hopeless that probably die is best thing? Do you feel things that you think people dont feel? Dont worry, everyone feels it in some times of their lives. Just cause someone looks fine the whole time doesnt mean they are in fact fine the whole time and doesnt feel like how you feel about stuff. This world is not really a good place so it will torture everyone. You are not different, so dont feel different. You are normal. Indulging in emotions thinking people dont feel the same emotion will just make you lose yourself. People are not fine in a day, and they will be fine in another day, and they feel happy in another day, its just life.

9. Dont live up to peoples expectation. Of course its not like if your parents want you to be good kid then you shouldnt live as good person. I mean to say, if society expect you to be like this and that, but theres no benefit in acting as they do, then nothings wrong with you if you dont do as they do. Just understand what is right and wrong and that is enough.

10. Be determined about your stance. Dont get easily influenced. Know what you stand for by thinking about it thoroughly.

11. Be comfortable with yourself.

12. You are who you think you are. Fake it til you make it. Be fine until you are really fine.

13. Youre the only one who can save yourself. People will help you, but the choice to be saved and become fine again can only be done by you. No one but your own self is going to come and “save” you.

My point of writing this is that, most people in the world are sane and not mentally ill/sick in severe sense til they need pSyChIAtrIsT help. One of question i heard much is that “so what if people think they have mental illness? Whats in it for you to judge them?” Well first of all it will create generation of weak minded people that think they need help for anything. Second is that i just feel sorry when someone who is fine mentally comes accross this kind of thing and they start thinking whether theyre “mentally normal” or not. One of the funny experience i had is when i was just googling on why cats are so cute and on quora someone says its because humans are masochist so they like cats biting and clawing them (and he got many votes)🤦‍♀️i really feel pity for him probably being sure what he said is true. If people are masochist, they will pet tigers or crocodiles instead. The truth is, hearing about probability of having mental illness without actually understanding it will make you paranoid. So i write this to let everyone know, that probability is the lessest thing. Unless you live in full tragedy, chance is you are fine and will continue to be so.

Indulging in psychology is not worth it if for common people, for people who have mental disturbance (crazy/insane) then ok but for commoners who once again have ability to think sane and are given intelligence, its such a waste of time to question whether one is “normal” or not. If you are able to think logically and know what is right and wrong then that is enough.

People are not so different from each other.

Even therapists who understand the truth will know that psychology and therapists are semi-real and therefore useless for common society unless in the case of people with severe cases

[flippinoptimist]

> Vel / Sawbones, pt 1

[elsalutfiac]

My Eid Adha Was Once on 9/11

9/1/2017

It is amazing to be here, in my hometown again.. Tonight I watched the traditional light parade or known as takbiran, the parade that is only hold the night before Eid day, in my childhood village. Its all there; the icons from each mosque, the light sticks, the kids who wear costumes, and the after-walk performs, just like when I was kid. The difference is just there are more vehicles compared to back then. Since last year, Eid Adha will always reminds me of what had happened in my education class during my exchange year in the US. Last year, Eid Adha was on 9/11/2016. Of course 9/11 sounds familiar and will always be recognized as one of the most tragic day in US history. The day where WTC got attacked by the terrorist, caused damages and victims to the innocent people. Islam and moslems were blamed. People worried there will be another attack if moslems are around. Making “Islamophobia” sounds familiar to me. I told my host mom that I usually celebrate Eid and do the pray with my family in the nearest mosque or an open space where people gathered around. But the situation wasn’t the same. Instead, I have to go to school. I knew probably we will discuss about the tragedy of 9/11 in one of my class.. So here is the story, It was my 1st period, in Ms. Perez’s class. Its all normal until she said she gonna play a video. She turn off the light, and play a video about 9/11 with the song by Alan Jackson titled “Where Were You When The World Stopped Turning”. Gosh! I was burst of tears that I didnt even realized I did. I don’t know whyyyy I was sooooo saddd that thing happened and ruined anything. I mean, why in the world people could do such a thing?!! That question running across my mind the whole time. I cannot help myself not to cry, it hurts me.. Especially as a moslem. There was a solid debate within me, of whether or not I should do something. It was quite a while when the video about to end, then I’m in a complete aim, “I dont want to regret what I didn’t take”, still crying and putting myself together, I brave myself to stand up and said,

“My heart is beating so fast, my hands are shaking, I dont know why, but I still feel so bad about that.. I’m sorry.. It is supposed to be my special holiday, I have to do my pray, but I can’t go.. I stand here, as a moslem, now I feel how it feels to be a minority. I feel so sorry, I am sorry.. Because sometimes people correlated the terrorism with Islam. But I swear to you guys…my religion, never, taught us to do that.. That’s why I came here, to make a better understanding between Americans and Moslems.. We’re all want peace, that’s it. I’m sorry,”

It wasn’t easy to say that, honestly. But there’s no point on going thousands miles away from home, on an estimated 22 hours flight, just to be the same “elsa” who couldn’t speak up what’s on her mind. Again, I don’t want to regret what I didn’t take.

Ms. Perez came closer and hugged me. They told me that I’m not supposed to say sorry about something I didn’t do. But, I just cant help myself not to cry, nor explain what I feel way clearly. I’m outta breath instead cause I spoke while I was crying.. I am soooo luckyy, God gave me the best I could have in my exchange year. People who are open-minded and welcomed me as who I am, with my hijab, as a moslem. I remember my conversation with mom, on our way home from Rockport, that if we want to look closer and give more time to know each other better instead of let the hate controls us, we will find that we have more similarities than our differences. She understands that jihaad is not about killing people. Jihaad is also being nice to your neighbors, going to school and studying hard, loving your parents, many more! Islam teach us to live peacefully and have balance in our life, vertically to God, and horizontally to our surroundings. Isn’t that what everybody supposed to do too?

We are given with this ability to think, better than any creature in this world. So why would we want to waste our precious time to hate or mock or even hurt particular group who are different from us? While in the other hand we could learn to listen more, to be down to earth of what we already know, and to respect different things others do. I’ve learnt to understand that there is always a reason why people choose to do something. To think differently, to show what’s on their mind, or to prioritize particular thing that is important for them. So by the end, our role is respecting their choice. We cannot force anyone to always agree with us. I personally think that it’s better to respect people’s opinion, knowing that they have different perspective, rather than forcing them to be absolutely agree with my point of view. I often have different opinion with my friends, because of my background. Of course, being in the whole different culture left you with no choice but adjust yourself to be more flexible and adaptable. So thats what I’m doing. In the middle of the discussion, I always emphasized that we all have our opinion that is based on something different. Thus, I never have any intention to force anyone to change, and that’s what I’m expecting from them too. I mean, you treat others the way you want to be treated, right? As I have said before, there is no way everybody gonna agree with us. But its aaalll finee as long as you still have those who want to stand by you and fight for the same purpose. People who don’t care about how weird stranger stared at you and let you know that you are loved more than what others don’t know about you. Awwh, these got my heart melted. No matter what kind of environment you live in, as long as you embrace who you truly are, God always have a way to surrounds you with the best people who will accept you just the way you are. So don’t you ever bother yourself to change just because you want to fit in. If something don’t work as you wish, there are only two possibilities. Either it is not good for you in the future or God has prepared a bigger plan for you ahead. So, even if you fail, there will always be another way to make it works!

| a self-reminder to never give up on your dream and let your fear stops you | | juga sebuah bukti bahwa memang apa yang akan kita dapat bergantung pada niat awal |

ElsaL, September 13, 2017, trapped in a typical 12-graders routinity. :)

[ofsunshineandstorms-blog]

VIDA ACTUALIZAR

Hey its 5am on the 12th of june and It has been ages since i last wrote and i miss writing. So much. I miss venting to a place that will not judge me and i am able to write everything and anything. Life has changed so much since the last time i wrote. I have progressed so well too. Really proud of myself. Example(s) :

1) Acceptance. I have accepted a lot of things. I have accepted that the world does not revolve around me. I have accepted that some things are really not meant to be. I am at peace with myself (and him too, i guess). Also, i realised that trying to change things to fit it to my liking does not also work because i have to accept things as they are and learn to adapt to change because nothing stays the same forever. Nothing is forever. 

2) Change. First things first(im the realest), i have changed quite a lot. Within. I am more calm. I have changed my ways of thinking. Not my ways of eating though haha needa work on that soon. I worry less now too! A bit. I now worry less about what’s to come and i just enjoy what i have in front of me. Having a positive mindset is probably one of the best things ever and im so happy i decided to change things about me. Anyways, i just finished my final IGCSE examinations on the 9th of June and i’ve never been so happy to finally be able to do nothing without worrying about ace-ing the paper!! Although, i feel so bored and lost now because i have no purpose in life and i have nothing to study for, yet. Speaking of studying, i start tuition on the first week of July, which is 2 weeks or so from now, since getting a head start for A-levels will benefit me (i hope)!! I am excited to learn new things and also meet new people. I’m gonna hopefully go out of my comfort zone and do things that i never had the guts to. All about change right?

3) Amor. Don’t wanna spill about this too much but not long ago i realised something that has has hit me (and been in me for so long) and has left me thinking about this certain ‘thing’ almost everyday. It drives me insane but its a good kind of insane (ew cringe!). I try to push it away as much as i can though. Letting it distract me will not benefit me as i know there is 1 in a million chance it will happen anytime soon. Sad. I know. but that’s life right? Hopefully everything will fall into place soon and i know why all these incidents happen to me. For now, I hope its mutual and lets see where the future takes us. 

4) Life. As for life, idk really. “What am i really doing with my life?” something i frequently ask myself and i never have an answer. I just wanna be genuinely happy and content. I don’t care about quantity anymore. I want quality. I’ll get back to this topic hopefully soon when i have it figured it out a little bit more.

5) Emotions. As for this topic, i must say i’ve been doing well in this too! I control my emotions better and i don’t let the little things affect me anymore. Yay! Sure, i still get sad from time to time when i reminisce but that’s normal. I am human after all. I hope this continues in me.

6) Religion. Oh this topic. Who would’ve thought i’d write this lol! I take religion more seriously now and i try to practice it as much as i can. I must say, this has contributed to me being more positive and happier. I pray and read the Quran more frequently now and the aftermath always leaves me very calm. I am proud of myself for this big step and change and i hope this will never stop. I want to continue to better myself and learn more about my beautiful religion. Others might think this is bizarre and im out of my mind but its okay. Everyone is different.

7) Goals. Future. I have loads on my bucket list (which i should probably start taking more seriously since im done with school). For example, i wanna write more in a book about my daily life so i can look back. I wanna be more careful and independent. I wanna go out of my comfort zone. I wanna make everyone, including myself, proud. I want to get into a good Uni (LSE hopefully!!). I want to be healthier. I want to continue to better myself. You can do it, sof! Im rooting for you, *pats self on the back*

8) Spending. AHHH this!! I have changed my spending a lot though. I dont buy as much things as i used to. I no longer buy excessively which i’m so happy and proud of!! I cut down spending a lot and i hope this continues. It’s weird though. The feeling of wanting to shop is slowly vanishing. I don’t randomly go on a splurge anymore and i dont just buy online without thinking. YAY ME!

9) Youtube. Since 2013, i’ve always wanted to do youtube but i never had the guts to do so. I posted in 2015 and 2016, one video each year, and that was about it. Finally, after IGs ended, i finally had the opportunity to edit my Summer 16 Vlog which turned out pretty well!! Yay hehe. I was nervous because i was scared to be judged but i said screw it and i posted it anyway. I hope this isn’t the first and last video of 2017. I really wanna do Youtube because i enjoy it. 

Okay okay at this point, at 5AM, I cant think of more things to write so i’ll stop here. Hopefully i’ll be back very soon and write moOORE! I realised i said ‘im proud’ maybe 938447878 times and i apologise!! I REALLY REALLY am proud of myself hehe. Alrighty, im out! Till next time x

12/6/17

[wellmeaningshutin]

Short Story #108: Angel.

Written: 4/29/2017                                                                      Monster Week

“You’re a, what did you say?” Asked aging Ethel, staring in disbelief at the man who had showed up in her room.

“I’m an angel.” Said the man, with no trace of humor. “I’ve come here with a message from god, and I need your assistance.”

“Why, I just can’t believe that you’re an angel. Where are your wings? Don’t angels have big, white wings behind them? And, and where is your halo?”

Waving away this statement with one hand, “Those are all from the interpretations of man. We never stated that we had any of those, and they are just the results of your art forms. The Inferno and Paradise Lost are hailed as classics, for instance, but they don’t reflect how anything actually plays out in heaven and in hell, and the ways that those works are misguided are the same as your depictions of angels being winged and having halos.” Ethel was about to speak, but the angel was not finished with his point. “The same goes Jesus Christ, who has been depicted differently than he actually looked while he was on Earth a couple days ago.”

“A couple days, why-”

“Oh yes, I forgot. Time moves more slowly up here. Well, he would still look different, and when he will come back to Earth, why, I bet a lot of people will have a hard time believing that its him. However, I am getting besides the point, and I just want to point out that you shouldn’t base your ideas of what heaven should be like, what angels should look like, when you have never seen any of it in the first place. Have you ever met an angel before?”

“No, I can’t say that-”

“So how would you know what an angel is supposed to look like?”

“Well, my pastor-”

“Ah, yes”, Ethel frowned, since the man, angel or not, was sure impolite, “a man attempting to pass of his misguided opinion’s as that of the lord’s. Not all pastors are to be trusted my dear.”

“Yes, that is true, there are ones who try to say wild things, but my pastor, he’s a good man. I’ve heard him speak for twenty, is it twenty? Twenty… or so, somewhere around twenty years”, the angel was clearly having trouble keeping his patience, but Ethel was happy to have some room to get her opinion across, “and not once has he ever said something that made me think, ‘why, I don’t like that at all’. I’ve been to plenty of churches who claimed outlandish things, but this is the first man I’ve seen speak, since the days of when I was a girl, who has put his foot down and hasn’t been afraid to speak the truth.”

“And how do you know that he is telling the truth? Just because something sounds right, doesn’t make it so. How do you know that you don’t have misguided views yourself, and you have refused to challenge or adapt those views, so you had to find somebody who was as closed minded-”

“Now, this doesn’t sound like angel talk. If you were an angel, then why wouldn’t you already know all of it, why wouldn’t you know the truth of it all? I’ve been blessed to find a pastor who speaks out against the immorality of gay marriage, the decline of western culture, the threats of Islam, of refugees, of-”

Nodding, “Yes yes, I knew all of that already. You need to have more faith in the ways of heaven, because I was only guiding you to the truth, because I know more than you ever could. Yes, your pastor is correct about those things,” he said with a mocking grin, which she took as an understanding smile, “but I only wanted to point out the small fact of the depiction of angels-”

“But-”

“He is just a mortal man, even if he is a very knowledgeable and loving man,” again, the grin, “and I applaud you for holding the views that you do. It is the Christian way to fill your heart with judgment, and even a little hatred, for things that you don’t like or understand. Why, I remember when Christ said, ‘Nobody is above judgment, which is blessed in its nature’, when the townsfolk were about to cast stones onto the filthy whore. However, although you are a perfect example of what it is to be a member of your faith,” he had to actively suppress his smile now, “there is one matter that you were misguided in, and it is one that you should not be ashamed of. Why, its flattering that you believed that we would look so elegant, but, generally, we appear to be people, just like you. The lord has made us in his image, just like he has made you.”

“Okay”, nodding to herself, “you’re talking a lot of sense right now, but, one last question about your appearance. Why are you a negro? Why would god send a negro down?”

Taken aback, “Why do you ask this? What are you talking about”

“Well, I know for a fact that any angel would be white, with golden locks that reminded one of lambswool.”

“Why, that is what I look like, can’t you see?” She blinked, and was surprised to see that the angel did fit her description. Wondering if her mind was starting to wander off, she tried to sharpen her focus, and hide her embarrassment. “Oh, dear, don’t feel ashamed,” he said after he saw her blush, “because the devil tries to play many tricks on you, and because of that he probably created a false image of me, to lead you away from the path of the righteous.”

“That sounds right, but-”

“And you can take that as more proof of how divine I really am. Can’t you see that because of this, I am an angel? And I need your help, Ethel, I need it very much.”

“Why do you need my help”, believing that he was, in fact, an angel, “what do you need me to do?”

“Well, I need you to allow me to take over your body.”

“What? Angels dont-”

“Now, Ethel, remember the points I made earlier? Cast aside your false ideas of the workings of heaven, and take what I say in faith. Why, isn’t blind faith with no form of proof, for something that seems completely impossible, and even a little ridiculous, what your beliefs were entirely founded on?” She nodded, “Now, know what I have to tell you may seem unrealistic, but it is completely true and should not be questioned: the pope is possessed by none other than the devil himself. He is spreading evil ideas, and nobody is questioning him because they think that he speaks for god. Why, the man said that people who were not Christians could get into heaven, he said that we should accept the gays, or the divorced, that countries should welcome refugees and immigrants, why, that’s not very Christian, is it?”

“Why, no, I don’t think it is. But why would the devil need to possess the pope, couldn’t he just use the media-”

“Ah, but those who are already tricked by the media will continue to do so, but there are the knowledgeable, such as yourself, who follow the real news, who learn about mass rapes that are common in Syrian culture, or that climate change is a load of bullshit, or that transgender people are really just a bunch of disgusting, mentally ill men who we shouldn’t coddle, that are an example of hateful views gone to far, especially since most of them are only playing dress up so that they can rape women and children in bathrooms. People, like you, who know that white Christians have it harder than anyone in the world, and are persecuted by notions of legalized abortion, gay marriage, by the fact that children aren’t allowed to pray in schools any more, the fact that every day you are dangerously close to having Sharia law take over the country, on top of the scores of terrorist attacks that you suffer from all of the time. Why, with clearly intelligent and pure hearted people like you, the devil’s media would never be able to lay a finger on your beliefs.”

“Why, I’m sorry that I ever doubted that you may be an angel.”

The grin returned, “No, do not worry about it. I understand, I forgive. Now, because of all of this, the devil had found himself in a difficult position, because everyday the powers of truth have been prevailing, especially since the government has begun to turn rational. So, now that everything has been turning against him, he has only one course of action left, which is to seize control of the head of the religion, to start speaking for god. There was nobody better for his goals than the pope.”

“How come he was able to take control of him? How could he even step inside of the Vatican, wouldn’t God-”

“Yes, normally he would be unable to enter the premises, but he found a loophole. He was able to take control of a misguided person, somebody whose views on their own religion was warped and deluded enough for her to think that the devil, who came to her in the guise of an angel, was actually so, and allowed that wicked man to take control of her. She was so mislead that she believed that all of his lies, all of his hateful nonsense, represented the beliefs of her lord, and that’s-”

“Ah, I see now. I understand where you are going with this.” Nodding her head, “Its a shame that there are people in the world who could be so misguided, Why, nowadays you could say the most scientific, the most rational and factual thing, but no matter what people will try to claim that you are a hateful person. Its a pity that they don’t see that they are the ones who-”

“Alright, now, Ethel, I love that you are seeing the way of the lord,but I need to press on. The Vatican, now under control of the devil, is warding off any and all angels who try to seek access. Its a shame, but that’s how it is, and we’ve been stumped on how to return and to clear the sin out of there. Well, until the lord told us that there was one woman, who was so pure and good, that would be willing to allow one of us to take possession of her body, so that we could enter the Vatican, and return everything into its proper order.”

“But what will happen to me? What-”

“Oh, that,” waving the idea off, “you do not have to worry about that. You will have a one way ticket to heaven, and will not have to worry for the rest of eternity.”

Sounding afraid, “So it will kill me? You want to-”

Calm, emotionless, curious, “Why does this worry you so? You are already close to death anyways. I mean, you live in a building, this retirement home, that literally exists as a waiting room for dying. You live out your life in here, knowing that you are close to the end, so why get upset when the opportunity presents itself? Why, your life her cannot be much better than the kingdom of heaven, can it? And you will probably reach sainthood, since you will have helped clear the devil out of this world, which would bring a wave of love, reason, rationality, and peace to this currently chaotic and sinful world.”

“I guess you have a point, but-”

“Now, my dear, why are you questioning this so much? Aren’t you sick of the fake Christians who accuse you of giving them a bad name, who, like your grandchildren, are ashamed to be associated with you, even though there is nothing wrong with your worldview? Aren’t you tired of being the moral compass, who gets mistaken as immoral by those whose compasses have been tuned wrong, who have been tricked by the devil with awful ideas, like atheism? Aren’t you sick of people calling you a racist, just because you dare speak the truth about other races, and don’t dare coddle them, because they should know better? Alas, as you know, some cultures are harmful, but how many times have you been called racist for attempting to point that out? And why not stand up for yourself, for reason, and do something to shift the current climate away from emotion, and towards reason, towards science. Oh, and lets not forget how tainted science has become, with all of these bribed, so called ‘scientists’, who claim that global warming is real, or that gender is a ‘spectrum’, when its really black and white, male and female, or that homosexuality isn’t a choice, or that a baby in the first trimester is just a lump of cells, instead of a soul that god has given life to, and that it is perfectly alright to rip it right out of the mother, even a couple days before it would be born, just because the mother thought its what she wanted. And what about the way that it has lied about drugs, with the way that people have been pushing to legalize marijuana, the devil’s cabbage, the gateway drug that leads to heroin and meth addiction. Let’s not forget the immoral push of sexual education in schools, where they are trying to teach that sexual deviance is okay, that it is ‘fine’ to have premarital intercourse, that masturbation, a dangerous sin itself, is ‘perfectly healthy’ or ‘perfectly normal’. Well, last time I checked, there was nothing healthy about sinning, but I guess they’re right about it being normal nowadays, now that it seems like everyone is trying to drag this world into the pits of hell. And, lets not forget that they lie, claiming that sexual education won’t cause children to perform deviant acts, won’t cause children to sleep with a large amount of partners, or think that they should just have sex all of the time, even though that we, rational people, know that the only way to be safe from the dangerous effects of intercourse isn’t to have it ‘safely’, and I don’t know how ‘safe sex’ prevents you from sin, but is to, what is the only way, Ethel?”

“Abstinence.”

“That’s right! Abstinence! And they try to call you ‘unrealistic’, or ‘outdated’ for claiming such views, but you know the path to salvation, and they just don’t want to hear it. And I don’t know how it can’t just make you so angry, to see all of this, this assault on your views, day after day, while your rights are being taken away, while people are willingly submitting themselves to immorality. Why, when was the last time that somebody even told you Merry Christmas when you were checking out at the grocery store?”

“Oh, my, its been-”

“Years, hasn’t it? And all because of this horrible war on Christmas. And what’s wrong with Christmas? Not a single thing. You have to at least be upset enough for that, for their hatred towards such a blessed holiday. Any one of these horrible things alone should make you upset enough to try to change it, but, I have to admit, I’m starting to wonder if you are as intelligent as I thought you were. Why, you seemed to be rational, but now I wonder, because people are drowning in this hatred, drowning in this misinformation, this blind entitlement, and you don’t seem to want to do anything to stop it. Why, you seem content to sit around and just ignore it, while they give all of your hard earned money to immigrants and people who use welfare to support them while they sit around and insult good people like you. Maybe I should leave”, he rose out of his seat, “maybe I should go and find somebody who would actually be willing to help me on my mission, instead of sitting around and allow the devil to take the world over.”

As he walked over to the door, she panicked, and yelled, “Wait, wait! Come back! I’ll help, I’ll help! You were right, there is no way, I just can’t, no way for me to sit by, and allow everything to fall apart. I will allow you to-”

Before she was finished talking, he had locked eyes with her, and then she was gone. Or, at least, her soul had gone, and the supposed angel had taken its place. It chuckled, or Ethel chuckled.

Ethel’s soul was surprised to find herself, all of the sudden, in place that was nothing like she expected heaven to be. First off, it was painfully hot, hot enough for her to have to stay in constant motion, just to avoid burning her feet too badly. However, it was too much for her to even have to alternate, and she wanted to fall over, but she knew that if she did that it would burn her whole body, so she had to allow her skin to burn and peel off of her soles, leaving traces on the ground. The pain was too much for her to take much note on her surroundings, which seemed dreadful anyways. Maybe the angel was right, maybe she didn’t know anything about heaven, but who would have known that she would have been so far off of the mark? Two searing hot hooks dug into her shoulder blades, burning her from the inside, and she let out a scream, the loudest one that she had ever let out. It felt as if the heat alone was going to rip her arms off, it felt as if that area of her body was made entirely of pain, and the rest of the body went out of focus, since the hooks demanded so much of her attention, until it felt as if her whole body was made from pain itself. After she begun to rise, and started to see the endless horrors and suffering in front of her, she tried to say, ‘Wait, you have it all wrong! I’m supposed to be in heaven! Please, talk to the angel, he’ll sort this out’, but she found that she was too busy screaming, and it was impossible to get any words out. Flies began to enter her mouth, at first one by one, but eventually they began to swarm, heading down her throat, buzzing around in her stomach, her lungs, every organ that they could some how reach. Some were killed by the hooks. After only a minute, she felt as if she was stuffed with them, was unable to scream, even if she desperately needed to, because it felt as if all of her insides were full, were moving, writhing, and vibrating, as if she were suffocating but wouldn’t die, all on top of the pain from the hooks. She continued to rise, hoping that she would rise all the way to heaven, where they would clear up this mistake.

“Now,” asked the angel, to Ethel's reflection in the mirror in front of him, “why would she think that some frail old woman’s body could be useful in… Ha ha. They told me it was easy, but…” Smiling, “well, lets see how long I can last.” Crouching under the bed, he felt around until he found the cold, metal object that he had been feeling for, then slid it out from under the bed. It was a combat shotgun, semi-automatic, that Ethel’s son had helped her acquire after her last home’s orderlies had sexually abused residents, and was even a cannibal, so she needed protection for her new home. They couldn’t take any chances, and her son didn’t want to take care of the woman, who had become unbearable within the past several years. The angel smiled as he checked if it was loaded, and it turned out to be so.

Knock, knock, knock, “Ethel?” A voice called from behind the door, the angel crouched behind the bed, aiming the gun’s barrel towards the door, “its time for dinner, why don’t you head out and-”

“Oh”, replied the angel, “where am I? This isn’t my home, how do you know my name?”

“I’m coming in”, the voice said, a little concerned. The doorknob turned, slowly, then a large man entered the room, with a look of surprise forming on his face, just for a second, as he was processing the current situation, but with a flash from the barrel and a deafening roar, his chest was swiftly torn open with many, very small holes, and he dropped, backwards, to the floor, spilling blood on his way down. Having been knocked over by the recoil, and slightly deafened, the angel scrambled to get off of the floor, hoping that somebody would come to check the situation, so that she could cut them down too. If his ears weren’t ringing, he probably would have heard the vet in the next door room, who was screaming, thinking that he was back in the thick of it. When the angel arrived at the door, gun in his frail, weak arms, he could see a nurse who was not too far down the hall, frozen, wanting to check on the dead man, but afraid of the attacker, and then, once again, the angel pulled the trigger and knocked himself towards the frame of the door, while he watched the nurse spin, then drop to the floor. However, even though the man was bleeding out a good amount, only two bullets had gone into his left shoulder, and the angel had to get up close, while the injured man yelled something that couldn’t overpower the tinnitus, pleading before his face would become unrecognizable not only as his own, but as a human face in general. This time, the angel had slipped on the pooling blood, and was knocked to the floor with more force, causing the shotgun to slip out of his hands, and clatter towards the dead orderly. Panicking, he tried to get to his feet, to get to the gun quick, since there was no way he was going back with only two bodies that he was responsible for, it would make him look pathetic. Lucky, for him at least, enough to get to the gun, a patient had stepped out of their room, upset about being woken up, and the angel, who had slipped while grabbing the gun, shot straight ahead and completely tore off the senior’s right leg, causing them to topple over to the ground in a manner that required the angel to pause to laugh. Hell, he was able to show restraint when persuading the old broad, but the sight of the toppling man was just enough to break him. However, when the elder fell, the angel could see an officer walking down the hallway, right towards him, and he knew that he was starting to reach the end of his little joyride. Three bodies wasn’t enough, was it? If he shot down an officer, would that at least make up for his low body count, or would he still not get taken very seriously? As the officer aimed their pistol, the angel aimed and pulled three times, hoping that it would be enough to stop the officer, but only one little bullet hit the policeman in his thigh, and the other two bursts were sent into the ceiling, after he had once again slipped in blood. He lied there for a short while, surprised that he hadn’t been shot yet, until he saw that the office had been approaching, not firing. The man sure was taking his time, since he had just received a nasty limp, and when the angel rose to fire again, the cop shot first and brained him.