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 Posted: Thu Aug 14, 2008 1:04 am
I currently live in the buckle of the Bible Belt. For those of you who don't know, the Carolinas, Virginias, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana make up the Bible Belt. Here, it's impossible to not get hassled if you don't believe Jesus exists. People fight about it. People kill about it. Televangelists drive Porches, Baptists and Methodists have churches on every street corner, and "New Evangelical" churches have several billboards polluting yet another marketing medium. These "New Evangelical" places are usually run by some dude in a football jersey from the local team who encourage people to wave their arms like sea anemones to typical soul music and scream until they damn near suffer heart failure that the end is nigh. The "reverand" also almost always has a female counterpart that's half their age and very....shapely.
I live in the Buckle...where every Southern stereotype first came into existence. North Carolina. One of the highest incest ratings in the country, and also home to some of the lowest IQs out of every First World country. Thanks to Elizabeth Dole, all industry has been sent overseas, literally killing the economy in the state. The only hope this place has is petrol and Google's new HQ (coincidentally in the town I went to high school in, and less than a city block away from where my grandparent recently moved to).
Don't get me wrong, good things have happened to me here. I can't ever deny that. But I miss the midwest. I was raised in Wisconsin...Catholic School systems tought me a LOT about self-discipline and how to respect those who deserve it. What NC taught me was how to tell who was deserving of respect. No, I take that back. George Carlin taught me that. NC taught me to always look for the light at the end of the tunnel. If you can't see it, you just haven't fought your way far enough in. This is where Realism separates from Pessimism. Both see the world is crap, and has always been crap. Realists understand that you have to fight and claw like HELL to get to the good parts. You gotta EARN the reward. We are all gladiators, and surviving just isn't good enough. In the end, the emperor and still give you the thumbs down and sic the lions on you. No, you gotta give the crowd a sizzle. Make people see in you exactly what kind of person you are. You gotta lay it all out and pray to whomever that it doesn't get chopped off. It's brass like that that makes the light at the end of the tunnel appear. You gotta earn it.
I know this is quite a rant, but like I said, you gotta lay it all out. In the end, it may all be hopeless, but dammit, why not have one helluva ride?
To pedal back a bit. I said that NC taught me all of this, right? Well, here's how. I look around and I see so much talent, so many opportunities, so so many people...and they piss it all away for some clique or counter-culture. They've barely entered the arena and given up. There are SO many....I hate to phrase it like this...SO many losers, and it depresses me. I gave up at one point in my life. But seeing someone take their own life will do something to you. You learn that these people are failures. Complete and utter failures. I'm better than that. Hell, others must be too. Everyone can't have given up. Then I met KittyRedden. I found out I was right. Her ambition is surreal, inspiring. I wish you all had a chance to know the real her. She was fighting just as freaking hard as I was. Then our daughter was born...and things got dark again. My poor fragile little girl was given a piss poor start at life. She spent nine days in Neonatal Intensive Care...I still get a sinking feeling thinking about it. But you know what? As close as she came to dying, as bleak as things got, she had her mother's fire. She fought like a demon to hang on to that last thread of life. Her frail body hung on long enough for the doctors to fix her, repair the damage that was done from her own birth. She's a spitfire, a wildcat. If my infant was unstoppable...why should things be dark? Things got better for me again.
Now I know without a doubt my place on this earth. Nurture this fire, spread the light of hope, of life's worth and try to inspire others to take after her example. If anyone can light the dark tunnel for others, it's my daughter, Rin Blaze.
PS. Rin is her nickname...along with Monster, snugglebutt, and "NO! PUT THAT DOWN! GET THAT OUT OF YOUR MOUTH! HEY, DON'T SIT ON THE CATS!!!"
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Posted: Thu Aug 14, 2008 7:08 am
Just a few things to comment on about Blue's post...
1) Religion is the Bible Belt is SCARY!!! O_O Even in a decent church like the one I attend... There are just people that terrify me. I have very powerful spiritual beliefs, but I am in no way religious.
2) Awww!!! Thank you for all the kind words, Sweetie.
3) Just so you know, our daughter's real name is Raelin Blaze. The name "Raelin" is derived from the Gaelic word for "Strength", so technically her name is "Strong Fire" (And to think we chose this name weeks before she was even born)
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Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 12:04 pm
Actually I would like to thank Blue for his post. I have recently been feeling really down...I had to run away from my home to try and protect my own safety, and in the process ended up in a very uncomfortable situation with some friends....
But I guess the good thing that came out of it all was that I learned that there are at least three friends I have that would do anything to keep me safe, and that makes me feel a bit better.
Where was I? Ah, thank you Blue, for posting something that inspirational. I realize that the reason I can't see the light yet is because I'm not far enough into the dark - things could be worse. I could still be living on the streets with no friends or family to help me, trying to go to school. But I'm not.
^_^ Thanks.
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Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2010 7:25 pm
i have to say thanks to it may be a rant but its a true 1 it has inspired me to try my best at what i do and never give up
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