Life

create life. enjoy life. live life. give life. discover life. quote life. love life. have life.

Life is something great. Do you ever wake up in the morning and think, "wow, it's so great to be alive, to have life." Most of the time, we don't even think about the little everyday things. They are such a blessing to have, yet we take advantage of them. When was the last time you sat down and said a prayer? And no, I don't mean asking God for something special like a car or a raise. I mean just sitting down and thanking him for such a beautiful day. For the flowers blooming in the sun. For the wonderful people you encounter everyday. What about the life he gives you every morning you wake up? Things like this, the things that actually matter, we expect them to be given to us and with no pleases or thank-you's. God does, he gives them to you. God is waiting for you to see what a great thing he does for you, so very patiently. When are you going to see this, and change your ways? I challenge you, to do this. To live your life through God. To thank him for the wonderful things he does. Thank God, for life.

.1% More than cookies

Okay so, this blog will actually go quite well with the title of my blog, “this imperfect life.” I guess nobody’s life is truly perfect, but I’ll give you a glimpse into how mine has been recently. On this previous Tuesday, Valentine’s Day, I was taken to Flagstaff Emergency Hospital. I have been having very bad stomach pains for the past month or so and they had been getting more frequent and more painful. We were there for around eight hours, just to discover that I have an ulcer, caused by stress. Wonderful. Well, while I was lying uncomfortably with an IV in my arm and in that ugly gown, I began to think.

I was very grossed out by the fact that they reuse gowns. The fact that I could be wearing something that someone had died in was very disturbing. My mom called me morbid and laughed. She said it was sanitary because they wash them but I was not convinced. I continued to tell her that community anything is gross and as you know, I hate to share. I used bowling shoes as an example. They only spray those things with Lysol and call it good. Disgusting. “Lysol kills 99.9% of germs,” my mom says. Here is where the .1% comes in. I said, “Mom, .1% is a big deal! .1% gets delicious, home-baked cookies taken away from you!” She just looked at me with confusion, so I proceeded to tell her how my 6^th hour Government class didn’t get cookies because the 7^th class beat our test score percentage by .1%. She had nothing left to say except, “At least they let you keep the socks.”

This is when I started thinking deeper into what I was discussing with my mom. What if we lived our life by that .1%? Instead of just thinking that 90% is satisfying? Why shouldn’t we strive for that extra little point? What if you were .1% nicer to people? What if you cared .1% more about someone? What if we tried .1% harder in our lives, in everything we do? Maybe our lives could be .1% better. Maybe .1% makes more of a difference than we think. More than just cookies.

-Payt.

Share love

Do you remember being young, like daycare age? Those days when having an apple juice and teddy graham snack just before taking your afternoon nap was part of your everyday schedule? Do you remember your favorite toy? You know, the very first one you picked up and held all afternoon just so nobody else could play with it? One second you would have it but the moment you realized it was no longer in your reach you would search and fight until you got it back. This was when we first learned about the importance of sharing. Oh how I hated to share.

Today, more than ten years later, I STILL hate to share. I mean, I know how to, but if I get the option, I won’t do it. Well, there are certain occasions where sharing IS okay. For example, sharing your excitement during a football game, or sharing a nice walk down the road together. However, on the other hand, there are things we never want to share.

1.       The last bite of your dessert.

2.       The blankets when you are trying to sleep.

3.       Most importantly- your boyfriend.

Now, you may be thinking, “Wow, what is she saying? She is crazy.” No, I am not. In high school, we learn so much more quickly than in our preschool years. We learn about sharing and caring and about love. I’m not saying we shouldn’t share love, (because we definitely should!) I’m just saying we should be more careful about choosing how we do so.

Speaking of love, Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. Now, there are usually two sides to this “special day” you either love it, or you hate it. I, for one, feel no emotion for this day. At a young age, my parents got married on Valentine’s Day. However, through my years, they have also gotten divorced. So, in my household, it has always been another kind of experience. Last year though, I decided to try and get into the spirit of things. I bought a dozen roses and a bag of Hershey’s kisses (cliché, I know). I was doing this act of kindness thing and just handing them out to people I felt might need some love that day. Of course I gave one to my mom, and a few to my closest friends, and the most special, a boy who had a little crush on me. I thought he was sweet, the way he would hold open the door for me every time he saw me walk past. So, I left him a little note in the office, along with a rose and a kiss stating it was from his “secret crush.” I imagine he loved it because after lunch, I saw him walking around with it, wilting in his hand.

Anyway, I’ll get to the point. Share love. Share it with those you care about. Do what makes you happy. Surround yourself with those who make you smile. Laugh as much as you breathe. Love as long as you live. Because, as long as you share the love you have, you’ll need nothing else.

-Payt.

Cheerleading

“Do you ever feel like breaking down? Do you ever feel out of place? Like somehow you just don’t belong, and no one understands you?” This song plays over and over in my head as I sit on those bleachers, my heart thumping out of my chest. We have competition in just twenty minutes that I should be focused on right now, but instead, my mind is settled on the text message I got from my boss saying, “Your last check will be mailed to you.” OH WOW! You must be thinking, “Oh my gosh what did you do?” Well, here’s the story.
I have known about this competition for the past three months, at least. I knew I was going to be out of town, so I asked for the day off, three months ago. Schedules come out every two weeks. It just so happened to be the day before we leave to our competition that I get the schedule saying I was supposed to work. Whoops, what do I do now? Do I call my coach up and tell her “Hey, I gotta work. Sorry!” Or do I let my boss know that in the hour I was supposed to be working, there would be an empty chair in that theater? These are the decisions running through my head.
Today, my blog is all about priorities. Now, I have been thinking about this for quite awhile. Like, should I go hang out with my friends, or stay home and watch that movie my mom has been dying to see? Or, should I go to practice instead of skipping school to go to the mall? Normally, I would just go with what I felt like doing, and not think about the consequences that follow.
Cheerleading is my top priority. Although, it might as well be officially over after going to state (and taking 9th place in case you were wondering). When I entered into high school as a terrified little freshman, cheer was the only thing I knew I could look forward to. Cheerleading was what gave me my place in this new life of mine. Cheerleading will always be the thing I will say is what created who I am today. So, when you ask me how I do it or why I put up with the “drama” I’ll tell you. I’ll tell you “it’s just who I am.”