Eat Pray Love

"Look for God like a man with his head on fire looks for water."

I didn't want to actually critique the book until I was finished but I read something last night that sort of resonated with me.

The narrator/author of the book (Liz) is living in an Indian Ashram. She has befriended a fellow visitor, Richard from Texas, who reminds me very much of an enlightened version of my own Papa. He's very opinionated and outspoken. Best of all, he nicknamed Liz "Groceries" because she loves to eat (a very Papa-esque thing to do).

Have you ever had one of those days where your brain just wont SHUT UP?! You know, where you're trying to sleep or focus on something but your brain has other plans? In chapter 48 Richard from Texas is trying to help Liz focus more on meditation by suggesting she stop all other thoughts and focus strictly on listening to God. The particular thought Liz is having trouble silencing is that of her ex boyfriend, David. She always returns to him because Liz believed David to be her soul mate. To which Richard replies:

"Your problem is you don't understand what the word means. People think a soul mate is your perfect fit, and that's what everyone wants. But a true soul mate is a mirror, a person who shows you everything that's holding you back, the person who brings you to your own attention so you can change your life. A true soul mate is probably the most important person you'll ever meet, because they tear down your walls and smack you awake."

I LOVE THIS. This appealed to me on a few different levels. First, I don't think that there is just one soul out there for another being. I am of the opinion that God is too great and too powerful to have created only ONE complimentary person for you. Timing plays a huge role in our respective universes. I also like it because it tears down the "better half/other half" mentality. I've always felt that an individual should be complete before finding love in another. If that person isn't complete, it will lead to a lifetime of issues. Not to mention, I was never really fond of the idea that I'm only HALF a person without love. I mean...REALLY?! No, thanks. A soul mate should be EXACTLY what Richard from Texas described. It's such a raw, beautiful interpretation of love that,in my opinion, more people should agree with.

Richard from Texas went on to de-romanticize the issue by saying that soul mates are impossible to live with because it ends up being to painful to deal with the truth; however, he came back to say, "If you clear out all that space in your mind that you're using right now to obsess about this guy, you'll have a vacuum there, an open spot - a doorway. And guess what the universe will do with that doorway? It will rush in - God will rush in - and fill you with more love than you ever dreamed."

I just might need to find a way to meet this Richard. I feel like he would have a lot to share with me about life...his OR mine.

Now, I have to be honest. When I started this book I was a little more than turned off. The author came across as a whiny, self-deprecating, and I seriously loathed her character for the first 10-or-so chapters. Perhaps it took me a while to get absorbed into the book because I've never had to deal with the issues that Liz did. But the more I read, the more involved I became. So far, it's shaping up to be a decent memoir.


Now, for those of you who don't visit my blog to hear my thoughts on the mid-life crisis of an Oprah Book Club author, the rest of this entry will be my typical "I-had-a-sandwich-then-did-some-laundry" sort of update, so you may exhale and enjoy.

I did, indeed, make a sandwich today. Yesterday I bought these Pepperidge Farm Deli Flats, which are a hybrid of flatbread from Subway & pitas and it made for a pretty spectacular lunch. I found the idea in the Family Circle magazine that I was flipping through (thank you, GJ.) After that I went on to (you guessed it) fold some LAUNDRY. OH, what a thrilling life I lead!

After a few emails to ODU, I discovered that I'm eligible for In-State tuition rates, provided I submit the necessary documents proving my status (as a military spouse) and then get accepted into the university. This is GREAT news, so long as I can submit the documents on time. School is VERY important to me and I desperately want to go back. I've already been at RR for almost THREE years and as great as they are, I don't see myself working there forever. At least, I hope I won't have to.

I've decided I either want more snow or I want warm weather. I'm tired of dreary, frozen skies. I was searching my Photobucket to find pictures for this 30 Day Photo Challenge on Facebook and looking at Pensacola pictures makes me homesick. Which is odd because Pensacola isn't technically my "home". I would do almost anything to enjoy the gorgeous weather, beautiful beaches and insanely cheap cost of living again.

Lastly, I've had a brilliant idea. I want a video streaming sight that works like Pandora. I want to look up a genre of video and enjoy endless, free streaming of similar videos. Too bad I have NO CLUE how to launch that little project...cause I'm sure that's a million dollar idea.

Enjoy your Thursday, folks.


WARNING: I'm about to rant about the foolishness of our nation as a generalized unit. If this bores you and/or might offend you, please keep reading...because you're probably one of the people I'm talking about.

If you haven't already seen it, please watch Idiocracy. It aptly describes the fall of our nation's overall intelligence in a satirical fashion with strangely relevant problems. The other day, Adam and I were discussing old war letters that were sent home from infantry men on the battlefield, specifically those letters sent back to lovers, wives and families. These guys were just barely old enough to leave home and most had little or no education to speak of. But the letters! These letters! The penmanship alone was enough to be considered art itself. The content was so wonderfully worded and written with all the passion one person could harness that it could be considered poetry today. "My love and a thousand kisses to my own sweet Amanda and our little boys. How my heart yearns for thou that are so near and dear to me. Goodbye my own sweet wife..." But it was not poetry. It was simply a letter home from a mildly educated man faced with the horrors of war. Fast-forward to 2011 when our 18 year old "infantry men" aren't worried about love letters but more so about where they can find pleasure for one night and one night only. We live in a world where Snooki and Lauren Conrad are publishing books! Kesha and T-Pain use auto-tune to make their voices sound half-decent, half-obnoxious and end up selling MILLIONS of dollars worth of records! GAH! I really wish more people would be as outraged as I am. Alas, until something happens, we will be forced to listen to Justin Bieber and watch Teen Mom 2 reruns until something equally awful comes along. I'm sorry if this makes me sound pretentious but I feel so bad for our future!