Am I Really Making the Right Choices? Part 1

Many times throughout the day I ask myself. "Are you really making the right choices in your life?" While second guessing myself is both harmful and beneficial, I think it helps to be confident in my choices. Often the world says something is acceptable but I am over here thinking, "Would God approve?"or "Is that what I really believe inside?"

The first thing I have had on my mind a lot has been my romantic relationships. Should I date or should I try courtship? Or maybe a mixture of both. Start out casually dating while in a group of friends and then get more serious and start courting someone. Truthfully courtship scares me. I have had bad experiences with both types of relationship but if the right person comes along I am willing to give it a chance.

The second thing that I have on my mind a lot is my choice to remain abstinent until marriage. The world definitely has a strong opinion on this topic. I know plenty of people that have no problem sleeping with someone if it "feels right". I also know people on the opposite end of this topic that believe I am doing the right thing and that someone will be forced to fall in love with me for who I am and not what my body can do for them. That sounds great but I can tell you that I have had a ton of guys tell me they can't date me because I won't sleep with them. It is depressing when I remember those guys but hey it's their loss. 

The third thing, that goes along with the second thing, is marriage versus living together. I believe both have different meaning. When married, laws apply to you and your spouse and leaving is not that easy because of alimony and child support and all that. This includes joint bank accounts and joint taxes(if you live in the US). My personal belief is that divorce is only allowed if there was abuse, verbal or physical, or if there was cheating.  Both are severely destructive and hurtful. Living together is a completely different arrangement. You can easily leave and laws do not bind you at all. I feel like it is a way to get what you both want without tying yourself together by law. You can still have separate lives away from each other. Separate bank accounts and even separate bedrooms although you might still sleep in one room on occasion. I do not know the details of this lifestyle but it seems a little distant to me.  Marriage is about uniting as one. Living together is still two people living under one roof. 

Those three things were pertaining to relationships.  There are a few more things that come to mind but I will cover those in another post. 

--Melody

Social Media: Silenced Voices

Social media is the best and worst thing to happen to society.

Sure. It connects people socially and romantically but it can be devastating to your self esteem.

Lately I have been very upset by it and a very famous quote comes to mind. In one of the Harry Potter films, he discovers that he has a connection with Voldemort and he says to Professor Dumbledore, "I am so angry all the time" I am not angry per se but I am incredibly frustrated and maybe I am letting things get to me. 

Lately, I have seen a disturbing trend. Anytime ANYONE says something remotely uncomfortable, comments get deleted and people get banned. I even remove my own comments at times. What is saddening is that people can't freely express their own opinion without someone attacking them for speaking. It is like this in real life too. Often times I am not even saying that someone should believe as I do but there are certainly better ways to respond to someone.

Whatever happened to freedom of speech? Apparently it does not exist on the interwebs at all.

-Melody

Writing Prompt #3 and #4

Describe your favorite place and time to read. Why is it so special?

I like reading on my bed in my room or at my desk. I am most active after 4pm so I like to read when I can focus the best. However, if the book has me hooked then I can read it any time anywhere. An example of this was when I was reading Me Before You by Jojo Moyes. I could not put my e-reader down. I read that book and its sequel very quickly as the story line had me hooked in.

Describe a book you enjoyed so much that you wished the story would continue. Write a letter to the author, encouraging him or her to write a sequel.

Dear writers of The Tribe,

I know this was not initially a book but the story was written by someone. After that series ended, I really wanted more. I guess that’s because there was supposed to be another season but it was cancelled. I guess this is 16 years late but I would love to have a supplementary text written to explain what happened to the characters after they floated off on a boat.

The same goes for Higher Ground. I would love to know exactly what happened to those kids and if they found the healing they so desperately searched for.

Thank you for your time,

Melody.

Why Temp Work is Not for Everyone

I have done temp work a few times and each time I feel the same way.

Companies use temps to avoid the risk of hiring a bad employee. The bottom line is that temps are very easy to get rid of.

Temp status can be very depressing. Its like being at the bottom of the food chain or the lowest caste in a society. You are expendable. Also you are frequently not included in activities that the main group in society gets to participate in.

As unfair as this is, there are really good employees hired via this process. The saddest thing is that some temps do half a job, have bad attitudes, and act badly behind the bosses back. Those are solid reasons to let them go.

But what about those that work hard half their life and do not get hired permanent.

Thats where I sit.

I have been working since I was 16. Thats half my life. (I will be 30 in 2018). I still don't have permanent work and no healthcare. How is that fair? Its not. But thats the way things are. You go looking for a better life and its a stalemate.

Temp or not, the choice is yours. Just be prepared for the heartache.

Writing Prompt #2

Which member of you family would make a good character for a book?

I would say, probably, my mom. She is super expressive and is always the life of the party but her life is also never dull.  There is always something going on in her life. As a kid, I knew my mom as the clownish type. For example, my toys always seemed to develop personalities and move around in unique ways. When I got older, my mom was always the one to plan the New Years Party, and it was always a blast. She was always the creative, artsy one. We may not see eye to eye on a personal level but mom always knew how to make life interesting.

-Melody