Ramblings...

Well! This is my first ever blog! To be honest I don't really know what I'm going to write about yet...given that I'm home alone on a Friday night, determined not to tarnish my cognitive capacity any further by watching the senseless rubbish that's on TV at the moment, a little tired of reading my book, but not tired enough to go to sleep, this blog will most likely consist of the disjointed and drawn-out ramblings of an over-tired and under-stimulated hermit (hence the title..creative, I know). If the structure of that sentence is any indication of how this blog will be set out, it could be quite detrimental to your sanity, and you should stop reading immediately...really...just press the little red 'x' at the top right hand corner of the screen...that's all it takes...

Well if anybody is still reading this (and for your sake I hope that's nobody...I did try to warn you), I should probably start with what has been on my mind today, and undoubtedly on the minds of every love-struck 13 year old on an international scale...Valentine's Day! I was thinking about Valentine's Day mainly because tomorrow at work we will be inundated with men of all ages who have left it to the last minute to buy a gift for their sweetheart, and will leave our shop satisfied with their purchase of a single stem rose made entirely from coloured bird feathers that have been sprayed with rose incense oil, only to be shocked at the look of disappointment on their sweetheart's face come Valentine's Day. So, that got me thinking (yes, my own thoughts, deep as they were, got me thinking.. aren't I..err.. thoughtful?) how Valentine's Day means different things for different people. For some, Valentine's Day will be an awful reminder of a void that exists in their lives, that they have managed to convince themselves is merely a speck, when really it's a gaping black hole. For some, this Valentine's Day will foster a feeling of loneliness so intense that it's almost suffocating, and a longing for that special someone, who, for whatever reason, is absent. For others, this Valentine's Day will be a taste of things to come, a chance to enjoy simply being with the one you love, and a chance to appreciate the simple treasures in life; like a handmade card with a misshapen heart glued on the front, or the sweet fragrance of a scentless rose grown in vain at the height of a typical Townsville summer. Because it doesn't matter that the artistic design of the card is below third grade standard, or that the scent of the brown, wilted rose is remarkably reminiscent of dirt, all that matters is that they were given in love. For others still, Valentine's Day means basking in the liberating freedom of being a content singleton, scoffing at the naivety of young lovers and the abundance of clichés such as chocolates and flowers, which ultimately are superficial in nature and lack any real substance or significance. I'm particularly excited about Valentine's Day this year because I'll be at work (which, in itself, is particularly unexciting), but I will be wearing the most hideously festive costume I could manage to put together without losing my job...a bright red apron covered with pink and purple love hearts, red ribbons in my hair, rose tattoos..it's going to be awesome. So there you have it, four completely different perceptions of Valentine's Day...all very unique..

After thinking about how people perceive Valentine's Day in very different ways, depending on individual situations and circumstances, I started thinking about how Valentine's Day fundamentally exists to celebrate one thing.. love. Love, by nature, surpasses circumstances. God didn't create love one way for one group of people, and another way for another group of people. "Love is patient, Love is kind..." You know the rest. So, after pondering the concept of love (I would just like to pause here to say that, if you are still reading, I did warn you that this would lack any real direction, and next time you should take my warnings a little more seriously...), I started thinking about how people respond to love and perceive love in different ways, dependant on a multitude of factors. Trying to list some of these factors would be beyond the scope of this blog box, but I'm sure you can think of a few yourself. Some people react to love by falling hard and fast, by allowing another person to be privy to the intricate details of their very being, by allowing themselves to be completely vulnerable, and by being willing to give up life as they have known it just to be with another. Comparatively, some respond to love by freaking out at the intensity of their emotion and regress into being introverted and overly cautious; effectively pushing away the very person they're dying to let in, and losing what they were so desperate to hold on to. How we give, receive and respond to love alters and changes, for countless reasons. Human love is conditional, inconstant, wavering. I know that sounds cynical, and I'm not saying that all human love unequivocally follows that trend 100% of the time, but, for the sake of conversation (that I'm probably having with myself), human love is far from perfect.

So, that got me thinking about the One who created love, and the one true love that is so freely offered to us. It is unconditional, constant, unchanging, fixed, unwavering, unfaltering, we have done nothing to deserve it, yet there is nothing we can do to stop receiving it. How awesome is that?! It blows my mind every time I stop and think about it. When all around us is uncertain, when we are deserted and forsaken by those who claim to love us, we will always have the certainty of the love of Jesus Christ, which is so unwarranted, but given to us regardless, and all we need to do is trust.

So, this Valentine's Day, whatever Valentine's Day means to you - whether it's the chance to dress up as an escapee from the mad house, a chance to take great delight in mocking outward displays of love and affection, a chance to embrace the simple beauties of new love and the refreshing notion of beginning a journey with the one who captured your heart by your side, or if it's a chance to wallow in self pity in your pyjamas on the couch with a bucket of double chocolate chip ice cream and a copy of "The Notebook", take a moment to think about the one true love, that will never leave us, that can never be taken from us, that will never forsake us. The love of Jesus Christ, pure in every way, unending, steadfast, all consuming, a love that exceeds all bounds.