5 Years Too Long

Five years ago today, one of the best men in the world went to be with our sweet Lord. Five years ago today, my grandfather's suffering and year-long battle with cancer ended. Let me just give you a little background about the one and only Tom Blackwell.

When I was little, Papa Tom stayed with me while my parents worked. Papa was the first one to take me to the zoo, the one who took me on my first MARTA ride, the one who watched Mr. Roger's with me. When I was like, five, Papa taught me how to type properly on the computer. Like, um, who does that with a five year old. Papa. When I was in middle school we went to the pasture at the bottom of his property, got into his jeep, and it was then and there that he taught me how to drive. Papa let me help him measure out property lines in elementary school, he helped me create a cell out of play-doh in the fourth grade. Papa took pictures of me whenever we passed a county sign because he wanted me to do a project on the 159 counties in Georgia. My papa was a unique man.

But not only was Papa special to me, he was special to everyone he encountered. He made everyone feel as though they were right at home. He would ask perfect strangers about their personal lives and about their families, but he asked it in a way that no one minded telling him. He was the most organized man I've ever met, and he would sit down with big yellow legal pads and tell us lists of things that he was going to do, and he would draw diagrams to illustrate stories. (If anybody wants to know where I got my love of detailed storytelling from, it came from Papa). 

The other thing that I inherited from my papa is my love of learning. Papa was a teacher for years, a biology/botany teacher. I knew more about dang plants than any other third grader, let me tell ya. When I went to high school, my passion for learning came out even more in my biology classes. I attribute my love of biology and science in general to Papa. I wanted to be a good biology student for him, so I threw myself into it. I saw the way that Papa talked about his years of teaching and his students, and that's definitely something that has inspired me to go into teaching.

 The last weekend that I saw my Papa was hard. When I said goodbye to him, everybody in the room cried because they knew how hard it was for both of us. The last thing he said to me was "Don't let anybody change what you believe." He said this very faintly and weakly, but I know that's what he said. I have tried to make Papa proud. I am firm in my beliefs. Papa is the happiest man ever in Heaven, praising Jesus all day long, singing his favorite song Great is Thy Faithfulness. I hope that I am living my life in a way that is pleasing and glorifying to the Lord, but also one that would make my papa proud. 

We miss you, Papa. {August 7th, 1942- February 18th, 2010}

50 Shades of Heck to the No

In honor of Valentine's Day this weekend, I have decided to write a post about 50 Shades of Grey. Now, I know that in the blog world, there have been a lot of posts lately about the same topic, but hey, I'll give it a shot as well. 

*Disclaimer* I have not read 50 Shades of Grey, but I have done my research. So if there is something inaccurate in this post, I apologize. 

So, to start off this post, I think that it is appalling that this film is coming out on VALENTINE'S DAY. I think this holiday is a load of bull ((it brings out the bitter single lady within me)), but whatever, Valentine's Day is a day that is supposed to represent love. 50 Shades, I am sorry to say, DOES. NOT. REPRESENT. LOVE. It is a twisted story about dominance and sadomasochism, and it tells readers that engaging in a relationship where a CONTRACT has to be signed is okay. And guess what? It's not. 

Even people who engage in BDSM say that this book is not an accurate representation of what BDSM actually is. I'm not going to get into a discussion about BDSM and my opinions on that, but if people who agree with this movement and engage in sexual activities like this think that 50 Shades is inaccurate and not representative of what it is, then shouldn't that be a red flag? Because really all it is is a story about a powerful, wealthy man wooing a young woman and convincing her that all the acts that they engage in are acts of love. But they are not. This book is an example of domestic violence, and it glamorizes sexual abuse. 

The Lord intended sex to take place within marriage. The Lord intended sex to be an act of love, not one of dominance and shame, not one of bondage and rules. 1 Corinthians 6:12-20 talks about fleeing from sexual immorality. 50 Shades of Grey is the opposite of fleeing from sexual immorality. It is proclaiming a message to our society that a man taking advantage of a woman and controlling her in the ways that Christian controls Ana is something to be desired. It is seen as sexy. Well, to all the women and men across the world who have been sexually abused and forced to perform sexual acts that they were not comfortable with, it is not sexy. It is not what the Lord intended for us.

I am not condemning you if you have read this book. I am not saying that you are un-Christian or a terrible person if you go see this movie. It's not my place to judge you, the author of 50 Shades, or anybody else. What I am saying, however, is please just be cautious. I encourage you to think long and hard before going to see 50 Shades of Grey. I encourage you to read for yourself about what God intended sex to be, and then decide whether 50 Shades goes along with what God says. I encourage you to consider the message that this story sends and ask that you consider not going to the theater to see this film. 

That is all.

Love always,

Caroline