In 2015 I've decided to read more. My lovely friend Rebakahwrote a post on her 2015 reading goal of reading 50 books! My abilities is not quite up to par with reading 50 books this year, but I will be participating in the same reading challenge with her, Modern Mrs. Darcy's Reading Challenge. The goal is 12 books from 12 different categories for each of the 12 months. I'm hoping that maaaaaybe I'll be able to finish early and maaaaaaaybe get to 20 books in 2015. We'll see!
Here are the categories and the books I've designated for each:
a book you've been meaning to read -- Tables in the Wilderness by Preston Yancey
a book published this year
a book in a genre you don't usually read -- (potentially) The Green Mile by Stephen King
a book from your childhood -- (potentially and taking cue from Rebekah) The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
a book your mom loves
a book that was originally written in a different language -- The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
a book "everyone" has read but you -- The Giver by Lois Lowry
a book you chose because of the cover
a book by a favorite author -- either A Year of Biblical Womanhood or Searching for Sunday by Rachel Held Evans
a book recommended by someone with great taste -- Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
a book you should have read in high school -- (potentially) Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
a book that's currently on the bestseller list -- either Wild by Cheryl Strayed or I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai
And here we go! I finished The Giver on Friday, and I just started The Ocean at the End of the Lane.
We are currently 13 days, 2 hours, and 25 minutes into 2015.
I'm feeling rather hopeful about this year. The months leading up to it were filled with a lot of new and wonderful people and experiences.
This Mary Oliver quote to the left is my ambition, the mindset that I want to chase.
I've decided upon two words to help me flesh these out this year. Participate and Simplify.
///
In 2015, these are some of my aspirations.
I want to meet more people and make new friends. I want to further develop the friendships I have.
I want to have as much fun as possible.
I want to find a like-minded community of people.
I want to set priorities. I want to find simplicity and develop minimalism. I want to be more aware. I want to be the one who shows up.
In short, I want to participate.
///
On a more detailed scale, here are my other 2015 aspirations: I want to create a budget. I want to get rid of more clothes and things. I want to give up solo Netflix binges. I have two or three TV shows I keep up with, and I want that to be it. I want to downsize what I spend my free time on. I have the tendency to pick up hobbies like pebbles on a beach. I want to give up some of the smaller ones and focus on the ones I enjoy more. I want to act. Procrastinating is a sorry excuse for spending time, and I need to stop being lazy and giving into it. I want to start reading a book or two a month. In short, I want to simplify.
///
These are my probably over-ambitious hopes for 2015. It seems like a lot, but my life has been heading in this directing for a couple months now. This is my way of honing in on what I think is important right now, to Participate and Simplify.
There was a lot of change that led up
to 2015. I'm sensing that it is going to be a full year. I have a lot of
hope and anticipation and I'm looking forward to tackling it moment by
moment, one day at a time.
It is now 13 days, 3 hours, and 19 minutes into 2015. What are your aspirations for this year?
Someone said to me
the other day, "this has been a difficult season for you, hasn't it?"
I answered
"well… um… yes. But it's been really good too."
Then I thought about
it.
Three years ago, I
was a senior in high school. Emotionally and mentally I hit rock bottom. I was
drowning in a dark place, fighting for a ray of sunshine. On the outside I was
okay. On the inside I was in an almost constant cry for help. Trying to be the
perfect person had worn away at my being and I couldn't hold myself together
anymore. I could no longer be perfect. I could no longer be better. I didn't
know how to just be.
Today?I'm happy.
I'm okay with my imperfections; I embrace them, they make me who I am. I love
myself and know I am loved. I love other people fiercely and I love them for
who they are, not who they should be.
Today? I live with
one of my best friends. I've also crawled out of this shell of mine, and this
semester I've gotten to know so many beautiful, unconventional people that I
adore and can't get enough of. Thanks to a friend's invitations and me taking
off my blinders, my life is so very full
and I am so, so thankful.
One year ago, I had
a lot of questions. I lived with a few wonderful people who helped me with a
lot of it. But I didn't know who or how to talk to about everything. I didn't
know what different stories looked like, and I didn't know how to handle it when
my story took unexpected turns. Questions upon questions led to a lot of
seeking and I found myself not at a crossroads but in the middle of a nowhere
with no inkling of what my next steps should be.
Today? Today I'm
still seeking, but I know I'm not alone. Today I'm okay with mystery. I'm occupying spaces I hadn't before and it's been different and scary, but it's been so very good. Today I embrace our diverse,
imperfect, magnificent stories. My story doesn't have to look a specific way; I
am forging my own way with directed steps.
So… no. This has not
been a difficult season. This has actually been an incredibly beautiful
season. Full of incredibly beautiful
friends, old and new.
You see, the most beautiful things are also the most messy. This has been a messy season. Full of screw-ups, awkward moments, new things, doubts, and misfit people.
Yes. Because of the person I am, I have very bad days. Days I question
whether or not I have really thrown off the darkness like I thought I
had. People disappoint you. You disappoint you. Life disappoints you.
You question things so deep that you wonder if you are still you. But
I've learned to appreciate and embrace and fully feel these days.
Because these days exist and dare I say we need them.
Perfection is something I have given up, and fear is something I am in the process of giving up. Because they go hand-in-hand. If you are so focused on being perfect you become a fearful person, afraid of anything or anyone who will taint your perfection. But let me tell you a secret: that is no way to live this life and that is no way to love people.
So here's to our messes. Here's to our messy stories. Here's to magnificent messy people.
In the words of Sarah Bessy from her book, Jesus Feminist, “I want to be outside with the misfits, with the rebels, the dreamers,
the second-chance givers, the radical grace lavishers, the ones with arms
wide open, the courageously vulnerable.”
That is what I want, that is what I am seeking, that is what I am starting to live.
And I am so incredibly,
deep-down-in-my-heart thankful.
On the 20th of the month, here's 20 things that I am thankful for, in no particular order:
Autumn with
bright blue skies, stormy weather, and sweater weather
Housemates and late
night talks
Instagram where new
friends are made
The Collection's
latest album Ars Moriendi because it is
my soul (if you want to know anything
about me, go listen to that album [right here])
People who are
honest and live their life without regrets, grudges, or agendas (Seriously. The
agenda thing? Stop.)
Late night solo art
projects for my campus organization
The Christian
blogger communities I follow (and stalk on twitter)
Little brothers and
their advice
My new tattoo that is
gorgeous and I love and adore and try to show off no matter what I'm wearing
My wonderful
wonderful job
My "church
sabbatical" of sorts; detoxing from my own cynicism & fear, learning through
good books, and the Lord meeting me in solitude
Lexington and the
community the people are working hard to create and build and make better
Parents who
listen to me prattle, talk about decisions, and give me garden tomatoes
Letting go of
pressures, anxiety, deep-rooted fear, outsiders' opinions, and my own
unnecessary apologies
Kentucky, because I
finally love it here
Very gladly being
the person who can show up, who can help, who can just be for others
The changing of majors and (hopefully) finally finding my passion
Chick-fil-A's Market
Salad for doing salads right
The Oh Hellos and
Needtobreathe for an astounding show
Ideas,
passions, callings, and the mulling over of all the things that I refuse to let
go of no matter how far off they are and praying I have the strength to fight
for them
I'm determined to
make this blogging thing work. But because I usually can't think of anything to
write about and/or that you'd want to read, I go find suggestions via the
internet. I found a lovely list of 50 blog post ideas on Gala Darling and
number 27 caught my eye.
"Write about
how you want your life to feel."
Since I am in
college, the idea of what we want to do with our lives comes up a lot. Since
I'm a junior, this comes up a little more urgently in the form of what
internships we're planning on? what we're doing to beef up our resumes? and how
are you going to thoroughly get rid of our originality so we can stand out in
the job market and get a career and start doing that American dream thing?
I'm a little
overwhelmed and pissed off, if you can't tell.
I'm just not the
kind of person to do something because it's expected. If I want to be a certain
place in my life and a "career" is how I get there, then I'll do it.
But (at least for right now) I just desire a simple, low-stress life. Hell, I'd
be happy as a waitress. So. Quit talking to me about career and
professionalism. Because I don’t want it.
Now that I've given
you a taste of all the negativeness I feel, let me tell you what I do want. Let
me tell you how I want my life to feel.
I want my life to
feel generous and hospitable and
compassionate and creative and adventurous and
loving.
I do not want to be
so focused on a goal that I pass by people and not have time for them.
As young as I may
sound when I say it, at the end of the day, I still want to be me. I cannot always check myself at the door
in order to get a job done. I am who I am, this is my story.
I want to live a
life of "responsible irresponsibility" as author Mark Batterson
stated. I want to be dependent and depended up in community. I want to dig
roots deep down and have a family of friends to come home to. But if I feel the
call to go study culinary arts in New York City or run an orphanage in Romania
or hike the entire Appalachian Trail, I damn well will go. I do not want to be
tied down.
I want a life
without fear. I want to love other people and invite them into my home and my
life. I want to ask questions without being reprimanded. I want to love people
of all different backgrounds and walks of life. I want to leave a prayer
meeting to go drive my drunk friend home from a bar.
I want to create
every. single. day. As if creativity were as necessary as eating. I want to
teach something creative and knowledge to children and parents. I want to
rebuild the humanity in people that this world and its systems has crushed and
buried and denied.
I want to live a
life without regrets. I refuse to wake up one day and regret loving a person,
taking a risk, or pushing myself. I want to live without the pressure of
pleasing others. I want to respect them and honor them, but I will not live my
life according to others' expectations.
I want to live,
moment by moment, a life that Jesus would smile at.
I am far, far, far
from my life being this way. Some fault lies with my actions, some fault lies
in my youth, some fault lies in the season of life that I am in.
But no matter
what I do for a living, where I live, or how much money I earn in a year, what I described above is what I want. This is the life that I want to work and grow towards, this is
what I want my life to feel like.
What about you? What
do you want your life to feel like?
Long time no see,
my little corner of the interwebs.
We're about to turn
a new leaf into September, and it is time I start writing again.
First, a quick
recap:
May 11th through
July 16th involved me working 50 to 60 hours a week between my fulltime temp
job at Amazon.com, the part-time job I've had for two years, and my piano
lessons.
May 31st I moved
into my new house with two of my best friends. We get along beautifully, and I
adore having our own place. Our tiny porch is my favorite.
July 19th through
the 26th I spent in Wisconsin visiting family and hanging with my brother for
the first real time all summer due to both our busy schedules.
The rest of my break
(til August 18th) involved getting ready for school and seeing a few high
school friends before we all went our separate ways.
Viola! There was my
summer. Not my favorite. But I learned a lot. And grew. And met some cool
people that I'll probably never see again.
Favorite events of
August before include (in no particular order):
Seeing my favorite
band, The Collection, live at a radio recording with my brother and:
Them playing five songs,
three of which were my three favorites off the album
(Seemingly) being the only people there who were familiar with their music
Telling the regulars of the
radio show about The Collection
Hearing the interview with
the band
Getting to talk to the lead
singer/instigator of the band, him recognizing me from Instagram, and my
brother and I basically getting invited to North Carolina for a bonfire at
their house
Where on the last day the
game was delayed due to pouring rain and dad and I had lots of fun through
it all
Snapping pictures of Rory
McIlroy and (an illegal) one of Phil Mickelson
Backyard Bonnaroo:
With old high school friends
At my friend's magical
house/backyard
Eating yummy food
Staying up late learning
about each other's lives since high school
Then classes
started, and I paid way too much for books. I also remembered how much I hate
college and subsequently discovered I have the least motivation I have ever experienced in
the four semesters previous to this. But I'm working on it. Ish.
In other bits of news, some parts of my
life have been shaken up immensely. Several events/books/blogs/albums led to a floodgate opening up in my
head and it'll take me awhile to process. Right now
I'm spending Sundays reading, writing, and listening to
music all in an effort to find my feet again. I'm trying to enjoy the journey.
If you want to follow me further, I'm on Instagram & Twitter as @barefoot_rach.
To end, here's a video of The Collection from (I think) a show they just had in NC. The next time I see them live I want to go to a show like this, where I won't be the only one singing along.
I managed to blog for every week in February, but once midterms and spring break hit in March my life pretty much turned into homework and driving places. But that's okay, because I have a week of classes and then finals and I'll be done with this semester and officially half-way through my undergraduate career.
Here's the last couple months in review.
I don't remember much about March. Other than the fact that I turned 20, I had Spring Break and hung with my brother, and I went exploring a bit at a beautiful spot on my usual commute.
Sun.
In April I explored a portion of the John Holder Trail. I only got so far before I had to turn around due to muddy trails, the threat of rain, and shoes not made for hiking. But I shall go back.
Mud.
Also in April, April 9th to be exact, I participated in a human trafficking awareness event on my campus with the organization I am a member of AND got to see the one and only John Mark McMillan in concert with a good friend. The concert was small, we were standing right in front, people were dancing, everyone sang along, and it was overall the best concert experience I've had (and I've seen Mumford & Sons).
JMM & Jude Moses were three feet in front of us at this point.
On Easter I went driving and hiking with my parents in the Red River Gorge. It was the first time I'd been to the RRG, and I can't wait to go back this summer for some extended hiking.
"Red River Gorgeous"
Other developments include the Lord giving my friends and I a house to rent, Him giving me a summer job working forty hours a week with a schedule that works around my current job, and hopefully visiting family later in the summer. I have a feeling that this summer will be a mini season of preparation that serves as a bridge to the next major seasons of my life. I am looking forward to what develops and what I do with my time when I'm not working. I hope it is a restful summer that prepares me for next year but most of all I hope it is a productive summer of activity and learning and growing and involvement. As a sneak peak, I have big plans for this blog and I look forward to developing this space as well as fine-tuning my vision and purpose for it. Thank you in advance for hanging on for the ride! To end this post, here's Brady Toops, the artist who opened for John Mark McMillan, singing his song "Lord Have Mercy." Prepare yourself, his voice is too beautiful.
There's a lot of
things I could be writing right now.
I started writing a
post. Actually I full-on finished a
post. But it's a bit too much and a bit too raw to publish. So we'll skip that for now.
Instead, here's a few things in no particular order that have authentically and genuinely excited me or reached down deep in me in some way. I'm back to lists,
folks, and I won't apologize.
I got to help a dear friend surprise another dear friend with her arrival. There's nothing like truly surprising someone and seeing them scream and jump up and down.
My little brother played at the Hard Rock Cafe on Beale St. in Memphis, TN for his friend Apollo Mighty. He's to the left, the bearded one wearing the vest with the guitar. *big sister freak out time*
Via Apollo Mighty
I ordered 5 pairs of Warby Parker glasses for their home try-on. I'll pick my favorite pair and once I buy them Warby Parker will send a pair of glasses to someone in need. iamsoexcited.
Nickel Creek is returning. Enough said.
In 8 days I will be 20 years old. Just let that sink in. You don't understand my excitement.
Thoughts and images of summer. My vitamin D is lacking and I need to see the sun.
One of my best friends sent me a simple black cord necklace with a tiny pendent that says "love" and I haven't taken it off. She also sent me tea. She loves me.
John Mark McMillan
"Future / Past"
"The constellations are swimming inside
The breadth of your desire Where could I run, where could I hide from your heart's jealous fire"
Also check out his song "Love at the End."
"The Thing About Being a Poinsettia" by Sarah Thebarge. I got a poinsettia tattooed on my right shoulder in December and little did I know how much it would mean to me. I knew the legend and what it meant, how God takes the little things and transforms them into beauty. But this means something so different and something so much more and I am so, so thankful.
Thank you for reading. Blog post ideas are welcome. :)
I found a book at my hometown's library the other day. The book is called 7.
Well. The full title
is, 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess by
Jen Hatmaker, a pastor's wife and church planter who lives in Austin, Texas.
The basic premise
reads as this: she, her husband, occasionally their three children, and a small group of her friends she dubbed
as "The Council" chose seven areas of excess and created some sort of
fast for each for one month. The seven
topics were food, clothes, possessions, media, waste, spending, and stress. I'm
only in the middle of the third month right now. The book reads like a diary,
she wrote every other day or so about how the fasts were going and what she was
learning.
For lack of better
words, she's an extroverted hoot. I probably wouldn't be able to handle her.
Actually, because she has a fantastic sense of humor she probably wouldn't be
able to handle me because I'd be laughing the whole time she'd be talking.
But, this lady is so
very sincere. She loves so very fiercely. She knows her stuff but isn't afraid
to admit she's wrong or messed up.
Jen Hatmaker is
reminding me about crazy passionate people. Unapologetically passionate about something of God so much you talk about it all
the time even if you annoy your family and friends. So passionate you do
everything you can in the name of that something.
//
While I was reading, I realized something. I used to be
like that.
Call it childish
naivety, but I was going to change the world.
Eventually, I got so
tired of being alone in that passion. I was tired of no one caring. Because in
all seriousness, most people don't give a damn about anything. We're scared, we
think it's not cool, and who would look out for number one if we're helping
others? I got jaded in my isolation and in the environment I was in.
Today when people
say things like I used to, I inwardly shake my head and cynically think
"been there, done that, good luck with that."
//
The more I think
about it, the more I realize why Jesus said “Let the children come to me….
[T]he Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children."
Don't you love/hate
it when kids get super excited over stuff and won't shut up about it? Well, I'm
pretty sure that's what Jesus meant. Passion.
In the movie
"Amazing Grace" the character William Pitt, eventual British Prime Minister and
friend of William Wilberforce stated that "...we're too young to realize
that certain things are impossible!"
Children are foolish
enough to do things that adults think they're too cool for or have too much
responsibility for.
For the past year or
two, I've been frightened of anybody mentioning radical love and radical action.
Because I used to be excited and ready to do those things. Now all I worry
about is if I'll have enough money or if I'll have to make awkward conversation
or get to know people I don't particularly want to get to know. I made a bubble that I
can stretch but never, never break. Because it would cost me my selfish
comfort. I carry around "irresponsible responsibility" as Mark
Batterson called it in his book Wild Goose
Chase. "Responsibility" that we use as an excuse to not do the right thing.
//
Last night I went to
a meeting for an organization on campus that promotes awareness about human
trafficking. My new friends there talked about boycotting chocolate, buying
fair trade t-shirts to sell for fundraising, and making big
plans for awareness projects. These were things I used to do things about,
believe in, and dream about. These were things I had more or less given up. Yet, He's brought be back.
This post did not go as planned. But it turned into what it has, because God is ever so slowly turning me step by step back to His call. His call of justice, of changing the world, of
caring for the issues and people He so dearly loves, of working and dreaming
big dreams of His kingdom. Doing hard things that don't always turn out the way
you think they should. Failing. Being in awkward situations. Giving up stuff.
Picking up a cross.
I think He's bringing me back 'round to His radical love, and I am so, so ready to dream again.
In desperation to
write a blog a week, I found myself Googling. (Or Binging, I did use Bing.) You
may call it "lazy," but I call it "humanity pooling our
resources." In the words of Lorde's latest hit: So there.
I found myself on
the blog of Mary Demuth (one of those Christian authors I was pretty sure I'd
heard of before) and she offered one of the best posts on blog idea posts I've
ever seen.
Number 7 on her list
was "write ten things folks don't know about you." Again, sounds
lazy, but I have 8 chapters worth of reading to do this weekend so here we are.
Important things. Via flickr.
In rare moments (usually
during a full moon) I can be talkative. Shocker I know, but it happens.
After I regretfully spill my guts I go back to my mind-dweller self.
I still don't like my
university that much. Or the concept of college in general. But I need to
learn the skills and earn a degree to actually work as a Dietitian. So I'm
toughing it out. I'll need to get my Master's at some point, but I'll at
least have a big girl job by that point and can have a real life. Because
college is not real life. Don't fool yourself.
I'm in love with any sport or
activity that involves boards. Skateboarding, surfing, snowboarding,
longboarding, you name it. I love it. One day I might actually learn how
to do one or two (or all?!) of these.
I am terrible at answering
texts. Just ask my best friends. It may be because I dislike text
conversations and their awkward endings. But even texts that require a
simple response I won't reply to. I am attempting to get better at that.
I live in the South, but strong Southern accents tend to drive me up the wall. For some odd reason they really stand out to me, but if I know the person I usually get used to it. I'm trying to teach myself to look/listen past the accent and love
the person but it's a challenge.
I love, love, love learning
about people. If I could, I would sit all my friends and acquaintances
down and have them tell me about themselves and answer all my questions
about them. I believe that being honest and being our true selves around
people is one of most beautiful things in the world, and I live for those
moments.
I use commas too often. I'm
an advocate of the Oxford comma (see below example), but I simply use them
too much probably because I like to use interjections in my writing and
commas seem like the best way to do that. I also use parentheses like
nobody's business. Editing my blog posts consist of removing commas and
parentheses.
***OXFORD
COMMA EDUCATION***
Without
oxford comma: I wrote letters to my parents,
John Green and J.K. Rowling.
With
oxford comma: I wrote letters to my parents,
John Green, and J.K. Rowling.
See,
kiddos? Without the oxford comma, we assume John Green and J.K. Rowling are my
parents. With it, we realize that I am writing letters to my parents and two
authors. All objections are invalid.
I occasionally write text
messages with long words while unconsciously using the syntax used by a
member of the Crawley family in Downton Abbey. Because I'm a nerd. I also
like to pretend my car is a mini cooper. Apparently I'm delusional in all
aspects of life.
A dream of mine is to live in a tiny house. Like these. I'd probably build/buy a movable one and plop it down whenever I'd have to move. I enjoy simple living, and an even simpler house is a challenge I've wanted to live out for a long time. I have an entire pinterest board dedicated to tiny homes.
When ever I meet, pass, or observe a person, I always, always, always look at their shoes first. This makes it difficult for me to pick out shoes to wear (even though my own shoe collection is pretty simple), because I so whole-heartedly believe that shoes say a lot about a person. I would pass up a good-looking man proclaiming his undying love for me if he was wearing the wrong shoes.
Viola! Hopefully you learned 10+ new things today, including the necessity of Oxford commas.
For Christmas my
brother gave me Gungor's new album, I Am Mountain.
The title track
starts off this way:
I
am mountain, I am dust
Constellations
made of us
There’s
glory in the dirt
A
universe within the sand Eternity
within a man
Part of the bridge
states:
Momentary
carbon stories
From
the ashes
Filled
with holy ghost
Life
is here now
The rest of the song
follows this theme, that we are nothing yet we are everything. We are small yet
we are huge. We can do nothing on our own yet we have the capacity for
everything.
I think we forget
that.
Some people are
scared and accumulate wealth, power, or egotism in an effort to
forget and discard their nothingness.
Some people are
scared and hide within themselves and won't develop or reveal their full
capacity as a person in an effort to forget and discard their greatness.
I believe both these
stances are destructive and irresponsible.
We are truly
nothing. A natural disaster can wipe us off the face of the planet within moments. Wars and
human rights crises consistently illustrate human kind's destructive nature. In
the big scheme of things, we are ants aimlessly wandering around and
destroying our watery planet hanging in the middle of one galaxy
amidst thousands in a big, black, vacuum of a universe that is only God knows how
large. We are dust.
Yet. Oh, how very
yet.
That same God
hand-crafted every atom that ever was or will be. That same God breathed life
into us unworthy humans. He was the one who made eternity touch this earth at
the resurrection of His Son. He brought us purpose - Himself, to love Him and
to love His beloved. Those same cosmos that engulf us in wonder are held within the Creator, the personal God that inhabits our hearts. We are created in His
image and we. are. mountain.
Yes, we are nothing.
But we are everything.
There is grace when
we sin and fall. There is Love to keep us going.
A paraphrase of
Romans 5:8 reads as follows:
"You are loved
more than you will ever know by Someone who died to know you."
Be vast. Be
brilliant. For you are the created loved by the Creator. You have been given
the capacity of the cosmos to work for the better.
This is what I have
been reveling in. This is my encouragement to you today.
"'Nobody
important.' Blimey, that's amazing. D'ya know, in 900 years of time and space
I've never met anyone who wasn't important before?"
Today is November
23rd, 2013.
50 years ago, a
little science fiction show about a mad humanoid alien in a blue
time-travelling spaceship premiered on the BBC.
"He's C.S.
Lewis meets H.G. Wells meets Father Christmas; that's the Doctor" stated
Verity Lambert, Doctor Who's producer, and the first woman producer ever employed by
the BBC.
50 years. 1963
through 1989, a TV movie in 1996, then the new series in 2005 running through
the present.
Here's a few basics
for non-Whovians:
The Doctor is a 900+ year old Time Lord
from the planet Gallifrey. Time Lords "regenerate" and get a new body when they are about to die; the Doctor has regenerated 11 times thus far. He's the same person, he just
looks different and displays different aspects of his personality with
each version.
He lives and travels in his stolen TARDIS
(time and relative dimension in space), a time machine spaceship that's
more or less alive. She's disguised as a 1950's police box, she's
"bigger on the inside" and she won't always take you where you want to go, but she will
take you where you need to go.
He travels with one or two
companions, usually a human and usually a woman, who get caught up in his
latest adventure and join him in the TARDIS at his invitation. We won't get into how he loses companions or why they leave. It's too
painful.
His adventures happen in the past, in the present day, and in the future. He's visited Shakespeare, Vincent Van Gogh, and the like. He was there for the 2012 London Olympics (the episode aired in 2006), he's rescued human colonies on alien planets, and he's rescued aliens from Earth. Let's just say he gets around.
Doctors 1 - 11
Why do we Whovians love
Doctor Who so much? I can't speak for everyone, but here's why the story of the
Doctor and his companions mean so very, very much to me.
The Doctor, despite all he goes through, is still a cheerful, curious, mad professor sort of a
fellow. I started watching Doctor Who in a not-so-awesome season of life
and I wanted to be like him. I wanted to live fully and pull myself up and
care because that's what he does, he cares. He asks questions, gets into trouble, and discovers amazing things. The show is a mass of creativity and impossible things and it opens your mind up to just about anything. Ask why and how, the answers can lead you anywhere. And in the case of Doctor Who, the answer is quasi-scientific. Being the gigantic nerd that I am, I get quite a thrill listening to the Doctor ramble off the timey-wimey, spacey-wacey science behind the phenomenons he and his companions get into.
Nowadays media is riddled
with violence and promiscuity. Doctor Who? Not so much.
The Doctor is known for is resistance to violence. He doesn't shoot
first. When faced with danger, he runs away and thinks of a brilliant plan. He
gives his enemies a second chance, and they know him for his mercy. Furthermore, because Doctor Who was originally a children's show (and it still is,
just a little creepier sometimes) it is squeaky clean. There are
references and flirty bits sometimes, but it would fly over kid's
heads.
He is a friend. The Doctor's
relationships with other people mean the world to him, and he feels a sort of sacredness towards other people because (being a time traveler and all) he knows the
fragility of life.When he takes on
a companion, they are under his protection and he follows that to the letter. He shows them the wonders of
the universe throughout the whole of time. If they land in trouble, he
does what he can to protect everyone involved.
During my years as a homeschooled kid, my mom used a curriculum that brought fiction alongside our textbooks (i.e. historical fiction novels alongside our history textbooks). My brain learns by lining up fiction with the facts and using the former to understand the latter. Therefore, fiction stories and characters via metaphor or
simple similarity make me connect the dots and come to a realization or
better understanding about reality, especially about my faith. God reveals Himself to His children in many different ways, and to me it is through fiction. And in Doctor
Who, there are overarching themes and small, little bits in almost every episode that make me go, "ah-ha!" Example
A, the first quote and video of this post. When I heard the 11th Doctor say that
he's "never met anyone who wasn't important before," I suddenly
understood how God has, does, and will love everyone since the beginning
of time. I can't fully explain it, but I get it know. I make connections and things just make sense.
You may think I'm crazy for loving a simple British television show as much as I do. And that's okay. We have a support group. If you are now intrigued and want to go watch an episode of Doctor Who I highly recommend "Vincent and the Doctor" in Season 5 of the latest series. If you want to take a further look without jumping over the edge and starting at Season 1, let me know and I'll give you a list.
So
here's to 50
years. Here's to 11 Doctors, his TARDIS, his companions, the monsters,
and the adventures through the whole of time and space.
