Faith

In my Humanities Senior Seminar class we are learning about the Founding Fathers and their faiths. As we finished up learning about the basis for the Constitution, my teacher gave us a very interesting assignment. He wanted us to pick 5 images that represented or caught the essence of "faith" or "spirituality" for each of us. On Thursday, we each took a turn explaining why we chose the images we did. It was very interesting to see how everyone conveyed faith. I was able to see how people view this world. I also learned a little more about myself. Below are the five images I chose and I will briefly explain why I decided to use each one.

 Albuquerque, NM, one of my favorite places on earth. Every time I fly over this city on  my way home from school, a feeling compared to no other comes over me. I feel like I am home. And it's not just location that matters, it's the people that live there. It's my family, it's childhood memories, sad stories, epic adventures, and everything in between. It's the backdrop to my newly found adulthood. It provides the basis for my courage to leap from one cliff to the next, and slowly crawl back up the mountain when I fall down. When I am wounded beyond repair, I can surely come to this place and find healing and strength. "Nor more a stranger nor a guest, but like a child at home." (hymn: My Shepherd Will Supply My Need)

 Peace. One word that can truly make or break my day. If I feel at peace, I am having a good day. This pictures portrays a confident, optimistic, and grateful person. Although I am not always like this, I do want to be. Faith is having the courage to find peace and joy through all of the hard times. This task may seem daunting, but let me tell you, it can be done.

 What is more sweet than the love and bond that can be shared between a parent and a child. I am so thankful for two parents who have supported me through the good, and not so good, decisions I have made. They are always there for me. I also think of family and friends, the ones I would give up my life for. The ones I can be completely insane around, and they still love me. They will always be there for me, and I will do everything I can to be that kind of friend for them as well. I also really like the colors and light in this painting, it allows me to feel the love, nurture, concern, peace, and comfort that I want to feel in my life.

 Hard work is the key to a successful life. So, that may be a famous quote, or maybe I combined several, but it is still true. As much as I wish I could receive all the things I want, I know I have to work for them. Goals must be set, expectations in place, and self-discipline exercised. I was going to say I didn't know where this quote came from, but then I quickly recalled that I have my good friend Google here to help me out. St. Augustine once said, "Work as if everything depended on you, and pray as if everything depended on God". Yeah, this may seem ridiculous to some people, but I think it is completely logical. I will work hard and at the end of the day I can pray, knowing I did everything I possibly could.

I wanted to somehow portray how religion, faith, and spirituality is much more than going to church on Sunday. It is much more than believing. It must become a way of life, whatever way is best for the individual. For me, it is something I work for, strive for, and am constantly weighing myself against the expectations I set for myself. The way I live makes me unique. The way I choose to spend my time makes up the very essence of who I have grown to be. Life is a series of events, both fortunate and unfortunate. How must I overcome my circumstances and become the person I want to be? Establish patterns and consistently follow them. Just like the four seasons, everything has a time and place in my life. Sometimes I wish like crazy that it would be June, although it's the middle of January. This won't get me anywhere. Such is life. Don't wish for tomorrow when there is today to be enjoyed. This is definitely a work in progress, but I realize that the principles of contentment and consistency are extremely important. They can either change my life for the better, or for the worse.

After each person was done explaining their image choices, my teacher said "I think what you have all shared is what inspires faith in you". I thought about that, and realized that it is completely true. I am inspired by so many things, and these pictures do a better job of capturing the essence of what I believe better than I could ever say it. I am grateful for life and that I can always lean on the faith that has been planted deep in my soul.