A special kind of person...

Over the past few years many colleagues and I have discussed the concept of when uninformed people state that it "takes a special kind of person" to "deal" with special needs kids.

Honestly, yes it does. 

I have been involved in many different conversations about this statement. My feelings range from: 1. Excuse me what did you just say to me? to 2. Ya darn skippy it does. Because this topic is so controversial in my eyes writing it out seemed to be the best way to get my true feelings out. 

So here it goes.

To many people, special needs children used to be a burden. Now they are slowly realizing the beauty behind the different people in our society. Their capabilities that they have and their true innocence that they obtain. 

Most recently the "End the R Word" campaign has gained a lot of attention. Shows like "Born This Way" and many different modeling agencies have taken those with special needs under their wings to show a more diverse population. But that's the issue....they're only doing it to show diversity, not what truly lies behind the  diverse person. 

Many different families across this country go through similar things each day. From a child throwing a tantrum because he/she does not have what they want to get through the day or a child soiling themselves because they are physically incapable of using the bathroom "normally."

The thing is, people don't understand. 

They don't get it.

Walk a mile in their shoes see how it feels.

Sit a day in that wheelchair unable to move see how it feels.

Try speaking but nothing comes out see how it feels.

Then let me know what is really happening behind closed doors.

So what it takes them a little longer to comprehend things than it takes us.

So what it is a lot more work for a person to take care of someone with special needs.

So what they aren't as fast as you.

So what they need help doing daily activities.

So what they "don't understand."

Truth is...they understand A LOT more than you think they do.

So yes, it does take a special person to work with someone with special needs. I tear up at the thought of someone going days without a diaper change, days without food, days without the proper care that they need because some IMBECILE is too caught up in their own selfish ways to take care of someone else who needs help more then their own personal "entitlements" they think they are due.

What I don't get:

• Is how someone could blatantly not care about someone who clearly can't help themselves.
• How people can be so stinking cold hearted that they can't give up five minutes of their day to help someone.
• How people are so stinking selfish that they can't, for once in their life, help someone other than themselves.

If someone knows these answers please let me know...

So yes, it does take a special person to work with someone with special needs. 

• It takes a lot of courage for someone to selflessly give up their time for someone else's gain.
• It takes a lot of heart for someone to voluntarily give up their time to help others. 
• It takes a lot of patience to comprehend the ignorance that comes from society.
• It takes a lot of will to sustain from blowing up in someones face when they act incompetent.
• It takes a lot of love for someone to believe in that person knowing that they are trying their hardest.

As many of you know I have worked at a camp for special needs children for the past 3 summers. My camp director always wears this shirt that says, "Don't DIS my ABILITIES." Something that always comes to mind when I hear someone using the R-word or other derogatory terms that were directed towards one of my babies. I have worked with children with special needs all of my life. My brother, my best friend, my biggest supporter and pain in the neck has special needs and I thank God everyday for being BLESSED with someone who has taught me so much about not only me but life in general. 

I don't do it for the money.

I don't do it for the gifts.

I don't do it for the substantial gratitude from parents when their child has hit a milestone.

I don't do it for myself.

I do it for them. 

For their smiles.

For their laughs.

For their hugs.

For their "I love you's."

For their selflessness.

For their love.

I do it for them. 

I do it for their Beta Club inductions.
I do it to watch them get a 4.0 in their first semester of college...something I never did.
I do it to watch them walk on their own for the first time.
I do it for the I Love You in sign language.
I do it for the piggy back rides.
I do it for the bonds that I have with their families.
I do it to show that they can grow in a week.
I do it to show that they are NOT a stereotype.

I do it for them. 

Take a look at these faces....it takes a special person 

to NOT see the beauty in their eyes

to NOT see the beauty in their smiles

to NOT see the unending love in their hearts.

Thats the kind of special person I would never want to be.

I'm so blessed, 

LG.

A new perspective...

For years I have struggled with my self image. Constantly being bullied and put down by others around me. I have always felt insecure about the way I look, the way I dress, how I act and more importantly who I truly am.

Beginning in middle school, I was the new girl with no friends and no reason for anyone to be my friend. Thats where it all started, and where I began my confidence issues. Up until then I never had an issue with who I was as a person, or who I was becoming, but then again who would at 11 years old?

For years I have tried to figure out who I was. Struggling with what I wanted to do with my life and how I was going to get there. I got lucky and found a place in 7th grade that I knew would change my life. That place was Anderson University. For the next 5 years I worked hard and made my dreams come true. My senior year of high school I was accepted to my dream school and the next 4 years were going to be amazing...or so I thought.

Anderson University has always been my dream school and the fact that I'm graduating in just 5 short months is killing me inside. I have loved every minute here at AU and it has truly made me who I am today. If it weren't for the experiences I've had or the friends that I have made because of Anderson University I would be a completely different person.

Up until this year I have still struggled with my self image. I never thought I was good enough for anyone and I always let my past mistakes dictate who I was.

This past year, everything has changed. I am more confident in myself. I stand up for myself. I believe, and I mean truly believe, that I am a beautiful person. I now know that my past mistakes do not dictate who I am, they only made me who I am but not who I want to be. I am constantly changing and growing and becoming a better person each day.

This year I surrounded myself with great people. I got back into Student Government. I won Senior Class President. I took a chance and went on the SGA retreat and forced myself out of my comfort zone. I made friends with people I never would have met or spent time with beforehand. I started SGA dinners every week before our meeting. I got an internship that I love. I became an RA on campus. I get to spend every day living next door to one of my best friends. But most importantly...I'm finally happy. 

Two years ago I never thought I would be where I am today. I am slowly becoming the woman I want to be only because of the changes I have made in my life. I have gotten rid of toxic people in my life and have surrounded myself with friends that make me want to be a better person. I have friends that I genuinely want to spend time with and get to know more in my life.

There are so many blessings that I have received this year, more importantly since August, and they are blessings I could never trade. I am happy with my life, with my goals, with my dreams, and with who I am. Every day I thank God for my new friendships, my constant blessings, and my future blessings. My life verse has never meant more to me than it does right now and that I'm thankful for.

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord. Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future." -Jeremiah 29:11.


Here's to the rest of Senior year, I hope it will be as great as first semester has been.


But in case you've been hiding under a rock, here's some of the people that have changed my life this year...

Try believing in yourself, it works miracles. 

Lauren. 

SC Strong

Over the past week, South Carolina has been through a lot. Hurricane force winds, torrential rains, and damaging flooding ripped through our state and along with it washed away many families hopes and dreams. Many houses, and personal belongings were ruined and found to be irreplaceable. South Carolina has not seen any hurricane action since that of Hugo in the 1980's. Throughout all of this, like the Charleston shooting in June, South Carolina did not break, we did not bend, but we stood strong, stood together, and persevered.

South Carolina is notorious for many things. People like J. Strom Thurmond, Thomas Ravanel, the Charleston 9, Fort Sumter, and so many others. South Carolina has always made itself known, and never backed down from a challenge, and this week was no different.

Many people could have backed down and just walked away, started over fresh in another city, another state, another house, but so many started fresh in the same city, the same state and the same house for one reason...the people.

South Carolinians have long been known as the strongest community of people throughout the US. After the storm passed, the very next morning many people across the state headed for the "danger zones" to help rebuild lives. These people used their time off that they had accumulated for family events, vacations, and other things to help their home state family. The act of selflessness from South Carolinians is something we should all envy.

When Dylann Roof entered the Charleston church taking nine lives we could have rioted and become like one of the Northern states and cities and resorted to brutality, but we didn't. Our state was filled with prayers and love.

When Joaquin sent strong winds and rain that flooded our cities and towns, we could have given up and said oh well, but we didn't. Our state again was filled with prayers and love, and the generosity of others to help rebuild lives.

Through it all, we have seen many GoFundMe and YouCaring pages go up for donations and requests for help. So many people are able to restart their lives thanks to the help of people across this country. Still a week after the torrential rainfall, people from across the state and region have banded together bringing out donations to local businesses, churches have made meals for first responders, others have given up their spare time to go help their neighbors rebuild.

Now, I don't know about you, but do you know of any other states that has a population like this? I don't.

It's events like these that make me PROUD to be a South Carolinian. No matter what happens, or how bad it gets, we always band together with prayer and help instead of tearing apart.

I've spent 21 years here in South Carolina, and I'm growing more and more grateful for this state and its people every day. South Carolina is home, and I'm so thankful for that.

Always remember to be thankful,

Lauren.

Senior thoughts.

On certain topics I'm usually good at keeping my emotions hidden but senior year is stressing me out.

If you have any inkling on questioning me about what I'm gonna do after graduation...DON'T. I don't know, just as much as you know what I'm gonna do. I have so many interests and that makes it very difficult for me to find one area and focus on it. If I had to list all the subject areas that I'm interested in it would look like this:

-Government: the workings of government and government agencies
-Politics: how politics work, or in the area of an actual campaign
-Special Education: duh
-History: broad very broad
-Wartime: Civil War and World War 2 specifically
-Kennedy, Lincoln and Reagan
-Camp management: hellur
-Museum curator: even more duh
-Anything to do with Washington DC: cause if you know me you know that's my city
-The Holocaust: see wartime
-Law: see previous post about Heaven on Earth

and that's just the top items.

It's so hard to pick just one because I haven't had a chance to really get involved in all...this is why college should be FREE and longer than 4 years.

I am really interested in interning in DC during the summer or even in the fall so I can breathe before (if) I move after graduation.

I'm stressing out, in simple terms.

I don't want to leave AU, because if you've known me for any amount of time you would know that I have dreamed of AU since I was 12. Literally 12. I'm not ready to graduate, I love AU, the people, the campus, everything. [ Not to mention I paid 120,000$ over 4 years to help fund this student center that I can't even see. ] uhhhh.

Overall I've made a lot of accomplishments thus far in senior year.
I've become Senior Class President.
I work full time.
I am a full time student. Taking History of Mexico, Sign Language, Colonial and Revolutionary America, Senior Seminar, and my internship.
I'm interning at the Belton Museum.
Oh, and I somehow find time to have a life and hang out with friends.

Senior year is a whirlwind of emotions and I have contemplated failing a class or two just so I can stick around. :)

Please someone figure out how to make time slow down. I have midterms starting next week and senior year just started.


Hey kids, never grow up.

Lauren.

Heaven on Earth

     I honestly believe that over the course of your lifetime you find one place that absolutely consumes your heart. This place is meant to be your safe haven, your calm in the storm, your Heaven on Earth. Now this place can be your home, your room, your favorite spot in the woods or like my case, my summer job. These places leave a stamp on your heart that will never and can never be replaced by the things of this world. At these places you are taken aback from the world, you are in a bubble, and whatever happens is all up to you. Take the famed book Bridge to Terabithia, in this book these two children create a magical paradise that secludes them from the world and all of its harms; for me this is Camp Burnt Gin.

     Three years ago I was an aspiring Special Education teacher with big dreams for my future classroom. Knowing that I didn't want to spend another summer at home with nothing to do I go searching for a job in my future field to help me get some real world experience. As I go to Google, I type in "Special needs camps in South Carolina" and Camp Burnt Gin pops up. It is mid-January but I go ahead and apply because I knew that it would be a good experience. With CBG being about an hour from my home in West Columbia, I knew that it would be a convenient drive for the days that I have off so I can come home and spend time with my family. From October to the end of February I had been battling a bad cold, and kept getting pushed from doctor to doctor. I finally found out that I had mono, and was told to stay home on doctors orders for the next week; my interview with the camp director was that Wednesday. By Wednesday I was finally able to muster up enough lung capacity to talk to the camp director for over an hour for my interview which was one of the most nerve-racking moments of my life. Weeks later I was offered a position as a camp counselor at Camp Burnt Gin for the summer of 2013, and boy was I in for a surprise.

     I knew very little of what I was actually going into when I took the position at camp. I have a brother with Autism and he is very independent and then I have worked with Special Needs kids since middle school, but never on an extended basis. I decided to visit camp during the opening clean up day just to see if it was something I could handle. That day I learned how to clean a cabin, that didn't have air conditioning, I met new friends, and I saw where I would call home for the next eight weeks. Little did I know that these next eight weeks would change my whole perspective as a future educator and as a person. These eight weeks changed my life, and kept me coming back.

     Mrs. Marie, our camp director, has worked at Camp Burnt Gin for over thirty years. She recently told the staff a story about a counselor who went on to work at the Governors School for Arts and Humanities. During a conversation with this former counselor, who had only worked one summer at camp, he shares one very important thing that has stuck with me for the past two weeks, "Eight weeks. It took eight weeks, and I think about it every day of my life." This is now my third summer at camp and the words that were said have never made more sense to me.

     Every year I go back to school with new stories, new memories, and a new perspective on life. Camp Burnt Gin has given me so much more than I could have ever asked for out of a summer job. I have so many new friends, some amazing best friends, and the best memories. I am now apart of a new family, the Burnt Gin family. This family never quits, never gives up, and never loses. Camp Burnt Gin is not just a summer camp to these kids, it is something they look forward to all year. This is the best week of the year for most of these kids, and it's a place that they can go to feel normal for a week. Here at camp, we allow these kids to be their own kind of normal. We take them boating, they learn nature, sports, arts and crafts, fine arts, they eat with a cabin for the week, they sleep in a cabin together, they cry together they laugh together, they become a family.

     Burnt Gin is more than just a summer camp, and it is so frustrating that the powers that be want to close down this safe haven. When you look at it, Camp Burnt Gin is the best bang for the buck in South Carolina. Most special needs camps cost upwards of +$500 a week just so they can get the "adequate" care that these children need. Camp Burnt Gin is of no cost to these families, and these kids get more than the best that they need the week they are with our staff. Camp Burnt Gin is my safe haven, as well as many other current and former staff. I can't imagine spending my summers anywhere else. Throughout my years here at CBG, I have watched myself change for the better. Thank you Camp Burnt Gin for being this place for not only me but hundreds of others over the years. Happy 70th birthday!


Forever grateful,

Lauren

A letter to Dylann Roof

Many people know of the tragedy that took place in Charleston last month. Dylann Roof entered an African American church in downtown Charleston and ended up opening fire on nine people taking their lives. To Dylann Roof, here's what I have to say...

Dylann,

     On that faithful June day, you entered a place of worship. This place had done no harm to you, nor did it affect you in any way shape or form. On June 17th, you entered this church with aspirations of starting a race war. Unbeknownst to you, you did just the opposite for the state of South Carolina. Because of your acts of anger, you actually brought the people of the Palmetto state closer than they had been in years. There were no acts of anger towards opposing races, only acts of love and support for those who had lost love ones. We as a state lost a senator who had done so much good for our state, not only as an African-American, but as a Christian.

     Dylann, you are not much older than I am. As someone who has grown up in a Christian household, and has served in numerous leadership positions throughout my schooling, I have seen what anger and violence has done to America. Your intentions were nothing but hate, pure hate. You intended to tear that city apart, you intended to tear this state apart but you failed. We, not only as South Carolinians, but as Christians stood strong and backed our brothers and sisters who lost their lives during your violent acts. At only twenty, I could never imagine taking someones life, much less someone that I don't even know in hopes of starting a war...but you did.

     To you, Dylann, I only have a few things to say:

1. You tried to be a hero for "the whites," but you failed.
2. You tried to start a race war, but you failed.
3. You tried to make a name for yourself, but as a hero, and you failed.
4. You tried to win the hearts of many people, but you failed.
5. You tried to take "justice" into your own hands, but you failed.

     I may never understand why you did the things that you did. As someone who has still not completely come to terms with the ways of this world, I don't understand how you could try and take "justice" into your own hands. You took so many things from people. You took a father, a son, a husband, a wife, a pastor, a friend, a confidant, a homemaker, a senator, from so many people but most importantly you failed at taking the spirits of these people from this earth. These nine lives left so much more on this earth than you took away. Yes, they may be gone, but their love for Christ and their personalities and hopes and dreams will never fade away. 

     Now I know where you have been. To be ridiculed, bullied, laughed at, mocked, picked on is no fun. I have been there. I have been that person who has been laughed at and made fun of behind my back, but that my friend will never end. In this world, you have to pick and choose your battles, and to me fighting back is never the option. I get back at these bullies by proving them wrong. Showing them how far I have gone while they sit on their butts back home and do nothing. I am a 20 year old senior in college who has worked for three summers with special needs kids, who volunteers in her spare time, who is a full time student and holds a full time job. I never see my family because I work for what I have. I have had to grow up and learn so much not because I was forced, but because I saw what needed to be done and I did it. I have been apart of student council since I was in seventh grade. I have mentored girls younger than me, I am consistently that confidant that they can come to because of how much I care about others. I always get told I have a heart that is too huge for others to fathom, I am wise beyond my years, and that is why I chose to write this letter.

    Though you may never read this, you must know that you didn't win. You, Dylann, did not succeed in your hopes. You made me proud to be a South Carolinian because you showed this state what it could do in the face of adversity. We came together, as South Carolinians, as Christians, and as brothers and sisters. We took back what was ours and showed you that we were better. We could have been like other cities and turned to violence like you had hoped, but we didn't. We won. We showed the country, the world, what we could do, and who we were. Ultimately, you gave those nine the best gift of their lives. Though they were taken far too soon, you gave them the gift of meeting Jesus. That gift that was well deserved for their courageous acts, and their faith in Him. They won. On that day, Jesus got to see nine of His children come home to Him. He got to say, "Well done, good and faithful servant." He got to love on them, and give them a pain free life and a new adventure. He won. Do you  see the theme here? Everyone won, while you failed.

     All I can say is thank you. Thank you for bringing hope back to this state. Thank you for bringing a sense of belonging back to these people. Thank you for showing this state that we are still a family. And thank you for showing us that at the end of the day, we are better. I hope and pray that one day you come to peace with your actions and pray to God for forgiveness, because ultimately He is the only one who could grant you peace. You are better than this. You deserve an eternity of golden streets and endless love. We are all sinners, and deserve nothing, but thanks to God we are blessed and fortunate to be given an eternity with Him. 

     Whether you see this or not, I pray for you. I pray that you can repent for your actions and show the world that you are better than June 17th, 2015. You are not alone, Dylann, but because you failed, we won.

Lauren.

     

I still miss you.

Four years ago I went to sleep knowing that my grandma was going to meet Jesus soon. Little did I know it would be that night. 

Four years have passed and I made it through senior year and graduation without you. All of this happened after telling you that you would make it to my graduation, yet you didn't even make it to my senior year. 

Now as I enter my senior year of college you are on my mind. Oh the things I have accomplished that I wish you would have been here to witness. The things I have done, the people I have met, the places I've gone, all with you in mind. 

It's been a rough four years. And the days grow harder knowing it's been that much longer since I saw you. I can't bring myself to go to the grave anymore because of the pain it brings. Knowing that I am talking to the ground with you underneath is so unsettling. 

I long for the hugs and your sweet smile. Your bright blue eyes that I see in my dad every time I look at him. My love for traveling that I acquired from countless road trips with you and Pa. Hearing someone laugh and it sounding like you. I miss the times you'd do your little sigh or say "what Rufus?" to Pa when he kept yelling your name. I miss the trips to michaels to buy us beads to play with when we were at your house, or the flat grilled cheeses or the sugary oatmeal, and especially your cookies and red velvet cake. 

Nothing will ever replace you, no one ever could. I miss you so much grandma, and it took me this long to put this into words. 

As I lay here in my camp bed, tears rolling down my face I know that you are so much happier now than you ever were here. Every time I see a butterfly I think of you. 

"But I still miss you, all the times we spent together, to hear you talk about the weather I always prayed you'd get well soon. I wish my prayers came true, I know that Jesus has the answer, and He's way bigger than the cancer in you, but I still miss you."

This has been the hardest week yet without you here. I love you so much grandma. ❤️

New Post? April Fools.

Just kidding, this isn't an April Fools prank.

Well seeing as this is my first post since the beginning of the year, you can see how busy I have been. This semester has been nothing short of a struggle. I only have 5 classes, but they are much harder than those I had last semester, and I'm still maintaining a constant work week.

2015 has already proven to be just another year. Friends have come and gone (and so has money) but I'm still alive and kicking.

These past few weeks I have been struggling with the fact of being alone. When I am at school, I have friends but being so far from my family after I have gotten so close with them can really hurt sometimes. The days continue to pass, and I continue to go through the motions. Class, work, homework, sleep, repeat. Don't get me wrong, I love AU and my friends, and everything about this place but when you spent most of your Junior and Senior years in high school with your family, no matter how much you say you won't miss them when you go to college, you will.

With working as much as I am I can't go home as often as I would like, especially with this weekend being Easter weekend and I'm stuck working a split on Sunday... it's rough not being able to spend those traditions with your family when you're trying to earn a living while not drowning in papers and assignments that the teachers love to pile on you the last three weeks of school.

I have figured out that writing in the blog, whether it is every few months or everyday, helps me vent and express my emotions in my favorite form.

So what has happened since this semester started? Well....

• I came back to school
• I started 5 new classes
• I met new friends
• I started a new work schedule
• I spent time with friends
• I took a road trip
• I got the stomach bug (worst thing ever.)
• I continued to drive Katy crazy
• I went home for Spring Break.
• I volunteered at Winter Jam
• I went to camp for a day
• I watched my cousin get married
• I got some good medical news
• I had a few mental breakdowns (thanks teachers)
• I kept moving forward.

Pretty much nothing has changed.

With today (now yesterday) being April 1st, I had a heavy heart remembering that it was not just April Fools but my grandpa's birthday. This was his 4th heavenly birthday but it didn't take the pain on Earth away. Some days I find myself dialing my grandparents numbers just to tell them about all of the great things that are going on in my life and go to call and remember no one will answer the other end. Some days I get upset, furious, that I don't have any pictures with my grandparents. I can't find a single one. And I know my grandma hated taking pictures, but that's one thing I would love to have with me as a constant reminder to make them proud.

Days like today, August 21st, August 14th, and July 10th kill me every time they come around. Days I wish I could skip, days I wish I could just forget but I can't. I still remember saying goodbye to my grandma kissing her and telling her I loved her on July 9th, 2011 and waking up the next day hearing that she was gone. I told her I would see her when I got back from camp and that she was going to make it to my graduation, she just had to. I cried, but I still went to camp because my parents thought it'd be good for me to get away for a few days. Those days I missed valuable time with my family that I wish I could have had, but more importantly I had lost my best friend. Someone I had spent most of my childhood with and all I was left with was anger and confusion in the place of my grandma. Shortly after my grandpa was gone too, only a month and 5 days later. 

What most people don't realize is that any of my free time between school and softball was spent at their house. I spent a solid 2 weeks with my grandparents during the 6th grade because I was too sick to go to school. The only thing I remember from those two funerals was the butterfly release in honor of my grandma, everything else was a blur. After they were gone and when I would get upset at home I would drive to their house and sit there, and not move. I would cry, I would talk, but I never got a response and that's what hurt the most. 

Between her and Pa I had learned the true meaning of perseverance. I was constantly told to never give up, to never quit, and to never let anyone win. My grandparents didn't let cancer win, they won because they got to meet Jesus. 

I remember helping my grandpa feed his coy fish, or him trying to get me and my cousins while we were jumping on the trampoline. I remember how my grandma made the best grilled cheese sandwiches, and she always had Breyer's vanilla bean ice cream. How they would let me sleep when i went on road trips with them, and I would wake up in a different city. How I got to see the Southeast from West Virginia down to Florida with them. I remember them peaking my love for travel that I can't seem to satisfy. I still remember my grandpa saying, "Mary fix me something to eat." And my grandma would reply with, "Rufus you are so needy." Those things that they would say, and the things that we did will forever be engraved in my memory because to me that's all I have left. 

Days like today just break my heart. I sit here typing this and bawling my eyes out because it is the first time I have ever expressed my feelings about my grandparents. 

I hope that one day I can make them proud of me, because sometimes it all just seems worthless.

Missing you both everyday,

LG.

#EveryoneMatters

For most of 2014 the focus of the people was on the murder of Trayvon Martin. Rightfully so, Trayvon was dealt injustice when his life was taken far too soon. Progressing through the year we saw more and more fatalities at the hands of "scared" people and police brutality.

No matter what happens, we as a country must always remember, “If we ever forget that we're one nation under God, then we will be one nation gone under.” -Ronald Reagan.

The belief in God and a divine power is what this country was founded on. From Florida to Ferguson, East Coast to West Coast. Whether these people were actually threatened, or just spooked we will never know.

The thing that irritates me the most is that it has become more of race thing. Though I am not one to judge, I am more concerned over the well being of our nation. Racism, though it still exists, has not been a prominent issue in this country since the 1960's. It is currently 2015. 2. 0. 1. 5. why is this just returning as an issue 50+ years later?

Though I understand that the African American race feels threatened, we also did not hear about the multiple Caucasian people who were killed at the hands of African American police either.

[ http://www.youngcons.com/unarmed-white-man-was-killed-by-a-black-cop-look-how-the-media-responds/ ]

I am merely more frustrated with the way it has taken to social media. Hashtags like #BlackLivesMatter #CopLivesMatter #PoliceLivesMatter #BlackPeoplePower infuriates me.

We as a country are one of if not the strongest nations in the WORLD whether it be nuclear power, war power, or brain power. Things like this make us look weaker and weaker and more susceptible to become targets of other countries hatred.

Needless to say, I just have one thing I want to say.

But most importantly, “I know in my heart that man is good, that what is right will always eventually triumph, and there is purpose and worth to each and every life.” -Ronald Reagan.

#EveryoneMatters

Think about it, 

Lauren.

Ringing in the New Year.

2014 has been a year full of mistakes and memories. Things I would never have dreamed of doing and people I never imagined I could have met. Another summer was spent at CBG and another year was started at Anderson University. Though I changed majors and made new friends, I would not change this year for anything. I have grown as a person, and could never have expected to be where I am today.

After changing my major, I ended up with 5 A's and 1 B in my classes while juggling a 30 hour work week!

Though I did not get to keep up with my blog as much as I would have liked to, I am still very proud with the posts that I was able to post. Looking back, I was able to see how I was impacted and changed throughout the happenings of this year.

This blog has helped me express myself in the best way that I know how, writing. I always seem to express myself better through writing more than any other way.

I might not have as much time as I would like to, but I will continue to use this blog to post and share my experiences I have throughout 2015. Though my posts won't be as frequent, I will definitely keep it open.

Here are a few pictures from my last post to the end of the year to show you what I've been doing.

Happy New Year!!!