Nothing is the same

I have caught myself saying quite a few times, "If only I could go back," or my more recent favorite, "If only things were the same," but upon recent thought I have come to realize that nothing is the same. Day by day things change. With every second I am struck with more time and more knowledge and more experiences. Nothing can ever be the same.

It was in the movie Alice in Wonderland where Alice stated, "I cannot go back to yesterday because I was a different person then." I completely agree with this statement. I cannot say that I could go back an hour because within an hour my perspective can change.

With these new perspectives I realize that I would not want to go back, and although the thought of sameness can be intriguing, it is still not something I would want to go back to. I do not want to go back to naive interpretations. It is in my best interest to continue growing and never to wish that things were the same again. I firmly believe that everything happens for a reason, whatever reasons they may be, and I will learn from my experiences.

So let me further explain this post, I in no way wish to go back to simpler versions of myself, even to times that seem simpler. I am proud of where I stand no matter how far away I stand from another person. Pain will heal, forgiveness will be sought, forgetting will be not, and I will forever stand in the present even if I stand alone.

The Truth of Perspectives

(SPOILER ALERT for Ender's Game)

In perspective we are all heroes and yet we are all villains too. Really, if we look to the truth to show us what we are, we aren't heroes or villains because defining us in such ways isn't about the truth, it's about perspectives. People are complex, we aren't all of one thing and none of another, we are mixtures; of love, of hate, of sadness, of joy, of good, and of bad. However, we try to define people so easily as heroes and villains, never thinking that maybe they are both, maybe they are neither, but according to this perspective they are good and according to this perspective they are bad. We try to define them as simply just one.

There is a saying that, "there are three sides to every story, yours mine and the truth." In your story you can chose to think you are the hero for killing that spider, but in the spider's story you are the villain. The truth says that you killed the spider; the truth isn't biased, it's factual. Where we find our role is how we decide to perceive the facts and determine opinions: Is killing wrong? Is it justifiable?

I have recently finished the confusing yet marvelous story THE YOUNG ELITES by Marie Lu a story that follows the life of the villain. Funny, though, that when I read THE YOUNG ELITES that I didn't seem to think of Adelina as the villain. I was reading her story; her story which made her seem more as a heroine than a villain. The facts cannot tell me whether a person is good or bad I have to take this decision into my own hands with the information I have.

Where we stand according to perspectives has the ability to change our moral compass if our views are stronger than our sense of right and wrong. An example can be the Heaven's Gate Cult in which people's views led them to take their own lives which was heroic in their perspective, but to the greater public their actions were a horror.

The term "greater public" shouldn't lead people to believe that right and wrong can be determined by the majority, either. The majority has been oppressive in many cases, too, which we now look back on and view as wrong. There are many examples of this in history, a few are: Nazi Germany's treatment of the minority groups, and the United State's own Jim Crow Laws that oppressed the minority. These groups would have argued that they were merely protecting themselves and their way of life in which they disputed that the minority groups were complicating.

Wherever a person stands gives them a unique way to view a situation. As I watched the movie ENDER'S GAME (I know I really should have read the book first) I was stricken by this thought of how heroic Ender was for killing of an entire alien species, until I took on an entirely different perspective. While Ender thought he was playing a game he later found out he had actually carried out the mission. This spectator perspective led me to see he had been pushed into the role of villain right before my eyes.

It is so easy to illude a person's moral ideas based on their perspective. Most people would agree that killing is morally unjust however we will crush the lives of harmless insects. We are more than willing to tell white lies to children, all while we tell them not to lie. It is our perspective that tells us that it is okay, that we are the heroes for telling children about their pet bunnies running away, rather than telling them the truth, that the bunny died.

Good and bad is all about perspective and where we find ourselves standing. It is important to realize that our enemies are heroes in their own stories, that we are villains in theirs. Perspective is a powerful tool, and if people were more gracious in using it as a tool for empathy rather than misunderstandings, I believe, we could have much kinder actions in this world.

RSW! Week 5

1.  How I did on last week’s goals:
- I did much better! Not only did I manage to reach my word count but I also finished the book I was reading!

2.  My goal(s) for this week:
- My goals will stay the same! I hope to write at least 1000 words and keep reading!

3.  A favorite line from my story:
- “I suppose you were bound to see me in my night silks at some point.”

4.  The biggest challenge I faced this week:

- Trying to find the will to write when you're mourning a character in the book your reading. Also, not getting distracted with all the excitement of the weekend. (Yay for the USA Women's team! Oh...and the 4th of July. A great weekend for America.)

5.  Something I love about my WiP:

- The tension in the story right now because there's so much of it and there are so many different sources for all this tension. 

How did your week go?

RSW! Week 4

1.  How I did on last week’s goals:
- Well I have written a lot more than usual because Abby over at This Entirety told me about an awesome writing app that sends you reminders to write and makes writing on your phone much easier! Also, I've been reading more, which I should be including in my goals.

2.  My goal(s) for this week:
-  1000 words and, I won't forget this time, but reading!

3.  A word to describe what I've written:
- Change!

4.  The biggest challenge I faced this week:

- Trying to decide between writing or reading, which isn't a bad challenge to have, in my opinion.

5.  Something I love about my WiP:

- I'm watching my characters change and become more demanding and caring. It's really wonderful seeing them grow.

How has everyone's week been?

RSW! Week 3

1.  How I did on last week’s goals:
- Worse than last week with about three hundred words total, but I did a lot more thinking about my WiP and some more brainstorming, so that's always a plus side.

2.  My goal(s) for this week:
- I'm not going to lower my goal at all, it'll stay at 1000 words and hopefully this time I'll reach it.

3.  A favorite line from my story:
- He saw how mesmerized she was with the stones that no longer bore any names. He wanted to know exactly what she saw in them that left her in such a trance. "Why are you so obsessed with these old worn down stones?"
She turned to him, a faint smile on her lips; she knew he wouldn't understand. "Because one day I will be an old worn down stone and I can only hope that someone will notice me and think of how once I wasn't."

4.  The biggest challenge I faced this week:

- I just don't seem to have enough time or energy. I'll have to make time and forget the energy.

5.  Something I love about my WiP:

- I have a better grasp of where this next chapter will go, which may be subject to change, but I'm holding onto the idea for now.

RSW! Week 2.

1.  How I did on last week’s goals:
- Pretty poor. I only wrote about 500 words out of the 1500 I planned on.

2.  My goal(s) for this week:
- I'm going to knock my goal down to 1000 words and see if I can reach that. Hopefully as I go I will be able to increase my goal as the temperature increases.

3.  A favorite line from my story:
"What is the point in owning such a large house if it is empty? Things don’t fill rooms like people do."

4.  The biggest challenge I faced this week:

- Motivation.

5.  Something I love about my WiP:

- I really enjoy getting to know my characters, they're a surprise.

Ready. Set. WRITE! 2015

Ready. Set. Write! is back in gears this summer! What is Ready. Set. Write! you may ask. Ready. Set. WRITE! is a summer writing intensive that encourages goal-setting and accountability, and provides an opportunity for us to cheer each other on wherever we’re at with our writing projects—planning, drafting, revising, or polishing.  This year, your RSW hosts are Alison Miller, Jaime Morrow, Erin Funk, Elodie Nowodazkij, and Katy Upperman.

My Goal:
1. For my goals this week I plan on easing back into writing my WIPs, so I'll try to add a total of 1500 words. It might be a stretch but I'll try.

This summer I hope to get back into my writing habits and rewrite/edit my first WIP and write more for WIP2. Balancing them both my be difficult but it should be fun!

Let's get this thing started!