Chachani

I have a new respect for altitude and trekking poles. I made it to the top of Chachani, but it wasn´t pretty. I felt sick and exhausted the whole way. Acclimating is wise.

Matt and I have eight days left. We plan to hike the Colca Canyon. After that...not sure. In any case, I look forward to seeing everyone for Christmas. It´s odd being down here during this month because, though Christmas is celebrated, there aren´t Christmas songs and decorations around every corner in anticipation of the holiday, and plus it´s warm out. So, it hasn´t been on my mind much.

Love.

Arequipa

Matt and I went white water rafting today. It was wicked fun, though it could have been a little longer...like all day. There was a point in the middle of the journey down the river that we stopped and jumped off some small cliffs into the river on each side. We had to wear wet suits, and I´m pretty sure it´s the first time i´ve worn one. Just a random fact. Anyhow, we are going to hike to the summit of Chachani mountain. It is 6075m tall...which is really tall. I hope we don´t die of lack of oxygen. Love from Peru!

The Inca Trail has been conquered. I wish I could put up some pics...but I can´t seem to get the computer to read the files on my memory card. Anyway, the trip was really great. Challenging but rewarding. The views were stupendous. It was definitely one of those once in a lifetime kind of experiences. We´ll be home soon, so Matt and I can share photos and stories when we get back.
We are in Cuzco right now. It´s the morning after we returned from the hike. We´re likely off to Puno tonight, a town by the supposedly highest commerically navigable lake in the world. There are some famous islands there with some rich Peruvian culture. After that it´s Arequipa and the Colca Canyon providing some more outdoor adventures like trekking and hopefully white-water rafting. Since we´re winging this post Inca Trail part of the trip, we´re not really sure what all we´ll be doing, but it will only be a little over two weeks until Matt and I come home.

Matt and I are still in Pisco, but we´ll be leaving Tuesday to go to Cuzco and hike the Inca Trail. Our time here at PSF (Pisco Sin Fronteras) has been good, more or less. Unfortunately, I have been sick most of my time here. I had some sort of bacteria in my digestive tract giving me acute stomach pains and...other things... I also didn´t have much energy. The bout lasted longer than I expected, so I went to the doctor, and I was prescribed some antibiotics. I haven´t felt 100% but much better.

This weekend a group of us went to an oasis town called Huacachina near Ica in Peru. This town is surrounded by sand dunes, and is a popular place for riding dune buggies and sandboarding. We paid for a tour which included riding in the buggie over the dunes and sandboarding. It was really fun. It helped that I had done some snowboarding, so I was able to ride the sand pretty well. However, the bindings were just Velcro, and I had trouble trusting them for changing from heel-side to toe-side and vice-versa. In any case, it was a really good time. Plus, the sun was setting while we were out there, and the dunes were beautiful. I´ll try to get some pictures up next time.

The day before Matt and I left the orphanage, the boys made a mudpit and literally carried Matt and I out one of the dorm rooms and threw us in. They subsequently jumped in themselves and we had a mudfight. Here are a few pictures.

Later that evening, a handful of the kids did some small skits with a couple posing as Matt and I. The skits were pretty hilarious, and we enjoyed it very much. Here is a picture of Matt with his double, Ariel, and me with mine, Arnaldo (they borrowed our shirts and packs as props for the skit).

Hola! So, Matt and I were in Rosario on the night of the last post, and then we stayed on more night after that. We had a great time there. We walked (and later I ran) along the boardwalk/sidewalk by the river there. I loved it! The area was filled with parks, cafes, walkways right along the river, areas to skate, benches under trees, and lots of people, running, eating, shopping, walking, visiting, etc... Rosario had a beatiful skyline with lots of old buildings, modern building, short and tall buildings, just very rich. Near the river there was a huge memorial built in honor of the Argentinian flag, because the Argentinian flag was designed by a man in Rosario. It was also nice, because by chance there was an annual festival going on by the river called the Feria de las Colectividades (Fair of the Communities). Apparently back several years ago, Rosario was the second largest city in Argentina (next to BA) because it had so much commerce on the river (it´s now the third largest after Cordoba). But back in these thriving days of Rosario´s past, there were many different ethnicities who migrated there. The fair had stations for Germany, Poland, Palestine, various districts of Spain, Ireland, Greece, just on and on... It was huge! And many of the stations had a stage with cultural dances of the said nationality. It was awesome. Matt and I ended up sitting and eating at the Irish one and a guy who runs the Irish Community Club in Rosario came up to us asking if we were Irish. And then we talked to him a bit. In any case it was great fun.

After Rosario Matt and I went to Buenos Aires. We spent a few days there seeing different areas and things of the city such as the Obelisk and ''La Boca'' district (where all the immigrants settled when they originally came tot he city many years ago). After BA, Matt and I split ways for one night. We both left for Lima, Peru, but he had a direct flight, whereas I had an 11 hour layover in Santiago, Chile. Thus, by technicality I´ve gotten a fourth country out of this trip...but it was only for one night. I tried to make the best of it though, and I took a taxi into the city after checking into my hotel. I got to talking to the taxi driver (with my God-awful Spanish) and he agreed to take me around and see some of the city at night and then take me back to the airport. I got hungry while we were out there in the city, so we ended up eating out together too. Therefore, Jose, the taxi driver, ended up being my Chilean tour guide and friend for my one evening in Santiago.

So, after arriving in Lima, Matt and I immediately took a bus down to Pisco. We´ve been here in Pisco working with the organization for about two days now. It´s really great here. It´s well organized with several projects around the town and something to do for everyone. After working it´s all really laid back. We´re free to do what we want, sleep, read, visit, drink, go out, play football (soccer) or basketball, there´s even a circus in town right now. The best part is just visiting with the people here because they´re from all different walks of life with all different futures ahead of them. Most the people seem to be from Australia or Great Britain, but there are people from Germany, Belgium, New Zealand, Indonesia, Ireland, Sweden, and maybe some other places too (there are many people and I´ve only been here two days). The turn around on people seems to be quick. Even though Matt and I have only been here a short while, we´ve seen many come and go. Then again, there are some staple people here too, and I´ve been told that a great number of people end up staying here longer than they originally intend to. Of course, Matt and I have no choice but to leave because we have a reservation for hiking the Inca Trail immediately after our time here.

I´ll put pictures up on the next post! Love yas!

Hey! So, first and most importantly, it´s my sister´s birthday today. Happy Birthday Jana! I miss you a bunch, and I´m looking forward to spending Christmas with you! I hope you have a wonderful quarter-century celebration in S. Korea.
Matt and I are in Rosario right now. We came in yesterday afternoon from Puerto de Iguazo where we saw the Iguazu Falls. WOW! It was huge!!! It made me think of one of those jungle paradise shots...like in the movie Up or something. It also made me think of Jurassic Park but without the dinosaurs. Unfortunately it was a rainy day, but the only day we could go if we were to stay on schedule for getting to BA (Buenos Aires). It really only rained on us nice and hard in the beginning when we went to see the top of the largest fall there called Devil´s Throat (Garganta de Diablo). It was incredibly huge and powerful...and just beautiful. For a moment it was surreal, like I was saying before, like a movie or something. We took pictures and video as much as we could while trying to keep our cameras dry. However, I apparently failed at that, because my camera began to malfunction right after leaving Devil´s Throat. I´m not sure where the problem is but I´m hoping to get it to a camera repair place in either BA or Lima for a quick fix (crossing fingers), and if it´s not a quick fix or we can´t find a place...then I´m not sure. I have a full warranty on the camera, but it´s through Best Buy, and Best Buy´s are hard to come by down here. I might just have to survive on a few disposables...or buy a cheap digital for the rest of our excursion. It´s a bit unfortunate being that I was looking forward to some big landscape shots of the mountains and especially Machu Picchu. Matt´s camera is acting up a bit too, but it´s still functioning. So, we´ll be able to capture a bit of Rosario while we´re here.
Well, Matt and I want to go check out some things here in Rosario while we´re here, so I´m going to get off. Happy birthday again Jana! I love you family and friends! God bless from Argentina.

Hola! This past Wednesday Matt and I met up with a girl named Marlene we knew through my sister Jana. Marlene lives and works in Asuncion. I called her at the beginning of last week and she said her birthday was on Wednesday and invited us to come over Wednesday night. Since it was her birthday, she had friends come over, and we all went out to a nice bar called 904. We spent the whole evening there visiting, eating, and drinking. It was a so fun meeting people and visiting with them. In general, we talked about each others aspirations and Paraguayan culture and social/economic condition. Later in the evening we played pool and ate and drank more. It was a very wonderful time.

In the billiard room we met a guy from Canada, a friend of Marlene, named Vincent who is living and working in the slums west of Asuncion. He works through and organization called Un Techo Por El Paiz. They assist in constructing homes for the poor. He has lived in Paraguay for a year before (which is when he met and actually shared an apartment with Marlene), and is here again for a shorter time and will go back home to Quebec in December for Christmas. His first language was French, and he wishes to move to Vancouver next year and improve his English (though it was already quite good). Anyway, after that he intends on writing a book about the slums here, and return again. I think that is a really neat dream. Anyway, we visited with him quite a bit, and he said we could come help sometime before we live, so I hope we can do that. He said not to bring our cameras though because they would most surely be stolen.

Matt and I stayed the night in Marlene's apartment and Vincent did as well. The next morning we all went out to the biggest and most popular market in Asuncion. I'm not sure what to say, but it was just awesome. There were people everywhere selling all kinds of things. In the meat area there was just...everything, hearts, livers, intestines, etc... hanging from hooks or piled on the counter to be purchased. In the fish area there were gutted fish laying out or hanging as well. At a clothing store I bought a jersey from the Cerro football team, which is a local favorite team along with the club Olympia. There is a huge rivalry between the two teams here in Asuncion and, as I understand, in Paraguay in general. I can't count the times I've been asked whether I was for Cerro or Olympia, but now my answer is Cerro though I really don't care, haha. Matt bought an Olympia jersey, but hid it, and is playing the undecided card with the kids. I'm not sure which is better. The funny thing is, I plan to buy an Olympia jersey at some point, because I want to have both of them as souvenirs, but I don't dare tell anyone (and here I am announcing it on the web). I put my jersey on after buying it, as you see in the picure (the red and blue stripes), and when I came back to the Hogar one of the guys that gives me the hardest time and is never nice to me ran up to me and hugged me and gave me a high five. I've made some friends and made some enemies with my "decision", haha.

So, after the market we went to a place to eat, and after eating we went to some stores and street vendors around. Marlene had to go to work in the afternoon, so she left us with Vince and soon after Matt and I took a bus back to the Hogar office in Asuncion, and from there took a bus back to the Hogar in Capiata.

That's all for now! Here are some pictures:

This is Matt and I with Marlene in her apartment before we left for the market.

Matt in market.

Gutted fish in a cart. Yum.

There was a vendor with piranhas laying out. We talked to the lady a little and took some pictures. This is Vince with his finger in the mouth of one of the piranhas.

This is the restaurant we ate at after going to the market. We all had noquis which are my new favorite dish, at least in Paraguay. Surely we have these noodles/dough balls in the States, but I've never had them before, and they're great!

This is one of the guys living here we call Chino (meaning Chinese in Spanish) because he looks Asian even though he's not. His real name is Ariel. Anyway, he is a really nice and funny guy. He has helped me a lot with my Spanish and is always encouraging.

From left to right this Alejandra (Ale), Carol, and Anja. Ale is one of Paty's adopted kids, Carol is one of the girls living at the orphanage, and Anja is one of the German girls who is volunteering here.

I bought the black hat (kepi) worn by Danny on the left in the market at the same place I bought my shirt. I was in my room with these guys, Danny and Armando, listening to music. Danny liked my hat so he put it on and started dancing with it, and Armando joined him.

So, it was actually a couple weeks ago that I went to the English class of one of the guys here. He goes to the CCPA, which stands for something like Centro Cultura Paraguayo Americano. Anyway, it is a place that was set up many years ago by the US Embassy in Paraguay to teach young, bright students in Paraguay about American culture and how to speak English. I really enjoyed the class. Nobody during the class was allowed to speak anything but English, and since it was an upper level intermediate class, they all spoke fairly well. They asked me a lot of questions, and even the teacher asked me some things! For instance he asked about the usage of the adjective “beautiful”, whether it could be used for a guy. Also, he asked about delineating between a male and female friend. Do you say “boyfriend” and “girlfriend”? Good questions, and understandably not readily understood. The teacher was really funny; he made the classroom a really pleasant atmosphere. They all told me that they enjoyed having me in class, and I hope to go again soon with Matt. The class is only on Saturdays, so there aren’t many more chances to go. Anyway, it’s very interesting being on the flip-side of language learning, everyone is learning the language you speak! A new experience for me.

I don't have any pictures of the class right now because I didn't bring my camera. If I go again with Matt, I will bring my camera and get a picture or two. Anyway, here are a few pictures. The first is a picture of the Hogar from the front.

This is just the house in the front of the property. Behind the house there are a couple dorms (one for the boys and one for the girls) and a mess hall with a patio area for playing volleyball and such. Apparently these other structures behind the house are quite new. The mess hall and patio were only completed about a month before a came, as far as I understand. Btw, if you look close you'll see Adan on the porch there with his arms spread out.

This is a picture in the mess hall. I have confetti in my hair because it was the evening of a celebration for Adan's little girl. They had piniatas with candy and confetti, and after they were busted and the kids took of with the candy I was suckered into a small confetti fight.

I wanted to put this picture up because I thought these little kids were...dare I say, cute. I was walking back to the dorm and they were just meandering around on the sidewalk in front of me. I stopped and brought out my camera and they just stood and stared at me while I took their picture. I showed them their picture and they really liked looking at it, and then I showed them others and they kept saying peoples names they new. When I took it away they kept on saying they wanted to see it, and I'd show them more. The boy on the left they call "rubio" because he's so white (blond) but his real name is Manuel, and the boy on the right is Santi (short for Santiago). Santi is the son of one of the girls here, Carol, who on a side-note is an amazing cook.

That's all for now. Hopefully Matt and I will be meeting up with Marlene within the next couple days. Marlene is a friend of Jana's outside the Hogar. She's going to take us around Asuncion. So, I should have some more interesting stories and pictures soon. Love y'all!!

Long time, no...type

It’s been a while since I’ve posted. Due to the time constraints on internet usage as well as some connection inconsistency it has been hard for me to keep it going. However, since Matt is here as of Monday evening, I have my computer and am able to use it anytime anywhere. So, I plan to write whenever I can with or without the net, and then just copy what I write to my blog.

Anyway, like I said, Monday evening we picked up Matt from the airport in Asuncion. So, he’s here and safe! I’m really glad to have him here because despite everyone around I’ve been a bit lonely. It has just been hard to communicate and relate at deeper levels as much as I would like. Here’s a picture of Matt and I at the airport when he arrived:

I’m looking forward to this next month here with Matt. This month will hopefully find us picking up on the language and doing a healthy amount of traveling around the city. I made contact with Marlene, a friend of Jana’s in Asuncion, and we are planning on going to her place and probably staying a night or two. She said she’d take us around the city and show us stuff. Sweet! Also, last week a couple German girls, Anja and Katie, came to the Hogar and are going to be here the rest of the time we’re here. They have invited us to come to there mission house in Asuncion. Here’s a picture of them:

Anja is on the left, she’s 19, and Katie is in the middle, 24. The girl on the right, Alisia, is one of the girls here at the Hogar.

Last Sunday on 10/10/10 was a special day, not just because of the date, but it was the birthday of the male dorm leader, Adan. I’m actually not sure how old he is, but I think upper 20’s. Anyway, a good size group of guys went out in the evening for dinner. We went to an outdoor sandwich place called a lomiteria. Here’s a few pictures from that night. The first one is all the younger guys that came plus Adan. The second is an angle showing the vendor that made our sandwiches and lomitos. I'm doing a common hand expression with Hugo in while doing you say "namongaru", which essentially means "I'll eat to that" in Guarani. You do it when you say something clever or you agree with something. And sometimes when you do it, they'll stop halfway through and say "I'm not hungry" or "I'm full" and hold their stomach just to mess with you. Of course, I do it too now. The third is a picture of what I ate, mmm.

Now actually, before we left I had a unique and tasty experience as well. While I was waiting to leave for the birthday outing, some people were sitting behind the main house cutting open and chewing on what looked like bamboo. It was actually sugar cane. I've never eaten sugar cane straight; it was quite delicious. It's also kinda of satisfying having to work to cut open the cane in order to suckle on the sweet goodness. Anyway, here's a couple pictures from that experience. The first is a picture of the full canes, and the second is me with a few of the ladies I was enjoying the sugar cane with. As you can see, I have some in my mouth. Mmm, otra vez.

Well, this post is getting pretty long. So, I'll be done. But I'll try and get another post up tomorrow or the next day. I'd like to be a little more consistent...we'll see. I love and miss everyone. God bless!

I wish I had more time to put posts up but it seems my opportunities are few and far between. Anyway, I wanted to put some pictures up from my trip so far, so here are a few. (Unfortunately because it takes forever to upload pictures I have to be very picky.)

I just really liked this picture. It was taken while I was flying to Lima. The sun was headed toward the western horizon. I hadn´t been looking out the window much, but I happened to look out at one point and see this beatiful spectacle with the sun rays piercing through the clouds.

These are some of the older guys that live at the Hogar. We were just about to begin playing a game of soccer. It´s a common activity here as you might have guessed. Definitely the preferred sport. We also play a lot of volleyball. Though I enjoy both, I do prefer volleyball.

This is a picture of Terere. I had to put this picture up because it is so much a part of the Paraguayan culture. It is a sort of tea, but its drank cold and you don´t brew it. There are these herbs of some kind...I can´t remember what they are called...inside of the cup. You pour water into the cup, and you drink the water out of up a metal spoon that has a filter in the bottom of it so you don´t suck in the herbs. So, the water your drinking runs through the herbs and it creates a sort of minty flavor. People drink it all the time, and its custom to pour and pass around while visiting.

Anyway, I have to go. Paty is waiting for me. Until next time, adios from Paraguay!

Its been a week now since I left for Paraguay. I didn´t actually get to the Hogar in Paraguay until Thursday, so I haven´t quite been here a week yet.

Anyway, the traveling, though it created a little anxiety in me, was very fun because I met several people along the way. On the first leg of the trip, flying to Houston, I sat next to a guy who was good friends with Brandon Flowers. He grew up across the street from Flowers in Florida. He was flying home after coming to Brandon´s opening game at Arrowhead against the Chargers. I can´t remember the guys name but he said he trys to make it to at least one game a season. What better game to come to right? Go Chiefs! Had to get that out. On the second leg of the trip, the flight to Lima, I sat next to a guy named Jacob Johansen. He´s originally from Columbus, OH, but he teaches math at an international school in Lima. It was really a blessing sitting next to a guy I could easily relate with, especially since this flight was my first big international flight alone. He said this was his fourteenth roundtrip flight between Columbus and Lima this year, so you can imagine he was quite at ease. He gave me his e-mail address and said Matt and I could meet up with him when we return to Lima. Sweet contact! The next flight was to Buenos Aires. I started out sitting next to a old Japanese woman, which was sweet. She didn´t know english or spanish, so we started communicating with body language. But shortly after sitting down a young Japanese lady came by and asked me in english if I wouldn´t mind switching places with her. I gathered quickly that the younger lady was a traveling guide for a group of Japanese people. So, I moved to a seat near the back of the plane. Nobody was sitting next to me in this new seat, but that was really nice actually because I needed to sleep. I slept the whole flight to Buenos Aires. Once in BA I had to catch a bus to the city bus terminal where I´d get a bus that could take me to Asuncion, Paraguay. On these connecting bus a lady named Erika sat next to me. She was an older Argentian lady, but she spoke fluent english. She talked to me a bunch, and I just listened! She apparently lived on a boat for five years as a missionary with her family in the Amazon in Brazil. And she´d traveled all through the Americas, North and South. Wow! We got off the bus at a checkpoint of sorts where everyone took smaller vehicles either individually or with a small group of four or so to their destinations. At this checkpoint I met a lady named Christina. She was a professional classical singer in Switzerland, but originally from Argentina, and she was just coming home to visit her mother. She could speak spanish, english, french, italian, and german. Her and I actually took the same small vehicle with a couple other people. They both looked about my age. I don´t remember their names, but one was a guy from Alaska and the other a girl from Germany. After I got on the bus to Asuncion, I met a lady named Graciela. She worked and lived in Buenos Aires but she was originally from Paraguay and her family including her kids still lived in Paraguay. She didn´t know any english, but we managed to communicate, though with difficulty. I´m very glad I had my spanish-english dictionary! So, those are the stories of the people I met in my travels to Asuncion. I had to write about them because I just found the people to be so interesting, and they really blessed my traveling experience.

After writing so much and wasting time on facebook and catching up on the Chiefs, I´ve been on the computer for a long time, plus it is time to eat lunch. So, I´ll have more to write and pictures to show another day. Until then. Adios from Paraguay!

Hola from Buenos Aires! I am in the bus terminal awaiting my departure for Asuncion Paraguay. My baggage was lost. I gave the baggage claim people my address in Paraguay as well as my e-mail and the Hogar phone number and they are going to send it too me if it is found. I talked to Paty, the director of the Hogar, about an hour and a half ago. She mentioned how I "left my luggage". So I think it was just left in Lima. Anyways, the baggage claim service lady hooked me up with 70USD for the inconvience, which I am saving most of. Also, since I do not have the pack with me, it saves me the trouble of lugging it around right now. So, if my baggage does turn up, then this whole thing could turn out to be a blessing!

It is funny...as I type I keep on thinking I have to translate what I am wanting to write, and then I remember I do not need to, haha. I am already getting used to having to communicate in spanish. Oh, and either I just can not find it or there is not apostrophe key, so that is why I am have not contractions in my words.

I have been a little nervous here and there, because it is all new to me, but I have met a handful of people, and they are all super nice and encouraging. I might write a little about them later, but my time on the computer is about to run out. Anyhow, so far this trip has been awesome and I am not even to my destination, haha. I look forward to what is ahead.

Peace and love from Argentina!

Public Service Announcement

My father showed me this today:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-8PBx7isoM&feature=player_embedded

living

I was reminded through a relatively cheesy but entertaining action/sci-fi movie called Armageddon what true love is. It is sacrifice. Particularly, sacrifice for other people.

We all have dreams for our futures in this world whether we know it or not, but a fulfilling life is not determined by whether or not we achieve these dreams. A life is fulfilled by living, fighting, and dying for a "greater reality", something that is beyond us all, but for us all. I think what this comes down to, practically speaking, is making genuine sacrifices in your life, giving up time-consuming, unproductive, yet tempting activities (for example, surfing facebook or even just wallowing in a bad attitude), and replacing it with selfless actions and selfless attitudes. What really matters? By submitting to a sacrificial, true love, we may find that we truly live.

Of course, I'm preaching to myself, but to all other human beings as well because I believe it is objectively true.

The Tragic Sequel

I'm always skeptical of sequels, let alone sequels of sequels. I say this because, as most people likely know, they (sequels) tend to feed off their great originator, thus they become either an on-par rehash or a B-movie in the same universe. Of course, there are exceptions, and a sequel is able to do what sequels should, which is take the known world to new, compelling places without misstepping on what was great about the first. Then, with the box office success or at least relative success of a sequel comes yet another sequel, where you must do the seemingly impossible again! And if this cycle continues, the movies will have more and more of a following and, in turn, more ability to be at least semi-successful (financially speaking) without doing the earlier ones justice. Which is why it is pretty much inevitable that the movies will get worse and worse. So, why does this matter? Well, the great movies which lend themselves to sequels are great, in my opinion, because they moved you; they touched you in some way where you saw or felt differently, you cared about the characters, you lived in their world, you experienced the drama or the magic that took place. And I find that bad sequels turn around and tell you that these characters, this world isn't really what you thought it was. It's like a mockery of all the real feelings you carried from the first. Then the previous great movie is forever tainted and, therefore, would've been much better off alone. That is why I'm skeptical of sequels.

Anyway, I watched Toy Story 3 on Saturday night. Like Toy Story 2 before it, it was one of the exceptions. It achieved the "seemingly impossible".

humility and truth

I love the Narnia series. First of all, I simply love fantasy fiction. Fantasies are outlets for our imagination, infinite and free. Though, the truly excellent fantasies are those which manage to illustrate the human experience poignantly and seamlessly. This is the Chronicles of Narnia. It is filled with symbolism, life lessons, and physical and spiritual truth.

This small exchange of dialogue that occurs near the beginning of the last chapter of Prince Caspian comes to my mind.

"Welcome, Prince," said Aslan. "Do you feel yourself sufficient to take up the Kingship of Narnia?"

"I - I don't think I do, Sir," said Caspian. "I'm only a kid."

"Good," said Aslan. "If you had felt yourself sufficient, it would have been a proof that you were not. Therefore, under us and under the High King, you shall be King of Narnia, Lord of Cair Paravel, and Emperor of the Lone Islands."

I find this to be spiritual truth. And the first life application I think of is love. True love. What is it? Who deserves it? Who can give it?

I would say, those who understand true love are those who understand it is beyond us. The goodness, the holiness, the purity, the sacrifice of love is infinite and divine. To claim we can have love or deserve it is to put love down, it is to not understand love. The ability to experience love comes with the ability to know where it is which is above us.

Post 1

"Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth."

2 Timothy 2:15