Finding a Need in Society

There is a real need for women speakers. Speakers are important for a lot of different situations. There are four main markets where there is a real need for women speakers. They are teenagers, pro-life audiences, the handicap community, and those who are a part of a big family. Teenagers are in high school. They want to fit in and want to be liked. They long for true love and true caring, even if they do not realize it. Teenagers are rebellious, but they want approval in their rebellion. The pro-life audience tends to be conservative. They believe in life from conception to natural death and they have some kind of religious background. The choices that they make are normally based on religious persuasion and they do not feel like they have to go with the flow of the society. The handicap community tends to stand out. It is harder for them to get around and to plan and attend events. They cannot always go to everything that “normal” families and people can go to because there is not always a handicap accessible area. They experience frustration because they cannot always take care of themselves and they want to give up sometimes. They do not want people to feel bad for them, they want to find true love and compassion. The last target audience that I have is those who are a part of a big family. Big families tend to have a conservative and religious background. They do not always have money. They often use hand-me-downs, either from other siblings or other families. Often, the older siblings help raise the younger siblings.

I am hoping that writing a book will lead into a career of speaking. Being a published author would allow for me to be a credible source for churches and communities that have audiences for my target markets. I hope to fill the need for women speakers. Life can be difficult sometimes, I hope to show people how to get through the difficult times and still be able to see how important and fulfilling even the worst of times can be.

With the experiences that I have had, my stories have a wide range of topics. These topics include the many different audiences that I have mentioned. These stories include stories about being genuine, real love, and daily inspiration.

In this book and throughout a career as a speaker, I am trying to explain to people what it's like to be in situations where people look into your life and think that your life is so awful and pitiful. Most people look into my life and think that about me and my family. People often come up and tell me that they feel bad for me. In these situations, it could be very easy to fall into feeling sorry for myself. However, that would not be the way to view myself. Throughout writing this book and becoming a speaker, I hope to show people how my family is the luckiest family and how although there are a lot of difficulties that come with it, there is no way that I would ever change any part of my family or my experiences.

In order to prepare myself for this journey, I must start by understanding my experiences from a mature adults point of view. By looking at the stories through my own eyes from when I was a child will help me understand what people are going thorugh when they are in situations that bring about the same emotions and thoughts that the experiences I have had have brought me. Writing the book first will also help with a future in speaking because when I am writing the book, I am able to write and edit until the stories are clearly told. By doing this first, I will then be able to clearly discuss the stories when I am speaking in front of an audience. I will be able to know the individual stories that I am telling, but also my story as a whole.

Jesus is necessary in all of the activities in my life. Through the sacraments, He will lead me to Himself. In baptism, He welcomed me into His family. In reconciliation, He forgives my selfishness. In the Eucharist, He nourishes me. In confirmation, He seals me in His love. In Holy Matrimony, He unites me with my husband and Himself. In the sacrament of the anointing of the sick, He strengthens me for my journey. While I am on this journey, it is important for me to listen to God's word. I must rely on Him and trust that He will lead me to the people that need to hear what I have to say. I also must trust in His timing, instead of relying on my own. Because God is perfect, I must always remember that, like Christ, I must surrender my will to my Heavnely Father's will.

In writing a book, I will strive to be like the authors in the bible who told their stories in order to help others see God working in their lives. The Catechism of the Catholic Church says in paragraph 409,

“The whole of man's history has been the story of dour combat with the powers of evil, stretching, so our Lord tells us, from the very dawn of history until the last day. Finding himself in the midst of the battlefield man has to struggle to do what is right, and it is at great cost to himself, and aided by God's grace, that he succeeds in achieving his own inner integrity.”

Only because of God's grace have I come to the realizations that I will explain in my book, and only by God's grace will I have the grace to tell others about it and be able to touch their hearts and lead them in a dirrection that points to our Heavenly Father.

How Would I have Responded?

I think that he started out pretty well. He had a good message and he did show though his actions what followers of Christ should do. However, when she came at him with the question, “Why did my friend die”, well, he could've dealt with the situation better. Instead of saying things like God doesn't always answer prayer, he could have said something about how God doesn't always answer prayers the way we had hoped he would, instead He answers them in a way that is best for us. I would have also told her a story. The story I would have told her would be this.

In August of 2004 one of my younger brothers, Daniel, went into the hospital again. He already had spent a lot of time in hospitals and already had gone though many different operations. Some of the different surgeries were for a g-tube, g.i.-tube, a tracheotomy, a fundoplycation and some other surgeries where at the time I didn't know what was happening. And in August of 2004, he went into the hospital ICU again. This time, for a ventilator. Basically, what it does is it breathes for him. He was there for a couple days while my mom and dad were being trained on how to work this new machine that was going to be in our house. I went up to visit him one morning in ICU after he had been on the ventilator, and I realized what was happening, my brother now needed a machine to breathe. I talked to my dad, and he basically confirmed what I had thought. My dad told me that if we lived in any other part of the world, if he didn't have the type of job he had, or if things were any different then way that they were now, my little brother might not have been here anymore. And that hit me really hard. I always knew that he could die at any second; I mean it was only 3 years ago when he stopped breathing three different times in a matter of a month, all ending with a trip to the ER and the last time going into the hospital for about three weeks. But this time was probably one of my strongest wakeup calls. That’s when I realized how important prayer is and how important it was that my parents and the rest of my family trusted in the answers that God gives us in order for our family to continue to grow. My little brother who has gone though more than most people have to go though in a lifetime by the age of 10 and he is almost always happy and smiling, especially while he is playing games on the computer or baseball or interacting with all his friends at school.

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A link to the radio clip that this post was written based off of is:

This American Life

"This I Used to Believe"

Act 2 -- Starts at 19 minutes

http://www.thisamericanlife.org/Radio_Episode.aspx?sched=1292

What is going on?

“Twitter is for Old People”

“Lost in the new media Universe”

What Is Going On?

Although Jenna McWilliams is very sceptic about what Matthew Robson said and why it has become such a big deal, it seems very clear to me. Instead of all of these CEOs, who are most likely all in there 50s, worldwide asking each other “Why can't we get through and capture the younger generation?” and then thinking that the answer is that they need more technology, they looked at it from a view point of their target market. I have seen many adults try to grab a hold of any technology that they can and try to use it. They assume that once they are a part of all of these technological advances, then they must be able to get a hold of the younger generation. However, in this mind set they miss one crucial problem. They do not know how to use all of this technology.

There is definitely an art form that can come about from figuring out technology. There is a huge difference between what is there to use and what should actually be used. Like the example that Matthew Robson uses with Twitter. I have had a twitter account since March 2009. However, I have used it to write things to my “followers” ten times since then. On top of that, I never go to check to see what everyone is doing. Twitter is not something that I ever need to go and check or figure out. It just sits there and I have no motivation to use it. This is mainly because of Facebook. All that Twitter is is a status update. I already have somewhere to update my status, it is called Facebook. However, on Facebook, there are so many other things that keep bringing me back to it, such as the social interaction and games, that I go on for those things and update my status, pretty much just because.

Jenna McWilliams poses a very good question though at the end of her news article, she states “How long until we realize that the guide may be walking quickly as if he's following a path but is in fact just as lost as everyone else?”. Clearly, she is an adult wondering what is going on just like everyone else. She starts out her article with a list of ways that we can look at to know that we are in a social revolution. And that is where her problem starts. What she does not understand is that random people speaking out and getting heard is the social revolution. Everyone wants to be heard and everyone wants to make an impact. Matthew Robson is just another one of the people that becomes famous because of a following. The reason that people update their Facebook is because they want people to know what they are doing. They want to be noticed. Matthew Robson was probably not even thinking that his work would be read, much less published and heard about worldwide.

This new generation is the reason that the world becomes smaller everyday. People like Matthew Robson is the reason why are society is so interlinked with every other choice that we make. This is exactly why the older generation cannot, even when they try really hard to be “cool”, make sense of what the younger generation is doing.

Links to the News Articles that this Post is in Response to:

Twitter is for Old People http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article6703399.ece

Lost in the New Media Universe: http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2009/jul/14/twitter-teenage-media-habits

Third Way Faith: "The Efficient Gospel" - Response

“The Efficient Gospel”

The way technology works now means that the younger generations cannot work outside of this efficient and immediate needs. These values are completely contrary to what the Gospel teaches. These social “virtues” makes it harder to relate to God because God requires patience. With the technology progressing to rapidly into faster and faster ways of communicating.

Ironically, this rapidly progressing communications actually breaks down what we really need from these electronic means of communication. Most of the communications made face to face actually lasts. However, when communication came from e-mail, it broke down much quicker than the relationships that were made face to face.

This is very clear in the way that people talk and communicate today. Instead of calling someone, I can text or facebook them easier and when I do that I do not even need to spend the time waiting for an answer. I can go about my day, and if they message me back, that's great. But if they do not, it is not a big deal.

Technology can be completely ruining everything that we have worked so hard on. The main problem with technology is that it is a great resource. However, we cannot rely on technology to get us everywhere we need to go. When it comes down to it, it is the face to face communication that bring us closer to the ones around us and also helps us to follow the Gospel.

The Gospel of Society is that if it is easy and quick and makes you feel good, then it is good for you and you should continue living that way. However, nothing in the Gospel of Christ points to life being quick, easy, or even efficient. The Gospels teaches us that we must be patient in order to reach a more perfect goal than the ones we set for ourselves. The Gospels teaches us that love is more than just feeling, it's an expression of self-giving life that cares more about the person you love than of yourself.

In order to live out Christ's Gospel then is to understand that technology is great when used properly. Technology can be an amazing resource to have, when used properly. However, it is when technology is all we use that we lose what it means to be human and to have people around us actually be with us emotionally and not just physically sitting next to you and yet not having any interactions with each other. Texting and e-mails have given us a whole new way to communicate because it requires significantly less emotional involvement. I could easily text someone something and not expect for an opener or a closer or any depth other than the question they are asking. However, if you call or actually take the time to meet with someone face to face, then there are many social customs that you have to follow in order to not be rude.

Links to Podcast that I listened to that this post was written in response to:

http://thirdway.strangeidealabs.com/audio/Efficient%20Gospel.mp3

feed://thirdway.strangeidealabs.com/audio/podcast.xml Episode #17

Romantic Comedy Director: Ken Kwapis

Ken Kwapis is a director that started off directing in Television in 1983. However, recently he has started directing mainstream films. Ken Kwapis tends to direct romantic comedy movies such as License to Wed and He's Just Not That Into You. However, in his television career, he directed everything from “CBS Afternoon Playhouse” to “ER” to “The Office”. Through directing these television shows, he was able to establish both credibility and control and therefore made it easier for him to transition into making films as well. Ken Kwapis did direct a movie in 1991 called He Said, She Said. Similar to his more recent movies, this also was a romantic comedy. But for most of the beginning of his career, he directed television episodes.

Throughout these romantic comedies that he directs, there tends to be the same types of themes. One theme that seems to occur in his films is a flawed relationship needing perfection. In his movies, there always is a couple that needs to overcome something in order to find itself. For example, in License to Wed, the main couple needs to get through with the marriage prep course and understand each other better. Another movie that he directed was Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. In this movie, Lena and Kostas must overcome the differences in their families to be together. Because of these two movies, it is not a shock that after these two movies he made He's Just Not That Into You. In this movie there is anything and everything that is wrong with the couples and people and all of the characters have a comedic romantic problem to get over by the end of the movie.

Although Ken Kwapis started his career in Television, his transition into a film director seems to have gone very smoothly. He still directs episodes from current seasons of shows such as “The Office”. This ability to be able to transfer from television to film shows how he has become a well respected director in Hollywood. It also shows that as a director, you do not have to choose between television and film. Ken Kwapis is a great example of being able to work well in many environments.

Pants Bring Us Together

One of my favorite movies is The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. Having read the book before the movie came out in June of 2005, Ken Kwapis definitely held true enough to the book's version of the story where I enjoyed the movie and felt like the differences were not crucial enough to bother me. This story is about four girls who have been inseparable, even since before they were born. It is a story about their struggle of leaving each other sides for a summer. Through their individual adventures and experiences, they must find how to be individuals and still an intimate part of this unique group at the same time.

This seemingly unsurpassable journey begins with immediately meeting the four girls and finding a pair of jeans. Now, even though each girl is definitely differently shaped, each of the girls looks stunning in this pair of jeans. Who would have though that it was going to take a pair of jeans to keep them together even though they are far away from each other.

Ken Kwapis takes us through this journey with excitement and tears. He even tells people that "Since [Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants] was released, I can't tell you how many conversations I've had about public displays of emotion in general, and crying at the movies in particular. I've received messages from male friends berating me for creating something that brought them to tears. I've received emails from girls who claim they'd never cried at the movies before Pants. And there are many rave reviews that are quite apologetic in tone. Many journalists have a hard time distinguishing between honest emotion and sentiment. I feel certain the audience knows the difference." Even though I enjoyed the film, to hear that many others felt the same way truly speaks to the way that Ken directed the movie.

This movie especially hits all the aspects that Ken Kwapis tends to lean towards in his movies, romantic comedies. He understands his story and the most effective way of telling it. He knows exactly what he is filming and why each scene is there. He has a romance in Greece which he portrays beautifully and a father and daughter being reunited and the struggles a daughter must go through when she finds how her dad has a new family. And just in case that did not hit the spot, he is able to portray a girl who has lost her mom and is yearning for love, and starts to look for it in all the wrong places. Still, there is one more story. The one girl who will be staying at home while everyone else goes on an adventure, goes on an adventure right in her own town. As she befriends a young girl that is dying from leukemia we are able to show a deep friendship that touched everyone's lives.

While keeping all four stories unique, he was able to fit them perfectly together into a wonderful work of art so that all the story transitions are blended together so well, the audience is easily able to follow the story. Because Ken Kwapis knew exactly what he was saying, instead of an audience feeling confused and lost throughout the movie, he had the exact opposite effect. People were so swept up into the movie, that they felt the emotions that each individual in the movie was feeling as well.

Luckily, Ken Kwapis was able to bring an amazing book to life through his creative decisions and over all well though out productino of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.

Less than Four Months!

We have less than Four Months before Joey and I are able to start Married Life!

This past weekend we went on an engagement encounter! It was really nice to be able to spend the weekend just focusing on our relationship without the craziness of day to day life!

As the day approaches, it gets even more exciting. The engagement encounter weekend felt so far away when we first registered for it! I guess that's how the rest of the time is going too! With each task checked off, and less tasks to do it becomes even more real!

117 days!

Praise God!