"Heres to the promise of glamorous living..."

Have you ever just sat and thougt about life? I mean really thougt about the mechanics of it? We are made in a process that, while beautifully intimate, is altogether messy and not at all as glamorous, or simple as they make it seem in the movies....any movie. As much as we, especially as Americans, love to think we live the life of 'high fashion/style', when you get right down to it, basic life processes are anything but. The things that we can't even fathom our favorite celebrities doing, or heck even that slice of heaven you've had your eye on for months....they are the things that we all need to do to survive in this thing called life.

"...You must drink up now cause it's all that you're getting..."

But no matter how ugly life gets, no matter what weird people, strange things, and intriguing oddities we experience, we can never stop experiencing. When we stop experiencing, stop drinking in what life throws at us, we stop being truely alive. Being alive is not the same as surviving...it's not even close. Take, for instance, the difference between walking across a bridge in order to get to work every morning and taking the time to stop halfway across to contemplate what it would feel like to cut through the air like a bird. Or, take that one step further...strap yourself to a giant rubberband and jump off a bridge, taking a gigantic bite out of life. Granted the first one is necessary to be a productive member of society, the second is necessary in order to experience life. To live the examined life, as a great philosopher once postulated, is to have a life worth living. But the last option? Now that is truely LIVING. Now which do you want to do, my friend?

"If you haven't been tested, you certainly will...
...and I promise it's going to kill..."

Now, I'm not promising that living this sort of life will be easy, nor that it will solve any of your problems...no matter what, even if you have all the money or fame or the best family in the world, you will be tested. And it will hurt like hell going throug it...BUT, no matter how hard it may seem, you will come out the other side a better person, with a cleaner, more compassionate and well rounded soul. And, if you are open, you'll be more able to help out someone else through something similar, and be the ligt in their life. Oh, and one more thing...be sure to make note of those in your life who help you through the tests and thank them. Do something wondeful for them because they have done something truely wondeful for you.

"Let me be your everlasting light / The sun when there is none..."

Everyone needs someone in their life that they can look at and say 'You are the one person that can always make my day better, no matter what" no matter if that person is just your best friend, your sibling, spouse, friend or mentor. No matter who, everyone deserves to have that feeling of light, everlasting. Their smile warms your heart and they make you laugh, regardless of how you may be hurting. They pick you up out of your darkest places. And in addition to having one of these people, everyone should have the chance to BE this person for someone else.

"...I'm shining just for you / Loneliness is over / Dark days are through..."

If you are going through a dark time in your life, try to find your 'everlasting light' and if that doesnt help you, realize that you are indeed someone else's. You may not know the person vey well, they could be a friend of a friend, but you are their inspiration, possibly even the reason they get out of bed some mornings. While that may sound creepy and stalkerish, think about it. Have you ever had a day where everything seemed way too overwhelming and you just wanted to curl up under the covers and never come out again? Was there perhaps someone you thought of that inspired you to get in gear? Maybe because of a text or call from them, or maybe its because you know they have survived through something a million times worse than you are going through, and they are doing it with a smile on their face, a song in their heart and enough strength to spare for those they care about.

"...Love is the coal / That makes this train roll / Let me be your everlasting light..."

Just remember that no matter what, you are loved. God loves you, someone you are thinking of loves you, someone you barely even know loves you. I love you.

Be at peace, and relax your mind.