Palmtree Contemplations

       (clears throat) Thank you all for coming here today. I understand that this is not something most people would do. It means the world to me that you are here to help me through this.       (dabs at eyes) Today I am celebrating and remembering the faithful service rendered to me by a certain red Shasta Bible College T-shirt. I never would have thought that a shirt could become so much a part of my everyday life. Just seeing it brings back memories, both sad and joyful.        I wore this shirt one morning when I got up early to watch the sunrise and be with God.        I wore this shirt during a late night walk with Kelsey around the quad.        I wore this shirt for Monday work details, when I carried diaper clad children on my back, or raked up rotting jambos, or told long romantic stories to the 8th grade girls as we bleached the library's shelves. ...

When I was 17, I read a book called Do Hard Things by Alex and Brett Harris. I remember being skeptical at first. Chuck Norris wrote the foreword, so when I was his name on the front cover I immediately thought, "Is this a joke?" It wasn't, though. In fact, that book helped change my life. I learned of other teens who are fed up with low expectations and mediocre achievements, just like I was, and still am. It inspired me to challenge myself to really try and make a difference where I am with what I have.         I am a proud member of the Rebelution, which is the movement the Harris brothers started.  We Rebelutionaries are always asking each other, "What's your hard thing right now?" Mine is a class called Musicianship. Now, for all those non-music majors out there, let me explain. Musicianship is a class which trains the inner ear. Remember that part in The Sound of Music where Maria starts teaching the children how to sing? She uses something called so...