J.F. Slade's Blog

���Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.��� (1 Corinthians 13:4���5, NIV)Weddings nationwide use that quote from the Bible. It was even read at mine. Often though, I think we forget what it means. This is the only way I can rationalize how Christians across the United States support a president whose actions display the opposite of what those words mean.I was raised knowing the Golden Rule: ���Love your neighbor as yourself.��� Here���s the thing: it doesn���t specify your ���Christian neighbor.���How does turning away refugees who need help follow this rule?How does denying legal US residents the ability to return to their homes from vacation show love?It is easy for me, in my warm home with bountiful amenities to think that I am normal, but in the larger picture of our world, I am not. I am very very lucky. So many people don���t have close to what I have.Worldwide, 780 million people do not have access to clean water and an estimated 2.5 billion people don���t have good sanitation. (Source: https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/global/wash_statistics.html)Over 59 million children of primary school-age aren���t receiving an education. (Source: https://www.unicef.org/education/bege_61657.html)400 million people do not have access to essential healthcare services. (Source: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2015/uhc-report/en/)And lastly, the UN estimated in April last year that 400,000 people have been killed throughout the civil war in Syria. (Source: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/04/staffan-de-mistura-400000-killed-syria-civil-war-160423055735629.html)Denying legal residents the ability to return to their homes isn���t displaying love. Denying refugees a safe haven isn���t displaying love. Love doesn���t only have to apply when it���s easy and convenient.Love ���always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.��� (1 Corinthians 13:7, NIV)Always. That���s what love is.

**This Post Original Appeared on Medium**

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.” (1 Corinthians 13:4–5, NIV)Weddings nationwide use that quote from the Bible. It was even read at mine. Often though, I think we forget what it means. This is the only way I can rationalize how Christians across the United States support a president whose actions display the opposite of what those words mean.I was raised knowing the Golden Rule: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Here’s the thing: it doesn’t specify your “Christian neighbor.”How does turning away refugees who need help follow this rule?How does denying legal US residents the ability to return to their homes from vacation show love?It is easy for me, in my warm home with bountiful amenities to think that I am normal, but in the larger picture of our world, I am not. I am very very lucky. So many people don’t have close to what I have.Worldwide, 780 million people do not have access to clean water and an estimated 2.5 billion people don’t have good sanitation. (Source: https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/global/wash_statistics.html)Over 59 million children of primary school-age aren’t receiving an education. (Source: https://www.unicef.org/education/bege_61657.html)400 million people do not have access to essential healthcare services. (Source: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2015/uhc-report/en/)And lastly, the UN estimated in April last year that 400,000 people have been killed throughout the civil war in Syria. (Source: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/04/staffan-de-mistura-400000-killed-syria-civil-war-160423055735629.html)Denying legal residents the ability to return to their homes isn’t displaying love. Denying refugees a safe haven isn’t displaying love. Love doesn’t only have to apply when it’s easy and convenient.Love “always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” (1 Corinthians 13:7, NIV)Always. That’s what love is.

**This Post Original Appeared on Medium**

There is beauty in the iceUnique patterns and formIt is easy to forgetThat it started with a storm
To watch is just a pastime
To play is life or death When everything still mattersIt hurts to catch your breath
It is easy to get lost
In search for truth misplayedReflections in a mirrorThat’s twisted up and frayed
The hours in the day are short
The fear is sinking deepBitter chills cascading downAnd frozen tears we weep
As the ice shatters in pieces
We are broken insideSpring seems so far away nowBut h...

A lot has happened since I last posted here, and as much as I'd love to talk about me and tell funny stories about my son, I'm not going to do that with this post. Today I'm going to post about something a lot more serious, and possibly very uncomfortable.

A couple weeks ago and along with everyone else in the country, I watched a video of a man running for president bragging about sexual assault. I then watched some people defend him by saying it was just words. They then discounted the women...

Happy Mother's Day, everyone!

So, I'm back in school and am taking a "technology in education" class. One of the requirements is that I have to start a blog and make a certain number of posts on it. They gave us a whole lesson on how to write a blog.

I probably should have taken notes...

(If anyone is curious, I opted to start a different blog for this class since the topics are predetermined and not consistent with my sarcastic nature.) (Yeah, you read that right: I hold the bar for this blog t...

I've always tried to steer clear of politics on this blog. Politics are such a divisive and passion-filled issue, and my experience is that entering into it on social media is usually a fruitless effort. Many things recently, however, have made me think that there is value to speaking up and voicing an opinion. No, I'm not going to tell you which candidate to vote for. That's your own decision. I can, however, give a wish-list. So here it is:

1) I wish people would remember to treat each other...

"I need to see your ID, young lady."

Someone almost got slapped today.

I know... I know... I should take it as a compliment, right? I don't. It's ridiculous. I'm going to be 32 in a few weeks. I'm not 20, and more importantly, I don't look like I'm 20. My hair is a quarter gray, and I haven't dyed it since before I was pregnant with my now 10-month old son. I'm wearing absolutely no makeup, my hair is pulled back in an out-of-fashion but very useful bun. My glasses are 8 years old and incredibl...

Happy 2016!

Wow.

Things I thought I would have done in 2016 if you asked me in 1996:


Become a pop star.Won at least 2 Oscars.Become a bestselling author.

So I'm pretty much on track.

It's strange that getting married and having a kid didn't make the list. Those have turned out to be the things that I'm most proud of. I say this as my son tries to pull one of the slats out of our blinds. His face is also covered with dirt and spit up. Maybe I should clean that up...

Okay, I'm back. What was I saying...

I've been struggling with this blog. It's Thanksgiving this week, which is my favorite holiday. (Stuffing my face full of gravy-soaked foods? Yes, please!) Most years, I would say that writing a blog about all I am thankful for would be cheesy. This year, I'm making an exception.

I'm thankful I woke up this morning, in my warm bed next to my husband, with my son in his room practicing standing in his crib.

I'm thankful I got to pour myself a cup of coffee and write this post because I know so m...

Once upon a time, the biggest challenge in the world was writing a novel. I had no idea if I could because the time and dedication required was daunting. 
And then I did it. It took me several years albeit, but way back in 2006, I finished my first novel, The Vision of Caldaria. 
Finished is such an arbitrary word, it seems.
Three years later, in 2009, I self-published it. It wasn't ready, and I knew it wasn't, but I wanted to move on to writing the sequels and the other stories I had...