Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Chasing Mavericks


I consider myself a picky movie goer. I don't go to just any movie. It has to be a story that pulls me in. A movie with life. A movie so good that it can suck the reality of your life away and sweep you into a beautiful world of fantasy.

About a year ago I heard of this film called Of Men and Of Mavericks. You see, an actress/author/creative idol of mine, Abigail Spencer, (find her here and here!) mentioned it on her Twitter page. So I did some International Movie DataBase searching and discovered this beautiful story- a movie based upon the life of surfing extraordinaire Jay Moriarty. A kid with a dream. A sixteen-year-old kid who set out to conquer Mavericks with the help of his mentor and guide, Frosty Hesson.

I mean, c'mon, with that storyline and a cast that includes Gerard Butler, Elisabeth Shue, Leven Rambin, AND Abigail Spencer? I'm in.

What's a maverick, you ask? Mavericks are HUGE waves, found in Half Moon Bay, California. For years people didn't believe in their existence. They build and build, crashing and colliding and racing towards shore. They can be anywhere between 25 feet and 100 feet tall. It takes practice, training, and courage to surf those suckers. Would YOU want to surf that kind of wave?

So anyways, the storyline got me, hook, line and sinker. I was convinced it would be a great movie, and based on everything I had heard about the production, it was a great movie. Over the months between filming and release, the name was changed from Of Men and Mavericks to Chasing Mavericks.

October 26th could not come fast enough. I've been waiting for this movie for a while, people. I had a free night the Saturday after the release, so I took myself to the movies, to see Chasing Mavericks.

It was AWESOME. Blow you out of the water, leaves you astounded awesome. Beautiful and moving and heartbreaking and healing. I left the theater a mess.

Here's the trailer. Chasing Mavericks Official Site.

Read THIS and then read THIS. Then, go see Chasing Mavericks.

with love, Beth

Psalms 16

 
"1 Keep me safe, my God,
for in you I take refuge.

2 I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord;
apart from you I have no good thing.”
3 I say of the holy people who are in the land,
“They are the noble ones in whom is all my delight.”
4 Those who run after other gods will suffer more and more.
I will not pour out libations of blood to such gods
or take up their names on my lips.

5 Lord, you alone are my portion and my cup;
you make my lot secure.
6 The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
surely I have a delightful inheritance.
7 I will praise the Lord, who counsels me;
even at night my heart instructs me.
8 I keep my eyes always on the Lord.
With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.

9 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest secure,
10 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
nor will you let your faithful one see decay.
11 You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand."

Psalm 16:1-11, New International Version
(blue highlighting my own)

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

A Little Bit of Controversy

I apologize for the delay. I have been sick sick sick, and I haven’t felt like doing much.

Hollywood never ceases to amaze. An actress I thoroughly admired until now, an actress who claims to be a Christian, asked on Twitter, “Why aren’t Christian women doing more for women’s rights globally and locally?”

Uh, excuse me?!
She  went on to ask, “Why do Christians as a whole seem to be one of the largest anti-women’s lib groups?”

Whoa! Back the truck up. Making generalizations, aren’t you?
Obviously, these questions caused a mini stir in this actress’ Twitter world. A fan pointed out that men and women were created to be equal, but their differences complement each other, before pointing out that men are supposed to be the head of the family. The actress stated that men shouldn’t be the head of the family; that the husband and wife should be equal in everything.

Let’s pause right there for a second.
I am not a burn-your-bra feminist. My mindset is more of “If boys can do it, girls can do it”. That being said, I realize that men and women ARE different, and we were created to fulfill different tasks. I acknowledge the fact that I was not around for many of the huge markers in the feminist movement. I appreciate the women who fought to get laws changed so that women could vote. I appreciate women who insisted upon getting an education. I appreciate the women who clawed their way into a male driven world and made careers for themselves. I appreciate the men who supported them. I appreciate the husbands who made sacrifices so their wives could work. I appreciate the fathers who paid for their daughters’ education.  
What I don’t appreciate is being sold short. I am the oldest of two girls, with a dad and a mom who both worked outside the home. I was taught that Jesus puts desires in our hearts. I was taught that we are to seek His will in our lives, and we are to obey that. I was taught to do my best in life, from school to sports to choir to relationships. I was taught to put others before myself.

My parents never put limitations on my sister and me. We were never expected to grow up and be a certain thing. We weren’t placed in a box and told to stay there. We were given room to grow and flourish. We were given love. I grew up with wonderful examples of a family rooted in Christ and dedicated to serving others.

I have been blessed to travel in my life, from family road trips to destination vacations to mission trips. Traveling takes you to places beyond your home, places that are often way outside of your comfort zone. I know how blessed the women of America are. And I don’t even think they realize how blessed they are! I sure didn’t. It took seeing desolate souls, who live in pitiful places, before I was broken and on my knees, repenting of everything I’ve ever taken for granted. Those same souls have less than half of what I have, yet they wake up every day and put one foot in front of the other to take care of themselves and their families.

Many times, mothers are left to fend for their children alone. These mothers are often denied the right to vote, jobs, food, and homes just because they are women. These mothers are more concerned with feeding their kids than worrying about the voting for a man who won’t help them. I’m sure that if they didn’t have kids to feed, then they would fight like banshees (Indians, for you non Texas folk) to get what they are denied. There comes a point where every day is a battle, just to put food on the table and find a bed for their babies. They put their lives on the line every single day, just to provide for their families.
I see the fight here in America too. We are in the twenty-first century, and women still get paid less than men for doing the same job. Many people feel that women ought to drop their educations and careers as soon as they marry and have a family. Even the church expects women to put their families above themselves. (I’m not disagreeing; I’m just stating the facts.)
I find it insulting that the afore mentioned actress had the audacity to accuse Christians of not doing enough for women. Of course we could do more; we can always do more. We can always try harder. We can always aim higher. We can always step one foot further out of our comfort zones to do God’s will.
There are MANY Christians who are doing what they can for others with what they have. And not just for women’s rights, but for families, and children, and the sick, and the homeless, and the jobless, too. From their homes and neighborhoods to third world countries, people are trying to change things. People are trying to lead the lost to Christ. People are trying to teach single mothers job skills. People are trying to find fathers work. People are trying to love on and raise orphans. People are trying to help others get through their day to day lives. People just like you and I, who believe in a faithful God. People who have trusted God to provide and seen him follow through. These are people who believe that God has a beautiful plan out of all this chaos.  
Maybe you don’t know their names; maybe you live and breathe alongside some of these people. Maybe you have been affected and influenced by them. They might not be as well-known as other men and women who’ve impacted the world, but let me assure you, they are here.  Maybe that is something the afore mentioned actress should’ve taken into consideration before generalizing all Christians. Maybe enough people stood up to her that she’s thought twice about it. Who knows. I am just here to say that as long as I’m living, I will be fighting for the women and children and families and the sick and the jobless and the homeless of this world, because as a daughter of the King, I am called to serve others.
~Bethany

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Full House

I will preface this post with a warning- NERD ALERT.
 
This is a post only intended to bring a smile to your face.
 
I grew up watching Full House. Literally. I might have been born in '93 but I love that show. My sister and I own almost every season on DVD. So when I found out that this weekend was the 25th anniversary of the premiere of Full House, I was insistent that we watch a few episodes in honor of it. And then I got on Pinterest...and well, ya know...





 





 


 







Xo, Bethany

Monday, October 1, 2012

To Sum Up September

The other day I found myself balancing on an antique dining room chair to hang a Phineas and Ferb sign for my sister's birthday. It wasn't my smartest idea. Let's just be grateful tha my parents didn't name me Grace, since I was sorely lacking it in that moment.

It's been above 95 degrees daily lately. Welcome To Texas. We're still waiting on fall temperatures to kick in...still hasn't happened yet.
 
WWould you believe that I volunteered to take three high school sophomores homecoming dress shopping for six hours last Saturday?  (Don't tell them, but it was actually fun! That's huge, considering this is the girl who doesn't like to shop.)

And then, on the night of the dance, it RAINED. The girls were great sports though.
 
{Alex is in red annd Rachel is in gold!}
 
One of my favorite nights was staying up and watching movies with one of my bests, Rachel, also known as Wraptonstall. On a school night. Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel anyone?! Wraptonstall blessed us by spending the night and taking Sissy to school in the morning, so that I could take Mom to the doctor.

Speaking of Wraptonstall, she has THE cutest nephew who turned 6 months old this month. Be prepared for baby cuteness yall.



I got to catch up with sweet Kristen and Brooke! Love these girls and their hearts.
 
 
My phone is a spaz. I was trying to catch up with a friend who lives in Oklahoma, and my phone dropped the call. Not once, not twice, but FOUR times. Yeah that was fun. My bad Stef.
 
There are days that you just need to eat cupcakes, in a park, with your best friend, who lives out of state. That is all.

We cleaned the garage!!! Yay for neat and tidy spaces :)
 
I arrived home to a guilty looking dog the other day. Turns out she had tipped the kitchen trashcan over...third time in two weeks. Oh Chloe, you drive me crazy.

And I got to babysit Little Man twice this month. Love him. The day he can say "Gig "Em" I'll be happy. 

Look who's walking all by herself! Take that, Multiple Sclerosis! It's very possible that I sing, "Go Mama Go Go GO!" when she walks.


Now that you're tired of homecoming pictures, and I've exploited children without their parents approval, and considering I told you how I about broke my neck, I think I'll sign off.  
 
Xo, Beth