This was written because as many of you know I have been struggling this semester wondering if I am doing the right thing. I have slowly come to realize that while I may not attend the college of my chioce, in many ways I my prayers are being answered and somewhere along the way I will find a career, though I don't yet know what that is, I will have learned and expirienced much in getting there.

A Quiet Prayer
I slowly sank to my knees on a warm summer day
soflty closed my eyes, opened my heart and began to pray
In voice soft and quiet, yet sure, I spoke to an almighty man
Spelling out my carefully plotted, and well thought out plan
I asked Him to bless me to learn, to grow, and appreciate
Things I thought, that in time I would find good and appropriate
I plead with Him to help me find a true happiness within me
The type I knew, that so many around failed to ever see
I requested challenges to strengthen and face down
Thinking in my narrow mind that I would earn a noble crown
I knew at the time without ever questioning or doubting myself
That I could take on the world conquering quickly like a magic elf
And bless me He did in ways I didn’t usually see or recognize
At times the hidden blessings were simply the root of my despise
Loads of information and instructors that seemed impossible
Made me think my learning experience was highly unprobable
Pushing myself past a limit I felt I had previously met
I thought growth was coming, and a fast pattern I set
And when it got hard and I wondered where He might be
and why I couldn’t find the success I was certain was key
I slowly sank to my knees on a cold wintery day
Softly closed my eyes, opened my heart, and began to pray
I solemnly asked what had happened to my carefully crafted plan
I why did I feel that perhaps, now I had taken all a girl can
His answer came soft, like a calming whisper to the storm in my heart
I simply needed to open my eyes to see I was off to an excellent start
For the information was not all that He allowed me to learn
I found knowledge waiting at many an unsuspecting turn
And growth I soon discovered comes when a limit is surpassed
Something is gained, remembered, and that something will last
Things are only truly appreciated when they are strived for and lost
For it is after the, work, sweat, and tears, that we realize the cost
And in time the thing we want most if faithful and true we will gain
Looking back with a real appreciation for the struggle and pain
Happiness is found in the people and simple things that surround
These are the things that help keep me standing on solid ground
And my answers I got not in what I planned to become in my plan
But something much greater that this quiet all knowing man
Had carefully plotted and planned for a girl who is slowly becoming all that she can!

A man on a tractor in field full of dirt
Plugging away with sweat on his shirt
A good and honest life he strives to live
And the fruits of his labor he’ll unselfishly give

A world rushing around him looks down
And admires his work with a bit of a frown
Not knowing the extent of the mark he will leave
By standing for something in which to believe

The lines on his hands, considered unsightly
Are the marks of kind service, not taken lightly
The leathery wrinkles of his face, a map of time
Of happiness and sorrow experienced on the climb

The man never asks for anything much
Just the basics of hard work, love and such
Of the honor he deserves, he cares not
In the silent war for good he has unselfishly fought

He changes the world through hard work in the field
And through this creates an ever strong shield
For those he holds most treasured and dear
Will always have a safe place to be near

The man on a tractor in a field full of dirt
Plugging away with sweat on his shirt
Has touched the world in ways we cannot know
But in time the great things he has done will surely show

Clay In An Artist's Hands

Like clay in an artist’s hands
I am shaped by small unnoticeable strokes,
Large devastating blows, each simply creating.
Spinning through life, an ever changing shape

Like clay in an artist’s hands
I am in the beginning a lifeless lump
Turned, smoothed and slowly shaped
Into something beautiful and unique

Like clay in an artist’s hands
I am molded by the world around me
Layer by layer like the jagged rocks
Carved by God’s own hands

Like clay in an artist’s hands
Shaped by a power greater than me
For a purpose I cannot comprehend
By an artist’s vision I haven’t yet seen

Like clay in an artist’s hands
I must become soft and pliable
Before I can stand strong and unmoving
A creation of time worth smiling upon

A Small Girl

A small girl stood at the edge of heaven’s yard
And gazing, bright eyed, down on His creations
She turned to her father with few reservations
And asked with curiosity, “Will it be hard?”

He smiled down for this was far from the end.
My daughter you are strong, honest, and true
To you I have given, good parents who love you
And siblings who you’ll soon count as friends.

Along the narrow winding road you will learn
Who you are and where you came from
Great things from your talents will come
Seemingly impossible accomplishments you’ll earn

My dear and cherished daughter, I will miss you
You will find deeper sorrow than you have ever known
And even greater joy in the good seeds you have sown
In all of these times look to the heavens and remember me too.

The girl stood quietly, for words she did lack
And in the calming silence for a moment she basked
Then in the small voice of an angel she asked,
“What if I get lost, and I can’t make it back?”

Oh my young daughter, to me you are dear
Trust in me and all that you have learned and know
Listen to your heart and the way I will show
But mostly remember that I will ALWAYS be near

Though you will stumble and make a wrong turn
At times you’ll feel lost and stranded alone
Like there is no one else and you’re on your own
But my daughter I have faith in your safe return

Go my daughter, live your best and nothing less
Live the kind of life that will make you proud
With no regrets, rise above the crowd
And when you return my precious princess…

Return with a pure and honest soul that is clean
Return with the confidence to hold your head high
Return with enough simple faith to be able to fly
But most important my daughter, return to me a queen.

The Hardest Thing

The hardest thing in life to be
Is to simply be myself.
To be the girl that laughs out loud
At the funny things surrounding every day.
To be the girl that He knows I can be
Set to take the whole world by storm.

The hardest thing in life to see
Is to simply see myself.
To see the girl whose smile
Brightens the lives of those who love her
To see the girl He sees, and a beauty
That can only come from deep within.

The hardest thing in life to hear
Is to simply hear myself
To hear the girl who in a quiet voice
Can tell you she loves you, and mean it.
To hear the girl He hears so loud and clear
When she is pouring out her heart in prayer.

The hardest thing in life to feel
Is to simply feel myself.
To feel the girl who follows her heart
Around the bends she cannot see.
To feel the girl He wants her to feel
And know she is loved by at least two people.

The hardest thing in life to know
Is to simply know myself.
To know the girl who is smart, friendly,
And everything she every wants to be.
To know the girl He loves when it seems
To her that maybe no one else does.