Describe Your Most Memorable Experience this Semester

My math teacher Sonjay was pretty cool. He made teaching fun because he has a sense of humor. He takes his job seriously and that is respectable. He travels all over the world and has a good perspective on life. He made the material to be learned easy to understand. I'm glad I got the oppertunity to meet him.

How would you like to be remembered?

I would like to be remembered as a good mother someone who raised up good children, helped people in need, was a good friend, there when needed, listened without judging, main priority was church, and did a lot in her community.

I would like to travel the world and help people in need. To be selfless not worry about money and possessions.

"Superstitions"

One superstition I used to believe was that if you whistled at night it would bring evil spirits, so I would never whistle at night for a long time. Another one is if you see a white owl that means someone was dead or going to die. The first superstition I heard from my mom, and she heard it from her mom which probably was told to her by an older brother or someone trying to scare her, I don't know. The second superstition was supposed to be what some natives believe, and I believed it too for a while because the night my cousin died my brother said he had seen a white owl that night. I know now that those were exactly what they were "SUPERSTITIONS'.

Dream Vacation

I would love to visit the Holy Lands. I would like to see the places where Jesus walked. To see the places would help me put a picture to the stories I know are true. Maybe not now but when my kids are grown, so they can share the experience with me.

There are a lot of interesting and beautiful places in the world it would be hard to choose just one, so I hope to travel some before I get old.

"The War Within"

I started drinking when I was about thirteen. I would drink and smoke weed and cigarettes when ever I could. I was placed on probation for stealing and been in and out of Juvenile Hall all the way up till the age of eighteen.

I remember looking around at all my family drinking and partying thinking, there is no way out, this is all my life is ever going to be. It wasn't until I was twenty-one when I finally got clean. I wanted to do good and be sober but their was always that little reservation in the back of my head saying "One day I'll use again."

The realization hit me one day when I was walking home from an A.A. meeting, that I was never going to drink or use drugs again;This time it was real . I remember feeling sad like my heart was broken;Like I was loosing a good thing. I walked home slow that day kinda depressed. When I think about ending that relationship I can't believe that I was actually sad about saying goodbye to something that only brought me trouble.

SUMMER PLANS

This summer I plan to take the next english class Lead 219. I hope I will be able to pass that course because I have a lot of english I have to learn before I can start my pre-requisites for nursing. After summer school I will sleep in and enjoy the rest of summer with my kids. My son wants to play soccer;therefore, I will have to put aside some money for that. I don't know what we will be doing for the fourth of July, but I'm sure it will be spent with family and having fun.
Each year for about five years now my kids' grandma puts on an event in Oroville that lasts two days. The first day is the giveaway she buys clothes, shoes, school supplies, and food. The block is blocked off in front of her house for people to come and get what they need. A stage is rented for all the christian singers and preachers to come and bring the word to whoever is there. While the giveaway is going on, she also has a Bar-B-Q. This year I think I will actually get to set and listen to the word since by daughter is old enough to go and play with her cousins.
The second day is the "Praise in the Park" at "Martin Luther King Park" in South Side Oroville; similarly, there is more preaching and singing. While the Word is getting preached, and the music is playing under the anointing of God, the kids are busy bouncing in the bounce house; playing in the park; or getting there face painted. It is pretty awesome to witness and be apart of something that has true purpose and is also fun.

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Colossians 3:16,17

A DIFFICULT DECISION

It had been a while since I had gone out to party. I was eighteen, and I just had my son. The electricity was out at my house, so my mom took my baby over to her boy friends house to stay with her for the night. My cousins were all going to a friends house to drink; undoubtedly, I went with them, for I didn't want to stay home alone. I thought I could drink like I used to ; however, I blanked out and during this time I ended up with a D.U.I, Evading, and Carjacking. After a week in jail, my grandmother bailed me out. A year later after court dates and being on the run a warrant was issued for my arrest, and the bail bonds-men were looking for me. I was staying with my cousin at the time because I had no income, and my mom had lost her job, so we no longer had a house. I remember my cousin telling me that my grandma was going to get into trouble if I didn't turn myself in; therefore, I was faced with the difficult decision of possibly going to prison and leaving my son.
I see now through this difficult time in my life God was beginning a change in me. Throughout my life I would never turn myself in but for some reason I had an unexplainable peace; as a result, that day I kissed my son goodbye and went to the jail to do my time. Although I was incarcerated for a time, I am thankful that through the trials and hardships God has used them to bring me closer to him, and that I would be saved.

Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character, and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. Romans 5:3-5

FEAR

When I was little, I would play without hardly a care in the world, oblivious to the fact of life which is death. I remember feeling safe until I fell out of a tree; strong until I got hurt; and immortal until I saw my grandpa die. Everyday I would play outside with all my cousins, and I would watch as different family members would come and visit the back room where my grandpa lay dying from cancer. To see my grandpa in pain was sad, but to see him dead was confusing. At that moment fear overtook me, and there where questions that needed answers. I began to question my mother with what, why, and where is he now; undoubtedly, the answer was heaven. From that day on life wasn't the same; in fact, it was hopeless, scary and unknowing. Not to say that there wasn't good times, there were, but not as good.

A couple of years later my dad's mother died, and I still remember how sad and depressed he was, so when I learned at Sunday school that my grandma wasn't really dead she was just resting until Jesus came I was anxious to tell my dad the good news. I believed and was excited about what the Sunday school teacher had taught me, but my dad on the other hand was not.

During times when life wasn't busy and there weren't any distractions- usually when I was in Juvenile Hall- I would sit and think about life and its meaning, wondering if there was a purpose for it. Reading the Bible would give me little glimpses of hope, joy, and peace like little rays of light shining in the darkness but never the full understanding; indeed, my youthful lusts still desired what the world had to offer. It wasn't until I had cried many more tears, felt the pain of hopelessness, and was familiar with loneliness, that I was finally ready to accept Jesus as my savior whole-heartily. I was forgiven of my sins; moreover, I felt brand new. At that moment I wasn't afraid to die, deep within me I knew everything was going to be alright.

19 "For I know that through your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance."
21 "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." Philippians 1:19,21

"PROCESS"

"I'm not good enough," "Everything I do fails," and "Why bother" are all types of "self-defeatist thinking." Joseph T. Martorano, and John P. Kildahl authors of a book called "Beyond Negative Thinking" knew that the negative messages we sent ourselves had a powerful effect on our lives and in more ways than not directed our paths. They stated that, "Such inner speech shapes your life more than any other single force." I like how they called this negative thinking the " silent broadcast" tearing people down rather than building them up.

Joseph and John believed that a person could overcome this negative thinking by tuning into ones thoughts, becoming aware of self criticism, isolating destructive words and phrases, stopping the thought simply by telling yourself "No" or "Stop", accentuating the positive, and finally reorienting yourself changing the direction of your thoughts and thinking of what is lovely and good.