Revelations shared again :)

Before you read any farther I need to kinda give the “history” behind this blog.  I wrote it after Deep Freeze 2008.  So the things that are “new” revelations…haven’t been new for over a year.
I feel like I should have expected God to use a Hawk Nelson song to get a hold of my heart at some point considering how much I love listening to them. The only problem I have with that was the timing of when the tears fell. I was sitting at my desk at work with some of the guys in the office with me. I wasn’t too happy about that cause there wasn’t a thing I could do to stop the tears, granted I didn’t try too hard but still….You know how I feel about people seeing me cry. I do not like it…at all!
Anyway there is a reason for the tears and it wasn’t just because I was thinking about the weekend, or things that were flooding my mind. It was more like the people that were flooding my mind and the reason they were all pouring in. Between the thoughts her comment started and the actual conversation I had with Christine today I had yet another revelation. Yup, I’m full of revelations lately. And you’re just the lucky people’s that get to read them.
So on to this new revelation. I remembered that when I was between the ages of 12 and 15 constantly saying that when I was 18, that was it…no more church for me, no more God, no more religion and I wasn’t ever making my kids go. Not so much because I felt forced but more because I still didn’t completely get it. And since I only could remember on my own the experiences of one church, I decided if that was what all churches were like, I was out.
Which brings me to Sept. of 2002. The first time I went to a Sunday morning service at MCC. And guess who got my attention? Did anybody guess God? Well if you did…darn you’re smarter than you look! Hahaha jk I love you all. I went to school that week with “Still I Will Worship You” stuck in my head every day and I couldn’t remember the name of the song so basically I found myself wanting to go back to hear it again and figure out what the heck the song was called. Okay okay so I still haven’t gotten to the revelation or why I ended up crying.
Ready here comes the revelation. If I had actually held true to my word, and stopped going to church or caring about God or whatever after I turned 18, there are a myriad of AMAZING people (little kids, teenagers, adults) that I wouldn’t know at all. So many in fact that I can’t even name them all without making this blog disgustingly long. Let’s just say that as each name crossed my mind the tears flowed a little faster and I’m pretty sure they started with thinking about a group of about 5-6 girls. Although I couldn’t completely swear to that fact. The last one to intensify the tears were Becca and Jordan.
Basically I was convinced that if I had walked away, I’d be strung out on alcohol in some ditch somewhere with more kids than I could ever afford to feed, clothe, etc. Ya, I know, that doesn’t sound like anything that would match how most of you know me but I was thinking in slight terms of family history. Not an exact replica but my twist of how it would have played out in my life.
With all of that said…the list of people I wouldn’t know, wouldn’t love….grows all the time.  Kinda awesome is incorrect.  Completely awesome is correct but seems so not enough to tell you how I feel about it all.

My security blanket…

What is a journal to you?
Is it a place for you to only describe the things in your life that shock you/hurt you?
Do you tell of the good things you have or do you keep those to yourself because you’ll think nobody will read it if it’s not dark and depressing?
Can there be a time when you won’t write something depressing for all the world to see? Sure! You just have to be willing to take the time to type those things out.
It’s not wrong to never tell of the happy things in life or the good things you have. But is it wrong to only share the pain? Maybe for some of you but again maybe to some of you to share the good and the happy is wrong as well. I’ll never know because I only know my intentions for my journal and that’s all it should be.
This is me, my life, my story, on my terms. I tell you what I want to, especially the things I don’t wanna have to say 12 times when I can just write it down and wait for someone to respond if they’re going to.
The good, the bad and the ugly.
The good, the great and the grand.
The crap, the dirt and the mush.
Don’t tell me what your journal is used for. It’s not my business. Tell yourselves. And if you don’t know. There’s nothing wrong with that. Maybe it’s just there for safety. And that’s cool too. Everybody needs something to give them the feeling of safety.

*written 5/31/05*

Paint my nails with love…

I love so many people in this world. And yet I’m more known for not-liking people. Ironic huh? Well that’s me for you. Always full of irony. Never a day without something good/not good happens. Sure some of the things are boring but whatever. That’s a part of life too. Not everything is fun in life.
How many times in life have you had to swallow your pride? Did you actually swallow your pride or did you stomp your foot stubbornly on the ground and refuse? Come on, let’s be honest. We’re all victims of our own device anyway. I’m a victim to my stubborn ways just as much as the rest of you are. I don’t know if you can stand up and say it with me…but it’s true!
Swallowing your pride is just as much a weakness as not swallowing that very same pride. So the choice is yours. Be weak and swallow your pride or be weak and keep your pride to yourself.
How can swallowing your pride be viewed as a weakness? Let’s not question it. I know that it can be and right now, since this is my journal, that’s all that matters. If you disagree I dare you to step up and challenge it. If not, well that’s fine too….

*written 2/19/05*

All we’ll ever need

I can sit here and say that all I need to be happy is Pepsi, Gilmore Girls, Chad Michael Murray (sooo hott), music, friends and food but I would be forgetting the most important need. The fact that I need God. I don’t just desire to have a relationship with Him…I need Him. For without God, there would be no me! Ahh…scary thought I know.
Some of you may be reading this and thinking “shut up, I don’t care about God or whatever” but you know what? That’s ok because I can write this all I want and you don’t have to read it or even like it. But you can say whatever you want to me about if you choose to. Opinion for an opinion.
I absolutely love this song and wish with all my heart that I could find the words online somewhere…but so far no luck. =( The lyrics were actually the inspiration…
Many, many songs of worship light inspiring fires within me. Sometimes I don’t share it with you though. So in a way it’s almost like I’m being a selfish jerk. Sorta like I’m hiding God in a box cause I don’t want anyone else to feel what I feel. So not true! I wish more people could experience what I experience.
Have you ever had an experience where you were just standing somewhere and were so mesmerized by the beauty of the situation that you just reveled in the beauty? And were so thankful for the beauty? Or convinced that something good was going to happen based on the beauty of what you were seeing? Well I can tell you from personal experience that this feeling is so overwhelming that it has brought tears to my eyes.
Happiness shouldn’t come from materialistic resources. Why not? Because once that thing is gone…so goes the happiness that comes with it. For example…if the only thing that makes you happy is your bf/gf and something happens and the relationship ends…guess what? So is your happiness! Ok so maybe that wasn’t an example of materialistic resource but it’s a good point either way.
All right well I want to find the lyrics to the song which has driven me to write this entry. Hopefully I can find them. If not, I will find a way to get them. I’m not giving up till I’ve shared them with you!

http://www.lyricsdownload.com/passion-sing-to-the-king-lyrics.html

*written 1/13/05*

This little girl is growing up…don’t turn away

I don’t write the way I used to.
No more fairy tales about perfect lives.
No more sappy tales of love.
That’s what happens when the passionate writer grows up and sees the many sides of life.
Lies. Deception. Heart break. Tears. Broken spirits.
The good. The bad. The ugly.
Life shall forever be there, but I shall one day perish from this earth into nothingness–not even a distant memory to those who will kiss the skies in the generations to follow after us.
Such a strong display of who I’ve become.
Did you know me then? When the world was always right. Nothing was wrong. When nobody could make me mad. I bet not. Because this is who those days have made me to be.
Love me or hate me. I am I.

*written 5/29/05*

Non-negotiables of the Church

I wrote this back in my first semester at PBU in my Nature and Purpose of the Local Church class.  If I do say so myself, it was the best paper I’ve ever written on a topic that I didn’t really have any choice in the matter of choosing.  I know, I know, some of you have seen this already but I figured, those of you who haven’t might enjoy it.  And if you have, maybe you’d like to read it again :]

There are multiple aspects and attributes that are “non-negotiable” in the local church. Some of these are doctrine, prayer, worship, leadership, honesty (in leadership and life), purity, ministry, and last but most definitely, not least, love. A church could not hold its own in this world without embracing each and every one of these to the fullest extent of their capabilities without getting burnt out or over-achieving.
Doctrine is the foundation that keeps the church standing upright. Without a doctrinally sound belief system in place, any church would fold up inside of itself and crumble to the ground in numerous pieces. Paul wrote in his letter to the Ephesians: “As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love” (NAS, Ephesians 4:14-16).
If the church allows the beliefs and thoughts of those with no knowledge of what is written in God’s Word, then the foundation that is their doctrinal beliefs that the church was built upon become increasingly weak and faulty. As a church body you must be able to stand up against those who speak out against the doctrine and hold fast to the words that are written in the Bible for all to read and belief is they so choose to do so. Paul wrote to Titus saying this on the matter of doctrine: “Holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able to both exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict” (NAS, Titus 1:9). Sound doctrine is important in the church. The more well established the doctrine in the church is, the more like it is that the people of the church will believe, follow and understand it in all aspects of their lives.
Leadership in the church is extremely important. If the leadership is lacking then the church will be a mass chaos of confusion and nobody will know whom or where they can turn to when there is a need for person-to-person interaction. The leadership of the church is similar to a spider web. Everyone is connected to each other and also connected to the entire congregation of the church. “It is by his deeds that a lad distinguishes himself if his conduct is right and pure” (NAS, Prov. 20:11). In order for the leadership to maintain itself, good communication is a must. If there is one minor detail withheld from any member of leadership, everything starts to unravel and continues until the issue is addressed and taken care of or the unraveling continues until there is nothing left to unravel, thus bringing the church to its knees.
There must also be an understanding within the leadership of the approach to how the Word of God is going to be presented to the congregation. “For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith toward God has gone forth, so we have no need to say anything” (NAS, 1 Thes. 1:8).
Honesty is not only a key part of forming a church but also an essential to the leadership roles that go along side the church. The analogy of the spider web also applies to the honesty in a church. If people are going to believe that your church is for real you have to show them you’re honest in all that you do, from leadership all the way to life outside the church walls. “Better is a poor man who walks in his integrity than he who is perverse in speech and is a fool” (NAS, Prov. 19:1). The less you have materialistically, the richer you are in spirit and honesty thus giving off a positive vibe for the leadership of the church to build itself upon.
Ministry is also a vital part of the local church. In ministering to others they will see the love of Christ in you and desire to know Him on a more personal level in their own lives. Thus taking two non-negotiable components in the church and rolling them all into one neat package.
Ministry is not done for personal gain and satisfaction. Ministry is something you have to be fully devoted to. In time, energy, spirit and resources, if the devotion to minister to others is lacking, it will show in your efforts. “But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” (NAS, Acts 6:4). There are multiple ways in which you can be involved in ministry. Children, youth, urban, prison, music, etc. Whatever your talents are that is what area of ministry you should focus on so that you may be honoring God while ministering to those who may not yet know Him. “But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, endure the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry” (NAS, 2 Tim. 4:5).
Love in the church means a great deal of things. You must love who God is, what He is doing for your church, what He has done for the church, what He will do for the church, as well as all people and all things. “Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, it is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away…But now faith, hope, love, abide these three, but the greatest of these is love” (NAS, 1 Corinth. 13:4-8, 13). Love is present throughout any situation at any given moment. It is up to the church to show that love which is to be that of a Godly love to those who have not known it and those who know it but question its credibility.
The greatest of all commandments speaks of love. If these commandments are not regarded highly, the church will surely fall into disarray. “Recognizing that He had answered them well, asked Him, “What commandment is the foremost of all?” Jesus answered, “The foremost is, ‘Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is one Lord; And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these” (NAS, Mark 12:28b-31).
Lack of purity in the church has been the thing that has destroyed many churches as well as the belief in and desire to know Jesus Christ throughout much of the United States. If adultery is viewed as acceptable in the church how can one turn around and make contradicting statements that say adultery is frowned upon and purity is an essential. It doesn’t make sense but it happens. “Speak to all the congregation of the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.’” (NAS, Lev. 19:2).
When purity is not encouraged, nor taught, in the church then something is wrong with the doctrinal understanding within the church. “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery’; but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (NAS, Matt. 5:27-28). Remain pure in spirit and in actions as a church, and the purity will shine through to all parts of the church. Making the purity an attractive quality and drawing people to want to know who God is and what believing in Him is all about.
Prayer and worship go hand in hand with each other because worship isn’t just about getting up on a Sunday morning and singing songs to God, although that is part of it. Worship is about how we live our lives in glorification to the Lord and what He has done for us, as a church family. It is also the natural, heartfelt, genuine, emotional response to the character, the works and the grace of God. “For you shall not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God” (NAS, Exodus 34:14). “Worship the Lord with reverence and rejoice with trembling” (NAS, Psalm 2:11). All good works in the name of the Lord are ways of worship. Serving in ministry is also an act of worship. “But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” (NAS, Acts 6:4).
Prayer and worship go hand in hand because prayer too can be a form of worship. And worship can be done through prayer. “These all with one mind were continually devoting themselves to prayer” (NAS, Acts 1:14a). Prayer is essentially the backbone that holds the church to its doctrinal belief. The more time spent in prayer, the more pleasing the actions of the church will be to the Lord. “When they had appointed elders for them in every church, having prayed with fasting, the commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed” (NAS, Acts 14:23).
If there is no prayer in the church then obviously the church is a church that is all about themselves and not what the Lord wants from them and for them as a church. All these things are essential to the church. But the one thing that is always there is Christ. He is always and will always be the center of everything.

Just for a laugh…

I told you I wrote a paper on my imaginary friend in 8th grade.  I found it, so as promised here it comes…

My Imaginary Friends

Did I have an imaginary friend when  I was little?  Of course!  Heck, I still have one now.  In fact, he’s sitting on my desk right now.
First, I’m going to tell you about my imaginary twin sister, Liz.  She was just like me in every way possible.  We went for walks, rode bikes, listened to music, talked, and hung out with my friend, Kim, and her imaginary twin sister Liz.  But then one day, I couldn’t find Liz.  She still hasn’t come back, oh well.  I have Jordan now.
Jordan is my imaginary friend now.  He has a cool full name.  It’s Jordan Nicolas Blais.  Jordan said to tell you what a handsome, oh make me gag, guy he is.  He has blond shoulder length hair with purple and green streaks and blue-green eyes.  Jordan is built like a combination of a hockey and baseball player and is 5ft 11 1/2in tall.
One of the things Jordan and I like to do together is swing on the swings at the park.  Right now, though, Jordan is eating his favorite  kind of sandwich.  Peanut butter, ham, marshmallow and pickle on white bread.  He never gets tired and is always awake.  This morning he was talking to his friends, Mishy Mushu and Ishy, online while I was sleeping.
Jordan likes a lot of sports; but his favorites are football, baseball and hockey.  His favorite teams are the Tennessee Titans, Arizona Cardinals, Atlanta Falcons, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Nashville Predators, Detroit Red Wings, Anaheim Mighty Ducks, Dallas Stars and New York Mets.
Some of Jordan’s favorite activities are eating, talking, listening to music, singing and cruising around town in his blue Mitsubishi Eclipse.  I know he’ll never get enough of his music.  His favorite kinds of music are hardcore and rap.  Jordan’s favorite songs are Jay-Z’s “Can I Get A…” and Kid Rock’s “Cowboy”; he walks around all day every day singing those songs.
He spends a lot of his free time writing stories, poems and songs.  His favorite subject to write about is love.  Whenever he writes a love song or poem, he always writes it for his girlfriend, Zoey.  His favorite song he wrote is called “Zoey”.

Hope you had a good laugh.

Fire, Jesus and Freedom!

Good-byes are one of those things that don’t always hurt. Sometimes you know it’s a temporary thing til the next time you see someone. Other times, it’s a permanent good-bye. Not necessarily because anyone died. But simply for the fact that people change, grow apart and life takes you in opposite directions. And maybe, that good-bye does hurt. But it doesn’t have to.
It doesn’t matter how hard you try to hold onto that friendship. If you know you’ve grown apart and the dynamics within what once was an amazing friendship are completely skewed, let it go. Don’t hold on til you get your answers. You may never get them and even if you don’t think so, that attitude of not wanting to let go til you know what you did wrong, is gonna hold you back. Even if you “bounce back” from all the time. There is going to be a time when you won’t just bounce back and you’ll be stuck.
Let it go. Seriously. Trade that friendship that is no longer there for a deeper relationship with Christ. He’s NEVER EVER gonna turn His back on you. You’ll never have to worry about Him changing and drifting away from you. Even when you mess up or do something that hurts Him, He’s not gonna walk away! He’s the BEST friend anyone could ever have.
Sure you’ll come across people in your life whose life and person radiate God’s love. And you may consider those people or that person to be your best friend but Jesus is THE BEST friend ever. Hands down.
It’s because of Jesus and that friendship that the good-bye I said tonight to an old friend, didn’t hurt. I could actually smile while I watched the flames destroy the picture. I feel no regret for letting the fire burn that picture and that friendship. It’s not coming back, there’s nothing I can do to make it happen. I shouldn’t be wasting my time holding onto it either. Seriously, anybody who said that it was only hurting me, well you were right. But wrong at the same time. Because in my hurting, God was hurt too because I focused all my energy on trying to figure out what I had done wrong in that friendship to lose it. Rather than seeking God and asking Him to take away the hurt, I let myself be swallowed by it.
Getting upset at the sight of this person in the store to the point where people were telling me I needed to grow up. Yup, they were right too. My anger wasn’t gonna affect him, he probably wouldn’t have even cared and there I was flipping out just because I had walked past him.
Like I said though, it didn’t hurt. I feel awesome. I mean, imagine, saying good-bye to the person who was your rock and your everything for 2 crucial years in your life and then *poof* that changed! You would think that would hurt and you’d fall apart right? Well, I guess not. If you’re 100 percent ready and not just doing it to say “see I can let it go” because everybody else is letting something good, you can do it and walk away smiling.
Maybe the tears will come. Maybe they won’t. No matter what though, with that step, I’m done waiting and I’m done wondering.

(Wrote this 7.11.08)

I’m not that girl anymore.

I felt like I needed to repost this blog from May of last year.  Why?  Because when I wrote it, as much as I believed it, I became that girl again.  But now.  For real.  I am not her anymore.  Or ever again.

I hate how all this stuff gets stirred up and leaves me feeling like a worthless slut who’s only purpose in life is to make guys feel good.  So what if it was only one guy.  Do you know that I don’t even know how many times I didn’t want to do “that” but was guilted into it and manipulated to do it if he was going to “return the favor”.  Yeah, cause making me feel like that kinda girl is so doing me a favor you stupid child.  I don’t think so.
Maybe I’m not a slut but it’s hard to believe that when someone I thought was a friend stops talking to me cause he has a gf.  Which of course leaves me with the impression that he must not feel like he needs me anymore.  Because anything he was getting from me, he can get from his gf now.
A lot of you don’t know this about my past.  Some of you might but I know that the majority of you don’t because it’s not something I’m proud of.  It’s not something I usually share but right now it’s in the front of my mind.
I may feel like I was or am a slut but it’s not something I can stop.  Because that would imply that I can change the past and eliminate the circumstances that bring up these feelings.  I can however not allow myself to be that girl anymore because you were right…I’m not that girl anymore.  I just couldn’t say it earlier.  I could not look you in the eye and say it because I knew you’d see in my eyes that my words were not matching up to how I was feeling on the inside.
I don’t need to look for my worth or my value in the way I act with a guy or by letting him manipulate me into believing that giving him what he wants is really what I want to do.  Which leads to me feeling like a slut whose only as valuable as the abilities or talents she shows with her mouth in the bedroom.
I know there is more to me than that girl I left in his bedroom.  At least I think there is and I thought I left her in his room.  But now I’m wondering if maybe I didn’t.  Maybe she’s still lurking somewhere inside me, dying to be set free.  She probably is because I let that crap happen.  I let him manipulate me into giving him what he wanted.  I let him treat me like I’m worth nothing, that I was nothing more than his “beneficial friend”.  Oh but there are moments when I feel like that is oh so true because of this person.
Yes I’m fabulous.
Yes I’m amazing.
Yes I’m special.
But I could still add slut to all of them!  Not much you can say will change my mind on this one either.  Good luck trying if you should dare too though.  I’m stubborn so if I don’t want to believe something about myself I’m not going to.
Before you all jump down my throat and give me the “you’re not a slut”, “you’re amazing”, “you’re ____ (insert chosen positive statement here)” speeches let me finish.
I know I’m all those things without adding slut after them.  And do you want me to tell you why?  Oh good, I’m glad to hear it.  I know I am all those things because I am a human and all humans are created in God’s image which means if I’m a slut than so is God.  I dunno about you but that doesn’t work too well for me.
However, past experiences cause me to have weak moments and feel the way the rest of this blog has dictated to you all.  You know what makes it feel all the more lousy though?  The fact that I caved in…when I wanted to say no I said yes.   All because I thought that was how I was supposed to show this “friend” how much I cared about him.  Not so much.
Just so you know, if some of you are thinking of a certain male who is a couple years older than me…stop.  You’re wrong.  But that’s all I’m saying.  I will not reveal who I’m talking about because somehow I can have enough integrity not to drag his name through the junk that this leaves behind.
I’m not a slut.  I’m not “that” girl anymore.  I am better than that.  And the sooner I can fully wrap my head around it and believe it all the time I’ll be golden.  Until then I’m still gonna have my weak moments where shit stirs up these feelings again and there isn’t anything I, or any of you, can do to change that.

I’m a better person than I used to be.  Far more consciously aware of who I was made to be in Christ than ever before.  I learned from my mistakes.  God saved me from the mess I made because of them.  And I really, truly, am not that girl anymore!

Don’t be afraid to hold someone’s hand.

In thinking about Carson’s message for Ignite and the video blog for this week and his speaking on addiction, I have some old words that I wanted to share again.  Some of you may have seen this before and for others it’s the first time you’re reading these words.  But I just needed to get them out there again because it is so key in my line of thinking that people know about this particular addiction and stop hiding from it like it’s not there.  Cause believe me, it’s definitely there.  It’s so there, it could be staring you in the face.

Talking about an addiction to cutting or the broken addiction is like screaming “FIRE!” in the movie theaters…you just don’t do it.  But that’s not how it should be.  If people aren’t ridiculed for speaking openly about their addictions, past or present, to drugs, alcohol, etc., why are people so quick to freak out when the subject of cutting is brought up?  It doesn’t make sense.
It’s taken me a long time to not sound timid when I’ve admitted to cutting myself.  And there are some people that I just can’t envision myself telling but that’s not because I’m afraid they’re gonna freak out.  It’s just not something that gets talked about very often.  Because it hurts.  Maybe not because it causes me to relive some of the things that happened in my life that cutting was a result of but because up until I started doing it, I never thought I would.  Boy was I wrong…I went from thinking I’d never start cutting to convincing myself I’d never be strong enough to stop.
Some of you might be thinking that cutters are just attention whores, excuse the language.  That might be part of it for some, but not for all.  Mostly, cutting is what happens when you feel like you have no other voice to express yourself with.  Or that any other voice you might have isn’t doing what you want.  I’m not saying everybody who cuts flaunts their wounds.  Again, maybe some do but I’ve never met anyone who didn’t hide the fact that they were cutting underneath their clothes or maybe even a plastic smile.
Okay so maybe some of you are wondering why I’m writing so much on this subject lately.  And honestly, I don’t know that I understand it fully other than knowing that someone’s gotta say something.  Make people see that it’s okay to say you’ve struggled with cutting or at the very least, you considered it a time or two in the past.
The scars will all go away some day but that doesn’t mean the painful experiences you went through that caused you to create the cuts that have scarred will fade.  As you get older and mature more, you’ll understand that there are other ways of dealing with pain.  And no matter what option you choose, you never have to face it alone.
Let me just say that stereotyping “emo” kids as cutters or the other way around is crap.  Anybody you know in life could be struggling with this.  From the captain of the football team to the brown noser and anyone in between those two types of people you meet.  You wanna know what’s scarier…it could be your best friend!
I guess what I’m getting at is this.  Let’s stop pretending like cutting isn’t a real problem and do something to stop it.  Don’t turn a blind eye to it or act like you’re gonna be physically ill at the sight of scars on someone’s arm or legs.  Lead them in the direction of hope that things will get better.  Even if it means holding their hand the whole way through the process.  Don’t leave them to fight the battle on their own.  It doesn’t work…