With things going around our world today like abortion and genetics to cloud our minds, sometimes we need to look into our heart...and find out what we truly believe.
This page is a statement of my beliefs. These beliefs are in no particular order. They aren't rated. I do not necessarily believe more strongly in the first belief than the last, nor do I necessarily believe more strongly in the last than the first. They are posted as they came to my mind.
I am not posting these beliefs of mine up here in order to convince you or sway you to believe how I do. I am not posting these beliefs of mine to insult any of those who believe in the opposite of how I do. I am posting these beliefs so you can get a closer look at who I am, what really makes me. I am posting them so that, maybe, others that believe with me will know that they are not alone.
In any case, the following are those things I believe in with my whole heart. However, I'm only one teen-ager in this world, and my voice isn't louder than any others, but still...this is what I believe. This is who I am. And remember...you are not alone.
Please read through my following beliefs. At the end of my beliefs is a guestbook. Please sign it, telling me about one of YOUR beliefs. Or more of them, if you'd like. I'm very interested in hearing about your beliefs, and I'd really appreciate if you could tell me about them! Thank you!!
First here, we have online freedom of speech. Laws like the Communications Decency Act are trying to monitor what goes online. This is completely wrong and inconstitutional. In fact, I wrote an essay on this topic and turned it in for a grade. I got a 98%. If you would like a copy of that essay, I will provide anyone who requests one. To request, just mail me.
Here is the pink and blue ribbon showing support for the ban of partial birth abortions. The term partial birth abortion is a euphemism for infanticide, or plain-out infant murder. The beginning of my sophomore year, I participated in an abortion protest with my school. I had a very good time, and fully understood what it meant to believe in something with all your heart. This was the first time I professed one of my beliefs. And look at me now. :-)
The Equality Club is dedicated to encouraging people to show their support for the equal rights of all humans as well as to encourage the public to educate themselves about different sexualities, genders, religions, races, cultures, etc. From the graphic, I'm sure you can tell this project focuses especially on the equality of all sexualities. This is an especially important topic of controversy in today's world, and well over one thousand people (including me) have joined the Equality Club. And it is growing day by day.
I love the name of this ribbon. This ribbon is trying to convey niceness and just basic courtesy and politeness to everyone. It's basic idea can be summed up in one saying: "be excellent to each other :-)". That's taken directly from the page this ribbon links to, by the way. This ribbon is just to remind us to try to be nice to one another, and maybe the favor will be repaid some day.
This ribbon is in honor of the crusade to end school violence. On its homepage, there isn't any actual place it says 'take this ribbon and place it up'. But, I believe in this cause, so I am placing it on my page anyway. Being a student, I know the fear that everyone has felt over the recent school shottings. No, none of them were even close to home, but still, the fear exists. This fear must be put to an end, and all school violence must be stopped, also. This ribbon's blue color stands for both the sorrow felt for school shooting victims and the "blue sky promise" of a better tomorrow as we end school violence.
Again, the site this ribbon belongs to didn't have a place where it said you could take the ribbon and place it on your page..at least I couldn't find it...but I don't think they'd mind if I used the image. This is the Make-A-Wish Foundation. I'm sure everyone has heard what it is. It takes one wish from any terminally ill child or any child with a life-threatening illness and grants them. "I want to be a policeman, I want my book published, I want to go to Disneyland." These are just some of the over 58,000 wishes granted by this wonderful organization. And I just thought I'd place this ribbon up here on my site, and say this to those who are responsible for this organization and volunteer to help: I commend you; you are the greatest. You've given more joy to those children who may not be able to experience it, and for that, you are held in high respect in my eyes.
This ribbon is to remember the crime committed against Matthew Shepard. He was murdered for being gay. The point of this is to never forget this crime, because forgetting would mean that we've forgiven this attack on all humanity. Again, this is against hate of all types and for the equality of all humans. Again, this is one of my strongest and most fervent beliefs, and that is why many of the ribbons seen on this site are for this cause.
I first heard of this program while reading my book, Chicken Soup For The Teenage Soul. Yes, the story behind the Yellow Ribbon Suicide Prevention Program is in there. A family started it after their son shocked everyone by committing suicide. This program strives to let kids know what to do if they feel suicidal so they can be helped and live. This is a great cause, and has reached many children and saved lives.
Again, this ribbon is used in order to show equality of all people, especially those of race and sexuality. This is to show that hate and discrimination is wrong, against ANY human.....and it focuses on looking at people for who they are, not what they look like or who they love.
This ribbon is used in order to go for religious freedom, especially that of the Pagan, Wiccan, and Earth religions. I myself am Catholic (kinda), but definitely Christian. But, I believe in tolerance of all religions, because ALL religions are true and right to those who believe in them.
This ribbon shows my feelings about teen smoking. In general, I think smoking is wrong. Even for adults, but especially teens. The detriments and dangers of smoking have been made so obvious to everyone, yet people will not quit. They say "I can't, I'm addicted." I know people that can quit..you can do it...if you just...believe.
I don't think I really need to explain this ribbon. It stands for pro life. Life over death, over murder, over killing. This shows my support against abortion. Babies are children, not choices.
This ribbon's campaign's goal is to raise "awareness about Gay-Teen Suicide and" remember "those who we've lost". It is "dedicated to the memory of the many who died too young, and to their loved ones." Those quotes are directly from the website. That pretty much summed up this ribbon, and I doubt it needs any more explanation. I just feel that this is the ultimate demonstration of what hurt, prejudice, and hate can do--destroy the future of our world.
Isn't this ribbon small? Anyway, the red ribbon symbolizes the need for a cure for AIDS/HIV, the quest to educate the public about AIDS/HIV, all the people that have died of this terrible disease, and any other AIDS/HIV related causes. It is probably one of the most well-known ribbons around, and I am proud to have it on my site, showing my loyalty to a cause as great as this one.
Consider me a hopeless Romantic. I believe in true love, love at first sight, and the soulmate principle. Let me define those. True love: the idea that it is possible to love one person with your whole heart, your whole mind, your whole soul, and your whole self. And I believe that, if what you feel is really true love, it will never die. NEVER. Forever, constant. Always there. Love at first sight: I believe that, yes, the moment you set your eyes on someone you can fall instantly into love. Maybe not the true love I mentioned a second ago, but..something more than just thinking they're cute. I also believe that, even if you've never talked to someone, you can feel something for them. Maybe you think that if you ever would start talking, you just know that you two would become best friends, or maybe even more. And at last, the aspect of love that probably worried you the most: soulmates. By saying soulmates, I do not believe that two souls are meant for each other forever and are reincarnated as humans who will end up together. Nuh uh. I don't believe in reincarnation. I believe that there are two people who are meant for each other. They may live next door, they may live across the country, or they may live across the globe. Distance doesn't matter when concerned with love. Love stretches distances and can span the globe if it must. I believe that these two people, these two soulmates, will not necessarily have to be together. They may never meet. They may never talk to each other. They may not even know the other exists. I just believe in the existence of them, I never said I believe that they must meet. And I believe that you will know your soulmate immediately. I'm not saying that I expect that when you lay eyes on your soulmate a little voice to ring inside your head saying "Soulmate, 12 o'clock", but I believe that you will feel something for that person. I believe that you will want to be with that person so bad that you're willing to give anything just to touch them, feel them, kiss them, hug them. That you'd give anything to just be able to be in their arms for a second..just a second...you'd give everything you have. I believe that your soul mate, once you've found them, will change your life forever. They give you strength and courage to do things you never thought possible before. They give you hope enough to carry on through the day, and look forward to tomorrow. They make your soul sing, and your heart leap at the thought of them. They make you believe in things again. They make you want to live. They are your everything. They are the light at the end of your tunnel. They fill you with such a warm feeling you just know you will never be cold again. And why do I believe in all this? Because it's happened to me. Yes, I've found my soulmate. We've never met, and I don't know if we will. I hope with all my heart that we do, and I plan to do everything in my power to do so. I love you, Valentine. You know who you are.
As you found out in my prior topic, I believe in soulmates. You also discovered there that I do not believe in reincarnation. Once you die, some part of you--your soul, if you will--goes to Heaven. Heaven is not necessarily 'up' or 'down'. Heaven is not necessarily in the clouds. Angels with wings do not necessarily float in Heaven, serenading all the souls around them with harps and beautifully melodic voices. Somewhere I once heard someone say that in Heaven, you meet all the souls of those people that you would have gotten along with, past, present, future and all the souls of the people you know in real life and consider friends, family, acquaintances, etc. For example, after I die, if I would have been best friends with Michelangelo, I would meet his soul in Heaven. I would also meet all my friends. And my soulmates. So, I guess in a way, you DO meet your soulmate..just not necessarily on this Earth. I believe that Heaven also isn't necessarily a place, but a state of being. Eternal bliss, I think. I do not believe in any way, shape, or form that I will one day return as another human being. Or as anything else, for that matter. I do not believe that I will one day return as a hampster, a flea, a rainbow trout, a cherry tree, or any other form of thing. Once I die, I will go to Heaven.
I say I'm Catholic, but sometimes I think I'm more Protestant. I believe in justification by faith: I believe that Christ was the Messiah, that He died for us, and His blood saved us. Therefore, I believe I will be saved and enter Heaven. I do not believe that I must lead a perfectly holy life and never sin. I do not believe that I must go to Church every Sunday, receive the Eucharist every day of the week, and donate every ounce of my material goods to charities. I do NOT believe that, because I haven't gone to Church every Sunday of my existence, I will be forever damned to Eternal Punishment. I do not believe that, because someone does not lead a perfectly pure life and never sins, once they die an angel will appear to them and say "Go to Hell. Directly to Hell. Do not pass Go, Do not collect $200.". Nor do I believe that the person who HAS gone to Church every day of their existence, the person that has NOT sinned (and if they have, repented fervently for days) will go directly to Heaven. WHOEVER truly believes in Jesus will be saved.
"Love the sinner, hate the sin." That's one of my friend's favorite lines. But..what if the sinner doesn't think he's committing a sin? He knows people say it's a sin, but, he just doesn't believe it's a sin. He may have experienced different things, felt different ways, been brought up different ways...but he just cannot accept something as being a sin. There are a few things that I personally cannot see as being a sin, no matter how hard I've tried. I cannot accept them as a sin, and I therefore cannot repent for something that wasn't wrong. I'm sure many people disagree with me on this topic, but, as I've said this entire time...believe in what you feel is true. This is what I believe in.
I believe that everyone lies. The Pope has lied, Mother Teresa has lied, Clinton has lied (no comment), I have lied, you have lied. We all have. However, I believe that we all should strive to tell the truth. Lie only when you must. Lie only when the truth endangers you. Everybody should try to tell the truth. I believe that if one tells the truth, one will be told the truth back in turn. When one's mouth and thoughts are full of lies, one's world is full of them too. I believe that, if you lie enough, you can start leading YOURSELF to believe your lies. I believe that, yes, little white lies can turn into big huge hoochey-mama (don't ask where that word came from...I just had an inspiration to put it there) lies and ruin everything. I believe that honesty truly IS the best policy.
I believe in aliens. I'm not speaking necessarily of the kind featured in Independence Day which own unbelievably large, laser-equipped ships with the easily-achievable goal of world domination and the genocide of the entire human race, but, yes, I do believe that somewhere out in this great big universe, there's other intelligent life. I mean..come on? The universe goes on FOREVER. There is no end. There has to be SOMETHING else out there. Why would there be just us? Just us. Ghosts? Spirits? Hauntings? No. I don't believe in them. I don't believe that there are spirits of the long-dead roaming the Earth, looking for internal peace before floating off into Heaven and/or Hell. I do not believe that houses, objects, or people can be haunted, taken over by another force and controlled. Ouija? Psychic Circle? Again, no. If I did believe in this, it would kinda go against my whole "No Spirits" belief, since the two board games' oracles are supposedly controlled by 'spirits'. Psychics? Fortune tellers? Not necessarily. I believe you can have intuition. But I do not believe that you can call a woman (or a man, don't wanna be sexist) on the phone, tell her you're a Taurus (which I just happen to be), and she'll be able to lay out your life for you. I do believe that you can have feelings, intuitions, ideas about things ahead of time. My friend, Kelly, has these, and so do I, sometimes. Also, I believe that you can just know something. For sure. Like, before it happens, you just know it. Or you say something or hope for something, and you just KNOW it's going to be or not to be, just...because you do. You have this...gut feeling that you can't be wrong. And you aren't.
"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams." Eleanor Roosevelt said that. Wise woman, she was. I believe that, without these three things--hopes, dreams, and wishes--we have nothing. Life would be boring. For the child who doesn't dream, who doesn't hope, who doesn't wish...what do they have to live for? Nothing. Nothing. Without these three, life is nothing. We must hope. We must dream. We must wish. For in these things, we find the strength to carry on and the strength to last another day. And yes, I do believe, if one hopes hard enoug, dreams hard enough, wishes hard enough, anything can happen.
I believe that a person only has so many TRUE friends...friends that they can tell anything to and know that they won't be judged. And when you find a friend like this, I believe that you will always stay in touch. You may suffer from fights and bouts of non-communication, but I believe that you will ALWAYS somehow find your way home to your true friends. And I believe that real friends are those that will fight with you, but forgive you after awhile and forget the fight. I believe that you share a special bond with your true friends that can never be ended, and you and your friend will share that bond forever. I believe that love truly exists between friends.
I believe that everyone has their own set of beliefs. I believe that no belief is wrong to the person who holds the belief to be true. If you believe in something with your whole heart, your whole soul, your whole mind, your whole self...then...that belief is correct, and so are you. I believe that EVERYONE must form their own beliefs, based on what they FEEL not what other people tell them. And above all.....believe in yourself.
And with that, I end my discourse on my beliefs and what I feel is right. If I have offended anyone, I am truly sorry.
Finally, I leave you with this option: I want to hear what YOU believe in. Below is a guestbook. Sign it with your belief on anything you choose. Any topic you want. But please, make it serious. I can delete any entry I think is inappropriate, so don't joke around. Talk about any of your beliefs. Or all of them, if you like. I don't mind. I'd love to hear what you have to say. Only the link DIRECTLY BELOW will link to the guestbook about Beliefs....every other guestbook link on ANY of my pages will link to a general guestbook about my site! So, please, sign in your beliefs.
And in closing, I leave you with some words from a song that I've come to believe in.
I believe above the storm the smallest prayer will still be heard.
I believe that someone in that great somewhere hears every word.
--from "I Believe" sung by LeAnn Rimes
NOTE: The picture above with the brain and the heart is not mind. I scanned it from a picture on a poster for Marquette University. I make no claims to it. It is theirs, not mine.
Normally, my general site guestbook goes here. But, because of the Beliefs guestbook above, I don't want to confuse anyone else. If you'd like to sign my guestbook about my SITE in general, please go to another page and use the guestbook on it! THANKS!
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