Simple Joys are the Best Kind

I've been drinking a lot of tea lately.
I drink a minimum of two cups daily- a cup of green in the morning to wake me up, and a cup of chamomile at night to shut me down. I enjoy both thoroughly, and it's gotten to the point where I wonder if my mouth will ever feel as though it is not slightly burned. This is far from a complaint, as I rather enjoy the reminder that I have this tiny aspect of my life- tea- that daily brings me an immense and unexplainable amount of happiness.
The joy in a cup of tea may seem to many to be a very small thing indeed. However, a mug of my favorite often has the ability to start my day off perfectly. It not only awakens, but soothes. My unusually high stress level for a girl of 15 goes down as I sip. The sense of calm and dignity in this one thing enlivens, bringing me great joy with less that a liter of hot tea.
(Yes, I am drinking tea while writing this.)
My odd love for a beverage, however, is not the point.
Not to quote One Direction, but it's the little things. It pays off sometimes to be detail-oriented. It allows end to get joy out of things others don't necessarily see.
I tried to take a picture of steam rising of of a mug the other day, because it was simply so lovely. Needless to say, my steam-picture failed miserably. Photos can't always capture everything. Had I not stopped to gaze at the steam, I wouldn't be able to envision it at I write, giving me the small joy I try to acheive.
There have been big joys lately, as well. (Though these are merely small joys mashed together.) The connections and friends I've made this week have been unforgettable. Theatre has made me inherently brave. Brave enough to ask a charismatic upperclassman whether she hated me (she didn't), and brave enough to ask a silent senior whether he was talkative (he wasn't). This bravery has given me friends in both of the aforementioned.
I haven't only made friends with seniors, either! The freshman friends I've made are glorious human beings, filled with talent and potential. I just want to hug them, they make me so happy. Reaching out to these people reminds me why I love people in the first place.
The friends I've had forever continue to amaze me. Oftentimes, at the begininning of the year, I don't feel the love. Fortunately, the love lately has been n full force. I feel it strongly.
Then, theatre in itself is just so good for the soul. I truly cannot rave enough about it.
All these tiny aspects- people, an activity, tea- have this effect on me. Tonight, they and the energy that accompanies them, have put me on top of the world.
Notice the little things. They add up, I assure you.

Why I Love Theatre

I never forget my love for theatre, but I always forget the level on which I love it until I get there. My effervescent adoration for the activity feels rekindled in full force this lovely Saturday morning.
The creativity that occurs in that auditorium is absolutely beyond gorgeous. I love trying, and seeing my friends try, something completely new on stage. Even if the effect is less than perfect, it's so refreshing to be able to be a new character, get involved in someone else. Every character has so much depth of their own. It lets me forget about what's troubling me, and focus on what's troubling my character.
Plus, it's unimaginably fun to see so much talent in one room. Skill is abundant in the theatre, and you don't have to look far to find someone you love. Everyone is vulnerable there. All of us stand up on stage and put ourselves out there. That itself is lovely. The fact that we can be so real with each other.

So ourselves that we can slip into the person of someone else. 

The honest light of the theatre is a light hard to find. The people are of a special caliber, a rare breed. The talents of cast-mates feed each other. Inspire. We move each other to tears, and make each other laugh so hard our stomachs hurt. We are a beautiful, intricate people who know that an actor playing an evil character is probably not inherently evil in himself, and that two characters in love can be the most platonic of friends.
All of these are secrets of the backstage. The audience never sees these. They see only the beautiful masterpiece of a show, and that's what is fun for them.
But what I love most about theatre is seeing the beautiful masterpieces that are people - the most glorious, inspiring beings of humankind. These are the people I'm lucky enough to call "friends," the ones that remind me why I so much adore what is humanity today. Their dedication, their talent, their honest, raw love for one another is the reason I joined theatre, and the reason I never want it to end.

Pursuing the Light

This morning, you can feel autumn in the air. It's a sunny 59 degrees, but it's beginning to scream for hoodies and falling leaves. This morning, in the spirit of autumn, I celebrated with a mug of cinnamon hot cocoa. Autumn is such a beautiful thing to celebrate.
Yesterday, I went on yet another bike ride through downtown Flint. I do this often. We visited the concrete playground, and raced through sidewalks adjoined to the cobblestone streets.
It doesn't always feel safe in Flint. I'm definitely not afraid of my beloved city, but being the human that I am, it's not hard to become mildly nervous.
I do something nearly unheard of when people make me nervous.
I say "hi" to the aforementioned people. The guy with so much swag his pants are to his knees?
"Hello!"
The lady who looks like she is getting ready to go kill someone, or maybe cry?
"Good morning!"
Let's be logical. EVEN IF we assume that people in Flint are as bloodthirsty as they're rumored to be, then the one thing that would keep a person safe is this: be kind to them.
If they're looking for someone to kill, the last person they're going to choose is the person that smiled at them and wished them a good day.
People love kind people.
Maybe you don't feel safe in this lovely city. Find the people that make you afraid and say hello. Just smile. Be the light you want to see in the people around you. Perhaps you'll find people are not nearly as scary as you thought.

A Touch of Unexpected Culture

Who would think that of all things, a crepe shop would be thriving in downtown Flint? Logically, it makes little to no sense.
Flint people are not expected to be cultured individuals. If we're cultured in anything, it's going to be shooting people and doing drugs.
Somehow, business is booming in a little bicycle-themed crepe shop on Saginaw Street. I can tell you first hand that the crepes are to die for. They'll put just about whatever you want on them. The staff is incredibly kind, and their cash register doubles as an iPad.
Go check them out. Everything about the place screams "CHARMING!"
The citizens of Flint love crepes, which is beyond unexpected.
In a way, it's also quite beautiful.
You can see pictures from my outing to the crepe shop and my daily life on my instagram: therealisi

Wonderland Tuesday

Yesterday, I went on an adventure. My brother, two friends, and I pedaled our way through downtown Flint on bikes to a location only the youngest of us knew the way to. I didn't really know what to expect. Was it a trail? Or perhaps a little playground? What we found was this: 
It was like a a concrete wonderland. We ran around, exploring this unseen, hidden place for what must have been close to an hour. I'm certain, if asked, I could never find it again. The four of us climbed, jumped, and ran across this weird, unknown world in various states of awe. 

Adventure truly is the best word for it. It's hard to believe that there's really any corner of downtown Flint that I haven't seen, but this opened my eyes to a whole new aspect of it. It was honestly better than I could have ever imagined.

After a while, we left on our bikes, promising only to come back another day. 
As delightful as this was, our ride didn't end there. We then travelled to the Farmer's Market, where my friend Zach bought us all ice cream and we sat in the little garden place for about an hour. From there, we biked through Kearsley Park and the parking ramp at Mott, and discovered another wonder I knew nothing about. It appeared to be just a large wall of rocks, built in such a way that was convenient for climbing. Which we did, of course. We also stopped at a little pavilion, which we pretended was our home somewhere on the Mott campus. 
We visited both my home as well as my friends' before the green bridge near our house over Gilkee 
Creek, which flows into the Flint River. We then pulverized a bit of rock so the water wasn't so still, allowing it to travel more freely. In the process, we moved along a stagnant pool of water that had been showering us in mosquitoes. 
The whole day, only two things even slightly resembled the stereotype that our city is given. 
A) On Saginaw street, when we were passing pedestrians on our bikes, one woman loudly declared that she hates children. Yes, we heard you. And we hate rude and condescending adults. 
B) A couple kids talked about stealing our bikes while we were in Gilkee Creek. We thank then for not doing so. 
Those two things aside, it was the best day I've had in ages. It was delightful, and fun, and free. I can't imagine a more charming or happy bike ride could even be possible. Who would think that it could happen in such a town? Who would even think that we could go on a safe, 6-hour bike ride? 
This city is so much more beautiful than people say it is. 

Flint is the Bomb!

Last night was the last night of Back to the Bricks! We took our '80 Camaro, '59 Cadillac, and great friends out for the evening, and definitely had a lovely time.
Well, except for one small detail.
We had pulled into a parking lot and were preparing to get out of the car when a pleasant young lady came over to us and asked through the window if we were getting out of the car. Upon telling her that we indeed were, she advised us not to. Apparently, there had been some sort of shooting.
Before anyone assumes the worst, allow me to reassure you that no such thing occurred. Police were EVERYWHERE for every night of Back to the Bricks. Pulling a gun would have been virtually impossible. Though there was no shooting, there were rumors of a bomb threat, which I suppose some could argue is worse.
Fortunately, no bomb went off! Nothing bad really happened at all, except clearing off Saginaw Street (and I did hear about a riot at one point.)
One could definitely say that B2tB went out with a bang. (Okay, I'm sorry, I just had to.)
I say all of that to say this: it's remarkably easy to look at Flint in this horrible, grey, pessimistic sort of light. But if you can see past it... Well, there's nothing better. Like the lady who warned us about not getting out of the car, or the people of Flint who actually didn't kill each other! This sounds absurd, but I'm so proud that we managed to get through a 5-day event without having some hugely publicized, horrific downtown murder.
There's a quote I found on pinterest some time ago that I can't help but think of whenever someone talks bad about this city. "I live in a city that everyone claims to hate, but no one seems to leave."
It's about time people stop hating, or start leaving, because a place like this is too unique and lovely to complain about for the rest of one's life.

Back to the Blog!

After a long and unexplainable absence, I have returned to the blogging world. Hello! My inspiration right now is at an all time high, so I figured now would be an effective time to post some new thoughts.
My family has recently invested in a 1980 camaro. Not only is this car SUPER FREAKING AWESOME, but it has played a huge role in my inspiration lately.
My mom generally drives the camaro, and I generally get the fortunate position of her shotgun. This car, though not a convertible, has T-Tops, enabling us to let our hair flow in the breeze. This has not only been some incredible bonding time for us, but our treks through downtown Flint, up and down Saginaw Street, have once again reminded me why I love it here so much.
The looks we get from people, and the compliments we receive make us forget that supposedly, we live in one of the most dangerous cities in the US.
People are SO kind. So often, I'm left smiling like an idiot as we cruise through Flint, because of the unconditional kindness some stranger showered on us. Every single person is such a blessing.
Compliments aside, the sense of fun in this town is so great. Back to the Bricks starts tonight, so classic cars have been screaming around Flint for the past week. My favorite is seeing other fast cars on the road, and the undiscussed drag races that come from it. Both cars, just taking a minute to show off.
Plus, with all the classic cars, it's the one time a year Flint actually starts to look like it did in its golden age.
So, as Back to the Bricks begins, I must remind myself that it's about time I get back to the blog.

Splashes of Color

The world, to some, is a rather bleak place. Nothing appears bright. In fact, some may say the world is basically shades of grey.
Needless to say, I disagree.
There's this little line that I love, which I made up a few years ago. Or maybe I saw it somewhere and it got locked in my subconscious. But I'm fairly certain I invented it.
"You are a splash of color in a black and white world."
The world isn't really shades of grey. Or rather, the people certainly aren't.

There are people in the world that make you see red. Admit it; though the emotion isn't positive towards them, when you see this person, this distinct anger rises up in you. Sometimes it's not even anger that red symbolizes, but rather passion.

There are others that make you feel blue. In this sense, blue is the opposite of red. They calm you, and they're the ones you trust the most. I certainly have people in my life that act most often as calmers. When I really need a friend, I'll go to my true blues. They never fail.

Some people are green. Green is relaxed. This is subtly different from blue - blue calms your emotions, green rather changes them. If you're angry, they say something to relax you. They take your happiness and merely make you chill.

Yellow people are happy. Yellow is naturally such a joyous color. Just seeing it makes you happy. I have perhaps three people in my life that I honestly just have to look at to be thrilled. These people are my distinct yellows.

What can I say about orange? Orange is motivating. People that inspire and push you to be more than your best, always. I could probably name ten of those off the top of my head, but I won't, soas to protect their identities.

Every single person you meet throughout your day is a bit of color. Some colors you like. Others you can't stand. All are beautiful, in a way.
Together, the world is like one big painting.

What color are you?

In Light of Recent Events

As I have recently moved out from under a rock, I've noticed that the elections have started for the candidate best to run against President Obama. I find this interesting for several reasons.

1. Up until about two weeks ago, all I knew about politics was a phrase I picked up somewhere over the years about the difference between Republicans and Democrats that probably shouldn't be shared on my blog if I don't wish to receive hate mail in excess. 

2. I've never really been a huge fan of the GOP. I mean, to state it frankly, I'm still really not. I merely feel that many of the things they say are too close-minded for my liking. Myself being pro-choice, pro-equal-marriage-rights, pro-Gaga, pro-controversial-things-for-the-most-part. 

I guess you could say I'm liberal. 

Here, I will state clearly and calmly who I believe to be the best presidential candidate. 

Hold on, allow me to open up my Ron Paul brochure helpfully handed to me by a friend. 

Restore America now... Gee, that sounds like exactly what we need! He's going to end foreign wars?? Wow, I'm so anti-war it's not even patriotic! 

I like Ron Paul. I like him for more reasons than I have ever liked a Republican candidate (which isn't saying too awful much, as I just recently left the rock). 

The awesome thing about his plan is nothing jumps out at me as completely horrible. Nothing about him really seems bad. 

He's smart. He's a physician (OB, I think, which is what I want to be sometimes) that has delivered over 4000 babies. 

He's a military veteran. He knows the horrors of war and knows best what to do for the soldiers fighting everywhere. 

He's the only candidate that has a full plan to balance the budget. We all know we're in massive debt. It would be nice to not owe trillions of dollars and have a virtually ruined economy. 

Now that I've gone off on this political tangent, I may as well ask a favor. If you've read this far without redirecting yourself to facebook, I thank you for your patience. You're the best of the best. 

I, unfortunately, am not able to participate in the primary for Michigan on February 28th, as I'm only 15. If you can, please go vote.

Don't vote for the salamander-er, Newt. 

Don't vote for Rick Santorum, unless you want someone so close-minded it breaks my heart. 

Don't vote for Romney, because he's not as good as Ron Paul. 

Please vote for Ron Paul. He's the only one fit to run against Mr. Obama, truly. 

For America.

Life is an Art in Itself

More and more, people are talking about removing the arts programs from their schools. I don't know why they would EVER do that, other than perhaps desiring to focus more on academics such as chemistry and geometry. Perhaps they believe that removing the creativity from schools will cause what has been referred to as the "least intelligent generation" to get smart, and fill our dull heads with facts and figures.
I simply and reasonably state that this is utter and complete nonsense.
As of late, I've been increasingly involved in the theatre department at my high school.
It's filled with the most brilliant, enthusiastic group of people I've ever had the good fortune to meet.
People in theatre are different than any other people in the world. Theatre stretches people in ways that, as much as it may try, mathematics just cannot.
If programs like these are removed from schools in Flint, which some of them already have been, things will only go downhill.
Which, unfortunately, is saying something.
Teens should spend less time hitting people, and more time hitting piano keys. Less time fighting, more time writing. When home situations get bad, be someone else. Find the character in you.
The arts have always been an outlet for people across the globe. They're part of tradition and culture.
Dare I say a key to saving this city would be to find these inner-city kids a constructive outlet.
People these days have so much bottled up inside them, no wonder the world can look bleak. You almost can't blame people for becoming aggressive.
Hey, I said almost. 
The idea that I fail to understand is this:
Why would one try to take away what is for some the one thing that allows them to escape from the horrors of their world?
It makes no sense.
Certainly, the last thing Flint needs is more upset people.
I assure you, we have enough of those.