Books are Nothing

Now, hold on. I imagine you either just shouted "BLASPHEMY!" or almost physically attacked your computer for even allowing those words to appear on your screen (unless you don't like reading...in which case, BLASPHEMY!). Trust me, I thought the same thing when the idea first popped into my head. After I finished arguing with myself (no, we're *ahem* I'm not crazy), I finally understood, so just hear me out.

Books are really only words printed on paper and bound; books don't mean or do anything. Until someone picks it up, reads it, and experiences it. Until that moment when a reader connects with what the author was trying to convey or when they come up with an interpretation of their own, books are useless.

Imagine a world where there were authors, but no readers. Sounds ridiculous, doesn't it? Without one, the other doesn't exist. This applies even if there are authors and readers. If neither party is willing to have an open mind to hear what each other has to say, then no one has gained anything.

Books are meant to change lives, but there's more to it than that. They are meant to end old, dull ones and inspire new, exciting ones filled with adventure and absolutely anything imaginable. Books are meant to take away your worldly problems and take you to a whole new world where they don't even exist. Books can teach us lessons that nothing else can. With books, we can fall in love, get heartbroken, die and come back to life, go on crazy, unbelievable adventures, and meet many amazing people (or creatures) along the way.

But books can only do all of these things if they are read and felt. So go, read. Bring a book to life.

Dandelion Waterfall

I took this picture a while back. I didn't touch it or anything, I just found it this way. Why am I posting a random picture of a dandelion? I might be having trouble writing...

Dialogue in the Dark

I've been meaning to write this for a while since it's been, I don't know...three weeks since the field trip? But oh well, I'm doing it now!

So, some time ago, I went on a field trip with my school to Dialogue in the Dark and the Bodies Exhibit. I believe that Bodies is more well-known, but if you don't know what it is, click here. It was cool and all, kinda creepy, but it didn't have much impact on me. I can honestly say that I will never forget Dialogue in the Dark though.

Dialogue in the Dark was amazing. Basically, you're put into a group of about nine people, you get canes, then you go into a room with glowing chair things. Then, the glow slowly fades and you're left in total darkness. Like, I-can't-see-my-hand-in-front-of-my-face total darkness. I was completely freaked out before the lights went dim, but once it was dark, I was completely calm. I actually started laughing. After a few seconds in complete darkness, you hear a voice. It's the voice of the person who will lead you through the different levels. Your guide is either mostly or completely blind. You don't get to see them until the end. 

There are five levels, normal, everyday places. A park, a food market, a city, a boat, and a cafe. Your guide will ask you questions throughout the experience. They may ask you to find or identify something, or to help the person behind you. You are constantly encouraged to speak up; call out someone's name, announce when you've found something, speaking is what makes this experience successful. Once you and your group make it to the cafe, everyone sits down and you have the chance to ask your guide any questions you may have (and yes, it's still dark). You can literally ask them anything, how they became blind, how they feel about it, anything. 

After the group discussion, you exit and get to finally see your guide. This was my favorite part. After being with someone for 45 minutes, relying on them to guide you, then learning about there life, you form an image of them in your mind. When you get to see them, they probably won't look like you had them imagined. But you don't care at all, you just know them based on their personality and character. 

You get to meet and know and trust someone without even having the opportunity to judge them based on how they look. That was truly amazing to me. It made me realize how quickly and harshly we humans judge each other based solely on our outward appearance. I really we wish we could meet every person we come in contact with in the dark, then we could really get to know them without judgement getting in the way.

Click here to go to the Dialogue in the Dark website.

Feedback, por favor?

I saw this photo about a week ago and it inspired me to start writing. I have no clue what it'll end up being, I'm just writing for now. I don't have much yet, but it's still a major work in progress. There are probably a number of mistakes at the moment, but try to overlook them. Some feedback (and maybe a title?) would be greatly appreciated. (:

The Castle of Auriola. A beautiful golden palace, as the meaning of the name suggests. It sits on a rock near the edge of a waterfall in the river Lacrimas, with a bridge on either side. The bridges no longer have a purpose, besides acting as “accessories” to the castle. They both have collapsed about half a mile from the outer lands, their former destination. There are also two gardens adorning the north and south ends of the castle, the Northern one being the most magnificent, and the Southern one preferred for viewing the dazzling sunsets.

The spray of the mineral-rich water falls most heavily on the Northern Gardens, making them one of the most beautiful things in the kingdom, the only beautiful thing to me. Most people consider the castle to be the most beautiful thing in all of the land, but I view it as a prison. I’ve been stuck here all of my life-my parents orders. They say that the world beyond the castle is dangerous, no place for a princess. But I simply cannot stay here for the rest of my life, I’ll go insane. I know there is more to the outside world than just “dangerous”, there has to be.