It has me clinched it its fist,
The evil that covers me.
It marked me off of its list,
It has won more than victory.

I'm down on the floor.
I'm buried in emptiness.
I'm conquered for sure.
My chest filled with building stress.

Why am I tired and lost?
It just happens again, again.
And now I suffer the cost,
The pain of uncovered sin.

I feel like I'm already dead.
My breath is avoiding me
Because I already said
Everything that there is to say.

I hope that you understand
The darkness inside of me.
Now please just take it away,
No, I don't want it to stay.
There cant be a chance that
I'll keep feeling this way,
Just take it away.

I need a new place to land,
A place full of bright white light.
Digging my feet into the sand
Never felt so good, so right.

I want to sleep on your shore,
The waves sweeping over me
Until I remember no more
The ache of my agony.

But now its dark in this room.
It's hard to strike up a light.
Will you do it for me?
Keep it burning throughout the night.

Now come close to my side,
Take my heart, hold it in your hands
And remove all dirt
To give it back to the land.

Please remember my name
When I climb the last stair to you.
Let me enter into your glory
To claim you as my story
And to know that I don't have to worry,
Let me enter your glory.

Life's Not The Same, Dear

Life's not the same, dear
As it used to be
I'd fall on my face
To keep you near me
Things keep on changing
As far as I can see
Yeah, life's not the same, dear
As it used to be

We twist and we move, dear
As life drifts along
We walk in the hope
We hadn't got it wrong
So let's sing it together
This time-tested song
We twist and we move, dear
Our entire lives long

Life's not the same
No-no, not at all
Life's not the same, dear
But were in 'til we fall

Life's not the same, dear
But were in 'til we....

Politicians

As I have gone about my days I have had a recurring thought working its way through the twists and turns of my mind. See, it’s my first time to vote in a general election this year and I have been troubled about who to choose for President. See, just like many of you, many ideas and opinions have been pounded into my head by numerous people. One says “Vote McCain, he is pro-life!” Another says “Vote O’Bama, he will bring the troops out of Iraq!” A father says “Vote McCain, he will keep taxes low!” A mother says “Vote O’Bama, he will save the economy and give tax breaks to the middle class!”
See, I’m all for ending the Iraqi war, low taxes, and a healthy economy. I would love to see the U.S. having better relations with foreign nations. I am in favor of America. Yes, I am in favor of all of that, but there is an issue beyond that that hovers over all of the minor issues we face as a nation. The real problem is the division that these issues cause in our homes, in our schools, and in our states. Wasn’t it Washington, the first leader of this fine nation, who said something about not creating divisions in the form of political parties? Why didn’t we take his advice? Honestly! People have been advising others against political parties for a long, long time. It was Jean-Jacques Rousseau, a man of the 18th century, who said “It is important...in order to have a clear declaration of the general will, that there should be no partial association in the State, and that every citizen should express ONLY his own opinion,” meaning, not conforming to the opinions of the political party. This guy knew what he was talking about, too, because the repercussions are very evident today.
See, because of these divisions on the national level we have divisions in our communities, in our churches, and in our own families. The community, and more so the family, should be the one thing that keeps us knit together, but because of opinions, because of differences, they are divided. No wonder the majority of students in the U.S. are turned off by politics! All we see is differences of opinion, division, and chaos created by the convoluted ideas and notions presented as to how this country should be run. Maybe the reason for some of our generations’ apathy is that we haven’t been introduced to and brought up in the atmosphere of meaning and purpose that our relatives have past experienced. Whatever the cause may be, the minority of us who actually care (and yes, we do exist) have our minds pressed with the decision to choose sides, to draw battle lines, and to fight against other Americans for what we think is right.
So after all of the struggle, all of the pressure, I now have come to a final conclusion about everything. Our job as Americans is not to tow the party line. Our job is to act on what we believe in and vote that way, and not conform to what others are trying to impress upon us. Our job is to do our research on who we should vote for and then vote for that person. It is time to abandon our silly ideas about government and political parties and vote for what we believe in. We are the ones who decide what the future holds and I hope and pray we make that future happen by thinking independently.

Within You by Ray LaMontagne

War is not the answer
The answer is within you

War is not the answer
The answer is within you

Love
Love
Love
Love

War is not the answer
The answer is within you

Love
Love
Love
Love

Oh God

Oh God, in the right light
We fall face down into a soft darkness.
The timing is mostly not right.
Maybe we should think it over more than twice.

Oh GOD, it's a blinding moment
When one looks directly at it.
The Word is left closed on the floor,
I hope no one comes through that door.

OH GOD! The blood on my hands
Is definitely the wrong color,
But the deed is done, the sword penetrates
And destroys your heart, again.

Nathan Beck and The Palestinian Problem

Walking into the Cardwell Lecture Hall I really wasn’t expecting so many people to be sitting in the rows of seats before me. I hadn’t heard many people say they were going, but it was a wonderful surprise to see the place packed full of people. The seats were full and there were even people sitting on the floor and standing against the walls. Around the room were maps of Palestine and in the front a slide show was playing, showing picture from the experience that Nathan Beck had undergone for the time he was there. As Nathan got up to speak, the room got silent and he began into what I now know to be the explanation of a serious problem that has been going on in the Middle East for a long, long period of time.
I could go into great detail about what he said but I thought, in view of my limit of space, a few facts would suffice for now. I hope this sparks your interest, especially if you weren’t at the forum:
1. Altogether, 622 people were killed in 2006 due solely to the Israeli occupation of Palestine.
2. Roughly 40% of the male Palestinian population is currently in prison.
3. Thousands upon thousands of Palestinians have fled the country in order to escape the cruelty being administered in their home country.

Those are just three of the statistics that Nathan presented at the forum and there were many more interesting facts passed along during that time, like the wall being built between Palestine and Israel, Jewish settlements in Palestine, and the many issues concerning the Israeli military presence in Palestine.
One story that really stood out to me, and a story that I will end on, was one of a boy Nathan met there in Palestine. Nathan asked the boy what he would say if he had the chance to tell the world anything. The boy thought for a minute and then let out a piercing scream. When Nathan asked him what he meant by screaming like that, the boy said, “For me to scream, they must have ears.”
I hope we, as American citizens, open our ears to listen for the sound of the screams echoing across the globe. I pray that we hear them, whoever and wherever they may be, and we act accordingly. Nathan did a wonderful job describing to us the cry of the Palestinians and I hope to soon hear others rise up on LCU’s campus to tell us of other issues, other shouts, that are reverberating around our world.