First Quarter of 2017 /// wrap-up
6:00 AM
Yup. You read that right. Me, doing a wrap-up post? WOW. What has happened? *pantomimes bombs exploding*
I decided that I liked the idea of monthly wrap-ups, but didn't really want to do them every month. And there are twelve months in a year, and twelve is just an all around cooperative number so FIRST THREE MONTHS, YAY! That works great! And I can call it a quarter and EVERYONE IS HAPPY.
Ehem. Anyway. Here goes my first ever wrap-up post! *WARNING: this is going to be a little different than your average wrap-up. Be prepared for much poetry (most of it not the best).
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| this is what the weather has looked like this year |
L I F E
The days drag by
full of heat and fury
frustration and agony
stress and fear
so much fear
but there is no fear in love
for perfect love casts out fear
and so I pray
day after day
Lord, take this fear from me.
The days slip by
the stress has faded
but now there are questions
so
many
questions
rushing to replace
the anxiety
and I have no answers
and so I wait
and hope.
The days crawl by
and I want them to hurry
for this school year to be done
for the summer to arrive
with all the green and life
and light and happiness
of a time without so much of the future
digging its claws into my back.
The future.
That is what I fear.
The future.
That vast unknown
full of unmade decisions
uncertain words
uncertain words
and tentative roads.
But I do not walk alone
and so
I will not fear.
Translation: there's been a lot of stress in life and I've been writhing in the agony of it. Really struggling to trust God and His omnipotent hand.
I took the ACT for the first time back in February. That was the main source of stress. I'm actually taking it again in about a week from now. *faint laugh* *falls over dead*
W R I T I N G
The words do not wish to come
but I sit down
and I force them out
I force them onto the page
tugging hair
gritting teeth
until at long last
it is done
and the year I spent slaving away
rewards me with those beautiful words:
the end.
The order is placed
and so I wait
what feels like an
e t e r n i t y
but they finally come
and I hold them close
and I sigh and smile
at long last
I hold these pieces of my soul
that I've spent so long
and put so much
into.
Edits begin again
but this time
they are smoother
and the words flow
and the smile stays.
there is no
ripping of hair
but rather
laughter
and joy and
grace
grace for those hard days
and grace for the good ones
and I smile because
it gets better.
There is hope.
Translation: I have been somewhat productive so far this year, even with life being crazy. I finished the second draft of The Thief's Conspiracy back in February and started edits on The Dream Walkers this month. It has been soooo so wonderful and rewarding and I am very optimistic about this year!
*whispers* I also order printed copies of my books! And I read the Prologue and first chapter of DW to my family and they liked it. (Went much better than the last reading aloud attempt haaaa)
R E A D I N G
The girl longs for the world
of paper and ink
that captivated so many
of her childhood days.
of her childhood days.
But time is short
and she must make choices
and so the books sit by
untouched.
Translation: I've read ... 9 books this year. *winces and hides* I know, I know. It could be a looot better. But IT COULD ALSO BE WORSE. And I have been writing a lot so THERE'S THAT. I'm getting back into reading right now and trying to get faster at it so I can do it more.
Favorite book: The Screwtape Letters. This was my first time reading a book like this and I really, really enjoyed it. It took me several months to read, but it was soooo good. It was a lot to process, and it really got me thinking about everything differently, especially temptations and sin.
Least favorite book: Sadly, I wasn't a huuuuge fan of most of the books I read? But my least favorite would have to be ... *whispers* The Raven Boys. I'd heard so much hype over this book, and all my writing friends (like, all of them) gave it four to five stars. Even though it wasn't really in my genre and the back cover blurb didn't appeal to me, I thought I should at least give it a try.
And it was okay. It was intriguing. I actually read the first one hundred pages in the middle of November after I hit 50k. But I had a lot of issues with it, and I just ... didn't like it. Especially the end. I felt really dumb, but I was so confused by the last paragraph that I had to look up the blurb for the next book to see if it explained what was going on, which it did and I WAS SO MAD CAUSE WHY.
Okay I'm done ranting. *braces self for the angry Stiefvater fans* (I did like her writing style though!)
M U S I C
I close my eyes and let
I close my eyes and let
the sound wash over me.
My lips crack
but I cannot sing
for the lump in my throat
and the tears slipping down my cheeks.
Oh, how music
can touch the soul.
Music has been a life saver this year. During the stressful month leading up to the ACT, I had Called Me Higher on repeat. It is such a good message. That we grow most when we spread our wings and let ourselves be vulnerable. God will watch over us and help us through the pain, and He will draw us closer to Him if we only let Him.
And this month, I've really fallen in love with Wonder. My cousin showed this one to me, and I've had it on repeat all this month. I'm taking Human Anatomy this semester and the two go so well together. It's so easy to get used to the world around us, but this song reminds me to open my eyes and really see the incredible beauty and brilliance in creation.
O N S T A N
This blog has much word.
Most of them do not make sense.
But I still attempt.
(And so I move from free verse to
The most viewed posts on Stan have been ...
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F U N F A C T
Random facts are fun.
They make me perk up and look.
This world is so weird.
I think my favorite one these last three months, though, has been about the first noted instance of biological warfare at the siege of Caffa (now Feodosija, Ukraine) in 1346. Some historians speculate that this event is what cause the spread of The Black Death into Europe, resulting in the deaths of hundreds of millions of people.
What happened?
Well, the Mongols besieged the city of Caffa. The Mongols decided to hurl the bodies of soldiers that had fallen to the Black Death over and into the city. In getting rid of the bodies, the defenders would likely have contracted the illness themselves. Caffa, being on the coast, had trade ships going in and out.
Lots of germs + citizens fleeing from dead bodies being hurled into their city = wild spread of deadly plague.
That, and the oldest goose ever reported to live was a gander named George that lived to a mighty 49 years and 8 months (according to the guiness book of world records).
And there are your fun facts for the day, brought to you by Hannah who surfed the
Thus ends my first Quarter wrap-up! Did you guys like this? Please let me know. If so, I'll make it a thing! :D
You will not be getting a post tomorrow (cause that would be too much Hannah for everyone) but I wish you all the best of luck for day one of Camp Nano! WRITE ALL THE WORDS! *showers you in confetti and coffee beans*
How has 2017 been for you so far? Any milestones reached, in life, writing, reading, or anything really? Any fun facts to share?
<3
10 comments
Eeep! I loved this so much, Hannah! I saw it my blogger feed and thought "wait, Hannah doesn't do wrap-ups...omw she just did one!" xD
ReplyDelete"Called Me Higher" is like my favorite favorite song. It's so beautiful and it makes me cry sometimes. I totally get that first poem. Life has been stressful for me too. I pray your ACT goes well.
I guess my major milestone happened literally a few hours ago, when I finished my online drivers ed course. Now for the test :P
<3
audrey caylin
Ahhh drivers ed! That's so exciting and scary eee *hugs* I'll pray it goes smoothly! <3
DeleteAnd I absolutely LOVE Called Me Higher. It is just so gooooood. A great reminder when life gets stressful.
I definitely liked your first Quarter wrap-up, Hannah!
ReplyDeleteYou should do more posts just on 'fun facts' - they could be great inspiration! I love random facts too (probably annoys my family!) - for example, all the mountains on Saturn’s moon Titan have to be named after peaks in The Lord of the Rings, and in 1879 Liège (city in Belgium) commissioned 37 cats to deliver mail to nearby villages (omplete failure). Random things like that.
Your poetry was really good (I would never share my 'poetry'...) - I especially liked 'On Stan' ("much word"). ;)
*shakes confetti out of hair* Thank you, I will /write all the words/!
(or 500. that's what I've got so far. hahaha. *stressfully eats confetti*)
Oooh I'll have to ponder that! Maybe a once a month thing XP Or just if I find a particularly interesting one. And I LOVE YOUR FUN FACTS THOSE ARE SO COOL *flails*
DeleteI'm glad you liked the wrap-up! I kind of threw the poetry in there without thinking much about it. I probably should have edited it XP SORRY IF I KILLED YOU EYES
AHHH, YOUR FIRST WRAP-UP!!! I love this, Hannah! Definitely not the way practically every other blogger does it. :P I really like how you used poems. What made you think of doing it this way?
ReplyDeleteOh, yes, I have been listening to a lot of music so far this year to. And on repeat.
The poems were completely spontaneous. XP I started the "Life" section and just sat there staring at the keyboard thinking, "Where do I even begin with this?" Poetry is my way of sorting through my thoughts and feelings, so I just kind of spewed it onto the page. I ran out of time, so the poetry here is pretty rough (I wasn't able to edit any of it) but I almost like it that way? It's rough and raw and flawed, and it's a different kind of beautiful. Almost a vulnerable type, since it's not the best quality stuff. But thank you! I'm glad you liked it :)
DeleteI loved this wrap-up! Ugh, yes, stress can pretty much make a mess out of life sometimes, can't it. -.-
ReplyDeleteEMILYYY *hugs* I have not seen you around the blogging sphere much! I hope you are well <3 Are you doing Camp Nano? I'm sorry life is so stressful UGH. *pats and passes over hot chocolate*
DeleteYes, it's been hard to find time to read/comment on posts! Stress has definitely been a thing lately. :D
DeleteBut I am still doing Camp NaNo! Continuing my novel from last November. My goal is a simple 30k, so it won't add a ton of stress.
Are you doing it? *tries to remember if you mentioned it in the post*
OMG I'M JUST GOING TO PRETEND YOU DIDN'T DISLIKE THE RAVEN BOYS SO WE CAN STILL BE FRIENDS. 😂😂 haha, just kidding. Not every book is for everyone obviously!! 😉 My heart is only...a little broken...😂
ReplyDeleteHey but that's so cool you're doing wrapups and I loved the format! I'm glad you've gotten so much writing done too, woooo. And hey 9 books a year is pretty good with all the things you're balancing. (Plus writing + reading is really hard right??! I tend to get fuddled if I combine the two so I only focus on one at a time.)
Hope you have a lovely April!!
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