In the Quiet

+ J.M.J. Just looking at this picture makes me feel peaceful. Gaze at it for a moment. Let the whole scene sink in. Now let's examine the quote. "The quieter you become, the more you can hear." Has this been true in your experience? Do you hear more when you're talking or when you're listening?  I love to talk. This wasn't always the case; I was painfully shy as a child. A sort of spiritual transformation occurred after I made my Confirmation. I feel that the Holy Spirit made my shyness less painful and less apparent. I am still naturally shy, and that is an integral part of who I am, but now conversation is engaging instead of terrifying. I am learning that part of being a skilled conversationalist is being a good listener. You have to listen more than you talk, I think. The ratio of listening to talking should be 2:1. I'm still working on this. I think that when I was little, I kept everything inside, so now I have an awful lot to sa

+ J.M.J. Last Saturday, I saw "The Fault in Our Stars" at the movie theatre. I thought that it was a cute movie. Don't worry; I'm going deeper than that. The expectation was that it was going to be a tragically sad movie. While it was sad (I cried), the first big chunk of it was a comedy. I laughed a lot! The underlying message threading its way throughout was one of love even in the midst of suffering. I think that we need love especially when suffering. God is ready to wrap us up in His love at all times, and we tend to draw closer to Him when we are hurting the most. This movie is rated PG-13, so there are inevitably some immoral elements involved. Just keep that in mind. I did not like the fact that this type of content was in there, but it was implied, so it was not terribly offensive. So what type of suffering was in the movie? Cancer. That terrible, awful disease. What made it worse was that young people were facing it, staring death in the fac

+ J.M.J. Good morning! Welcome to the updated blog. Previously "Stephanie's Style of Living," "In the Quiet" is going to be a project that I will be dedicated to writing in frequently (at least once a week). I felt that it was time for a change. My life has changed so much recently. I appreciate continuity in my life wherever possible, hence the blog makeover. What have I been up to lately? As you may have noticed, I haven't been writing posts regularly. I was incredibly busy with school, finals, and then I graduated last Thursday with my associate of arts degree from community college. Last night I went to an excellent Bible study group and while there, we discussed the desert and how everyone has a desert in their lives at one time or another. My desert right now is being a recent graduate and feeling stuck because I do not yet have a job. I also need to find a good roommate and apartment. My to-do list is long, but many of the things I am