For Those in Connecticut

To the Mommies and Daddies:

I'm sorry your little angels were lost amongst the other Christmas ornaments that make your life beautiful.

I'm sorry that the presents, still tucked away in your closets, are sharp reminders of what is gone.

I'm sorry that Christmas morning will be quiet.

I'm sorry that there is an extra stocking hanging on your mantle, that won't be filled.

I'm sorry that the dinner reservation was for one more.

I'm sorry that one who gave you life, lost life.

To the Husbands and Wives:

I'm sorry that there is a cold spot on the bed where there wasn't one before.

I'm sorry that there is an extra pillow.

I'm sorry that the Christmas Eve service will be short one voice singing 'Good tidings of great joy...'

I'm sorry that one who gave you life, lost life. 

To the friends and family:

I'm sorry there is extra time in your schedual.

I'm sorry that there are extra Christmas desserts laying around that never got given away. 

I'm sorry that there is an extra name in your address book.

I'm sorry that one who gave you life, lost life.

To the grief-stricken and mourning:

You are not forgotten.

You are not alone.

You are remembered with great admiration, knowing that there are some, this season, that are far stronger that us.

You are in our hearts and prayers.

You are the burden that we accept with open arms.

You are those who remind us how precious life is.

You are the ones we cry for on Christmas Eve.

You are the ones we light a candle for.

--By (Me) Helena Elise

Jingle Bells I Guess

I have so very many things to write about today! 
So, starting from the least recent news, the pocketwatch is officially enlisted in the marines. :) Everyone keeps asking me the same questions about it, so in the interest of expediency, I will answer them for you. 1) Yes, I am scared that he is going to be a marine, BUT he is going to work in intel probably, so no fighting for him. 2) Our plans as far as being away from each other for a few months on account of boot camp are as follows: we will stay together unless we feel lead to do otherwise. 3) Yes, I do want him to go into the marines because it will be a good start to being an adult, and the rewards of being in the military are very great. Moving on.
I've found myself very conflicted about some certain moral issues lately. Things that aren't explicitly stated in the good word are the things I am having trouble figuring out. I'm not sure why I mentioned that, since I've just decided that I don't particularly want to write about political issues on my blog. On that note, I am going to talk about something different now. 
So there is this boy at school, and he is a nice guy, just awkward. Well, for awhile now, he has been hitting on me, if you will, and so finally I called it enough. I told him politely that I wasn't sure if his intentions were to hit on me or not, but that I have a boyfriend with whom I am very happy with, and that I would appreciate it if he would back off. I was also sure to mention that I am glad we are friends and he is a nice guy. Well, now he is avoiding me like the plague. I'm glad he has backed off, but I think I may have hurt his feelings, and I know that if I try to 'fix' things and apologize, he will probably go back to doing the same things he was before. I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO. I feel stuck. Anyways, since I am in a sort of grid-lock, I will talk about something else.
My oldest sister has a boyfriend. :) I am so so so very excited for her, because he loves the good lord, and he loves kids. My nephew seems to like him a lot, which is good since that is almost the deciding factor. Also, he already told her that he was looking at rings! And, he sings. Look him up! (Kyle Talbert) Ok, well I don't really know what else to say except that. I am so excited. :)
Today my nephew and my oldest sister are over at our house. We are all waiting for my other older sister to come home from college. My nephew told me some really hilarious things today. First, he explained to me that him and his girlfriend broke up. Oh, I should mention, he is 5 and in kindergarten. He said they broke up because they were always fighting. I asked him what they were fighting about, and he went on to explain that they couldn't agree on which game was the best-stars or puppies. So they broke up. My sister said he came home and cried that day. Oh how I wish I could tell him that was the worst break-up he will ever go through.  Poor little soul. Next, I was helping him put on his shoes so he could go on a walk, and I told him he needed to learn how to put on his shoes by himself. He told me he couldn't, since he is not in shoe class. Bless his heart. :) Today he also told me that our tree is more beautiful than his tree because his ornaments are just regular. My sister was offended. That is the bulk of the adorable things he said today. 
I believe I have come to the end of all the new things I had to tell you. Oh! Wait. One more thing, my acting partner and I are doing very well in speech and debate and he is the best duo partner ever. And the bestest best friend. He is also very smart about mixing coffee and creamer. Yup. That's it. 

Love and gingerbread frosting,
Helena
p.s. that last one was for you holdie

μηφυναι &c

It's been awhile since I've written, but I just added my blog to my facebook info and I figure if any stalkers see it, they should have something recent to read.
I am in Texas, visiting my older sister, and I have three things to say about it: 1) it's really humid here 2) everyone is nicer here...probably cause they have more oxygen... 3) I've decided this is my second favorite state.
Moving on, I don't exactly have anything to write about today. But! I will ramble, in the interest of keeping you entertained. Oh my goodness, I DO have something for you. If I can find it, there is a letter that one of my most favorite authors, Edward Lear, that he composed for a newborn baby girl. It is so very sweet and inspirational that it must be shared!
 Ah!!! I found it. I may not be able to get the full version, but the bulk of it is able to be shared.

Here it is:

My dear little tiny child,
You will forgive my familiar mode of addressing you, because, you know, -you have as yet got no Christian name-;-& to say 'my dear Miss Decie' would be as much too formal, as 'my dear Decie' would be too rude. But as your Grandmama has written to me that you are just born I will congratulate you, & possibly this is one of the first letters you have as yet received. One of the old Greek Tragedians says- and I am sure you will not think me impertinent in translating what he says- μηφυναι &c because there has not been time hitherto to buy you a Greek Dictionary, (& I feel sure you cannot read Sophocles with-out, -besides, the Dictionaries are so fat & heavy I am certain you could not use them comfortably to yourself & your nurse,) -μηφυναι &c- which means 'it is better never to have [been] born at all, or if born, -to die as soon as possible.' But this I wholly dissent from: & on the contrary I congratulate you heartily on coming into a world where if we look for it there is far more good & pleasure than we can use up - even in the longest life. And you in particular will find that you have - all quite without any of your own exertions - a mother & a father, - a grandmother and grandfather, - some uncles, -an extremely merry brother (who propels himself along the floor like a compasses,) a conservatory, & a croquet ground, & a respectable old cove who is very fond of small children & will give you an Alphabet bye & bye. -I there-fore advise you to live & laugh as long you can for your own pleasure, & and that of all your belongings.
Please tell your Grandmama that I also wished to stop when the carriage passed but couldn't- & say also, that I will write to her shortly. And now my dear you have read enough for the present. Good night, & believe me,
Your affte. old friend
         Edward Lear.
Give my love to your Papa & Mama


Oh my dear Mr. Lear. You are fantastic. I love the part about finding love and pleasure in life. Ok, I am done for now.
Until next time,
Plumbs and figgy pudding,
Helena

A Short Grammar Lesson

Dear readers,
Answering my own loose ends from the last post, the pocket watch and I are 'official', I finished my junior year of high school, my sister is home for the summer, and I have something I am itching to write about today.


So, yesterday I went to a graduation party for a friend of the family, and his younger brother is my age. Their family is the first we met when we moved here. I liked him (the younger brother) for 4 years (4th-8th grade), and we played together for the majority of our childhoods. Anyhow, I saw him yesterday and he's still as awesome as ever. 


We got on to the topic of an old boy friend because oddly enough, his girlfriend messaged me on facebook and I found it quite surprising. He went on to tell me that my old boyfriend was recently admitted to a mental facility. He is still dealing with the issues he had when we were together. Then, also to my astonishment, my heart went out to him. I suspect it is mostly due to my own experiences at a mental hospital, but also that I prayed for a long time that he would find help. I am really glad that he is finally getting help. If I know one thing about mental issues, it is that you can't make them go away on your own. I guess I just wanted to write about it because it made me realize that, while he is far-removed from my life, and I've moved on, I still care a little bit. I'm really glad that he has a girl friend now. Having people be close and love on you in a time like this is so important, and she seems like a sweet person. Ok...I think that's all I'm going to write about today. Hopefully, I will get a chance to write more this summer. Until then,
I before E, except after C,
Helena Elise

Racism, Ex-Boyfriends, New Beginnings, and my 'Beverly Hills'

Greetings everyone!! I apologize for the scatter-brained, and rambling format of this entry! I hope you enjoy it.
I just finished an outline of a paper I will write in the next month, about a hero, Ruby Bridges. 
In the midst of my procrastination I stumbled upon two things equally striking. One, that there was a boy/man (19) in the news who was sentenced to two life sentences in jail for murdering a black man as a hate crime. Also, that he strikingly resembled a previous boyfriend I had a few years ago. Naturally this struck me, so I read the passage. It stunned and shocked me, considering I am researching a woman who was part of the effort to end these horrendous acts of hate. I pity not only the black man's family, but also the boy who is going to prison. Yes, he is guilty, but I don't believe that anyone can sincerely say they don't feel at least a bit sympathetic to a boy of 19 who will spend part of his life in prison. 


The second thing I found striking, which honestly is sort of an overstatement because it's not as monumental as an adolescent sentenced to a life sentence in prison, is that I checked an ancient email account and found several letters from the old boyfriend I mentioned earlier. They were all about some sort of "success story" or his heartbreaking story of declaring bankruptcy and each required me to open a link. I suspect his account has been hacked, yet I messaged him back nonetheless. I said something to the affect of "unless you've started a small business and decided to live on your own, I don't think you have declared bankruptcy...correct me if I'm wrong..." Hopefully this was  just spam, and his email has since been shut down.


Moving on to other subjects, I like a boy. He is about an inch and one half shorter than me, but otherwise, he's just my kind of guy. Here on out, I will refer to him as the pocket watch. I'm not sure why yet exactly, but somehow he reminds me of time, in a sweet and fantastic way. At any rate, he is a gentleman and, more importantly, a strong man of God. Even if he wasn't my significant counterpart, I am still proud to call him my friend. We've liked each other since the new year, but his crush has apparently been around for about 3 years. We will most likely (assuming everything goes well) be 'official' sometime after spring break, when my parents come back from their trip to L.A. Carrying right along, since the general public often goes into a boredom-induced coma once a relationship other than their own is mentioned, I guess I'll talk about the last few months since I've neglected to post anything. 


My dad returned safely home from Afghanistan, my first sister is enjoying college, my second sister just got her own house and is moving in soon, I scraped by my first semester of the infamous junior year with a 3.4, my mom is still just as amazing as she's ever been, and my little brother is the president of his class, as well as the only guy in his class that has the first real understanding of how to treat a lady...but maybe I'm biased. ;)


Life as I know it is beautiful, and satisfying. I'm not sure I could ask for much more in this life. I have recently been reflecting on my own lack of gratitude and habitual pace of taking things for granted, but I think that is an entry for another time. Until then, love others, drink good tea, and get up early because it makes the day last so much longer. 
Sincerely, and always,
Your happily forgotten writer,
Helena Elise