The Moon, Tsunamis, and Christianity

Today is one those days where I feel like my brain is in a million different places. I feel slightly crazy and overwhelmed by all the things that there are to think about. Sorry if this blog is all over the place.

Boredom has become a rather foreign idea to me. I've been finding myself desiring to sit in one spot for a long period of time with nothing else other than a cup of tea and my own little pea brain. Sometimes it's even to the point where I feel like I can't be in social situations because it's too overwhelming for my brain to process what is already in my head along with whatever new information a conversation or new experience may bring.

One of the many things that has been filling my brain as of recent is due to the moon. Within the past year I have become really fascinated with the moon and the effects that is has on nature and human temperaments. I think that in our culture we have lost the art of being aware of nature. Evie and I were discussing this the other day and she brought up the fact that in our culture we have to check the news or some online source to know what the weather will be. I suppose the we don't have time to step outside our door and look at the sky.

The other day Evie, Tyler, and I went to our friend's house. One of the friends we went to visit is a nurse. We began discussing with her the effects of the moon on humans. She told us that no one at the hospital ever wants to work on the night of a full moon because there are so many more babies born and patients to take care in comparison to a normal day. WHAT?!

I did some more research today and found several really interesting articles about the tsunami that hit a few years ago. Here is part of one the blew my mind:

"Wild animals survive by being always alert. That's what keeps them alive. Nature is very resilient. We shouldn't forget the fact that we are also part of nature."
Amongst the news reports of the recent Asian tsunami are numerous uncanny stories from across the region of animals who appear to have sensed the disaster before it happened. In Sri Lanka, for example, Yala National Park suffered numerous human casualties, but bizarrely "the wildlife suffered almost no casualties. The elephants, wild boar, deer, monkeys and others had moved inland to avoid the killer waves." Some survivors, for instance, have described how the monkeys refused to accept bananas shortly before the tsunami arrived:

"Bananas would be something normally that would make monkeys go bananas. These monkeys were totally disinterested, staring up in a confused mode as if they were reacting to something."

Another Sri Lankan survivor described how "his two Doberman Pinschers refused to go for their daily jog along the beach about 90 minutes before the tsunami." Over in Thailand, a dozen tourists were saved from the tsunami which struck Khao Lak when several agitated elephants broke their chains and fled for the hills. At least 3,800 other people would be killed when the tsunami arrived. Over in Phuket, a survivor described "seeing dogs running inland minutes before the tsunami struck." Over in India, the authorities "have reported that the indigenous, stone-age tribes of the Andaman and Nicobar islands escaped the effects of the tsunami because they heeded warning signals from birds and animals."

WHAT?! How crazy is all of this?

Just think how many people would've survived the tsunami if we knew how to pay attention to the signs that nature and animals gave us. It really just blows my mind beyond belief.

Also, as many people of this generation are experiencing, I have grown very weary of the Christian culture (great transition of topic, right?).

I'm tired of thinking that the only way of growing close to God is through having "quiet time" and reading the Bible for x amounts of minutes or hours.

I'm tired of being guilted into "using my gifts" for selfish endeavors.

I'm tired of trying to fix people and having people try to fix me. I despise the question of "What is the Lord doing in your life? Have you been in the word lately? What church do you go to?" How are you supposed to answer that? I have no idea what God is doing!

I'm tired of older people thinking that I am just a confused young person who is incapable of possessing any self control or decision-making abilities. Not only that, but then proceeding to inflict their divine unquestioned wisdom upon me. Hm. I suppose that after a cetain age you can never be in the wrong.

I'm tired of feeling guilty for being a human.

No, I don't want a Sunday school solution for my life.
No, I don't want to a join a social clique whose main mission is to judge other people.

All I really know is that God is allowing me to be in a constant whirwind of confusion. If God can ONLY speak through a quiet time, a Jesus-is-my-boyfriend generic praise and worship song, or a white male pastor, I don't know what type of God we are believing in.