Today was a pretty decent day...except for the beginning...had to wake up early (9:00 is very early for me, ok!) and mow the yard, rake the yard, and sweep the patio and driveway....good times, good times...anyways, in case any of you guys dont know, i am the youngest kid in my family out of 3 boys and 1 girl. My oldest brother lives in Austin and goes to college, and my sister just graduated and lives at home.  But anyways, my other brother is 18 and just graduated from Clark...he is in Special Education, and it can be a little stressful dealing with him at times...like today...my brother Cody woke up feeling a bit cranky today...so when he was told that he had to go sweep, he was very angry about that, so, after i mowed the lawn, i decided to do the nice thing and help him sweep, anyways, i ended up doing almost all of the sweeping, and cody kept getting mad about sweeping and kept storming back into the house, until my mother came out and yelled at him...then my brother started crying and my mom got even madder and told him he couldn't come back inside till he had swept everything...i don't know about everybody else, but i am easily affected by the attitudes of others, seeing my brother crying while i was trying to be nice to him hurt me as well, and i started crying too...So...that was the sad part of my day today...but my day got better later on, i took my bro to an arcade and he got to play for about an hour and a half, so we both felt alot better after that.  And i also made plans to go out with some of my friends tomorrow, and in case any of you churchies dont know about it...tomorrow at 7:00 we are going to malibu castle to hang out for a while. Now in closing, i just want to say God bless to all of you. Jesus loves you, and so do I.  Also, here is an awesome poem that my friend brittney wrote.
The Sea

I look across that dark and distant shore
Through the hovering mist and fog,
And I see a happy future,
Full of laughter, happiness, cheer.
I begin to see a field full of flowers
Blooming fresh in the springtime.
The wind carries their fragrant scent
And I am drunk with their sweetness.
Everything that is in me longs to run in that field,
To pick those delicate flowers
To smell them as they are, not only in the wind.

I slowly turn and look behind me,
Taking in all the scenery as I do so.
And you know what I see?
I see a barren wasteland, empty, sad
I see nothing, absolutely nothing.
The wind blows through the trees
But there are no leaves to shake, no branch to bend.
The sea washes on the shore,
But there are no shells to take back, no sand to wash away.
I had been in this hollow place for so long,
I became accustomed to its dreariness.
But one look, merely a glance at that island across the sea
And I saw the place where I was as it truly existed.
And right then, I made a choice,
I was going to swim to that land on the other side.

As I prepared to make my jump,
The jump that would take me from freedom,
I paused and looked down at the water beneath me.
What I saw can only be described as terrifying.
Oh, how rough and strong that current was!
Slapping against the land, rushing downwards forever.
How the sea raged in all its billowing fury!
It seemed waiting, waiting for me
Waiting to swallow me up,
To take me to my final resting place among its watery depths.
Suddenly, the freedom that seemed close at hand
Now seemed millions of miles away, unattainable, and out of reach.

Seeing the foamy cap it wore, feeling the current pull,
I felt as if I was being engulfed, pulled under,
And steadily being pulled from shore.
Slowly, yet swiftly, I backed away from the water's edge.
And just as slowly, yet as swiftly, I watched in horror
As my dreams, my hopes, and all my fantasies disappeared from sight.
And as they were lost within the gloom, I began to cry.
And as I cried, my heart yearned even more for liberation from my prison.
For a long time I sat there,
Pondering my predicament, wondering what to do.
Then, I realized there was only one thing that could be done,
I had no choice, I must enter the sea.
I had to face that howling wind, those walls of water that rose higher than a ship.
I must face them if I was ever to be happy, if I ever wanted my freedom.
Teeth gritted, fists clenched, heart racing, eyes focused
I ran to the sea and with a leap of faith embraced its icy waters
And plunged deeper and deeper into its unfathomable depths.

Peace out everybody and God bless,
Grant       G to the R to the ANT!!!