Hey everyone! I am not sure anyone even reads this anymore. It is hardly worth reading, given the fact the I only update once in a blue moon.

Let's see...what has been up...I have completed my first semester of pharmacy school and have already started my second semester, which seems to be moving at the speed of light. I am now employed at CVS Pharmacy and am beginning to chip away at the 700 internship hours that I have to complete outside school before I can sit for my board exams. I shouldn't have too much trouble with that considering I have three and a half years left.

I spent most of my Christmas break at my parent's house. It was definitely interesting living with people other than myself for a month. Especially since my grandma and great-grandma came to live with us. That proved to be a very interesting couple of weeks. My great-grandma (Granny) is for all intents and purposes, bedfast, and is rapidly loosing strength. Of course, she is 92, so it is to be expected. We tried very hard to take care of her at our house, but eventually it was necessary to put her in a nursing home, at least until she gets stronger. Her daughter, my grandma, has diabetes and what is probably Alzheimer's. She is rapidly loosing her short term memory and some of her long term memory, as well as developing paranoia. My grandpa has also moved up here and is the same nursing home as my granny. He had a severe fall back in October and has not yet recovered completely. He also is exhibiting some signs of Alzheimer's. So, if you could all keep them and my family in your prayers, I would really appreciate it.

I don't spend a lot of time on xanga anymore. I mostly just use it to keep up with some people with whom I otherwise have little to no contact. I mostly use facebook these days, so if you have a facebook, look me up!

So, there is just one more thing I would like to say while I am in a writing mood. This pertains to Bethel. As anyone who went there about eight years ago knows, my family left Bethel under something of a cloud. What essentially happened was that my dad started looking at another church and told Pastor Cornett about it. My dad's exploration was not viewed favorably by Pastor Cornett, and he was told to forget it, or not come back. Dad was proclaimed a heretic and ex-communicated from the church. Then, everyone was told to have no contact with him or his family, including us children, as we were children at the time. My whole family suffered a lot of pain and grief, some of which lingers to this day. I guess I just want y'all to know that what happened had a serious effect on us, and that it is hard to just pick up and move on like nothing happened. I loved the way things were, but I love my life now. I love my new church and I love the person I have become and the people my siblings have grown up to be, and I wouldn't change them for the world. 

For some of you, I am still not sure if I can "kiss and make up". I was hurt deeply, yet that somehow seems to have escaped your notice. There have certainly been no apologies, so maybe you were just blissfully unaware of the results of your actions. If you really want to be friends again, than I would love to be friends with you, as long as you are willing to accept me for who I am now. I think some of you already have, and I am very grateful. My goal in writing this is not to hurt anyone, but rather to help me move on. Thanks for taking the time to read this, and if you feel like it, I would love to hear from you!

Vaya con Dios!

Abigail

Hope Rides Alone

By Eddie Jeffers

I stare out into the darkness from my post, and I watch the city burn to the ground. I smell the familiar smells, I walk through the familiar rubble, and I look at the frightened faces that watch me pass down the streets of their neighborhoods. My nerves hardly rest; my hands are steady on a device that has been given to me from my government for the purpose of taking the lives of others.

I sweat, and I am tired. My back aches from the loads I carry. Young American boys look to me to direct them in a manner that will someday allow them to see their families again...and yet, I too, am just a boy....my age not but a few years more than that of the ones I lead. I am stressed, I am scared, and I am paranoid...because death is everywhere. It waits for me, it calls to me from around street corners and windows, and it is always there.

There are the demons that follow me, and tempt me into thoughts and actions that are not my own...but that are necessary for survival. I've made compromises with my humanity. And I am not alone in this. Miles from me are my brethren in this world, who walk in the same streets...who feel the same things, whether they admit to it or not. And to think, I volunteered for this...

And I am ignorant to the rest of the world...or so I thought.

But even thousands of miles away, in Ramadi , Iraq , the cries and screams and complaints of the ungrateful reach me. In a year, I will be thrust back into society from a life and mentality that doesn't fit your average man. And then, I will be alone. And then, I will walk down the streets of America, and see the yellow ribbon stickers on the cars of the same people who compare our President to Hitler.

I will watch the television and watch the Cindy Sheehans, and the Al Frankens, and the rest of the ignorant sheep of America spout off their mouths about a subject they know nothing about. It is their right, however, and it is a right that is defended by hundreds of thousands of boys and girls scattered across the world, far from home. I use the word boys and girls, because that's what they are. In the Army, the average age of the infantryman is nineteen years old. The average rank of soldiers killed in action is Private First Class.

People like Cindy Sheehan are ignorant. Not just to this war, but to the results of their idiotic ramblings, or at least I hope they are. They don't realize its effects on this war. In this war, there are no Geneva Conventions, no cease fires. Medics and Chaplains are not spared from the enemy's brutality because it's against the rules. I can only imagine the horrors a military Chaplain would experience at the hands of the enemy.

The enemy slinks in the shadows and fights a coward's war against us. It is effective though, as many men and women have died since the start of this war. And the memory of their service to America is tainted by the
inconsiderate remarks on our nation's news outlets. And every day, the enemy changes...only now, the enemy is becoming something new. The enemy is transitioning from the Muslim extremists to Americans. The enemy is
 becoming the very people whom we defend with our lives. And they do not realize it. But in denouncing our actions, denouncing our leaders, denouncing the war we live and fight, they are isolating the military from society...and they are becoming our enemy.

Democrats and peace activists like to toss the word "quagmire" around and compare this war to Vietnam . In a way they are right, this war is becoming like Vietnam . Not the actual war, but in the isolation of country and military. America is not a nation at war; they are a nation with its military at war. Like it or not, we are here, some of us for our second, or third times; some even for their fourth and so on.

Americans are so concerned now with politics, that it is interfering with our war. Terrorists cut the heads off of American citizens on the Internet...and there is no outrage, but an American soldier kills an Iraqi in the midst of battle, and there are investigations, and sometimes soldiers are even jailed...for doing their job.. It is absolutely sickening to me to think our country has come to this.

Why are we so obsessed with the bad news? Why will people stop at nothing to be against this war, no matter how much evidence of the good we've done is thrown in their face? When is the last time CNN or MSNBC or CBS reported the opening of schools and hospitals in Iraq ? Or the leaders of terror cells being detained or killed? It's all happening,  but people will not let up their hatred of Bush. They will ignore the good news, because it just might show people that Bush was right.

America has lost its will to fight. It has lost its will to defend what is right and just in the world. The crazy thing of it all is that the American people have not even been asked to sacrifice a single thing. It's not like World War II, where people rationed food, and turned in cars to be made into metal for tanks. The American people have not been asked to sacrifice anything. Unless you are in the military or the family member of a service member, its life as usual...the war doesn't affect you.

But it affects us. And when it is over, and the troops come home, and they try to piece together what's left of them after their service...where will the detractors be then? Where will the Cindy Sheehans be to comfort and talk to soldiers and help them sort out the last couple years of their lives, most of which have been spent dodging death and wading through the deaths of their friends? They will be where they always are, somewhere far away, where the horrors of the world can't touch them. Somewhere where they can complain about things they will never experience in their lifetime; things that the young men and women of America have willingly taken upon their shoulders.

We are the hope of the Iraqi people. They want what everyone else wants in life: safety, security, somewhere to call home. They want a country that is safe to raise their children in. Not a place where their children will be abducted, raped, and murdered if they do not comply with the terrorists demands. They want to live on, rebuild and prosper. And America has given them the opportunity, but only if we stay true to the cause, and see it to its end. But the country must unite in this endeavor...we cannot place the burden on our military alone. We must all
stand up and fight, whether in uniform or not. And supporting us is more than sticking yellow ribbon stickers on your cars. It's supporting our President, our troops and our cause.

Right now, the burden is all on the American soldiers. Right now, hope rides alone. But it can change, it must change. Because there is only failure and darkness ahead for us as a country, as a people, if it doesn't.

Let's stop all the political nonsense, let's stop all the bickering, let's stop all the bad news, and let's stand and fight!

***************************************************************************
I don't usually like forwards or political statements. They are usually sappy or irritating. Y'all may think that this is irritating, and if you do, I am sorry.  I found this to be both interesting and illuminating. It is written by a real soldier who was on the front lines. He died for our country. I think it is worthwhile to read what he has to say.

As far as what I am up to, I am about to enter finals week, so you will have to wait until after that for a real update!

   Hi everyone! Guess what? I am actually still alive. I have just been really, really busy. I would ask how everyone else has been, but y'all update your xanga's, so I know how you have been.

First, big news *drumroll* I now have my own apartment! I moved out of Mom and Dad's house about a month ago. Majorly big step for me. I think I mentioned that I got accepted to a pharmacy school in Charleston, WV. Charleston is about an hour away from where we live. I did not feel like making the commute back and forth everyday, so I decided to rent a place in Charleston. I found an adorable studio apartment about four miles from the school. The building is right on the Kanawha River, a couple of miles west of the capitol building. For a studio apartment, it is quite spacious. The kitchen is separate from the rest of the apartment and there is a separate dining area that I am currently using for a study. I don't have any living room furniture yet, but Mom and Dad are going to let me have their old stuff as soon as their new furniture comes in. I can't wait!

I started pharmacy school about four weeks ago. So far, everything is good, but I know things are going to get a lot harder soon. I have made several new acquaintances and a couple of great friends. I am looking forward to the next four years of my life, but at the same time, I can't wait for them to be over!

Anyway, with my not-too-shabby tuition, I got a laptop computer. I love it! I can finally put all my stuff on a computer, and not worry about my dad thinking I am slowing the system down. Of course, I still have to be careful, but I am really enjoying my newfound freedom. To demonstrate, I am going to upload some pictures that have been sitting on my camera for ages.

I can't remember if I wrote on here that I got to go see the Huntington "We are Marshall" premiere last December. While at the premiere, I got to see several of the movie stars including Matthew Fox and Matthew McConaughey. Here is the proof!

^Matthew McConaughey. No....he was not being arrested. The policeman was there to keep screaming women off of the actor. And again, NO....I was not one of them.

^Matthew Fox. He was awesome. He shook hands and signed autographs and posed for pictures with everyone who wanted to. He even told his PR person to wait while he talked with his fans. I love him. Unfortunately, he is married, has kids, and lives in Hawaii.

^Kate Mara in a slightly scan-dee-lous dress. Really, she should wear her clothes loose enough that they don't rip when she puts them on! She was also very sweet and kind to her adoring male fans.

Well...that was my brush with fame. I will end now, before everyone goes into shock because I posted. Au revoir!