Faith... and the lack of it.

Why are there so few believers these days? Why are there so few Catholics - let alone Christians in general - in the western world today? To be honest, I don't like it that much, but there isn't that much I can do about it.

I guess there are many answers to these questions. Maybe faith has something to do with dependency on objects. Materialism. Maybe there is some sort of an "inverse proportion" to this; the more materialistic a country or household is, the less faith there is. I don't know. I'm probably just talking nonsense. Here in Norway I notice that the number of members in the state church (which btw, is not Catholic, but rather Lutheran) is decreasing. Well, not that I'm complaining, though, 'cause there's lately been an increase in converts to the Catholic faith.

But anyways, that wasn't my point. :-P Generally there are less Christians in western countries than in eastern and so-called "third-world countries". Is it perhaps because we tend to see less of God's presence in everything we do because we focus so much on ourselves and our own moral judgment? Maybe, maybe not. We have more freedom to do as we please. We can choose which school to attend; we can choose which facts we are to know of; we can choose our own faith. Maybe this is why people turn away from Christianity.

Another possibility is perhaps that the common man doesn't want to be bothered to challenge him-/herself by confessing his/her belief in one faith or another. Maybe it's because religion in general is so far-fetched and so abstract to the human mind that one cannot be bothered to believe in anything because it's not concrete, or because it is too abstract to comprehend. Just consider the existence of God Himself. No one can prove he exists. No one can prove that Christ existed either, or that God is one, yet three at the same time. Maybe it is this notion that makes people dread religion. It's too difficult to fathom.

For me, I couldn't imagine living without believing in God. It (my belief, that is) gives me so much more meaning to life. I couldn't imagine going on day by day without knowing that life is meaningless; that there is no point in life after all. "The world was just created, because... well, it just was." I could never live with this opinion. I could never live with the opinion that the Big Bang was just created without any influence from some other life-giving force. All things have an origin, you know. Personally, I know what that origin is - or should I say, who that origin is. As for getting proof of His existence, I've had my share of that.

Maybe people just can't seem to sense an almighty presence in their lives. As I wrote earlier, I guess some people just expect a concrete sign from Heaven, like the sun dancing in the sky (as it did in Fátima, Portugal), or even Christ Himself descending from the sky on a cloud. The thing is, God is more cunning than that! I believe He expects us to be able to figure things out for ourselves when He appears to us. It could be through different things. A flower unwrapping its petals in spring; a new-born baby; a patient who gets to know that his tumor is benign; even a good grade at school. I think that if we notice the little positive things in life such as these, we'll notice more the presence of God in our lives and thus become better at believing. It's all in the small golden moments. And of course prayer... :-)

Forever contemplating,
Elise

(Inspired by a blog I recently stumbled across...)

Ode to Sgt. Pepper

One of my favorite albums. Experimental and fun! Very late 60's, semi-hippie style. Really catchy. Sitting here listening to it, now having gotten to the last song of the album, "One Day in the Life". Quite interesting lyrics, really. I mean, throughout the whole of the record. One would perhaps think that the whole album is just one big trip. I'm probably provoking lots of Beatles fans out there, but especially one song, "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds", could really have been based on such a trip. Though they always said it wasn't alluding to LSD or any other type of drug, I kinda think they were inspired by it. Take that as you will. NOT stating they were taking drugs on a regular basis at all (though every hardcore Beatles fan know they smoked pot in the Queen's bathroom...).

Another noticeable tendency about this album is that it explores many of the contemporary styles at that time; everything from contemporary pop ("Getting Better", "Lovely Rita"), songs reminding me of children's TV shows ("When I'm Sixty-Four") and early tendencies of modern rock (title tracks) to - as mentioned - surreal "visions" of a topsy-turvy world with a 'girl with kaleidoscope eyes' ("Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds") and a more religiously-inspired track ("Within You, Without You").

For me this is a pretty revolutionary album, as before that time no other band (as I know of) seemed to think of - or perhaps dare to - explore sounds, concepts and lyrics. (Correct me if I'm wrong...) As I see it, before that album came around all songs told a story about devout love, lost love, parental love, physical love, getting over love... Get my drift? It was all so saturated with the same thing over and over again. Love. One can understand it, though, since love was something everyone could relate to. However, there is more to life than just love. Enter Sgt. Pepper. What's so fascinating is that every song tells a unique story. Of course, there are love songs in the album, but as opposed other contemporary songs, there is deeper poetry in each of the tracks. Sometimes so deep that it really can be heart-wrenching (Cf. e.g. "She's Leaving Home"), while other times it can be almost biblical ("Within You, Without You"). Anyway, however you look at it, it's an amazing album and one of the most revolutionary ones ever made. So there.

Peace out!
Lonely Heart (surrounded by other lonely hearts, so thus perhaps not as lonely as presumed!)

Here's to boredom!

Yes, I have officially been devoured by the immensely terrible creature otherwise called Boredom.

Whilst exploring the deepest recesses of this hideous being (otherwise known as "hitting rock bottom" of Boredom) I came across a few undiscovered Norwegian words that I found rather peculiar indeed. My Norwegian friends will probably rejoice in my sudden (yet also perhaps inevitable) outburst of these findings, yet they cannot be hidden from any soul at all.

Oh. My. Gosh.

Am I crazy, or what?! This just proves I really am bored!!! Well, actually I am quite fond of absurdities in most forms, and a while ago I came across a Norwegian article on words that nobody's ever thought of before. In short, it was very much inspired by Pippi Longstocking... Anyway, I figured I'd have a stab at it myself, so here are the final results of my efforts (to English-speaking readers, you may skip this following part if you wish):


Overtrekksbasill: En basill som holder til i alle slags typer overtrekk, enten det gjelder sengetøy, godteri, iskrem, bilseter eller møbler. Om slike kan ha konsekvenser for helsen er også heller tvilsomt.

Superklyse: "Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it's SUPERKLYSE!" Superman, eat your heart out.

Polyesterbaluba: Dagny har salg! (Uff, den var stygg! Beklager så mye!) Enten det eller en typisk bemerkning for salg hos klesbutikker fra 80-tallet.

Sigarettlompe: Spis ei pølse samtidig som du røyker! En sånn en "2 in 1 deal". Eller rett og slett "noko attåt" nikotinen.

Bensinhumbug: For høye bensinpriser. Ebenezer Scrooge, anyone?

Klistermaur: Organisk lim.

Luftsau: Det fins jo luftslott, så hvorfor ikke?

Mursteinschizofren: Tør ikke engang tenke på hva det kan være!

Vorteklokke: Finn ut når din neste vorte kommer til å oppstå! Timing is of the essence...

Billeklype: En lite human måte å drepe uønskede insekter på, etter min mening. (Tenk klesklyper...)

Vannpyroman: Med andre ord, en veldig skuffet pyroman.


Crazy? Yes, most definitely.

Stupid? Oh yes.

Am I a lunatic? Nope.

I guess one should take this as a more light-headed deviation from all the heavier stuff I've written earlier. Personally I think we all need to go a little mad sometimes. It's just healthy! In my opinion it helps us cope with reality a whole lot better!

Anyways, let me give a little shout-out to Eilen, whose final exams in Spanish are closing in on her - slowly but surely (or perhaps a little too fast?). You're going to do great! I'm praying for you!

Abrazos a mi familia querida del ciberespacio!

Elise

Post-exam life

The title can be summed up in one word only: TEDIOUS!

It's strange, 'cause before you can say "exam's over" you seem to have gone from one extreme to another. Let me clarify: About a month before my Spanish exams I'd studied like heck and now, after I've finished them I'm suddenly left with nothing particular to do. Nothing meaningful, that is. The same thing happened during and after the IB exams. Before the exams all my time was used for studying, and then the day after I'd completed my last exam I realized that there wasn't anything that I needed to do anymore. In a sense I felt kinda empty, if you get what I mean. I could be bored and not feel guilty about it. I know this is strange, but this is basically what I'm feeling right now. Bored.

And here's another weird remark: I can't WAIT to go back to school again! It's only been like, two weeks since my finals in Spanish and I really am starting to feel bored. Let me rephrase that: I AM bored. I started to feel bored about 10 days ago. My mind seems to get increasingly blunt and my life is relatively lazy, if I do say so myself. To be honest, I'm just waiting to start working and afterwards drag my sorry butt to uni to sharpen up my mind a little. Keep myself occupied both physically and mentally. Well, mostly mentally. The physical part I can take care of whenever.

How my exams went? Well, I can't say I'm dissatisfied. Take that as you will. :-P I've only received my grade for the orals; I won't get my grade for the written exam until mid-June, or something. In the mail. And then I'll have to xerox it up and send it to Samordna Opptak along with some other stuff. Then there's just waiting. Waiting, hoping and praying (which I'm also doing at the moment). In the mean time I'll be working at Stavanger University Hospital for about 5 weeks - if my blunt mind hasn't failed me yet... Which I slightly suspect it has... Not good. Not good at all.

Anyway, this is going to be a relatively short blog. I've been cooped up inside this house far too long; it's time for me to get my arse out of doors and inhale the fresh yet pollen-infested air. Yees. Life is beautiful; especially when it's sunny, which it seems to be at the moment. Well, the sun seems to peek out sporadically between the clouds, so I'm going to take my chances and enjoy it while I can. For all I know, sunshine, wind and 10 degrees centigrade could be all summer we'll get...

Happy studying to all those who are still cramming, and to those who aren't, enjoy boredom! God knows we need to be idle sometimes! (However, not too much...)

Elise

Summer is here at last!!! (For now...)

OMIGOSH!

You can't believe how wonderful it is outside right now!!! A slight taste of summer, I reckon. Sitting here on our balcony and savoring/enjoying the nice weather - a completely cloudless sky, around 20 degrees centigrade... and wind. There's always a great deal of wind in my part of the country, especially here in the coastal areas. So it's kinda destroying all the sunny and warm weather now. But nevertheless, here I am, sitting in light summer clothes and listening to the Beach Boys with "I Get Around". To me that's really one of the ultimate summer hits!

Oooh! Bucks Fizz again! Weehee! Love 80's music! Can't say the same about the clothes, though. Hideous. Big mohair neon pink jumpers and neon green tights with Tina Turner's "What's-Love-Gotta-Do-With-It" hair put up in a ponytail right on top of yer head? I guess that was the idea of being subtle in those days... I mentally thank my parents for being a teenager in the right decade!

Anyways, studying Spanish is okay. The only thing I permit myself to read are either Spanish newspapers on the internet, a collection of Spanish poems by Pablo Neruda I got from a friend and my notes on grammar and facts about history, culture and info on Spain, Mexico and Argentina. For once I pat myself on the back for being so efficient! :-D Yet I feel I need to do more. Efficient doesn't seem good enough at the moment. I feel kinda guilty that I'm not doing more of it... Ah well, my results will tell if I've done a good job, or not. Crossing my fingers for good grades.

Anyways, for those who care reading this blog, you probably wonder why I chose "Effulgent Sempiternity" as part of my URL. "What the heck does it mean, anyways?! And why has she put such a stoopid set of words in her URL?!?"

Well, I'll tell you.

"Effulgent Sempiternity" basically means "radiant eternity". Cheesy and perhaps not a very usual combination of words, but I am very fond of big words and I wanted to express my views on life. So there.

My view on life in general is a positive one. I mean, of course there are wars and conflicts between peoples - and that has always been the case for us humans. However, when focusing on the more positive aspects of our existence we've actually found out a great deal over the past years. Take for instance Newton's Law of Gravitation. Einstein's Theory of Relativity. Heck, even the Pythagorean Theory! We've traveled to the moon and sent satellites that allow us to check how other planets are like. We've basically reached the stars.

As for matters here on Earth we've managed to categorize most of the species and can find out how certain species behave and go on with their lives. God knows what fantastic things we'll figure out in the future.

So there you go. Our eternity really is amazing. Radiant, even. It is hard to focus on these positive things when you see people starving in Africa, or rainforests in South America being destroyed, or conflicts in Iraq and Sri Lanka. But I guess sometimes you have to try focusing on the positive aspects of this world, like people obtaining their rights, standing up for themselves for a charitable cause or something to that effect. That's one way of keeping oneself sane, I guess. And sanity is something we don't seem to have much of in this world.

With this thought mind, I'm hereby going to end this entry. Gives you a little something to think about, dunnit?`

Elise