life is a journey

This is a poem I stole from my adopted mother's blog
http://www.encouragedinheart.org/....it hit close to home so I felt I would share it with all of you...enjoy

LIFE IS A JOURNEY

Birth is a beginning
and death a destination
And life is a journey:

From childhood to maturity
and youth to age;

From innocence to awareness
and ignorance to knowing;

From foolishness to desecration
and then perhaps to wisdom.

From weakness to strength or
from strength to weakness
and often back again;

From health to sickness
and we pray to health again.

From offense to forgiveness
from loneliness to love

from joy to gratitude
from pain to compassion

from grief to understanding
from fear to faith.

From defeat to defeat to defeat
until looking backwards or ahead

We see that victory lies not
at some high point along the way

but in having made the journey
step by step
a sacred pilgrimage.

Birth is a beginning
and death a destination

And life is a journey;

A sacred journey to life everlasting.

~~ Author Unknown ~~

The Power of Friendship

Webster's dicitonary defines Frienship like this,

"Friend´ship
n.1.
The state of being friends; friendly relation, or attachment, to a person, or between persons; affection arising from mutual esteem and good will; friendliness; amity; good will."

In the short 24 years of my life I have had many "friends." Some friendships I have carried for a very long time, some I carried for a season. I was always taught that in life people come and go, things changes, friendships die and I have always wondered why. Why do friendships have to "die?" Now I understand that in every relationship we share with another person in life weather they be our friend or family member, there always comes times of strife and anger. If we all got along all the time it would make for a very boring life wouldn't you say?

But why is it in those moments of strife and anger a friendship is allowed to "die?" Isn't that the moment we should turn to each other, sit down and figure out the root of the argument and fix it together. Isn't that what friends do? Now I understand that I have made plenty of mistakes in my friendships and relationships, I am no where near perfect. I guess I've just never understood why some people can walk away from friendships so easily.

When you walk away from a good friend you take a piece of them with you. The moments that were turned into memories become treasures locked away and cherished within the walls of your hearts.

G. Randolf once said,

"truly great friends are hard to find, difficult to leave, and impossible to forget"

Do you believe that statement to be true? I know I do, I can remember friends from my childhood, people who may not remember me but are impossible for me to forget. I have friends today that I have known since junior high and even high school..Now wait a minuet, I realize high school was only 5 years ago in my world but take a moment to look back 5 years ago in your life. How many friends did you make then that you still carry today?

Another thing I have always wondered, why is it when we are young it is so much easier to trust a person with the most sacred parts of our hearts? Why is it we are so easily attached to people and then the older we become the more shut down our hearts become? Is it because we've learned that not everyone in life can be trusted? Or do you think it's defense mechanism we have created for ourselves over time so that we can see pain coming before it hits us?

One thing I do know is true friendship is sacred. It is special and these days very rare. I remember something my Uncle Wayne used to tell me before he died, He would always say

"Amber when you find something great in life hold onto it for dear life, fight for what is important to you and never give up"

Those are words I will carry for a lifetime because he was right. Great things and people are hard to find in life, true friendships that can withstand anything are rare, but when you find one you must hold onto it for dear life because once it's gone it may never come back.

So I encourage you today to sit back, look at the people in your life and decide why you call that person a friend. If they are important to you, tell them. If you are arguing with them, fight with all you have to fix it. Never give up on a person just because of a stupid fight, look deep within your heart and realize what that person means to you and why.

Thank you to all of the people in my life I call my friends. I am grateful for each and everyone of you.

until next time...love and peace

~Jason~

Coming out....again

This goes out to the people in my life that have always chosen to say they "Love me for me." I have a decision that has been weighting on my heart for a while now and it's time to make it known, so here it goes.....

I have recently decided to change my name for reasons of my own, my birth name as many of you know is Amber Lynn Gilliam...and my chosen name is Jason Lynn Gilliam. I have felt since I was a small child that I was created in the "wrong body." I have tried to explain it before, and tried to help people understand how I feel. I am done trying to explain it and done trying to "make" people understand. So at this point I am not asking you to understand, I am simply asking you to accept my decision, truly love me for me, or feel free to move on. I am comfortable being the person I was created to be and I am choosing to invite you to take part in my life or simply move on with your own.

I have forever been told by those closest to me that I am "loved for who I am" well to that I say, "if those words are truly from your heart then you will have no problem accepting my decision, and continuing to love me for me." I realize with this change many questions will come, mainly from my family and I am ok with that. Feel free to ask away. I also realize that with this decision I may lose a few friends and be "disowned" by some of my family. As much as that will hurt, I have come to the point that I am willing to accept that.

Please save yourself the waste of time and don't "preach" to me about this decision, because honestly it won't change my decision. Ask yourself and anyone that knows me, I have always been a person that makes my own decisions and is not afraid to stand up for myself. So honestly you will be "preaching" to the choir on this one. I know the effect that this decision may have on my life and I am ok with it.

So again I am expecting questions, so feel free to ask. Thank you ahead of time to those willing to support this decision I am making and good bye to those who can't.

until next time.....love and peace

~Jason~