Kevin leaned over Jules and gently shook her by the shoulder. "Hey, sweetheart? Wake up."
"Mm, yes?" Jules stirred in her seat and sat up straight. She rubbed her eyes with the heel of her hand, grinning half sheepishly at her dad. "What's up, and what time is it?"
"It's nearly 3:00. Dave left about an hour ago to finish working on his sermon, and Miles and Greta left soon after. I wanted to let you sleep, and they wouldn't hear of waking you up, anyways. So, would you like to go home and sleep and then go to church in the morning? I can stay here with Dad."

Did you know that there was a war in our nation’s history which was the only time that an enemy fought into the capital and burned the president’s dwelling? If the US had won, Canada, which was then a British territory, would most likely now be part of our country. Had the British won, we would have possibly rejoined the nation after 30-some years of independence. It’s been called “Mr. Madison’s War," “The silliest damned war we ever had," and even the “Second War for Independence." All three of these descriptions are quite accurate.

It was like a movie
When I first met you
The moment moved me
I still remember
Your soul of beauty
It stole me away, away
The first few months of the year that I turned 18 were like magic. In February my courtship became official, and I felt like I was floating on clouds. Life was all sunshine and roses to me.
Richer or poorer
Better or worse
Could we be together
Could we make it work
If love is patient
And if love is kind
Oh God, give me a sign

There have been those days
That fall apart,
When I cannot stand
On this land;
As I waver in my heart
Though afresh I start,
My life tastes bland,
Filled with ashen greys—
There have been those days.

There are also days
That never end
When ambitions seem
Just a dream.
For the avenues that wend
Through the hues that blend,
They hold no scheme,
Just an endless maze—
There have been those days.

Oh, ye young gallant writers all
Come listen unto me
And I will teach the secret skill
Of writing poetry.

To make it plain I chose this theme,
To show the craft most clearly,
That POETRY IS LIKE ICE CREAM,
That dish men love most dearly.

Words correspond to cream you see,
But everybody knows
That words alone aren’t poetry,
That’s what is known as prose.

So cream alone is not ice cream
Ice gives it form and structure
In poetry the ice ‘twould seem
Is patterned pulse, or metre.

Love is a blessing
Love is a vow
Love is the reason we're standing here now

The little jaybird hopped once and fluttered out of my hands. I stood up to watch it fly away and grinned when it chirped back at me over its shoulder. I had rescued the half-frozen little thing from the snow yesterday, and fed it and kept it warm until it got restless and flew itself into the kitchen window. Once the bird was out of sight, I stumped back inside and made myself a cup of hot chocolate. Mom was at work, and I was "sort of" sick, so I got to stay home from school. Tomorrow would be Winter Break, so I basically had had an extra two days off school.

What is that metal shine I see,
The glint of steel between your teeth,
That colored grin you flaunt at me—
Have you an explanation?
Are they pasted gems with sticky stuff
Attached behind and underneath,
Or jewels that intend to bluff
Me into fascination?

I'm forgiven because You were forsaken
Almost exactly a month after I turned 16 in the April of 2014 I accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior and King, and I confessed my understanding that I could add nothing to my own salvation except for the sin I carried in my flesh. For the first time in my life I really thought about what Christ bore on the cross. More than the tempestuous pain and suffering; He bore the wrath of God poured out upon His head in my place. He cried out "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"
I'm accepted, You were condemned

Even worlds die. In a universe so vast, there is always, somewhere, a planet that is fading out and dying in the great darkness.
When a world begins to die, there are plenty of humanitarian organizations ready to sweep in to the rescue, evacuating the planet’s inhabitants and relocating them to a new home world in some other part of the galaxy. They are hurried away, and the world is left alone.
That is when I arrive.