Thoughts on Kuei-Shan

It seems it would be so nice to become a Zen Master... Its hard to be straight forward sometimes. You dont want to hurt people's feelings lol... or you dont want people to know exactly what you're feeling, so u beat around the bush n kinda sorta tell them whats going on. I guess when you are unattached to things, like it says Zen Masters are, you dont care about what people think of you, ...and when you want to be straigtforward to someone, but u think it might hurt their feelings, i think u still can but just let them know you really aren't trying to hurt their feelings.. ur just telling it like it is.
I like the analogy of the clam... "As soon as she opens her mouth, you can see her intestines." At first i wasnt sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing... but i think its good because its like saying you see the person's "true colors" , or who they are on the inside, who they are truely. They speak the truth and is "without deceit or delusion." Wouldn't it be nice if everyone was like this? lol

Thoughts on Isaac of Nineveh

I like how brief yet meaningful this reading is. And the statment about "our Father in heaven whose love infinitely surpasses the love of all earthly fathers and who gives us more than we ourselves could ask for or even imagine" is so true. I mean, there's so much we have to be thankful for... health, strength, right mind, love from friends and family, etc... I think a lot of ppl take these things for granted... and its actually pretty easy to. And i think also thats why God lets "bad things" happen to ppl... like what we were talkin about today. Like if a kid has cancer, of course thats a tragedy and a horrible thing... but, when things like this happen, it SHOULD make those who have kids appreciate that their kid has their health n strength... And also, i think that things like that are just a part of life. I dont believe getting cancer (for example) is evil. It's just something that happens sometimes with the cells in our body. Some ppl might ask "Well why doesn't God fix it?" ... Sometimes He does. And sometimes He doesn't. But u cant question God. If you truely trust in Him, you don't need to ask "why?" because you know that He is right in everything.

Now if a kid gets abducted and killed, i believe that's evil. ... but you still cant question "Why did He let that happen?" Maybe its so that people can be aware and keep a better eye on their childern, Maybe the child woulda grown up to be a killer themself, who knows.

Thoughts on Rilke

I liked this reading too. It tells you the importance of patience, which sometimes is something i really need to work on. It says "dont search for the answers, which could not be given to you now, because you would not be able to live them.... Live the questions now. Perhaps then, someday far in the future, you will gradually , without even noticing it, live your way into the answer." I've learned to not really worry about whats in the future, because you never know what's going to happen. Tomorrow might not even come for you. And i mean, its good to make a plan, have an idea of what you would like to happen, for example plans with finishing school, buying a house, etc., but be able to be flexible if things dont go as planned. maybe there's a better plan instore for u....
I notice i get impatient with little things though... like if we go out to eat n the food takes forever lol or sometimes if we're planning to go out, and im ready, but then someone else isnt ready... lol i'll be like COME ON!!! haha but i think im more patient on a larger scale. Which is probably more important.

Thoughts on Hugh of St.Victor

I liked this reading. Basically it says to enter into yourself, and you'll find God. It says that "He who can, as it were, enter into himself and, going deeper and deeper, pass beyond himself, truly ascends to God. But a man, through the senses of his flesh, goes out to visible things, desiring what is transitory and perishable, he descends from the dignity of his natural condition to what is unworthy of his desire." So like we were talking about before, let go of your desires, and you'll find happiness...
None of these things in the outer world can truely make us happy.... i think love is what makes us happy and God is love... Love can't be bought, its not a material thing. Its more than an emotion though,... i believe.

Thoughts on Thomas Traherne

I liked this reading because to me it just seemed like it flowed. The discriptions were beautiful and it just seemed like poetry. For examble... it says "Your enjoyment of the world is never right till every morning you awake in heaven; see yourself in your Father's palace; and look upon the skies and the earth and the air as celestial joys: having such a reverend esteem of all as if you were among the angels." To me that just sounds beautiful, even if you dont try to figure out the meaning of it. If you just listen to it said aloud, it just sounds pleasant. And if you try to imagin the images it just looks beautiful. Awaking in heaven, being among the angels,... Also i liked the sentence "You never enjoy the world aright till the sea itself flows in your veins, till you are clothed with the heavens, and crowned with the stars." The image just sounds like a powerful image, like an image of a god.

Thoughts on Abi'l-Khayr

I liked this reading. I thought it was interesting the way it said explained that before God created bodies, He created souls that He kept beside himself, and He shed a light upon them, and that "the souls remained all that time in the light, until they became fully nourished." and that "Those who in this world live in joy and agreement with one another must have been akin to one another in that place." I've never thought about our souls like that, but its very interesting. Maybe that's how we sometimes feel like we've known each other before. But who know's really exactly for sure where our souls came from or how we were really created and all of that. I still like that idea though. I was watching a re-run of Silvia Brown on the Montel show, and she talks a lot about reincarnation... i dont know but just makes me think. I mean, as a Christian, i wasn't really brought up to believe in reincarnation, but who knows. Who really knows? So i try to be open minded to a lot of different religions and beliefs.

Thoughts on Novalis

I like some poetry, especially the kind that can have different or deeper meaning that what is seen on the surface when you read it. This reading reminded me of it, and I liked how he said "The more poetic, the more real." I think this can be true, because in our minds, we percieve our lives, from which we get our emotions and feelings... so poetry is like that. Something written on paper that may have one obvious meaning, but if you look deeper, it has a bigger meaning, probably one that can create certain emotions.

I liked the line, "We are close to waking up when we dream that we are dreaming." I've dreampt that i was dreaming n then i woke up lol so i agree with this. (This would be the obvious meaning of the line) But i kno that this has a deeper meaning, and i like that it has one. But who knows, maybe it doesn't. But im jus saying that it can have a deeper meaning for some. And i've thought about it, and i kinda understand it in another way... but i cant really explain it in words right now lol.

Thoughts on Albert Einstein

I really like the part of this reading when it says "A human being is a part of the whole that we call the universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts, and feelings, as something separated from the rest - a kind of optical illusion of his consciousness." I think this is true, that we are a part of something much bigger than ourselves. But also that alot of what we percieve can be misleading... like... i guess everyone one thinks that what they saw or experienced is right and true, its "what really happened"...like for example a crime scene. but there could be so many different stories and descriptions and perspectives, that who really knows whats true and what really went down? also, our emotions can be great at times, like when your happy or in love or whatever. but they can also be horrible, such as feeling jealous, or mad at someone. These bad emotions can lead people to hold grudges and not forgive.... My ma tells me what her ma told her... "its all in your head". So i think about that during stressful times or depressing times, because i really think we can have control of it. (its hard but we can control it,.... because its our minds... ionno if that makes sense lol)

Thoughts on The Hermetic Writings

I really enjoyed this reading. I like its vastness...? i guess you could say. lol i mean, to me, its saying that there's no limits. Like when it says "Step beyond all time and become eternal" and "realize that nothing is impossible for you" and "Make yourself higher than all heights and lower that all depths" and "you are still in the womb, that you are young, that you are old, that you are dead, tha tyou are in the world beyond the grave". wow. lol.. and then at the end it says "then you can percieve God". So basically its showing that He's everywhere, whenever, however, everything. So if you can somehow be this way (i suppose in your mind) then you can percieve God.

I also like the sentence "Wanting to know God is the road that leads to God" and "Who is more evident than God? That is why he made all things, so that through all things you can see him." I'm not quite sure why i like it, but i just do. A lot.

Thoughts on Maximus of Tyre

I liked this reading. I liked how it says "But we, being unable to apprehend his essence, use the help of sounds and names and pictures, of beaten gold and ivory and silver, of plants and rivers, mountian peaks and torrents, yearning for the knowledge of him, and in our weakness naming all that is beautiful in this world after his nature - just as happens to earthly lovers." To me, it shows that no one religion or person is able to really see or know God, so we choose things that are beautiful to us to in a way represent him. It kinda incorporates all religions because some religions worship nature, some idols, some the person in the paiting, etc. And really God is more than all that. But i guess it's just a way for us to get a grasp of what He might be.

I think in the end, he says basically that it doesn't really matter how a person remembers God, just so that He's remembered and that the person also remembers love. I think this is important too, because i think a lot of ppl go to church and they really just go because they think that's how they'll be saved (from hell). But if they dont remember God n remember to love, then its kinda pointless... right?

Thoughts on Dhu'l-Nun Al-Misri

I liked how it was showing that through God you can do anything. Like when it was saying all these scenarios.. like "If you meet someone who is sick through separation from me, heal him; or if he is a fugitive from me, seek him out; or if he is afraid of me, reassure him,..." etc.

Im not really sure of what else to say for this one....

But i really enjoy this class. i like learning about differnent religions and how they came about and what they believe. i'm a pretty open minded person but this class helps me to be even more open minded.

It's funny how all the religions are very similar at times... its almost like u wanna just take all those similarities, group them together, n live by that. haha but everyone has they're own beliefs, and that's fine. its a beautiful thing.

Man i'm having a hard time with this one.... im hungry, gotta go do my hair... n try to make it to class on time. i hate being late,.. it makes me feel like the teacher thinks i dont care about the class and i do. i jus be forgettin stuff when im rushing and then somehow im jus end up bein late most of the time. Sry Jason! lol i think u've found it in ur heart to forgive me tho... cuz u dont be lookin all mean or irritated when i come in 5 -10 min late lol. Thanks! haha

Thoughts on Abu Yazid Al-Bistami

I like how in this reading, they say basically that ... you and God should be one. And that you should surrender yourself so that it's no difference between "I" and "God", its just God. It said, "For thirty years God was my mirror, now I am my own mirror. What I was I no longer am, for 'I' and 'God' are a denial of God's unity. Since I no longer am, God is his own mirror. He speaks with my tongue, and I have vanished."

This reading, and the Al-Misri reading were kinda similar, cuz they shared the same idea of unity with God. I guess they're just saying, dont worry about anything; if you're united with God, everything will be fine. Surrender yourself to Him, cuz He's all knowing and he created everything, so there's no reason to not trust Him. He knows what He's doing and what needs to be done.

And i think that's true too.. It's just kinda hard to grasp the idea that yourself n God are one... i guess its saying just live through Him... like completely surrender yourself to Him. I guess it's difficult tho cuz us as human beings, especially in this society, like to think that we have our own individuality. And i mean, we all are different, but we're also so much alike. But i guess if we all did surrender to Him, n lived through Him, there'd be no problems...

Thoughts on John the Evangelist

I thought this reading was nice... Short, but nice lol. I liked the part when it says "God is love." I believe God is love too... cuz when you have love in your heart, it's probably the best feeling in the world. When people walk around with hatred, hating on others, arguing, gossiping, making fights, etc., it does them no good. It causes a lot of stress and depression and just a lot of crap they dont have to worry about.

I know it's hard to forgive those who do you wrong, or who make you mad, or say something bad about you, but when you find it in your heart to forgive them, it makes you feel better, like a stronger person, and then you just forget about whatever made u feel bad. It's hard at first, because you just want to get revenge. But when you think about it, that's having hate in your heart, and its causing you to stress over how to "get them back". lol. If you just think to yourself, "they didn't really mean that" or "they're having a bad day and took it out on me by mistake" or even those who intentionally try to hurt you, just know that they know not what they do... i dont know if that makes much sense to some... basically saying that, if someone does something to hurt you, yea they know its hurting you, but they might not know how much it is hurting you, otherwise, they might not even do it. that's just an example, ...it still might not make much sense, but i understand it in my own way.

Thoughts on Jesus of Nazareth

In this reading, it has the Parabole of the Prodigal Son. I like this story. It was a story of a father who had 2 sons. The younger son asked for half of the estate, so his father gave it to him. Then the son exchanged it for money, and took off somewhere and live a life full of sins. When he realized that what he was doing was getting him no where, and that no one would feed him where he was, and that even the hired men of his father got fed, he decided to go back and apologise to his father. He said "Father, I have sinned against God and against you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Let me be like one of your hired men". His father, immediatly took him in without a hesitation, and forgave him, and fed and clothed him. The other brother was upset that his father forgave his brother, because he obeyed his father all this time and his father never kill a calf for him n made merry... So the father said, "Child, you are always with me, and everything i have is yours. But it was proper to make merry and rejoice, for your brother was dead, and he has come back to life; he was lost, and is found."

I really like this story. Because its so much more important that the brother who was "lost" and who lived a life of sin, recognized his mistakes, and came back to his father and apologized. The other son was always with him, so im sure the father appriciated that and was glad of that, but when your son leaves and does all things things that he prolly shouldn't be doing, its probably the best feeling to a parent (who's forgiving, cuz not all are that forgiving lol) when they come back home, and are truely sorry for what they have done, and who want to live right again.

Thoughts on Hui-Hai

I really liked this reading. It makes a lot of sense. I like how in the beginning it talks about all these things that the monks try to do... "trying to empty your minds, straining to attain enlightenment, blabbering about your understanding of the Buddha Dharma" and then it says "all this is a waste of energy". I think this is true. And i think that this reading was saying to just be yourself. Do what feels right to you. Dont try to be something you're not. You're already equipt with everything you need.

I like the question and answer part of this reading too. "Dwell upon non-dwelling". Dont dwell on the past, because it is already gone. Can't be changed. Dont dwell on the future, because it isn't here yet. It might not even hold what you think it holds... And then, dont dwell on the present, because it it here and gone in a flash. I guess it just is constantly changing. So dont dwell on it! lol.

I like how it says "...the mind was never born and can never die.... and this is the form of our original mind, which is also our original body." kinda gets you thinking like... was our mind in existance b4 our bodies? maybe it shudn't be thought of in that way. Because if you think of it like that, your trying to make it too logical, and i think its something that just cant be logically explained. Like God. lol. Maybe this is our spirit/soul. Some mite believe we dont have one, but i believe we do. And maybe its not so separate, like our bodies are. Maybe somehow they're all kinda connected... but who knows.

Thoughts on Pai-Chang Reading

I liked this one because, like it says in italics, it's "short and sweet". Although its "short and sweet", im not quite sure i got the full meaning out of it. Probably because im not sure what they mean by sage.

I think when it says "there is no mind and there is no truth. You are simply free from unreality and delusion", that it means, if you realize that there isn't really a mind, there's no thought and perception of how a person might think things are. They just are. And if there's no truth, then there's no lies or untruth... so again, things just are. You're free from unreality because, if there's no truth (or what we call reality), then there's nothing to be "unreal". And when things are a delusion, its when you think something is "real/truth" but in reality, its just you thinking that. It's neither true/real or untrue/unreal. it just is.

When i went back over that paragraph and read it, it made me feel confused. But when i was writing it, it makes so much sense. I think that's how these writers are.... What they write makes all the sense in the world, but the person reading it may not get it the first time through; maybe not ever.

Its kinda like... what is real? and what is fake? what is it that makes something real or fake? i think its our own perception on things. if we learn to let go of this perception, we can see that things just are, and not worry about things. (and when i say are or is, i dont mean the opposite of aren't or isn't. i dont know of any other way to put it in words tho...)

Thoughts on Dogen Reading (The Practice of Meditation)

Out of this whole Dogen reading, this was the part that i understood the most. it explained how to meditate, which to me, doesn't seem like its too hard to do. I haven't deliberately tried it, but i think i might have done it before unintentionally. Maybe not full meditation... like i wasnt sitting like they said you should sit, or i wasn't in a necessarily clean room lol. but it was quiet (of course) and my mind was clear.

I think that in a way, i do this most nights when i need fall asleep. It use to be that if i couldnt fall asleep, it'd worry me, and that would keep me awake even longer until i was jus exausted. And then after that phase was over, i went through this phase of it being hard to sleep because of little noises i'd hear through the house. I'd hear cracking (like the house settling), or i thought i was hearing movements in my room.... kinda scary! I think sometimes i'd let my imagination get outta control because a couple nights, i could hear someone walking in the hallway, as if they were creeping around, but really it was no one. I'd sometimes feel like as if there was a presence in my room, and one time it was so strong that i got up and went into my parents room and slept on the floor. Can u imagine? i think i was 18 or 19... Omg... there's just so many stories, and i dont think they're all my imagination, if u kno what i mean..... But anyways back to the story lol.

So i figured out one nite, (after many nights of restlessness lol), that if i clear my mind of ANY thoughts, (thoughts of what happened that day, hunger thoughts lol, even thoughts of being somewhere pleasant, like a field on a nice summer day, or out on the water just floating on a raft), that i would just fall asleep. And it worked. And now i do it everytime i fall asleep. (Sometimes i still hear stuff, or feel like someone's there, but i just try not to think about it, and i hurry up n clear my mind so i can fall asleep faster lol b4 its starts to worry me lol)

Thought on Dogen Reading (Manifestation of the Truth)

I think that out of all the Buddhism readings, this is the one that i understood the most. And this was really really hard to try to understand. lol. I feel like... the reading is trying to give all these analogies and examples... and it just confuses me, and i then i think... are they trying to confuse me so that i can realized something else??? like that im confused and i dont need to be?? lol I feel like my mind is starting to fry... from trying to interpret everything they say haha. So I just give up in trying to understand it, and try to just look at the big picture.... (?).

The other Buddhism readings were just like words on a page that made since gramatically, but when i read them, i could understand what they were saying, but not get the deeper meaning of it... (if there was any deeper meaning), and so i forgot what the other readings were about. i dont think this reading will stay with me for much longer lol... so i decided to write about it A.S.A.P. after i read it lol. I'd like to fully understand what it's saying, but it just seems like too much thinking....

The funny think is... just a second ago, a HUGE question mark just popped in my mind hahaha that's how confused i am about all these buddha readings. I think when the teacher is explaining it to us, it's easier for me to understand. I'm not big on reading anyways.... I think if i hear somthing its easier for me to understand.

Maybe i'm making this harder than it's suppose to be. Maybe this is what they want me to realize...? lol

Thoughts on Yehiel Mikhal of Zlotchov

I liked this reading...
I think its true... that we're nothing without God.
I like the points that it makes... "When they are not attached to God but to earthly things, they think that they exist, and they are great in their own eyes. And how can they be great, when one night they exist, and the next night they die?" It goes to show that we really aren't that great. lol Even with our medicines n technology, it doesn't save us in the end. We all die one day. But i think if we believe in God our souls will be saved.. we'll live eternity through Him.

I think that us, being part of His creation, are great. I'm major is nursing, and in my Bio classes, like physiology and anatomy, it is so amazing to me how He created us. The way our bodies work is sooo amazing to me. Like, how did He know to put this or that in there? or to make certain cells do certain things?... etc. N then its like DUH, He created it! lol. He created everything, so He knew how to make it all work together. We can't live without Him. Even those who don't believe in Him still come from His creation; a woman and a man.

Thoughts on Shmelke of Nikolsburg

I liked this reading...
I liked how it's saying that even if someone does you wrong, you still need to love them and forgive them. I think this is true... They can't help it if they're wrong... like it said,"...And will you have no mercy on Him, when you see that one of His holy sparks has been lost in a maze, and almost stifled?" We're all wrong at some point. I'd want someone to forgive me if I did something to hurt them or offend them. Maybe i was having a bad day... Maybe my perception of the situation was off... Maybe there was a misunderstanding... There's so many reasons that people may be wrong... But i feel like who are we to judge what's wrong?

And like it was saying in the beginning, "How do we deal with the wicked-the tourturer, the rapist, the terrorist, the child-molester - and with the hatred and greed in ourselves?"... i mean, i think we need to forgive these ppl... even though they've done so much hurt upon ourselves and others... and i think it's easier said than done. But i believe that it can be done. Umm... im not sure what to physically do with these people, like put them in jail or something lol to keep them away from children .... i mean, we wouldnt want serial rapist or child molester to keep doing what he's doing... but i definately think we should forgive them.

Thoughts on Ramana Maharshi

This one was a little bit harder to understand at first. I had to read some of the lines over again, and sit there for a minute to try to understand what it was saying. But when i understood, it made sense.

At first, i didn't understand the ending when it said "When you pray for God's grace, you are like someone standing neck-deep in water and yet crying for water. It is like saying that someone neck-deep in water feels thirsty, or that a fish in water feels thirsty, or that water feels thirsty." But after i read it about 3 times, it finally got through to me.

I interpreted it as... God has already given you his grace. It's up to you to learn how to discover it yourself, and once you discover it, you'll know it was there all along.

I'm not quite sure what else to say about this reading... I felt as if it was a little too "look within yourself"... i mean, i believe in that too, but there are other things in life that make me happy and bring me joy... other people and things and situations. I believe God is in us, but I believe He's also in other things.

I felt that the example of "an ordinary Christian will not be satisfied unless he is told that God is somewhere in the far-off heavens, not to be reached by us unaided" isn't exactly true. At least not for all Christians. I believe that we can "reach" God whenever, wherever, through ourselves. We can pray on our own and talk to Him on our own n ask for forgiveness on our own, and not have to go through a priest, or someone "high" in the chruch. I believe God sees all, knows all, and everything else. Maybe I'm not the "ordinary Christian". lol.

Thoughts on The Upanishads

This is such a powerful reading. I believe this reading to be true. I believe God is everywhere, within everything. But I also believe that we could never be able to understand Him. It's something that our minds can't comprehend. Like it says in the reading, "That which makes the mind think but which cannot be thought by the mind - that alone is God, not what people worship."

And it makes so much sense to me, that "those who think they know him, know very little", because how could anyone ever know something so grand, so powerful that He/"It" has created everything in the universe? How could we ever understand that? We can't.

Yea, God is love, life, and peace, but He is so much more. He cannot be fully described in words, not even in thoughts. I'm Christian, but i feel open to other thoughts of God, because i know that not even the whole Christian religion can explain Him. I think of God as The Creater, Love, The Great Spirit, my Heavenly Father, and something so grand and powerful, and so much more.

Maybe this is why we have so many different religions, because God is so much more than just the word "God". He's so much more, and therefore, many ppl have different interpretations of Him/"It".

We took my dog to the vet yesterday, and he was put to sleep. It was the hardest thing i've ever had to do in my life. I held him in my arms the whole time. The doctor put the needle in his arm, and my dog looked up at me, and the whole time, kept complete eye contact with me. While this was happening, i had a feeling come over me. It was so powerful, that i can't ever really n truly explain it. I can kind of describe it as trust, love, peace, and much strength... but it was so much more than that. It was so powerful, that i couldn't even cry. I didn't cry. The sun was shining in the room, and this feeling that i was feeling was so powerful and undescribeable. I was happy that I could hold my dog in his last moments, that i was the last person he saw, n that i was there with him all the way to the end. Some might think im crazy, but i feel like he'll always be around me. In spirit.

Thoughts on Chief Seattle Reading

I also liked this reading. It made me thing of many personal things/experiences, that aren't directly related to the reading, but in a way, are still related. I dont know... this one really made me think, and i cant really put my thoughts into words...
I liked how he said that when his people die, they stay with the earth because they love it and respect it. And i liked the end when he was saying that the white man will think he's alone, but he'll never be alone, because the souls of the Natives will always be around. And for some reason, i really like how he says "the dead have power too". Im not quite sure what he meant by that, it could have many different meanings... maybe he meant that they'll haunt people to come, or maybe they'll be able to control nature (natural disasters) or both lol i dont know.
It made me think though, when he was talking about the white man's God not loving the red men... it made me think like... my God loves everyone. but i believe in a "white man religion"...? (Christianity)... I mean, there are a lot of people today who are christian and who aren't white. but they believe that God loves all races and all people...
The way Chief Seattle portrayed the "white man's god" was like.. a mean god. I dont think of my God as mean... I think of him more loving. But i can understand why he would think that.
I like the way the Native's think of the Great Spirit though... their "religion" seems a lot more loving and respecting/appriciating of earth n life and more enjoying of life. seems PEACEFUL. :)

Thoughts on Sa-go-ye-wat-ha Reading

I liked this reading. What I liked was that the Native Americans showed the white men another point of view that was just as good as the white man's (if not, better! lol) I liked how he explained to the man that the white men came over to America to enjoy their religion, but now were trying to force it upon the Natives, and how that wasn't right. I feel like it may have opened the man's eyes a little, make him think like,"dang, we're doing the exact same thing that they were doing to us over in europe..."
I wish everyone could have an open mind about religion like that. I think this world would be more peaceful. I love God and I love when people are able to find a religion or something they believe in, but i just dont like it when they try to convert me to what they believe. i know what i believe.
I remember one of my good friends from my second year of high school. She was not really religious when i met her, but i didn't care. One day i moved up here to sacramento. me n her (she and i) kept in contact though. One day she told me that she had started going to church. i thought this was great, because she was so excited about it. But one time she called me, and i hadnt spoken to her in a long time, and i just wanted to catch up on things... but she started preaching to me and telling me that i'm a sinner and this and that and she went on and on for about an hour. While she was preachin to me on the phone, i was in downtown Chicago on vacation and i was thinking to myself, dang, if i'd had known she was going to preach to me, i wouldn't have picked up! I'm christian, and that's the religion she joined, but what she was trying to preach to me wasn't exactly what i believed in. and i mean, that's fine for her to believe a certain way, but i know what i believe, and i dont need to explain it to anyone, or try to convert anyone, or be converted to something else by anyone. i still was her friend after that... i was just afraid to call her. lol so we kinda lost touch. =/