Jesus, friend of sinners ✝️

If you’re a Christian and haven’t heard this song…. you need to listen to it ASAP.

I grew up in a SUPER Christian household and everyone was mean to one another… picked one another, talked smack about each other. It was exhausting actually and to this day, if anyone acts so pious I want to ask them what exact version of the Bible they read? Because Jesus didn’t condone anyone sitting on a high horse and looking down upon others because of their beliefs or behaviors.

Insulting someone is the least likely way to ever get anyone to care about how you feel and just because someone has different views than yours doesn’t make them wrong. Sure maybe they aren’t your beliefs but if it works for them ask yourself a question “Why are you so mad about it?” “Does it affect you?”

If the answer is no…. maybe you should continue living an awesome life and make people want to know Jesus because you’re so happy and amazing. That’s the key to getting people on board with your thoughts and religious beliefs…. not insults.

The following are the worlds to Jesus Friend of Sinners by Casting Crowns: (also if you haven’t seen them in concert you are missing out): Casting Crowns gets it…. and they are soooooooooo Talented.

Jesus, friend of sinners, we have strayed so far away.

We cut down people in Your name,

But the sword was never ours to swing

Jesus, friend of sinners, the truth’s become so hard to see.

The world is on their way to You,

But they’re tripping over me.

Always looking around but never looking up. I’m so double-minded.

A blank-eyed saint with dirty hands and a heart divided.

Oh, Jesus, friend of sinners,

Open our eyes to the world at the end of our pointing fingers.

Let our hearts be led by mercy.

Help us reach with open hearts and open doors.

Oh, Jesus, friend of sinners,

Break our hearts for what breaks Yours.

Jesus, friend of sinners, the one who’s writing in the sand.

May the righteous turn away and the stones fall from their hands.

Help us to remember we are all the least of these.

Let the memory of Your mercy bring Your people to their knees.

Nobody knows what we’re for. Only what we’re against when we judge the wounded.

What if we put down our signs, crossed over the lines and loved like You did?

Oh, Jesus, friend of sinners,

Open our eyes to the world at the end of our pointing fingers.

Let our hearts be led by mercy.

Help us reach with open hearts and open doors.

Oh, Jesus, friend of sinners, break our hearts for what breaks Yours.

You love every lost cause.

You reach for the outcast,

For the leper and the lame.

They’re the reason that You came.

Lord I was that lost cause,

And I was the outcast,

But You died for sinners just like me,

A grateful leper at Your feet.

T. Huglife’s World 🌎 View, Annotated Bibliographies, the FBI, and How Humans don’t Act Out of Vacuums 💫

Okay, if anyone was overwhelmed by any of the soundingly complicated things I said above…. that is how this whole week has felt.

You know that quote “To be honest, I’m just winging it. Life. Motherhood. My eyeliner. Everything.”

Well that was my life this week. I had no idea how to do an annotated bibliography or write a philosophy statement on my own thoughts.

Throughout my time in academia I have become super awesome at writing about other people’s thoughts but never my own. Per Joye and Huglife (2018)… 😆🦄💖insert their thoughts 💭 here.

School does a fantastic job of asking us about other people’s opinions but rarely asks us about our way of thinking. We all have an innate way of knowing things yet many times we spend so much energy focusing on other people’s work or opinions that we don’t realize we need to develop our own.

So my first time being asked about my opinion in academia was as a doctoral student 👩🏼‍🎓. I guess you finally get asked after being a student for almost thirty years 😆🥰🥳🦋. So this week I had to write about my worldview.

You should have seen my face when looking at the syllabus 😆🥳🦄🤩🦋 like

“MY WHAT?”

“Who cares how I view the world?” I thought. “Give me some research and reading to do…. I’m great at that but this sharing my opinion in an academic paper, It seems ridiculous and I’m not a doctor yet so my thoughts don’t really even count.”

So after this completely ridiculous dialogue played out in my head for probably a good thirty minutes…. I realized “people don’t act out of vacuums”…. that has been my worldview forever,… well at least since undergrad.

I attended Eastern Kentucky University for my undergraduate degree in nursing 🤱 (okay not that kind of nursing but that’s the emoji that popped up… and I laughed). It was hands down one of the most strength building programs I’ve ever been through (see how I’m dodging the negativity here that I so desperately want to express 😆💖🦄🥰🦋🥳). And while my whole nursing career ended up being the de-rail to this awesome life I’m living now…. I am super thankful to have had a professor who changed the way I thought.

I’m pretty sure this professor never really liked me (you see I’m kinda one of those stand up for what is wrong kinda folks… and that’s not super cool in the nursing 🤱 world). Anyways, she said something in class one day and it resonated with my soul “people do not act out of vacuums”.

I’ve always tried to understand people… especially people who don’t like me. I think that’s why I used to be such a great private investigator on social media. I seriously am not positive how the FBI didn’t recruit me. “Social Media Investigator at your service.” 😆😆🦄🦄🤩🤩🤩🦋🦋🦋💖💖💖 and yes if I didn’t like you at some point before now, I probably knew your mother’s sister’s best friend’s phone number and address.

I’ve always wanted to understand why people behave the way they do. “People don’t act out of vacuums”…. so let me FB creep on their mom to try and figure it out 😆😆🦄🦄💖💖

I legit wanted to comprehend why people engaged with myself and others so negatively in their life, friendships, relationships. I’ve always tried to be a good person and while I’ve not always succeeded … It’s always baffled me when people are hell bent on hating me.

This is the thing y’all, it doesn’t matter who likes you, doesn’t like you, FB stalks your sister’s girlfriend’s grandma 👵🏻 to try and understand you. Your vibe attracts your tribe. You have to be yourself and not everyone is going to like that. I’m here to tell you that it’s okay. Trust me on this one y’all. 😆😆😆

What you focus on you create more of…. so, I don’t know about you but I’m going to at least try to pretend that people who don’t like me don’t exist. I want more friends and likeminded people like you to hang out with. Also, it’s important to remember that “people don’t act out of vacuums” and if someone is behaving poorly and being mean and making fun of you…. there is a reason for their poor behavior and it has absolutely nothing to do with you. 🥳🥳🥳🦄🦄🦄💖💖💖🦋🦋🦋👩🏼‍🎓👩🏼‍🎓👩🏼‍🎓

Happy Veterans Day y’all! 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

There aren’t enough American flag emojis to actually show the appreciation I have for the country we live in. LIKE, AT ALL. 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸Not particularly because of our government and it’s inefficiencies but because of service members. People like the guy below (featured in USA Today and many other press releases), have hearts of purple. You notice how I didn’t say gold? Well below sits my husband (yes that’s him, I know he’s much more muscular now…..) but that’s the same guy I know. Smoking his cigarettes and being a bad ass and I’m so proud to call him mine.💜💜💜

As most of you know, I used to work on a hospice and palliative unit at the Department of Veterans Affairs. It was there, that Veterans Day became so special to me. As a veteran, I never felt my service was significant but some of the patients I took care of were TRUE AMERICAN HEROES 🦸‍♀️ 🇺🇸.

I just wanted to share with y’all the cutest veteran day picture we received to honor our sweet sweet patients. This little sweet letter came from an elementary school in Kentucky.
I hope this makes you smile as much as it did me. And on that note USA>>>>>> Bad Guys 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
I hope each of your days is as special as y’all!
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As many of you know

“Unicorns 🦄 aren’t Real and neither is The Chair Force (aka the Air Force)” 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

“Unicorns 🦄🦄 aren’t real and neither is “The Chair Force” is something I heard someone say the other day. It was in good fun, something we do as veterans, always making fun of the other branches. Picking on one another, saying our branch is cooler or does more awesome stuff…. “blah, blah, blah” in my Dracula 🧛‍♂️ voice. (Also if y’all haven’t seen the #HotelTransylvania movies you are missing out).

While it’s down right hilarious at times 😆 other times it’s in mean spirit, which I’ve never completely understood. I understand that we all feel loyalty to our branches but I don’t understand the need to brag that any of the branches are somehow “superior”.

I mean, what is superior, anyways? Is it how the Air Force gets better accommodations than most? Is it how the Marines have it so much more rough and get the older equipment and seem to have less to work with?

I mean, while some branches have it inherently harder, does downplaying someone else’s service to their country do any good? Does it somehow make our service more valid? We all end up getting the same benefits right?

I can’t BEGIN to tell you how much of a hard time I’ve been given for being in The United States Army.

Okay, picture this: Ballerina Tessa, that has platinum blonde hair (now pink), loves unicorns 🦄 (and they are real I’ll have you know 😆🤩🇺🇸), Everclear (the band obviously… I was 18 y’all), and glamour shots, decides to join what is deemed to be the second “hardest” branch in the military.

Then Tessa gets made fun of all of the time because she isn’t a Marine. Like wait, what? How does that work?

I’m sure if I was a Marine I still would not have been an “infantry marine” and I still wouldn’t have been “cool”. (Disclaimer here: I would have been awesome at Infantry, partially because I am so protective but more importantly because I can shoot with the best of them with LEGIT little to no practice ((I mean I don’t mean to toot my own horn but toot toot 🎺))

Okay, so there I am Soldier Tessa getting heckled for my choice to serve the country and feeling poorly about all the jokes being made. Did that help me? Heck no, it discouraged me. I tell people all of the time to join “The Chair Force” because I believe I would still be in if I had.

While the Army was an amazing experience for me, it doesn’t mean I’m going to blindly tell others to join without thinking about the individual. It’s all about what the person wants out of joining the military and what they can contribute.

Also, talking positively about someone in the Space Force (or whatever branch you want to put here) and their service doesn’t downplay your own service to this country.

As Veterans and Service Members, we should start being more appreciative of one another. Dividing into our branches and making fun of one another doesn’t further our cause as veterans. We need to stand united to fight for those that come after us. So we can make this the only cool and positive 😎 gang to join. #GoMerica

Disclaimer: I found out while reading research articles yesterday that the word vet comes from the Latin meaning: OLD 😆🤩🦄. So really we are just a bunch of “old” people, no wonder we don’t do politically correct very well. 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🌈🌈🌈🦄🦄🦄

Wind Chimes 🦄🦄🦄

My favorite place to go is to Garden Centers. They are amazing. So relaxing. I just love them. Plants just grow. They bloom where they are planted and I think that’s how we should be as people.

Stop with the complaints and show up and grow anyways. Okay the “shut up with complaints” is such a military mindset. We need to complain to make things better but seriously….. stop complaining y’all 😆🤩🇺🇸💖💜🦄🦋 Fix it or shut up, I say in my Drill Sargent voice.

Anyways, I’ve had my eye on these expensive wind 🌬 chimes at my favorite garden center. Well, we moved this week and low and behold my neighbor has the fancy one I’ve wanted.

I wish y’all could hear it chime. It’s beautiful. 🦄🦄🦄🦄

Animal 🦒 Crackers 💜🇺🇸🦄

It’s 2300 hours on a Wednesday and I just realized I haven’t had a meal 🥘. Of course, I was thinking about how hungry I am… and realized how the only thing I’ve eaten today is animal crackers that my sweet daughter Noir fed me.

Noir is the epitome of the person I’m trying to become. She hides in cabinets, laughs, and force feeds people animal crackers (because we all need to be reminded to eat and take care of ourselves).

We need more Noirs in this world 🌎 and I’ll be damned if I don’t strive to be more like her every day. 💖💜🦄🤩🇺🇸

#ROE or Rules of Engagement #DearJohnacorn 🦄🦄🦄🦄🦄

I married into a super “Christian” family (the second time) like my own. Christianity is hard. It’s that religion where you really agree with that Jesus dude, but the stoning people thing isn’t exactly how you want to live your life. I have always believed that people should be true to themselves… like “YOU JUST HAVE TO BE YOU”.

So, I’m working on this vulnerability thing, right??? and to be frank, my in-laws truly don’t like me. I stand up for myself, cuss, and don’t bow at the feet of anyone. As I like to say “You can take the girl out of the Army but you can’t take the Army out of the girl.”

Anyways, I have a sister-in-law (we will call her John) who decided to create a fake Facebook and email (okay, the irony is not lost on me folks…. this is my karma for being such a petty Queen my whole life) just to tell me how “fake” I was. The irony about that is not lost on me either😆🦄🤩🇺🇸.

She legit didn’t realize I could track her IP address and figure out who it was (bless her heart). Anyways, She called herself John, so the following is what John commented on my blog: (mind you I’ve never met John, just her children because they take every vacation with their grandparents): “you are one of the fakest people around. Good job trying to make yourself look perfect. 🦄🦄🦄🦄”) (also the lack of proper capitalization is not lost on me either).

Anyways, my husband engaged with his mother on the phone. Of course, she said she didn’t “not like me” but that she didn’t have any feelings towards me 😆🤩🦄🇺🇸 and that, y’all is America’s Christianity.

To my point though, this got me thinking about the rules of engagement. My whole life I’ve been taught to be nice when others aren’t nice, to silence my voice because Jesus said “turn the other cheek”. Well I’m a veteran and I think in terms of war.

You come over to Tessa Land and mess with me and my people…. well I have every right to defend myself (just ask Uncle Sam). As they say “you are free to do and say what you want… but you aren’t free from the consequences of your actions”.

Also who has the time or energy to comment negative stuff on positive things? John kept telling me “I needed help” today. And she’s right… I need help distancing myself from people like her and from people that don’t have my best interest at heart.

Lucky to have such a positive circle and husband. I hope one day she finds the same. 🦄🤩🇺🇸💖👩🏼‍🎓💜

People you may know 🦄

I’ve grappled with the eccentricities of Facebook since I became a member on November 4th, 2005 (13 years ago to this date to be exact). Today was my “Faceaversary” 😆 and as most of y’all know, I have used the heck out of social media.

  • Confession: I used to use Facebook to find out stuff about people who were mean to me or didn’t like me (and I was AWESOME AT IT… just ask some of those folks who think they don’t like me 😆🤩🦄) However, that was way before this Theologian that I am emerged.
  • I also have used it to keep up with all the awesome people I know from the military and awesome people all over the world that are doing great things for themselves and for this awesome universe we live in 🌎 🌍 🌏 💖💜🧡🌈🦄

Anyways,

As I am traipsing through Facebook today the “People You May Know” section of my Facebook popped up. I often see people on social media joking about how this section is filled with people that you KNOW but are POSITIVE you are not friends with… nor would you want to be their friend.

It’s almost like it’s a constant reminder of those people who don’t see eye 👁 to eye 👁 with us. I started to ponder how this feature could be useful and my advice is as follows:

•Add the people who you think don’t like you. We all need diversity and differing opinions in our lives and just because you thought they didn’t like you 20 years ago… does not mean they won’t like the person you are now.•

Also, what’s the worst that can happen? They block you or talk about you trying to “creep on them”. Like nah, sister friend Facebook is the creeper…. not me 😆🤩🦄. Add all the people, make as many friends as possible. In the words of the wise philosopher @iamjohnduff “they are judging you anyways, you boring bitch.” Also, it’s a huge compliment when people talk about you (this is one that I know is true but am still working on convincing myself of) 😆🤩🦄💖🌍🌎🌏