Wholesome

Sometimes I get obsessed with an idea. Not like girls are "obsessed" with the Jonas Brothers, but like really obsessed. I think about it all the time. I want to know everything about this idea. My previous obsession was the phrase "no turning back, no turning back" from the song "I have decided to follow Jesus." These days the obsession is just one word, one single concept that I have decided is something I want to have: wholesomeness.

I had to figure out what it meant to be wholesome before I could be a girl that was known for wholesomeness.

Webster's said:
Wholesome–adjective

1.	conducive to moral or general well-being; salutary; beneficial: wholesome recreation; wholesome environment.

OK, I can work with that. I think Webster leaves out that to be wholesome, you have to be God-fearing. I think that it extends beyond well-being and into the ability to empathize and sympathize with all kinds of different people.

My grandmother is one of the most wholesome people I know and where I began to think that wholesomeness meant being able to put yourself in others' positions. When I talk to her, it's like she's a really wise college student. When my mom talks to her, it's like she's a mother of a 21 year old in 2009. It's amazing. Wholesome.

Another thing I think wholesomeness includes is strength. How can you be beneficial if you're falling apart? D.H. Lawrence once wrote, "We've go to live no matter how many skies have fallen."

In Panama, or actually any Hispanic country, there are these women. They're older, grandmothers probably, but they cook for you. When you go to them, they feed you. They feed you so much food that you're probably dying by the end of dinner. They cook over an open flame and get so hot that you have to feel bad. You didn't ask for dinner- they insisted that you sit and stay and eat. Then you look in their eyes and see pure joy. It's crazy to think that feeding strangers can give people joy, but these women are so happy to serve you. Wholesome.

I liked that the definition said "wholesome environment." It's easy in college to start stuff. Call an ex boyfriend, start drama. It's fun when you're bored. I think part of being wholesome (and mature for that matter) is being a peacemaker.

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the sons of God." Matthew 5:9

My daddy is a peacemaker. No matter who I have a problem with and who I have shot my mouth off to, Daddy can always fix it. Sometimes I let my 21 year old redheaded temper get in the way. Then, I need Daddy. Wholesome.

This doesn't solve my problem. Having a definition does not mean I will automatically inherit all these traits tonight. It does, however, give me something to work for. After all, I have decided to follow Jesus, no turning back...no turning back.