Everything I Need to Know About Life, I Learned From...

Anne.

As in, Anne Shirley. Well, Anne Shirley Blythe, eventually.


I’ve been re-reading the “Anne” books, from whence comes the origin of the title of my blog. “Scope for Imagination” is what Anne looks for in everything.

The books, penned by L. M. Montgomery, tell of the adventures had and lessons learned by Anne Shirley, a starry-eyed, dreamy, imaginative orphan, who brings joy into the lives of those who get to know her. I like to think of Anne as the Original Drama Queen. Anne—spelled with an E, mind you—has quite a knack for getting herself into humorous scrapes.

She also has a beautiful outlook on life. Anne sees the world as being full of glorious possibilities. And because of this, she brightens the lives of those around her irrevocably. Not that she’s a saint. She has a temper, and a tendency to let her imagination get the best of her. She has “down” days, like the rest of us, and she makes some mistakes that make you want to reach through the pages and shake her by the shoulders.

But as the books go on, we really start to get a glimpse of Anne’s—and presumably Lucy Maude’s—theology. L. M. Montgomery married a minister (as does one of her characters), and lived in a time and place where Christianity was taken for granted. But theology was strict, stolid, and “reformed.” People talk about things being “wicked” all the time—and they mean things like not thinking sacred thoughts on Sundays, and saying "darn."

Into this, Anne brings a fresh perspective. She says of her Sunday School Superintendent that he doesn’t pray as though he though God was really listening. Her idea of praying is to go into a field somewhere and look up to the heavens. As she gets older, she has some interesting (and radical, especially at the time!) ideas about Heaven. While her peers imagine it to be mostly like an Eternal Church service, Anne is fairly certain that there will be laughter, fashion (though it won’t matter so much), and the changing of seasons.

I love Anne. I feel certain—and grow more convinced every time I read the books—that we would be friends if there was every the possibility of us meeting. It sounds silly, but if there are fictional characters in Heaven (and I can tell you, Anne would probably revel in the idea!) I mean to have a good long picnic with Anne. She is, though fictional, from another time and culture, a Kindred Spirit. When I read her stories, I realize just how “Anne-ish” I truly am.

Interestingly, one of the over-arching themes of the Anne books is the idea of Ideals, and how you sometimes have to let them go. Especially in regard to love. I have a sneaking suspicion that L. M. herself must have been swept off her feet unexpectedly by someone she never expected to have any interest in. This is of great significance to me at this point in my life. I’ve mentioned some of my ideals when it comes to romance and relationships, and it is as if Anne is gently reminding me that they are not all as important as I have made them out to be. Which is good, all things considered.

However, if I were to count up all the things that Anne has reminded me, or taught me, this post would be twice as long. I suppose (grudgingly) that it’s not the kind of book that everyone would enjoy. But I still recommend it—them; there are eight books—to everyone. And don’t be surprised if I sound a little...effusive in my next few posts. Anne always has that effect on me.

I <3 Quiz

So…I have this bad habit. It’s not bad as in, it leads to poor hygiene or moral decay. It's just a humongous waste of time.

There are, I suppose, many bad habits which waste time. There are some good habits which also use up time. Some of them are justifiable. This one, I’m afraid, is not.

I like to take quizzes. I do. I "heart" quizzes.

You know, those stupid, silly, little “What is your Inner Color?” or “Which Harry Potter Character is Your Soulmate?” quizzes—I eat them up. I could spend hours taking them. One quiz leads to another, which links to another, and so on. They all sound interesting, with their shiny titles and unspoken promises of self-awareness.

Except that they’re not; they are just for fun, and many of them are written by fifteen year olds who can’t spell. But there are a few fun ones. I actually like the idea of making my own tests up. I actually did make one, the LOST personality test. That was fun. And also, very time-consuming. (There are seventeen different characters you can be).

It seems that the internet universe is now filled with these magic tests which reveal little tidbits about your personality. But I got my start from teen magazines. With titles like “Does He Really Like You?” and “Is it Love, or a Crush?”, I was sucked in. Inevitably, I discovered that it was easy to cheat on these quizzes; most of the scenarios they described I had never been in, and was unlikely to ever be in. Even with my overabundant imagination, it was tough to picture myself doing any of the three ridiculous options provided to me.

But you know what? As flawed and flimsy as these quizzes are, I do still enjoy them. I love when I am able to get a tiny bit of a definition of myself. It’s usually never 100% accurate, but when is it ever? Although I hate being boxed in and labeled on one hand, on the other hand, I sometimes start to feel too unique, too out there. That’s when quizzes come in handy—to remind me that God made me special, but He also made me able to relate to other people.

So, this isn’t really an advocation of quizzes; but if you have a favorite, feel free to share it! Also, I came across this Johari window thing that looks interesting. So—feel free to give your input there. To Self-Awareness!—even if it’s only being aware of the silly parts of yourself!

Your Brain's Pattern

You have a dreamy mind, full of fancy and fantasy. You have the ability to stay forever entertained with your thoughts. People may say you're hard to read, but that's because you're so internally focused. But when you do share what you're thinking, people are impressed with your imagination.

What Pattern Is Your Brain?

UPDATE: (10/31/06)
In my search for the perfect quiz, I recently came across this little gem. It's very enlightning.
It's called "The Ultimate Personality Test," and it's on a British site. Enjoy!

Sofa, So Good

Well, I’m all moved into my new digs. My pad. My flat. It’s great.

I don’t know if I mentioned it earlier, but there is a wall dividing my bedroom and my living room that is one big bookshelf. I love it. I love sitting on my bed and looking at all my books. (I have a lot of books. They took a while to pack and unpack, but they’re in now.)

Another perk is that I have my own bathroom. This is pretty significant. I have never ever had a bathroom all to myself before, and I have to say, it’s quite a pleasure. In fact, the only noticeable downside is that I don’t have anyone to blame the dirtiness on. It’s all me.

But the most amazing things about my apartment have nothing to do with the architecture or the things I brought with me. It’s the things that were given to me. Let me make this clear: I have a lot of stuff. But I didn’t have quite enough furniture to fill up an apartment. I didn’t have, say, a couch. Or a table for my kitchen. (Or hardly anything for my kitchen.)

Needless to say, I don’t have lots of extra moola lying around with which to buy said furniture. Which is why I feel so incredibly blessed right now. God provided for me. (Via my friend and coworker Mindy, who knows everything.) He provided people who were giving away furniture—for free. I received not one, but two couches for my living room. (They’re both sofa beds, to boot!) AND I got a table and chairs for my kitchen.

Let me explain my kitchen to you. It’s small. Very small. Which is fine, for just me. But I needed a fairly small table. I had already decided on the “theme” for my kitchen. (I like decorating in themes.) Then I heard about the table. “It’s a rounded square,” she told me. “It’s got a glass top. And the rest of it,” she said, “is bamboo.”

The theme for my kitchen? “LOST.” Jungles. Islands. Yeah. It totally works. It's perfect, actually.

Yep, God is pretty awesome. Couches, a table, a ricemaker, pots and pans, a reading chair, a lamp...I have no problem with second-hand stuff. And God knows that. (Now I just have to start saving up for my own computer, so I don’t have to wait for my turn….)

Come by and see me sometime…you can sleep on my sofa!