winning.

this has got to be one of the fastest posts of all time, since i have to get some sleep ASAP (i have a dawnie lecture at 7:45 tomorrow morning for which i'll need to resurrect myself), but i don't want to neglect this here blog... so how about i share a little about how awesome i feel round about now?

hi there, everyone... my name is Hannah and i'm a happy bunny :)

this song kind-of embodies that... so give it a listen and feel happy of yourself. just do it!

later, lovelies!

a kid with a bullet soul.

i've always been sort-of... different. i didn't really click with most kids at school; i had friends, and they were fantastic, but i didn't completely fit in. and i honestly didn't mind. i've always liked being a little off-centre, just a tad left of frame.

and then i started university.

coming to Rhodes was like being confronted with a million other "me"s. everyone is so different! everyone has opinions! everyone LIKES being original; everyone LIKES being "separate". but here's the funny thing: we still want to be united in our separateness. we still want to be accepted, loved. we still want to belong. we're just a little more demanding than the mainstream crowd.

don't get me wrong, there are hordes of mainstreamers at Rhodes, too. and they're some of the most legendary people i've ever met. this isn't a post about exclusivity and how much cooler all the "tweaked" kids are... it's a post about how, ultimately, we have a heck of a lot in common with each other. we just don't like admitting it, that's all.

aaaaanyway... i was thinking about Switchfoot's song Bullet Soul today (thinking about it instead of listening to it, because i don't have it on my iPod. laaaame.) and just loving it more and more as i thought about the lyrics, got to what i think is the heart of them.

we rise and fall together

our hearts still beat below

you can't stand by forever

you're a kid with a bullet soul!

who is this song directed to? the "friction makers". the "sparks". and i think that's us; all of us. we're not here just to take a back seat. we're not here just to stand to one side. it's time for us to seriously stand up, launch a couple grenades of faith, fight with the bullet souls we've been given.

so what do you say?

are you ready to go?

oh, and hi there :)

it's (kiss me now) spring!

"as to me, I know of nothing else but miracles."

- Walt Whitman

spring has sprung in Grahamstown. joy abounds in my heart! :) with the 1st of September being the Southern hemisphere's "official" first day of spring, i decided to wear my brightest, most flowery dress. the weather obliged - it was beautifully sunny and warm today, which made me sing - both literally and, um, metaphorically. (can one sing metaphorically? i mean, can one? ah well, who knows...)

e.e. cummings is one of my favourite poets of all time, and i love his fervour for springtime. although he hailed from the Northern hemisphere, which meant that his spring began in April, i still love his spring poetry and the joy it instills! here's my absolute favourite spring poem by the man:

when faces called flowers float out of the ground

and breathing is wishing and wishing is having-

but keeping is downward and doubting and never

-it's april(yes,april;my darling)it's spring!

yes the pretty birds frolic as spry as can fly

yes the little fish gambol as glad as can be

(yes the mountains are dancing together)

when every leaf opens without any sound

and wishing is having and having is giving-

but keeping is doting and nothing and nonsense

-alive;we're alive,dear:it's(kiss me now)spring!

now the pretty birds hover so she and so he

now the little fish quiver so you and so i

(now the mountains are dancing,the mountains)

when more than was lost has been found has been found

and having is giving and giving is living-

but keeping is darkness and winter and cringing

-it's spring(all our night becomes day)o,it's spring!

all the pretty birds dive to the heart of the sky

all the little fish climb through the mind of the sea

(all the mountains are dancing;are dancing)

how beautiful and lovely is that? it makes my heart grin :) i love the concept of spring - the newness that is born out of the dead ground, the life; the smell of jasmine invading the air around me as i walk around campus; bird songs and mellow evenings. the promise of warmth to a world that has known such bitter coldness. the miracle of it all. it leaves me in awe :)

happy spring if you live in the Southern hemisphere, lovelies, and if you're up Northern way, hope you stay warm!