In the beginning....

 

Halooooooo fellow DMA-ers!! 

You know, as I was searching through my pictures to post on this blog, I found it really hard to pick one.  I sat motionless except for the occasional touch of a cold unfeeling mouse when I suddenly had an epiphany on what I was trying to do! Before beginning my own blog, I had looked at all of the other peoples blogs with pictures and I felt like they had done such a great job of saying where their heart was and focused on.  I felt like I was trying to find a picture to put a label on something that really didn't seem to fit.  In all of my pictures, either I was posing in the picture whether it was smiling or a goofy face for the camera, or sometimes I just wasn't paying attention at all to the camera or the camera angle just didn't seem to fit.  In every picture, something just didn't seem appropriate the context of this blog that was assigned to us. I then realized that part of me felt like I was trying to label myself and find a picture that was trying to catch all or even most of the different aspects of my personality.  I must point out that I am not one of those weird hipsters that says, "Oh, you can't define me! I am a free and individualistic personality and I do my own thing by sitting in my fav coffee shop on my mac blogging about the world and it's injustices blah, blah, blah...."  But there is a tone that statement that does ring true. We ARE all free and different.  There are so many aspects of each person that composes the beautiful symphony of personality, memories, love and dislikes, friends and people that makes someone who they are.  As for me, I am a tennis player/ sports junkie, film lover and analyst, friend, shy, dorky, music enthusiast, Star Wars lover, Christian, human rights activist, short film/youtube video watcher enthusiast, late night worker, a fantastic listener, advice giver, band geek, and that only begins the list! I couldn't seem to condense my personality and heart into a picture that could have said a million different words! How can one take their personality and who they are fit into a single blob in a pixilated world with so many other little and big blobs?!

Through this continuous cycle of thought though, I did realize one thing that happened to put everything together in one group that made me. The one thing that I did realize about myself while staring at the blinding white page of digital particles that compose my computer screen is that I love to love.  Everything about the word love I delight for! Agape is my personal favorite variation of the word meaning: divine, unconditional, self-sacrificing, active, volitional, and thoughtful love. I love to laugh and be happy and help others feel the same.  It makes me happy to see others smiling and excited. I am a person who does what they do with all they have.  My policy is either you do it 150% or why do it at all? And even if I cannot make someone smile, I know that the least I can do is listen to people's stories.  I would sit and listen for hours to those who have a good story to tell.  I would just go to Starbucks in my hometown and find the person sitting alone and go talk and find a good story.  And isn't what film is about? Loving the medium and loving the story and the action of telling the story?  It is why we do what we do?! Though the picture at the top I may not look the prettiest, or have the best expression on my face, nor does it even have my favorite quote.  But, I believe that it is one of the most honest pictures I have of me.  I am completely engrossed with the people around me and loving on them with all I have and it shows in every feature of that photo.  I love to smile and I love to be around those who help that smile come out!

I believe that God put us on this gorgeous earth to enjoy ourselves while doing our best to follow what God's plans are for us.  Though because of sin there is pain in the world, we cannot always be happy.  Even I, the ever optimistic, understand that.  But, beyond that, I find that the happiest people are not the ones with money, nor the ones with the most talent, nor even the ones with the most potential.  They are the ones that have found complete and utter joy in their lives.  The ones that are the happiest are the ones that find a little joy and amazement in the little things that are around them.  Finding beauty in the simple complexity of a single flower or in the look of love between an elderly couple walking in a park.  Fyodor Dostoyevski once said, "We talked of the beauty of the world of God and the great mystery of it. Every blade of grass, every insect, ant, and golden bee, all so amazingly know their path, though they have not intelligence, they bear witness to the mystery of God and continually accomplish it themselves." To me that sounds like a challenge! How can I find joy and bring Glory to God today such as the grass and every insect and ant have found a simple joy in doing what they each do best? And the more I think about it, in actuality we are all "hipsters." Not one single person fits into the same exact category as some one else.  The more we try to fit into what I like to call "The post it note box" the more we realize that we really don't fit in with those people.  We are all called to be different and amazing and beautiful Creations of God! The only person we should strive to impress is up in Heaven and He is the One who loves us just the way we are.

One of my favorite quotes is by Marianne Williamson:

"Our deepest fear is NOT that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are Powerful beyond measure. It is our Light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be?  

You are a child of God. 

Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to Shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."

 My name is Cassie Kasicki, I am a film production and History Education double major from Rockford, Illinois and I am so excited to be here with you all! And if you want to learn more about who I am, I have an open door policy in my dorm room lounge and I do happen to love coffee and tea :P Catch me after class and let's meet up and grab some sometime! :)

One of the video's that makes me smile everytime I watch it :)

http://youtu.be/8tJoIaXZ0rw