Florence Nightingale was born in Italy on May 12, 1820 and died in 1910.  She is a British nurse and hospital reformer who is known as the founder of modern nursing. Nursing before the time of Ms. Nightingale was considered low grade and uneducated work. Today because of the works of Ms. Nightingale, nursing is viewed differently it is viewed as one of the most respected profession in the world.

Ms. Nightingale was inspired to study nursing because of all the sufferings she saw while traveling Europe with her parents. After the Crimean war broke in 1854 Nightingale was stimulated by the newspaper reports about the poor care and archaic sanitation methods provided by the British hospital in Turkey. Nightingale was touched and decided to make a difference and change the situation.  She sent a letter to the British minister of war volunteering her service to Crimea.  Nightingale did not really know what would happen and surprisingly the minister of war responded in asking her to manage all nursing operation at the war. Nightingale bravely responded to the proposal and with the help of 38 catholic Anglicans sisters and lay nurses she begun her journey. They found the military hospitals did not have enough supplies, the wounded soldiers were unwashed and filthy and diseases such as cholera, dysentery, typhus were crucial. Nightingale worked really hard to reduce the death rate and wounded soldiers.

Nightingale has greatly contributed to the evolution of nursing as a profession because of these contributions nursing is raised to a medical profession with high standards of education and important responsibilities

Sadness Moment

Life is so volatile in the morning she looks gorgeous, magnificent, vigorous she can even dazzle like an éclat, and when the night is nigh she vanishes like a vapor. She goes away without giving any notice or taking any consideration. She leaves with no indication regardless whom she might affect. Oh life where is your heart? Life where is your compassion?

Born in March 1984 in Boston Massachusetts my nephew Philip was a very bright, well mannered young man. At an early age he was sent to the country of his roots. His mother and father were originally born in Haiti located in the heart of the Caribbean. He was sent overseas to learn about his ancestors and their culture. He was there during a period of his infancy to appreciate Haiti’s picturesque mountains views and peaceful sandy beaches. He was also aboard to learn about the country’s language, the people and overall their lifestyle. After a couple of years he returned to the United States where he can get acquainted to his own culture and to further his education. Philip was a smart young man. He was a musician, a poet, and an artist. He always enjoyed writing about his family whom he loved dearly. Often times when everyone is hustle ling and bustle ling by the vicissitude of life Philip in his serene moment limned the peaceful waves of a brighter aurora. In 2001 after successfully completing his high school studies he decided to go to George Washington University to pursue a career in Political Sciences. Philip had a bright future ahead of him.  He was intelligent, kind and compassionate. My nephew lived in West Orange New Jersey before he went to college. He was a very active and well known in his community. He had participated in several youth programs, and he had accomplished one of his biggest goals when he won the one week try out to be the mayor of New Jersey. He had the privilege to be the mayor of his city for a whole week. Philip was also very caring while in college he would invite homeless people in the Marvin center in Washington D.C to buy them food. I have always envisioned my nephew to accomplish great dreams in his life. It has always been grueling for me to cope with the reality. Through that experience I have learned to see him through the eyes of my oldest daughter Thaina because they have similitude of character.

Even though my youngest daughter Patrice was very attached to her sister Thaina after graduated from junior high school, we as a family had decided for her to experience the boarding school at Pine Forge in Pennsylvania where we thought she would acquire the most distinguished Christian education. Patrice was 10 years old at the time and Thaina was 14. Patrice remembered when everyone met at my house in Brocton Massachusetts where we were fixing things before leaving. She recalled that we traveled with my sister and her family because my niece Barlynn was going to attend Pine Forge as well. We drove in a 12 passengers van because it was a lot of us and we also needed space for the kids lug gages. When we got to Pine Forge, we fixed the room Thaina roomed with her cousin Barlynn. Their room was the nicest and everyone wanted to have their room Patrice said.” When it comes the time for us to leave it was heartbreaking everyone was crying. We really didn’t want to leave. We were stalling she said. In our way back the van was silent as falling leaves. My husband’s perspective was a little deeper than my daughter’s point of view. When I interviewed him he said when we were driving to Pine Forge and he started to see the bushes, suddenly he began to develop some worries. He had said to himself: “My daughter is so young and I am going to drop her so far away to the boom docks.” However when we got there the people were very friendly then he started to get comfortable. Nevertheless when it was time for us to leave the painful feeling started to reoccur. My husband said he kept asking Thaina “Are you ok? Are you going to be all right? When Thaina answered positively that gave him comfort he said, but I still gave her my debit card to use in case she wants anything or if she wants to use it in case she wants to come back home. We prayed and cried together then we left.

Letting Thaina go at that very young age even it was for her best was a painful experience for me.

Pesach is a Jewish holidays, it is the most commonly observed even by non observant Jews. According to 1990 National Jewish Population Survey more than 80% of Jews have attended a Pesach Seder.

“Passover begins on the 15^th day of the Jewish month Nissan. It is the first of the three major festivals with both historical and agricultural significance. Agriculturally, it represents the beginning of the harvest season in Israel, but little attention is paid to this aspect of the holiday.  The primary observances of Pesach are related to Exodus from Egypt after generations of slavery. This story is told in Exodus, Chronicles 1-15. Many of Pesach observances are instituted in Chronicles 12-15”. (http://www.jewfaq.org)

“The name Pesach comes from the Hebrew root Pei-Samekh-Cheit, it means to pass through, to pass over, to exempt or to spare. It refers to the fact that God “passed over” the houses of the Jews when he was slaying the first born of Egypt.  In English, the holiday is known as Passover. “Pesach” is also the name of the sacrificial offering a lamb that was made in the Temple on this holiday. The holiday is also referred to the spring festival. The most significant observance related to Pesach involves the removal of chametz (leaven; sounds like “hum” It commemorated the fact that the Jews leaving Egypt were in a hurry, and did not have time to let their bread rise. It is also a symbolic way of removing the “puffiness arrogance, pride from the souls”.  (http://www.jewfaq.org)

 Jewish cannot eat chametz during the eight days of Passover. They may not own it or receive benefit from it. They cannot give it to their pets or cattle. All chametz, including utensils used to cook it must be disposed of or sold to a non Jew. They can be repurchased after the holiday. The grain product that they eat during Pesach is called matzah.  Matzah is unleavened bread, made from flour and water and cooked very quickly. This is the bread that the Jews made from their flight from Egypt.

              Haiti is located in the West Indies. It shares the island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic in the east and Haiti in the West. It is the first black nation to be independent in 1804. Etymologically, the religion Vodun (voodoo) started with the Yoruba people from Dahomey West Africa in 18^th and 19^th centuries, the religion migrated with slaves into the island of Hispaniola. (www.goshen.edu)

The natives Haitians were killed and only the colonists and the slaves remained, the colonists were primarily catholic who have great impact in the religious aspect of voodooism.   Contrary to the religion Christianity where the people believe in oneness of God, voodooism worshipers believe in several Loa whom they considered to be different mysterious spirits. It is for that reason that the names of the different Loa (spirits) are attributed to the Catholic Saints. As a young girl growing up in Haiti I was born and Peter is attributed to a Loa called Dambala also known as Loa couleuvre (snake spirit raised catholic and in my late teens I became Seventh day Adventist. I remembered Saint) because when the person is possessed by the spirit he or she slithers like a snake. The other reason why Dambala is attributed with Saint Peter is because in all the rituals ceremonies Dambala is the first Loa to come out, it is symbolized as Peter who carries the key to open the door. When the person is mounted by the Loa he or she does not know anything that happens he doesn’t even know if he is possessed. I remembered when I was 8 years old I saw a woman possessed by that Loa Dambala holding wood fire in her hand and did not even get burned after the loa was gone.

There is another Loa called Ogu Ferraille attributed with the catholic Saint James who is translated as Saint Jacques in French which is the official language of Haiti. Ogu likes to ride on horses when the Loa entered the person body he or she will grab another person and gets on him like a horse. Originally because the Loa came from Africa therefore they have different Africans rhythm associated with them. Usually before the Loa mounted anyone the people in the ceremonies have to chant a lot of songs attributed to them, and played a certain type of rhythm to invoke the spirit in their mist. For instance they have the dances of Petro, Ibo, Congo etc according to the different African tribes the Loa came from.

 Nevertheless all the loa do not prophesize the same way. There are two part of Voodooism the Rada and the Petro. Rada makes up the most frequent practiced. “This is a family Loa. As opposed to the Petro which is a black magic voodoo, angry and nasty Loa. Such Loa are involved in curses and the making of zombies.” (http://www.primenet.com/rafreid/voodoo.html)

March 2004, I had just moved to Florida from Massachusetts a few months ago. While I was enjoying a city festival in Orlando with my family, I received a disturbing phone call from my niece Barlynn in Massachusetts who just told me very bluntly in a squashy voice: “We just received a devastating news tatie.” I was quick to ask her what it is exactly. I was dumbfounded when she said Philip. I didn’t even let her finished her sentence, I cut her off saying please don’t tell me that he die. Tell me he got to an accident and he is badly injured I said. I didn’t want to believe what had happened.
Philip was my only nephew, a very intelligent young man who had just celebrated his 20th birthday a couple of weeks before. Philip went to school in George Washington to study political Sciences. Philip had a bright future before him. He was a smart, kind and compassionate young man. My nephew lived in West Orange New Jersey before he went to college. He was well known in his community. He was a very active young man. He had participated in several youth programs. He had accomplished one of his biggest goals when he won the One week try out to be the mayor of New Jersey. He had the privilege to be the mayor of his city for a whole week. Philip was very kind; he would invite homeless people in The Marvin Center in Washington DC and buy them food. I have always envisioned my nephew to accomplish big dreams in his life. I was surely not expecting for him to die so young. I was crushed by the news; it was the end of my reverie for Philip. “He was a really well respected kid around campus” said Ryan Smith who roomed with him on a report on GWhatchet.com. On Saturday March 29, 2004 Philip was walking with two friends near Tidal Basin located on 22nd street and Independence Avenue when he jumped into the water said Sgt Joe Gentile a metropolitan police spokesman on the issue gwhatchet.com. So Philip was drowned. I knew my nephew very well and out of everything I know he is not crazy. Philip was a happy person. He loves life. He is definitely not foolish to jump in a deep basin. Philip was not a drunker even though rumors were spread that he was at a party before walking near Tidal Basin. It is very difficult for me even right now to write about that, because I love my nephew very much and it is very hard for me to realize even after 4 years that Philip is really gone. I will no longer see him.
March 2004 was a crushing month for me and for so many other people. On March 17 2004 there was a massive unrest in Kosovo, over 22 people were killed and 200 wounded. On March 11 2004 simultaneous explosions on Rush hour trains in Madrid killed 191 people also known as 3/11 and in Spanish as 11-M. On March 15 2004 was the drowning of 3 Albanians boys. I believe just as I was crushed to hear about the death of my nephew the parents of those victims were also crushed when they received the terrible news about their sons, daughters, moms, dads and so forth.

The Seventh – day Adventist church was founded by Joseph Bates, James & Ellen G. White in the 1844. Seventh-Day Adventists are a Christian church who worship on the Sabbath (seventh day) and believe in the second coming of Christ.  The reason why we worship the seventh day is because we believe the Bible is the word of God and we as Christ worshiper should follow it.   According to Exodus 20:8-11, God says “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God ; in it you shall not do any work, you or your son or you’re your daughter, your male or your female servant or your cattle or your sojourner who stays with you. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them and rested on the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy”. There are 28 fundamental beliefs that S.D.A. profess, allow me to share a few of them with you;
#1- The Word of God (the bible) – Seventh Day Adventists believe that “all scripture is given by an inspiration of God” (2 Tim 3:16). Seventh Day Adventists believe that the scriptures have divine authority because in them God speaks through the Holy Spirit. (pg 14 Seventh-Day Adventists believe).
#2- The Godhead- Seventh-Day Adventists believe that there is one God. The father, son and the Holy Spirit are three co-eternal persons in one being the trinity or the Godhead. We know that God exists because of the evidence in the book of nature and the scriptures in the bible.
#3- God the Father- He is the creator. He’s a God of mercy, forgiveness, goodness & faithfulness
#4- God the Son- God the Son is Jesus Christ, the one who died on the cross for our sins.
#5- God the Holy Spirit-   The Holy Spirit is the person who guides us in all that we do, he teaches us about Christ, protects and fills our hearts.
#6- Creation- God created all things in 7 days. God created us so that we could love him and he could love us too.
#7- The nature of man- God created man from the dust of the ground and gave him the breath of life. Dust from the ground and the breath of life creates a living soul.
#8- The Great Controversy- The controversy began with Lucifer becoming selfish and he wanted God’s position in heaven.  He showed his pride and selfishness and he became the first fallen angel. His actions blinded other angels and some followed him. As a result of Lucifer’s actions sin fell into place and that’s when humans became involved.
#9- The life, death & resurrection of Christ- Seventh-Day Adventists believe that in result of Lucifer’s action against humanity a part of God’s trinity Jesus Christ the son came to live on earth and die for our sins so that we may be saved.
#10- The experience of salvation- The experience of salvation is recognizing your sins, repenting from them and then being baptized.
#11- Growing in Christ- Continually committed to Jesus as our Savior and Lord, we are set free from the burdens of our past deeds…we are called to grow in the likeness of his character (pg 149 S.D.A believes).

Joy

Over the different types of writings of C. Lewis I choose to talk about “Joy” because I feel connected to him through the subject. I believe it is a very deep topic which is appealing to everyone regardless gender, age, religion, culture etc.

When someone reads about joy from C. S Lewis he or she can detect that he is not talking about a super flux joy but instead he is speaking about a desire which is of it’s own kind. In his book “Surprised by Joy” he describes joy as an “unsatisfied desire which is itself more desirable than any other satisfaction.” cited in kreeft, 253 Peter Kreeft said ” While many virtues grace Lewis’s work… the one that lifts him above any other apologetical writer… is how powerful he writes about joy” C. S Lewis Surprised by Joy, 220-21. I believe genuine joy cannot be achieved through education; it cannot be bought with money or goods. I finally understood one can procure this distinct joy only through a supernatural power. I believe joy can only be reach through a deeper relationship with the Sovereign God. When we look over the society we can see the various ways people try to find joy. Some people seek to find joy through alcoholic beverages and come to conclude after all they are just destroying their blood cells and shortening their lives. Others endeavor joy by exposing their bodies rather by selling it sexually or not caring enough for it. Some people feel happy when they eat whatever they want to or any time they feel like it. They don’t realize in the long run it hits them back because their physical bodies are being affected and they tend to get sick. Some others aim for joy through pleasures they go to parties, clubs etc. but unfortunately it comes to hurt them back. Others tried to find joy through possession what their money can buy beautiful cars, flashy clothes, fancy jewelries and so forth. Through it all reality comes their way and they realize nothing corporal can fill their emptiness or substitute for that deep attribute called joy. Some people are wise enough to realize that they cannot find it on their own they might decide to take an extra step to either talk to someone about it who might lead them to God or they might decide to search for God on their own.

“When Lewis writes of joy he is using this term in a very particular way. He is just not speaking about a general sort of happiness, or joyful thoughts or feelings. Rather he is speaking about a desire, but a very unique and special kind of desire. In Surprised by joy, his spiritual autobiography, Lewis describes it as an unsatisfied desire which is itself more desirable than any other satisfaction.” Hptt// www.probe.org (The Riddle of joy)

I acquiesce that Lewis believes in order to be joyful one has to believe in a super natural power in order words he or she has to believe in God. I recalled at the beginning of the semester when we were watching a video about C. S Lewis and his wife Joy Davidman it was obvious to see the way he manifested his love for her. Even though Lewis knew she had cancer she was going to die he always acted like he had an inner peace when he came to visit her at the hospital and when he was talking to her. He never allowed her to feel depressed or sad. He was always there to encourage her and sustain her. I believe that was not an easy task, I can agree that someone can only gets that positive attitude through the all powerful God. I conclude if someone believes in God and surrender everything to him he or she must have faith that he has control of their life and no matter what happens he will always be with them. He will never leave them nor forsake them.

I remembered even after the death of Joy Lewis continued to transcend the joy through the children. The way he was enjoying nature walking in the snow, talking to one of the boys and planning the adventures they were going to do in life it was just amazing.

In the book Surprised by joy the word is translated in the German language by Sehnsucht meaning longing Lewis not only talked about joy but it was also a mixture of pain while he was growing up. The writer William Wordsworth consequently is attracted by Lewis writings of the book has related his thought through a poem he wrote with the death of his daughter. He quoted “Surprised by joy impatient as the wind.

I turned to share the transport-Oh! With whom

But Thee, deep buried in the silent tomb,

That spot which no vicissitude can find?

Love, faithful love, recalled thee to my mind

But how could I forget thee? Through what power,

Even for the least division of an hour,

Have I been so beguiled as to be blind

To my most grievous loss?- That thought’s return

Was the worst pang that sorrow ever bore,

Save one, one only when I stood forlorn,

Knowing my heart’s best treasure was no more;

That neither present time, nor years unborn

Could to my sight that heavenly face restore.

I am not sure about the author’s feeling when he attributed his poem to Lewis’s writing however it showed me that everyone regardless their struggle can relate to the writing of C.S Lewis. He speaks for everyone regardless age, sex, class and social point of view.

Lewis used a German word Sehnsucht that literally means longing “Sehnsucht is almost impossible to translate adequately. The stage director Georg Tabori called Sehnsucht one of those quasi-mystical term in German for which there is no satisfactory correspondubg tern in another ardent longing or yearning (das Sehnen) and addiction (die Sucht) that lurks behind each longing, waiting to turn the feeling into a destructive, self defeating force.”

Sehnsucht has a meaningful Lewis’s life according to Dave Brown ” Sehnsucht played a central role in C.S Lewis’s pilgrimage to Christian truth and in shaping his apologetics particularly his argument from his argument from desire. Far from being separate themes myth and joy were convergent streams in Lewis’s thinking and experience that so effectively presented in his work to help people see the meaning and sweetness of life in Jesus Christ. For Lewis, real joy found its uncommon expression in the true Myth which became Incarnate and explains how everything (experience, reason and desire) fits together. Human imagination illuminated by the Holy Spirit brings real Joy and true Myth together to picture Reality, which Lewis said is about which truth is. Lewis reached that stage in his journey when imagination (the organ of mean) and reason (the organ of truth) were no longer at loggerheads but became divinely given pointers to something and someone outside neutral experience.”

When I focus really on Lewis writing I can see his true purpose is for the human being rather young or old would have the inner peace. He struggle with the people of his era to long for that peace.

A month ago I was very perplexed because I didn’t have a place to stay.  Despite the fact that my landlord Sharon asked me to move out because sh e was afraid that my puppy would mess up her house; I was also confident that God has a plan for my family and my dog.

I remembered when I moved into sharon’s house in Grand Terrace last March, we were conversating and my daughter asked her: “is it ok to have a dog in the house? She replied very vividly preferably not.  Well my family had their own interpretation of what she meant. I can recall my husband arguing with me saying well she did not really say no we cannot have a dog and beside our dog is a puppy anyway.

My family decided to get a beautiful female Saint Bernard mixed puppy. Sharon was frustrated when she saw the dog and I could tell from the look on her eyes that she wasn’t happy.  As a result, she wrote us a letter and asked us to move out. She told us un the letter that she sold the house however, we all knew she was lying.  So we went on a journey hunting for a house.  We finally found an apartment. We have completed all the paper work, we put down a deposit and turned in the application. The next day the property management called us to let us know that we were approved. When we asked her about pet, she answered unfortunately no pets are allowed in the property.  Since we were desperate for a place to stay, we say that we were going to take the apartment anyway and we concluded that we were going to have my mother-in law holding the dog for us. After a couple of days our hearts were heavy, and we were weeping because we all became very attached to the dog. We decided not to move into the the apartment but instead to continue to look for a place where our dog can be welcomed.  My sister had offered for us to stay over her house while we continue to look for a place.  We went to fill out an application for housing at La sierra University and a week later we found an apartment where again we were told that pets are not allowed. We told the lady that we would prefer a house instead and we would be very happy if she help us to find one.  She had put our name on a waiting list and told us that she would let us know. We had hope that God was going to do something for us, and we were certain that we were going to get a house. A week later I went to Tracy’s office to find out about the process, I was very thrilled when she told me the house was ready and we could move in as soon as possible.

I thank God that I have a place to stay with my dog now who is very comfortable enjoying a big back yard.

I am married to the wonderful man Patrick for about twenty two years now. I have two beautiful daughters Thaina who is 20 years old and Patrice who is 16. I have a lovely dog Roshaynee whom I adore. Since my children were at a very young age they have been asking me for a dog. I never had nothing against dogs indeed I think they are very cool animal, however, from my culture they are treated differently than dogs in America. I was born and raised in the Caribbean where almost every family has a dog but their purpose is mainly for protection for their owners. They always stay in the backyard and get less attention than those dogs here therefore I was a little hesitant to agree and allowing my kids to get a dog because I wasn’t raised giving them so much attention nor spending money on them. I have always told them no when they asked the question.  Seven months ago my husband who is from the same culture as I decided to give my children a chance, he told them yes they can have a dog.  He also told them they have to take care of her, and they both agreed they were very happy about that.