Natural

My dad being an art teacher ( design, photography, animation, etc) it was inevitable that he would influence me, I have always loved natural beauty and appreciating the wonderful qualities the world supplies us with.

Here are some pics I adore, some of which I captured myself.....

My photo :)

Me and my boy 

I am quite proud of this photo I took, and it also happened to win the school photography competition!

Live in the now

I have found it important to treasure every golden moment that life brings. To treasure that time when your with your friends and laughing so hard you can't breathe, and those moments when your with your family and feel like you couldn't possibly love them anymore, and even when things are looking grey, to be happy with what you have, and know how lucky you are. 

I guess the earthquakes I have been through have taught me that. ( 7.1, 6.3, and many 5's hundreds of 4's and thousands of 3's on the ricter scale ). The quakes have taught me what really matters in life.

 Friends, family, love and laughter.

The quakes for me have put everything in perspective. What is important and what is not. People say alot about how we have been through so much and we are so brave compare to some. When really, I am a normal person, with no extra bravery than your average teenage girl, no extra courage or strength hidden away, I am a normal person. Sure, I guess we have been through a lot, but what people don't realise, is that we are still going through a lot. People don't think about the aftermath of earthquakes. We are still under stress. Friends at school are still 4 years later traumatised by the quakes. A train will go past and we will instantly panic and dive under a table, we hear a rumbling noise and our hearts are in our throats and adrenaline pumping. We have all be affected in some way, and the fears will never go away. I remember walking terrified into brick buildings, because those brick buildings were the ones that crumbled in earthquakes, and trapped people inside. Even today I become shaky when I go into an appartment block. Because I lived in a 4 story appartment when the quakes hit. The buildings would sway and shake with the movement, and honestly, I feared for my life, quite literally.

But then again, I feel the quakes have made me stronger. I have learnt what is really important in life. I went from someone who worried about what clothes they wore, and what others would think, to someone who embraced being themself, who embraces all things true and beautiful, who isn't afraid to diverge from the crowd, who spends their life doing what they enjoy, being who they are. 

So don't be afraid, enjoy life and treasure each glorious moment, because everything can change in a blink of an eye. Don't worry about tomorrow and don't get caught up in the past.

Live in the now.

                   Life is beautiful

song writing

So in my english class at school, we learnt how to write songs...
I wrote my first EVER song and this is the result....


Songs of the sirens
caressing the winds
spinning webs to draw us in
willingly we join in their deceits
chanting tales of made up feats

pre chorus:
our fear so big
our hope so small
we're in this for the long haul

chorus:
Looking like we own this place
careless in the moment we face
reckless and laughing as we fall
these kind of moments define us all

Burning night skies
dark shades hide our eyes
and every little flaw except
our pretty white lies
but the truth will rise

pre chorus

chorus

Souls begin to fret
whispers weave on the net
friendships pulse with the echo
who knew true friends could be so hollow

pre chorus

chorus

We're in this for the long haul



So yeah, I tried to make some underlying themes. I wrote about the mythical creatures called sirens who would lure sailers to them with their voices and telling them wonderful things, but the ships would crash on the rocks. I think this relates to society now days and how people can be pulled into situations and have their eyes covered, and not see things or people for how they really are.

For 'burning night skies, dark shades hide our eye' I meant that I feel like you can never really see someone for who they are, and they are what society wants them to be, not themselves.

For the last verse, I talked about how kind of like a spiders web, we get caught up in these lies etc. So this was my first ever song, I am a bit proud.

Enjoy :)

Isla x

Divergent thoughts

I find the Divergent series extremely interesting. Incase you don’t know, in the Divergent world, society is divided up into 5 groups based on your personality, these groups are called ‘factions’. There is Candor who are extremely honest. There is Amity who are kind and caring. There is Erudite who are intelligent. There is Abnegation who is selfless and Dauntless who are brave. 

I feel like these five ‘factions’ already exist in society today, we just can’t see them. There are the people who are honest, kind, intelligent, selfless and brave. These personality traits surface, wether we see them or not. There are the people who are so honest, despite the effect that they have on others. There are those people who are kind, but passive and fight for what they believe in. There are the intelligent people who are vain, and believe they don’t need anyone else. There are the people who are selfless, and constantly giving and not receiving, putting others first. Then there is the brave warriors, who are cruel to get results. 

I think that Divergent is quite accurate and not far stretched from society today, because then there are the people who are ‘divergents’. Who don’t fit into just one faction, who question the current systems. These are the people who threaten the systems because they can’t be controlled and they are different, and these people are in society today. 

This is just a small pocket of things that I find fascinating about the Divergent series.

It is expertly written by the talented Veronica Roth who I admire greatly.

I have fallen for the Divergent books.

Quotes

Here are some quotes I quite like at the moment.

So well said.

 I think Jennifer Lawrence is such an inspirational person, she says things how they are and doesn't seem to have been affected by her fame. I only wish more people with her success were as honest towards the media etc. She is a wonderful woman.

Lorde is an incredible teen. It is so wonderful to see some young who has already realised not to live her life for anyone else, having the guts to be so honest infront of the media, we need more people like her in our society, who know that you don't need to be beautiful, and perfect. That being yourself is more valuable than faking your way through life. I hope she continues to be herself and not be influenced by her success, she is a great person.

I think these two quotes speak for themselves.

Please don't hesitate to comment feedback

Isla x

Having Braces!

From when I had my first appointment with my orthodontist to the day I got them off, my teeth have changed dramatically. 

To be honest, braces were most definitely not as bad as I thought they were going to be. The process of getting them on was painless, mostly it just felt weird and it just took quite a while. I found that once I got used to having braces, they weren’t all that bad. I felt quite grown up being able to smile with braces and I never felt conscious of how they might look, because I knew that in the long run it was worth it. Plus quite a few people I knew had braces at the same time as me. 

When I finally got my braces off, I was extremely happy. My teeth were unbelievably smooth and straight, I felt like they weren’t my teeth. I was shocked when I looked in the mirror, they looked like they were too straight, white and false to be mine. But I was over the moon with my new smile. Even though I have to wear a small retainer, I couldn’t be happier and I am so incredibly thankful that I had braces. 

Tips

1.  Remember to clean your teeth and listen to your dentist, so don't eat anything they say not to.

2. Dont worry. The process of getting the braces on and off was not as bad as I thought it was going to be.. Getting them off, was painless, if anything it was pressure on my teeth. Take my advice, you have nothing to worry about.

3. For the first week that you have your braces, you will only be able to eat mainly liquids. This is the perfect opportunity to eat lots of ice cream and jelly!

I mean no matter how strange you look with braces, in the big picture, you only have them for a small slice of your life, and you'll end up with wonderful results.

Isla x

( white teeth teen )

The Fault in our Stars Book Review

So I’m one of those people who prefers to read the book before they see the movie. Thats why I decided to read “The Fault in our Stars”. I had seen the book around before and was intrigued, but never got around to reading it until I saw the movie trailer, then I became determined that I would read the book. So here is a little review...

Title: The Fault in our Stars

Author: John Green

The Fault in our Stars is an inspiring story about Hazel, a 16 year old girl who has been diagnosed with lung cancer, and she attends a cancer support group. 

At the support group, Hazel meets a charming boy named Augustus Waters, who has had a form of bone cancer but recently has had the all clear. The book is a journey of the lives of Hazel and Augustus, which involves romance, love and loss. They search for the author of their favourite book, and end up travelling to Amsterdam. Along the way Augustus shares some heart-breaking news with Hazel, that turns their worlds upside down. 

The Fault in our Stars is a heart warming tale, full of ups and downs, and the extraordinary lives of Hazel and Augustus. 

This book would suit someone who likes young adult books, a romantic and heart-warming read,and a book that will inspire people of all ages.

John Green - The Fault in our Stars