Movie Review: The Boy In The Striped Pajamas

I watched a movie last night that really made me think. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (here is a quick review from Wikipedia) is a 2006 novel about Germans and the Holocaust, from the point of view of a young boy. Bruno is an 9-year-old boy growing up during World War II in Berlin. He lives in a huge house with his parents, his 12-year-old sister Gretel and servants. His father is a high-ranking official who, after a visit from the "Fuehrer" (Hitler), is promoted to 'Commandant', and to Bruno's sadness the family has to move away to a place called Out-With (Which is the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz). When Bruno gets there he is immediately homesick after leaving behind his home, grandparents, and his three best friends. He is unhappy with his new home. It only has three floors and there are always soldiers coming in and out of the house. Bruno is lonely and has no one to talk to or play with. However, one day while Bruno is looking out of his window he notices a bunch of people all wearing the same striped pajamas. As he is a curious child, Bruno asks his father who these people are, but gets a rather unusual answer. His father tells him that these people are not people at all. They are rather just manual labor..
Bruno finds out he is not allowed to explore the house or its surroundings. Due to the combination of curiosity and boredom, he is forced to explore. He thinks he spots a dot in the distance on the other side of the fence and as he gets closer, he sees it's a boy. Excited that there might be a boy his age Bruno introduces himself. The Jewish boy's name is Shmuel. He was taken from his family and forced to work in Auschwitz. Almost every day, they meet at the same spot and talk.
The story ends with Bruno about to go back to Berlin with his mother and sister on the orders of his father. As a final adventure, he agrees to dress in a set of striped pyjamas and goes in under the fence to help Shmuel find his father, who went missing in the camp. The boys are unable to find him, and just as it starts to rain and get dark, Bruno decides he would like to go home, but they are rounded up in a crowd of people by the Nazi guards who start them on a march. Neither boy knows where this march will lead. However, they are soon crowded into a gas chamber, which Bruno assumes is a place to keep them dry from the rain until it stops. The author leaves the story with Bruno pondering, yet unafraid, in the dark holding hands with Shmuel. "...Despite the chaos that followed, Bruno found that he was still holding Shmuel's hand in his own and nothing in the world would have persuaded him to let go".
This movie left me crying very hard afterwards, it made me feel very sad. Just thinking about how people are so evil. We really are, It's just terrible. I ended up praying to God, asking him to show me the way. To forgive me for all i've done. I thanked him about how great he has been to me! He has kept me from alot of horrors i could have been through. Just to think about the children who suffered then, and still do. There was one line that really struck me in that movie, when there was a strong reek outside, a young soldier walked up to the little boys mom and said, "They smell even worse burning, don't they?" Just how terrible that was, how he could just say that and be serious. We are all people, God created us all equally and we all are creative in our own ways. I love to think about how awesome God is to me, and how he has kept me safe all my love. God is good all the time, All the time, God is good!(: So I give the movie, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas 10 stars out of 10. Although, some material is not suitable for children.

Any fool can count the seeds in an apple. Only God can count all the apples in one seed. ~Robert H. Schuller


Every evening I turn my worries over to God. He's going to be up all night anyway. ~Mary C. Crowley


God loves each of us as if there were only one of us. ~St. Augustine


Young man, young man, your arm's too short to box with God. ~James Weldon Johnson


God understands our prayers even when we can't find the words to say them. ~Author Unknown

Flowers, Flowers everywhere!

I love taking pictures of flowers. There so beautiful. So, I thought I'd share a few of my own favorites with you. Everywhere I go, I see flowers. They can make an ugly thing look beautiful. Whenever I get the chance, I take a picture of one. They have so many colors in them. There is never a dull flower. And the most amazing thing is, theres never one that is the same as the other. I thank God every day for the small things in life I can enjoy, like flowers!

Dancing in the Rain

Well, after a long winter the sun is finally shining. Yesterday, after school and track practice. The rain started coming down, it would go from a slow soft beat to a hard fast one. Driving past the field across my house I saw a rainbow, the radiant colors were shining bright. I was hurrying to get home so I could capture it on camera. But unfortunately as we got closer it started to fade. Sadly, I couldn't get a picture of the rainbow, but what I got instead was an improtant lesson. When I got about three minutes away from my house, I saw the other side of the rainbow. As I talked to some friends yesterday, I told them how it had been the best day in a while so far. It was truly a good, refreshing, or as my friend Hannah said, "It was a smiley kind of day." I just had a great time. Seeing the rainbow and feeling the rain come down on me reminded me that God was there, holding my hand all the way. It was Him that had made my day so spectacular. He helped me do well on all my tests, quizzes, and homework. Pushed me to run faster on all my sprints, and encouraged me to laugh often, smile a lot, and never doubt His presence with me. I'll never be alone. A few months ago I would have days when I felt no one was there, and I was alone. Having yesterday with God, re affirmed in me that I will never have to worry because God is always there. God works in mysterious yet magical ways. Always be ready for Him to work in your life. Take your time to dance in the rain, tell someone you love them, spend time with family, talk to God, make a wish, sing like no ones listening, and live like there's no tomorrow because you never know when God will take you to live with Him.

"Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass... it's about learning to dance in the rain."

The Art of God

God has the most unique art pieces. Every bit of creation reminds us of how God is working in our life every day. His sunsets are the best I have ever seen. It's like he took a paint brush and stroked it across the sky. His panel of colors are amazing. He shows us how he is there. If I'm ever in need of something to lift me up, all I have to do is sit outsid of my house and watch the sun set behind the field in front of my house. The most unique thing is, it is never the same. I can watch the sun set, and rise every day and it will always be unique and different. Never a copy, or repeat. I love seeing the sunset. It blows my mind. God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good. His perfect art pieces take first place in my mind.

The Neatest Place On Earth.

I think I'm the luckiest girl on earth. I really do. I have the best family, friends, and places to go. Lakeside, the most amazing place on earth is my favorite place to me. It reflects God's beauty and makes me feel so at home. I have an incredible grandma who loves me very much. She has all my family go there and we can all just be ourselves at feel at home. Lakeside is beautiful. There are no words to describe it, it's simply Lakeside. It is it's own little town. With Marylins, the most amazing shop. Sloopys, the most amazing pizza place. Shuffle board, the most fun game. And, mini golf. There's anything you'd ever need there and more. It keeps me happy. Lakeside is my own little piece of Heaven and I will never lose it. It's God's gift to me. I really am blessed.

The Simpler, The Better

I tend to take pictures of simple things. My mom will point something extravagant out that is gorgeous, and comes out great. But it isn't my kind of picture. Photography is an art to be shared. In art, there are many different ways things can be taken. Monet and Vincent Vango were both impressionist painters. So you may think they painted the same thing, but in fact they both painted very differently. That's because they saw things in a different way. Someone may look at a puddle as disgusting when others would look at it and say wow, that's beautiful. That's how I am with my photography. I see simple things like the way a pine cone is hanging from a pine tree with snow on it. Or a flower is all alone. I see things through the eyes God gave me, and I love it! There's not many people I know that can see something like I do, and think it's beautiful. Take a minute to think of how you see things, and what God gave you that's different than others. It's pretty amazing how unique you'll find you are.

"If we could but paint with the hand what we see with the eye."
-Honore de Balzac

Busy. Busy. Busy.

Many of us lead busy lives, we have things to do, and places to be. I'm always rushing forward at a 45 mph pace. I hurry to get things done so I can be on to my next task. Since getting my camera I have had a new eye for everything. I can enjoy things more. In order to take a good picture, you have to take your time and have everything precise and ready. You can't just take a picture fast and then run off to do something else. We often take life too fast. If we slowed down, we could enjoy things more, and enjoy the outcome better. If I take a picture fast, it's often blurry. But, if I take my time and enjoy it, it comes out clear and beautiful. It's a hard thing to do, slow down. But it's also important we do. In the end, we'll enjoy it more. It may be a hike, and may take longer than expected, but it's well worth it to slow down.

"Life's a climb, but the view is great"
-Hannah Montana the Movie-

Faith

Many of us see faith itself as if it were something you had to do or learn in order for God to love you and save you. But we have started at the wrong place. We're starting in the wrong place. The first thing we need is something we can't do for ourselves. We can't make the faith that will help us out of the fix we're in. God's track record of being faithful to us can lead us to being faithful to God. God's stubborn, and doesn't give up on us or give in to us. It's hard to win the trust of those we barely know or those we've betrayed, but God's way is a different, refreshing way. He keeps no records of wrongs. Faith is caught like a disease, not taught like a subject. Faith is the light that God fires inside of us to go out and share the gospel. I have had my struggles, but my faith in God has kept me going. I love him very very much, and He will always be there for me, and you.

--I like to think of this verse as God's definition of love, and it keeps me going every day-----
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres” (1Corinthians 13:4-7).

Love, Laughter, and Sleepovers

Friendship is a wonderful thing. It can get you through the toughest times, and can just make you laugh when your down. I love Brittany Rine, not for all the reasons people give. I have my own. Britt and I have barely ever fought. And if we would, we get over it in the blink of an eye. We are always there for each other, and will always love each other. She has been there with me through it all. She practically lived with me for the first twelve years of my life. We will always have a great friendship, and I will always enjoy our crazy hyper fun filled nights. I love you Brittany! With all my heart <3 "A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out." Hannah Mae Hood, I love you so much. You've always been such a huge dork that I love. I care for you so much. I enjoy our Lakeside trips, and expect more. I think that we may have the best friends every Hannah. Our group has the best of times, and the greatest inside jokes. We strive to be better each day, and love each other greatly. I have a place for each of my very special friends in my heart, and after all i've been through, I know that will never change. My friends are the ones I will always want around me. Hannah, you have been a great role model, and make me want to be a better person every day. I will love you forever and always. Darryl Margaret Kreutz, a dear friend of mine. We have some amazing times together. From your grandparents basement, to our rides in the golf cart. I love my friends quite a bit. We go through hard times, but in the end, the things that seemed so bad only made us stronger. When I'm with my friends we have the best times. I only wish I could capture each moment with them. I really do think I have the best friends anyone could ask for. Friends come and go, but the real friends will just stick through all things with you. I know I have my days when I wine and act dumb, but my friends will never get mad at me for long. Even though they might yell at me when I'm acting like a baby :D We have the best moments together. And I truly believe they will never end. I love you Darryl, were both very strong minded, and at times get in fights but there never bad, and they always end up in long nights of laughing. I will always be here for you Darryl, you can always count on me. "Your friends are the ones who knows all about you, and still like you." - Elbert Hubard Alyssa Michelle Wood, I have known you for forever. We've never been in one single fight, and I know you will always be there for me. You are an amazing friend, and I will never lose you. We have the best times. And we need more. Your a different kind of friend that I know no matter what happens, our friendship will never change. I love you Alyssa!! (: Allison Mae Koehl, I am soooo glad we are friends. You are amazing Alli(: I love you oh so much, and I will never leave you. I trust you with my life, and everything I own. You make me laugh all the time, an can always brighten my day. I can't wait until we have lunch together. You are an amazing addition to our little group that I couldn't live without. I love you Alli!