Blogpost 40, take 54.

Hey guys!

So there was no blog on Thursday.... I owe you an explanation for that and I promise I will give you one once I figure out how. The blog that was supposed to go up on last Thursday will come, I've been trying to write it for a couple of weeks now but something is keeping me from finishing it. As soon as I finish it I will post it so keep your eyes open for that one. For now you'll have to put up with my writers block and I.

Blogpost 40, take 54. Here we go again. Another attempt at writing a blogpost that is funny, holds a secret message or teaches you one of the important lessons of life. Another attempt that will probably fail and end in me holding the backspace button until every last letter is gone. A new chance, a new beginning, a new river of words waiting to flow out of my mind through my fingers onto paper. A river that keeps flowing, sometimes longer then others yet it always stops too soon. There's no way I seem to be able to finish a blog this week. It's like something is stopping me. My brain isn't working the way I want it to and it's utterly annoying. It drives me insane even though it shouldn't. Why isn't it working the way I want it to? Am I not the person in control of my life and therefore also in in control of my brain and the stream of thoughts moving through it.

No, no I'm not, my brain is an extraordinary thing. It does as it pleases, helps me escape from the dark and grey reality, lets me wander through the darkest forest accompanied by nothing but my biggest fears and worst enemies. The brain is an odd thing. A thing doctors and scientist have been trying to get a grip on for decades, they think they're getting closer yet some mysteries remain unsolved and I believe they'll stay that way forever. The brain is such a strange organ. The most interesting organ in our body, the one with the most unsolved mysteries left but also the most underrated organ we own. Underrated in a way that only a small percentages of the diseases that are brain related are being acknowledged. The rest is called imagination. As if they're not real, as if the you're making them up, your brain is making them up and having you believe in them.  One of the brain's finest works. Creating diseases in such a way other brain's don't believe in them. Someone please explain this to me.

And cut! What was I talking about again? Brain? No not specifically. Oh wait I remember (just kidding I scrolled back up) I was talking about how I kept failing to write a complete blogpost from start to finish because my brain(?) wouldn't let me. Well I believe I finally did it, sort of at least. I'll leave it at this anyway, now I'm still in control, now I'm still able to keep my finger of that backspace button and start deleting every single letter I have typed so far. And you know what? Maybe it's good, maybe it's just good that there are so many brain related mysteries that remain unsolved. Nowadays society is so focused on solving mysteries and getting control of everything whilst a bit of the unknown is all we need some times. A bit of the unknown, not knowing what will happen tomorrow is exactly what I need right now. 

For tomorrow, the biggest part is already known to me but who knows. Maybe life has a lovely surprise to me by tomorrow and there's only one way to find out. 
See you all next week.

Lots of love,
ThatDutchGirl96

Renée Reviews: Face.

Hey guys!

I have just finished a book. Yes, there's nothing special about finishing a book I know that although there's something about this book I would like to share with the world. The time has come, the time of my first ever book review here on this blog. First some basic info about it. The book is called 'Face' a debut novel from Benjamin Zephaniah and it first came out in 1999 so it's not a very recent book. When I was out to buy a book for passing my first year of university this one quickly caught my attention. Not because the cover was full of pictures or anything, no, it caught my attention due to its simplicity as shown in the picture below. Another intriguing part of the cover is the fact that there is no face where there should be one, all that is shown are the ears and a bit of the boy's hair.

Dedicated to Changing Faces.

So I bought the book and started reading it. The story is written from a perspective I'm not so much used to in books. Most books are written from one of the character's perspective however this one wasn't. The writer didn't write as if he WAS the main character yet he did a splendid job on expressing the thoughts and feelings of the main character and making me feel for the guy. A short summary. The story is about Martin, your mainstream popular high school kid. However he isn't so much of a douche bag you might have come to believe due to all the stereotypes going around about the popular guys. Martin is pretty much leading the perfect life until this one night that literally changes his life and himself.  His life gets turned upside down and the most challenging task he's facing is himself and the physical changes that he has to learn to live with.

I know it might sound as your stereotypical story and maybe it is but I don't care. This story spoke to me on a personal level. In the book you read about the struggles Martin faces (oh the irony) due to the way his physical appearance has changed after the accident (spoiler). Most of these struggles I recognised as I faced them as well a bit over four years ago. I got diagnosed with diabetes, which changed my life and my way of living forever. Most people call diabetes an illness however I like to disagree with that. Diabetes isn't so much an illness as it is something can't be cured. So it's a chronic illness?! Officially yes but not to me. I don't see it as an illness, I am not sick yet I'm not completely healthy either. Something is wrong with me, not normal. My pancreas doesn't work the way it has to do and yes it does influence my everyday life and yes it is visible on the outside as I have to check my blood sugars every so often and I wear an insulin pump on my body but I am not sick. 

Now you might think this book is about a boy trying to live life after a life changing accident, the main character becoming depressed and blah blah blah but this book is so much more. It's about something that is widely known yet very unknown at the same time. This book brings a great deal of positivity and shows that you need to learn to accept yourself and just be happy with who you are as a person. It shows that there is more to life then just looking good. It tells you that inner peace, knowing and accepting yourself and knowing what your strong points are can be the key to success. This story tells you that you can do whatever you want to do, be whoever you want to be. It holds such a positive message and raises awareness for such a great cause (which I won't name as it will spoil the entire plot).

So if you have some money to spare, if you want to buy yourself a new book or if you want to read a new book and use your library card some more then I highly recommend this book. A lot of people will recognize themselves in the main character and even when you don't you will learn a new lesson in body positivity which is always a good thing. Faces by Benjamin Zephaniah, go read it!

Well that's all I have to say about this book. First review, check! If you liked this review and maybe want me to write more reviews in the future then please let me know. Feedback of any kind is more than welcome.

Lots of love,

ThatDutchGirl96