8 Reasons Adventuring Is Good For Your Soul

{Via}

If you know anything about me, it's that I love myself a good adventure. Here are 8 reasons why adventuring is good for your soul:

1. it's entertaining. When you're a teenager who's looking for something to do, there is nothing better than getting out of the house and driving around with your friends until you find a perfect adventure spot. (They are everywhere––keep your eyes open!) It kills a lot of time and can be so much fun!
2. the world is awfully beautiful. My favorite type of adventures are the ones that are outside, exploring the world that God has given to us. There is a place in the town I live in called Flat Rock, and I never wanted to go because it was such a popular hang out for the kids at school. This summer, we finally went down there to explore, and it is magnificent. I could spend hours upon hours there, just soaking in the beauty of the world. 
3. it allows you create memories. My favorite memories are the times that I've spent with my best friends adventuring. Especially when the adventures weren't too planned out.
4. the world is a book and those who do not travel only read one page. -St. Augustine.
5. there's nothing better than a good road trip playlist. Whether you're going somewhere that's five minutes away or five days away, a good road trip playlist can always lift my spirits. 
6. it creates fearlessness. When you adventure, it forces you to try new things. I have a love for being fearless; for trying new things even when they scare me. Adventuring is the perfect way to create that character in yourself. 
7. they make you look at things differently. I always see the world a little bit differently after I experience something new, after I take in a new little pocket of the world. It makes everything seem clearer in my head.
8. it encourages happiness. As some of you probably know, I have been struggling with depression for the past couple of years. One of the ways that I've learned to cope with that, is to go out and make adventures for myself. They seem to help put me in a little bubble of happiness.

Hello, 2015!

{via}

Well, some how the year has come and gone; we're moving on to bigger and better (hopefully). 

So much happened in 2014, and overall, it was an okay year for me. I know that a lot of people had a pretty bad year. I think that what a lot of people are failing to acknowledge is that there will always be bad days, and we have to choose not to let them all blend together to make a whole year "bad." The way I see it, we have to learn from those moments. The good, the bad, the ugly. 

2014 was a year of change for me. I graduated high-school. I got my drivers license. I started college. I've started to grow up and figure out who I am, and who I want to be. I'm learning that not everything I do is okay, and I have to be willing to change and work on myself. I've learned that not everything that the people you love say and do is okay, either, and it's alright to have different opinions. What's starting to matter to me the most is that I do what God wants me to do, not what people want me to do. 

I thought that today I would share with you some of my 2015 goals. They aren't really "resolutions" and this isn't one of those "New year, New me" posts, because, really, that stuff never works for me. These are the things that I want to focus on working on in myself this year, because it's important to take care of yourself. I'm a work in progress; I always will be. And that's okay. 

This year I want to:

• be less stressed. I want to take time for myself; I want to understand that just because I get a bad grade, the world won't end; I want to always remind myself that my happiness doesn't depend on how well I do on one assignment. It's okay to be okay with less than perfect.
• cry less and laugh more. I want to say "I don't have to let my depression win" and save the tears for the moments when I'm laughing so hard I cry; I want to save the tears for the moments that I'm so in awe of God and his grace that I can't help but sob. I don't want to waste my tears because an illness I have is telling me it's a "bad day." I want to wake up, and look at the sky, and fall so in love with being alive that there is no way the day can be "bad." 
• work on making my body healthy––physically and mentally. I want to remember to drink water and stay hydrated and go to the gym. I also want to remember that mental health is just as important as all of that. I want to remember to read my Bible and listen to music that makes me want to dance and write out every feeling that I can possibly feel. 
• truly learn who I am and who I want and need to be. I want to see myself the way that God sees me. I want to figure out what it means to be Shiloh in every way that I can. I want to learn about my desires and my hopes and my talents. I want to learn to be comfortable in my skin and my mind. 
• take new risks. I want to make new friends and try new things and go on new adventures. I want to spend countless hours at concerts and in the woods and basking in the sun. I want to go to karaoke nights with my friends and I want to join new clubs at school. I want to experience everything that the world has to offer me right now.
• read more. I want to read anything and everything. I want to read more than just crappy fan fictions. I want to read and reread classics, and poetry, and new genres, and old genres, and everything.
• thrive. 

Here's to 2015.

Blessings,

Shi. 

A Letter To My Sixteen Year Old Self | HelloShiloh

{via}

Dear sixteen-year-old me,

The first thing that I want to say is this: thank you. You taught me so much about life and I honestly am so, so grateful for that. You were a fighter and I am glad that you taught me how to fight. Because it is necessary to do so sometimes. 

But that's not really why I'm writing this. Sure, I am beyond thankful for how much you've helped me grow, but I just...if I could give you some advice, this is what it would be:

Boys aren't worth losing your best friend over. Three years from now, you'll be sitting in your room, thinking about that boy and the best friend you lost because of him and wondering why the hell you didn't just say "screw you" to him and walk away. It's okay to do that, because he won't be the only guy (sure, he will be for a while, but someday you're going to meet someone worth way more than he ever was--just wait for him). Best friends are rare; much rarer than boys. It's so hard to find someone else who can replace six years of friendship. It doesn't happen. No one else will every know you the same way that she did; no one else will have stayed up with you until four in the morning talking about stupid bands and eating stupid food and laughing at stupid jokes; no one else is going to know about that time that you fell for that one boy who didn't even know your name; no one else is going to know about how much it hurt when you got bullied your freshman year. She was it. Don't give that up for a stupid boy.

Also, don't be afraid to just be loud sometimes. If someone (especially the stupid boy mentioned above) tells you to be quiet, just ignore him. It doesn't matter what he thinks. It doesn't matter what anyone thinks. Let yourself be loud and don't let anyone silence you. You were silent for far too much of your life to let people dictate your noise when you're finally less afraid. Don't stop being fearless. Laugh like no one else is there; get excited. The stupid boy isn't going to be in your life for more than a year anyways. Don't let him dictate who you're going to be. 

It's okay to be sad for a little while. It's okay to be caught up in the heartbreak of that first boy who seemed interested and then walked away. But don't let it consume you for too long. Eat a big bowl of ice cream, listen to some sad songs (maybe write a love hate song or two), and then let it go. Delete him off of Facebook before he can delete you; don't go back again a few months later because nothing will have changed. You weren't his world, even if he was yours and that's o k a y. 

Ride that roller coaster. Live your life fearlessly. And never, ever, ever be afraid to be who you are. Loud, quirky, quiet, sad, scared, brave, whatever. It doesn't matter. Whatever you want to be, be it. If it's for an hour--great. If it's for a day--fantastic. If it's who you are for the rest of your life--go for it. You've only got one life to live, and it's too short to be spent wasting your time trying to please people. Don't do that. Let go of the fear of other people and what they think. Three years from now you're going to realize that none of them matter. Keep your family close, but don't give a crap what anyone else says. 

Dress the way you want to. 

Listen to the music you want to (seriously. boy bands are fantastic, don't wait too long to figure that out). 

Your mom means well, she really does. And she understands even though you think she doesn't. Trust her; find comfort in her. Let her help you heal. 

Cry when you're upset and never let anyone tell you how you really feel or that it's just a phase or whatever other kind of crap they're trying to put on you. It's your brain and your heart and only you know how you really feel. So feel it. And then let it go. Feel it and then feel something else. 

Be sure to not let it make you bitter that your sister doesn't understand. One day she's going to go through the same thing and will need you to be there for her, even if she wasn't there for you. 

Love boldly. 

Smile at strangers (because I know it's scary at first, but it gets easier).

Live passionately. 

Don't be afraid to come up with your own ideas and opinions on the world. It's okay not to agree with everything everyone says. 

And most importantly: don't forget that Jesus will always be there for you. Even when you get angry and say "hell," even when you don't feel like he's going to want you because you've messed up. It's okay. He does. He loves you always and forever and will forgive you. You're never too far away from him. 

Most sincerely,

Shiloh.

[dear readers: okay. so i know this was written for myself when i was sixteen, but don't think that it can't apply to you as well. these are the things that i wish i had known when i was sixteen and going through that first heart break. it sucks and it hurts but there are things that are so much more important than a stupid boy. remember that. and remember that it will always always be okay to be be yourself. and remember that if you ever need someone to talk to, i'm here for you. xx]

10 songs that i'll listen to for the rest of my life

I know, I know. ((I'm so sorry.))

School is mad. Work is mad. I'm exhausted and that's not a good excuse. 

THE GOOD NEWS is that I have blog posts planned out for the next three months, so I *hopefully* won't be getting this behind again. Yay! 

Today, I decided to post about my top 10 favorite songs of all time (that I will probably be listening to for the rest of my life). I love music almost as much as I love writing, so picking 10 songs was pretty hard, but I finally got it down to 10. Here they are:

10. all too well - taylor swift

   - I just really love this song. It's beautiful and heartbreaking and it basically will always remind me of a certain time in my life. I will listen to it to remember.

9. beside you - marinas trench

   - I don't know what it is about this song really, it's just gorgeous. I love it a lot. It's the kind of love I want with whoever I end up marrying.

8. dare to believe - colton dixon

   - This is my favorite song of Colton's. Hands down.

7. through the dark - one direction

   - Again, I just really want someone to love me as much as this song depicts. I love it. 

6. something beautiful - need to breathe

   - I just will always equate this song to my childhood and the time that I truly fell in love with Jesus. So, yeah.

5. don't let me go - harry styles

   - If you've heard this song, I'm sure you know what I  mean.

4. your love never fails - jesus culture

   - This is my favorite worship song. Ever.

3. something great - one direction

   - This is my favorite song that One Direction's ever released (so far). So what if I just want something great?

2. all of me - matt hammit

   - I want this song played at my wedding.

1. where i belong - building 429

   - I want this song played at my funeral. 

Alrighty, so there you have it. 10 songs that I'll be listening to for the rest of forever. What are your top ten songs? Let me know in the comments.

xoxo, shi

September 9, 2014 | HelloShilohh

Okay.

Long time no blog. (I'm so sorry.)

School has been a little bit crazy. College is a lot more difficult than I was expecting, I guess. It's a lot of writing (just not the kind of writing that I'm necessarily good at).

I also haven't made many friends. Just one, so shout out to her.
But seriously: how do you make friends in college? I can't even figure out how to talk to the kids who sit next to me in classes. It's just hard.

I was feeling pretty good until today, really.
It all just kind of hit me at once: four papers due, a test, a book to read, multiple articles to read.
Where does that leave time for me?

Time management is something that we haven't really talked much about yet. I feel like I have to juggle all of this and I'm not quite sure I'm doing a very good job. I'm not used to having three papers due on the same day; I was always the kind of girl who just wrote them the night before and I'm realizing that if I do that now, it won't be my best work. And I want to do my best work. I want this experience to be something that I'm proud of. I want to look back and think of college as a happy time (compared to my time in high school, that is).

I guess I don't really know what else to say.
Today's been hard. Tomorrow will be better (hopefully).
I'm learning and it'll get better as I go.

xoxo Shi

p.s. why can't I have a Levi? I've been re-reading fangirl and just. I want a Levi. There are no Levi's at school so far. 

Life Right Now

I can't think of the right words that could adequately explain my life lately, so I'm going to update you in list form.

• I started college on Monday and I absolutely love it. 
• I can't stop listening to Colton Dixon's new album, "Anchor."
• I'm extremely exhausted but it feels so good to be working through that for once in my life.
• I'm going to a concert Friday night and I couldn't be more excited about that. Holla!
• I had my first Intro into English Lit class today and I LOVED IT. We talked about books for an hour. (English Majors for the win)!
• My room is a disaster area and I need to make time to clean it. Oops. 

I'm not sure what else to write about really. This was a pretty lame update and I'm sorry about that. I will try to update with a better post soon. I did finally finish We'll Always Have Summer by Jenny Han and I will do a booking it post about that really soon! (hint: It may have been my favorite of the three). 

Okay, I'll talk to you guys soon. 

Byeeeee xx

Weekly Eye Candy | June 30

via

So it's that time of week again...WEEKLY EYE CANDY!

I don't know why but I really really love these weekly eye candy posts. I think it's so fun to share the stuff that has been majorly catching my eye lately. 

• 1. Bobby pins. I don't know why, but I just like this picture a lot for no reason in particular. I just think it's cute.
• 2. This. Is. Gorgeous. All I want to do with my life is travel and fall in love with the places that God has created for us to enjoy. Nature is a truly incredible thing if you ask me. 
• 3. I like elephants. And tattoos. I wouldn't actually ever get this tattoo, but I think that it's super cute. 
• 4. I go to seek a great perhaps. I love Looking For Alaska (did you hear they're making a movie of that one too? Gosh, these John Green books-turned-movies are going to ruin me). I love the idea of seeing a great perhaps as well. Adventure anybody?
• 5. Everyone smiles in the same language. I just think that this is such a good reminder to smile at people always. You never know if that smile is going to impact someones life or not. 
• 6. More with the theme of adventuring. I love this idea. Take a picture in every state and cut out the picture in the shape of that state. How cute!?
• 7. A little reminder that God is with us always. I love the reminders like this one. 
• 8. I want to fall in love. Waiting on God's timing, so when it does happen I know it's going to be fantastic.
• 9. Baby feet. Ah. I just love little babies so much. 
• 10. Stay close to anything that makes you feel alive. Speaks for itself really. It's one of my favorite quotes and I always try to remember this as I live my day by day life. I love it.

So that's all of the weekly eye candy I have for you today, stay tuned to see what I find for next week!

xoxo Shi

So I Graduated | High School

// Wright State University

May 27, 2014

insta that i shamelessly stole from someone in my class. oops.

So, yeah. I graduated a while ago and haven't really had much time to post about it. What better time than the present, am I right?

There's really not too much that I want to say about it other than IT FEELS SO GOOD. 

I'm beyond ready to move on to college and focus on furthering my writing skills and getting new opportunities. I couldn't be more thrilled. 

the yellows' cute, right? ha

My high school experience wasn't the best...by far. But I am so grateful that I got the opportunities and chances that I did while I was there. And I thought that I would go ahead and share some of them with you. Nothing too much (we'll save that for later), just some of the things that really stick out to me from my four years there. 

+ I met my best friend in the seventh grade. We weren't friends for a portion of our freshman / sophomore years, but we became close again and I couldn't be more thankful to have this girl in my life. She has been my rock through so much this past year and a half. I've been blessed by her. 

her dad is seriously good with a photography too. so that's cool. 

+ I learned how to be more vocal and open with things. I was always a shy kid. Like the cry-when-a-stranger-talked-to-me type. It was bad. But throughout my years of high school I learned to be a lot more vocal and talkative with people. And now I can pretty much talk to anyone who comes up to me. I'm not a shy little girl any more and I am so grateful for that.

+ Some of the best lessons I learned in high school weren't in math or english or history. They were just by simply observing people. I learned that everyone you meet is a little bit broken or a little bit in need of a friend. Life is messy and that's okay. But we have to learn to take it on at full force and give everyone we come into contact with a chance. Because that's what love does. 

+ I found out who I was. It's rare for someone who just got out of high school to say that they know who they are. And to be honest with you, I probably don't completely know who I am either. But I'm better than I was. I know who I want to be, now I just have to figure out how to become her. 

we always have to be goofy.

i love my family.

+ Most importantly, I learned that the people who are always going to be there for me are my family. They support me through everything that I do and I couldn't be more thankful for them and the impact that each of them have made on my life. They are the best friends that I could have ever asked for. God blessed me. 

Overall, high school may have been difficult, but it was definitely worth it and I can't wait to see where my life goes next. 

Congrats class of 2014.

We did it. 

xoxo Shi

How many of you guys graduated this year?

Here Comes The Sun | Spirit Song 2014

//Kings Island
June 26, 2014

concert panoramas are my absolute faves.

So, this past Thursday I got to experience Spirit Song for the first time ever. (I've been wanting to go for, like, five years now). And let me just say...it was fabulous. 

We got to the park at around 9:30 because we wanted to spend the day riding rides before the concert actually started. 

mirror selfies for the win, am i right? 

So, once we got there we decided to hit up planet snoopy first for the little kids to try out some rides. (Just so you're aware, the yellow roller coaster in planet snoopy in the front seat is the best...at least for giggles). And after that we did the carousel. Absolutely no shame.

Once we were done there we decided we wanted to go to the racer, because why not? (Again, the best seat is the front. Just trust me on this). 

It was so much fun to spend the day riding rides and spending time with my cousins and my sister. They're beautiful and funny and amazing. I'm thankful that God blessed me with them. 

this is zoe; she rode her first roller coaster. i was proud.

my darling sister. i'm thankful for this one. 

Then we ate lunch and ya know. Boring stuff. 

But after that I took Allie to ride the beast for the first time. 

BEFORE. she was nervous.

AFTER. it was fun even though it beat us up. (ignore my excited roller coaster face--yikes).

Once that was done we went and met up for the concert. It was my first outdoor / festival type concert and it was so awesome (despite the heat). We partied extra hard. Tenth Avenue North was my favorite of the night, although the rest of the bands were fabulous as well. 

When it started to get dark, Allie and I decided we wanted to go ride a couple more rides and on the way back we danced around the park like lunatics. 

awful pictures but they really just capture who we are and i honestly couldn't love them any more. 

Ended the night with a crazy glow stick / beach ball dance party with Chris Tomlin. 

It was fabulous. 

I honestly don't know what I would do without getting opportunities like these in my life. I'm so thankful for the smallest adventures that I get to go on and the memories that I have been making. They've been pretty freaking amazing so far. 

I am blessed. 

xx Shiloh 

Winter Jam 2014

{a little panoramic for your soul}

So, since I've last blogged, Winter Jam happened...twice.

{For all of you who have never heard of Winter Jam before, I'll just give you a quick rundown of what it is. It's basically this HUGE Christian concert that tours every year with about 10 bands (different bands every year--except Newsong is always there, since they founded it). It is 10 dollars at the door, and just a really amazing time. If you missed it this year, be sure to be on the lookout for next year!}

I think it's way past time for me to fill you in on how it was this year, and just share my overall experience with you all. 

I guess I'll start with Cincinnati. It was on Friday, February 21 and the U.S Bank Arena and it was fabulous. We left straight after school to head up to get in line. The whole line experience this year was actually wonderful. There aren't any other words, really. We didn't have to wait very long, since we didn't get there until around 3, but we were still pretty close to the door. The radio stations had random contests going on outside and Love In the Outcome (one of the preshow bands) was out signing CD's and talking to everyone.

{hula hoop contest courtesy of K-love. she won a little radio shaped stress ball.}

{our little group minus my mom. these girls are my favorites.}

Once we were inside we were pleasantly surprised that we actually got really incredible seats. They were off to the side of the stage but really close, and it was amazing, especially since we didn't get there as early as last year, but the seats were better!

{ignore the random guys' faces. sorry bout that.}

The show in itself was a great time. Lecrae, Colton Dixon, Tenth Avenue North, Newsboys, Plumb, etc. It was amazing. I was jamming so hard the entire night. I'll never get over how incredible it feels to just worship with 17,000 other people. It's cool to feel the Lord move in that kind of environment. (It's cool to feel Him move in any environment, really.)

Lexington, which was on March 15, was pretty much the same thing; we didn't as good of seats, but that was okay. We were still able to jam and worship and just have a great time. God really moved in my heart that night. I had been struggling lately, and it was so cool to just feel him moving in my heart and rearranging it. It was like all of the temporary things that I had been thinking were so permanent were just gone. It felt (and still) feels so good. 

{casually sitting on the floor of the venue taking selfies.}

Overall, it was just another great night.

((side note: if you're interested in Winter Jam their twitter is @winterjamtour, their website is http://jamtour.com))

We Are the Fearless Ones

fearless (Adj.): showing a lack of fear; intrepid.

Fearless is a word that I have been thinking about for a really long time now. It's a word that I have sort of taken on as my life motto; I want to live fearlessly. It took me a long time to figure out what it actually meant, though. To me, fearless doesn't mean "having no fear," it means that I have fears, but I'm going to face them. I truly believe that since I realized that I have not only been living more fearlessly, but I've also been happier.

I started to try new things. They were things that I thought scared me, and sometimes still do scare me. I started facing my fears by riding a roller coaster (silly, I know) and I ended up loving it. After I did that facing my fears became sort of a spiral effect and I started trying things that absolutely scare me to death. But I did them. And honestly, the feeling that I get after trying something that scares me is the best feeling in the world. It's like a rush of adrenaline is coursing through my veins and it's just exciting.

I want to challenge you all to do one thing that scares you this week. Whatever it may be, and however silly it may seem. Just give it a shot. Let me know how you feel afterwards, because to me there is honestly no way to describe that feeling.