Lauren Ladnier: @laurenladnier on Instagram Lauren is a brand ambassador and Instagram queen. She was previously an assistant fashion director for Barneys NY in NYC and also has worked for Teen Vogue, NYLON, and Seventeen. She is an artist through her aesthetically pleasing Instagram feed and colorful, fun photos. Her photos have even been featured in Teen Vogue and on multiple brands’ official Instagram pages! She loves nail art, fashion, matcha green tea, baked goods, and Guy Fieri.
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Finding Christian expression in a world where killing the enemy is the objective, teammates openly berate you more than the opposition, and all you have to show for it is a skill rank that no one but you cares about.
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I’ve been incredibly blessed to have had a circle of women a life stage ahead, who have selflessly poured into me: Mama Steph, Martha, Fran, and Mary Ann. I observed that they were all Boomers and Jesus Freaks (Boomers who, in one way or another, were saved and filled with the Holy Spirit during the 1960s-1970s). They boldly shared their stories leading up to their salvation and how that era impacted their lives/respective ministries
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This is my new life, recently moved from Indiana to Florida. I set up my beach chair near the water’s edge. There is an old Amish quote, Sometimes I just “sits.” This is what I do. Seated in my chair, writing pad at hand, I observe. I muse. There is something in doing nothing. The body is very still. But the mind? The mind soars. Maybe.
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As a shutterbug, I am inspired by the artwork and talents of dozens of photographers. However, there is one who seems to stand out above the rest. Clark Little is a prominent photographer from Hale'iwa, a small coastal village on the North Shore of Oahu. His passion for capturing the magnificence of the ocean is evident in every frame and spoken in the visual beauty of the images he captures.
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As I write this, it has been 24 hours since Jesus is King (2019) has dropped. It seems that every Instagram story I swiped through, every news outlet I subscribe to, and every friend on Facebook was talking about this record. Regardless of faith, everyone is listening to Kanye West.
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Fran Bussard is an artist living in the Panhandle of Florida.
She grew up in New Orleans, Louisiana and Pass Christian, Mississippi.
Fran arrived in Navarre, Florida with a backpack and a husband who retired from the United States Air Force. Don’t worry, the moving truck made a huge delivery shortly thereafter.
Fran grew up with a big drawing board in her house. Her father was
an artist by profession; sparking her imagination at an early age.
Her mother was a copywriter with a passion for words.
Fran believes the creative spark is an invitation to collaborate with our Creator.
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I’ve often mused on what I see as thresholds of my life. Those turning points where an event, a word, a thought definitively changed me. I was never the same again. In light of that threshold theory, I carefully consider Adam’s assertion that there are three deaths: losing our naïveté, our innocence and ultimately our physical life. I’m Googling desperately looking for some Nietzsche, Kant, any German philosopher in which this idea can be attributed. No luck. So it's up to me, kinda.
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In developing a blog, my first thought is that I should give you the rules of engagement. As in my class, we should first tackle the why, or as we say in the English/Creative Writing world- the "So what?" Why do this? Why go through the exercise of looking at our culture or a specific aspect of art through the lens of Christianity, history, philosophy, or the basic tenants of aesthetics? Why's it worth my time? Why bother to learn these elements of critical thought and dissect the things I'm coming into contact with? I'm glad you asked.
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