What I believe in

There's a post going around (originated by Erin, I think) called "I believe in..." and the more I thought about it, the more I became curious about what my own such post would include.  I've enjoyed reading a few others here and there, and I really do think you can tell a lot about a person based on what they believe in. Here's my version...

I believe in fate. I believe that certain people walk in and out of our lives for a reason and at the perfect time, and certain things--accidents, blunders, painful circumstances--are often part of a plan we're too small to wrap our heads around. But I also believe some things happen that'll never make sense. I don't  like the catch all answer, "it's all part of God's plan." I don't think it IS all part of God's plan, sometimes. That's the point, isn't it? That we have free will and often we decide to really screw up a beautiful thing? Then our poor decisions effect others, and it's a domino effect, resulting in a very imperfect world. 

But I still believe in fate.

I believe that photography is one of the best investments you can make, and not just because I'm a photographer. Photography is art, but art that captures real life and real relationships and real light and real beauty, often in unexpected ways. It captures it, then freezes it, so you and others years and years after you can go back and peek into a long gone moment, and wonder about the people and the things in the pictures, and even feel them and experience them a little.  

I believe in sweet tea. The more sickly sweet, the better.

In theory, I believe in exercise and eating healthy and not complaining about your body if you're not willing to do what it takes to change it.  In theory.

I believe in following dreams--even if it's just a little inkling of a dream--a little spark of something you find that makes you happy and fulfills you. Even when other people think it's silly or not worthy of your time.  

I believe in homemade popcorn. Once you try it, you never go back.

I believe in saying what you want and what you mean (preferably in a nice way).  Being indirect only serves to confuse others and leave what you say up to interpretation and misinterpretation. 

I believe that passive aggression is one of the worst human female traits imaginable and I try to avoid it --both doing it, and having it done to me.

I believe that reading a good book, one where you become so engrossed in the storyline and addicted to the characters, feels almost exactly like falling in love.

I believe that feeling fur between your fingers (specifically dog fur) has a medicinal effect on the SOUL. Bonus points if you wake up every morning to a tail thumping on the mattress beside you, happy you're alive and it's a new day.

When it comes to politics, I believe the truth exists somewhere in the middle. Everyone is influenced by their own unique set of factors: age, race, gender, religion, socioeconomic status, personal experiences, and upbringing. Is it any wonder there are so many different "truths?" I believe that being extreme on either end of any argument usually just makes you look ignorant.

I believe in the power of words. Or as Dumbledore would put it, "words are, in my not-so-humble opinion, our most inexhaustible source of magic. Capable of both inflicting injury, and remedying it.”

What do YOU believe in?