Jared Hogston
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THE GIFT
THE GIFT BY Jared Hogston
By Jared Hogston4 years ago in Fiction
Every Breath is a Blessing
Every breath is a blessing. Today is my one year birthday. I should be dead, many times over, but I’m still here. “Why?” You may ask. My Higher Power wanted me alive so I could tell you my story. At 14 years old I began using drugs. At 16 I started using heavy drugs and using the needle. I lived my life like there was no tomorrow. Afterall there may not be. Tomorrow is promised to no one. But for me I didn't care if I lived or died. I was foolish.
By Jared Hogston5 years ago in Psyche
The Ghost of Summer
I'll never forget the day my best friend Luke was murdered. It was the summer of 1994. We were 12 years old and we thought we knew everything. We were never more wrong. We definitely never knew what was in store for us on this hot July day. The day started like any other. Daniel, Jacob, Luke, and myself got together to hang out. We rode our bikes to our tree fort and laughed and made jokes for hours that morning. It was when Daniel asked, "Does anyone want to see a dead body?"
By Jared Hogston5 years ago in Fiction
Our Family Rocks!
As I walked home one day from visiting my mother, enjoying the sunshine and solitude, I found a painted rock. It made me so excited because my fiancee is a rock enthusiast and knew it would make her green with envy. I had never seen a painted rock but she had. On the back was the ladies social media site. Not long after we found many more of her rocks. It was such a joy to find them and take them and place them in different places for others to find. It was then that as a family we decided to create our own social media page and paint and hide our own rocks to see how far they would travel. I have found so much joy in us spending time together as a family, away from our electronics. It brings me so much joy to see my family's faces light up with their excitement when they finish painting. It brings me even more joy at their excitement when someone finds what they've painted. We've had a few that have made it out of the state, in fact, across the other side of the states. We hope to have them make it round the globe, but if not I'm content with having a wonderful family hobby. There's something special about spending time with the one's I love, laughing and talking as we paint our rocks. We proceed to take them around town and place them in various places for people to find. We post our pictures online and watch and wait in eager hopefulness that they will be found. Even when we're not painting rocks we are buying paints and looking for rocks that would be good for painting. We also search the internet in our downtime for good ideas. Another great thing about doing this is that we have an opportunity to send a positive message to the people who find our rocks. Way too often in my past I have been consumed by electronics and it was as if I was disconnected from reality. This is such a helpful way to tune in to the world around me. To smell the flowers and see the mountains and trees, listen to the birds and the creek's and my all-time favorite, my eight and eleven year old step-sons telling me "lets hide one here" with such excitement in their voices. Just typing that makes me smile. Too often we let these small things in life pass us by and I don't want to miss out on it. I would suggest painting rocks to anyone as a great way to spend time with their families or even to someone who is looking for a constructive way to pass time. I find this hobby as extremely therapeutic and enjoyable and feel that many people reading this would as well, and it is quite easy actually. Now instead of my fiancee being envious of me finding that first rock, I’m the envious one at how well she does compared to me. As of today, we have been doing this for a little over a month and the immense joy and sheer serenity in it is mind blowing. Writing has always been my passion but this is where I find my happiness and I’m positive that it is due to the fact that it brings us all together as a family. So in conclusion, I strongly recommend painting rocks. It is by far the most enjoyable pastime that I have ever had. Keep your eyes peeled and you may just happen to see one of our rocks laying around and hopefully you will find the joy that i have found when you do.
By Jared Hogston5 years ago in Families
