Cup of Thoughts

"Endeavour to serve with such good will and attention to the interest of your employers, that they know they are blessed in having gotten such a good servant, one who serves, not with eye-service as a man-pleaser, but in simplicity of heart as a Christian." -Samuel and Sarah Adams, The Complete Servant Summary:  Margaret Macy, born the daughter of a respectful and honorable man, raised by a harrowing stepfather who only entered the family for his own personal gain. Margaret's deceasing aunt has a large fortune, which will be inherited when she turns of age on her next birthday. After overhearing her stepfather's plan to trap her into matrimony with his nephew in hopes of obtaining the money, she runs away. Fleeing alongside her maid, looking for a job elsewhere, she must resolve to do the same. Margaret disguises herself as Nora Garret, a maid at Fairbourne Hall. Eventually, life as a housemaid opens Miss Macy's way of the previous manner towards her own...

Going for the "gradient" look with this simple nail art design.  Used a dark, forest green as my base polish and coated the tips of my nails with a sparkly pink, gemstone polish. Make sure to clean around the cuticle area with a cuticle stick or some q-tips soaked in acetone. ♡ Anna

What if you do discover the truth, and the truth shatters your life? What will you do then? Summary:  Set in the early first century, in a time when History met its ultimate climax, the lives of two people intersect each other in a search for the same answer.  Alban, a Gaul-born, Roman soldier desires to be acknowledged as one. Because of his homeland and rebellious ancestry, the leaders of Rome are unsure whether or not to put their trust in him. Trying to find ways to be accepted by this new thriving conquest, he seeks a bride of one who has full citizenship.  Pontius Pilate's niece, Leah, has a backstory complete in tragedy. After losing her home and family, she comes to live and serve at the mercy of her uncle and aunt. Painted by the life of Roman finery, her life did not prepare her to serve as a slave. Her uncle and aunt find a reasonable match for her to escape the life of a bondservant. Even though that's the worst destiny Leah could...

"There was still beauty in the world. And it was worth fighting for." Summary:  Yael has known nothing but suffering. Ever since Hitler stripped her of her life and threw her loved ones away as if they had no value, she sides with the resistance and learns more than who she truly is. The desire for Adolf's Youth is great and if you don't meet the qualifying appearance, then you have no right to live, according to the tyrannical ruler. Willing to test an experiment, Doctor Geyer runs several  diagnostics testing his theory on recreating skin pigmentation, along with the melanin that gives your precise shade. After several deficit subjects, Yael is the only one that it seems to show development with. Eventually, her own mother doesn't recognize her. The prisoners stay away from her because she resembles everything that the enemy is. A 'monster,' they call her. Yael discovers, through the new names and characteristics that she can skin-shift. She is a...

My sister and I were creating pathways through our local college campus while waiting for our mom to finish her photoshoot. Buying time and, as you can see, fancy caffeinated drinks, we had a mini-photoshoot of our own. The tools I used for this look were: Tresemme Thermal Heat Protectant NuMe Classic 19mm Curling Wand Sexy Hair Volumizing Hair Spray ♡ Anna

"Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine-" ( Exodus 19:5 ) Summary: Katie Weldon, the fiery, and spunky redheaded best friend of Christy Miller, is abruptly facing many major decisions in her senior year of college. Some that will presumably change her life forever. Working at a pizza parlor and juggling with choosing a college major, yet again, Katie's life has become abundant with stress. When a job opposition opens up for her to be a Resident Assistant inside one of the college dorms for girls, she decides to take the open door and see where it leads her. She meets several new young women who are in the same spot she has found herself in, and the relationships that develop help her answer many of her personal struggles. Desiring for a change, Katie and Rick Doyle, Christy's previous high school infatuation, are going down the slow ...

Everything Everything, Nicola Yoon “Life is a gift. Don't forget to live it.” Summary: Madeline has a disease that prohibits her to the outside world. Her immune system is not capable of surviving the atmosphere outside of her sanctified home in southern California. Her mother and hired nurse are the only people she has ever made contact with... until Olly, the new neighbor moves next door. Madeline keeps track of every neighbor that she can see from her glass pane wall. She tracks their habits and daily activities because that's the only way she can get to know them from her position. Soon after she follows the routine of the family next door, she realizes that they're all practical, besides the older brother, Olly. He fascinates her in a non-practical way. He gives her the inspiration to be more than what she can be. The two correspond by email and few glances through the glass that separates them both, and then finally by an air-filtered room. Once Mad...

Anne of Green Gables, L.M. Montgomery “Because when you are imagining, you might as well imagine something worth while.” Summary:  Anne of Green Gables, not of Green Gables at first, however, circumstances provided a way for the orphan girl to land in the hands of the Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert. The Cuthbert siblings decide to adopt an able worker for their Gables and farmland, but in the mixup of the adoption they end up with a tiny, impassioned, red-headed Anne Shirley. With a mind beyond her few years, Anne turns the town of Avonlea into a blunder of amazement. The citizens of the little town, in Prince Edward Island, have and will always be impressed by the little Anne of Green Gables. The adventures and imaginings that involve Anne and the friends (and arch enemies) are full of bewildering excitement. There is never a dull moment or place where Anne is prone to be near. Genre: Classic, Fiction, Young Adult, Children Literature Appropriate Age: All ag...

This Present Darkness, Frank E. Peretti "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places." ( Ephesians 6:12 ) Summary:  Following the lives of several citizens of a small town near New York, Ashton has been invaded by a dark force that is headed for an imperceptible doom. Marshall Hogan, a former editor of the New York Times has traded his big-city career for a small town newspaper in hopes of rebuilding his broken family. Trying to make things right in his own home, Marshall ends up getting bound in the hidden betrayals of Ashton. After an annual festival, his reporter, Bernice accidentally stumbles upon a classified and illegal meeting with some of the most powerful people in the town. One, being the highly praised preacher of the majority in the city, Reverend Young. Another, a professor in Ashton's college...

Frederica, Georgette Heyer "-He wished to spend his life with her, because she was the perfect woman he had never expected to encounter." Summary:  The beginning of the story picked up rapidly. Your first initial greeting with the honest, and sharp Marque, Lord Alverstroke, was one to capture your utmost attention immediately. His character was witty and frequently rude. He finds joy in breaking hearts. He becomes amused when his sisters are riled up. His only love is himself. To put it out there, Alverstroke has no meaning in life- until he receives an unexpected call from his unknown cousin. Miss Frederica is the only stability the Merrivilles have, ever since their father died. Second eldest, she's determined to raise her siblings in the city life normalities. Her sister, Charis, is of the age to be introduced to society. Harry, the oldest of the Merrivilles has been handicapped since his teenage years. Choosing to enjoy himself as much as possible, his sust...

A Moonbow Night, Laura Frantz "One of life's most painful mysteries was that time moved on, with or without you. Those left behind loved and laughed and resumed living as if you'd never been at all." Summary:  Tragedy and deep mourning chase both, Tempe Tucker, and Sion Morgan. In a search for peace, Tempe helps run an inn with her family, helping the pioneers who pass over the regions of the Cumberland Gap. As Sion and a crew from Virginia get an allowance to survey the terrain of Kentucke, threats from the Indians, who use the land for hunting, endanger their mission. Circumstances drive Sion and his companions to the Moonbow Inn. After suffering from a dreadful event in 1773, Tempe's world changed indefinitely. Her hopes and dreams of a blissful future with James Boone was not to be. The attack at Powell region killed more than the three that were massacred. The first attempt of traveling into the wild acres of Kentucke was a disappointing start. The...

Sherlock Holmes and The Needle's Eye, Len Bailey "The Bible is the only book that, as I read it, it reads to me." Summary:  After Sherlock Holmes' great disappearance, his loyal companion, Dr. Watson, is left to wander through life bewildered, but when Sherlock beckons him on a secret journey, the most epic enigma awaits them yet. Sherlock and Watson find an invention that allows them to transport themselves back in time. A special client requests the wit and brains of the two detectives to solve some of the most questionable mysteries from the Bible. As the book progresses the two travel through the well-known, and not so well-known events from the Bible and unravel the hidden clues that will help you better understand the Word. The following titles are the 10 mysteries that get solved by the world's most legendary detectives. The Hanging Man : Why did Ahithophel hang himself? You'll uncover the secrets of David's son, Ahithophel, and what ...

Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë “If all else perished, and he remained, I should still continue to be; and if all else remained, and he were annihilated, the universe would turn to a mighty stranger.” Summary: Y ou start the story in the shoes of Mr. Lockwood, the new vivacious and friendly resident in a quaint manor named Thrushcross Grange. He, shortly after the opening, gains the acquaintance of his dark and brooding landlord, Mr. Heathcliff. A winter storm causes our protagonist to stay overnight in his gentlemanly proprietor's humble abode, which is known as Wuthering Heights. Mr. Lockwood begins to question his motives of befriending the unusual neighbors. Mr. Heathcliff's family, along with the odd, weird noises throughout the house provoke Mr. Lockwood to have a horrible stay. Eventually, through the eyes of Lockwood we see that the house is not really haunted, but rather peculiar. You'll unravel why exactly Mr. Heathcliff is the hollow man he portray...

The Frontiersman's Daughter, Laura Frantz "I asked once before, do you always court trouble, Miss Click, or does it just seem tae follow you where’er you go?" Summary:  A story of a girl, born into the wilderness of the Appalachians, who discovers her real destiny. Lael Click is the daughter of a courageous, and well-known man who isn't afraid of the Shawnee Indian warriors that surround the local fort. As protector and chief of his own home, Mr. Click is known to have very few different trademarks apart from being an Indian. He got captured when Lael was only a little girl. Years later, the awaiting Click family welcomed his return with animosity towards his adopted Indian ways. Beckoned to a life of refinement, Lael is sent to a lady school in Virginia. There she becomes an educated woman, yet all she longs for is her familiar Kentucky home. After some dreadful news, she escapes her school and returns to find her childhood home desolate. Her neighbo rs h...

Against The Tide, Elizabeth Camden "Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away. For lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; the flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds has come." The scripture that was used in the book was taken out of the second chapter of Songs of Solomon . Summary:  In the late 1800's, an orphaned girl from Greece has established herself in the northern borders of New England. Lydia is young, talented, and she uses the early years of living on the sea to her advantage. The first feminine translator in the ONI (Office of Naval Intelligence), uses her intelligence to decipher anything floating near local waters. Lydia is known for being precise and particular. She has never left her comfort zone, nor has she ever desired to, that is before she encountered a heartbreakingly, handsome Lieutenant Banebridge. Both the Lieutenant and Lydia have secret identities that are endangered by their very acquaintance,...