A friend recently lost her beloved companion, her dog Narnia. I can imagine how much she'll miss him and how much she learned from him ...
"Wisdom usually does not fall from high places. The mighty and the splendid have taught me little. I have learned more from my dog than from all the great books I have read. The wisdom of my dog is the product of his inability to conceal his wants. When he yearns to be loved, there is no pouting in the corner. There are no games entitled "Guess what is the matter with me." He puts his head on my lap, wags his tail and looks up at me with kind eyes, waiting to be petted. No professor or sage ever told me I might live a more successful life if I simply asked for love when I needed it."
Gerry Spence
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
OH FRUIT!
Spencer and I were out one afternoon and, not unlike a lot of afternoons (yes, Tamara, even with my directional pointer thingy in my car!), I got myself turned around. I couldn't think of the next street that I should be coming up on, but I thought that when I saw it I would know if I were going the right way ... or not. As we got closer and the letters came into focus, I shouted, "Oh Fruit!" ... because we were indeed going the wrong way and Fruit should NOT be the next street!
Spencer now believes this is my new expletive during times of frustration.
spencerisms
copied, with the permission of the author :-), from barry's blogpage
"I'm made for action, not writing" [after being asked to slow down and write neatly].
"Do you wanna share my spit?" [as he offered me a drink]
"Dad, have we ever been to China?""No, we haven't", I replied."Then why do we have so many things that say 'Made in China'?"
"The best way to remember things is to do it again."
"Thief-stealer!"
"I'm not a boy. I'm a half-grown man."
"You're throttling me."
"Why are you running from the love?" [while chasing a cat through the house].
While playing with Jessica, he found himself on the floor wrapped in a blanket with his sister sitting on top of him playfully pounding him. He cried out "Thief! Thief" to get her to stop. She responded that she's not a thief because she's not stealing anything from him. He replied, "You're stealing my dignity!"
"Wait up for me so I can lead!"
"We're giving each other stuff. That's a nice feeling."
"I'm made for action, not writing" [after being asked to slow down and write neatly].
"Do you wanna share my spit?" [as he offered me a drink]
"Dad, have we ever been to China?""No, we haven't", I replied."Then why do we have so many things that say 'Made in China'?"
"The best way to remember things is to do it again."
"Thief-stealer!"
"I'm not a boy. I'm a half-grown man."
"You're throttling me."
"Why are you running from the love?" [while chasing a cat through the house].
While playing with Jessica, he found himself on the floor wrapped in a blanket with his sister sitting on top of him playfully pounding him. He cried out "Thief! Thief" to get her to stop. She responded that she's not a thief because she's not stealing anything from him. He replied, "You're stealing my dignity!"
"Wait up for me so I can lead!"
"We're giving each other stuff. That's a nice feeling."
protect marriage?
Even though my heart and mind aren't always on the same page regarding homosexuality, I fail to see how respecting a loving commitment between two people threatens heterosexual marriage. It sort of reminds me of how my theology (again, not always with my heart and mind on the same page) seems to threaten a fundamentalist's belief system. I don't get it. My marriage is safe even if my next door neighbors include a homosexual couple, married or not. My children aren't harmed. My values aren't compromised if "they" are my friends. It has absolutely no affect on my faith and my belief that all people are loved by God.
The e-mail below was sent to me from a local Christian church. The heading was "Protect marriage" and dislayed a picture of a beautiful family ... a mom and a dad and two kids holding hands, running across some field ... the American dream. Aside from the grammatical errors, which bother me and maybe shouldn't, the content contributes to the "in and out" language spoken or inferred in so many churches today.
"Dear, Friends
We are now 42 days away from being apart of changing America enough said we would like to invite you to join us Wednesday, September 24th in the Cornerstone Conference Center for our next Protect Marriage Conference Call at 10:00 am. You will not want to miss this Thursday for the first of 3 simulcast events that will take place before elections, this event will take place at 1445 Fulton Street in the Historic Wilson Theater at 7:00 pm.
Sincerely,
Jim Franklin
Cornerstone Church Conference Call: Cornerstone Conference Center, 1525 Fulton Street, Fresno, CA 93721 Wednesday 10:00 am
Simulcast:Historic Wilson Theater, 1445 Fulton Street, Fresno, CA 93721 Thursday, 7:00 pm"
The e-mail below was sent to me from a local Christian church. The heading was "Protect marriage" and dislayed a picture of a beautiful family ... a mom and a dad and two kids holding hands, running across some field ... the American dream. Aside from the grammatical errors, which bother me and maybe shouldn't, the content contributes to the "in and out" language spoken or inferred in so many churches today.
"Dear, Friends
We are now 42 days away from being apart of changing America enough said we would like to invite you to join us Wednesday, September 24th in the Cornerstone Conference Center for our next Protect Marriage Conference Call at 10:00 am. You will not want to miss this Thursday for the first of 3 simulcast events that will take place before elections, this event will take place at 1445 Fulton Street in the Historic Wilson Theater at 7:00 pm.
Sincerely,
Jim Franklin
Cornerstone Church Conference Call: Cornerstone Conference Center, 1525 Fulton Street, Fresno, CA 93721 Wednesday 10:00 am
Simulcast:Historic Wilson Theater, 1445 Fulton Street, Fresno, CA 93721 Thursday, 7:00 pm"
in the silence, belief
Jars of Clay "Silence"
take
take till there's nothing
nothing to turn to
nothing when you get through
won't you break
the scattered pieces of all i've been
bowing to ... all i've been
running to
where are you?
where are you?
did you leave me unbreakable?
did you leave me frozen?
i've never felt so cold
i thought you were silent
i thought you left me
the wreckage and the waste
on an empty beach of faith
was it true?
cause i ... i got a question
i got a question
where are you?
scream
deeper i wanna scream
i want you to hear me
i want you to find me
cause i ... i want to believe
but all pray is wrong
and all i claim is gone
and i got a question
where are you?
i got a question
well, i got a question
where are you?
where are you?
where are you?
where are you?
These are, at time, the lyrics of my heart. I wonder ... if we truly believe that God is always with us, living IN and through us, caring infinitely about us, loving us unconditionally, pursuing us, waiting for us, hoping for our trust and obedience ... if all this resonates as true to us ... how then do we not know and feel God's presence at all times.
Believing and feeling are not synonymous. We often expect to feel in love, feel God's love and God's presence continually. While that is not probable, maybe not even possible, what is available to us is making a choice to believe ... visiting that belief and renewing it again and again, perhaps once a year, once a month, once a week, day, minute. The choice, for me, is to believe in the god of the bible, the god of the ages, the god of the universe ... to believe in the god that loves us so much as to create for us, and grant to us responsibility for, the vastness of the earth ... to believe in the god who provides nature, art, beauty, thoughts, relationships for our enjoyment and our sustenance ... to believe in the god who designs us to love and be loved ... to believe in the god who formed our hearts and minds with an unquenchable longing for truth and understanding and an unquenchable craving for goodness ...
... to believe in a god that will never leave nor forsake us.
take
take till there's nothing
nothing to turn to
nothing when you get through
won't you break
the scattered pieces of all i've been
bowing to ... all i've been
running to
where are you?
where are you?
did you leave me unbreakable?
did you leave me frozen?
i've never felt so cold
i thought you were silent
i thought you left me
the wreckage and the waste
on an empty beach of faith
was it true?
cause i ... i got a question
i got a question
where are you?
scream
deeper i wanna scream
i want you to hear me
i want you to find me
cause i ... i want to believe
but all pray is wrong
and all i claim is gone
and i got a question
where are you?
i got a question
well, i got a question
where are you?
where are you?
where are you?
where are you?
These are, at time, the lyrics of my heart. I wonder ... if we truly believe that God is always with us, living IN and through us, caring infinitely about us, loving us unconditionally, pursuing us, waiting for us, hoping for our trust and obedience ... if all this resonates as true to us ... how then do we not know and feel God's presence at all times.
Believing and feeling are not synonymous. We often expect to feel in love, feel God's love and God's presence continually. While that is not probable, maybe not even possible, what is available to us is making a choice to believe ... visiting that belief and renewing it again and again, perhaps once a year, once a month, once a week, day, minute. The choice, for me, is to believe in the god of the bible, the god of the ages, the god of the universe ... to believe in the god that loves us so much as to create for us, and grant to us responsibility for, the vastness of the earth ... to believe in the god who provides nature, art, beauty, thoughts, relationships for our enjoyment and our sustenance ... to believe in the god who designs us to love and be loved ... to believe in the god who formed our hearts and minds with an unquenchable longing for truth and understanding and an unquenchable craving for goodness ...
... to believe in a god that will never leave nor forsake us.
Josey
So I just took the opportunity to view the movie North Country.
Based on a true account,
Based on a true account,
it is an amazingly powerful and motivational film
which comes highly recommended to anyone
interested in social justice issues and relationship reconciliation.
A single, seemingly insignificant woman by the sweet name of Josey,
began a vigorous battle to ban sexual harassment from the workplace.
Through bravery and perseverance, commitment to truth and justice,
she also began a more personal, perhaps more important movement ...
one gaining forgiveness and respect from her father,
and one offering the same to him.
Emotionally charged, somewhat difficult to endure, almost unbelievable,
Emotionally charged, somewhat difficult to endure, almost unbelievable,
and well worth your time.
This movie will stay with me for always.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Knowledge
"Knowledge is not produced in the intentions of those who believe they hold it, whether in the pen or in the voice. It is produced in the process of interaction, between writer and reader at the moment of reading, and between teacher and learner at the moment of classroom engagement. Knowledge is not the matter that is offered as much as the matter that is understood. To think of fields or bodies of knowledge as if they are property of academics and teachers is wrong. It denies an equality in the relations at moments of interaction and falsely privileges one side of the exchange and what that side 'knows' over the other." David Luster
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