Thursday, August 28, 2014

Little birthday poem

for Sarah

She of the soft brown hair
Bright brown eyes
Math problem sighs
Puppy dog highs
Pink lip gloss

She of the cartwheels,
Handsprings
Trampoline tumbling
Shy-brave smiling
Flip-flop flipping
Flowered shorts

She of the tie-dye
Shirts,
Daddy flirts
Besties texting
Cookie baking
"Iced-chai-latte" thirst
Queen of Latin First
(and Second) Declensions
Our third
Is 12 today

Saturday, August 23, 2014

North Pond Hermit

Interesting story, link below, about a man who lived a quarter of a century alone in the woods in Maine.

While socially a hermit, it's interesting to consider that he hovered so close to civilization always and was completely dependent on the takings and leavings of the civilization he rejected -- food, books, clothes, radios.  An isolated consumer who even, finally, seemed to have lost a realistic sense of self or personhood. It's as if, in total isolation from intimacy he lost perspective about his own personhood and community, both.

When we lack intimacy and community with others, do we lose intimacy even with our own person?

Discussing the article, my mom and I chuckled at He-of-the-Propane-Tanks-and-Cheetos calling Thoreau a "dilettante."

Aside from all of this, it's interesting to think about re-entering the modern world after so long from it. His comments on the blaring lack of "nuance" as he re-entered our culture are interesting. Can you imagine the starkness of a lack of nuance and subtlety faced by this guy as he was driven down any town street or, for goodness sakes, when he turned on the tv?

And I am also fascinated that every winter he woke himself every morning at 2 am to be sure to stay warm

What a strange 25 years for the people in that community!

The Strange Tale of the North Pond Hermit

Thursday, August 21, 2014

Small Cool One


Liquid fur
Flows, crossing concrete and curb
Streaming through green grass

Silky, threading disaster
Needling cars, boys, and falling leaves
Skirting tires and mailboxes
Dashing at trees

To mix with light and shadow
Of brown leaf and log
To ripple in hiding on a branch
And wink at barking dog

Tuesday, August 19, 2014

"Religion without the Good Bits"

A critique of Richard Dawkins atheist cult of personality in The Spectator:

The bizarre -- and costly -- cult of Richard Dawkins

Dawkins comments on "mild pedophilia" -- a necessary conclusion of a subjective, man-centered morality

Richard Dawkins Under Fire for Mild Pedophilia Remarks

Question and Answer

What are God's deeds like?

God's deeds are great and amazing.

What are God's ways like?

God's ways are just and true.

What has been revealed?

God's righteous acts.

Who, alone, is holy?

God.

Who will come and worship before him?

All nations will come and worship before him

Revelations 15
And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire—and also those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands. And they sing the song of Moses,the servant[a] of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying,
“Great and amazing are your deeds,
    O Lord God the Almighty!
Just and true are your ways,
    O King of the nations![b]
Who will not fear, O Lord,
    and glorify your name?
For you alone are holy.
    All nations will come
    and worship you,
for your righteous acts have been revealed.”

Family Worship


First part in a two-part series by Scott Redd, at Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals site, "The Christward Collective."

The Heart of Family Worship