Somber Sunday

Okay baseball friends....Sunday (9/21) is rapidly approaching for the last official game at Yankee Stadium before its sniff, sniff demolition demise. I still can't believe they're tearing it down all in the name of progress. Wouldn't it have been better (and probably cheaper) to gut it again like it was in 1973, but this time restore it to its former glory (while adding some fan-friendly amenities)? After all, it's only the 3rd-oldest ballpark in the majors, and the two older ones aren't going anywhere anytime soon. Yankee Stadium was built for the game to be played, with a mystic quality and magic that was just there, ya know?! Plus there were no bad seats in da house! I guess that's why I like it so much (no, not just because of the seats.) True, it's a simple park and may not be really clean or perfect, but baseball is the soul of that place...it's seen so much history!! A new stadium will never duplicate that. Sheesh, if those walls could talk....what a phantasmagoria of sights, sounds, and memories they'd flood us with. This is just plain wrong....what is this world coming to??!!! Anyone else sharing my pain?

When Someone Deeply Listens to You

When someone deeply listens to you
it is like holding out a dented cup
you've had since childhood
and watching it fill up with
cold, fresh water.
When it balances on top of the brim,
you are understood.
When it overflows and touches your skin,
you are loved.

When someone deeply listens to you,
the room where you stay
starts a new life
and the place where you wrote
your first poem
begins to glow in your mind's eye.
It is as if gold has been discovered!

When someone deeply listens to you,
your bare feet are on the earth
and a beloved land that seemed distant
is now at home within you.

~ John Fox from Finding What You Didn't Lose (an exceptional book about finding your inner creativity!! I've had this book for years and read it at least once a year!)

And who says size matters!

They seem to make a lovely couple, don't they? ; ) I love how God creates us in all shapes and sizes!
http://news.yahoo.com/nphotos/Guinness-World-Records/ss/events/lf/042005guinnessrecord#photoViewer=/080916/481/c4a760c6c4f84c56875a29e98706984f

(And yes, I do know they really aren't a couple)

A Lifetime Guarantee

"Goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life" Psalm 23:6. For some reason like a song you just can't get out of your head, this passage has refused to budge from my rooftop these past few days! When that happens, it's usually God trying to tell/teach me something. By no means am I an expert at all on interpreting scripture, so please bear with me. Here's what it says to me....

Goodness and mercy. Not just goodness alone, for we're all flawed and in need of mercy. And not just mercy alone, for we're all fragile and inadequate, in need of God's goodness. But He incredibly guarantees and promises both all the days of our lives!! Think of the days that might lie ahead: challenging days raising kids, days in a dead-end job maybe, underpaid and financially strapped, or days of sickness or loneliness. Whatever days you might face, the Shepherd will be following you and me. I think we're accustomed to a God who remains in one place; who sits enthroned in the heavens and rules. But like a Shepherd who comes behind, gently coaxing His sheep forward, our God follows us. Pursues us. Tracks us down and wins us over. So often we miss Him; and sadly don't even know when He's near. Yet, He's always there; through the kindness of a stranger, through the question of a child, through a word of encouragement spoken or a hug well timed we sense His presence. Even when we choose our hovel over His house and our efforts over His grace, He's still following. Never forcing us. Never leaving us. Using all His power to convince us that He is who He is , and that He can be trusted to lead us home. Wow! Who says there are no guarantees in life?!! Our God is pretty tootin' AMAZING!!!

It IS good!

Being a Believer is giving all that you know of yourself, to all that you know of God. We should be growing in our understanding of ourselves, and of God. If that is true, then the Christian life is never static, but always changing and growing. There are no formulas or easy answers, just a call for us to keep on the path of commitment and dedication. We never arrive, but always are in pursuit of God's fullness. That's life as it's meant to be lived; with purpose, with adventure, seeking God and humbling one's self. The steward is always submitted to the master, looking for ways to please Him and celebrate life. And it is good! : )

Techno-gadgets ~ friend or foe?

My friend, Dan Edelen over on his blog, Cerulean Sanctum http://ceruleansanctum.com/ made some really astute points that I wanted to share here....

"Nothing we do replaces the face-to-face. God wrapped so much of who we are in these flesh-and-bone bodies. He gave us intonations, facial expressions, and all other manner of communication that is lost through the Internet (sadly, so true.) Most of all, He gave us a soul. And no matter how eloquent we might be online, we can’t communicate that soul through our high-tech gadgets.

That distance so readily on display in the flame war above only illustrates the ultimate Achilles heel we build into every techno-whizbang toy we consider so vital to our personae. Yet how easily we lose ourselves in the the distant world of iPods, tweets, Myspace, texting, and Facebook pages.

This is not to say that high-tech social networking tools have no value, only that their value may be far more limited than we realize or understand (YES!) The devil in this is that none of us is ubiquitous and neither is our time. Something MUST give. If the sociologists are to be believed, perhaps the give is our surrendering of the face-to-face for the security of a Twitter tweet.

One last illustration culled from a previous post:
I remember many years ago how my old neighborhood experienced a power outage that blackened TVs, silenced video games (Atari 2600s back then), and quieted the bits and bytes of computers (Commodore 64 and Apple IIe). Right after supper, with the electronics stilled, the soft voice of that beautiful summer night called to people. The next thing I knew neighbors were chatting in each other’s yards, kids were playing impromptu games of Kick the Can and softball, and the neighborhood came alive. But when the power kicked on an hour or so later, the neighborhood took on the feel of a tomb. People had trudged back to their electronic distractions, each homeowner shutting the door on his or her personal fortress (wow, how some things still haven't changed!)

We’re still locked up today. Perhaps more so. Bowling alone, anyone? On the Wii?

I don’t believe we have to live this way. I don’t believe the disconnected humanity depicted in Pixar’s Wall-E must be our future.

As for the irony of me discussing this through a blog, well, you’re right. Still, this is more about trying to make a difference than it is about getting someone to notice yours truly. And yes, if no one noticed, then nothing in this blog would make a difference. It’s not a perfect medium. God help me if it substitutes for my time in flesh-and-blood, face-to-face connection. May that never be the case."

Thanks for reading and I'm interested in your thoughts on this topic!

Only at American Airlines....

Airline to passenger: Sorry, we've lost your wife's body! Oh my gosh, I couldn't even imagine!
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,420041,00.html