Today we went to the Medieval Festival at Oatland Island Education Center (which is a cool place with a walking trail and wild animals to view - Savannah's mini zoo, sort of). It was a beautiful day, and it was fun to see people in their costumes and all the activities. They had the "Whack a Knight" activity for kids, which was funny... kids were given these soft "swords" and costumes and then they got to whack away at an adult dressed as a knight... it was hilarious! Anna and Will were too little for most of the activites, though. We did wait in line for over half an hour to ride a pony named Ms. Bullet (she followed Bullet around the circle - I guess they're a couple). Anna and Will rode together and really enjoyed it. Then we waited in another line for half an hour to buy hotdogs. But overall, we had a nice time. Before going to bed tonight Anna asked when we could go to the "Weevil Festibal" again.
I wonder if there is a weevil festival somewhere. I wouldn't be surprised. There is a bollweevil monument in Enterprise, AL where my sister-in-law Rose and her family live. The town celebrates the bollweevil because it got their economy out of cotton (by destroying it), which turned out to be a positive thing. Anyway, I love all the festivals that pop up this time of year... Octoberfest is coming, the Bamboo Farm will have their fall shindig, shrimp/seafood festivals in Beaufort and Richmond Hill, the Greek Festival (opa!), Jewish Food Festival, etc. And maybe somewhere someone is being festive about weevils!
PS - I'm not sure why, but the date and time are wrong on my blog. I am actually writing this on Saturday, Sept 29 at 9:57 pm. Weird!
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Comments
Hey, everyone! Comments are now open to everybody, not just registered users. I didn't realize I had to change a setting to enable that, but now it's fixed. So feel free to comment away without the commitment of registering! Also, I've added a "Links" section (top left corner) where I'll be adding some links... right now you can click and see some World PeaWear designed by yours truly.
Monday, September 24, 2007
Balance or Passion?
Driving to work this morning I was listening to talk radio and pondering people who are very outspoken in their opinions, as compared with myself. They are most likely extroverts to begin with, which I am not. I have some strong opinions (ie - Jesus is the Way to Life; big government, socialism, and the far left (hey, synonyms!) are bad; limited government, free markets, and liberty and justice for all are good; there is no perfect temperature for the earth... it goes through cycles like everything else... did you know the "coastal plain" used to be under the ocean??!), but I don't typically share them aggressively. I like to give others the benefit of the doubt, hoping they have some good reason for thinking as they do, and realizing there are two or more sides to every issue (which most of the media fails to communicate).
Thus, I would say I have a balanced perspective on things, which is friendly, I suppose, but is it inherently good? Balanced, well-rounded... these are good things to a certain extent. But perhaps it is better to be all-out passionate (not necessarily about everything, but about one or two things). How "balanced" was Martin Luther (who inadvertently started the Reformation), Patrick Henry ("Give me liberty or give me death"), Mozart, Van Gogh, the Apostle Paul, Rich Mullins (who took a vow of poverty, while his "riches" from his music went to charity), or any entrepreneur who has started a great organization? Balanced or inspirational? What kind of legacy will we leave?
PS - I still think balance is a good thing (along with reason and looking at different viewpoints, etc)... maybe with a side of passion... but not too extreme... in a balanced sort of way...
Thus, I would say I have a balanced perspective on things, which is friendly, I suppose, but is it inherently good? Balanced, well-rounded... these are good things to a certain extent. But perhaps it is better to be all-out passionate (not necessarily about everything, but about one or two things). How "balanced" was Martin Luther (who inadvertently started the Reformation), Patrick Henry ("Give me liberty or give me death"), Mozart, Van Gogh, the Apostle Paul, Rich Mullins (who took a vow of poverty, while his "riches" from his music went to charity), or any entrepreneur who has started a great organization? Balanced or inspirational? What kind of legacy will we leave?
PS - I still think balance is a good thing (along with reason and looking at different viewpoints, etc)... maybe with a side of passion... but not too extreme... in a balanced sort of way...
Sunday, September 23, 2007
"In that better land..."
Ok, so much for the lovely cool autumn days... with a heat index in the 90's today! Ugh! Did everyone watch the Georgia vs. Alabama game last night? How 'bout them Dawgs?! Really I'm not much of a football fan, but Jon was watching it and somehow I got into it in the fourth quarter and even watched the overtime. Anyway...
Here's a neat quote my friend Rachel reminded me of recently (I'd forgotten exactly how it went): "In that better land, no bright dream is broken, no flower shall fade in beauty's hand, and no farewell be spoken." That was an inscription on a headstone in a cemetary in Oregon. Rachel and I had gone for a walk and came across it, and we just thought it was such a beautiful and hopeful statement that we memorized it. The hope of "that better land" - no tears, no decay, no goodbyes. It's easy to forget in the everyday bustle and struggle and busyness of life. How refreshing it is to me to stop and reflect on that idea once in a while. In this fallen world we know suffering and heartache and too many sad goodbyes. But one day everything will be whole and real and true and beautiful and strong and joyful. That's all.
Here's a neat quote my friend Rachel reminded me of recently (I'd forgotten exactly how it went): "In that better land, no bright dream is broken, no flower shall fade in beauty's hand, and no farewell be spoken." That was an inscription on a headstone in a cemetary in Oregon. Rachel and I had gone for a walk and came across it, and we just thought it was such a beautiful and hopeful statement that we memorized it. The hope of "that better land" - no tears, no decay, no goodbyes. It's easy to forget in the everyday bustle and struggle and busyness of life. How refreshing it is to me to stop and reflect on that idea once in a while. In this fallen world we know suffering and heartache and too many sad goodbyes. But one day everything will be whole and real and true and beautiful and strong and joyful. That's all.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
A Question for You
Autumn is in the air at last! Cool breezes, butterflies, crisp-looking days with clear blue skies, fun time outside because it's not so suffocatingly hot and humid anymore! I love the changing of the seasons. I can't really pinpoint which is my favorite season - it's each one when it's fresh and new.
I have a question to throw out just for fun. What would you do if you won the lottery... or otherwise came into a huge sum of money suddenly... like $100 million? Think of all the cool stuff you could do... give to the church and charities; invest in a variety of things; start a business; help other people start their businesses; etc. After taxes, church/charity, and investments, I would want to buy an RV, load up the family, and travel this great country for a while (months). I'd probably write a book about our experiences along the way. I'd also want to visit Africa again, and Europe (especially France, Italy, the UK, Germany, and Ukraine). And I'd send my parents on a trip to Australia, where my mom has always wanted to visit. It would be nice to have a house in Maine, central Virginia, and/or Colorado. I'd like to have a maid to clean my house(s), too. Our houses would be open for visiting missionaries to stay on furlough, and we'd have plenty of room to extend hospitality to anyone who would come for a visit/retreat. So anyway... what would you want to do if you suddenly had a ton of money? Feel free to comment or ramble.
I have a question to throw out just for fun. What would you do if you won the lottery... or otherwise came into a huge sum of money suddenly... like $100 million? Think of all the cool stuff you could do... give to the church and charities; invest in a variety of things; start a business; help other people start their businesses; etc. After taxes, church/charity, and investments, I would want to buy an RV, load up the family, and travel this great country for a while (months). I'd probably write a book about our experiences along the way. I'd also want to visit Africa again, and Europe (especially France, Italy, the UK, Germany, and Ukraine). And I'd send my parents on a trip to Australia, where my mom has always wanted to visit. It would be nice to have a house in Maine, central Virginia, and/or Colorado. I'd like to have a maid to clean my house(s), too. Our houses would be open for visiting missionaries to stay on furlough, and we'd have plenty of room to extend hospitality to anyone who would come for a visit/retreat. So anyway... what would you want to do if you suddenly had a ton of money? Feel free to comment or ramble.
Monday, September 17, 2007
Two Visions - Thoughts Inspired by an Article
I read a neat article in theWall Street Journal the other day (Sept 7 edition). It was called "Don't Suffer the Little Children," by Tony Woodlief. He discusses a book - Thomas Sowell's "A Conflict of Visions" (published in the 80s) - specifically in terms of its application to parenting, but it applies to many areas. Anyway, the point is that there are basically 2 opposing visions... the "unconstrained vision" of utopians and the "constrained vision" of realists.
Utopians/"unconstrained vision" folks want to make the world a better place by improving humankind (and believe this is possible), often by way of government and "experts," and at the cost of liberty. They view people as basically good at the core, though they would say society corrupts us (thus we need their intervention on our behalf).
Realists/ "constrained vision" people begin with the idea that humankind is essentially self-interested, utopia is an illusion, and government's job is to "protect institutions (like markets and families) that channel our inherent selfishness into productive behavior."
This contrast makes so much sense to me. It explains why, politically speaking, liberals and conservatives talk past each other so often... they're coming from 2 completely different worldviews/ starting points. Different assumptions altogether. This also ties in with parenting and a book I read recently called It Takes a Parent by Betsy Hart, in which she challenges the "parenting culture" that tells us it takes experts to know how to properly raise and cultivate children (making me wonder how the world ever got this far, with all the unenlightened parents raising kids forever). In classic utopian style, in 1897 the president of the National Congress of Mothers declared that science-based parenting techniques would improve the world so that "those of us who live to see the year 1925 will behold a new world and a new people." And now, after 2 world wars and devastation caused by utopian totalitarianism, some continue to hope beyond reason. Stephanie Marshall (an education expert) wrote in 2006 that "the fundamental purpose of schooling is to liberate the goodness and genius of children." What??!! No wonder public schools are struggling.
I think children are the purest form of ourselves - not meaning pure in the sense of innocent and good (though they can be that way at times). They haven't yet learned social etiquette, customs, and such. So they are sincere - sincerely sweet, honest (maybe painfully so), selfish ("mine!"), spiteful, etc. Without masks, they reveal the potential for good and evil in the human heart. But with the presence of evil, how can you think utopia stands a chance? How much better to acknowledge the selfish nature and try to work with it, redirect it, etc? I love my children with all my heart, but I do not operate under the false pretense of their being little angels. Discipline is essential for them to grow into responsible, mature adults. Thomas Sowell summed up the parent's duty: "Each new generation born is in effect an invasion of civilization by little barbarians, who must be civilized before it is too late." Is it getting to be too late?
Utopians/"unconstrained vision" folks want to make the world a better place by improving humankind (and believe this is possible), often by way of government and "experts," and at the cost of liberty. They view people as basically good at the core, though they would say society corrupts us (thus we need their intervention on our behalf).
Realists/ "constrained vision" people begin with the idea that humankind is essentially self-interested, utopia is an illusion, and government's job is to "protect institutions (like markets and families) that channel our inherent selfishness into productive behavior."
This contrast makes so much sense to me. It explains why, politically speaking, liberals and conservatives talk past each other so often... they're coming from 2 completely different worldviews/ starting points. Different assumptions altogether. This also ties in with parenting and a book I read recently called It Takes a Parent by Betsy Hart, in which she challenges the "parenting culture" that tells us it takes experts to know how to properly raise and cultivate children (making me wonder how the world ever got this far, with all the unenlightened parents raising kids forever). In classic utopian style, in 1897 the president of the National Congress of Mothers declared that science-based parenting techniques would improve the world so that "those of us who live to see the year 1925 will behold a new world and a new people." And now, after 2 world wars and devastation caused by utopian totalitarianism, some continue to hope beyond reason. Stephanie Marshall (an education expert) wrote in 2006 that "the fundamental purpose of schooling is to liberate the goodness and genius of children." What??!! No wonder public schools are struggling.
I think children are the purest form of ourselves - not meaning pure in the sense of innocent and good (though they can be that way at times). They haven't yet learned social etiquette, customs, and such. So they are sincere - sincerely sweet, honest (maybe painfully so), selfish ("mine!"), spiteful, etc. Without masks, they reveal the potential for good and evil in the human heart. But with the presence of evil, how can you think utopia stands a chance? How much better to acknowledge the selfish nature and try to work with it, redirect it, etc? I love my children with all my heart, but I do not operate under the false pretense of their being little angels. Discipline is essential for them to grow into responsible, mature adults. Thomas Sowell summed up the parent's duty: "Each new generation born is in effect an invasion of civilization by little barbarians, who must be civilized before it is too late." Is it getting to be too late?
Friday, September 14, 2007
Anna goes to school (and ballet)
Well, now that my computer is working again - after 3 days, 2 tech support phone calls, and 2 trips to my neighborhood Comcast office - I can write again!
On Monday, Anna went to preschool for the first time. (Sigh! Where does the time go?) She was great, no tears, and had a lot of fun. When I came back to pick her up, I nearly cried when I saw her grab her backpack off the hook, look at me across the crowd, and smile. Then I really nearly cried when she came over and gave me a big ol' bear hug!
On Wednesday, Anna was overjoyed to go to her first ballet lesson! She literally squealed with delight when I told her that was where we were going that day. She looked so cute in her pink tights, leotard, and ballet shoes, with her hair up in a bun. I thought we had to have a bun, so I'd learned how to do it online. When we got there, though, all the other girls just had ponytails, so I asked, and it turned out buns are optional for the three-year-olds. But we had practiced our bun and Anna was excited about it, so we went ahead as planned and I made the little bun (her hair is so fine). After the class, Anna was bouncing off the walls, very excited! And she got stickers, which is always a good thing, until she realized she'd lost a couple of them, which then became a bad thing accompanied by crying. O the highs and lows of a preschooler!
Today I thought I'd take Anna and Will to the playground for some outdoor fun since it was only going to be in the mid/upper 80's (with the added benefit that I wouldn't spend any money on food, etc because we could eat lunch at home). Often we will go run around a nice air-conditioned mall when it's hot outside (yes, Jon and I are those parents!). But today we headed for the great outdoors. I knew it had rained last night, but I didn't think it had rained all that much from what I could tell at our house. It had, however, apparently rained quite a lot at the playgrounds, parts of which were flooded and/or very muddy. So after 2 playgrounds and over an hour driving (while Will became increasingly restless and vocal about his discontent), we ended up... at the mall, where I bought us all lunch anyway as a sort of consolation prize for not being able to swing and climb! So much for plans sometimes!
On Monday, Anna went to preschool for the first time. (Sigh! Where does the time go?) She was great, no tears, and had a lot of fun. When I came back to pick her up, I nearly cried when I saw her grab her backpack off the hook, look at me across the crowd, and smile. Then I really nearly cried when she came over and gave me a big ol' bear hug!
On Wednesday, Anna was overjoyed to go to her first ballet lesson! She literally squealed with delight when I told her that was where we were going that day. She looked so cute in her pink tights, leotard, and ballet shoes, with her hair up in a bun. I thought we had to have a bun, so I'd learned how to do it online. When we got there, though, all the other girls just had ponytails, so I asked, and it turned out buns are optional for the three-year-olds. But we had practiced our bun and Anna was excited about it, so we went ahead as planned and I made the little bun (her hair is so fine). After the class, Anna was bouncing off the walls, very excited! And she got stickers, which is always a good thing, until she realized she'd lost a couple of them, which then became a bad thing accompanied by crying. O the highs and lows of a preschooler!
Today I thought I'd take Anna and Will to the playground for some outdoor fun since it was only going to be in the mid/upper 80's (with the added benefit that I wouldn't spend any money on food, etc because we could eat lunch at home). Often we will go run around a nice air-conditioned mall when it's hot outside (yes, Jon and I are those parents!). But today we headed for the great outdoors. I knew it had rained last night, but I didn't think it had rained all that much from what I could tell at our house. It had, however, apparently rained quite a lot at the playgrounds, parts of which were flooded and/or very muddy. So after 2 playgrounds and over an hour driving (while Will became increasingly restless and vocal about his discontent), we ended up... at the mall, where I bought us all lunch anyway as a sort of consolation prize for not being able to swing and climb! So much for plans sometimes!
Sunday, September 9, 2007
What does God know anyway?
"God doesn't know anything about eating out or stores." What?? This came from Anna today as we were driving in the minivan, discussing whether or not to eat out for dinner after doing a bit of shopping. Jon and I asked her to explain, but her 3 1/2 years of life had not provided her with that depth of reasoning ability. But she stuck with her statement. It was funny - one of those funny "out of the mouths of babes" kid statements. But it made me think, too, how so often people have ideas about things... God, life, whatever... that we might not even know how we came to think them, but that's the way it is, to us, and that's that. No reasoning, nothing to back it up - just some idea that we hold to, unquestioning. We can be very stubborn in our ignorance (as well as in our knowledge) - like sheep. Good thing we have a good Shepherd and grace and mercy...
Saturday, September 8, 2007
An Invitation
I would like my blog to be a place of friendly discussion. So I invite you, my friends, to share comments, thoughts, ideas, and insight as you please. We may have differing opinions or views on some things, but that's ok as long as we maintain respect for one another. As Thomas Jefferson once said (and as seen on Clark Hall), "Here we are not afraid to follow truth wherever it may lead, nor to tolerate any error so long as reason is left free to combat it." I always liked that quote. "Come now, let us reason together" (Isaiah).
So it could be fun, enlightening, helpful, or just a neat way for us to connect with each other. Check back periodically... I'm not sure how often I'll write yet. And feel free to share the blog with others who might be interested in the discussion.
Come along!
So it could be fun, enlightening, helpful, or just a neat way for us to connect with each other. Check back periodically... I'm not sure how often I'll write yet. And feel free to share the blog with others who might be interested in the discussion.
Come along!
Saturday, September 1, 2007
hello, world
hello, world. here i am at my very own blog. nothing much to say right now... just happy to get started!
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