the lands of make-believe

When I thought of places to visit, in preparation for my previous "5 places" posts, I of course got sidetracked into thinking about make-believe locations as well as real ones. Not every beloved book, TV show or movie features places I would love to visit if I somehow could. But some appeal in whatever way, for whatever reason. I decided not to limit myself to five entries like my previous "5 places" posts. I'm sure there are many more than these that I've forgotten.

1. Hogwarts -- Even with Draco Malfoy being a jerk and Voldemort breathing down Harry Potter's neck (or making his scar burn -- whatever), Hogwarts seems sort of wonderful, doesn't it? Lots of pretend places epitomize some part of our innate need for community and sense of belonging, and this is like the most intense manifestation of that sort of place for me.

2. Narnia -- Obviously.

3. The Pie Hole and its general environs -- This is a world of color and song and Pearway to Heaven pie. I would even have my picture taken in front of the candy cane-colored morgue.

4. The U.S.S. Enterprise, Millennium Falcon and Serenity -- I'm not as big into Star Trek as Star Wars or Firefly, but the Enterprise is so iconic that I would find it pretty exciting too. Not on the list: the Battlestar Galactica, because the people live off of algae and have kind of a rough existence. A good example of enjoying the show/story/etc., but not wanting to live there.

5. Eureka -- The fact that you can order anything you can think of at Cafe Diem is a big plus. Also, the pleasantness of the general population and the science-geek environment outweighs the questionably high death rate.

6. The Chocolate Factory -- Sailing on a chocolate river in a pink boat on the one hand, unsettling Oompa Loompas bursting into song on the other. If Charlie and his family are there, I think it'd be a little less creepy. Maybe.

7. The Netherfield ball in Hertfordshire from "Pride and Prejudice" -- It'd be interesting to see it in person, even if it is more of an event than a location.

8. The Island -- You know, for a short visit. Nothing fancy -- no bombs, no being held captive by anyone or shot by anyone. I guess the best way to visit would be invisibly, to hang out with the Others/castaways/DHARMA Initiative without having to interact and explain yourself.

9. Metropolis, Gotham City or some such place -- I mean, they have superheroes. I also wonder at the reality of what that would be like. Lots more government spending on repairs, I'd think.

bloggit: controversy

I think Albert Mohler does a great job of looking at the Obama-speech-to-schools controversy and stressing weaknesses that both conservatives and the Obama administration need to work on. The main section I want to share is his criticism of conservatives (which include many Christians, of course), as a rather conservative person myself who wants to see Christians honor and seek truth and wisdom as we engage with the culture:

Much of the controversy is reckless, baseless, and plainly irrational. Some have called the speech an effort to recruit America's children into socialism. Others have argued that any presidential speech piped into classrooms is illegitimate. But a presidential speech to students is hardly unprecedented. This speech by this president has led to an unprecedented uproar.

At this level, the controversy is a national embarrassment. Conservatives must avoid jumping on every conspiracy theory and labeling every action by the Obama administration as sinister or socialist. Our civic culture is debased when opposing parties and political alignments read every proposal by the other side as suspect on its face.

Furthermore, this controversy smacks of disrespect for the President and, by extension, disrespect for the presidency itself. Both fly in the face of Christian responsibility to pray for those in authority. Respect for our government, though never as an end in itself, is part of our Christian responsibility. This controversy threatens to sow seeds of permanent distrust and suspicion in the hearts of the young. In an age of rampant cynicism, this is inexcusable.

more

I cried twice today. I don't cry often, really.

I cried first under the weight of all the complaining and demanding that is shoved at me in this season of my life.

I cried again this evening while listening to an episode of the Rabbit Room podcast (Episode 10: Curt McLey, "A Thing Resounds When it Rings True"). One of my favorite things about God and being a child of God is the promise that there is more.

More than right now.

More than all that I experience and understand.

Something more that whispers in stories. A truth I can't yet fully know or realize, but that I anticipate with a desire hidden somewhere deep within my redeemed heart. I am moved by that desire, and by the reality that in songs and stories we can connect and recognize truths we share with strangers. There is beauty in truth that is hidden in a fallen mankind and a fallen world, in universal longings that point to the only One who fulfills them.

a poem about/from the heart

I will write this poem every day,
a plague to us both,
until you finally read it

and not just read it but understand
and reach back
and touch the stillness of my barren heart

and make it beat again.
God, make it beat again
-- let the blood flow

too much of a good thing

He had always disliked the people who encored a favourite air in the opera--"That just spoils it" had been his comment. But this now appeared to him as a principle of far wider application and deeper moment. This itch to have things over again, as if life were a film that could be unrolled twice or even made to work backwards ... was it possibly the root of all evil? No: of course the love of money was called that. But money itself--perhaps one valued it chiefly as a defence against chance, a security for being able to have things over again, a means of arresting the unrolling of the film.

-- C.S. Lewis, "Perelandra" (part two of his fictional space trilogy)

5 manmade "wonders" suitable for breaking in a new camera

Five manmade "wonders" I want to see in person:

1. Petra, Jordan -- Carve something into or out of rock and I'm pretty much there.


2. Machu Picchu, Peru -- What's good enough for Indiana Jones is good enough for me.


3. Great Wall of China -- A year's worth of exercise, this one.


4. Cappadocia, Turkey -- This is both a natural wonder and a manmade one, with its "fairy chimneys" and underground cities and manmade structures that blend into the earth.


5. An ice hotel, probably somewhere in Europe -- Something that isn't brown!


Honorable mentions:

1. Christ the Redeemer, Brazil -- This is a really big statue.


2. The Awakening, Maryland -- Except that it looks much less cool here than it did at Hains Point, its original location.


3. Kish underground city, Iran -- Iran is apparently converting a "qanat" area (something to do with water management) into an underground town. I like it as is so far.


All photos from Wikipedia except Kish photo from Cool Things in Random Places

it's only natural: 5 places to visit

Five "natural wonders" I want to see in person

1. Serengeti, Tanzania, Africa -- Inspired by the land and animals, not so much by "The Lion King." Africa is particularly interesting because it is so different than anything I've seen before (in person).


2. Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe and Zambia (where it's called by its indigenous name, Mosi-oa-Tunya), Africa -- Oh. my. word. I'd like to catch the falls during the rainy season (late November to early April), but not during the flood season (February to May). As our old friend Wikipedia notes, "The spray from the falls typically rises to a height of over 400 metres (1,300 ft), and sometimes even twice as high, and is visible from up to 50 km (30 miles) away. ... During the flood season, however, it is impossible to see the foot of the falls and most of its face, and the walks along the cliff opposite it are in a constant shower and shrouded in mist." That would look cool, but disappointing to not be able to see the falls.


I expect swimming at the edge is more of a dry season thing.


3. Iguazu Falls, Brazil/Argentina -- Yes, more waterfalls. They have such intense power and sense of wonder all wrapped up together.


4. Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska -- The mountains, the glaciers, the cool air, the water. And according to Wikitravel (who knew there was such a thing? But should I really be surprised?), we're talking highs of 50-60 F in summer and lows of 25-40 in winter. So not too cold, but not hot. Yes.


5. Grand Canyon, Arizona -- Okay, so I have actually been here before. But I have not had the opportunity to wimp out on the Grand Canyon Skywalk.


Honorable mentions:

1. Painted Desert, Arizona


2. Niagra Falls


All photos from Wikipedia except Glacier Bay photo from National Park Service Glacier Bay website

the return; morality

My unplanned hiatus from blogging was the result of a busy three weeks and an almost total lack of interest in blogs -- to read or to write. But today I return! Woo-hoo!

With a short quote from C.S. Lewis' "Mere Christianity":

If no set of moral ideas were truer or better than any other, there would be no sense in preferring civilised morality to savage morality, or Christian morality to Nazi morality.

bloggit: peace in suffering

Gerald Hiestand posted a review of "The Shack" at the Straight Up blog that included some thoughts about peace in suffering that we'd do well to consider at any time. He contrasts the theodicy of Job and that found in "The Shack":

Job comes to peace in the midst of his pain when he finally submits to God's sovereign right to act as God in whatever way he deems, even if that means the destruction of Job's livelihood and family. Conversely, ["Shack" protagonist] Mac comes to peace when he realizes that God really is a nice guy after all, and that all that stuff about him being angry and wrathful was a gross mischaracterization. The latter is perhaps the quickest and most palatable pathway to peace; but in the end, it sugarcoats the harder issues and lacks a true biblical foundation.

bloggit: mystery

An eye-opening look at the mystery of God, even if you aren't interested in the "emerging church" aspect. Drew Dyck, in "The Right Kind of Mystery" at Boundless.org (emphasis mine):

It was my Systematic Theology professor who led me to question the positions I'd unconsciously adopted. Doctrine was not the enemy of mystery, she contended. It was quite the opposite. She taught us that doctrine actually serves to preserve mystery. ...

The way emerging church proponents use the word mystery is telling. To writers like [Brian] McLaren and [Rob] Bell, preserving mystery means not being too adamant about our beliefs. For Tony Jones, National Coordinator of the Emergent Village, it means something even more radical. It means being ready to say of our faith that "we could very well be wrong about all of this."

The Bible's treatment of the topic is strikingly different. Contrast emerging use of mystery with the way Jesus speaks of mystery to his disciples: "And he said, 'To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God'" (Luke 8:10). In this verse, mystery is for the knowing — not an excuse for half-hearted faith.

Paul uses the Greek word mystãrion — from which we get our word mystery — 20 times in the New Testament. And not once does he employ the word to air doubts or to revel in uncertainty. Instead he points to the joyous fact that God has made mysteries known. For Paul, mystery always opens in revelation through Jesus Christ. That's the good news — that God hasn't left us in the dark, but has revealed his mystãrion in the person of His son.

giving Danny Glover a bad name, part 2

Hyped up on the Danny Glover Replacement System® that I wrote about in my last post, I searched the word "love" in my iTunes library and made a list of the best things I found. And then I decided to share with everyone again:

"Goodnight, My Danny Glover"

"Have Danny Glover, Will Travel"

"Danny Glover, Actually"

"I Dont Want Your Danny Glover"

"Can You Feel The Danny Glover Tonight"

"So This Is Danny Glover"

"Saving All My Danny Glover For You"

"What's Danny Glover Got To Do With It"

"Whole Lotta Danny Glover"

"A Groovy Kind Of Danny Glover"

"A Little More Danny Glover"

"Seasons of Danny Glover"

"I've Got My Danny Glover To Keep Me Warm"

"Don't Throw Your Danny Glover Away"

"Everybody Needs Danny Glover"

"Interstate Danny Glover Song"

"Baby Danny Glover"

"You Don't Know What Danny Glover Is (You Just Do As You're Told)"

"When Danny Glover Comes To Town"

for the Danny Glover of Danny Glover

Once upon a time, and I do not remember how it started, Christa and I would amuse ourselves and each other by replacing the word "love" with "Danny Glover." Well, I recently came across a list I must have emailed to her about three years ago that applied the Danny Glover replacement system to Bon Jovi song titles. I considered resending her the list for a kick, but it's so funny I wanted to share it with other people too.

As I noted then ... Here is what I found listed on actual CDs (a few could sound naughty, but I want to share the sheer bigness of the list, so let's think of them in an innocent way, okay?):

"Danny Glover Lies"
"Burning For Danny Glover"
"In & Out of Danny Glover"
"Price of Danny Glover"
"You Give Danny Glover A Bad Name"
"Without Danny Glover"
"Danny Glover For Sale" [no pro-slavery connotations intended; maybe it's an autographed picture of Danny Glover that's for sale, on eBay most likely]
"River of Danny Glover" (from Richie Sambora's solo album, "Stranger in This Town")
"Woman In Danny Glover"
"Blame It On The Danny Glover Of Rock And Roll"
"Stranger To Danny Glover" (from the "Netherworld" soundtrack, with music by Bon Jovi keyboardist David Bryan)
"If I Didn't Danny Glover You" (from the "Netherworld" soundtrack)
"This Ain't A Danny Glover Song"
"Janie, Don't Take Your Danny Glover To Town"
"In It For Danny Glover" (from Richie Sambora's solo album, "Undiscovered Soul")
"Downside Of Danny Glover" (from "Undiscovered Soul")
"Thank You For Danny Glovering Me"
"If I Could Make A Living Out Of Danny Glovering You"
"All About Danny Glovering You"
"Danny Glover Me Back To Life"
"Outlaws Of Danny Glover"
"Crazy Danny Glover"
"If I Can't Have Your Danny Glover"
"Danny Glover Ain't Nothing But A Four Letter Word" (which is actually not true)
"I Want To Be Danny Glovered"
"I Danny Glover This Town" [I added this one for the post-2006 reposting]

cicada song

I came across this poem I wrote around May 28, 2008, that I don't think I ever posted. It references an incident I did write about last year.

I cleaned up the poem a bit today, and thank God the cicadas are not visiting Huntington this year.

Everything seemed well
on that partly cloudy day:
It was springtime, two-thousand-eight,
the twenty-sixth of May.

Impending rain never came;
the weather was ideal.
The air was warm, the park just right
for a midday meal.

In the shade of nearby trees
our heroes ate and talked.
But little did they know, in
the air a raider stalked.

Its attack was unexpected
as it flew in from the south
with hunger on its beady mind,
and tree-taste in its mouth.

A crazed hand flung it to the grass,
its body sickly soft.
Its tiny legs flailed at first,
but then again aloft

It cackled, cried and flew away
on the springtime breeze
while the other insects sang
their death-song in the trees.

The battle won, attack averted –
for now at least.
And what is that I just heard?
A crunch under my feet.

what do you believe?

Today, a short quote from St. Augustine:

If you believe what you like in the gospels, and reject what you don't like, it is not the gospel you believe, but yourself.

bloggit: taxes

I had intended to compile research on taxes from a Christian perspective into one big post. Instead, I'll include a couple shorts posts with viewpoints I find useful, with little extra. We start with one written in the context of voting, but still applicable in general.

R.C. Sproul, in "Principles for Voting":

We have an income tax structure today that is inherently unjust. We almost never hear anybody discuss this injustice. But when God set up a system of taxation, He did things differently. God said I'm going to impose a tax on my people and it's going to be ten percent from everybody: The rich man and the poor man are not going to pay the same amount. The rich man's going to pay much more than the poor man, but they're both going to pay the same percentage. They're both going to have the same responsibility. That way the rich man can't use his power to exploit the poor man, saying, "I'm going to pay five percent, but you're going to pay fifty percent." The rich weren't allowed to do that. Nor were the poor allowed to say, "We're going to pay five percent and the rich are going to pay fifty percent because they can afford it."

What that is ladies and gentlemen is the politics of envy that legalizes theft. Anytime you vote a tax on somebody else that is not a tax on yourself, you're stealing from your brother. And though the whole world does it and though it's common practice in the United States of America, a Christian shouldn't be caught dead voting to fill his own pocketbook at the expense of someone else. Isn't that plain? Isn't that clear? And until we get some kind of flat tax, we're going to have a politicized economy, we're going to have class warfare, and we're going to have the whole nation's rule being determined by the rush for economic advantage at the polls. Don't do it. Even if that means sacrificing some benefit you might receive from the federal government. Don't ask other people at the point of a gun to give you from their pockets what you don't have. That's sin. …

Rather we should be voting for what is right, what is ethical. And our consciences on that score need to be informed by the Word of God, not by our wallets.

magical kingdoms and the women who love them: 5 one-stop places to visit

In this second installment of my "Five Places" series: Five places to visit that I've never been -- one-stoppers. In my first post, I picked five general places (mostly countries) that included several spots apiece. This post only focuses on one specific spot per entry.

1. The Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise in Banff National Park, Canada -- This right here is the stuff of dreams. Something about the mountain air, or the secluded nature of the mountains, is most peaceful to me. Sigh.


2. The Georgia Aquarium -- I love aquariums. This is a big one.

A whale shark

3. Disney World in Orlando, Fla. -- Okay, so this isn't exactly "one stop," what with the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. But they are, collectively, the Walt Disney World Resort. Which is a much smaller geographical space than India.

At Disney's Hollywood Studios

4. The Louvre in Paris, France -- Who doesn't love a classic painting? I would be most interested in the sculptures and paintings, though I wouldn't be opposed to checking out the decorative arts department either.

Winged Victory of Samothrace, also called the Nike of Samothrace

5. Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria, Germany -- Straight out of a fairy tale, this one. Just looking at the photos takes my breath away a little bit. I don't see how you get up to it, but considering its popularity, there must be a road somewhere in those trees.


All photos from Wikipedia/Wikimedia Commons

bloggit: tithing

R.C. Sproul on tithing, from "Five Things Every Christian Needs to Grow":

There is widespread cynicism today about giving to the church. Some unscrupulous televangelists and pastors have made it seem unwise, thanks to their lavish lifestyles. Yet the Bible clearly commands Christians to give and to practice good stewardship. We take an offering every Sunday in our church. Right before the offering, I usually say, "Let us now worship God with our tithes and offerings." The point I'm stressing to our congregation is that giving should be an act of worship. ...

Failure to tithe also limits the ministry of the church. One of the greatest barriers to expanding the kingdom of Christ in this world is financial.

perspective

We know that whatever we think about, whatever we do, molds the perspective through which we view our days.

Watching an action movie makes me feel like I could, at any time, be called upon to take part in a high-speed chase as I drive home from the theater.

The thoughts in my head sometimes take on the tone or vocabulary of whatever book I've been reading.

Christians experience notorious short-term spiritual highs after attending a regional conference or going on a short-term mission trip.

As time passes, the effects often fade. Routine settles back in and we have school, jobs, TV shows and whatever else to fill in our time. Our routine colors our minds the way Bruce Willis movies do. So I guess what this post is about is this question: "What is molding my perspective?"

What am I pouring into my mind? How am I spending these precious moments God has given me? What am I thinking about? What am I learning? What needs to be enhanced and encouraged, and what needs to change?

journey is not just a band: 5+ places to visit

Is there a limit to the places you would visit if money, energy and time were all abundant or irrelevant? I'm not sure, but I'm guessing the answer is "no." Once you've visited them all, there's always the option of going back, you know.

For awhile now, I've been meaning to blog about these intriguing, beautiful or strange places. To handle such a massive list, and to make it more readable and concise, I will break it up into categories and limit myself to a mere five per sub-list. I'll write about each in a separate post.

While doing some research to jog my memory about places I've wanted to visit, I realized that the task of coming up with a handful of short lists is difficult. And it probably goes without saying that some of the most appealing and interesting places are ones I have forgotten or know nothing about. So I'm just taking these lists as they are -- fun blog posts, not doctrine.

Up first: Five places I want to visit that I've never been to before. These are broad destinations that may include quite a bit of stuff each.

1. The British Isles, specifically Ireland, Northern Ireland, England and Scotland (sorry, Wales) -- This one started as "the Britain of Harry Potter, C.S. Lewis and Mr. Darcy" but the fact is that I also want to go to Ireland and Northern Ireland. All that green and mist and Irishness! And how about that Giant's Causeway? And the most-bombed hotel in Europe?

As for "the Britain of...," can you say, "tours"? Stops would include Lyme Park, seen as Pemberley in the 1995 "Pride and Prejudice," and Chatsworth House, which stood in for Pemberley in the 2005 "Pride and Prejudice." A walking tour of Oxford sounds good, with an obligatory stop in at The Eagle and Child, the pub where C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien and other Inklings often met. I'd also take a trip on the Hogwarts Express via the Jacobite Steam Train in Scotland. Trains: yes. Scotland: yes. And speaking of Scotland, I'd like to check out the Bell Rock Lighthouse.

Bell Rock Lighthouse (upper left); Giant's Causeway (above); Lyme Hall (below)

2. India -- I'll be honest: "Slumdog Millionaire" really gave me a big push into this one. Though I wouldn't expect a "vacation" sort of experience here, I would really like to see the people and the culture in person. It's not the only country whose classes and degrees of beauty and poverty are both striking, but I find it particularly compelling. I'd like to visit Mumbai and Delhi, and also take a little trip to Jodhpur, the Blue City of "The Fall." I'm pretty flexible, really.

North Block in New Delhi (above); Jodhpur (below)

3. New Zealand -- I've heard great things from people who've been there. The New Zealand tourism guide says this about the climate: "New Zealand has mild temperatures, moderately high rainfall, and many hours of sunshine throughout most of the country. New Zealand's climate is dominated by two main geographical features: the mountains and the sea." Mountains: yes. "The sea": yes. Mild temperatures: yes. The land of hobbits: yes.

Aoraki/Mount Cook is the highest mountain in New Zealand (above); Romney sheep -- cuter than a hobbit? (below)

4. Israel -- The historical relevance of Israel is hard to pass up -- to walk where Jesus walked and to make physical some of the places of the Bible.

In Jerusalem, the Temple Mount and Western Wall during Shabbat

5. Greece -- I'm not a big beach person in the sense of, say, Myrtle Beach. But the blue seas, the islands, the ruins and all those white buildings look pretty tempting.

Hermoupolis port at the island of Syros (above); Acropolis of Athens (below)

Honorable mentions, any of which could have been in the top five (in places 4 and 5):

1. Moscow, Russia -- The architecture alone makes me want to plan a trip.

2. Transylvania -- Despite being a big vampire fan as a teen/pre-teen, I do not harbor any unmet desires to hunt for Dracula's castle or anything like that. But during my research for this post, I came across this website for sightseeing tours in Transylvania that honestly look pretty fun. The buildings and scenery look as appealing and impressive as plenty of other places that have nothing to do with Vlad the Impaler. Count me in. (And check out the galleries at Wikipedia.)

Bran Castle

3. Hawaii -- I mean, obviously, right?

4. Alaska -- I like cold places.


Upcoming editions of "Five places":
Five places I'd like to visit that I've never been to -- one-stoppers
Five natural wonders I'd like to see in person
Five manmade "wonders" I'd like to see in person
Five places I'd like to revisit
Five events I'd like to attend
Five places/events I would have liked to have seen in person
Five pretend places I'd like to visit

All photos from Wikipedia/Wikimedia Commons

being human

Last year, as many of you know, I started wondering in earnest about the abortion issue and how it compared to other concerns of a voting U.S. citizen. From the pro-life zealots in the Church, I wanted to know why the other issues didn't matter as much. Any one of them -- health care, war -- could have repercussions that affect the livelihood of people in the nation and sometimes the world.

I am still sorting out the details of those other issues, but as for abortion, I do have this new idea that cropped up around Election Day and won't go away:

Do we really think of those unborn children as fully human, the equal to a born human being?

Do I really consider a baby in the womb to have the same value as a newborn, a toddler, a 21-year-old, a parent or a grandparent? I can see the ultrasound photos, but I don't get to touch and hold an unborn child. Is my belief that the unborn are fully human merely superficial, the default setting to the "Are they human?" question that carries no real weight?

How else could I even entertain the idea of voting for someone who wants to protect the killing of these children? I once wondered whether abortion really was that important (and fully expect to find that sentiment among many Christians I know). I resented it for being the issue-that-trumps-all-issues in many churches and among many Christians. I wanted to know why it mattered so much.

But if I really believed those babies were human like me, like my nephew and niece and all the people I can meet and talk to, then isn't that fact "why" enough?

Let's say that, 35 years ago, the Supreme Court ruled in a case that allowed parents the right to terminate the life of a child up to age 3. The reasoning: What you think you're getting into with children is different than the actual experience of raising them. The financial and emotional burdens can be heavy, and can strain your marriage and your well-being. You might find that you are a terrible parent. You may regret having a child, knowing that it would be better for everyone if she hadn't been born. You may become abusive, verbally and physically. Considering these concerns, plus the total dependence of a young child on her parents, the judges decide to rule in favor of parents who claim a right over the life of the child.

Time passes and, 35 years later, no overturn of the Supreme Court case has come. Child-rights advocates are weary. The states, however, have passed laws inhibiting child-killing in small ways: Requiring that parents first meet with a counselor to evaluate their decision. Blocking taxpayer support of clinics that offer child-killing services. Protections that keep doctors who are morally opposed to child-killing from having to perform the procedure.

Let's say one presidential candidate vows to sign into law a federal act that will eliminate all of these state laws, and will guarantee the right of child-killing to parents, regardless of the Supreme Court and what the people in the states have said. What promises could this candidate make to balance his adamant, long-term commitment to protecting the right to kill children up to age 3? Does the uncertainty over whether this candidate will follow through on such a promise give reason enough to vote for him anyway?

Or let's just say that the candidate is simply happy to leave well enough alone. Child-killing will be performed by dirty, back-alley murderers if we make it illegal, he says. Criminalizing it would rob parents of their rights. Things are the way they are, and we really can't do much to change them.

Is there any difference between these scenarios and what we face today with abortion, if we do indeed believe that the unborn are as human as the rest of us?

If we do consider unborn children to be fully human, then why does weariness weaken our resolve to protect them? Which issues are more important than more than one million children being legally killed each year in the U.S.? Would we consider this a negotiable issue if we were talking about adults, or people of a specific ethnicity who had been deemed burdensome? What if this was how our government decided to handle illegal immigrants? Or people who develop Alzheimer's?

This matters even when we're not voting for a new president. I don't think Christians can just ignore abortion at any time, election year or not. Abortion is a flesh-and-blood problem that stays with us as wars come and go and the economy goes up and down. For many of us, thankfully, it isn't something we've had to face head-on. And yet our culture bears the weight of the dead, whether we see them or not.

bookcases: done

A few Saturdays ago, I accomplished something I'd very much wanted to do since moving to Huntington: organize the bookcases in my house.

This involved a handful of bookcases that are in several parts of the house -- one in my room; a backup in my closet that had previously only held shoes; two in the front room (one of which was exclusively a VHS -- yes, VHS -- holder); one in the dining room-turned-living room; one in a little hallway area to the kitchen; and a few shelves of the entertainment center in the living room-turned-etc. room.

I got the bookcase in the living room done more than a month ago. It is now not a bookcase, but a media case. It holds DVDs and, yes, VHS tapes, plus a little wooden holder for miscellaneous items and the cords that connect the laptop to the TV. Finishing this case was rather satisfying, as is looking upon its orderly, cat knickknack-punctuated composure.


I finished the entertainment center next. I don't love it, but it works. Putting the children's videos here allowed us just enough room in the media case for other DVDs and videotapes. I also put children's books here, though some (like the Narnia series) live elsewhere in the house.

I still need to tidy up the rest of the entertainment center. Also, we rarely have children visit, but if they do, we're ready for them now.


The two bookcases in the front room were reconceived from their original uses as VHS storage (for one) and books/whatever needs stuck somewhere storage (for the other). Photo albums from my room and various other places are now placed together in an easily accessible space in the two cases. Books fill up the rest of the visible shelves. The two doors of the one case hide spillover VHS tapes that hold movies and other things recorded from television back in the day.


The bookcase en route to the kitchen is now a paperback book holder. The top row features some impressive "Star Wars"/sci-fi stuff that I took from my mom's bookcase in her bedroom.


The one in my closet holds the least compelling books. They are still available but not as notable or treasured as the others. I don't like to get rid of many books -- they are my favorite collectible, I think.


And the bookcase in my room stores my favorite books and those I have some sort of special attachment to: the Narnia, Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter series; favorite authors like Jane Austen and favorite books like "The War of the Worlds" and "To Kill a Mockingbird"; books from places I visited (or lived) while on Stint in Slovakia.


The top shelf is now a "books to read" shelf. It includes any books I have received as gifts over the past couple years, plus others. Whenever I finish a book, I will look here for choices to read next.


Books currently on the "to read" shelf:

"World War Z," Max Brooks
"Everyday Math for Everyday life," Mark Ryan
"The Gunslinger," Stephen King
"Because He Loves Me," Elyse Fitzpatrick
"Haunted West Virginia," Patty A. Wilson
"The Road," Cormac McCarthy
"The Vintage Book of Contemporary American Short Stories," edited by Tobias Wolff
"The Best School Year Ever," Barbara Robinson
"A Little Princess," Frances Hodgson Burnett
"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," Washington Irving
"The Pilgrim's Progress," John Bunyan
"Dracula," Bram Stoker
"Son of a Witch," Gregory Maguire
"Mysterious Island," Jules Verne
"Death on the Nile," Agatha Christie
"Alice's Adventures in Wonderland," Lewis Carroll
"Persuasion," Jane Austen
"Three" by Flannery O'Connor -- "Wise Blood," "A Good Man Is Hard To Find" and "The Violent Bear It Away"
"The Watsons," Jane Austen
"The Scarlet Pimpernel," Baroness Orczy
"The First Men in the Moon," H.G. Wells
"Do You Speak American?" by Robert MacNeil and William Cran
"Tarzan of the Apes," Edgar Rice Burroughs
"A Severe Mercy," Sheldon Vanauken
"Of Other Worlds," C.S. Lewis
"In the Name of the Father," Gerry Conlon
"Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life," Donald S. Whitney
"Time and Again," Jack Finney
"Eragon," Christopher Paolini
"The Stand," Stephen King
"Making Sense of the Troubles," David McKittrick

I anticipate reading "The Road" next, and perhaps simultaneously also attempting to get into "Because He Loves Me," which I started briefly but didn't commit to earlier this year. That's a fiction and a nonfiction, which wouldn't be so bad to juggle I think. I've also already read about 100 pages of "Mysterious Island," but it's been awhile since I last put it down. I should probably get to it before I forget too much of it to pick it back up where I left it.

Oh, and there are a few books on a shelf near my bed, easily accessible from both the bed and my desk.


Seeing books around gives me a cozy feeling, you know? What about you?

clicks

Some of my bookmarks, now for you. I am planning to update my link lists on the right to reflect some of these and other links I think you might find useful.


for fun

1. This is actually just a blog post, not a bookmark. I link to it primarily because of the bit about "Wii Croquet." I am on board with the idea of not only playing Wii Croquet, but playing it as characters from the movie "Heathers."

2. Humorous, unless the apostrophe abuse in these signs resembles your own.

3. Just what you'd expect from a website called Cool Things in Random Places.

4. So, it turns out that graphs are funny. (I forget where I first heard of most of these sites, but I'm pretty sure I got to this one via Entertainment Weekly. Or maybe another entertainment site. It was in reference to Marshall's graphing skills on an episode of "How I Met Your Mother.")

5. Customize signs and such at Says-It. I'm partial to the cassettes and vinyl records.


potentially useful

1. The Futon Critic lists when specific TV shows will return, if at all.

2. MovieStinger keeps track of which movies have secret scenes during and after the credits. (Found via Lifehacker)

3. Speaking of Lifehacker, this is a site that provides "tips and downloads for getting things done," be it cleaning up your Mac or adding a calendar to desktop wallpaper.

4. The following four online stores are the ones I have bookmarked for all my future Internet-based book-buying needs: AbeBooks and BetterWorldBooks which I have not used yet, and old reliables Amazon and Half.com. After looking through several sites, these seem the most promising for cheap used books.

5. I am not sold yet on the idea of reading books on my computer or printing out hundreds of pages to read, but these few sites seem most promising for such endeavors -- simple interface, free or cheap choices: Puritan Books, Project Gutenberg (of course), Planet eBook, Lit2Go and Christian Classics Ethereal Library.

6. Audiobooks for free: Audio Literature Odyssey, Christian Audio offers a free download each month (found via Challies.com), Classic Poetry Aloud, LibriVox, Literal Systems and Telltale Weekly, which offers audiobooks for free or low cost. I think it would be fun to volunteer to read some "classics" for LibriVox. Hmm ...

a thoroughly decent day

Sunday night, I was sort of ridiculous with regard to my dread of Monday morning. I was planning to drive my car -- with its muffler hanging precariously low -- from my house to an auto place that's a couple blocks from work. I was going to have to walk into this auto repair place and request that the broken muffler be fixed. Concerns:

1. As I noted in my previous post, I feel like an idiot when I go anywhere vehicle-related. My knowledge of cars ends with vocabulary like "muffler" and "car" and the basic understanding of how to use a gas pump.

2. I didn't know this place to which I was taking my car. I chose it because I could drop off the car and walk to work. It was the easiest option. Mom and I drove by the place Sunday to see if it appeared reasonable and professional. But appearances can be deceiving, right? What if they overcharged, or insisted on massive repairs? What if they called to say, "Well, it's going to be $600"?

3. What if, while driving to this place, I hit an unlevel patch of road and the muffler fell off and hit another car, or got lodged somehow in the pavement? Those things can happen, you know.

So, Sunday night I was in a vulnerable place. This is one of those situations that becomes a catalyst for the more desperate version of my emotions, and a metaphor for whatever is disappointing or incomplete about my life. I felt so alone, having to drive with this crippled car and approach a situation that made me feel as stupid and incapable as possible. I couldn't relax or become immersed in anything else. The dread always nagged me and, as the night got later, it overwhelmed me.

I prayed, of course. And I was also reminded, rather than nagged, about this other part of the situation: that God is sovereign. God is over it all and aware of all that is to come. Whether the car made it or got stuck in the middle of 8th Street, and whether it would be a busy morning at this auto place and whether they would be decent people and whether it would cost a little or a lot -- all of that was unknown to me, and could morph into any number of nightmares and fears about what the morning would bring. Or I could trust that God knew and that He would be with me through it all.

He would provide an easy drive, or He would provide help for a troublesome drive. He had my back. I wasn't walking into anything alone. "God is with me." It feels a little cliche or hollow sometimes, but once I really just laid out my feelings and fears before God and sought His provision and lordship, I started to believe (not just know) that I wasn't alone. I figured this was one of those opportunities to do what I had to do instead of just what I wanted to do based on pleasure or ease, and see God provide entirely.

And so, yesterday morning, still afraid but not nearly the basket case I resembled Sunday night, I drove to the auto place with no trouble at all. I got there early and waited for 7:30 a.m., when it opened. A woman who works at the Knit-n-Hook shop next door pulled in and went into her store. Her appearance made me feel a little better.

I went in and met a thoroughly decent-seeming man, told him the muffler was half hanging off, and gave him my key. I had nearly a half hour until work, so I walked to Starbucks and got a venti green tea with mint. I was thankful to have it all go so easily and to have felt very non-idiotlike, but I worried still about the cost, and whether the work and the payment for it would be above-board. I prayed some more. It was better to acknowledge that the things that are out of my control are in God's hands, rather than trying to somehow control them by pondering them over and over in my head.

I got a call at work at about 8:15 that the total cost was going to be $120 to replace the muffler and an exhaust pipe that runs from (perhaps?) the converter to the muffler. I had hoped it wouldn't be more than $200. The total, including some exhaust hangers and tax, was around $140. Plus, the car felt brand new when I drove it home, with its quietness and its lack of sputter.

So, all that fretting and dreading for nothing. Or rather, I pray it wasn't for nothing. I was pretty torn up with hesitation and fear about a morning that was crisp and smooth. I found in the midst of my fear and trembling that the calm I needed was only to come from acknowledging the sovereignty and unerring provision of God. It wasn't a magic pill that erased all my fear, but really believing that truth did change me to a significant degree. And I am so glad to have been put in the position to experience that truth coming alive for me. I have a fairly easy life, and though I prefer it that way, it's the difficulties that often force me closer to God when I wouldn't choose to draw closer to Him on my own.

I just hope that when I come upon the nightmare versions of what my days could be, I can find solace and peace even then in the sovereignty and providence of God.

why I long again for the United States to get on board already with pervasive public transportation

So, the muffler on my car is broken. Ways this could be worse:

1. It could prevent me from driving the car at all. Once, when I worked in Bluefield, the muffler fell mostly off while I was in a drive-through at McDonald's. It was still barely attached to the car, and when I tried to drive forward, it caught on the pavement and I couldn't move an inch. This was in the drive-through. Where cars wait behind you for their McNuggets and their large fries. A McDonald's worker came out, took a look, got a knife and cut through the bit of foam that was holding the muffler on. He put the muffler in the trunk.

2. It could have happened mid-week. As it was, I drove home Friday unaware of any problem. My mom noticed it when she parked behind my car that evening.

3. It could have totally fallen off and hit another car, a pedestrian, etc.

4. It could have been something other than the muffler.

So, it's not really so bad. I am dreading, though, taking the car in tomorrow morning to, I hope, be fixed in an efficient and inexpensive manner. I loathe going anywhere vehicle related because I feel like an idiot.

I keep reminding myself, "God is with me. God is with me."

sleeping well despite what shadows may hide

I am a little tired today, an improvement over yesterday when I was deeply tired. Yesterday evening is a blur -- I was too sleepy to commit myself to any activity of much value or intellectual pursuit, and went to bed a little after nine but had trouble falling asleep.

Tonight, my goal is to sleep in my own bed in my own bedroom, in a house I am considering nicknaming "The Bat Cave." It is difficult to return to the scene of the bat intrusion in the daylight, much less at night when the darkness invites all manner of wildlife to crawl, scurry and fly to their hearts' content in the shadow of nighttime.

You see, there was a bat in my bedroom Monday night. I had spent Sunday out of town and returned Monday morning, glad to have the most daunting part of the Memorial Day weekend -- driving solo via the W.Va. Turnpike to and from Princeton -- out of the way. This is the part of the weekend I had somewhat dreaded and had prayed about. When I went to bed Monday night, I wasn't thrilled about having to return to work the next day. But I was glad to be home.

I lay in bed awhile listening to music on my iPod, then retired it and awaited sleep. I heard a few faint noises coming from the area around the door to the balcony, and noticed Ally sitting on the chair to the side of the door and in front of a window. I presumed last week's raccoon had returned and that Ally was propped near the doorway in related curiosity. She looked up higher on the door and even near the top of the window, but I figured the raccoon was trying to climb the wall outside.

Also, I noticed a darker spot in the darkness, resting above the curtain on the molding around the window. I thought it was a shadow, and turned on my lamp merely to chase it away and confirm that it was not somehow a raccoon hand -- I knew it wasn't really anything.

It never occurred to me that an animal of another kind could be in my room, even though a bat had once gotten inside the house not even a year ago. All I was thinking was "raccoon" when I turned on the light.

Of course, when the shadow was revealed to instead be a small, soft-looking and entirely corporeal bat, I promptly arose from my bed and went into the hallway, calling out that there was a bat in my room. In these sorts of situations, I am entirely useless. My mom somehow got Ally out of the room and also retrieved my cell phone and turned off both my lamp and alarm. We shut the door and I called Tabby, who had so bravely and successfully removed last August's bat, to see if she was available for bat wrangling the following day. Instead, she came over that night.

After the bat was released on the balcony (the details of which I don't really know because I was downstairs in the living room while Tabby and Mom took care of things upstairs), Mom duct taped the entire doorway to cover potential bat entry points. I now find myself suddenly quite fond of duct tape.

Still, I am not sure whether the bat came through the space around the door in the first place, and my brain is on bat alert. So I see dark objects and shadows in my room and remember the bat. In my fear-fevered mind, a bat lurks -- and by lurks, I mean hangs still and quiet just like the one on Monday night did, bothering no one except my psyche. I am not sure what I expect the bats to do -- maybe injure my cats? Fly into my hair? Brush my skin with their wings as they fly by? Their mere presence is all I require to feel the fear -- no particulars or horror-movie plotlines necessary.

But really, I just want to sleep. I have spent the past two nights not sleeping in my own bed in my own room. My cats don't know where to find me. I wake up in a weird room, on a weird mattress. I slept longer last night than the one before, but I need to go back to my bed. I wonder if I'll be able to settle enough to sleep well, though. I need more than my familiar bed -- I need peace of mind. I need to rest.

I thought of that bat and its trail of fear when I read a blog post today at Amy's Humble Musings. She wrote about hearing noises in her house that indicated someone was inside, and her fear following the discovery that the someone could not be her husband, who was still on his way home. My favorite parts in bold:

My theology tells me that I have nothing to fear, not because I’ve convinced myself of it but because it’s actually true. In that moment, and if you must know, the moments before childbirth, my faith crumbles. But I thank God for showing me my weakness so that I can ask for more faith. My fear is a lack of faith. What can anyone do to me where there is no future grace? Faith is a gift from God which He gives to those who ask. More often, I ask that things will be safe and sound. I ask for these things instead of faith, but which is the better gift?

I know I am just afraid of a bat that does not actually exist right now, not within the reality of my bedroom at least. But still, this question lingers. It always lingers when I am afraid of the dark, or what might await me there: Which will be bigger, your fear or God's promises, the reality of God Himself? "I have nothing to fear, not because I’ve convinced myself of it but because it’s actually true." I have nothing to fear, not because I will it or because I talk myself into logical bravery, but because it's actually true. It's actually true.

And this makes me think of an article about providence that I read today at WORLD Magazine's website. In it, John Ensor writes,

"I endure disappointment and hurt far more graciously when I am tethered to divine providence."

I hope that tonight I will tether myself to divine providence so that I may also endure the darkness with faith in a God who knows all the inhabits of that darkness. Ensor finishes with this thought about the reality of God's providence: "That makes me want to get up in the morning and see what the day will bring." The right lens makes us see everything -- the bats, the disappointments, the unwelcome and unanticipated -- as part of providence. It makes me feel secure even as God writes my days without my direction. It makes me less afraid. I just have to remember the truth.