It's 9:30, my hair is down, my glasses are on, my earrings are out, and my eyes want to close. Why am I even venturing to post, you ask? Because I've started to post three times and lost it every time, and I'm a determined woman.
It was a chilly walk across the mall after my 8 pm class in Furman Hall-- fall is on his way. I do love South Carolina's Indian Summer, though. It's a slippers-and-hot chocolate kind of night, but since I'm not at home, and I have abandoned white sugar, I'm contenting myself with hot licorice tea, and socks-- one mine, and one Katie's. (long story) I'm crashing at her place tonight, since she has one roommate in France this term (so I get an actual bed!), and since I've got to get up uber-early tomorrow so I can get my workout in early, so she & I can get up to Seneca as early as possible (We're going to Seneca, SC, an hour away, where Katie is doing her teaching internship, as part of getting our required 20 hours of classroom observations in. It'll be fun going together. =D).
All right, to make it onto the "10 Best Love Songs Ever," the songs have to be all-around wonderful. Not too mushy, not overly idolatrous ;D, something musically appealing, and lyrics that sound somewhat more sincere and less jaded from use than a Hallmark card. Three rules (eheh I'll even alliterate I'm so tired):
1) Memorable lyrics; poetry, people!!...sincere sweetness said in an original, non-mindlessly-repetitive way
2) Melodic/Harmonic quality; none of this "alternate between two chords (and one line) for 3.5 minutes" crap
3) Minimally idolatrous message; nothin' sketchy, and as little displacement of God as possible ...which is why, much as it pains me, I don't think Chicago's "Inspiration" can make it...
[[drum roll, please!]] In no particular order, after compilation and communal consideration by committee and category (ok, ok I'll stop ;D), we have:
1. Springtime Indiana (Sandra McCracken)
Why? "Never been good with my thoughts/and even worse with my words/but you read like familiar poetry that I have never heard.../" and "you came in without notice, settled all around my heart/took up residence in the places that were vacant and dark..."
2) For My Love (Bethany Dillon)
Why? She captures the godly female heart's longings SO well throughout the entire song. Just take the chorus: "...let me know you'd fight/thousands, for my love/slip your hand in mine/ ask me to dance with you tonight/ just ask me/ for my love."
3) She's My Kind of Rain (Tim McGraw)
Why? Besides the fact that the music video shows him with his wife and children, the line "She's the sunset's shadow;/She's like Rembrant's light..."
4) Sweet Afton (Nickel Creek's version)
Why? The Celtic words catch so beautifully, but it's Chris Thile's melody-- lilting, tender, and a little haunting-- and Sean & Sara Watkins' harmonies that rank it here
5) Beautiful Soul (Jesse McCartney)
Why? Read a little of this refreshing break from shallow, lust-over-love pop: "I don't want another pretty face/ I don't want just anyone to hold/...I want you and your beautiful soul/ You're the one I wanna chase/ You're the one I wanna hold/...I want you and your beautiful soul."
6) If You're Not the One (Daniel Beddingfield)
Why? I was first taken in by the sheer sweetness in his voice, and impressed by his musical virtuosity (great falsetto). The lyrics are a cheesy enough to make you grin, and then he has to go and be ready to commit on top of that ;D: "If you're not the one/ why do I dream of you/ as my wife?"
7) All I Ask of You (music by Andrew Lloyd Weber, lyrics by Charles Strouse & Richard Stilgoe, sung by Sara Brightman & Steve Barton)
Why? Ummm...it's from Phantom, for one. I love the irony, too: demanding everything, longing to give everything, and saying "that's all I ask." "Say you'll share with me one love, one lifetime/ Say the word, and I will follow you/ Share each day with me, each night, each morning/ Anywhere you go, let me go too./ That's all I ask of you."
8) For the Longest Time (Billy Joel)
Why? The music is certainly quality. Then there's the famous "If you said goodbye to me tonight/ there would still be music left to write/ What else could I do?/ I'm so inspired by you/ That hasn't happened for the longest time." And you have to grin at the impudence of "I think you ought to know/ that I intend to hold you for the longest time!" At least he's letting her know... ;D
Also in the running are: Can't Hurry Love (first sung by The Supremes, lyrics & music by Doozer, Holland & Holland) , Front Porch Lookin' In, and I'm Already There (both by Lonestar), Better Than Wine (Derek Webb), Could Not Ask for More (Edwin McCain), You're Still the One (McGraw/Hill), That's When I Love You (Phil Vassar), Canaan Bound (Andrew Peterson), When You Say Nothing At All (Alison Krauss), Livin' On A Prayer (Bon Jovi), Everyday Love (Rascal Flatts), I Will Be Here (S. C. Chapman), Arise, My Love (Michael Card), Can You Feel? (Elton John), Tale as Old as Time (yes, the Disney), Alla Luce Del Sol (sung by Josh Groban), and Con Te Partiro (most recently sung by Sara Brightman & Andrea Bochelli, under the misleading English title 'Time to Say Goodbye.'). Ok...there you have our list-in-progress. Suggestions welcome, from any and all genres and eras. They just have to follow the rules! =D
You know, Christians should write the best love songs.
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Thursday, September 14, 2006
Looking Back on "Early Experience"
Looking back over my four weeks of Early Experience, trying to summarize it all into several neat “what I’ve learned” packages doesn’t come naturally. My experience was so varied—bulletin boards, instruction, a field trip downtown, faculty meetings, other meetings, play auditions, a lot of listening, watching, and note-taking, hugs from children, names on the board, setting out chairs and stacking them again, greeting the custodian and lunch in the teachers’ lounge—varied as teaching, I guess. But themes are there, and as I think about them, I realize I’ve already changed because of Early Experience and what I’ve learned through it.
I think the most important “lesson” I learned is to see the positive spin everything has. In teaching this is most obvious in the area of correction. I watched good teachers do this many times at Sue Cleveland, reinforcing what I’d heard at the Marcia Tate* workshop and read in Mendler’s book. Instead of telling a child or a class “Be quiet and be still!” I now hear myself saying things like “wow! Y’all have a lot of energy! That is great! I need you to put that energy into listening to me for the next few minutes. I think you’ll like what I have to say.” It takes a little more time, maybe, but it reminds them (and me!) of their dignity as human beings, and encourages the positive aspects of their behavior or idea (their energy) rather than merely shooting down the negative aspects (their inattention). What’s that old saying? “You’ll catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.” Put another way, “it’s often more effective to affirm the right than to merely punish the wrong.” At the very least, I can avoid strictly negative, or accusing, words, even if I don’t have time to affirm the positive: “We use our feet for walking!” instead of “Don’t’ run!” I want kindness and mercy to be my default position: assuming the best, and ready to forgive the worst.
Related to that commitment to positivity is the second resolution I have made: I am committed to enjoying what I do. The past 3 years, I have been plagued by a lack of confidence in my abilities as a musician, and this has hampered my own enjoyment of my art, and has made me quite fearful at the thought of teaching it. I was looking forward to Early Experience because I hoped it would be the key to me looking forward to teaching instead of dreading it. I learned that confidence and joy are, if not the same thing, then very closely related, so if I can have one, I can have the other. When I got up in front of a class, if I was determined to like them and to try and present the material in a fun way (no matter what their behavior was like), not only did I enjoy it, but they responded much better to me. Robin and I joked after particularly trying classes or days about how “the only person you can control in this classroom is yourself,” and that’s really true, but it’s empowering, not discouraging. I can determine to enjoy teaching and music quite apart from anyone else’s reaction to it (even my own—but that’s another topic. See 1 Cor. 4:1-4), and in that enjoyment, I also find confidence to teach it. I may not be the best singer or the best teacher, but I sure can try to have fun with what I have—and to get my students in on that joy.
Lastly, I learned a good deal about teaching. I’ve been amazed at how much “little kids” can learn! Now I realize that that’s their “job,” after all—what they were made to do and do well at this point in their lives. How much, quickly, or well they learn, however, can be quite affected by how they’re taught. The best teaching comes through “stories.” Marcia Tate spoke of “narratives” and “chunking” (grouping materially logically into information clusters). A simple way to sum those techniques up would be to “find and tell the story in it,” be it in music theory, biology, history, or grammar. Stories make sense. They have beginnings, middles, and ends. A lot of times they have repetition. Anytime a lesson is logical, has important bits repeated, and has a rhythm to it, the chances of it sticking in a student’s brain are much higher. And stories are so much less boring than lectures! ☺ Another strategy, somewhat related, is how much children learn through games. My first week in Robin’s classroom, I was amazed at how much the children were learning and practicing through simple echo games: monkey see, monkey do. I think the reason these teaching strategies work well is that they capitalize on what children (and so all of us) naturally do: listen to stories and play games.
So...how has Early Experience left me richer? (Rich people make better teachers, because they have more to offer.) I'm taking at least three jewels with me: a view first for positives rather than for negatives... a determined commitment to enjoying what I will do...and (I hope) a teaching style that seeks to lead children as they most naturally would walk (story-telling, logic, and games). Maybe this'll even help me relate to you grown-ups better, too. ☺
*Dr. Marcia Tate is a teacher and noted speaker, and I got to attend one of her Teacher Workshops my first week as a Student Teacher!! Her best-known book is Workbooks Don't Grow Dendrites, and her catch-phrase is "the brain-compatible classroom" or "brain-compatible teaching." She's great!
I think the most important “lesson” I learned is to see the positive spin everything has. In teaching this is most obvious in the area of correction. I watched good teachers do this many times at Sue Cleveland, reinforcing what I’d heard at the Marcia Tate* workshop and read in Mendler’s book. Instead of telling a child or a class “Be quiet and be still!” I now hear myself saying things like “wow! Y’all have a lot of energy! That is great! I need you to put that energy into listening to me for the next few minutes. I think you’ll like what I have to say.” It takes a little more time, maybe, but it reminds them (and me!) of their dignity as human beings, and encourages the positive aspects of their behavior or idea (their energy) rather than merely shooting down the negative aspects (their inattention). What’s that old saying? “You’ll catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.” Put another way, “it’s often more effective to affirm the right than to merely punish the wrong.” At the very least, I can avoid strictly negative, or accusing, words, even if I don’t have time to affirm the positive: “We use our feet for walking!” instead of “Don’t’ run!” I want kindness and mercy to be my default position: assuming the best, and ready to forgive the worst.
Related to that commitment to positivity is the second resolution I have made: I am committed to enjoying what I do. The past 3 years, I have been plagued by a lack of confidence in my abilities as a musician, and this has hampered my own enjoyment of my art, and has made me quite fearful at the thought of teaching it. I was looking forward to Early Experience because I hoped it would be the key to me looking forward to teaching instead of dreading it. I learned that confidence and joy are, if not the same thing, then very closely related, so if I can have one, I can have the other. When I got up in front of a class, if I was determined to like them and to try and present the material in a fun way (no matter what their behavior was like), not only did I enjoy it, but they responded much better to me. Robin and I joked after particularly trying classes or days about how “the only person you can control in this classroom is yourself,” and that’s really true, but it’s empowering, not discouraging. I can determine to enjoy teaching and music quite apart from anyone else’s reaction to it (even my own—but that’s another topic. See 1 Cor. 4:1-4), and in that enjoyment, I also find confidence to teach it. I may not be the best singer or the best teacher, but I sure can try to have fun with what I have—and to get my students in on that joy.Lastly, I learned a good deal about teaching. I’ve been amazed at how much “little kids” can learn! Now I realize that that’s their “job,” after all—what they were made to do and do well at this point in their lives. How much, quickly, or well they learn, however, can be quite affected by how they’re taught. The best teaching comes through “stories.” Marcia Tate spoke of “narratives” and “chunking” (grouping materially logically into information clusters). A simple way to sum those techniques up would be to “find and tell the story in it,” be it in music theory, biology, history, or grammar. Stories make sense. They have beginnings, middles, and ends. A lot of times they have repetition. Anytime a lesson is logical, has important bits repeated, and has a rhythm to it, the chances of it sticking in a student’s brain are much higher. And stories are so much less boring than lectures! ☺ Another strategy, somewhat related, is how much children learn through games. My first week in Robin’s classroom, I was amazed at how much the children were learning and practicing through simple echo games: monkey see, monkey do. I think the reason these teaching strategies work well is that they capitalize on what children (and so all of us) naturally do: listen to stories and play games.
So...how has Early Experience left me richer? (Rich people make better teachers, because they have more to offer.) I'm taking at least three jewels with me: a view first for positives rather than for negatives... a determined commitment to enjoying what I will do...and (I hope) a teaching style that seeks to lead children as they most naturally would walk (story-telling, logic, and games). Maybe this'll even help me relate to you grown-ups better, too. ☺
*Dr. Marcia Tate is a teacher and noted speaker, and I got to attend one of her Teacher Workshops my first week as a Student Teacher!! Her best-known book is Workbooks Don't Grow Dendrites, and her catch-phrase is "the brain-compatible classroom" or "brain-compatible teaching." She's great!
Thursday, September 07, 2006
Sustained by More Than Licorice
...if you thought that looked like the makings of an interesting title...
so did I.
I had a whole, nice, long, thought-out, re-vised post...which completely disappeared when I left my computer. Gone forever. I will try to re-create it...but I can't tonight.
I haven't forgotten, though, even if it's taken me a little longer than I'd hoped! Aren't you glad God ALWAYS keeps HIS promises, all the way!??
so did I.
I had a whole, nice, long, thought-out, re-vised post...which completely disappeared when I left my computer. Gone forever. I will try to re-create it...but I can't tonight.
I haven't forgotten, though, even if it's taken me a little longer than I'd hoped! Aren't you glad God ALWAYS keeps HIS promises, all the way!??
Saturday, August 26, 2006
Real Post
It's been long in coming... but understandably so. ;D For starters, I haven't had a chance to unpack yet, or even read much of anything or journal!, much less blog, since I left the quietness of my Kentucky summer, and hit the ground running full speed-- literally straight down the mountains and into a student teacher meeting. Back in the saddle. Back on campus.
Then, too, my thoughts, emotions, and experiences were so quick and layered one upon the other that it's taken this long to sift through them somewhat-- I've needed the two weeks of hindsight, just to be able to see the vague shape of the forest for all the trees! God is always at work...and sometimes to do His work justice I've learned that I have to wait (and pray!) a little, watching, before I can see enough to begin to think about it, and then I have to wait, with more prayer, before I've thought enough to begin to put it into words. I'm a muller-- gotta run 'em through the old mill a few times before things start to coalesce. Ryan's been witness to this, lol-- thoughts surface again and again, becoming veritable themes...but it takes a while for them to come out in coherent thoughts anyway.
Tomorrow, though, is Saturday. And I relish the thought of being able to sleep in, READ, pray, write a little, and sit down with my Tosha in my lap (that's my Apple computer's name) and post about the past 3 weeks-- the transition from Kentuckiana Summer to Greenville School Year...and I hope to post on the Lord's Day an even more "looking back" sort of reflection on the summer as a whole. God taught me so much-- it's a joy to sift through it all and see His fingerprints all the better-- they're just all over the sunshine, the Ohio River, and the songs...
But for now, I must sleep. I think my head will explode if I keep my eyes open one more second. Good night-- but Lord willing, I will return!!
--Christina
PS- there's also another List Posting to follow...about the 10 Best Love Songs Ever Written (prompted [mostly, hehehe] by all the love songs I've heard in the past 2 weeks of being in a music classroom! ...nothing to do whatsover with personal experience, no no... ;D)
Then, too, my thoughts, emotions, and experiences were so quick and layered one upon the other that it's taken this long to sift through them somewhat-- I've needed the two weeks of hindsight, just to be able to see the vague shape of the forest for all the trees! God is always at work...and sometimes to do His work justice I've learned that I have to wait (and pray!) a little, watching, before I can see enough to begin to think about it, and then I have to wait, with more prayer, before I've thought enough to begin to put it into words. I'm a muller-- gotta run 'em through the old mill a few times before things start to coalesce. Ryan's been witness to this, lol-- thoughts surface again and again, becoming veritable themes...but it takes a while for them to come out in coherent thoughts anyway.
Tomorrow, though, is Saturday. And I relish the thought of being able to sleep in, READ, pray, write a little, and sit down with my Tosha in my lap (that's my Apple computer's name) and post about the past 3 weeks-- the transition from Kentuckiana Summer to Greenville School Year...and I hope to post on the Lord's Day an even more "looking back" sort of reflection on the summer as a whole. God taught me so much-- it's a joy to sift through it all and see His fingerprints all the better-- they're just all over the sunshine, the Ohio River, and the songs...
But for now, I must sleep. I think my head will explode if I keep my eyes open one more second. Good night-- but Lord willing, I will return!!
--Christina
PS- there's also another List Posting to follow...about the 10 Best Love Songs Ever Written (prompted [mostly, hehehe] by all the love songs I've heard in the past 2 weeks of being in a music classroom! ...nothing to do whatsover with personal experience, no no... ;D)
Friday, August 25, 2006
Lessons Learned... --Ongoing & Edited!!
In case you hadn't noticed, I am a classic "List Person." Especially when things start being pretty unstructured (which, life usually is...especially MY life, it would seem), my journals take the form of lists, more or less. Not the boring kind, for the most part-- just a way I organize my thoughts, try to find themes, or just get the clutter of things I'm trying to remember OUT onto paper, so I can free up some diskspace up there. Hehehe, I crack myself up with all my lists.
Anyway, this is one that makes a lot of sense, and that I'm sure many of my readers can identify with and add to.
Anyway, this is one that makes a lot of sense, and that I'm sure many of my readers can identify with and add to.
Things I've Learned as a First-Year Teacher...
- all solemn men in paintings are presidents. Most likely George Washington.
- glue guns and Post-it Notes are your friends
- the floors in primary classrooms are tile for a reason: summed up in one word, "moppable"
- the inventor of the laminating machine is worthy of a Nobel Prize
- they're always watching. Always.
- they always copy you. Especially when you hope they WEREN'T watching
- love the secretary and janitor. They are very important Friends to have.
- your first name is "Miss"
- Squidward plays the clarinet
- explosions and natural disasters are the best motivators for boys starting in 4th grade. maybe before...
- Squidward plays the clarinet
- explosions and natural disasters are the best motivators for boys starting in 4th grade. maybe before...
------------------------
**Edit**
This is from my friend & classmate Mary Margaret Hart, who worked as a preschool teacher at the Smithsonian over the summer. She said that in the "teacher bathroom" (aka the one with a big potty) there was a little tackboard with funny quotes and such, and this list appeared last week.
Requirements for Teachers (1915)
Teachers May Not:
Be in the company of men
Get married durring contract
Be out between the hours of 8pm and 7am
Go on more than one date per week (unless you attend church, in which case you can go on 2)
Partake in questionable behavior
Loiter in downtown icecream shops
WEAR BRIGHTLY COLORED CLOTHING!!!!
Teachers Must:
Sweep the floors every day
Wash the floors once a week
Wear hair up in a tight bun
Wear at least 2 petticoats
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
For Real Now, Y'all
I just saw a picture of my friend Tara's which reminded me of a vow I made. Ok, not a vow per se... more of an item on my "to do before I die" list. I want to hike the entire AT-- Appalachian Trail. Yep. From top to bottom, north to south, start to finish. Inspired by my friend the crazy mountain-man, Jack (Patrick), I've been dreaming of it since December...and over Spring Break several of us worked out how it could be done in a summer (which is all I'll ever have off as a teacher or student). However, in Louisville, both in the mountains and away from them, I forgot... driving back through them, seeing the apple and peach stands all the way down the mountain (25 towards Furman) last week... smelling the wood-burning that hails the approach of Fall... remembering the Blue Ridge Autumn in all her resplendant glory... yeah. I'm gonna do the Trail one day.
(also on my List is learning to pour concrete, fly a plane, wire a house, horseback ride across Iceland, learn Greek & Hebrew, write a children's story, and visit all the countries that start with I, among other things. I already did check off "learning to drive a manual transmission," as Kaje, D-Sapp, and Nicole can attest. Tollbooths+ MackTrucks +rolling backwards+badly-tossed-change + Mom on the phone+ Minnesota...ahh the memories...)
Doesn't anyone else have such lists?? What are some items on y'alls? There is so MUCH we can do in our lives! Retirement with shell collections and golfing just seems so... tame! We are God's Image- Bearers!! There is dominion to be won! There is a Kingdom to advance, a whole world to explore! May all be done to God for glory!
(also on my List is learning to pour concrete, fly a plane, wire a house, horseback ride across Iceland, learn Greek & Hebrew, write a children's story, and visit all the countries that start with I, among other things. I already did check off "learning to drive a manual transmission," as Kaje, D-Sapp, and Nicole can attest. Tollbooths+ MackTrucks +rolling backwards+badly-tossed-change + Mom on the phone+ Minnesota...ahh the memories...)
Doesn't anyone else have such lists?? What are some items on y'alls? There is so MUCH we can do in our lives! Retirement with shell collections and golfing just seems so... tame! We are God's Image- Bearers!! There is dominion to be won! There is a Kingdom to advance, a whole world to explore! May all be done to God for glory!
Saturday, August 19, 2006
Good Ol' Sandra...
Springtime Indiana
You are starting to wake
And I am laden with the thoughts
Of everything I mean to say
I wish I could tell you,
But I just can't find the words...
You are starting to wake
And I am laden with the thoughts
Of everything I mean to say
I wish I could tell you,
But I just can't find the words...
Thursday, August 17, 2006
I got tagged!
Mrs. Emily O'Neal, of Louisville, KY, informed me that she herself had "tagged" me across the recess field or nether-reaches of blogworld. Which would mean, apparantly, that I have to answer questions, post them on my blog, and in turn "tag" others. I think I've been tagged before, when the tendrils of my mind unfurled in the soil of xanga-land...but I didn't react. So Em, you should feel special. =D
1. One book that changed your life: Seeing & Savoring Jesus Christ, by John Piper
2. One book that you’ve read more than once: The Horse & His Boy, by C. S. Lewis
3. One book I’d want on a desert island: my Bible...with colored pencils with which to mark it all up!
4. One book that made me laugh: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (...and The Half-Blood Prince), both by J. K. Rowling-- Anna & I were literally rolling on the floor at passages in both of those books...still do every time I read them!
5. One book that made me cry: La Jeunesse d'Une Petite Reine (that was the first book to do that-- I was in fifth grade in France, reading about Mary, Queen of Scots, who grew up in the Royal Court of France, with Catherine de Medici as a mother-in-law. I'll never forget her story! It made me love history forever.)
6. One book that you wish you had written: A Swiftly Tilting Planet, by Madeleine L'Engle
7. One book you wish had never been written: A Hundred Years of Solitude, by Gabriel Garcia Marquez-- uggh. biggest waste of summer reading ever.
8. One book that you are currently reading: just one? ok, fine, I'll go with the one actually in my backpack-- Your God is Too Safe, by Mark Buchanon
9. One book that you’ve been meaning to read: The Silmarillion (Tolkien)....The Fairie Queen (Spenser)...Eragon (Paolini)...Miracles (Lewis)
And TAG... Ryan, Ashlea, and hmmm....Amy Y'all are "IT"! =D
1. One book that changed your life: Seeing & Savoring Jesus Christ, by John Piper
2. One book that you’ve read more than once: The Horse & His Boy, by C. S. Lewis
3. One book I’d want on a desert island: my Bible...with colored pencils with which to mark it all up!
4. One book that made me laugh: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (...and The Half-Blood Prince), both by J. K. Rowling-- Anna & I were literally rolling on the floor at passages in both of those books...still do every time I read them!
5. One book that made me cry: La Jeunesse d'Une Petite Reine (that was the first book to do that-- I was in fifth grade in France, reading about Mary, Queen of Scots, who grew up in the Royal Court of France, with Catherine de Medici as a mother-in-law. I'll never forget her story! It made me love history forever.)
6. One book that you wish you had written: A Swiftly Tilting Planet, by Madeleine L'Engle
7. One book you wish had never been written: A Hundred Years of Solitude, by Gabriel Garcia Marquez-- uggh. biggest waste of summer reading ever.
8. One book that you are currently reading: just one? ok, fine, I'll go with the one actually in my backpack-- Your God is Too Safe, by Mark Buchanon
9. One book that you’ve been meaning to read: The Silmarillion (Tolkien)....The Fairie Queen (Spenser)...Eragon (Paolini)...Miracles (Lewis)
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
One of my favorites... on another favorite!
Hey friends--
I promise I'll really update soon. This is from Andrew Peterson's journal (he's one of my favorite artists), on poetry! (one of my favorite arts!). I thought it was a good word-- the whole three-read-through rule. Y'all can check out his actual poem at his website. =D
I'm off to Brushy Creek Elementary for "Marsha Tate Workshop," whatever that means, after a morning of computer-nerdiness (yay for being the computer-girl) and washing whiteboards and dusting keyboards.
--THE Sue Cleveland Elementary Teaching Intern
A Poem on a Plane
Aug 7, 2006
Well, folks, this one may be a little strange to you.
I've never posted any poetry before (except for all the limericks on the MySpace blog). Poetry intimidates me, and whenever I read it I spend most of the time feeling dumb.
Someone (can't remember who) bought me an antique book called The Works of Tennyson, and I loved it, mainly because it rhymed. Call me simple, but being a songwriter, that's the poetry I like the most--stuff that rolls off the tongue in a way that just feels right. (Tolkien was a genius at that.) I'm also partial to Shel Silverstein's children's books. I practically memorized Where the Sidewalk Ends when I was a kid.
On a flight coming back from Denmark last year I finished Leif Enger's Peace Like a River and (after I wiped my eyes and blew my nose) I still had four hours of flying left to go. So I borrowed Ben's copy of Wendell Berry's collected poems. I downright revere the guy's writing, so I was excited to see how the poetry hit me. And? It fell flat. Until I read it again. And again. I sat there and made myself read each poem two or three times through, out-loud. (I was on a plane, so I could whisper them to myself and nobody noticed.) I even got out my Moleskine journal and scribbled a few of them down.
Approaching the poems that way completely changed the experience. With the ever-growing list of novels that I have piling up, I doubt I'll ever be a poetry aficionado, but I'm going to start squeezing it in more often. I bought Berry's Sabbath Poems last week, and the ol' triple re-read worked again.
So. I say all that to say that this poem is, by any poetry major's standards, LAME. I was on a plane to Florida (I think), alone, and wanted to use my time wisely. This is what came out, for better or worse. It was just sitting on my hard drive and I don't have time to write a full-on essay tonight (it's 2 am), so I thought I'd share it.
Hoo boy.
Here we go.
I promise I'll really update soon. This is from Andrew Peterson's journal (he's one of my favorite artists), on poetry! (one of my favorite arts!). I thought it was a good word-- the whole three-read-through rule. Y'all can check out his actual poem at his website. =D
I'm off to Brushy Creek Elementary for "Marsha Tate Workshop," whatever that means, after a morning of computer-nerdiness (yay for being the computer-girl) and washing whiteboards and dusting keyboards.
--THE Sue Cleveland Elementary Teaching Intern
A Poem on a Plane
Aug 7, 2006
Well, folks, this one may be a little strange to you.
I've never posted any poetry before (except for all the limericks on the MySpace blog). Poetry intimidates me, and whenever I read it I spend most of the time feeling dumb.
Someone (can't remember who) bought me an antique book called The Works of Tennyson, and I loved it, mainly because it rhymed. Call me simple, but being a songwriter, that's the poetry I like the most--stuff that rolls off the tongue in a way that just feels right. (Tolkien was a genius at that.) I'm also partial to Shel Silverstein's children's books. I practically memorized Where the Sidewalk Ends when I was a kid.
On a flight coming back from Denmark last year I finished Leif Enger's Peace Like a River and (after I wiped my eyes and blew my nose) I still had four hours of flying left to go. So I borrowed Ben's copy of Wendell Berry's collected poems. I downright revere the guy's writing, so I was excited to see how the poetry hit me. And? It fell flat. Until I read it again. And again. I sat there and made myself read each poem two or three times through, out-loud. (I was on a plane, so I could whisper them to myself and nobody noticed.) I even got out my Moleskine journal and scribbled a few of them down.
Approaching the poems that way completely changed the experience. With the ever-growing list of novels that I have piling up, I doubt I'll ever be a poetry aficionado, but I'm going to start squeezing it in more often. I bought Berry's Sabbath Poems last week, and the ol' triple re-read worked again.
So. I say all that to say that this poem is, by any poetry major's standards, LAME. I was on a plane to Florida (I think), alone, and wanted to use my time wisely. This is what came out, for better or worse. It was just sitting on my hard drive and I don't have time to write a full-on essay tonight (it's 2 am), so I thought I'd share it.
Hoo boy.
Here we go.
Monday, August 14, 2006
Copeland Home, Nolensville TN
Hello my faithful readers! =D
The past few weeks have been so busy; if you hadn't noticed that I haven't posted, lol. Anyway, I just wanted to write real fast and say that I have left Louisville behind... for now. Saturday my family came up-- all 4 crazy Thompsons (ok- 3 crazies, and one Mom; the token laughter of the Thompson comedy routine, as she's been called). We hung around Louisville Saturday evening...let them meet my roomie Ashlea, and Ryan. Then yesterday was a whirlwind of breakfast, Sunday School (as Ryan & Dad disassembled and packed my futon and bike-- a marvel of engineer's packing, getting that in the van!), then corporate worship at Immanuel Baptist, packing my apartment, lunch at the Shuey's (felt just like good ol' times!!), trampoline with ALL of the Thompsons, the Shuey kids, and the Ryan (Morgan & I finally knocked the aforesaid Boy over- yes! triumph!), saying goodbye to Lauren in her NEW apartment, small group in Indiana @ the Marshalls', and then saying goodbye to Ryan at the church...and driving the 3 hours to Nashville. Whew! All that...is it surprising that it all felt surreal? I got to talk to my heart-brother, Ian on the phone as I drove-- VOIP & cellphones are the most AMAZING things ever-- a free call from the road to Argentina. And I got to be the FIRST Americana to "meet" Claudio! I feel special.
Saying goodbye to Ryan wasn't nearly so bad as it could have been...more of a "see you later" than a goodbye, since I'll see him in 2 weeks (yay!). I've gotten so used to goodbyes in my "third-culture-kid" life; they lose some of their sadness, knowing that it's always just a "see you later!" for Christians. But it's also gained some sadness, because the miss-you ache that will come is well-known to me. But then again it's tempered by the knowledge that Love is everywhere where Christ's Name is known-- and His Glory WILL fill the earth as the water fills the sea.
I'm a little more sad now than I was yesterday, feeling the miles, waking up next to my little sister instead of the window overlooking St. James court that's become familiar...and no Ashlea :(. But I'm loving my cousins, my grandpa, my aunt & uncle... looking forward to the drive back with Nicole & CS Lewis, complete with my traveling indulgence of a Green Tea Frap.
More will come later. Many thoughts. But here's "so long" from Nolensville (Nashville suburbia); as Jack Lewis says-- "a Christian NEVER says good-bye!"
Smiles,
--Christina
The past few weeks have been so busy; if you hadn't noticed that I haven't posted, lol. Anyway, I just wanted to write real fast and say that I have left Louisville behind... for now. Saturday my family came up-- all 4 crazy Thompsons (ok- 3 crazies, and one Mom; the token laughter of the Thompson comedy routine, as she's been called). We hung around Louisville Saturday evening...let them meet my roomie Ashlea, and Ryan. Then yesterday was a whirlwind of breakfast, Sunday School (as Ryan & Dad disassembled and packed my futon and bike-- a marvel of engineer's packing, getting that in the van!), then corporate worship at Immanuel Baptist, packing my apartment, lunch at the Shuey's (felt just like good ol' times!!), trampoline with ALL of the Thompsons, the Shuey kids, and the Ryan (Morgan & I finally knocked the aforesaid Boy over- yes! triumph!), saying goodbye to Lauren in her NEW apartment, small group in Indiana @ the Marshalls', and then saying goodbye to Ryan at the church...and driving the 3 hours to Nashville. Whew! All that...is it surprising that it all felt surreal? I got to talk to my heart-brother, Ian on the phone as I drove-- VOIP & cellphones are the most AMAZING things ever-- a free call from the road to Argentina. And I got to be the FIRST Americana to "meet" Claudio! I feel special.
Saying goodbye to Ryan wasn't nearly so bad as it could have been...more of a "see you later" than a goodbye, since I'll see him in 2 weeks (yay!). I've gotten so used to goodbyes in my "third-culture-kid" life; they lose some of their sadness, knowing that it's always just a "see you later!" for Christians. But it's also gained some sadness, because the miss-you ache that will come is well-known to me. But then again it's tempered by the knowledge that Love is everywhere where Christ's Name is known-- and His Glory WILL fill the earth as the water fills the sea.
I'm a little more sad now than I was yesterday, feeling the miles, waking up next to my little sister instead of the window overlooking St. James court that's become familiar...and no Ashlea :(. But I'm loving my cousins, my grandpa, my aunt & uncle... looking forward to the drive back with Nicole & CS Lewis, complete with my traveling indulgence of a Green Tea Frap.
More will come later. Many thoughts. But here's "so long" from Nolensville (Nashville suburbia); as Jack Lewis says-- "a Christian NEVER says good-bye!"
Smiles,
--Christina
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Happy Birthday, dear Nicole...
I'd like to take this li'l opportunity to give a shout out to my little sister, Lauren Nicole Thompson, who turns 18 today!!!
God is strong in you, and I get so much joy from watching Him work in your life. I'm your biggest fan and always will be-- there isn't anyone with a bigger heart than yours, especially for the lonely. Set your love on Jesus-- there's nothing more exciting than "remembering your Creator in the days when you are young." He is the Great Lover of your soul!! And He really does want your happiness...even when He hurts us, it's to make us laugh later. Keep dancing!
I love you!!
--Christina
Saturday, July 29, 2006
Another One Checked Off! =D
So I wanted to go to a Bats Game while I was here, and tonight Ashlea, Ryan & I did! It wasn't much action...and we lost :(, but it's all about the experience, right?
Baseball games: smells of hot dogs, cotton candy, nachos, and funnel cakes, the huge blue icees that turn your tongue violent shades of azure, the smuggled-in apples, the itchy grass seats, the one brave cheeseball who proposes to his girlfriend over the wide-screen TV, the songs that play for a scant few seconds-just long enough to get you dancing, the clouds as the sun falls...
The more personal aspects, too: the roommate who looks great with blue teeth, the adorable little boys behind you who dance whenever we score, the boyfriend who unexpectedly flicks peanut butter all over your face and doesn't seem at ALL deterred by threats to never speak to him again, the guy at the concession stand who nearly falls over when the answer to "how old are you, sweetie?" is "20..." (he thought I was 14! FOURTEEN!!...maybe it was the ribbon in my hair...)
And then admiring the brave skaters [and often rediculously imprudent and stupid] at the skate-park on the way back to the car.
Yes, I'd say it was an enjoyable end to a very encouraging, full day. (the clouds looked very cool as we left)
Two non-baseball pics for my sisters. And all you other grinners. =D
(The short brown Asian-looking man is John Miller's long-lost-twin...John Letoto. Also known as Toto.)
CHEESE!!
(ps there are lots more where those came from!)My First Immanuel Wedding
Mr. and Mrs. Joshua Mimbs, ladies & gentlemen...
[ok, ok, Ryan took that picture. So don't compliment me.]
[ok, ok, Ryan took that picture. So don't compliment me.]
Pastor King, Amanda & Josh-- this is in the Seminary Chapel. The pews are tall and lock! It's like being in box seats. Not nice when you're coming in late!! *sheepish grin*
Pastor Jeff King, his lovely wife Christie (did I spell that right? This church has TONS of Christies!), and their kiddos, Alexis (2) & Rachel (6 mos.?). So cute!! (oh, and you all should ask them about their Charter-Fishing Date. But don't ask while you're recovering from hernia surgery. You'll laugh WAY too hard, and it'll definitely impede your recovery...)
I must say I'm rather proud of Ryan for getting this one! I told Jeff his daughter walks like a little princess, and he got all stern and was like... "No-- she's a King!!" CHEESY!! Anyway, this is the beautiful Alexis Marie King. Definitely an effusive little personality! =D
Baby Rachel attacking/hugging Jacob Fullerton.
And look at that good-lookin Father-Son combo... Nathan & Jacob Fullerton, folks.
Glen's kiddie tie made me laugh SO hard. That's his wife, Bethany beside him, and they're talking to Mr. & Mrs. Aaron R-longnamethatican'tspell. Apparantly, the Mrs. R (Candace) thought that just because SHE was up 'til now Immanuel's most recently-wed bride (June), she could be the bouncer and keep certain individuals from entering into the celebration...just because the signup list wasn't there after the first Sunday... *wink* She kept saying something about patience. No idea WHAT she was talking about.
Thursday, July 27, 2006
Read With Us
Yay I don't have to get up at 4:45 tomorrow!! ...instead...only 6, lol. I'm babysitting Robbie instead of my 8-hour daybreak shift at The Patio. Great last few days-- crazy, so less posting going on (I'm no longer unemployed!)-- but I DID manage to introduce Ashlea to Bryan Adams and crazy disco pop. We were celebrating our actual co-inhabitation of our apartment (a rarity these days with opposite shifts worked), with crazy music and dancing!! DJ Sammy's"Heaven," Aqua's "Tarzan" & "Dr. Jones"... Shakira... Billy Joel... crazy country...
Wanted to post some pictures from Read With Us, though. I talk about it enough--and enjoy it enough! These are from tonight. The 3 sisters from Clay St. came again-- Clara (4), Emma (6) & Mina (7)-- they came to Sunday School on Sunday, and are regulars at the Saturday Bible Club and Read with Us. Their grandmother, Miss Nancy, who is an English teacher, and their cousin came tonight, and so did their friends, Sierra (5) & Kristi (6). They'd both come to Read w/ Us before...Sierra clung to me. I was glad to coax smiles from her-- she's such a sad, drawn little girl.
A very dramatic reception from Ryan... (ok now there are cops running, and a guy in handcuffs...hmmm. it's all been very quiet, at least. No, Ashlea-- not cool!!)
[Ok, now there goes the poor Domino's guy. Now he's backing up. Is HE going to stop in front
of our house, too??]
I'll close with this one of Sierra-- it seems to sum our ministry up well.
We want little girls like her to grow up with an imagination that can hold onto Hope. That can turn into Faith... and faith into love... and love into joy.
Amen.
Wanted to post some pictures from Read With Us, though. I talk about it enough--and enjoy it enough! These are from tonight. The 3 sisters from Clay St. came again-- Clara (4), Emma (6) & Mina (7)-- they came to Sunday School on Sunday, and are regulars at the Saturday Bible Club and Read with Us. Their grandmother, Miss Nancy, who is an English teacher, and their cousin came tonight, and so did their friends, Sierra (5) & Kristi (6). They'd both come to Read w/ Us before...Sierra clung to me. I was glad to coax smiles from her-- she's such a sad, drawn little girl.
Me reading with Sierra, Renaisha and Briana...so cute!!
Sierra almost looks happy...
Listening to Miss Debbie (another English teacher, who lives on Camp St.! Ryan & I had dinner w/ her tonight afterwards, actually! She was a teacher @ his HS) read Jack & the Beanstalk, a great success!
Rob reading...ok...there are policemen with flashlights in front of our house... anyway. That's Emma he's reading to.
Ashlea & Clara. ...hmmm...more police cars with lights on...at least there aren't any sirens?
A very dramatic reception from Ryan... (ok now there are cops running, and a guy in handcuffs...hmmm. it's all been very quiet, at least. No, Ashlea-- not cool!!)
[Ok, now there goes the poor Domino's guy. Now he's backing up. Is HE going to stop in frontof our house, too??]
I'll close with this one of Sierra-- it seems to sum our ministry up well.
We want little girls like her to grow up with an imagination that can hold onto Hope. That can turn into Faith... and faith into love... and love into joy.
Amen.
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
Wowzers!
I'm at work-- apparantly we have wireless at The Patio! Ummm...raw, local, yummy honey on gluten-free homemade bread, a quiet 30-minute lunch break with my newfound friend, coworker & sister in Christ...on our finished Patio... can it get any better?
I submit that it cannot! ;D
Lord, thank You for this job!
Lord, thank You for this job!
Monday, July 24, 2006
The more things change...
I know you've heard that truism. Haven't you? "The more things change, the more they stay the same..." Comforting if you believe one of those things that doesn't change is God, and His Love...and His Control over everything. Downright depressing if you don't.
The first post I ever made on a blog (xanga) featured this poem. I wrote it after a conversation with a friend, meant less for me than for their encouragement. After a phone call last night, its words came back to me. Now it's for me, and the one for whose comfort it was written stands in quite a different place. Quite a different place. Ironic, really. Yet the words are true...and so they whisper comfort... Y'all can tell me what you think.
The wild-rolled eye-
A wind-ripped cry-
The talons curl around the prey
The iron-grip seals and draws away
Helpless, her prey to die.
A desperate fight
Ensuing night
And still beat wings of certain doom.
The flower cut off at the bloom,
No more to know the light.
And the sun glows hot and brighter still-
Intense and steady heat!
And the light, it burns- it blinds, it hurts
Yet- up!- there’s no relief.
Surrender at last-
Trapped sure, held fast-
The prey goes limp, hopeless, resigned;
Return to Home gone from its mind
Exiled from that dear past.
Suddenly, the drop!
Plunging towards rocks-
Again the terror-rigid scream!
But wait! Salvation is no dream:
The nest is where it stops.
The arid ground unwinds below
Consumed by storm and fire
Yet I lie safe, above it all,
Snatched from the warring mire.
Not here to die,
But taught to fly!
Nourished, and fed, and loved.
Now peering from the crags above
Beginning to learn why.
Blood, pain, and tears
Sharp anguished fears…
How strange this path to rest!
The helpless victim now more blest
Than Earth’s most wise of seers.
And I’ve been bruised by the Eagle’s grip,
Then healed by those same Hands.
Dragged steadily, relentlessly-
Or carried?- Through harsh lands.
The first post I ever made on a blog (xanga) featured this poem. I wrote it after a conversation with a friend, meant less for me than for their encouragement. After a phone call last night, its words came back to me. Now it's for me, and the one for whose comfort it was written stands in quite a different place. Quite a different place. Ironic, really. Yet the words are true...and so they whisper comfort... Y'all can tell me what you think.
Bruised By the Eagle’s Grip
~Exodus 19:4 "...How I carried you [Israel] on eagle's wings and brought you to Myself..." (this after He took them through the Sea, and then the desert!)
~Exodus 19:4 "...How I carried you [Israel] on eagle's wings and brought you to Myself..." (this after He took them through the Sea, and then the desert!)
The wild-rolled eye-
A wind-ripped cry-
The talons curl around the prey
The iron-grip seals and draws away
Helpless, her prey to die.
A desperate fight
Ensuing night
And still beat wings of certain doom.
The flower cut off at the bloom,
No more to know the light.
And the sun glows hot and brighter still-
Intense and steady heat!
And the light, it burns- it blinds, it hurts
Yet- up!- there’s no relief.
Surrender at last-
Trapped sure, held fast-
The prey goes limp, hopeless, resigned;
Return to Home gone from its mind
Exiled from that dear past.
Suddenly, the drop!
Plunging towards rocks-
Again the terror-rigid scream!
But wait! Salvation is no dream:
The nest is where it stops.
The arid ground unwinds below
Consumed by storm and fire
Yet I lie safe, above it all,
Snatched from the warring mire.
Not here to die,
But taught to fly!
Nourished, and fed, and loved.
Now peering from the crags above
Beginning to learn why.
Blood, pain, and tears
Sharp anguished fears…
How strange this path to rest!
The helpless victim now more blest
Than Earth’s most wise of seers.
And I’ve been bruised by the Eagle’s grip,
Then healed by those same Hands.
Dragged steadily, relentlessly-
Or carried?- Through harsh lands.
αμηυ
~CMT, May 12, 2004
~CMT, May 12, 2004
"Every blessing You pour out I'll
Turn back to praise.
And when the darkness closes in, Lord-
Still I will say:
"Blessed be the Name of the Lord!
Blessed be Your Name!
Blessed be the Name of the Lord--
Blessed be Your glorious Name."
Turn back to praise.
And when the darkness closes in, Lord-
Still I will say:
"Blessed be the Name of the Lord!
Blessed be Your Name!
Blessed be the Name of the Lord--
Blessed be Your glorious Name."
Sunday, July 23, 2006
More Picnic Pics
Lynn & Warren
Who is that cutie!? ;D
Rob, aka Guitar-man
(he serenaded us upon request)
Me 'n' Cassie
...boys...
*sigh*
[lol]
<--the dynamic (matching!) duo...the R-roommates... Should I be worried? ;D
Warren on Rob's guitar-- "Mahogany" (sp?)
Saturday, July 22, 2006
Invitation
We're having a potluck-picnic here at St. James Ct.
after church this Sunday!
Bring-your-own-sandwich, and a blanket
Ashlea & I'll provide the dessert, drinks, and the grass! =D
Anyone is invited-- that means YOU!
See you at noon tomorrow!
Pictures!
The Crew who showed up =D
My co-worker, Christie, came to church with me!! YAY! =D Her roommate, Arin, came too. Doug, Toto, Matt, Lynn, Ashlea, Cassie, Christen, Warren, Rob, and Ryan (all from Immanuel) came, too, and it was a wonderful, fun time of encouragement for all...at least it was for me! You might need to ask Doug about his, ahem,
"questionable" aquisition of peanut ressee's peices, though... ;D
after church this Sunday!
Bring-your-own-sandwich, and a blanket
Ashlea & I'll provide the dessert, drinks, and the grass! =D
Anyone is invited-- that means YOU!
See you at noon tomorrow!
Pictures!
The Crew who showed up =D
My co-worker, Christie, came to church with me!! YAY! =D Her roommate, Arin, came too. Doug, Toto, Matt, Lynn, Ashlea, Cassie, Christen, Warren, Rob, and Ryan (all from Immanuel) came, too, and it was a wonderful, fun time of encouragement for all...at least it was for me! You might need to ask Doug about his, ahem,
"questionable" aquisition of peanut ressee's peices, though... ;D
Wednesday, July 19, 2006
Leaders & Followers
...I read this verse in Judges the other day, right at the beginning of Deborah & Barak's Song of Victory, and it has stuck with me: “That the leaders took the lead in Israel, that the people offered themselves willingly, bless the Lord!" (5:2)
It hit me as strange & wonderful. I mean, that's not usually something people sing about. When was the last time you heard someone get up in church and burst into tears, praising God, because they're so pumped that some people are leading and others are following? But... it also makes absolute sense. Whenever things work "like they should," in this broken world, that's a miracle! God gets praise every time the rain waters the earth, every time animals bring forth babies, every time the earth rotates cleanly one more time on its axis, because that means the Curse has NOT utterly won!
And what is more unnatural than the right people stepping forward to lead, and the rest of them happily, willingly follow instead of griping that they're always just shuffling along at the back? That's usually more how it goes. But go back to Genesis, and you realize that there's nothing that SHOULD be more natural! The rest of Creation falls in order way better than we do, with our smart big brains (and bigger pride).
I thought of all the leader-follower relationships, and realized that there HAVE BEEN many times when I gave thanks for something similar: when I see dads or moms, & their kids all loving & respecting each other; when godly elders or deacons are ordained by a loving congregation (I was in tears the entire ordination service at Immanuel 3 weeks ago!); when a team works well together, united behind its leader(s); when an orchestra follows perfectly its conductor, himself following the music's composer, and the result is a gorgeous symphony... Most beautiful, I think, though is the relationship of a husband and wife. I say that's the most beautiful because it's meant to reflect The Ultimate Leader's relationship to His Bride. What man ever took more initiative at a higher cost to Himself to lead, to rescue? [how's THAT for a standard for manliness??] And what wife has ever followed more delightedly, and sacrificially than the church, watered with the blood of the martyrs? We haven't followed nearly as perfect as He has led-- but one day, we will!! (Rev. 21)
I can sort of make this personal, because I am deeply thankful for the relationship God's brought me into, with a man who is actively pursuing godly leadership, and I really WANT my relationship with him to be characterized by that beauty that comes from "as it should be." [and that desire doesn't just apply to dating relationships!] I'm really enjoying watching this work out! Ryan hasn't exactly died for me, but I'd say baking gluten-free-from-scratch-blueberry-muffins in an un-aircondioned kitchen (you know how gas ovens heat up!) in the Louisville July heat comes pretty close to defining "sacrificial!" [And Rob (his roommate) is one of my heroes now, too, as he got nothing but hot kitchen out of it.]
Seriously, I know our relationship isn't, and won't be perfect by any stretch-- because, let's face it-- this relationship was doomed to flaws the moment I stepped into it! But...because God is so good, and so generous with His grace, He lets even the less-than-perfect enjoy the benefits of obedience!... "But He gives us more grace..."
For any who are wondering what the heck I DO with Ryan, here are some fun pictures from last Saturday, when he came over to the Shueys' (I was staying the weekend with Sina & the kids while Dave was out of town for a wedding) for dinner, and then we went to Seneca Park for dessert! We had a very sweaty time, lol-- climbing trees, playing frisbee, and then jumping on the trampoline, all with the kids.
Jenna started licking the top of the ice cream container! Little girls and ice cream: something else that just "fits."
John, enjoying our gluten-and-lactose-free scruptiousness-- apple crisp & vanilla ice cream!! Oh, it was SO good! One fresh from the oven, perfectly cooled off by the equally-cold ice cream. Another beautiful relationship, lol. ;D
I like this picture the best of that night, I think.
Morgan took this one-- that's as high as Ryan & I went, and it's a little blurry. But it's fun. =D Didn't you ever wish you could be a squirrel??...
I've been on this computer long enough!
Here's Christina [most recently dubbed 'Boss' by Jack, and 'Maiden' by Toto] in Louisville, signing OFF.
It hit me as strange & wonderful. I mean, that's not usually something people sing about. When was the last time you heard someone get up in church and burst into tears, praising God, because they're so pumped that some people are leading and others are following? But... it also makes absolute sense. Whenever things work "like they should," in this broken world, that's a miracle! God gets praise every time the rain waters the earth, every time animals bring forth babies, every time the earth rotates cleanly one more time on its axis, because that means the Curse has NOT utterly won!
And what is more unnatural than the right people stepping forward to lead, and the rest of them happily, willingly follow instead of griping that they're always just shuffling along at the back? That's usually more how it goes. But go back to Genesis, and you realize that there's nothing that SHOULD be more natural! The rest of Creation falls in order way better than we do, with our smart big brains (and bigger pride).
I thought of all the leader-follower relationships, and realized that there HAVE BEEN many times when I gave thanks for something similar: when I see dads or moms, & their kids all loving & respecting each other; when godly elders or deacons are ordained by a loving congregation (I was in tears the entire ordination service at Immanuel 3 weeks ago!); when a team works well together, united behind its leader(s); when an orchestra follows perfectly its conductor, himself following the music's composer, and the result is a gorgeous symphony... Most beautiful, I think, though is the relationship of a husband and wife. I say that's the most beautiful because it's meant to reflect The Ultimate Leader's relationship to His Bride. What man ever took more initiative at a higher cost to Himself to lead, to rescue? [how's THAT for a standard for manliness??] And what wife has ever followed more delightedly, and sacrificially than the church, watered with the blood of the martyrs? We haven't followed nearly as perfect as He has led-- but one day, we will!! (Rev. 21)
I can sort of make this personal, because I am deeply thankful for the relationship God's brought me into, with a man who is actively pursuing godly leadership, and I really WANT my relationship with him to be characterized by that beauty that comes from "as it should be." [and that desire doesn't just apply to dating relationships!] I'm really enjoying watching this work out! Ryan hasn't exactly died for me, but I'd say baking gluten-free-from-scratch-blueberry-muffins in an un-aircondioned kitchen (you know how gas ovens heat up!) in the Louisville July heat comes pretty close to defining "sacrificial!" [And Rob (his roommate) is one of my heroes now, too, as he got nothing but hot kitchen out of it.]
Seriously, I know our relationship isn't, and won't be perfect by any stretch-- because, let's face it-- this relationship was doomed to flaws the moment I stepped into it! But...because God is so good, and so generous with His grace, He lets even the less-than-perfect enjoy the benefits of obedience!... "But He gives us more grace..."
For any who are wondering what the heck I DO with Ryan, here are some fun pictures from last Saturday, when he came over to the Shueys' (I was staying the weekend with Sina & the kids while Dave was out of town for a wedding) for dinner, and then we went to Seneca Park for dessert! We had a very sweaty time, lol-- climbing trees, playing frisbee, and then jumping on the trampoline, all with the kids.
Jenna started licking the top of the ice cream container! Little girls and ice cream: something else that just "fits."
John, enjoying our gluten-and-lactose-free scruptiousness-- apple crisp & vanilla ice cream!! Oh, it was SO good! One fresh from the oven, perfectly cooled off by the equally-cold ice cream. Another beautiful relationship, lol. ;D
I like this picture the best of that night, I think.
Morgan took this one-- that's as high as Ryan & I went, and it's a little blurry. But it's fun. =D Didn't you ever wish you could be a squirrel??...Here's Christina [most recently dubbed 'Boss' by Jack, and 'Maiden' by Toto] in Louisville, signing OFF.
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