Forgive-ah-wadda?

I have been assigned a book to read that I have to force myself to put down so that I don’t get too far ahead of assignments. The book is called, “The Sunflower” by Simon Weisenthal. When I picked up the book and noticed it's huge sunflower on the front if it I thought, "lame" and tossed it aside. Now I know you really can't judge a book by it's cover. Weisenthal bases his book off of something that happened to him in real life when he was a prisoner in a Nazi concentration camp. One day while working he is called to the bedside of a dying Nazi Soldier. The soldier tells him of all the atrocities he has done to Jewish people and asks his forgiveness. Weisenthal tells of his process of dealing with the decision he made in response to this man. He asks, “What would you do?” to some very distinguished men and women and writes their responses down for all of us to read. Some of the responses come from The Dalai Lama, Desmond Tutu, Dennis Prager, and fifty other people. The responses and his story are fascinating and have taken me through a process of understanding forgiveness and it’s layers that I didn’t know existed. So good!

...the never coming concert.

I've often felt as if I didn't have to sleep there'd be enough time.  If I didn't have so much to learn then I'd really have the extra time I need.

The days of the years of our lives are few, and swifter than a weaver's shuttle. Life is a short fevered rehearsal for a concert we cannot stay to give. Just when we appear to have attained some proficiency we are forced to lay our instruments down. There is simply not time enough to think, to become, to perform what the constitution of our natures indicate we are capable of..."

wow backwards is wow.

What a beautiful morning it is. I woke up as usual, showered and then sat in my chair. I have this tacky, red velvety chair inherited from my dad. He had it before we became a part of his family and we've kept it through the years. Of course my mom changed most of his house around when it became their house..but this item somehow survived through the years. I can't seem to part with it, I mean it's not even comfortable and it's bulky and tall and has an unsightly dark brown frame, but it's a chair that reminds me of our old house, the house I grew up in and when we used to do things as a family. Once upon a time, when my dad was still full of life... when he was passionate about life, and painted, took photographs, when we'd take trips to the lake...

i love that chair.

I often sit in it to do my quiet time in the morning, or just sit and ponder and it's set up right beside my bedroom window. My bedroom looks out from the second floor of the house, I enjoy the elevated view even if it's of a suburban neighborhood in which every house looks identical. Anyway, this morning I was pleasantly suprised to see the skies were dark and grey, filled with clouds... The drive to work was exhilirating, I blared music with my windows rolled down and found comfort in the cold, wintry air... and I felt God. Today was a day that He had specifically crafted... each intricate detail the work of His hands- the temperature, the scents, the colours, the clouds... my soul.

read the full post here.

Freakonomics 101

Just picked up and put down the book Freakonomics. I've been wanting to read it for a while, as I consider myself a student of the school of non-linear thinking ;) What I found in the pages were quite interesting. The book claims (of course with economic style evidence) that the single greatest contribution to the drastic decline of crime in the 90's was... Roe v. Wade and the legalization of abortion in the 70's. Can you believe that!? It also tackles the question of "black" names versus "white" names. It proposes that kids/people with uniquely black names, like Jamal or Essence, tend to succeed less than do people with generally white names, such as, Catherine or Benjamin. While that may not surprise many people, the reasoning might. At first glance, one might quickly dismiss such a "gap" to racism or discrimination on the part of businesses or managers in the hiring process. But what Stephen Dubner and Steven Levitt go on to show it that, people with uniquely black names, generally come from poor, uneducated single mothers, while those with typically wealthy names, come from wealthy, educated parents.

I would give you some more nuggets, but I feel like this is enough to get your mind rolling or your blood boiling or both...

Democracy Matters

The book I have been into lately I have a of love-hate relationship with. It’s by a guy named Cornel West and is called Democracy Matters. It has this great picture of West on the front; leaning forward with his hands pointing at you, wearing these great Malcolm X style glasses and a look that says, “I know a lot that you don’t.” West is an Ivy League professor who is an accomplished scholar, philosopher, and intellectual, who writes with an eloquence reminiscent of a 17th century rhetorician.

His thesis: “The aim of this book is to put forward a strong democratic vision and critique, rooted in a deep democratic tradition, forged on the nightside of the precious American democratic experiment – a tradition of Socratic examination, prophetic practice, and dark hope.”

Every sentence is packed with information and ideology, and to get the most out of this book I have found that I have to carefully read each page and really take my time. So the love part is that I love his form of writing, I love the points he makes, almost philosophical in nature, and I love that he hasn’t given up on the century old idea of methodical, eloquent and meaningful writing. To read this book really is like reading something written a hundred years ago, except for all his references to current events. The book was published in 2004, at the height of the Iraq invasion, and is the sequel to his highly acclaimed book, Race Matters. And that is where the hate part comes in…well, maybe not quite hate, its more of a disagreement really. He makes no bones about the fact that he is pretty far to the left, and he spends a bit of his time early on beating the Bush administration, which I have some problem with because in some ways it seems like such a cop-out because its such an easy/trendy thing to do. But he is careful to, eventually, critique the democratic side of the political spectrum, which I appreciate. He goes on to talk about race, equality, hypocrisy, nihilism, politics, greed, corruption, and a variety of other things that taint our democracy. It’s really a great read overall, and, though I obviously don’t agree with his every point, I have loved learning from his ideas, and picking up some new vocabulary.

Who knew?

The book I'm reading now is very much out of the norm of what I like to read. Actually I scoffed at the book the first time I saw it saying something along the lines of how much I hate books like this one. Turns out the book is pretty good so far. It was recommended to me by some friends, it apparently changed their whole outlook on relationships. As much as we hate to feel like focus needs to be on relationships, we are all in them at some point so maybe giving the book a chance is a good idea. It is called, "for women only" by Shaunti Feldhahn. Don't worry men there is one for you too, it's called, "for men only" ( I know you weren't expecting that title) and that one is written by she and her husband. The book goes into the supposed inner lives of men. The author took the time, with help from professionals (the former chief of survey for the U.S. census bureau and another lady that does research and surveys) to survey men in and out of the church all across the country on issues in relationships. The men were from the ages 21 - 75, they were anonymous and the questions referred to how men think, how they feel and what their needs are. She did a couple of follow up surveys to finish her analysis and then wrote this book. So far the biggest revelation is that most men would rather feel alone and unloved than to feel inadequate or disrespected. That's so opposite of women who mainly want to feel loved and as far from lonely as they can get. I guess respecting someone can be what makes them feel loved. We'll find out. The author has a master's degree in public policy from Harvard, has worked on Wall Street and Capitol Hill. She has many bestselling books, is a syndicated newspaper columnist and a public speaker. I bet there is some validity in the stuff she has to say.

Admitting what I cannot do...

It's interesting to me, that most of most of my days is filled with me convincing either myself or others that I Can. Perhaps it is the mentality instilled in us from birth, the stories of the little engine that could or simply the affirmations from our parents.

This morning I read from My Utmost for His Highest and it began with these words:

I cannot save myself and sanctify myself; I cannot atone for sin; I cannot redeem the world; I cannot make right what is wrong, pure what is impure, holy what is unholy. That is all the sovereign work of God. Have I faith in what Jesus Christ has done?... The great need is not to do things, but to believe things...

What a difference it could make if we began every morning with such a confession.