writing

Versatile Blogger Award

Many thanks to Emily Anne http://unkilleddarlings.wordpress.com/ for nominating me for the Versatile Blogger Award. Unlike the Academy Award or Grammy, when you are nominated for the VBA, that’s it. You are not put into a pool of also-rans to await your fate. You simply take a virtual bow and follow a few simple rules. For more information about the award, see here http://versatilebloggeraward.wordpress.com/

versatileblogger111

One of the rules is you have to say seven things about yourself.
1. Christian
2. Hilarious
3. Similar to a Hobbit, but not as hairy
4. Singing
5. Bicycle
6. Blue/Green
7. Can’t dance, don’t ask me.

Another rule is you get to spread the love by nominating 15 other bloggers. Here goes…
http://scvincent.com/
http://lorisprayercloset.com/
http://parentingandstuff.wordpress.com/
http://jonlilley.com/
http://dianereedwiter.wordpress.com/
http://buzhinskiy.wordpress.com/
http://bowlingchef.wordpress.com/
http://daughterbydesign.wordpress.com/
http://meganhasocd.com/
http://meggiesfervor.wordpress.com/
http://penfrea.com/
http://shannonathompson.com/
http://crankycaregiver.wordpress.com/
http://suellewellyn2011.wordpress.com/

Time Lines cont.

Past, Present and Future get back together for their weekly lunch.

Present makes the mistake of calling roll. “Past!”
Past: “Present!”
Present: “Very funny.”
Past: “Well, what was I supposed to say?”
Present: “You could have just said, ‘Here.'”
Past: “In just what way would that have been fun, Ekhart Tolle? Besides, you’re the one who is always preaching about being here now.”
Present: “Alright, let’s just move on.”
Past: “I was born ready. By the by, where’s Future?”
Present: “Late, of course. He doesn’t respect anyone else’s schedule. We need to clue him in to the fact that there is no such thing as ‘fashionably late.'”
Past: “And he’s all about fashion. What’s wrong with the clothes of yesteryear?”
Present: “There’s nothing wrong with yesterday’s styles, as long as you wash them occasionally.”
Past: “We can’t always be spring fresh, like you. Oh look, there’s Mr. Tomorrow, now!”
Future: “Don’t start. Let’s order, I have an appointment with a skin specialist after lunch.”
Present: “You’re so vain! Why can’t you just accept yourself as you are?”
Future: “He who fails to plan, plans to fail.”
Past: “Did he say that last week?”
Present: “Probably. Does anyone see the waiter? Oh, there he is!”
The waiter approaches the table. His face is a little red. At the top of his forehead, a line of perspiration has begun to form.
Past: “Oh, good. Wait, is that the same water you brought earlier?”
Present: “Leave it alone, Past.”
Past: “The cubes are smaller.”
Future: “Come back in a bit with some fresh water. My friend is a little… (Future makes a circling motion around his ear with his right-index finger). The waiter quickly nods in affirmation.

to be continued…

The Helper

In John 13, we can imagine the anxiety forming in the minds of the disciples. This time was shortly before the crucifixion and Jesus was preparing them, not only for what was to come in the short term, but later, when the infant church would be put to the test. Imagine yourself in their place. This was the man they had followed and worshiped. They were prepared to do anything for Him. But the prophesies must be fulfilled.

Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, where are You going?” Jesus answered, “Where I go, you cannot follow Me now; but you will follow later.” Peter said to Him, “Lord, why can I not follow You right now? I will lay down my life for You.” Jesus answered, “Will you lay down your life for Me? Truly truly, I say to you, a rooster will not crow until you deny Me three times.” John 13:36-38. It was in the backdrop of what on the surface seems like a shaky start that His church was formed, formed with men like Peter, of whom Jesus said, “And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” Matthew 16:18

Lord, You said you would ask the Father to give us another Helper,
Who would be “the Spirit of truth.”
You said He would be in us
and with us abide.

You said the Holy Spirit would teach us
and help us remember all you said.
You said when You would go,
He would reside.

Thank you, Spirit of God,
for disclosing our Lord’s truth.
How else would we comprehend the mystery.
The revolution that conquered sin,
the ultimate sacrifice that took us in,
prophecy fulfilled on Calvary’s tree.

Circumstance

Circumstances, the events or conditions in our lives that we experience, don’t have an inherent value besides what we assign to them. A flat tire, while certainly a negative experience, is still just an event. Most of us have probably heard the saying, “attitude is everything.” Again, it’s not a difficult concept to embrace, but I think as we encounter various circumstances during the course of a typical day, we forget that we are in the business of assigning power, minute by minute, to our experiences.

As Christians, our prayers may include asking God to keep our families safe, to provide for us financially, to give us our favorite parking spot at the supermarket. Do we worship a living God who knows us intimately, who we trust to provide for us through all that we encounter? Or do we make of our God a servant who is responsible for fulfilling our every whim? Of course we serve a loving God who wants every good thing for His children, but our relationship will be stymied if we choose to rely on a temporal view instead of God’s eternal view. Only one of those two attitudes can cause us to survive and thrive through a voyage that may bring us fair or contrary winds.

Good to Me

That elaborate story about your depth of vision…

just an excuse to take my hand

forgetting your coat so I could keep you

warm

You’re so

good

to me

Telling me I’m funny

then wisely rolling

your eyes

when I convince myself

I am too

Pretending you’re asleep so I can

wake

you up

Comparing my skills to the best of Daytona’s

pits

you graciously let me

fill your car

Who has it better than I do?

Why…

no one!

For every Valentine box of twenty

chocolates

you let me eat eighteen

I share the best view of

your

flowers

You kindly allow me to greet

home invaders

for my side of the bed faces

the door.

Clearly no one has it as well as this man

the one staring

back

as I

shave

but should I grin too

widely

you’ll be sure to say

behave!

Time Lines

Past, Present, and Future got together for their regular lunch.
In what was usually a futile attempt to keep the peace, Present
sat in between the other two.
Past usually arrived early.
Present was right on time.
Future was always late, but just how late
varied
from week to
week.
The waiter to serve them was chosen on a rotating basis because of the stress.
Example:
Past: “Could you please make sure my coffee is fresh AND hot. Last week it was not the former. The week before that, it was not the latter.”
Present: “Whatever is back there, I’m sure it’s fine.”
Future: “There will be no tip for you if the beans are not Moroccan.”
A nurse stood watch just inside the kitchen to check the server’s vitals. There was never a guarantee he would even make it through the meal.

To be continued…

My Dad and Merv

When I was a kid, I watched a lot of television. After school, especially on days when the weather was not especially inviting, I would sit down and tune in to one of the three channels available. Since the public television station didn’t come in as well, that meant we really had two choices. One of the talk/variety shows airing at that time of day was the Merv Griffin Show. Merv’s was one of the first of this style of shows, and he became quite successful with it and the game shows he produced, like Wheel of Fortune. I believe his style of interviewing was one of the reasons he did so well. He had this way of leaning toward the person he was talking to and looking at them as if they were the most fascinating person in the world. It was almost, but not quite, as if he was a scientist peering through a microscope, discovering a previously unknown species. He was probably able to get more out of the celebrities he conversed with than he otherwise might have. Later, during my journalism training, I think this helped me when I interviewed people for various stories.

Also, when I was growing up, our family owned a service station in our small town. My grandfather owed the business, my grandmother worked in the office, and my dad managed it. As a boy, I spent a lot of time cleaning up and seeing how my dad worked with his customers. Like Merv, he was also a good listener. Often, the customers who came in weren’t very knowledgeable about their automobiles. Like many of us, they simply knew when they weren’t working or when they were doing something out of the ordinary, like making an unusual noise. At this point Dad would become a detective. He got as much information as possible and gradually narrowed down the list of possible causes and remedies for the various issues until he had a direction to go toward solving their problem. He seemed to enjoy this part of his work. People trusted him to take care of their issues. There were many aspects of his job that I know were frustrating, but I think this part made made his job more rewarding. I think watching him work made serving people later on in life more enjoyable for me as well. It also helped me listen for important details.

When I speak with you,
I hope I
pause
often
during our conversation.
I hope
if only for a
moment
to make what you say and think the
world.
It may be the only time today that anyone does that
and there is always a chance
when we will part,
we will each be the richer.

Forever Means More

Whenever I worship you, God
I forget about what’s wrong with me
and remember what’s right with you.
I set aside my worries and cares
and I’m thankful for the storms,
because forever means more.

I’m familiar with the war.
I’ve been through some of that before.
Yes, I carry the scars.
It’s a battle that started
in Eden long ago.

Forever in ways is similar to the world we think we know,
but side by side it’s more vibrant and distinct.
It’s like the difference
between behind the curtain
and the very front of the stage…
where the crowd roars,
forever is more.

Everything else fades away
when I think about how much
you mean to me
and the forever home
you’ve readied for your own.
All those things
that seem grand here
are just a portion, Lord
’cause forever means more.

When it’s time for us to rest,
and we’ve learned to give up striving
and passed the test,
I’ll be so grateful for the struggle
and for what you have in store.
I know
forever means more.

God’s First Bandmember

First, a couple notes:
1) Friends who are drummers, don’t get a big head over this.
2) I won’t pretend there is any biblical basis for my poem. I am not adding or subtracting from what is between the covers. I’m just sayin’.

Do you think something was left out?
Maybe it was just inferred.
Perhaps when God wrote Genesis,
He assumed we’d understand that in his word,
in the background sometimes subtle,
sometimes quiet,
sometimes loud,
is the presence of a great drummer,
who, thank God, is not proud.
Although he or she could certainly be,
because when God first considered man
and everything else in creation
and (come on, of course!) the first band,
for His first band member, He found a drummer
who could put Buddy Rich to shame.
If you’re too young, or not into big bands
you’ll have to Google his name.
For proof I offer my heart,
or yours,
or a friend’s.
I imagine at the end of the first day
there was a drum solo no one wanted to end.
So the next time you hear music
of, I suppose, any kind,
imagine God’s first band
without a drummer to keep time.

Time

you’ve got to hand it to time
to the second hand
big hand
or little

time out

a moment to ponder

if it’s the quickest
why do we call it the second hand
and not the first?
why is the minute hand the longest
when the hour hand has the biggest job to do?

such a vital subject with so much to say and do
there’s never quite enough of it to hold on to
it cries out from our wrist and table wall and oven clock
it even manages to talk
tick tock tick tock tick tock

we try to
save it
borrow it
loan it
pass it
bank it
and still
we go over it
we hold meetings
to consider it
and still
manage
to waste
it
it never goes to sleep
we can’t hold it tight enough to keep
our grave stones mark it
between our beginning
and our end
but weren’t we once a gleam
in our parents’ eyes?
was it then?
such an artificial construct
the little brother
to eternity

let’s wind this up

we’ll take this up
later
when
we
have
more…