Queen Shenaynay
Recently a bright young high school student wrote to me questioning the idea that reading and trying to decipher poetry would add anything to him. Corresponding with him has had me thinking a lot about the reasons poetry is important.
Should Christians care about poetry? I think so.
Much of the Bible was written as poetry, and some passages are actually quite complex poetic forms in the original. Believe it or not, like it or not, poetry matters to God. Scripture is God-breathed, therefore God is the original Poet. Poetry took root as God moved upon His people to use language to express His glory in the most beautiful way possible. If it weren't for God granting humans a gift for poetry, we would have no praises to sing, no hymnals,no lullabies, no book of Psalms (as well as many, many other passages of the Bible).
Poetry is the highest expression of order and beauty in the use of language. Consider that God's entire universe, from the most immense galactic configurations to the most minute microbiological organisms, reflects the astonishing, breathtaking importance He places on the qualities of both order and beauty in all created things. Then consider the immense value God places on words... so much so that His son is named the LOGOS -- the Word. When you weigh all these things together, you begin to crack the surface of the meaning of poetry in the Christian life.
Reading and deciphering poetry sharpens our use of language, makes us more precise, elevates our grasp of expression, helps us become more adept at choosing words fitly spoken, and hones our ability to comprehend the beauty of scripture -- and that's just the beginning. All of these things enable us to share the gospel, to express the love of Christ, and to tell the story of redemption with words suitable for such glorious tidings.
February 28, 2005
The Latest Spuddy Buddy-ism
Yesterday on the way home from Tyler we stopped at paradise (more commonly known as the Old Navy outlet). Spuddy Buddy has grown a ton in the last few weeks so we got him a couple of T shirts, and one of them was a camouflage shirt. He is very,very proud of it, and this morning he told me, "Today, I'm gonna wear my camouflage shirt and my camouflage pants, and then I'll be so camouflaged that no one will notice me!"
Yeah, right. :-)
Yeah, right. :-)
'A strong and perfect plea'
A friend sent me a song the other day, and the words are just lovely so I will post them here. I love how the song is so simple and says so much. It was written by Charity Bancroft.
Before The Throne Of God Above
Before the throne of God above,
I have a strong and perfect plea:
A great high priest whose name is love,
Who ever lives and pleads for me.
My name is graven on his hands,
My name is written on his heart;
I know that while in heav'n he stands,
No tongue can bid me thence depart.
Wow. I wish I knew some way to post the tune, but I don't. It's a shame, because this is one of those songs where the tune is perfectly suited to the words.
Aren't y'all proud of me? This makes two posts with no reference to literature! I'm branching out! :-)
Before The Throne Of God Above
Before the throne of God above,
I have a strong and perfect plea:
A great high priest whose name is love,
Who ever lives and pleads for me.
My name is graven on his hands,
My name is written on his heart;
I know that while in heav'n he stands,
No tongue can bid me thence depart.
Wow. I wish I knew some way to post the tune, but I don't. It's a shame, because this is one of those songs where the tune is perfectly suited to the words.
Aren't y'all proud of me? This makes two posts with no reference to literature! I'm branching out! :-)
The silence is broken!
Fa-So-La-La
Howdy, Beehive faithful! I am here to break the deafening silence of the last few days-- we done 'r-u-n-n o-f-t' to Tyler, TX for a very very good church meeting. But we are back now, so all the dazzling brilliance and witty comments will now resume.
I was reading National Review magazine in the car on the way to Tyler, and I found something especially interesting in the 'This Week' section--
"-- The Seven Deadly Sins are pride, Envy, Wrath, Sloth, Lust, Avarice, and Gluttony, traditionally remembered with the aid of the acronym PEWSLAG. Well, goodbye PEWSLAG, hello CABDHGS. A polling organization in Britain asked a thousand citizens to modernize the list. The new deadlies are, in descending order of sinfulness: Cruelty, Adultery Bigotry, Dishonesty, Hypocrisy, Greed and Selfishness. Note the interesting shift of emphasis visible here. Formerly the essence of sin lay in offending God by failing to curb one's lower nature. Nowadays, sin means causing pain or mental distress to other people. To put it another way, virtue used to consist in moral cultivation of the self; now it consists in being nice. Something has been lost here, surely."
I find this fascinating. Do you also see how the old Seven have more to do with your relationship with God, whereas the new seven are about relationships with man? Very humanistic, I think-- it shows the modern humanistic attitude that we can all get along without God if we are all just nice to each other and hug all the right trees. :-)
My 'humanities teacher' (we watch his lectures on video) has said that to a non-Christian, being good simply involves not hurting anyone. But for a Christian, goodness is not passive, it is not lack of sin-- it is active good. The way he put it was that non-Christians want 'nice news;' they just want everyone to get along-- this I think is seen in kid's TV, where the moral usually is something about tolerance or manners or sharing-your-crayons-with-the-other-little-children. But Christians have Good News-- the message of Christ and Him crucified. Something to think about.
Howdy, Beehive faithful! I am here to break the deafening silence of the last few days-- we done 'r-u-n-n o-f-t' to Tyler, TX for a very very good church meeting. But we are back now, so all the dazzling brilliance and witty comments will now resume.
I was reading National Review magazine in the car on the way to Tyler, and I found something especially interesting in the 'This Week' section--
"-- The Seven Deadly Sins are pride, Envy, Wrath, Sloth, Lust, Avarice, and Gluttony, traditionally remembered with the aid of the acronym PEWSLAG. Well, goodbye PEWSLAG, hello CABDHGS. A polling organization in Britain asked a thousand citizens to modernize the list. The new deadlies are, in descending order of sinfulness: Cruelty, Adultery Bigotry, Dishonesty, Hypocrisy, Greed and Selfishness. Note the interesting shift of emphasis visible here. Formerly the essence of sin lay in offending God by failing to curb one's lower nature. Nowadays, sin means causing pain or mental distress to other people. To put it another way, virtue used to consist in moral cultivation of the self; now it consists in being nice. Something has been lost here, surely."
I find this fascinating. Do you also see how the old Seven have more to do with your relationship with God, whereas the new seven are about relationships with man? Very humanistic, I think-- it shows the modern humanistic attitude that we can all get along without God if we are all just nice to each other and hug all the right trees. :-)
My 'humanities teacher' (we watch his lectures on video) has said that to a non-Christian, being good simply involves not hurting anyone. But for a Christian, goodness is not passive, it is not lack of sin-- it is active good. The way he put it was that non-Christians want 'nice news;' they just want everyone to get along-- this I think is seen in kid's TV, where the moral usually is something about tolerance or manners or sharing-your-crayons-with-the-other-little-children. But Christians have Good News-- the message of Christ and Him crucified. Something to think about.
February 23, 2005
Vitameatavegamin
Fa-So-La-La
Well, I woke up this morning thinking about G.K. Chesterton, specificaly The Ballad of the White Horse. I was thinking about it so much, in fact, that I got the book and reread my favorite passages, and when somebody walked in I pretended I was still asleep. :-) If I were wise I would have heeded the words of Lord Byron (I think) who said "Oh, what a tangled web we weave/when we first practise to deceive!" But I am not wise, and furthermore I don't take advise from Lord Byron. He was a nut. :-)
Anyway, I was amazed as always at Chesterton's ability to stay relavent to all men. It's been a almost a century since he wrote, yet he sounds like he was writing for and about us here in the 21st century. Here is a sample-- this is from the last book of Ballad, and it is Alfred, who has spent his life keeping the Danes out of England, saying that they will return--
"They shall not come with warships
They shall not waste with brands,
But books shall be all their eating,
And ink be on their hands.
"Not with the humor of hunters
Or savage skill in war,
Strings shall they make of beasts and birds,
And wheels of wind and star.
"They shall come mild as monkish clerks,
With many a scroll and pen;
And backward shall ye turn and gaze,
Desiring one of Alfred's days,
When pagans still were men.
". . . By this sign you shall know them,
The breaking of the sword,
And Man no more a free knight,
That loves or hates his lord.
"Yea, this shall be the sign of them,
The sign of the dying fire;
And Man made like a half-wit,
That knows not of his sire.
"What though they come with scroll and pens,
And grave as a shaven clerk,
By this sign you shall know them,
That they ruin and make dark;
By all men bond to Nothing,
Being slaves without a lord,
By one blind idiot world oceyed,
Too blind to be abhorred;
"By terror and the cruel tales
Of curse in bone and kin,
By weird and weakness winning,
Accursed from the beginning,
By detail of the sinning,
And denial of the sin;
"By thought a crawling ruin,
By life a leaping mire,
By a broken heart in the breast of the world,
And the end of the world's desire;
"By God and man dishonored,
By death and life made vain,
Know ye the old barbarian,
The barbarian come again--
"When is great talk of trend and tide,
And wisdom and destiny,
Hail that undying heathen
That is sadder than the sea."
Amazing, hmmmmmm? I love the idea that the heathens will bring with them deadness and coldness-- they are 'sadder than the sea.' This is so true-- we are living in the age Alfred was speaking of, and the heathens are dead and cold to joy, I think. That is what has brought on the massive entertainment system-- the 'heathens' of today don't know how to be joyful, so they pay Hollywood to try and make them happy. And it doesn't work. Just look at the 'Outrageously happy' post-- and be joyful! Moping around, according to Alfred, is a sign of being a heathen! Christians should be joyful-- we've got a better reason to than any other people in the world.
Well, I woke up this morning thinking about G.K. Chesterton, specificaly The Ballad of the White Horse. I was thinking about it so much, in fact, that I got the book and reread my favorite passages, and when somebody walked in I pretended I was still asleep. :-) If I were wise I would have heeded the words of Lord Byron (I think) who said "Oh, what a tangled web we weave/when we first practise to deceive!" But I am not wise, and furthermore I don't take advise from Lord Byron. He was a nut. :-)
Anyway, I was amazed as always at Chesterton's ability to stay relavent to all men. It's been a almost a century since he wrote, yet he sounds like he was writing for and about us here in the 21st century. Here is a sample-- this is from the last book of Ballad, and it is Alfred, who has spent his life keeping the Danes out of England, saying that they will return--
"They shall not come with warships
They shall not waste with brands,
But books shall be all their eating,
And ink be on their hands.
"Not with the humor of hunters
Or savage skill in war,
Strings shall they make of beasts and birds,
And wheels of wind and star.
"They shall come mild as monkish clerks,
With many a scroll and pen;
And backward shall ye turn and gaze,
Desiring one of Alfred's days,
When pagans still were men.
". . . By this sign you shall know them,
The breaking of the sword,
And Man no more a free knight,
That loves or hates his lord.
"Yea, this shall be the sign of them,
The sign of the dying fire;
And Man made like a half-wit,
That knows not of his sire.
"What though they come with scroll and pens,
And grave as a shaven clerk,
By this sign you shall know them,
That they ruin and make dark;
By all men bond to Nothing,
Being slaves without a lord,
By one blind idiot world oceyed,
Too blind to be abhorred;
"By terror and the cruel tales
Of curse in bone and kin,
By weird and weakness winning,
Accursed from the beginning,
By detail of the sinning,
And denial of the sin;
"By thought a crawling ruin,
By life a leaping mire,
By a broken heart in the breast of the world,
And the end of the world's desire;
"By God and man dishonored,
By death and life made vain,
Know ye the old barbarian,
The barbarian come again--
"When is great talk of trend and tide,
And wisdom and destiny,
Hail that undying heathen
That is sadder than the sea."
Amazing, hmmmmmm? I love the idea that the heathens will bring with them deadness and coldness-- they are 'sadder than the sea.' This is so true-- we are living in the age Alfred was speaking of, and the heathens are dead and cold to joy, I think. That is what has brought on the massive entertainment system-- the 'heathens' of today don't know how to be joyful, so they pay Hollywood to try and make them happy. And it doesn't work. Just look at the 'Outrageously happy' post-- and be joyful! Moping around, according to Alfred, is a sign of being a heathen! Christians should be joyful-- we've got a better reason to than any other people in the world.
February 22, 2005
Outrageously happy, like we said...
Homeschooled Adults are Happier than Most
A Review of Dr. Brian Ray's "Home Educated And Now Adults: 2004 Study"
by Debra Bell
A 2004 study of 7000 adults who were homeschooled during their elementary and secondary school years compiles data on 205 variables, including demographics and attitudes toward homeschooling. The researchers’ conclusions dispel many commonly held myths about homeschooling in regards to socialization, civic involvement, academic success and personal happiness. Some of the more notable findings follow:
76% of the respondents “strongly agreed” with the statement “I’m glad I was homeschooled; and 19% “agreed”. Only 4% “didn’t agree” or had “no opinion.
82% of the respondents said they would homeschool their own children.
The most common occupation listed was full-time student [49%], followed by homemaker/home educator [7.3%], other [7.9%] and professional [6.8%].
74% of the home-educated respondents ages 18 to 24 had attained some college courses or higher; compared with 46% of the general U.S. population ages 18-24.
71% of the respondents are participating in an ongoing community service activity; such as, coaching, volunteering, or working with a church or civic organization.
94% of the respondents strongly agreed or agreed with the statement, “My religious beliefs are basically the same as those of my parents.”
Taking all things into consideration, 59% of the respondents reported that they were “very happy” with life, while 27% of the general U.S. population is “very happy” with life.
This first-of-its-kind glimpse into the lives and minds of post-homeschooled graduates is available from National Home Education Research Institute for $9.95.
A Review of Dr. Brian Ray's "Home Educated And Now Adults: 2004 Study"
by Debra Bell
A 2004 study of 7000 adults who were homeschooled during their elementary and secondary school years compiles data on 205 variables, including demographics and attitudes toward homeschooling. The researchers’ conclusions dispel many commonly held myths about homeschooling in regards to socialization, civic involvement, academic success and personal happiness. Some of the more notable findings follow:
76% of the respondents “strongly agreed” with the statement “I’m glad I was homeschooled; and 19% “agreed”. Only 4% “didn’t agree” or had “no opinion.
82% of the respondents said they would homeschool their own children.
The most common occupation listed was full-time student [49%], followed by homemaker/home educator [7.3%], other [7.9%] and professional [6.8%].
74% of the home-educated respondents ages 18 to 24 had attained some college courses or higher; compared with 46% of the general U.S. population ages 18-24.
71% of the respondents are participating in an ongoing community service activity; such as, coaching, volunteering, or working with a church or civic organization.
94% of the respondents strongly agreed or agreed with the statement, “My religious beliefs are basically the same as those of my parents.”
Taking all things into consideration, 59% of the respondents reported that they were “very happy” with life, while 27% of the general U.S. population is “very happy” with life.
This first-of-its-kind glimpse into the lives and minds of post-homeschooled graduates is available from National Home Education Research Institute for $9.95.
Dadaw's Big Day!
The Shieldmaiden quite eloquently wishes a Happy Birthday to the father of our country today, a couple of entries down.
And I would like to wish a very, very Happy Birthday to the father of ME.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DEAR DADAW SONNY! And MANY more!!!
And I would like to wish a very, very Happy Birthday to the father of ME.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DEAR DADAW SONNY! And MANY more!!!
18th Century Neanderthals?
Beehive scholars (of all ages) should read this article:
Anthropologist Resigns in 'Dating Disaster'
Panel says professor of human origins made up data, plagiarized works
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=42940
Anthropologist Resigns in 'Dating Disaster'
Panel says professor of human origins made up data, plagiarized works
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=42940
Happy Birthday!
Shieldmaiden
Today is George Washington's 273rd birthday.
At age six and a half, I learned about him. I mean REALLY learned about him.
Frightening librarians with my mad dash to the history section, I plowed through twenty-eight books about the great "George W. Senior," ranging from Breakfast with Washington to Washington's Rules of Civility to the Anecdotes of Washington (which I read thoroughly, though not really understanding quite what the author was talking about). By age seven and a half, I had run out of books, having read all the books about Washington in the library. So I persuaded my family to go to Virginia for vacation.
Arriving at Mount Vernon early in the morning, we got out of the car and started the long walk up the road to the gates. I was trembling as we set foot on Mount Vernon soil, hindered only by a well-meaning tour guide telling us mundane little tidbits like "The tree which you see on your left..." I didn't hear any more; I was too busy watching the gatekeeper as he took out a large American flag. He noticed me, too. In a few minutes, a bugle started to play... and my sister and I got to raise the flag over Mount Vernon.
Very cool.
Then we began our tour of the house and grounds, which started in the out-kitchen, and ended in the barn. We were still there at sunset! I probably set off more than five alarms trying to see inside ALL the rooms, but did I care? No, sir. When we left the house, we went to Washington's tomb, running to catch up with the tour group that had left us far in the rear. (They went WAY too fast!) Then, when we got there, the tour guide asked if I would read the eulogy for the crowd gathered at the tomb. Very, very cool. It goes without saying that I did it!
Then we went on to the orchards, barns and gardens, and picked beans with the costumed ladies, and pulled cotton off the bushes. I still have some of the cotton, very ratty and bedraggled, but still intact.
I think modern Presidents should look to Washington as inspiration. In Washington, they could see how to be great leaders while remaining noble and great in character.
Happy Birthday!
Today is George Washington's 273rd birthday.
At age six and a half, I learned about him. I mean REALLY learned about him.
Frightening librarians with my mad dash to the history section, I plowed through twenty-eight books about the great "George W. Senior," ranging from Breakfast with Washington to Washington's Rules of Civility to the Anecdotes of Washington (which I read thoroughly, though not really understanding quite what the author was talking about). By age seven and a half, I had run out of books, having read all the books about Washington in the library. So I persuaded my family to go to Virginia for vacation.
Arriving at Mount Vernon early in the morning, we got out of the car and started the long walk up the road to the gates. I was trembling as we set foot on Mount Vernon soil, hindered only by a well-meaning tour guide telling us mundane little tidbits like "The tree which you see on your left..." I didn't hear any more; I was too busy watching the gatekeeper as he took out a large American flag. He noticed me, too. In a few minutes, a bugle started to play... and my sister and I got to raise the flag over Mount Vernon.
Very cool.
Then we began our tour of the house and grounds, which started in the out-kitchen, and ended in the barn. We were still there at sunset! I probably set off more than five alarms trying to see inside ALL the rooms, but did I care? No, sir. When we left the house, we went to Washington's tomb, running to catch up with the tour group that had left us far in the rear. (They went WAY too fast!) Then, when we got there, the tour guide asked if I would read the eulogy for the crowd gathered at the tomb. Very, very cool. It goes without saying that I did it!
Then we went on to the orchards, barns and gardens, and picked beans with the costumed ladies, and pulled cotton off the bushes. I still have some of the cotton, very ratty and bedraggled, but still intact.
I think modern Presidents should look to Washington as inspiration. In Washington, they could see how to be great leaders while remaining noble and great in character.
Happy Birthday!
February 21, 2005
Longevity
Dear Fa-So-La-La, Shieldmaiden and Spuddy Buddy,
Your great-great-great grandfather's daughter died yesterday. Think about that.
Aunt Nettie Bishop Thomas was 98; she was the sister of my great Grandma Henley. Their father was your great-great-great grandfather, Elder W.A. Bishop. He was the handsome fellow in the spooky old portrait that used to hang upstairs at Bailey, the one with the eyes that followed you around the room. He was born around the end of the War Between the States. And his daughter died yesterday.
I spent one of the best New Year's Eves of my life with Aunt Nettie (pronounced "ain't", in the old Tennessee way) and Grandma Henley. I was probably 8 or 9. They were true Southern ladies. We watched Guy Lombardo, shared ladylike giggles and drank tea til midnight. GiGi Louise told me the next day that it was probably the only time either of them ever stayed up that late for anything other than birthing babies, and I should feel honored. I was. I am.
You have longevity in your genes. Live wisely and well, my dears.
Your great-great-great grandfather's daughter died yesterday. Think about that.
Aunt Nettie Bishop Thomas was 98; she was the sister of my great Grandma Henley. Their father was your great-great-great grandfather, Elder W.A. Bishop. He was the handsome fellow in the spooky old portrait that used to hang upstairs at Bailey, the one with the eyes that followed you around the room. He was born around the end of the War Between the States. And his daughter died yesterday.
I spent one of the best New Year's Eves of my life with Aunt Nettie (pronounced "ain't", in the old Tennessee way) and Grandma Henley. I was probably 8 or 9. They were true Southern ladies. We watched Guy Lombardo, shared ladylike giggles and drank tea til midnight. GiGi Louise told me the next day that it was probably the only time either of them ever stayed up that late for anything other than birthing babies, and I should feel honored. I was. I am.
You have longevity in your genes. Live wisely and well, my dears.
F Major!
Whoopeee! All you musical Jane Austen fans, I have found it! The words to the song Marianne plays in the movie of Sense and Sensibility! Here they are. Now I just need to figure out the chord progression she plays on the piano. . . .
Tears
Weep you no more, sad fountains;
What need you flow so fast?
Look how the snowy mountains
Heaven's sun doth gently waste!
But my Sun's heavenly eyes
View not your weeping,
That now lies sleeping
Softly, now softly lies
Sleeping.
Sleep is a reconciling
A rest that peace begets;
Doth not the sun rise smiling
When fair at even he sets?
Rest you then, rest sad eyes!
Melt not in weeping,
While she lies sleeping
Softly now softly lies
Sleeping.
-- Anonymous
Oh, drat, *another* post on a Jane Austen related issue! I seriously need to get a life. :-)
Tears
Weep you no more, sad fountains;
What need you flow so fast?
Look how the snowy mountains
Heaven's sun doth gently waste!
But my Sun's heavenly eyes
View not your weeping,
That now lies sleeping
Softly, now softly lies
Sleeping.
Sleep is a reconciling
A rest that peace begets;
Doth not the sun rise smiling
When fair at even he sets?
Rest you then, rest sad eyes!
Melt not in weeping,
While she lies sleeping
Softly now softly lies
Sleeping.
-- Anonymous
Oh, drat, *another* post on a Jane Austen related issue! I seriously need to get a life. :-)
February 20, 2005
To understand indigo
Fa-So-La-La
I have been ruminating lately on how haiku is such a postmodern form of poetry. Think about it-- the object of haiku is to make you feel the emotions of the moment, just a single, fragmented moment. It has nothing to do with perspective, reason, or deep meditation, but with impression of an ephemeral moment on the feelings.
What could be more postmodern than this? It is the glorification of emotion, of fragmented and worthless moments, often preserved in purposefully obscure language. What do they expect us to gain from this? Are we supposed to fall at the poet's feet for emparting to us great wisdom such as--
another day of snow--
the statue's fingers
broken off.
(Gary Hotham)
Fans of haiku say that there is beauty in the preservation of these moments, and that one must enjoy little things like this in life. And I agree. But I think it can be done in ways much more edifying and enlightening to the reader. Consider this Fernando Ortega poem (I am using this to show that this can be done very effectively in modern poetry; Fernando Ortega is really just a poet who sings)...
Storm
Sometimes it takes a storm
To really know the light.
The scent of rain, the weight of clouds
Pulling down the sky.
Sometimes it takes a storm
To know how you feel.
To understand indigo,
And the varnished sun
Lighting up the fields.
It takes the rain between the lines
To know what sorrow finds,
The way a cloud divides sometimes
The clearing and the blue.
I love you.
I was just passing through
And taken by surprise.
Between the black sky and the blue
I love you.
This poem/song captures the beauty of a moment (the beautiful and simple description of a field before before a storm), but there is much more going on here. This song has the feel of haiku, combined with reflection on how trials mature us. Perfect.
*****
[Queen Shenaynay interjects that although haiku is, as Fa-So-La-La well knows, an ancient poetic form of the East, it is yet not a contradiction to say that something of ancient origin can prove postmodern in spirit. For illustration of this idea, one need merely re-read the first chapters of Genesis. 'Postmodern' is, in some respects, an ironic phrase for defining a spirit that is pre-historic. As Dadaw Sonny says, "All worthwhile truth lies in a paradox."]
I have been ruminating lately on how haiku is such a postmodern form of poetry. Think about it-- the object of haiku is to make you feel the emotions of the moment, just a single, fragmented moment. It has nothing to do with perspective, reason, or deep meditation, but with impression of an ephemeral moment on the feelings.
What could be more postmodern than this? It is the glorification of emotion, of fragmented and worthless moments, often preserved in purposefully obscure language. What do they expect us to gain from this? Are we supposed to fall at the poet's feet for emparting to us great wisdom such as--
another day of snow--
the statue's fingers
broken off.
(Gary Hotham)
Fans of haiku say that there is beauty in the preservation of these moments, and that one must enjoy little things like this in life. And I agree. But I think it can be done in ways much more edifying and enlightening to the reader. Consider this Fernando Ortega poem (I am using this to show that this can be done very effectively in modern poetry; Fernando Ortega is really just a poet who sings)...
Storm
Sometimes it takes a storm
To really know the light.
The scent of rain, the weight of clouds
Pulling down the sky.
Sometimes it takes a storm
To know how you feel.
To understand indigo,
And the varnished sun
Lighting up the fields.
It takes the rain between the lines
To know what sorrow finds,
The way a cloud divides sometimes
The clearing and the blue.
I love you.
I was just passing through
And taken by surprise.
Between the black sky and the blue
I love you.
This poem/song captures the beauty of a moment (the beautiful and simple description of a field before before a storm), but there is much more going on here. This song has the feel of haiku, combined with reflection on how trials mature us. Perfect.
*****
[Queen Shenaynay interjects that although haiku is, as Fa-So-La-La well knows, an ancient poetic form of the East, it is yet not a contradiction to say that something of ancient origin can prove postmodern in spirit. For illustration of this idea, one need merely re-read the first chapters of Genesis. 'Postmodern' is, in some respects, an ironic phrase for defining a spirit that is pre-historic. As Dadaw Sonny says, "All worthwhile truth lies in a paradox."]
Some Sunday Fun for you. . .
Here are some bloopers from church newsletters and bulletins, which I have copied from Richard Lederer's book Anguished English. Sit down before you read these. :-)
--For those of you that have children and don't know it, we have a nursery downstairs.
--The Rev. Merriweather spoke briefly, much to the delight of the audience.
--This being Easter Sunday, we will ask Mrs. White to come forward and lay an egg on the on the altar.
--During the absence of our pastor, we enjoyed the rare privilege of hearing a good sermon when J.F. Stubbs supplied our pulpit.
--Next Sunday Mrs. Vinson will be the soloist for the morning service. The pastor will then speak on "It's a Terrible Experience."
--Due to the Rector's illness, Wednesday's healing services will be discontinued until further notice.
--Offertory: "Jesus Paid It All."
--Remember in prayer the many who are sick of our church and community.
--22 members were present at the church meeting held at the home of Mrs. Martha Crutchfield last evening. Mrs. Crutchfield and Mrs. Rankin sang a duet, The Lord Knows Why.
--Hymn 43: "Great God, what do I see here?"
Preacher: The Rev. Horace Blodgett.
Hymn 47: "Hark! an aweful voice is sounding!"
--Potluck supper: prayer and medication to follow.
--Today's Sermon:
How much can a man drink?
Followed by hymns from a full choir.
-- A song fest was hell at the Methodist church Wednesday.
--On a church bulletin during the minister's illness:
GOD IS GOOD
Dr. Hargreaves is better.
--For those of you that have children and don't know it, we have a nursery downstairs.
--The Rev. Merriweather spoke briefly, much to the delight of the audience.
--This being Easter Sunday, we will ask Mrs. White to come forward and lay an egg on the on the altar.
--During the absence of our pastor, we enjoyed the rare privilege of hearing a good sermon when J.F. Stubbs supplied our pulpit.
--Next Sunday Mrs. Vinson will be the soloist for the morning service. The pastor will then speak on "It's a Terrible Experience."
--Due to the Rector's illness, Wednesday's healing services will be discontinued until further notice.
--Offertory: "Jesus Paid It All."
--Remember in prayer the many who are sick of our church and community.
--22 members were present at the church meeting held at the home of Mrs. Martha Crutchfield last evening. Mrs. Crutchfield and Mrs. Rankin sang a duet, The Lord Knows Why.
--Hymn 43: "Great God, what do I see here?"
Preacher: The Rev. Horace Blodgett.
Hymn 47: "Hark! an aweful voice is sounding!"
--Potluck supper: prayer and medication to follow.
--Today's Sermon:
How much can a man drink?
Followed by hymns from a full choir.
-- A song fest was hell at the Methodist church Wednesday.
--On a church bulletin during the minister's illness:
GOD IS GOOD
Dr. Hargreaves is better.
Assistance Please
I am about to finish the excellent book that I am currently reading regarding the effect that the Scots Irish had on the development of the United States (Born Fighting: How the Scots Irish Shaped America by James Webb). However, coming to the end of this book presents me with a bit of a problem. While I attended a liberal arts university which required me to read a multitude of works of classic literature, I have never read anything by C.S. Lewis.
I realize that this admission will cause distress and unease to my Lewis-crazed children and spouse, and thus, I seek to lessen the dishonor that they may feel as a result of my confession. This brings me to my request: I would like a recommendation of the essential C.S. Lewis book to read. In responding, I would like to know your reason(s) why you recommend a particular book.
I thank you for your assistance in removing this blot from my academic record.
I realize that this admission will cause distress and unease to my Lewis-crazed children and spouse, and thus, I seek to lessen the dishonor that they may feel as a result of my confession. This brings me to my request: I would like a recommendation of the essential C.S. Lewis book to read. In responding, I would like to know your reason(s) why you recommend a particular book.
I thank you for your assistance in removing this blot from my academic record.
February 19, 2005
A new argument for your blogging pleasure
Fa-So-La-La
Alright, after the lengthy bickering on the HH v. JA subject, I'd like to introduce something truly interesting to quarrel about. :-)
WARNING: THIS POST CONTAINS 'SPOILERS' :-)
I am currently reading Mansfield Park, which is just one of the most excellent books ever written in the English language (and consequently in the world -- who am I quoting, Austen fans?). This book has received a lot of undeservedly negative remarks from people expecting Austen to always be light, bright and sparkling, but let's step outside the box for a minute and look at it with fresh eyes. :-)
This book is masterfully written-- there are no superfluous chapters or events; everything serves a purpose but does it so artfully you don't realize it till you look back. The characters are flawlessly drawn-- the things they do are at once interesting and completely typical. You come to know everyone within paragraphs of meeting them. The storyline is great, the book organized and coherent. There is some fantastic symbolism and irony, but neither is heavy handed or 'in your face.'
So why do so many people dislike this book so much? Like I said, it is not nearly as witty and lighthearted as the others, which perhaps accounts for some of it. Also, in the other books when the 'bad' characters sin, we are not observing it directly-- think about Lydia and Wickham. We do not see any of that mess first-hand, and what we hear of it is through the filter of good people's colored narrative. We are so thoroughly surrounded with worthy people's correct opinions about it, that it is not nearly as troubling as it could have been. On the other hand, in Mansfield Park we observe Mr. Crawford and Maria quite a bit, and the only person thinking straight about it all is Fanny. Everyone else is either blind to it or they don't have the good sense and morals to care. We are more 'on our own' with handling their sin, and so we are obliged to work a little harder in reading about it.
Another reason is that Fanny, with all her merits, is almost universally disliked. Perhaps it is because her virtues are precisely those which modern-day thought condemns-- meekness, longsufferingness (is that a word?) patience, gentleness, charity, high standards and morals, humility and unselfishness, modesty, innocence, etc. I don't think any of us would disagree with these virtues in and of themselves, but modern thought has penetrated our minds just enough to make us uncomfortable and dissatisfied with them.
Another reason-- all the other books have at least one man who is really outstanding. Think of Mr. Bingley, Colonal Brandon, Mr. Knightly, and Admiral Croft. These men are not in any substantial error for the course of their respective books. But Edmund, as with Edward and Mr. Darcy, is in error through much of the book. In S&S and P&P this does not bother us because there are other men who are worthy, but Edmund is the only really good man in Mansfield Park. (Sir Thomas is pretty much a good man, but has too many failings and flaws for us to really look up to him) We have to be patient with Edmund, which also adds to the difficulty of enjoying the book. The hero's supposed to be perfect, right?
In these and in other ways Jane Austen really stepped out of the box in writing Mansfield Park. I think the compliment ought to be returned by those reading it.
Alright, after the lengthy bickering on the HH v. JA subject, I'd like to introduce something truly interesting to quarrel about. :-)
WARNING: THIS POST CONTAINS 'SPOILERS' :-)
I am currently reading Mansfield Park, which is just one of the most excellent books ever written in the English language (and consequently in the world -- who am I quoting, Austen fans?). This book has received a lot of undeservedly negative remarks from people expecting Austen to always be light, bright and sparkling, but let's step outside the box for a minute and look at it with fresh eyes. :-)
This book is masterfully written-- there are no superfluous chapters or events; everything serves a purpose but does it so artfully you don't realize it till you look back. The characters are flawlessly drawn-- the things they do are at once interesting and completely typical. You come to know everyone within paragraphs of meeting them. The storyline is great, the book organized and coherent. There is some fantastic symbolism and irony, but neither is heavy handed or 'in your face.'
So why do so many people dislike this book so much? Like I said, it is not nearly as witty and lighthearted as the others, which perhaps accounts for some of it. Also, in the other books when the 'bad' characters sin, we are not observing it directly-- think about Lydia and Wickham. We do not see any of that mess first-hand, and what we hear of it is through the filter of good people's colored narrative. We are so thoroughly surrounded with worthy people's correct opinions about it, that it is not nearly as troubling as it could have been. On the other hand, in Mansfield Park we observe Mr. Crawford and Maria quite a bit, and the only person thinking straight about it all is Fanny. Everyone else is either blind to it or they don't have the good sense and morals to care. We are more 'on our own' with handling their sin, and so we are obliged to work a little harder in reading about it.
Another reason is that Fanny, with all her merits, is almost universally disliked. Perhaps it is because her virtues are precisely those which modern-day thought condemns-- meekness, longsufferingness (is that a word?) patience, gentleness, charity, high standards and morals, humility and unselfishness, modesty, innocence, etc. I don't think any of us would disagree with these virtues in and of themselves, but modern thought has penetrated our minds just enough to make us uncomfortable and dissatisfied with them.
Another reason-- all the other books have at least one man who is really outstanding. Think of Mr. Bingley, Colonal Brandon, Mr. Knightly, and Admiral Croft. These men are not in any substantial error for the course of their respective books. But Edmund, as with Edward and Mr. Darcy, is in error through much of the book. In S&S and P&P this does not bother us because there are other men who are worthy, but Edmund is the only really good man in Mansfield Park. (Sir Thomas is pretty much a good man, but has too many failings and flaws for us to really look up to him) We have to be patient with Edmund, which also adds to the difficulty of enjoying the book. The hero's supposed to be perfect, right?
In these and in other ways Jane Austen really stepped out of the box in writing Mansfield Park. I think the compliment ought to be returned by those reading it.
Ratty and Moly receive their due honor. . .
Fa-So-La-La
Here is a truly excellent C.S.Lewis poem that is quickly becoming one of my favorites. Here's a bit of info to make the last stanza mean more-- The Manicheaens were an early church (200--500-ish) cult that said there were some people in the world who had special knowledge and divinity in them, and that these people spread light wherever they went (and other people were unimportant). It was very similiar to the Gnostic heresy, but with more of an emphasis on a sort of scientific mysticism.
Impenetince
All the world's wiseacres up in arms against them
Shan't detach my heart for a single moment
From the man-like beasts of the earthy stories--
Badger and Moly.
Rat the oarsmen, neat Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle,
Benjamin, pert Nutkin, or (ages older)
Henryson's shrill Mouse, or the Mice the Frogs once
Fought with in Homer.
Not that I'm so crazed as to think the creatures
Do behave that way, nor at all deluded
By some half-false sweetness of early childhood
Sharply remembered.
Look again. Look well at the beasts, the true ones.
Can't you see?. . . cool primness of cats, or coney's
Half indignant stare of amazement, mouse's
Twinkling adroitness,
Tipsy bear's rotundity, toad's complacence. . .
Why! they all cry out to be used as symbols
Masks for Man, cartoons, parodies by Nature
Formed to reveal us
Each to each, not fiercely, but in her gentlest
Vein of household laughter. And if the love so
Raised- it will no doubt- spills over on the
Actual achetypes,
Who's the worse for that? Marry, gup! Begone you
Fusty kill-joys, new Manicheaens! Here's a
Health to Toad Hall, here's to the Beaver doing
Sums with the Butcher!
Can anyone tell me what 'Henryson's shrill mouse' and 'the Mice the Frogs once Fought with in Homer' are? And I wonder if this poem or Narnia came first? There is kind of a mesh of ideas.
[The Queen elucidates helpfully: Robert Henryson was an English medieval poet who penned the tale of the town mouse and the country mouse. For more information, see: http://www.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/teams/morfab.htm#three
As for the Homer reference, an ancient mock epic exists, The Battle of Mice and Frogs, which is a parody of the Iliad. Many attribute it to Homer. See a translation here:
http://www.sacred-texts.com/cla/homer/frogmice.htm
The Queen will now resume the pursuit of repose. ]
Here is a truly excellent C.S.Lewis poem that is quickly becoming one of my favorites. Here's a bit of info to make the last stanza mean more-- The Manicheaens were an early church (200--500-ish) cult that said there were some people in the world who had special knowledge and divinity in them, and that these people spread light wherever they went (and other people were unimportant). It was very similiar to the Gnostic heresy, but with more of an emphasis on a sort of scientific mysticism.
Impenetince
All the world's wiseacres up in arms against them
Shan't detach my heart for a single moment
From the man-like beasts of the earthy stories--
Badger and Moly.
Rat the oarsmen, neat Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle,
Benjamin, pert Nutkin, or (ages older)
Henryson's shrill Mouse, or the Mice the Frogs once
Fought with in Homer.
Not that I'm so crazed as to think the creatures
Do behave that way, nor at all deluded
By some half-false sweetness of early childhood
Sharply remembered.
Look again. Look well at the beasts, the true ones.
Can't you see?. . . cool primness of cats, or coney's
Half indignant stare of amazement, mouse's
Twinkling adroitness,
Tipsy bear's rotundity, toad's complacence. . .
Why! they all cry out to be used as symbols
Masks for Man, cartoons, parodies by Nature
Formed to reveal us
Each to each, not fiercely, but in her gentlest
Vein of household laughter. And if the love so
Raised- it will no doubt- spills over on the
Actual achetypes,
Who's the worse for that? Marry, gup! Begone you
Fusty kill-joys, new Manicheaens! Here's a
Health to Toad Hall, here's to the Beaver doing
Sums with the Butcher!
Can anyone tell me what 'Henryson's shrill mouse' and 'the Mice the Frogs once Fought with in Homer' are? And I wonder if this poem or Narnia came first? There is kind of a mesh of ideas.
[The Queen elucidates helpfully: Robert Henryson was an English medieval poet who penned the tale of the town mouse and the country mouse. For more information, see: http://www.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/teams/morfab.htm#three
As for the Homer reference, an ancient mock epic exists, The Battle of Mice and Frogs, which is a parody of the Iliad. Many attribute it to Homer. See a translation here:
http://www.sacred-texts.com/cla/homer/frogmice.htm
The Queen will now resume the pursuit of repose. ]
February 18, 2005
Spuddy Buddy is introduced to Politics
Spuddy and I were in the back yard today, fighting pirates, when I said something derogatory about our enemies along the lines of, "We're tough, those enemies are going to be scared as chickens when they see us coming!" You could see the light bulb turning on in Spuddy's head-- he said, "Wow! great idea! We won't just fight the enemy, we'll make fun of them too!"
HH vs. The Imposter
Given the posts from The Shieldmaiden and Fa-so-la-la, I must interject that I was not referring, in my commentary below, about the video-cation of my admired Hornblower. I was referring to the real deal in the novels about HH and not the "reel" deal as discussed by my progeny. As a result, the music within the respective shows and the relative "cuteness" of the lead character and the comparative film quality is wholly irrelevant in my humble opinion.
However, in a discussion of the two actual characters, Jack Aubrey is a crass comparison to the Indomitable Hornblower. As a swashbuckling story, I will admit that the Aubrey tales have their place. The problem with Aubrey is that he truly is an upwardly grubbing sailor who will largely do anything to advance his career and personal wealth. In comparison, HH, in all of the stories written about him, is constantly acting against his personal interest in an effort to advance the interests of his country, ship and shipmates.
HH is an admirable and noble character in the vein of myth and legend, while Jack Aubrey is the self-centered adventurer who is likely more representative of the real sea captains of that particular era. Since I am not reading these tales out of a desire for reality regarding this era, I will always defer to the true hero of the English Navy.
HH must have been a Scot, or at least he must have longed to be one.
However, in a discussion of the two actual characters, Jack Aubrey is a crass comparison to the Indomitable Hornblower. As a swashbuckling story, I will admit that the Aubrey tales have their place. The problem with Aubrey is that he truly is an upwardly grubbing sailor who will largely do anything to advance his career and personal wealth. In comparison, HH, in all of the stories written about him, is constantly acting against his personal interest in an effort to advance the interests of his country, ship and shipmates.
HH is an admirable and noble character in the vein of myth and legend, while Jack Aubrey is the self-centered adventurer who is likely more representative of the real sea captains of that particular era. Since I am not reading these tales out of a desire for reality regarding this era, I will always defer to the true hero of the English Navy.
HH must have been a Scot, or at least he must have longed to be one.
Jack Aubrey V. Horatio Hornblower
Well, since the entire beehive is buzzing (oh, that was cheesy) about this all-important debate, I guess I have to post my opinion. :-)
I really liked Master and Commander, but I liked Hornblower lots too. Master and Commander is better produced (I agree about the cool music, Sheildmaiden), has more in the way of interesting interaction between charecters, and also (a big plus in my eyes) is not as gory as Hornblower. One does not come away with that nasty quesy feeling. However, the Hornblower movies have more in the way of storyline, go into a little more detail on the strategies etc, and Hornblower is also just a really cool guy, a much more interesting (and worthy) character than Jack Aubrey. (satisfied, Great Scot?)
It also helps that he's a lot cuter. :-)
Oooh, oooh, I know, we could make a movie! It could be one of those one-super hero-battles-another-while-we-watch-in-awe movies! Ya know, like Alien v. Predator? I can just see the big shiny poster now-- "Jack Aubrey v. Horatio Hornblower, now showing in a theater near you!"
I really liked Master and Commander, but I liked Hornblower lots too. Master and Commander is better produced (I agree about the cool music, Sheildmaiden), has more in the way of interesting interaction between charecters, and also (a big plus in my eyes) is not as gory as Hornblower. One does not come away with that nasty quesy feeling. However, the Hornblower movies have more in the way of storyline, go into a little more detail on the strategies etc, and Hornblower is also just a really cool guy, a much more interesting (and worthy) character than Jack Aubrey. (satisfied, Great Scot?)
It also helps that he's a lot cuter. :-)
Oooh, oooh, I know, we could make a movie! It could be one of those one-super hero-battles-another-while-we-watch-in-awe movies! Ya know, like Alien v. Predator? I can just see the big shiny poster now-- "Jack Aubrey v. Horatio Hornblower, now showing in a theater near you!"
All the world's a stage. . . .
Here is a quote from Douglas Wilson's superb book, Easy Chairs, Hard Words. You really ought to read it for yourself, but I just thought I would post this as it made many things clear to me that had puzzeled me before. The setting is a young man somewhat confused on doctrine, talking to a preacher about how God can be in control and men not just be 'puppets.'
{Young man} "What do you mean it's like a play?" I asked.
{Preacher} I mean that God is the Author, and we are the characters."
"I know I have some objections already. But explain some more first."
"All right. We persist, in discussions of this issue, in talking as though God were a fellow-character in the play. But He is not. Our relationship to Him is not that of Macbeth to Duncan, but rather of Macbeth to Shakespeare."
"What does this help explain?"
"If an English teacher asked her students why Macbeth did thus and such, one answer could be that he wanted to be king, and so forth. The student could answer in terms of Macbeth's motivations and so on."
"Is another answer possible?"
"Sure. Macbeth did what he did because that is the way Shakespeare wrote the play. Now both answers are true-- but they apply at different levels. . . if the finite Shakespeare can produce, by his will, fictional characters who have all the freedom necessary for their 'level of existance,' then why cannot the infinite God create real individuals, with real free agency, without surrendering His control?"
"You are saying that because God's resources are infinitely greater than Shakespeare's He has the power to write history and create characters who have true freedom."
"Yes. . . without having His characters write the play."
Pretty cool, hmmm?
{Young man} "What do you mean it's like a play?" I asked.
{Preacher} I mean that God is the Author, and we are the characters."
"I know I have some objections already. But explain some more first."
"All right. We persist, in discussions of this issue, in talking as though God were a fellow-character in the play. But He is not. Our relationship to Him is not that of Macbeth to Duncan, but rather of Macbeth to Shakespeare."
"What does this help explain?"
"If an English teacher asked her students why Macbeth did thus and such, one answer could be that he wanted to be king, and so forth. The student could answer in terms of Macbeth's motivations and so on."
"Is another answer possible?"
"Sure. Macbeth did what he did because that is the way Shakespeare wrote the play. Now both answers are true-- but they apply at different levels. . . if the finite Shakespeare can produce, by his will, fictional characters who have all the freedom necessary for their 'level of existance,' then why cannot the infinite God create real individuals, with real free agency, without surrendering His control?"
"You are saying that because God's resources are infinitely greater than Shakespeare's He has the power to write history and create characters who have true freedom."
"Yes. . . without having His characters write the play."
Pretty cool, hmmm?
In defense of my "Wooly Footed Beings of the Lower Class."
Shieldmaiden
Great Scot!
How could you say such things!
I suppose that I am the only one left to defend the great land of Middle Earth. A truer description of the Hobbits would be:
"A rustic folk, not eloquent in their language or hobbies, with no need of shoes, for their feet were as furry as their curly heads..." Need I say more?
And now, with no disregard to the British Navy, description of Hornblower:
"He is an aspiring young sailor, who will do anything, no matter if it be right or wrong, just to get a promotion."
Now, understand me, I do like the Hornblower books and the movies, but the movies will never quite come up to the standards of Master & Commander.
I mean, how could it ...it doesn't have the cool music!
[The Queen interjects with haste, lest our Great Scot suffer undue anxiety over his headstrong offspring's high-spirited tendency toward rash proclamations. Gentle Readers must recognize this bit of hyperbole for what it is: daughter teasingly goading father, all in good fun. In fairness, it must be clarified that the distinguishing characteristic of Horatio Hornblower is his refusal to do anything wrong, whether it be for self-promotion or otherwise, and that is what makes him a classic hero figure. The Queen encourages The Shieldmaiden to venture further afield from Tolkein, and visit the realm of CS Forrester. The Queen will now resume more pressing Royal Duties.]
Great Scot!
How could you say such things!
I suppose that I am the only one left to defend the great land of Middle Earth. A truer description of the Hobbits would be:
"A rustic folk, not eloquent in their language or hobbies, with no need of shoes, for their feet were as furry as their curly heads..." Need I say more?
And now, with no disregard to the British Navy, description of Hornblower:
"He is an aspiring young sailor, who will do anything, no matter if it be right or wrong, just to get a promotion."
Now, understand me, I do like the Hornblower books and the movies, but the movies will never quite come up to the standards of Master & Commander.
I mean, how could it ...it doesn't have the cool music!
[The Queen interjects with haste, lest our Great Scot suffer undue anxiety over his headstrong offspring's high-spirited tendency toward rash proclamations. Gentle Readers must recognize this bit of hyperbole for what it is: daughter teasingly goading father, all in good fun. In fairness, it must be clarified that the distinguishing characteristic of Horatio Hornblower is his refusal to do anything wrong, whether it be for self-promotion or otherwise, and that is what makes him a classic hero figure. The Queen encourages The Shieldmaiden to venture further afield from Tolkein, and visit the realm of CS Forrester. The Queen will now resume more pressing Royal Duties.]
The Beehive (The Great Scot makes his debut!!)
In an effort to make myself known in the Beehive, I am posting this introduction and comment about some of the preceding posts. While I have no objection to the glorification of authors who write about women of insignificant family connections who attempt to raise their standards of living and position through marriage, or who write about a wealthy woman who cannot resist meddling in the personal lives and affairs of other people while being wholly blind to her own problems, or who write about elderly homeless men who choose to cavort with hairy-toed individuals of diminutive stature, I believe that this misses the point about true valor and nobility.
For a truer presentation of what is good and noble, you must look at the illustrious career of Horatio Hornblower. This gentleman shows us that loyalty, fealty, honesty and fighting the French is the path to a rewarding life and vocation. HH, as he is affectionately known to his followers, always put the good of country and his fellow man before his own cares, concerns and career. He teaches us valor, daring and chivalry and the wisdom of prior and thorough planning. HH is the epitome of truth, justice and the American Way .....er.... the English Way! There are those among you who may scoff and malign the motives and some of the actions of HH, however, such comments would be through a lack of understanding and comprehension of the true greatness of this warrior knight.
To summarize my intentions and thoughts with regard to this Beehive, I leave you with the immortal words of Captain Hornblower when he first meets Lady Barbara, the sister of the Duke of Wellington. He states, "Um .......er....... Hmph!"
For a truer presentation of what is good and noble, you must look at the illustrious career of Horatio Hornblower. This gentleman shows us that loyalty, fealty, honesty and fighting the French is the path to a rewarding life and vocation. HH, as he is affectionately known to his followers, always put the good of country and his fellow man before his own cares, concerns and career. He teaches us valor, daring and chivalry and the wisdom of prior and thorough planning. HH is the epitome of truth, justice and the American Way .....er.... the English Way! There are those among you who may scoff and malign the motives and some of the actions of HH, however, such comments would be through a lack of understanding and comprehension of the true greatness of this warrior knight.
To summarize my intentions and thoughts with regard to this Beehive, I leave you with the immortal words of Captain Hornblower when he first meets Lady Barbara, the sister of the Duke of Wellington. He states, "Um .......er....... Hmph!"
Flashing Quotes
Two quotes that flashed on the page as I read them; both from a book written in 1922 by Charlotte Mason:
"If we have not proved that a child is born a person with a mind as complete and as beautiful as his beautiful little body, we can at least show that he always has all the mind he requires for his occasions; that is, that his mind is the instrument of his education and that his education does not produce his mind."
(Mason, Toward A Philosophy of Education, Ch. 2)
"Working men will have leisure in the future and how this leisure is to be employed is a question much discussed. Now, no one can employ leisure fitly whose mind is not brought into active play every day; the small affairs of a man's own life supply no intellectual food and but small and monotonous intellectual exercise. Science, history, philosophy, literature, must no longer be the luxuries of the 'educated' classes; all classes must be educated and sit down to these things of the mind as they do to their daily bread. History must afford its pageants, science its wonders, literature its intimacies, philosophy its speculations, religion its assurances to every man, and his education must have prepared him for wanderings in these realms of gold."
(Mason, Toward A Philosophy of Education, Ch. 2)
"If we have not proved that a child is born a person with a mind as complete and as beautiful as his beautiful little body, we can at least show that he always has all the mind he requires for his occasions; that is, that his mind is the instrument of his education and that his education does not produce his mind."
(Mason, Toward A Philosophy of Education, Ch. 2)
"Working men will have leisure in the future and how this leisure is to be employed is a question much discussed. Now, no one can employ leisure fitly whose mind is not brought into active play every day; the small affairs of a man's own life supply no intellectual food and but small and monotonous intellectual exercise. Science, history, philosophy, literature, must no longer be the luxuries of the 'educated' classes; all classes must be educated and sit down to these things of the mind as they do to their daily bread. History must afford its pageants, science its wonders, literature its intimacies, philosophy its speculations, religion its assurances to every man, and his education must have prepared him for wanderings in these realms of gold."
(Mason, Toward A Philosophy of Education, Ch. 2)
February 17, 2005
Ebenezer Pop Quiz
My New Year's resolution to read the whole Bible by November brings me back to visit 1 Samuel today. Here's a verse from chapter 8:
12. Then Samuel took a stone, and set it between Mizpeh and Shen, and called the name of it Ebenezer, saying, Hitherto hath the Lord helped us.
QUICK!!! Name the first hymn you think of.
Virtual M&M's to all winners.
12. Then Samuel took a stone, and set it between Mizpeh and Shen, and called the name of it Ebenezer, saying, Hitherto hath the Lord helped us.
QUICK!!! Name the first hymn you think of.
Virtual M&M's to all winners.
It's Going To Be A Long Thirteen Years.
Today seemed as good a day as any to get the household kindergartener started on a long life of Adventures In Mathematics. He's been asking for it, the iron is hot, all that sort of thing. So I fetched the math primer and the unit blocks and summoned Spuddy Buddy to the kitchen table ("Oh! I'm doing math! Like sisters!! Yippee!!!"). I put on my Happy Math Face and proceeded with Lesson 1. I thought it went very well.
At the end, however, my young scholar said flatly, "So, that was it?"
"That's your math for today!" I chirped.
A thoughtful pause. Then, all incredulous,
"SO...umm... how am I supposed to learn math from THAT?"
OK, then. Only thirteen years to go.
At the end, however, my young scholar said flatly, "So, that was it?"
"That's your math for today!" I chirped.
A thoughtful pause. Then, all incredulous,
"SO...umm... how am I supposed to learn math from THAT?"
OK, then. Only thirteen years to go.
Let me burst a few of Peter Jackson's bubbles.
Having lately seen the extended version of the Lord of the Rings has made me feel, more than ever, the mixture of Miss Piggyish I-want-to-teach-him-a-lesson feelings, and thanks for Peter Jackson.
If you had read the books more than once before you saw the movies, and your mental image of Arwen is not one of Liv Tyler, you know what I mean.
If you are one of those sycho nine year olds that do nothing but stare at their Orlando Bloom posters and argue nonstop over which one will marry him, to speak bluntly, you haven't got a clue.
I can't really comment on the Helms Deep extended scene, because I fell asleep during that scene, it being 2 AM, and then woke up, the exact moment the battle was over.
Is it just me, or is that weird?
I am really mad at Peter Jackson for ruining Legolas for people that have not read the books.
I guess that he failed to notice that in the books, Legolas is more than just arrows, dumb forebodings (like the classic, and need I say much laughed at, "A diversion."), action scenes and tons of hair spray.
Also, even though I think Viggo Mortenson did a good job as Aragorn (exept for that dumb scene where he looks in the palantir and his face gets all screwy), I think that Peter Jackson should have read the books a few more times before making the movies. The Aragorn of the Return of the King portrays Christ returning to his people, not some weak, miscellaneous fairytale king that lived happily ever after.
What is really telling, though, is that the first thing he thought, after reading the books the first time at age 18 was: "I can't wait for some one to make that into a movie."
Isn't that sad?
Isn't it sad that after reading a book like that, all he could think about was making it into a movie?
If you had read the books more than once before you saw the movies, and your mental image of Arwen is not one of Liv Tyler, you know what I mean.
If you are one of those sycho nine year olds that do nothing but stare at their Orlando Bloom posters and argue nonstop over which one will marry him, to speak bluntly, you haven't got a clue.
I can't really comment on the Helms Deep extended scene, because I fell asleep during that scene, it being 2 AM, and then woke up, the exact moment the battle was over.
Is it just me, or is that weird?
I am really mad at Peter Jackson for ruining Legolas for people that have not read the books.
I guess that he failed to notice that in the books, Legolas is more than just arrows, dumb forebodings (like the classic, and need I say much laughed at, "A diversion."), action scenes and tons of hair spray.
Also, even though I think Viggo Mortenson did a good job as Aragorn (exept for that dumb scene where he looks in the palantir and his face gets all screwy), I think that Peter Jackson should have read the books a few more times before making the movies. The Aragorn of the Return of the King portrays Christ returning to his people, not some weak, miscellaneous fairytale king that lived happily ever after.
What is really telling, though, is that the first thing he thought, after reading the books the first time at age 18 was: "I can't wait for some one to make that into a movie."
Isn't that sad?
Isn't it sad that after reading a book like that, all he could think about was making it into a movie?
Number One Idiot of 2004
This is a true story. SCREEEEBEEEES.
"I am a medical student currently doing a rotation in toxicology at the poison control center. Today, this woman called in very upset because she caught her little daughter eating ants. I quickly reassured her that the ants are not harmful and there would be no need to bring her daughter into the hospital.
"She calmed down and at the end of the conversation happened to mention that she gave her daughter some ant poison to eat in order to kill the ants. I told her that she better bring her daughter into the emergency room right away."
"I am a medical student currently doing a rotation in toxicology at the poison control center. Today, this woman called in very upset because she caught her little daughter eating ants. I quickly reassured her that the ants are not harmful and there would be no need to bring her daughter into the hospital.
"She calmed down and at the end of the conversation happened to mention that she gave her daughter some ant poison to eat in order to kill the ants. I told her that she better bring her daughter into the emergency room right away."
And They Shall Rise Up And Call Me Escargot
I had just finished creating for Spuddy Buddy a luscious sandwich of smoked turkey, muenster cheese and avocado on honey wheat bread, and was in the act of relocating one quarter of the sandwich from his plate to mine, according to the established household culinary custom, when young Prince Spud himself appeared at my elbow, and gazing up at me with a countenance ablaze with benevolence, mercy and forgiveness, decreed:
"Oh, it's alright, Mamadah. You can be my scavenger."
It's what I live for.
"Oh, it's alright, Mamadah. You can be my scavenger."
It's what I live for.
Spuddy Buddy, Poet Laureate of the Beehive
Random Haiku of a 5 Year Old Boy
*******
Food:
It gets chewed.
*******
Trees
They blow in the breeze.
*******
The earth is spinning.
Night is daytime's shadow.
*******
The house has a mouse;
The mouse has a house.
Get it?
*******
*******
Food:
It gets chewed.
*******
Trees
They blow in the breeze.
*******
The earth is spinning.
Night is daytime's shadow.
*******
The house has a mouse;
The mouse has a house.
Get it?
*******
Pass the Advil. . .
So. Does a work of art (any kind of art, music, lit., etc.) have to have explicit Christian references in order to be Christian?
This is something I have been thinking about a lot lately, as the result of rereading some Jane Austen. :-) Think about it-- Jane Austen was clearly writing from within a Christian worldview; she was Christian herself, and her father and 1 or 2 brothers were clergymen. But there is very little mention made in her books of the Lord, and only passing references to church and stuff like that. I think that for us moderns our faith is so constantly under attack that we feel the need to declare ourselves, to fly the colors, much more than Christians of earlier ages did. We want everyone to state clearly where they stand on these issues. But Jane Austen's world was primarily Christian, and I think everyone was so accustomed to this that they assumed the Christian underpinnings where we would want them to be declared. Unfortunatly, we frequently carry this to the point of making the arts a sort of billboard for the faith, instead of the natural outpouring of a fully integrated worldview. During the recent World magazine fiction competition there was a long and very interesting discussion on the blog about how we don't think of a book or painting or piece of music as Christain unless it 'bonks us across the head with cross-shaped shadows.'HAHAHAHAHAH How true. Maybe they should start selling Advil in Christian bookstores. Ooooh, that was really nasty of me. :-)
This is something I have been thinking about a lot lately, as the result of rereading some Jane Austen. :-) Think about it-- Jane Austen was clearly writing from within a Christian worldview; she was Christian herself, and her father and 1 or 2 brothers were clergymen. But there is very little mention made in her books of the Lord, and only passing references to church and stuff like that. I think that for us moderns our faith is so constantly under attack that we feel the need to declare ourselves, to fly the colors, much more than Christians of earlier ages did. We want everyone to state clearly where they stand on these issues. But Jane Austen's world was primarily Christian, and I think everyone was so accustomed to this that they assumed the Christian underpinnings where we would want them to be declared. Unfortunatly, we frequently carry this to the point of making the arts a sort of billboard for the faith, instead of the natural outpouring of a fully integrated worldview. During the recent World magazine fiction competition there was a long and very interesting discussion on the blog about how we don't think of a book or painting or piece of music as Christain unless it 'bonks us across the head with cross-shaped shadows.'
February 16, 2005
BREAKING NEWS-- Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi revealed as Owl and Rabbit in disguise!
This paragraph is perfection. Peggy Noonan has been reading Winnie the Pooh, I just know it.
"As for the Democratic response, Harry Reid looks and talks like a small-town undertaker whom you want to trust but wonder about, especially when he says the deceased would love the brass handles. Although Nancy Pelosi continues to look startled, even alarmed, her comments are predictable and pedestrian. Both seemed eager not to agree with Ted Kennedy's recent "Iraq is Vietnam" statements, which more and more seem not just stupid but scandalously so. Absent endorsing radical defeatism, however, Mr. Reid and Ms. Pelosi had little to say. They made Important Sounds. Neither seemed sincere or serious. The president seemed both."
"As for the Democratic response, Harry Reid looks and talks like a small-town undertaker whom you want to trust but wonder about, especially when he says the deceased would love the brass handles. Although Nancy Pelosi continues to look startled, even alarmed, her comments are predictable and pedestrian. Both seemed eager not to agree with Ted Kennedy's recent "Iraq is Vietnam" statements, which more and more seem not just stupid but scandalously so. Absent endorsing radical defeatism, however, Mr. Reid and Ms. Pelosi had little to say. They made Important Sounds. Neither seemed sincere or serious. The president seemed both."
Spuddy Buddy-isms
Spuddy Buddy, the Beehive's 5 year old mascot, is on a roll today.
Dashing through the house at top speed:
"Wow! Watch me! I have Missile Toes!"
Administering marriage vows to a wobbly Weeble couple:
"Do you take this woman to be your lovely wedded wife?"
At least he didn't put Jeeves in the fridge today. ("Well, he was hot, see.")
Dashing through the house at top speed:
"Wow! Watch me! I have Missile Toes!"
Administering marriage vows to a wobbly Weeble couple:
"Do you take this woman to be your lovely wedded wife?"
At least he didn't put Jeeves in the fridge today. ("Well, he was hot, see.")
Well, here we are, here we are, capital, Lydia!
Howdy. I am The Great Fa-so-la-la. I rule the kingdom of Fa-so-la-la land, a smallish territory inside the kingdom of Beehive. When not Fa-so-la-ing, I am either reading (at the moment I am working on A Miscellany of Men, by G. K. Chesterton, the poems of C. S. Lewis, rereading Mansfield Park by Jane Austen, and Reading Between the Lines by Gene Edward Veith) listening to really good music (Nickel Creek, Alison Kraus+Union Station's 'Lonely Runs Both Ways', James Taylor's 'October Road', Mark O'Connor's 'Fanfare for the Volunteer', Fernando Ortega's 'Storm,' the soundtrack to Return of the King) doing school, cleaning this snow globe (the more we shake it, the more stuff falls) or doing stuff with The Shieldmaiden and Spuddy Buddy. I also play piano and mess around with the mountain dulcimer. I like to style myself as the Voice of Reason in The Beehive, but we're not sure if that is truth or wishful thinking. Although it certainly is true that I am not as odd as The Shieldmaiden, and I am not nearly so in love with LOTR, although besides Jane Austen they are my favorite books ever. I HATE COUNTRY MUSIC.
Well, now that you have a vague concept of what it means to be The Great Fa-so-la-la, I will tell you what is up in Fa-so-la-la land today. I have been ruminating on just why it is that I am not fond of the Romantic poets of the 1800's. Why, I ask myself, does Wordsworth drive me up the wall, and why oh why oh why does Keats give me nausea? Am I the victim of a sudden and disturbing mutation in the gene pool? Am I just batty? I mean, come on, these dudes are supposed to be some of the best poets ever! While meditating on these troubling thoughts, I remembered the words of The Great A. A. Milne in the preface to When We Were Very Young--
"At one time (but I have changed my mind now) I thought I was going to write a little Note at the top of each of these poems, in the manner of Mr. Wordsworth, who liked to tell his readers where he was staying, and which of his friends he was walking with, and what he was thinking about, when the idea of writing his poem came to him." HAHAHAHAHAHAHA. I could have sworn that I read one of his poems where he tells what he ate for lunch, but one can't be sure. :-) Anyway, it is this that makes the Romantics slightly annoying, I guess-- they are so pompous and so ridiculously earnest at the same time. Just my thoughts.
Well, here goes-- I AM POSTING MY FIRST BLOG! Maybe we should get Lillian Vernon or somebody to make a commemorative plaque. If babies can get My First Doll dolls, why can't I have a trophy or something? :-)
Well, now that you have a vague concept of what it means to be The Great Fa-so-la-la, I will tell you what is up in Fa-so-la-la land today. I have been ruminating on just why it is that I am not fond of the Romantic poets of the 1800's. Why, I ask myself, does Wordsworth drive me up the wall, and why oh why oh why does Keats give me nausea? Am I the victim of a sudden and disturbing mutation in the gene pool? Am I just batty? I mean, come on, these dudes are supposed to be some of the best poets ever! While meditating on these troubling thoughts, I remembered the words of The Great A. A. Milne in the preface to When We Were Very Young--
"At one time (but I have changed my mind now) I thought I was going to write a little Note at the top of each of these poems, in the manner of Mr. Wordsworth, who liked to tell his readers where he was staying, and which of his friends he was walking with, and what he was thinking about, when the idea of writing his poem came to him." HAHAHAHAHAHAHA. I could have sworn that I read one of his poems where he tells what he ate for lunch, but one can't be sure. :-) Anyway, it is this that makes the Romantics slightly annoying, I guess-- they are so pompous and so ridiculously earnest at the same time. Just my thoughts.
Well, here goes-- I AM POSTING MY FIRST BLOG! Maybe we should get Lillian Vernon or somebody to make a commemorative plaque. If babies can get My First Doll dolls, why can't I have a trophy or something? :-)
In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit...
A hobbit, strange as it may seem, named "The Shieldmaiden." Weird, isn't it?
I am a rather nutty teenager who thinks that the Lord of the Rings is the best literature ever to pass the printing blocks.
I play the violin, read (endlessly), draw, paint (questionable), adore cats, and am "practically perfect in every way." (VERY questionable!)
I hope that this works, seeing as I have never done this before, and the evil blog-monster that lurks in all blogs might at any moment jump out and eat me.
As you see, I am kinda loony.
But, around here, I often wonder why, because, how ever nutty I get, I will never be as crazy as my mother, Shenaynay, or whatever it was.
Not that that's a bad thing, you understand.
It is my belief that if every one was just a little bit loony, the world would be a better place so here they are:
18 Ways To Maintain A Healthy Level Of Insanity
#1. At lunchtime (or anytime!) sit in your parked car with sunglasses on and point a hairdryer at passing cars. See if they slow down.
#2. Page yourself over the Intercom. Don't disguise your voice.
#3. Anytime someone asks you to do something, ask them if they want fries with that.
#4. Put your garbage can on your desk and label it "Inbox."
#5. Put decaf in the coffee maker for three weeks. Once everyone has gotten over their caffeine addictions, switch to espresso.
#6. Finish all your sentences with "in accordance with the prophesy."
#7. Don't use any punctuation.
#8. As often as possible, skip instead of walk.
#9. Ask people what sex they are. Laugh hysterically after they answer.
#10. Specify that your drive through order is "To Go."
#11. Sing along at the opera.
#12. Got to a poetry recital and ask why the poems don't rhyme.
#13. Put mosquito netting around your work area and play tropical sounds all day.
#14. Five days in advance, tell your friends you can't attend their party because you're not in the mood.
#15. Have your Co-workers address you by your wrestling name, Rock Hard.
#16. When the money comes out of the ATM, scream "I won! I won!"
#17. When leaving the Zoo, start running towards the parking lot, yelling "Run for your lives, they're loose!"
#18. Tell your children during dinner: "Due to the economy, we are going to have to let one of you go."
I am a rather nutty teenager who thinks that the Lord of the Rings is the best literature ever to pass the printing blocks.
I play the violin, read (endlessly), draw, paint (questionable), adore cats, and am "practically perfect in every way." (VERY questionable!
I hope that this works, seeing as I have never done this before, and the evil blog-monster that lurks in all blogs might at any moment jump out and eat me.
As you see, I am kinda loony.
But, around here, I often wonder why, because, how ever nutty I get, I will never be as crazy as my mother, Shenaynay, or whatever it was.
Not that that's a bad thing, you understand.
It is my belief that if every one was just a little bit loony, the world would be a better place so here they are:
18 Ways To Maintain A Healthy Level Of Insanity
#1. At lunchtime (or anytime!) sit in your parked car with sunglasses on and point a hairdryer at passing cars. See if they slow down.
#2. Page yourself over the Intercom. Don't disguise your voice.
#3. Anytime someone asks you to do something, ask them if they want fries with that.
#4. Put your garbage can on your desk and label it "Inbox."
#5. Put decaf in the coffee maker for three weeks. Once everyone has gotten over their caffeine addictions, switch to espresso.
#6. Finish all your sentences with "in accordance with the prophesy."
#7. Don't use any punctuation.
#8. As often as possible, skip instead of walk.
#9. Ask people what sex they are. Laugh hysterically after they answer.
#10. Specify that your drive through order is "To Go."
#11. Sing along at the opera.
#12. Got to a poetry recital and ask why the poems don't rhyme.
#13. Put mosquito netting around your work area and play tropical sounds all day.
#14. Five days in advance, tell your friends you can't attend their party because you're not in the mood.
#15. Have your Co-workers address you by your wrestling name, Rock Hard.
#16. When the money comes out of the ATM, scream "I won! I won!"
#17. When leaving the Zoo, start running towards the parking lot, yelling "Run for your lives, they're loose!"
#18. Tell your children during dinner: "Due to the economy, we are going to have to let one of you go."
Are we there yet?
Testing, testing...
Why do I suddenly feel like singing "Video Killed The Radio Star"?
(If you know the answer, you must be as old as I am.)
Why do I suddenly feel like singing "Video Killed The Radio Star"?
(If you know the answer, you must be as old as I am.)
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