MY CHRISTMAS PRESENT TO ERIN

This is what I gave to Erin this year for Christmas. It is a water color painting that Dr. Tim Hacker created. He is very gifted and I am grateful that he was willing to do this .
Erin was very surprised and amazed I had my gift for her a month early.

A PEACE AND JUSTICE CHRISTMAS

I like this poem:

Have Yourself a Peace and Justice Christmas by Sojourners Staff

Have yourself a peace and justice Christmas,
Set your heart a-right.
Flee the malls and focus on Christ’s guiding light.

Have yourself a peace and justice Christmas,
Give your time a way.
Share God’s love, And serve “the least of these” today.

Here we are, as we pray for peace,
We’ll live simply and give more.
We care for those far and near to us,
Which brings cheer to us, once more.

God brings down
The haughty from high places,
And lifts up the low.
God cares for the hungry and the humble, so –
Forget the stress and let the peace and justice flow!

CONSUMERISM

This is pitiful. I am not even sure what words to put with this.

I am going to Honduras over Christmas. I can't wait to get there. More on that later.

THANKSGIVING

I have been thinking about what I am thankful for this year. I have come to realize that I am not thankful only for God's love and the sacrifice of Jesus, but I am thankful for the life this compels me to live.

In the Old Testament we see examples of the writers of the Psalms being thankful for the law. Psalm 119:105 says, "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path". But wasn't the law restricting and hard to follow? Wasn't it a bunch of difficult rules that were improbable to keep? That is not how the Israelites viewed the law. They saw it as a way to please God. They were glad to know they could be pleasing to God and glad to have the means to do it.

As for me, I am thankful for the life Jesus has called me to live. It is difficult sometimes. It is mentally draining occasionally as I have to try and remove myself from the American mind set I have placed on myself and view the world through a Christian lens. But it gives me purpose, I am not left to wander aimlessly through life, or work for self-gratification that leads to an empty life. It gives me energy and adds substance to my life. It gives me a hunger to help people that is never completely filled. I am thankful for the blood he shared, but I am also thankful for the life he calls us to live. I am thankful for the Christian life as the Israelites were thankful for the law. The Israelites were given a way to glorify God, a meaning to life. The Christian life does the same for me. I am not restricted by living a Christian life, I am freed. For that, I am thankful.

For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.
--2 Corinthians 5:14-15

MAUNDY THURSDAY: ALSO GOOD

Maundy or Holy Thursday is today. This day in easter week gets less attention, I think. Although, I must confess that I haven't paid attention to any part of Easter week before last year. There were some pretty important events that happened on this day leading up to Good Friday and ultimately Easter. This day commemorates the Last Supper between Jesus and the Apostles, the washing of the Apostles feet, Jesus' mental struggles in the Garden of Gethsemane, and the betrayal of Judas. They are all very important aspects of the last week of Jesus' life and ultimately very important to us as Christians.
The instructions of remembering Jesus through a meal is something that is done by Christians today. Jesus' servant leadership of washing feet sets the bar high for His followers as we strive to be the people we were created to be.
The scene of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane gives us a glance of how human and divine Jesus was while on earth. His human nature wanted to be protected from the sacrifice he must make for us. However, his devotion to God the Father gives us the example of following God's will, even when it hurts.
The most tragic event of this day is the betrayal of Jesus. Judas Iscariot's love of money should be a warning to us that earthly temptation is out there and can cause us to turn our back of Jesus. If an Apostle, a man who was with Jesus daily can be seduced, so can we. Tragically, Judas could not forgive himself and ended his life after realizing the wrong he had committed.
I think Holy Thursday is a day worth spending some time meditating on. It is a huge part of the narrative of God.

DON'T FORGET TO WEAR (BE) GREEN

March 17th is St. Patrick's day. The day people wear green to avoid being pinched (or avoid wearing green if being pinched is more your bag). So on this celebration of greenness I thought it would be good to incorporate another kind of green. Environmentalism. Here are a few easy ways to be more green:
1. Don't use shopping bags. Bring your own or carry the item out.
2. Recycle. Googleing recycle centers in your area is sure to give some locations to take your paper, cans, and plastics.
3. Unplugging unused electronics when not in use saves earth resources and money.

GROUNDHOG DAY

Happy Groundhog day my friends. I just learned that Phil saw his shadow which means six more weeks of winter. As a Memphian, I am still waiting for winter to begin. Ever wondered what the deal-eo was with Groundhog Day? Here ya go: All you need to know about Groundhog Day.

REWIND AND RECAP

I just realized that I gave my readers nothing through the holidays. I had a great Christmas and I am going to recap it quickly before I have to return to school. Erin has an awesome job when it comes to time off. Because of this we were gone the entire week of Christmas. Sunday (Festivus) felt a lot like Christmas eve because on Monday morning we had breakfast with some of our best friends-Rusty and Rachel, then Erin and I exchanged gifts. I scored some great gifts but I was more pleased to see Erin enjoy all the gifts I got for her (even the clothes, go me). After that it was fourish days in Kentucky between Paducah and Murray. After good visits with each of our families we took a mini-vacation with Erin's brother and his fiancee.
We went to Chattanooga for the weekend and had a great time. We returned to Memphis for New Year stuff. Now, back to reality.

TSO

Last night Erin and I went to a Trans-Siberian Concert at FedEx Forum. They rock. We are not exactly fans of Christmas music, but they jam out in a way that makes it entertaining. The string music goes great with the electric guitars. The string music was provided by the Memphis Orchestra. The concert was kind of broken up into two sections-the Christmas story and non-Christmas music. However, they ended with my favorite song of theirs, "Carol of the Bells".
We decided that long dark hair is necessary to be a guitarist in the band. They were some serious head bangers. We were very impressed with the band's musical talent.
Overall it was a great night, we found free parking, although it was kind of far away the temperature was perfect to walk in. Only negative of the night is that we had to take our camera back to the car after been checked at the front door.

SNOOZING THE DAY AWAY

Christmas break is a time when relaxing is possible for some of those in the education world. I am currently on Christmas break and I do not have any morning responsibilities. So that got me thinking, what constitutes sleeping in. One friend I talked to yesterday acted as if my time of awakening at 8:45ish was late. Later that day another friend said, 8:45 is sleeping in for you? That got me wondering. What is sleeping in?

THE NAME IS POTTER...HARRY POTTER

Harry Potter=Me. Ginny Weasley= Erin. Tonks=Rachel Steele

Fall Fest 2007. I also made an appearance as Jerry Seinfeld. Jerry performed stand-up comedy and was a soup judge.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY TO US (PART DEUX)

Through the years:


Us nearly on our 2nd anniversary in Maine.


















First anniversary trip to Hot Springs.














Newlyweds on their honeymoon in Michigan (this was a day trip to Canada).









I love you wife.

MEMORIAL DAY

I realize I am about two weeks late, but better late than never. We had a great Memorial Day. Probably the best in recent memory. The Whaley's had us over to their new pad and we went swimming and enjoyed each others company before eating an evening meal. My attempt at grilling burgers in the HOOD with the Woods' earlier in the afternoon was interesting. Be that as it may, we had a good time. Here is a group picture to prove it.

Valentine's Day

A few days before Valentine's Day Erin said, "holidays are so much more fun when you are married". I agree. I successfully executed my gift giving and received some great socks.

But the best part was the time we spent together. We had a great day. Erin was off work Wednesday and since my schedule is flexible, we were able to spend the day together. This is us on the downtown trolley, we also visited Peabody Place and got some ice cream. It was fun just having that time to spend together.

Festivus for the Rest of Us!!!

For those of us who find Christmas to be aggrevating, I suggest an alternative. Not hannukkah, not quanza, not even skipping Christmas. I suggest the holiday that was suggested by Frank Costanza. Festivus.
The origin of the holiday is explained as follows:
Frank Costanza: Many Christmases ago I went to buy a doll for my son. I reached for the last one they had, but so did another man. As I rained blows on him I realized there had to be a better way.
Kramer: What happened to the doll?
Frank Costanza: It was destroyed. But out of that a new holiday was born...a Festivus for the rest of us!

Festivus replaces a Christmas tree with a six foot alluminum pole (illustrated above). The advantages are obvious, the set up and taking down are much easier.
There is no specified expected meal involved with Festivus.
After the dinner there is the airing of grievances. Everyone at the table has a chance to tell each of the other people how they have let them down or aggrevate them.
Festivus concludes with a wrestling match ending with the pinning of the person sitting at the head of the table.
Festivus is held on December 23rd. Let's all celebrate!

For more info on Festivus click here.

The Best Holiday

As Thanksgiving approaches I feel excited, but a little disappointed in myself. I will address the disappointment later, first I will tell you why Thanksgiving is the greatest holiday. Thanksgiving is a great holiday because you can gather with friends and family without any expectations of buying or receiving gifts. In fact, if you did give someone a gift you would probably be looked at strangely. This is one of the reasons I like Thanksgiving. Another reason I enjoy Thanksgiving is the fellowship and warmth in the gathering of friends and family. It doesn't matter to me that it is an annual appointment per se to me, in our busy worlds if that is what is needed, so be it. Turkey, dressing, and sweet potatoes. Football. The classic ingridients to a perfect Thanksgiving.
Now, the true reason it is the best holiday, and the reason I am disappointed in myself. This is the only holiday in which other people are thought of first. In high school I remember participating in activities in which the poor were going to be helped because of the celebration of Thanksgiving. I did some things at Murray State. But this year, I have been so busy with schoolwork I have not found an opportunity to serve. Shame on me for not participating in the part of the holiday I find to be most appealing. I will make time next year, I hope.

-Happy Thanksgiving to all my friends at the Grad school. Espically to ones who aren't able to visit family.

Downtown for Fireworks

I am taking you back in time for a bit. This is my beatiful wife and I enjoying the wonderful fireworks show in downtown Memphis. There were lots and lots of people down by the river, and the show was great.