In an effort to save {time}, life’s return might total= unrest, anxiety and discontentment. In our over-stimulated society we are hurried from task to task in effort to efficiently find/save time. Within the margins of daily-planner there is little space left for much else at all. The fact is life’s demands are many and time consuming, this is true.
However, in the ‘now’ of life, time can only be used, not saved. Life is about the process and not the product. This is key to finding life’s receipt at the end of the day=rewarding, refreshing, and empowering {and yes still probably tiring}.
When life gets busy, we seek time efficient, multitasking solutions to alleviate some of the day’s pressure. Why wouldn’t you do two things at once? All these strategies potentially are good within themselves. The danger is the notion that lurks behind these helpful tactics.
Our life is a process/development. This can range from our mental development, spiritual growth, capacity to love others, developing professional skills, habits, relational skills, etc-very much a give and take of learning and unlearning. The point is that life, your life, never stops growing and developing-a ‘Work in Progress’ sign should be hung around our necks, to remind us that we are always becoming.
How we approach the day, our schedule and our time reflect how we view our own development. We all have responsibilities and obligations of the day but it is more about how we approach each day, every minute of our life.
‘The more the better, the cheaper even better, and the quicker/faster-the best’- is the rhetoric of our over-consumptive culture. This is what shapes us when we are unaware of our life. We become the product of our society. We sprint from task and obligation to the next task to be efficient and save time. This again is a good strategy-if consciously balanced. Typically we believe that if we get all the to-dos done by the end of the day-we will have saved enough time for ourselves to relax and breathe.
Life can become an endless list of things to get done. We feel urged to do them fast/effective/efficiently so that there is time to do other things, like relax and have down-time??. What gets negated or overlooked is the actual process itself. Our tasks and lists become the final product that we are striving to check off and we lose the entire process of each of these obligations.
We become so consumed with efficiently finishing our daily tasks in order to save for the more enjoyable/relaxing moments, that each and every day becomes less of a natural process and more about the end product-all the items checked off in the least amount of time.
This approach keeps us virtually unaware of the present moment because we are simply trying to get to the next task, much like the anxious shopper pushing to get to the next aisle.
The future, up there, around the corner, at the end of the day, or the someday mentality robs us of the NOW. At this pace life’s receipt at the end of the day leaves us feeling incomplete, restless, and anxious. When life becomes more about quickly finishing each task at hand and less about being in and aware of each task’s process, than we are the ones being spent.
To use each day in the now we have to unlearn/learn the vital importance of each moment, the present moment and the natural process of each task. For instance, how can we become more aware of ourselves when committing to something as simple as washing the dishes, washing our bodies, waking the children, feeding our bodies, etc? Each and every one of our daily tasks are processes in and of themselves and it is up to us to approach these tasks as either: being aware of every minute within each process or just another obligation that needs to be quickly checked off the daily list. Again, we have a lot of learning and a lot of unlearning to do in order to get to this point.
Life isn’t about the product, the rush to get to the end of the day; but about the process and development of ourselves by being aware of our time within each process. The clothes still need to washed, the bellies still need to be filled and all the other obligations of the day need to be meet but the fundamental challenge still remains: Are we aware of each minute within our day and living within the process of our every task?
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Monday, September 29, 2008
3 new poems for the fall
#1
Seed to become tree
is planted- but more often deferred,
like a dream-
and never actualized.
If only we counted
minutes like money and rested
within endless arms.
Plant me a kiss and let this romance grow
and I’ll laugh with joy.
#2
Forever- how long do I
carry this burden?
Beseech- chain this albatross and toss it into the
sea.
It’s critical to see someone else’s point and view; period!
We are so determined to have this Omniscient libretto-
to pin it down with our pen-
From precisely……our point {with a pronounced exclamation}
!
View it differently and let go.
#3
The agenda has been set, forever!
The barrier has been removed.
Tell the mediators with their rites and passages
that the curtain is torn, and eternal Sundays are forever.
Sing this new song in the NOW of life,
within the sanctuary of the soul.
The spirit stirs within
the pools of the heart.
No excuse but to rejoice, dance and go
tell ALL the Middlemen to get down and Funky.
The pews are your shoes, the song leads the way and the rolling fields
stretch for miles and miles.
Seed to become tree
is planted- but more often deferred,
like a dream-
and never actualized.
If only we counted
minutes like money and rested
within endless arms.
Plant me a kiss and let this romance grow
and I’ll laugh with joy.
#2
Forever- how long do I
carry this burden?
Beseech- chain this albatross and toss it into the
sea.
It’s critical to see someone else’s point and view; period!
We are so determined to have this Omniscient libretto-
to pin it down with our pen-
From precisely……our point {with a pronounced exclamation}
!
View it differently and let go.
#3
The agenda has been set, forever!
The barrier has been removed.
Tell the mediators with their rites and passages
that the curtain is torn, and eternal Sundays are forever.
Sing this new song in the NOW of life,
within the sanctuary of the soul.
The spirit stirs within
the pools of the heart.
No excuse but to rejoice, dance and go
tell ALL the Middlemen to get down and Funky.
The pews are your shoes, the song leads the way and the rolling fields
stretch for miles and miles.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Politics & the Art of Compromise
Politics is the art of compromise {see Laura Bush’s stance on abortion/Reagan’s or Clinton’s on abortion/Death Penalty}, a strategic game of give or take/flip and flop. Faith is heart felt beliefs in absolute truths that should never be compromised-Thou Shall not kill; love your neighbor & enemy, servant leadership, etc. Trying to mix the two is messy/risky/and potentially heretical business.
Elections are a compromise in and of themselves. Presidential elections highlight this fact every four years, when our national moment of civic participation is called upon?! Two people/parties that we end up having to pick from {both sponsored (on loan) heavily by the biggest corporations} is all we get. They practically tell us which orchard, they tell us which field, they show us the two trees to choose from and we have to enjoy the fruit that we pick, regardless if it turns out sour or sweet or even rotten.
Within each camp, each politician tries to woo the undecided voters (us common folk) into their corner by truths/half-truths/promises and more promises-this is how it is...a 100% media driven frenzy based typically more upon personality than policy. Each camp does actually have specific stances on economic/social issues like foreign policy, environment, social services, social issues like abortion, etc. This is a huge task and role for one person- The leader of the most powerful/wealthy nation the world has ever, ever, ever, ever, EVER seen. Fortunately we have a system of check/balances to oversee this extremely important position {the House and the Bench}, right?
Most people don’t want innocent people to die, whether the case is genocide, tribal warfare, gang violence, random/urban violence, domestic violence, war or abortion. What are we the people supposed to do? How are we supposed to protect those innocent lives? Through direct outreach? Legislation? Obviously all these issues are entrenched in our political/social/cultural/religious groundings.
What is our civic obligation? Our moral obligation? As Christians- our Sermon on the Mount obligation to these horrific daily occurrences of innocent deaths?
Each issue is complex, to say the least. Politicians have it that much harder trying to tow party lines/voters lines/any lines… to get our vote. Well, what are we supposed to do with our vote? Some issues like a consistent life-ethic/abortion/war are more personable to us than other issues.
As the voter, with wisdom/faith one must look deeply into all the issues collectively and decide based on the over-arching platform/issues. Being focused on just one issue turns this whole, huge, entire process {electing the next leader of the most powerful/rich nation of the world} into an either/or debate on just one issue-this potentially results into a reductionistic/ minimalist/cursory approach. In fact, once elected, Congressional officers typically serve us by working on both sides of the aisle in hopes of uniting not dividing people over complex, multi-layered issues like abortion through legislation that works on protecting all of life. (http://timryan.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=149&Itemid=64)
Perhaps the conversation shouldn’t be absolutely and entirely wagered on one specific, exact issue within this huge, complex, multi-issued, multi-layered important election year and we should re-frame important issues like the abortion conversation into: How can we best reduce the number of abortions? {Within the last couple years have the number of abortions declined?} This approach opens this deeply/partisan wedge issue into more of a proactive, less divisive, unifying approach. This conversation protects the issue from being used as a wedge issue to divide people around this serious topic.
Sanctity of life, being anti-death, pro-life are what most of us want in all areas of life. We prefer life over death for ourselves and others. Abortion is an issue that is typically used during this season as a wedge to pit one into an either/or dilemma, highlighting one issue and hiding all others. Either you are for or against- is the rhetoric that we hear attempting to force our hand one way or the other on this one issue. Now I’m no expert in the field of abortion but this issue opens conversation on the complexity of an issue like abortion, for instance, the role of contraception/ morning after pill, women’s choices, unwanted pregnancies, stem cell, rape & incest, partial-birth, adoption, solid child-support policies, inequality&poverty, a consistent life ethic/war, death penalty, etc.
Being wise, faithful and committed we must take all these issues within their context and soulfully ponder them in relation to the entire platform, before being wedge into one way or another. There are multiple issues that deal directly with life/death scenarios so as good stewarts we need to consciously engaged in ALL of these conversations.
These issues should be dear to all of our hearts/minds and our obligations in electing the next leader of the most powerful/rich nation of the world should be approach with humility, wisdom and hope. Having the freedom to exercise our democratic privilege with a vote should at minimum motivate us into investing how each and every one of these issues within each campaign’s platform hold to our moral/civic/common bonds as individuals within our great and diverse country. It is easy to be swayed by partisan politics, suave-half truth TV ads and the like but our duty as citizens of this world and beyond should be to fully engage in all the issues of the platform/s or risk losing one of the greatest privileges of our democratic process-the responsibility of the vote.
Elections are a compromise in and of themselves. Presidential elections highlight this fact every four years, when our national moment of civic participation is called upon?! Two people/parties that we end up having to pick from {both sponsored (on loan) heavily by the biggest corporations} is all we get. They practically tell us which orchard, they tell us which field, they show us the two trees to choose from and we have to enjoy the fruit that we pick, regardless if it turns out sour or sweet or even rotten.
Within each camp, each politician tries to woo the undecided voters (us common folk) into their corner by truths/half-truths/promises and more promises-this is how it is...a 100% media driven frenzy based typically more upon personality than policy. Each camp does actually have specific stances on economic/social issues like foreign policy, environment, social services, social issues like abortion, etc. This is a huge task and role for one person- The leader of the most powerful/wealthy nation the world has ever, ever, ever, ever, EVER seen. Fortunately we have a system of check/balances to oversee this extremely important position {the House and the Bench}, right?
Most people don’t want innocent people to die, whether the case is genocide, tribal warfare, gang violence, random/urban violence, domestic violence, war or abortion. What are we the people supposed to do? How are we supposed to protect those innocent lives? Through direct outreach? Legislation? Obviously all these issues are entrenched in our political/social/cultural/religious groundings.
What is our civic obligation? Our moral obligation? As Christians- our Sermon on the Mount obligation to these horrific daily occurrences of innocent deaths?
Each issue is complex, to say the least. Politicians have it that much harder trying to tow party lines/voters lines/any lines… to get our vote. Well, what are we supposed to do with our vote? Some issues like a consistent life-ethic/abortion/war are more personable to us than other issues.
As the voter, with wisdom/faith one must look deeply into all the issues collectively and decide based on the over-arching platform/issues. Being focused on just one issue turns this whole, huge, entire process {electing the next leader of the most powerful/rich nation of the world} into an either/or debate on just one issue-this potentially results into a reductionistic/ minimalist/cursory approach. In fact, once elected, Congressional officers typically serve us by working on both sides of the aisle in hopes of uniting not dividing people over complex, multi-layered issues like abortion through legislation that works on protecting all of life. (http://timryan.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=149&Itemid=64)
Perhaps the conversation shouldn’t be absolutely and entirely wagered on one specific, exact issue within this huge, complex, multi-issued, multi-layered important election year and we should re-frame important issues like the abortion conversation into: How can we best reduce the number of abortions? {Within the last couple years have the number of abortions declined?} This approach opens this deeply/partisan wedge issue into more of a proactive, less divisive, unifying approach. This conversation protects the issue from being used as a wedge issue to divide people around this serious topic.
Sanctity of life, being anti-death, pro-life are what most of us want in all areas of life. We prefer life over death for ourselves and others. Abortion is an issue that is typically used during this season as a wedge to pit one into an either/or dilemma, highlighting one issue and hiding all others. Either you are for or against- is the rhetoric that we hear attempting to force our hand one way or the other on this one issue. Now I’m no expert in the field of abortion but this issue opens conversation on the complexity of an issue like abortion, for instance, the role of contraception/ morning after pill, women’s choices, unwanted pregnancies, stem cell, rape & incest, partial-birth, adoption, solid child-support policies, inequality&poverty, a consistent life ethic/war, death penalty, etc.
Being wise, faithful and committed we must take all these issues within their context and soulfully ponder them in relation to the entire platform, before being wedge into one way or another. There are multiple issues that deal directly with life/death scenarios so as good stewarts we need to consciously engaged in ALL of these conversations.
These issues should be dear to all of our hearts/minds and our obligations in electing the next leader of the most powerful/rich nation of the world should be approach with humility, wisdom and hope. Having the freedom to exercise our democratic privilege with a vote should at minimum motivate us into investing how each and every one of these issues within each campaign’s platform hold to our moral/civic/common bonds as individuals within our great and diverse country. It is easy to be swayed by partisan politics, suave-half truth TV ads and the like but our duty as citizens of this world and beyond should be to fully engage in all the issues of the platform/s or risk losing one of the greatest privileges of our democratic process-the responsibility of the vote.
Friday, September 5, 2008
Ready for Reunion Today?
Perhaps I should have found it a little odd after the third or fourth school kiosk and church announcement that read THE homecoming. What homecoming, when and where and for whom? Block after block I continued to see flyers, signs and announcements about THE homecoming. Beside the fact, why would a school decide to broadcast this on the first week of school, is that normal?
How could a homecoming be for ALL schools/institutes anyway? Wasn’t the point of having a homecoming to celebrate those specific members of those specific institutes, you just can’t have the lion mascot sitting next to the lamb mascot? Homecoming was that special time to reflect on the uniqueness of all those wonderfully shared experiences while reveling as a collective whole, so why THE homecoming?
These signs are welcoming all of us to this reunion/celebration despite the fact that we have all been to or trained in various schools/schools of thought. At this event there will be all these groupings of people with all their differences based on each school’s thoughts and collective manners that are uniquely shaped by culture, history, race, class, gender, religion and culture, etc.
By being trained in different schools, we have developed an inherent us versus them approach (whether referring to that schools’ teams, colors, mascots, ideology, geo-politic positioning, dogmas) distilled in each and every one of us. This divisive instinct mixed with fear is what a lot of us are carrying around these days. Instead of gravitating towards a message of celebrating THE homecoming our inherited defensives tell us to defend our own school versus the ‘other’.
This cosmic homecoming is calling for all of us to celebrate one another by seeing strength in our unity and not our manicured differences. Who is putting this event on and why? The creator of this calling wants to unite us through this invitation to fellowship and know each other. The creator wants all people to see that they are invited to this reunion just because-just because the creator wants it that way. The creator’s invitation extends to all people; in fact I thought I saw the invitation written in the stars!
Henri Nouwen, a fellow pilgrim, highlighted in his book Prodigal Son various reactions that we might have upon hearing about something as grand as THE homecoming. Whether it is wanting or not wanting someone to attend, demanding that this invitation be for only for your school or your people/your thoughts, or perhaps wanting to have the best seat at the banquet table. The creator of THE homecoming desperately wants all of us to drop this division of in/out and celebrate that ALL schools of people are warmly and equally invited, simply because that’s the way we are all invited. This invitation, out of love, is for all people to come together and celebrate the creator’s party by sitting side by side in growing through conversation and unity.
As I continued walking and spotting these signs everywhere a thought occurred to me that from all these signs: THE homecoming invitation never stated a time or place. Perhaps, like any invited guest, I should prepare by cleansing my hands and mind from all its blemishes of divisive thinking and fearful thoughts of the ‘other’ and begin envisioning, like the invitation, to see that we are ALL invited to come home and enjoy the rich, diverse company of others while radiating in the glow of the creator’s loving acceptance.
Squinting across the intersection, between the intervals of passing vehicles, I notice another peculiar sign. And it reads: THE homecoming is here and now, enjoy! I ask the stranger next to me if they can see this sign to check my own sanity and she says yes. Enjoy!
How could a homecoming be for ALL schools/institutes anyway? Wasn’t the point of having a homecoming to celebrate those specific members of those specific institutes, you just can’t have the lion mascot sitting next to the lamb mascot? Homecoming was that special time to reflect on the uniqueness of all those wonderfully shared experiences while reveling as a collective whole, so why THE homecoming?
These signs are welcoming all of us to this reunion/celebration despite the fact that we have all been to or trained in various schools/schools of thought. At this event there will be all these groupings of people with all their differences based on each school’s thoughts and collective manners that are uniquely shaped by culture, history, race, class, gender, religion and culture, etc.
By being trained in different schools, we have developed an inherent us versus them approach (whether referring to that schools’ teams, colors, mascots, ideology, geo-politic positioning, dogmas) distilled in each and every one of us. This divisive instinct mixed with fear is what a lot of us are carrying around these days. Instead of gravitating towards a message of celebrating THE homecoming our inherited defensives tell us to defend our own school versus the ‘other’.
This cosmic homecoming is calling for all of us to celebrate one another by seeing strength in our unity and not our manicured differences. Who is putting this event on and why? The creator of this calling wants to unite us through this invitation to fellowship and know each other. The creator wants all people to see that they are invited to this reunion just because-just because the creator wants it that way. The creator’s invitation extends to all people; in fact I thought I saw the invitation written in the stars!
Henri Nouwen, a fellow pilgrim, highlighted in his book Prodigal Son various reactions that we might have upon hearing about something as grand as THE homecoming. Whether it is wanting or not wanting someone to attend, demanding that this invitation be for only for your school or your people/your thoughts, or perhaps wanting to have the best seat at the banquet table. The creator of THE homecoming desperately wants all of us to drop this division of in/out and celebrate that ALL schools of people are warmly and equally invited, simply because that’s the way we are all invited. This invitation, out of love, is for all people to come together and celebrate the creator’s party by sitting side by side in growing through conversation and unity.
As I continued walking and spotting these signs everywhere a thought occurred to me that from all these signs: THE homecoming invitation never stated a time or place. Perhaps, like any invited guest, I should prepare by cleansing my hands and mind from all its blemishes of divisive thinking and fearful thoughts of the ‘other’ and begin envisioning, like the invitation, to see that we are ALL invited to come home and enjoy the rich, diverse company of others while radiating in the glow of the creator’s loving acceptance.
Squinting across the intersection, between the intervals of passing vehicles, I notice another peculiar sign. And it reads: THE homecoming is here and now, enjoy! I ask the stranger next to me if they can see this sign to check my own sanity and she says yes. Enjoy!
Ranking the Rankings, ?academically challenged??
Just as high GDP rankings don’t guarantee citizens happiness, health or balance in a nation; institutional rankings don’t necessarily measure ethos in an institute. Scales and calibrations measure specific markings at a specific time/place. Scoring high/low on a scale indicates something positive/negative depending on the eyes of the beholder and of course what’s being measured. Too often institutes and their members celebrate high rankings and levels without knowing what’s being measured and what that implies.
Measurements are very useful in that they can reveal growth and potential. It is essential for us, as engaged citizens, to be aware of our progress. But just as essential, if not more essential, is knowing what we are growing towards. What is it that we should be proud of?
Rankings score comparatively. They place people/institutes on a scale, with there being a first and a last. Our natural instinct is to be first; remember the Zebedee brothers? We all want the highest place of honor in the kingdom. What does this mean as an institute? What does this mean in the professional market place? What does this mean to the spirit?
Moving up in the scale is good news! The higher the ranking the better the quality! As earnest learners we know that this only partly true. Scales and their criteria only measure what they want to measure. A dying man can rank high on a healthy scale if it is only measuring things other than vital signs. What are the vital signs of an institute? What is being measured? What should we be proud of? What type of growth are we learning or admitting? What things aren’t being scaled and ranked? How do we balance these rankings in relation to other qualities and attributes? What is the chief end of man/woman?
Measurements are very useful in that they can reveal growth and potential. It is essential for us, as engaged citizens, to be aware of our progress. But just as essential, if not more essential, is knowing what we are growing towards. What is it that we should be proud of?
Rankings score comparatively. They place people/institutes on a scale, with there being a first and a last. Our natural instinct is to be first; remember the Zebedee brothers? We all want the highest place of honor in the kingdom. What does this mean as an institute? What does this mean in the professional market place? What does this mean to the spirit?
Moving up in the scale is good news! The higher the ranking the better the quality! As earnest learners we know that this only partly true. Scales and their criteria only measure what they want to measure. A dying man can rank high on a healthy scale if it is only measuring things other than vital signs. What are the vital signs of an institute? What is being measured? What should we be proud of? What type of growth are we learning or admitting? What things aren’t being scaled and ranked? How do we balance these rankings in relation to other qualities and attributes? What is the chief end of man/woman?
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