A very good article at the Weekly Standard by Fred Barnes about the personal experiences of five people who were not pro-life believers and how their experiences lead them to become strong pro-life advocates.
It's a very good and quick read, but it will lead to much greater thought after you're done.
Take a look at it here.
Saturday, September 02, 2006
Friday, September 01, 2006
The Art Of Failure
I was reading a very interesting interview with film director Steven Soderbergh, who directed Sex, Lies and Videotape, Oceans 11, Erin Brockovich, Traffic and others. Anyway, he had some insightful points about the process of being creative.
"A lot of people who write about art don’t understand the importance of failure, the importance of process. Woody Allen can’t leap from Annie Hall to Manhattan. He has to make Interiors in between to get to Manhattan. You’ve got to let him do that... Every time you make something that somebody likes, your impulse is to remind them that if you hadn’t made some of these other things that they hated, you wouldn’t have been able to make the thing that they liked. The attitude toward the stuff they don’t like is so extreme because they don’t understand the role that it has in your development. "
Creating anything is like giving birth, it is a very painful process, but some of us are drawn to do it, over and over again, despite the struggles associated with it. And, like life, failure is the most effective catalyst toward success.
"A lot of people who write about art don’t understand the importance of failure, the importance of process. Woody Allen can’t leap from Annie Hall to Manhattan. He has to make Interiors in between to get to Manhattan. You’ve got to let him do that... Every time you make something that somebody likes, your impulse is to remind them that if you hadn’t made some of these other things that they hated, you wouldn’t have been able to make the thing that they liked. The attitude toward the stuff they don’t like is so extreme because they don’t understand the role that it has in your development. "
Creating anything is like giving birth, it is a very painful process, but some of us are drawn to do it, over and over again, despite the struggles associated with it. And, like life, failure is the most effective catalyst toward success.
Thursday, August 31, 2006
Ramsey Relo
Congrats to Brian and Katie on moving into their new home!
Take plenty of pics and save a spare room for us when we visit.
Take plenty of pics and save a spare room for us when we visit.
Catherine Is Our Hero
My wife and I got a small postcard in the mail yesterday from my niece, Catherine, who painted Gabe's sports-themed mural on his bedroom wall (see blog entry HERE).
It appears that Catherine has been one of four artists selected to have an off-campus showing of their artwork tomorrow, September 1st, at an event called Connect The Dots located at Block 27 in Jacksonville.
What a great surprise! Having your art work shown as an artists is as important as having your film shown at a festival. We're so excited for her! We only wish we could attend.
Anyway, major kudos to a wonderful artists who just happens to be my niece! :) Let us know how well it goes, Catherine, and take plenty of pictures!
It appears that Catherine has been one of four artists selected to have an off-campus showing of their artwork tomorrow, September 1st, at an event called Connect The Dots located at Block 27 in Jacksonville.
What a great surprise! Having your art work shown as an artists is as important as having your film shown at a festival. We're so excited for her! We only wish we could attend.
Anyway, major kudos to a wonderful artists who just happens to be my niece! :) Let us know how well it goes, Catherine, and take plenty of pictures!
Truth Hurts
Yesterday my wife and I were discussing middle east politics and terrorism with our daughter. We were explaining that a lot of the world dislikes us because they think the United States is oppressive. Our daughter quickly contemplated that notion and responded by saying "Americans are too lazy to be oppressive."
How true that is.
How true that is.
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Remicade... Yeah!
I had my Remicade infusion Wednesday. Thank God for that! I usually start to feel better by the end of the treatment and, in about a week, should be back to full strength.
Better living through chemistry!
Better living through chemistry!
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
The Exodus Decoded
The Exodus Decoded is an intriguing documentary shown on the History Channel that tries to scientifically validate the events stated in the Bible in the Book of Exodus. Filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici spent ten years investigating this topic and has come up with some very interesting results. The catalyst for so much of the Book of Exodus falling into place, scientifically speaking, is that he believes the current dating of when these events were supposed to have occurred is not accurate. To put it plainly, he poses the question "If, in the future, historians decided that World War II took place in the 1990's, all of their exploration would find no evidence that it ever occurred." By moving back the date of the Exodus about two hundred and fifty years, to around 1500 B.C., suddenly everything begins to fall into place.
You find evidence of a Joseph in power in Egypt. You find evidence of a Pharaoh who's name in Hebrew means "brother of Moses." You find that Pharaoh had a son who died young, perhaps during Passover. You find documented Egyptian writings that tell of the exodus from the Egyptian point of view. You have a nearby volcano that coincides with the plagues. You find, as others have recently discovered, that the parting of the Red Sea was mistranslated and, in the original Hebrew was actually the parting of the Reed Sea, or fresh water lake. In the end, the filmmaker proposes physical evidence of the parting of the Reed Sea, he claims to find the true Mount Sinai and, most amazingly, the first real picture of the ark of the covenant which houses the Ten Commandments.
What's even more amazing about this is that, because no one thought of the Exodus occurring in his proposed timeframe, no one else was looking or interpreting information right in front of them that would support it, including the picture of the ark. It's an amazing show that covers a lot of ground. When you put it all together it makes for a compelling documentary. It will air again on September 7th, so if you can watch it, if you can't TIVO it. It will be left thinking about it days after watching it.
You find evidence of a Joseph in power in Egypt. You find evidence of a Pharaoh who's name in Hebrew means "brother of Moses." You find that Pharaoh had a son who died young, perhaps during Passover. You find documented Egyptian writings that tell of the exodus from the Egyptian point of view. You have a nearby volcano that coincides with the plagues. You find, as others have recently discovered, that the parting of the Red Sea was mistranslated and, in the original Hebrew was actually the parting of the Reed Sea, or fresh water lake. In the end, the filmmaker proposes physical evidence of the parting of the Reed Sea, he claims to find the true Mount Sinai and, most amazingly, the first real picture of the ark of the covenant which houses the Ten Commandments.
What's even more amazing about this is that, because no one thought of the Exodus occurring in his proposed timeframe, no one else was looking or interpreting information right in front of them that would support it, including the picture of the ark. It's an amazing show that covers a lot of ground. When you put it all together it makes for a compelling documentary. It will air again on September 7th, so if you can watch it, if you can't TIVO it. It will be left thinking about it days after watching it.
Monday, August 28, 2006
How Hurricanes Keep You Holy
Every year, between June and November, we Floridians enter Hurricane Season. And every year one of the fifteen or so named storms makes a projected b-line across our homes (see Ernesto). In a lot of ways, its a pain in the booty. You have to secure your home, find all of your important papers, pack the car with family, and drive somewhere or hide somewhere until the threat subsides.
The upside is that, every Hurricane Season, we must go through a moral evaluation. In short order we must determine what is replaceable and what is priceless. The fact that we can fit all that is priceless into a small SUV shows just how much of our life is filled with distractions, with excess, with unnecessary things. We realize that, since we can't even take most of our items with us in an emergency that we certainly can't take any of it with us if we die. That all of it left behind can be rebuilt or re-bought. That only those people in your family, or the items that express your faith and a perhaps few precious items are the only things that have value beyond this world.
If we're smart, we can use Hurricane Season as an annual way to purge us from earthly distractions and materialism and, instead, direct our focus more fully on those people that would sit next to you in your SUV while you drive away from all that is replaceable and expendable.
The upside is that, every Hurricane Season, we must go through a moral evaluation. In short order we must determine what is replaceable and what is priceless. The fact that we can fit all that is priceless into a small SUV shows just how much of our life is filled with distractions, with excess, with unnecessary things. We realize that, since we can't even take most of our items with us in an emergency that we certainly can't take any of it with us if we die. That all of it left behind can be rebuilt or re-bought. That only those people in your family, or the items that express your faith and a perhaps few precious items are the only things that have value beyond this world.
If we're smart, we can use Hurricane Season as an annual way to purge us from earthly distractions and materialism and, instead, direct our focus more fully on those people that would sit next to you in your SUV while you drive away from all that is replaceable and expendable.
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