Forgiven

I put my soul upon a cloth,
And up rose crimson stains.
I gave it to my Lord to wash,
And take away the pains.

He washed it out the best He could,
He rinsed it through and through.
Still, when He handed back to me
My cloth––red residue!

I said, "My Lord, why is this so?"
He wisely then replied,
"My child, it is because 'til now,
My grace you have denied."

And so the sun shines through again,
The clouds lift up their veil,
As I accept this gift of grace,
And find my holy grail.

24 January 2011

Thinking outside the boundaries

It's generally agreed that thinking outside the box helps solve problems, and innovative thought patterns are a good thing. However, there are times when an active imagination can be a bit of a drag.

Ever have those moments when things just seem too coincidental, setting off a chain of thoughts that leads to the conclusion that something isn't right? Or one of those moments when you suddenly question somebody's motives and come up with some totally out-of-character, evil genius explanation for what was otherwise a trivial deed?

I'm guilty of it, but it taken a while for me to admit. I'm often very quick to point out when somebody might just be thinking a little out of bounds, a bit too much, and over-analysing the situation. However, I don't often recognise it when I do it myself, out of sheer bloody paranoia while the thoughts are firing off.

Of course, there are times when being wary is the right thing to do, but when we're talking about tried and true friends, this sort of thinking is hardly necessary, much less beneficial for me, or the person involved.

So here's to a happier, healthier, simpler thought process.

Productivity

一朝國祚可甚長，但若亡國，豈不只列為歷朝之一嗎？周雖歷七百餘年，貢獻無多。相反，秦歷僅十五年，卻統一中國，是為首大帝國。生命也是如此。重要的，不是壽命，乃是成就。

Translated, that means:
"A dynasty may last for some time, yet if it falls, is it not but listed as one dynasty? Even though Zhou lasted over 700 years, its contributions were limited. On the contrary, Qin lasted but 15 years, yet unified China, as the first great (Chinese) empire. So too is life. What is important is not longevity, but achievement."

Productivity - it's not how long you're at the job, it's what you manage to do with it. I guess the same could be said of school.

Eyes on the road

Time flies, they say, and indeed it has. Already we've come to the end of a year, and the beginning of a new one. Since this is the time everyone looks back on the previous year, and also forward into the new year, it is perhaps fitting that we take a look at looking.

Perception is so important. How we see things, from which angle, all that jazz...however, it is nonetheless impossible to see anything of worth unless the initial issue is addressed: where do we look?

This question might be easier to answer with an analogy. In terms of perception, life is much like driving. When you go for a drive, you do not look through the sun roof, and by law, not at the screen of your smart phones because that's bound to get you into an accident. Rather, you keep your eyes on the road, often checking the side-view mirrors, and occasionally looking in the rear-view. So too in life. In front of us, our future, and where we look to go; beside us, our present, all too important and requiring attention; behind us, our past, there to reflect on, not dwell on. Miss out on any one of these, and it's off to the metaphorical (but sometimes even literal) hospital.

So, here's to a 2011 where I can learn a bit from 2010, look to friends and family around me now, and in doing so, strive for the future. Looking back, 2010 has had its ups and downs, but it's been a great one. Now, it's time to turn my eyes back onto the road.

Therefore, I'd like to conclude by wishing everyone a Happy New Year...and all the best for the year (and years) to come!

The Tablecloth

I'm not dead yet, but a hell of a lot closer to it than I want to be. Yes, it's finals time again. That time of year where pretty much the only thing keeping you alive is Christmas. On that note, it's time for the touching Christmas story of the year.

A pastor and his wife, newly assigned to their first ministry, reopened a church in suburban Brooklyn. Excitedly arriving in early October, they saw the opportunities to accomplish something good before them. When they first laid eyes upon the church, they found it to be very run down and in need of much work. They set a goal, though, to have everything done in time to have their first service on Christmas Eve.

They worked hard, repairing pews, plastering walls, painting, etc., and on Dec 18 were ahead of schedule and just about finished. On December 19 a terrible tempest hit the area, lasting two days.

On the 21st, the pastor went over to the church. His heart sank when he saw that the roof had leaked, causing a large area of plaster about 20 feet by 8 feet to fall off the front wall of the sanctuary just behind the pulpit, beginning about head high. The pastor cleaned up the mess on the floor, and not knowing what else to do but postpone the Christmas Eve service, headed home. On the way he noticed a local business having a flea market type sale for charity so he stopped in.

One of the items was a beautiful, handmade, ivory colored, crocheted tablecloth with exquisite work, fine colors and a Cross embroidered right in the center. It was just the right size to cover up the hole in the front wall. He bought it and headed back to the church. By this time it had started to snow. An older woman running from the opposite direction was trying to catch the bus. She missed it. The pastor invited her to wait in the warm church for the next bus 45 minutes later. She sat in a pew and paid no attention to the pastor while he got a ladder, hangers, etc., to put up the tablecloth as a wall tapestry. The pastor could hardly believe how beautiful it looked and it covered up the entire problem area.

Then he noticed the woman walking down the center aisle. Her face was like a sheet. "Pastor," she said, "where did you get that tablecloth?" The pastor explained. The woman asked him to check the lower right corner to see if the initials, EBG were crocheted into it there. To his astonishment, he found that they were. These being the initials of the woman. She had made this tablecloth 35 years before, in Austria. The woman could hardly believe it, for the pastor told how he had just acquired the tablecloth.

The woman explained that before the war she and her husband were well-to-do people in Austria. When the Nazis came, she was forced to leave. Her husband was going to follow her the next week. She was captured, sent to prison and she never saw her husband or her home again.

The pastor wanted to give her the tablecloth; but she made the pastor keep it for the church. The pastor insisted on driving her home, that was the least he could do. She lived on the other side of Staten Island and was only in Brooklyn for the day for a housecleaning job.

What a wonderful service they had on Christmas Eve. The church was almost full. The music and the spirit were great. At the end of the service, the pastor and his wife greeted everyone at the door and many said that they would return.

One older man, whom the pastor recognized from the neighbourhood, continued to sit in one of the pews and stare at the Tablecloth on the front wall because it was identical to the one that his wife had made many years ago in Austria before the war and how could there be two Tablecloths so much alike?

He told the pastor how the Nazis came, how he forced his wife to flee for her safety, and he was supposed to follow her, but he was arrested and put in a prison. He never saw his wife or his home again all the 35 years in between.

The pastor asked him if he would allow him to take him for a little ride. They drove to Staten Island and to the same house where the pastor had taken the woman three days earlier. He helped the man climb the three flights of stairs to the woman's apartment, knocked on the door and he saw the greatest Christmas reunion he could ever imagine.

- Anonymous

Mysterious white rain grinds Lower Mainland to halt

VANCOUVER - The city of Vancouver slowed to a standstill over the weekend as a mysterious white rain fell on the city, forming a coating to almost 5 mm. Drivers caught in the fury of Mother Nature as the rain suddenly switched over to this mysterious precipitation were clearly panicked. The RCMP reported over 700 traffic accidents from 6 to 10 AM this morning, and Translink has halted all transit service until road conditions improve.

One driver told Global News that this weather is unprecedented. Senior meteorologist Mark Madryga agrees: "This has certainly never fallen in Vancouver before, and we're in the process of determining what it is. We tried calling colleagues from other parts of Canada, and they were all convinced it was snow, but Vancouver doesn't get snow, so that definitely can't be it!"

EXTREME COLD GRIPS CITY

Immediately after the mystery precipitation storm, temperatures at Vancouver International Airport dropped to the most dangerous levels seen in 42 years, recording a low of just 1.4 C. In other parts of the city, there were numerous reports of malfunctioning thermometers, as temperatures seemed to dip below freezing, the absolute minimum for most household thermometers sold in Vancouver.

Residents in Burnaby, Coquitlam, and Surrey flooded the Global News Room with panicked reports of their double doubles freezing once they left the relative comfort of their local Tim Hortons.

Vancouver mayor Gregor Robertson has declared a state of emergency, and emergency shelters in the Downtown East Side were overwhelmed. However, relief is in sight. Environment Canada predicts temperatures will rise to 8 C by the middle of next week.

(C) Global BC (TM)

Long time no post

Hello world. I'm still alive. A lack of writable thoughts has kept me away from this blog for a while, but I thought I'd give a shout out, just to keep the blog updated...it has, after all, been 2 weeks.

That is not to say there haven't been scattered thoughts of substance lately...just, not concentrated enough to be put down in writing. Thankfully, there are those best of friends who can facilitate the release of such thoughts (and also pick up the pieces after the bombshell has been dropped...).

Hopefully something substantial, concentrated, and not (too) damaging will crop up soon so that this blog can be taken off of life support.