"Other evils there are that may come; for Sauron is himself but a servant or emissary. Yet it is not our part to master all the tides of the world, but to do what is in us for the succour of those years wherein we are set, uprooting the evil in the fields that we know, so that those who live after may have clean earth to till. What weather they shall have is not ours to rule."
~J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring"A real man tries to do something he thinks he cannot do."
~Emmitt SmithFinally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if ANYTHING is excellent or praiseworthy - fix your mind upon such things.
~Philippians 4:8-9 (NLT)"You miss 100 percent of the shots you never take."
~Wayne Gretzky"Learn to expect the unexpected, beyond all that you ask or think."
~Andrew Murray, Streams in the Desert"Courage is not the absence of fear but Action in spite of fear...Courage is proceeding in spite of fear because you believe it is the right thing to do."
~Bob Russell"Every experience of beauty points to eternity."
~Hans Urs Van Balthasar
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Just Some Quotes...
Before I jet off to NYC by myself (cannot believe the twists and turns of this adventure so far...), I thought I would post a couple of quotes that I love:
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Me + NYC = Craziness
Tomorrow, I will (hopefully, weather and God-willing) board a plane to NYC! Absolutely crazy. I don't know what it is about visiting this city that is always brought on by some kind of crazy thing that I have to go and see through. I am so very scared and so very nervous but also at complete peace because I know that it is all in God's very able Hands. What will happen, will happen the exact way that it is supposed to happen, and hopefully I won't get mugged in the process!
And Good Lord, is it expensive to go visit and stay in The City! Did not realize that it would be so much!
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes
Work sucks. Especially in an economy on the brink of recession. This is the time when the cliche, "When the going gets tough, the tough get going", becomes a harbinger of truth.
I knew that the path was going to turn soon - I've sensed it coming for the past month or so. And now it has come to the crossroads, in my mind. A lot sooner than I thought. But here I am, with clarity in this current situation, but no idea as to where it leads. Oh Lord - why is this, all of this, so hard?
At least this picture is pretty...
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Post 4
As the title implies, this is my fourth post on my blog, and I have to say that the experience so far has been fun. I enjoy technology and learning new things, and this has been so simple to use and try out. The hardest part is coming up with content for the blog!
Some random musings for today:
1 - I love language - beautiful language. I was watching a documentary on Winston Churchill tonight, and his use of language and ability to turn a phrase, made me yearn for that power. I wish I had a better grasp on vocabulary and could use it to its full effect. There is so much power in words and just a short while ago it seems that most of the public had a command of them - which is something you don't see today. To be able to string together words so that they evoke powerful emotions and knowledge at the same time - such is a gift that I wish I had.
2 - I love classical music. And there are so many performances coming to the DC area that I want to go see! Yo Yo Ma, Lang Lang, Joshua Bell, Itzakh Perlman! The arts delight and fill a part of my soul. Again, I wish I understood it more and could appreciate the music even more - but there is also something to be said about experiencing a piece of classical music in naivete. Then it is all about the experience and the orchestration of the art.
3 - I was thinking about the path and journey that I have been on so far and how some parts have turned out radically different than I thought that they were going to. And I also was thinking about some of the journeys that my friends are on and how they have ended up on completely different paths than what they thought. And yet, we are all in the exact place that God wants us to be in.
4 - I also was thinking about how I love thinking broadly - the big picture, no matter what it is, is what excites me. I love seeing how things all come together. I guess I need to progress to the point in where that once I understand the big picture, I can also look at the different parts and see where changes need to be made and what parts aren't working. And in the Winston Churchill documentary I realized for the first time how narrowly focused Roosevelt's worldview was and how because of that, we have ended up in the position we are in in the world today. I had never seen that thread before, but the groundwork was laid all the way back then! And that is why history fascinates me - because of the way that events back then can be linked to events today.
Some random musings for today:
1 - I love language - beautiful language. I was watching a documentary on Winston Churchill tonight, and his use of language and ability to turn a phrase, made me yearn for that power. I wish I had a better grasp on vocabulary and could use it to its full effect. There is so much power in words and just a short while ago it seems that most of the public had a command of them - which is something you don't see today. To be able to string together words so that they evoke powerful emotions and knowledge at the same time - such is a gift that I wish I had.
2 - I love classical music. And there are so many performances coming to the DC area that I want to go see! Yo Yo Ma, Lang Lang, Joshua Bell, Itzakh Perlman! The arts delight and fill a part of my soul. Again, I wish I understood it more and could appreciate the music even more - but there is also something to be said about experiencing a piece of classical music in naivete. Then it is all about the experience and the orchestration of the art.
3 - I was thinking about the path and journey that I have been on so far and how some parts have turned out radically different than I thought that they were going to. And I also was thinking about some of the journeys that my friends are on and how they have ended up on completely different paths than what they thought. And yet, we are all in the exact place that God wants us to be in.
4 - I also was thinking about how I love thinking broadly - the big picture, no matter what it is, is what excites me. I love seeing how things all come together. I guess I need to progress to the point in where that once I understand the big picture, I can also look at the different parts and see where changes need to be made and what parts aren't working. And in the Winston Churchill documentary I realized for the first time how narrowly focused Roosevelt's worldview was and how because of that, we have ended up in the position we are in in the world today. I had never seen that thread before, but the groundwork was laid all the way back then! And that is why history fascinates me - because of the way that events back then can be linked to events today.
Monday, September 17, 2007
Exquisite Simplicity
Is there anything more beautiful or soul-satisfying than the beginning of spring or fall? Here in Virginia, both seasons usher in the long months of winter or summer. But for a few brief weeks the weather and everything in nature converge together to bring forth some of the most exquisite beauty that can be found or experienced.
This past weekend saw nature shine forth in all its glorious simplicity and gift us with glorious weather. You couldn't sit inside. And in being outside, with the sun shining forth its rays, the breeze whisping through your hair, and the glory of a bright blue sky bursting at the seams, renewed hope entered my heart. I can't say what the hope is for - maybe it is the knowledge that all the beauty and glory of nature is just an echo of what awaits all of us in heaven, with Jesus. C.S. Lewis spoke of heaven in The Great Divorce, describing it as just that - something that was brighter, sharper than what we see here on earth.
There were just a ton of ways that God spoke to me this weekend - through Father DeMartino's sermon on the Prodigal Son to the verses we looked at in YL leadership, especially John 1:5
This past weekend saw nature shine forth in all its glorious simplicity and gift us with glorious weather. You couldn't sit inside. And in being outside, with the sun shining forth its rays, the breeze whisping through your hair, and the glory of a bright blue sky bursting at the seams, renewed hope entered my heart. I can't say what the hope is for - maybe it is the knowledge that all the beauty and glory of nature is just an echo of what awaits all of us in heaven, with Jesus. C.S. Lewis spoke of heaven in The Great Divorce, describing it as just that - something that was brighter, sharper than what we see here on earth.
There were just a ton of ways that God spoke to me this weekend - through Father DeMartino's sermon on the Prodigal Son to the verses we looked at in YL leadership, especially John 1:5
"The light shines in the darkness and the darkness can never extinguish it"(NLT). This shouts out hope to me, the hope that both is a product of and fuel for faith - Hebrews 11:1
"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."And hope and faith are what I need now - now at the "turning of the tides"...
Friday, September 14, 2007
Technology Gripes and About this Blog.
I can really hate technology sometimes. Especially when after spending an hour entering in a bunch of numbers into a program, you hit the "Save" button and it gives you a run-time error. So frustrating!
BUT - there are many benefits to technology. It has on many occasions saved me in a pinch, or helped me figure out an impossible task. I do love it more than I hate it in the end. Still - run-time errors are no fun.
A little note about the title of this blog:
When Blogger asked me what I wanted to entitle this blog, I was all of the sudden blown away by the dearth of possibilities available to me. I could name this blog absolutely ANYTHING. What word, phrase, quote, or silly combination of words would perfectly capture the essence of a blog - something that I know very little about - as well as myself?
As I was pondering through this quandary the thought suddenly came to me to name this "The Road Goes Ever On". Two reasons for this name: 1 - I was in the process of just finishing the book, The Fellowship of the Ring, and there is a poem in there about setting out on an adventure, a journey, and life at the beginning that I have always loved. 2 - Because I am firm believer in the theme of journeys and believe that this life we have is one, big, long journey with many twists and turns. No matter what kind of path you walk - smooth or rocky - there will be happenings along the Road that are unforeseen. And there are points along the Road in which you can choose a new path. And I feel that I am on the brink of that point right now. The Path has all of the sudden become wide open again, and I am allowing myself to explore some of its possibilities.
This blog will serve as a collection of random thoughts about the journey, as well as a place for quotes, antecedents, Bible verses, and general stream of consciousness. Should be fun!
BUT - there are many benefits to technology. It has on many occasions saved me in a pinch, or helped me figure out an impossible task. I do love it more than I hate it in the end. Still - run-time errors are no fun.
A little note about the title of this blog:
When Blogger asked me what I wanted to entitle this blog, I was all of the sudden blown away by the dearth of possibilities available to me. I could name this blog absolutely ANYTHING. What word, phrase, quote, or silly combination of words would perfectly capture the essence of a blog - something that I know very little about - as well as myself?
As I was pondering through this quandary the thought suddenly came to me to name this "The Road Goes Ever On". Two reasons for this name: 1 - I was in the process of just finishing the book, The Fellowship of the Ring, and there is a poem in there about setting out on an adventure, a journey, and life at the beginning that I have always loved. 2 - Because I am firm believer in the theme of journeys and believe that this life we have is one, big, long journey with many twists and turns. No matter what kind of path you walk - smooth or rocky - there will be happenings along the Road that are unforeseen. And there are points along the Road in which you can choose a new path. And I feel that I am on the brink of that point right now. The Path has all of the sudden become wide open again, and I am allowing myself to explore some of its possibilities.
This blog will serve as a collection of random thoughts about the journey, as well as a place for quotes, antecedents, Bible verses, and general stream of consciousness. Should be fun!
Thursday, September 13, 2007
First Steps...
Today begins a journey that I am curious at undertaking. I have been hearing about blogging for a while now and have read many of my friends' blogs, so I want to try and see what this is all about. Should be interesting - and should be interesting to see how often I keep this updated.
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