thoughts on the news of the day: books

hmmm…..

            Today marks the first day of the American Librarian Associations’ Banned Book Week.  It is an annual event that celebrates the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment.  There are some interesting books that have been banned by different school systems and cities.  Book classics such as Brave New World, Catcher in the Rye, Grapes of Wrath, The Color Purple and even children’s books such as James and the Giant Peach have been victims of overzealous censors.  They have been banned for such topics as sexual content, racism, obscenity and violence. 

            What I find interesting about the Banned Book Week is that based on the criteria that is used to ban books, the Bible should be first and foremost on the list.  After all, it has violence, sexuality, cursing and racism contained within its covers.  I wonder what would happen if the Bible were banned.  Oh, wait, I think it already is … Because of religious rights protesters, the Bible is not allowed to be used in most public schools.  This is in spite of the fact that it contains some of the most eloquent literature ever written and also a wealth of historical information.

            Now, I am not sure where freedom to read what we want to read and censoring filth meet.  And I guess it is all contingent on the eye of the reader.  Hopefully most times, common sense prevails and books are judged by their merit and not by their ability to make us think.  After all, aren’t books supposed to make us think?

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thoughts on the news of the day: autumn

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            Today is the first day of fall.  It is determined by the Autumnal Equinox which is the day of the year when the sun crosses the celestial equator and moves southward, usually on September 22^nd or 23^rd.

            You wouldn’t know it was fall in Austin, it is still hot there.  But here in Tulsa, where I am today, the chilly breeze present when I woke up reminds me that fall has arrived.  Soon the leaves will be changing, although it may be a colorless fall because of the dry weather we experienced this summer in the Ozarks where I live. 

            Fall is a great time for football games, bonfires and weenie roasts.  It’s the time to get out the fuzzy sweaters and warm jackets.  It’s also a good time to reflect on the change we experience routinely in our daily lives.  This can be very different for different people.  For some, it means new school experiences.  For some, a time of letting go of old ideas and embracing new ones.  It all depends on where you are at the moment.

            But one thing is for sure.  Things will change.  Leaves will fall and it will be a time of letting go in some way.  And God is in that change.  God is always in the midst of change – whether we like it or not.  God can assist us in adjusting to the change if only we will let God do that work.  It’s up to us.

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thoughts on the news of the day: churches

hmmm…..

            Yesterday, the white supremacist, Lawrence Russell Brewer, 44 was executed for the brutal slaying of a black man.  The date of the murder was 22 years ago, June 7, 1998.  The victim, James Byrd Jr. was walking along a road outside of Jasper, TX when he was picked up by Brewer and two others.  Byrd was shackled to the back of a pickup truck and yanked to his death with a 24 foot logging chain. 

            I remember visiting with a colleague who was a minister in a church in Jasper, TX at the time.  She talked about how all of the ministers gathered together, black and white, and planned a memorial service.  They were determined not to make it a media event because they wanted to grieve the loss of a neighbor in the privacy of their own churches.

            Churches are one of those institutions that seem to be going by the wayside of progress.  The world is changing and there seems to be no room or need for spiritual community life.  That is, until a heinous crime such as the one committed in Jasper on that fateful summer evening takes place.  Then we need a place to gather, to grieve and to find a way to get along with the rest of our lives.  It seems like nothing other than a consecrated place such as a church will do. 

            Most people want a place to be buried and a place to be married.  The blessing of the event and the people involved in the event needs to come from a place blessed for the celebration or the sadness.  That’s why I believe in church.  That’s why I go to church and that’s why I serve a church.

            hmmm…..

thoughts on the news of the day: netflix

hmmm…..

            I got an email letter from Reed Hastings yesterday.  He said he messed up and that he owed me an explanation.  You may know that Reed Hastings is at the helm of Netflix.  Netflix has been an extremely successful company for years.  I use it to order DVDs and have them mailed to my home.  Now they have a process where you can simply stream most movies right into your television.  Pretty sweet.

            The letter was sent to me in apology for not giving a better explanation as to why the company is now charging separately for DVD home delivery and streaming.  I think they rushed into it.  Not all of us have the capability to stream yet and besides, some people might want to have the option.

            That’s what happens when we get ahead of ourselves.  We rush ahead of those who follow and they don’t have time to catch up with us.  Then comes resentment and rebellion.  People in leadership positions do it all the time.  And timing is everything.

            When things are ahead of their time, it is almost as bad as when they are too little too late.  In both cases, failure is the result.  Better to pay attention to the pulse of those we lead and not rush ahead or lag behind. 

            Thanks, Mr. Hastings for the explanation.  It will go a long way to helping us make the transition.  And it’s a good lesson for all of us.

            hmmm…..

thoughts on the news of the day: standards

hmmm…..

            Why is it all about the money?  Seems to be the case these days.  Large college football programs are abandoning their conferences and opting for better paying ones.  That is, more money for television programming.  It has nothing to do with whether longstanding rivalries and compacts are destroyed.  It doesn’t matter that central time fans will have to watch games at 10:00 at night because the games are on the west coast.  None of that matters; what matters is how much money the program will make.  At least that’s how it seems.

            I serve on a board for my alma mater and went to a meeting yesterday.  We were told that we were expected to contribute to the annual fund as part of our service to the institution. I don’t have a problem with contributing, but I do have a problem with the expectation, which almost feels like a demand.  What about the alumni who doesn’t have the resources to make a contribution?  The argument is that any amount will do.  Really?  If they know whether a board member contributes or not, don’t they know how much?

            Somehow it seems that our values are skewed.  Not that as humans we haven’t always been a little greedy, but it strikes me as a little crass that institutions of higher learning wouldn’t be above it.  I guess I hoped that those who have a better education would also have a higher standard.  But that’s just me.

            hmmm…..

thoughts on the news of the day: west texas

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            Governor Rick Perry is in the news a lot lately.  His bid for president has propelled him into the national spotlight.  This morning there was an article about his West Texas roots and his boyhood in Paint Creek, Texas.  I don’t know a lot about Rick Perry, but I do know a thing or two about west Texas.   Having lived in Andrews, Texas, even farther into the west than Paint Creek, was an experience to be remembered.

            First of all it’s flat.  And when I say flat, I mean as a pancake.  I heard that when Midland was recruiting doctors to serve in their hospitals back in the day, the doctors wives refused to even get off the plane, the land was so flat and desolate.  A friend of mine said that she could look north out her back door and see all the way to Canada; and that she had to tie her young son on a rope to the clothesline when he went out to play – there were no boundaries – or people to hinder the young tyke.

            And did I say desolate?  There actually is a forest of trees in west Texas that very few people know about because the trees are only inches tall.  We had a saying about meeting half way on the road to Odessa.  We would “meet at the tree”. Everyone knew what that meant because there literally was only one tree on the highway between the two towns. 

            But for all the flat and desolate land, there was an incredible beauty about it when the sun went down.  The altitude was actually pretty high.  And because of the flatness and lack of trees, the sky looked enormous.  You could see every star in the sky and pick out every constellation on a star map.  We used to drive out into the desert, away from the city lights just to experience that beauty.

            All that goes to show that there is good and not so good in everything.  Even Rick Perry.

            hmmm…..

thoughts on the news of the day: weird

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            The Austin City Limits Music Festival is taking place in Austin, TX.  I know this because I read it on the internet, but also because I am visiting my daughter there.  The festival  lives up to the motto of the city, “Keep Austin Weird” by presenting all sort of indie (independent) rock groups plus a few well known ones like Kanye West and Coldplay. 

            Large group festivals are a place where you won’t find me.   I don’t like the crowds, the prices, and the lack of closeness to the performer.  I suppose the electricity of the live performance is appealing, though.  And I get that.  Live theater fits that category.  I used to be on the board of a Shakespeare Festival in southeastern Oklahoma and there was nothing that could beat the thrill of watching hard working artists perform for a live audience.   Anything could happen and sometimes it was a little weird.

            The saying goes, “Life is not a dress rehearsal” comes to mind.  We live our lives as if we had plenty of “do-overs” but really we do not.  What happens now, happens.  We can’t get any time back, we can’t re-say that awful thing we said to our loved one.  We can’t go back and work harder at that job, or that project or that speech.

            We have to live each day to its fullest.  Even if sometimes, its a little “Weird”.

            hmmm…..