Thankful Thursday 6-30

Today I am thankful for:

My up coming trip. Greg and I are leaving early Saturday for Wyoming. I can't wait to seey family are be back out west. We are having a reception for all the wonderful friends and family members out there who couldn't make it to the wedding.

Birth Control

I know this is a weird topic for me to write about. Really I'm not massively passionate about this topic, but I am amazed how passionate about this topic. I mean go to the nest and read any of the coments on this topic.

There are lots of different forms of birth control. What gets me is that some people say that certain types of birth control are not actual birth control. And I think that is kinda crazy. people are all different and have different needs.

I use one of the natural methods. I think it is a great method but that is because it worksfor me. But I understand that it is not for everyone. I like it because in general I don't like pills in general. Then I have listened to different side affects with different pills. And I know that there is probably a pill with side effects I could handel, but I worry about how long it would take to find a good pill.

The other types of birth control I am not a big fan of because I don't like the idea of shutting down my system, or when it comes down to it Greg and I are planning on having kids soon, so those really aren't for me.

And I know that the form of birth control is not perfect. But as Greg and I have discussed if we have an oops we will deal. But for now we will just celebrate every month we find out we are not pregnant.

Sense and Sensiblity: Family Responsibility

I Love this book it is my favorite of Jane Austen's books. This book's plot revolves around the death of a loving father whose sin is that he married a second wife after his first wife died. On His death bed old Mr. Dashwood puts his trust in his son from his first marriage. He makes his son, John, promise to fulfill his family responsibility towards his half sisters and step mother.

John Dashwood is the closest family relation this group of widows and orphans have. Without his help their are to be left destitute. He is their family redeemer to use an old testament concept. Yet his wife, Fanny, convinces him that he doesn't owe them any obligatio, they are after all only half blood. So as we meet this unhappy group of women their morning for their father turns into dispair knowing now that not only have they lost a man who loved them and protected them, but also the one who has been given the charge to take over doesn't believe he has any obligation towards them. They are utterly alone in a world where they as women can do very little to advance themselves.

So John whose responsibility it was to care for these women shirks from his duty. Luckily for the Dashwood girls there is someone who will step up to the responcibility. Sir. John Middleton. I think it is interesting that these two men have the same first name. John Dashwood is anyoung man who is easily swayed by his wife, is either vain, selfish, proud, or a mixture of all three. Sir John is generous,humble and cares little of other people's opinion. He is himself and because he knows who he is he doesn't worry about how other peopl view him.

Where John Dashwood refuses the responcibility he has, Sir John races in to take up a responsiblity that is not his. No he doesn't give them gifts of money, but he provides a house for them at a low rent, invites them to dine with him and his family almost daily, and even attempts to introduce them to men who could make them a good husband.

In the Emma Thompson movie Robert Hardy plays the part perfectly. He loves these distant relations, and as he pours out his generosity he begs them, don't thank me. Thanks is not what he wants. He simply wants to do good for people for the sake of doing it.

Next week we will still be in Sense and Sensibility, looking at the different women in the book.

Thankful Thursday

Today I am thankful for:
1. My husband, I'm constantly wondering. What I did to deserve such a man to be my husband.
2. My church family. They believe in being a community and live it.

"Give thanks to the LORD, his love endures forever."

My Song

Today I was listening to Ft. Thomas of Anceint Faith Radio, and I stared to think about ways my understanding of my faith has changed over the years. I grew up in the Weslyan Church and it wasn't that long ago I decided not to continue to pursue ordination. Now I am attending an Anglican Church participating in liturgical practices of the ancient church.

It is a strange change not the most extreme change I haven't become part of the Eastern Orthdox Church, or part of the Roman Catholic Church. But it is still. A change from a evangelical protestant church to a high liturgical anceint church. How did this happen? I'm sure there are many who have known me wonder the answer to that question.

The answer is very complicated. I'm not sure I even know all the pieces that have led me to finding myself in a high liturgical church. And the is no way I could answer this question in a singel blog post, but I think maybe it is time to start thinking and blogging about this so from here till I think I have explored the subject fully I will post on this on Wednesdays. We will call this series My Jurney.

My hope is that this series will help me articulate the reasons why I am now in a high liturgical church and that it might be informative.

Starting Point, Respect for the Roman Catholic Church, Understanding the Map with Mormonism, History, some definitions, Chapel Services at Bethany Bible College (or Kingswood University), exploring transubstantiation, experiencing lent, Student Ministry at Rivervalley Wesleyan, Suriname, freedom, Lessons from VBS- The Fruit of the Spirit

Writing, Life, and happiness

Lately I have been in a very strange flux of depression and hope; laughter and tears. At the crux of it all has been my writing cureer. This year I have been at differing places. Some times wanting to sit with a bottle of Blue Moon despairing that I will. Be stuck in mu dead end undeniable job forever, and never become a writer. The other times I'm excited introducing my self as a writer who hasn't made the breack yet.

Today while listening to Writing Excusses I felt challenged, excited, hopeful. As I drove to Starbucks for my hour long coffee breack I though okay it is time to get serious.

The problem is I don't know where to start. I have stories. I have ideas. I have a supportive husband. How can I get myself motivated to actually be serious? I've tried reward systems, carving out time, some how my attention and motivation always wane. I'm not the greatest with setting goals and my todo lists always end up bigger then I can handel. So here I go again planning to be serious get stuff done and tring to ignore that little voice in the back of my mind that says it will all be the same as last time, and the time before that, and the time before that.

Hamlet: Vengence

Hamlet is a play about Vengeance and how Vengeance can destroy, well everyone it comes in contact with. It is the driving force of the play. Hamlet wouldn't have taken the actions he did if the specter of his father hadn't demanded Vengeance
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Justice and Vengeance often get confused. the old king of Denmark was murdered and justice should have been served, but justice would have led to  the healing of the community. Vengeance is focused on the payback of one individual who has been wronged. Vengeance destorys the community. Everyone dies at the end of hamlet, all but one are innocent victims; all must be sacrificed on the alter of Vengeance and Vengeance is a Grinch  of a mistress.

Whether the murder of Polonius; the mixed up poisoning of Gertrude; the executions of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern; or the suicide of Ophelia, each death is connected back to one trapped soul who needs a pound of flesh before it can move on. The selfish specter destroys eight lives, seven of them innocent, and one of them his own son.

This is not to say that the murdered old king Hamlet did not deserve justice, but Hamlet isn't about Justice prevaling over an evil king; it is the story of Vengeance and death.

Tune in next week for Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austin.

Thoughts and Ponderings

I have been a bad blogger this week, and last week. Some of this is becaus I went out of town for a wedding part Of it is because I've been in a bit of a funk writing wise. Not that o don't know what to write but that I feel like there is so many other things I need to do. Of course this is when I hear Mur say "you should be writing. Do your writing first." or Howard from the Writing Excuses pod say, "now we are out of time and your out of excuses go write."

For some reason I seem to just be in a funk. I have three stories I'm working on plus the random side fleshing out of my APGs yet it is like I am uninterested in any of them. I am still mostly writing every day just not till I'm in bed waiting on Greg.(one of the projects I'm working on is kept in a note book by my bed for this reason. Sigh oh sigh. I hope to get out of this funk soon.

Thanks for hanging in there.

Thankful Thusday

Today I am most thankful for Girl Time! weather it is watching a movie, sitting and knitting, or going to dinner, girl time is a vital part of every girl friendship.

I will praise God's name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving. 

PS. 69:30

Heaven- Adventures in the Afterlife Season 1

I love this book.  It takes a Pluralistic World View on the afterlife. The author explores what the afterlife looks like for all the different religions, and even different animals. actually my favorite part is when the characters go to dog heaven. So if you haven't listened to it yet stop reading my blog post right now and go listen or read it.

Who is God thought and what is heaven like? These are questions that everyone asks. I want to use this book to talk about what how Christians have portrayed their God and their concept of heaven.  (By the way Mur, if you are somehow reading this know that I am not criticizing your portrayal of these things. I found them amusing.) 

In the book God is not the creator, all powerful, all knowing, one True God of Christianity-he can't be this book understands all religions as 'equal' the general pluralistic understanding of the world. instead he is how the characterless understood god with their own misconceptions.  Misconceptions which we all have, and have to fight against.  What I find is sad, or laughable, and both, is that the misconceptions have become the Stereotypical understanding by those one the outside.  The kindly old gentlemen, the Englishmen are pictures of God which some how get lodged into our minds when we don't truly seek after who God is.  Some people would blame Michaelangelo for his Sistine Chapel portrayal of God, but I think the old man in the sky is connected to the seeping in of the sky/ruler gods from the pagan religions which were over taken by Christianity.  The question is how do we over come our misconceptions and the misconceptions or the world about God?

In the book Heaven is supposed to be Paradise. In it the author explores the question what does paradise mean? What does it mean to have paradise and what if your paradise includes people who have a different idea of paradise. Paradise must be all we've ever wanted, this means that paradise would have to be based on  the narcissistic wants and desires of the individual. But is this what Christians mean by haven? The place where everyone we want to be with are there, the place where we can have all we ever wanted. The Christian idea of heaven is vague and people have always wondered what the afterlife is, and this can lead to more misconceptions.  What are our misconceptions? How can we accept the vagueness of what the bible says about heaven and get past the misconceptions?

Next week: Hamlet