Tonight after reading to the kids I was trying to get them all settled down. Reading is supposed to do that, but it doesn't always work out that way. Abby is a Queen Staller and Attention Grabber. JD doesn't really have to be in bed when the girls are and has a tendency to raise the energy level in the room. Anyway, there was the usual squabbling about dumb stuff; tonight it was about Abby looking at the pictures in the book after I told her she had to wait until we read the next chapter. I walked away to turn off lights down the hall and as I headed back Rachel said, "Mom, you need to have another baby so Abby stops getting all the attention!"
"Yeah!" chimed in JD, "She needs some one to push her out of the way like we were!"
"Don't you think the baby would just get all the attention and then you'd be no better off?"
JD answered, "Not if it was a boy, then it would be alright."
Rachel makes random affirmative noises and general begging, whining noises along with this that I don't really catch.
Eventually I say, dryly, "Fine. I'll try to get pregnant tomorrow."
Abby finally enters the conversation with this show stopper, "I don't think so Mom. You'll need a man to put a seed in you and that means Daddy would have to do it."
JD and Rachel burst into embarrassed giggles. Rachel starts rolling her eyes and shaking her head.
Abby continued, "I don't think Dad would say yes. I think he would think it wouldn't be that fun."
"No? You don't think so, huh?" I'm totally cool about the whole thing as I grin conspiratorially at JD and Rachel.
"Yeah. I'm getting a really gross picture in my head."
I look at Rachel. She has an absolutely horrified look on her face.
"Who would want to put their hand in someone's belly and plant a seed!?"
Whew! I think it's time for prayers and lights out!
Monday, April 27, 2009
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Open Letter
Dear Dr. James Dobson and Mr. Christopher Hitchens,
First, I'm sure you're surprised that I would write the two of you a letter together. I'm sure you can't imagine what I would have to say to both of you. Likely, you see each other as opposites with little or nothing in common. Probably you're surprised that someone might have both of you on their radar since you seem to mainly attract people with narrow radars.
Actually, I would suppose that's a point of commonality. It might even be a point that opens up into what I have to say to both of you. You are both on my very last nerve. Both of you are so sure of yourselves and your beliefs; you're almost god like in your confidence, confidence that is slyly cloaked in publicity humility. Neither of you ever seems to listen to anyone but yourselves, and occasionally other people who agree with you. If you do listen, or should I say seem to listen, it's really only for the purpose of marshaling your counterarguments.
What really kills me though is how aggrieved you are about your status as the oppressed minority. Both of you feel railroaded by view points and cultural agendas that you find repugnant. How you can both stand there and make such a claim with a straight face while simultaneously railroading me with your view point and cultural agenda is beyond me.
How can you be so cock sure? Has life not taught you that you don't have all the answers? NO ONE has ALL the answers; some things are unknowable. Maybe it's because I hang around kids all the time; they are awesome for reminding you how little you know, but I very rarely think I've got it nailed down. Even when I do feel like I have it all nailed down, there's a little voice in my head that lets me know that it won't be long until the nails start popping out of the boards, usually to strike me right between the eyes.
I guess that I too am guilty of being over confident about something. I am certain that I don't now and won't ever be able to explain life quite as confidently as either of you gentlemen do.
Rock on.
peace, and i sincerely mean that,
tonia
First, I'm sure you're surprised that I would write the two of you a letter together. I'm sure you can't imagine what I would have to say to both of you. Likely, you see each other as opposites with little or nothing in common. Probably you're surprised that someone might have both of you on their radar since you seem to mainly attract people with narrow radars.
Actually, I would suppose that's a point of commonality. It might even be a point that opens up into what I have to say to both of you. You are both on my very last nerve. Both of you are so sure of yourselves and your beliefs; you're almost god like in your confidence, confidence that is slyly cloaked in publicity humility. Neither of you ever seems to listen to anyone but yourselves, and occasionally other people who agree with you. If you do listen, or should I say seem to listen, it's really only for the purpose of marshaling your counterarguments.
What really kills me though is how aggrieved you are about your status as the oppressed minority. Both of you feel railroaded by view points and cultural agendas that you find repugnant. How you can both stand there and make such a claim with a straight face while simultaneously railroading me with your view point and cultural agenda is beyond me.
How can you be so cock sure? Has life not taught you that you don't have all the answers? NO ONE has ALL the answers; some things are unknowable. Maybe it's because I hang around kids all the time; they are awesome for reminding you how little you know, but I very rarely think I've got it nailed down. Even when I do feel like I have it all nailed down, there's a little voice in my head that lets me know that it won't be long until the nails start popping out of the boards, usually to strike me right between the eyes.
I guess that I too am guilty of being over confident about something. I am certain that I don't now and won't ever be able to explain life quite as confidently as either of you gentlemen do.
Rock on.
peace, and i sincerely mean that,
tonia
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Random Thoughts on Literature
I don't think the attraction to fairytales and their princesses is that women want to be rescued. I think we all, even little girls, want to be worthy of rescue. A good prince would show you that you are worthy, simply by your very being.
Donald Murray quotish, "Sometimes you have to free yourself to tell the Truth of the story by changing the truth."
In the debate about whether or not all reading is good reading, I defer to Mark Twain, "All things in moderation, especially moderation." I think we all need to have variety in our reading diet. We need things that comfort and warm us and we need things that shake us up and disturb us. I don't think it's fair to validate what you love by devaluing what other people love. I might have some work to do in that department.
Donald Murray quotish, "Sometimes you have to free yourself to tell the Truth of the story by changing the truth."
In the debate about whether or not all reading is good reading, I defer to Mark Twain, "All things in moderation, especially moderation." I think we all need to have variety in our reading diet. We need things that comfort and warm us and we need things that shake us up and disturb us. I don't think it's fair to validate what you love by devaluing what other people love. I might have some work to do in that department.
Friday, April 17, 2009
Lamentations
For Lent this year I read all of Lamentations. It was horrible. I believe that's what the author was going for though, so I think my response is appropriate. Lamentations is about a lot of things, all horrible. One of them is how the people of Jerusalem were repeatedly warned to change their ways. They hadn't and now there was catastrophe all around them.
You might wonder what those people were warned about. From what I can tell they were warned to care for those less fortunate than themselves, to follow God's ways, to "seek justice, love mercy and walk humbly with their God." They weren't called to religious activity exactly, in fact, Isaiah warns against just that way of living, they were called to a humble way of living in the world.
Now here's the leap. We, now in the twenty-first century, are being called to do the same things, and I also believe that we are being called to be better caretakers of God's creation. We are being called back to one of the commands given to Adam and Eve. I think what's messing up the receiving of the message is that the prophets don't look like you'd expect. Some of them aren't even Christian. But I'm thinking Baalam's donkey wasn't Jewish either.
Those prophets who would have us use less energy and create less waste warn that it will be catastrophic for somebody if we don't. And how do many people respond? By arguing whether or not it's even true! I imagine that the people of Jerusalem did the same thing before the Babylonians invaded and leveled the place. At that time there were plenty of prophets that promised only good times to come. People listened to those who made them feel comfortable making the choices that they were already making. Weird how the Bible doesn't apply to us here and now, huh?
Perhaps it doesn't matter whether the prophets are right about the coming catastrophe. It's plain to me that we aren't living the way God as called us to live in respect to the creation, and the consequences of that reach far beyond global warming. I don't claim that God is going to rain down judgment on us if we don't start being more energy efficient; I'm going to claim that he won't necessarily shield us from the consequences of our choices, and that if a catastrophe does come on us or our children or grandchildren, saying that God should have sent more appropriate prophets is going to be small comfort.
You might wonder what those people were warned about. From what I can tell they were warned to care for those less fortunate than themselves, to follow God's ways, to "seek justice, love mercy and walk humbly with their God." They weren't called to religious activity exactly, in fact, Isaiah warns against just that way of living, they were called to a humble way of living in the world.
Now here's the leap. We, now in the twenty-first century, are being called to do the same things, and I also believe that we are being called to be better caretakers of God's creation. We are being called back to one of the commands given to Adam and Eve. I think what's messing up the receiving of the message is that the prophets don't look like you'd expect. Some of them aren't even Christian. But I'm thinking Baalam's donkey wasn't Jewish either.
Those prophets who would have us use less energy and create less waste warn that it will be catastrophic for somebody if we don't. And how do many people respond? By arguing whether or not it's even true! I imagine that the people of Jerusalem did the same thing before the Babylonians invaded and leveled the place. At that time there were plenty of prophets that promised only good times to come. People listened to those who made them feel comfortable making the choices that they were already making. Weird how the Bible doesn't apply to us here and now, huh?
Perhaps it doesn't matter whether the prophets are right about the coming catastrophe. It's plain to me that we aren't living the way God as called us to live in respect to the creation, and the consequences of that reach far beyond global warming. I don't claim that God is going to rain down judgment on us if we don't start being more energy efficient; I'm going to claim that he won't necessarily shield us from the consequences of our choices, and that if a catastrophe does come on us or our children or grandchildren, saying that God should have sent more appropriate prophets is going to be small comfort.
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