Rain and rainbows

Tonight, as I was driving through the end of a storm, a rainbow appeared in the sky. And while I was watching it, the song "Somewhere over the rainbow" came up on my cd player. And I thought about God's promises, represented by the rainbow. And it made me hopeful.

"Oh, somewhere over the rainbow,
blue birds fly, And the dreams that you dreamed of,
Dreams really do come true."

Anecdotal Reading

I like naps. A lot.

The New York Times
A Look at Who Naps
By SAM ROBERTS
Published: July 30, 2009
In a national survey, one in three admitted to being a napper.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/30/us/30nap.html

Tristeza

That means "sadness" or "sorrows".

My heart has been burdened lately by the news coming out of (or rather, not coming out of) Honduras. If you haven't been able to hear it, Honduras expelled their president two Sundays past, and the days following have been filled with demonstrations and anxiety as citizens and outsiders try to come to an agreement. Friends who know tell me that so far things have been calm, but tense, and I imagine a small incident could change that instantly. If you are looking for facts, the BBC seems a little less prone to rumors and The Washington Times has some good editorials.

Regardless, please pray for this little country that wants peace.

!Viva Honduras!

Now what?

For the past year, I have been telling people that I am going to start graduate studies in Fall 2009, in library and information science. But I just received my financial aid offer from UK. I was only awarded loans. No grants or scholarships. Nor did I receive a graduate assistantship. I promised myself, when I started planning this, that I would not use loans to accomplish this. I am already in debt from my first education and do not think it fiscally responsible to deepen the hole. So, since I have not been able to secure other funds, I am left wondering about my next step. Do I go back on my promise and accept the loans? Do I stick to my principles and refuse them, and start looking towards another future? As this process has unfolded, from taking the GRE to applications and beyond, I had decided to keep walking through doors until God closed them. Is this the final door?

Sometimes....

...I wonder about which country I live in. For example, in the past few months I have experienced or witnessed the following: power outages, dirty water, internet outages, animals in my house (uninvited), and drivers committing possibly illegal actions. And these have all happened since I have been back in the States!

What am I doing now?

Perhaps you have heard this song on the radio: "While I'm Waiting" by John Waller. (If you don't listen to Christian radio, then you probably have not heard it.) Friend Shelly sent me a link to a YouTube video of the song, and I was inspired to share it with you, too. I think the song sums up what I am trying to do with my life at this time. I can't claim to be waiting in perfect peace, and sometimes I have to struggle to be productive while I wait. But know that I am trying!



While I'm Waiting - John Waller

I'm waiting
I'm waiting on You, Lord
And I am hopeful
I'm waiting on You, Lord
Though it is painful
But patiently, I will wait

I will move ahead, bold and confident
Takeing every step in obedience
While I'm waiting
I will serve You
While I'm waiting
I will worship
While I'm waiting
I will not faint
I'll be running the race
Even while I wait

I'm waiting
I'm waiting on You, Lord
And I am peaceful
I'm waiting on You, Lord
Though it's not easy
But faithfully, I will wait
Yes, I will wait

Since coming back to the States, I have felt a reawakening of patriotism and interest in the cultural things of my country. I don't think I've ever been against such things, but I feel that I am seeing them in a new light. When I was in Honduras I drank in every experience, every detail of life, treasuring each as a cultural gem. But being surrounded by things that were not of my own culture seems to have brought out a new appreciation for the things that are of my own people. I am more curious about the the things that make us unique in the world, "Americans", and it continues to be an interesting education. It is an enjoyable study, to be sure, but I am somewhat ashamed that I had to go to another country in order to discover my own.

This journey of re-discovery has most recently stopped at music. I have started to listening to old-timey music. I have heard it termed so many things that it is hard for me to pin down, but I am reluctant to call it "bluegrass" since in my mind that seems too narrow a term. "Mountain music" might be appropriate, and I've heard it called "roots" music. My new favorite radio station, WETS 89.5, calls it "Americana", since what they play covers everything from true bluegrass, traditional songs of the mountains, "new-grass", celtic influence, and even Bruce Springsteen and Rodney Cowell. As I listen I ponder upon the points that make each style unique, try to trace the evolution of the music, and imagine the reactions of my Honduran students to such sounds. Some of them were pretty redneck and so they might enjoy it! If I ever go back I might have to try a music appreciation class.

In what surely must have been designed to further my musical education, Shelly called last week to invite me to the Lincoln Theater for a concert featuring some famous bluegrass bands. The Lincoln is an old theater here in Marion that has been refurbished as a concert hall, catering specifically to the bluegrass and mountain music culture. Because of my newfound interest, I found it fitting that we should go. Shelly and I had not been inside the theater since it was renovated, and the visual experience alone was rewarding! And the music was fabulous, of course. All in all, it was great fun: good music, good atmosphere, and good company. Singing John Denver's "Thank God I'm A Country Boy" with 200 other people is pretty darn cool.

When I was in high school, the Lincoln was just an empty building with a hole in the roof.

The theater is beautiful inside!

Shelly and I, after the show.

PS - I've been trying to publish this post for a couple of weeks now, but technical difficulties kept from it...sorry!