At some point in your life, you will likely have to navigate the sometimes-murky waters of long-distance friendships. Whether it’s you or your friend doing the moving, it can be a confusing and sometimes unsettling time as you adjust to the new dynamics of no longer being geographically together.
I navigated this myself 3 years ago when I moved across the country to start a Master’s degree, leaving behind my family, extended family and almost all of my friends. It certainly wasn’t easy and it was painful at times. But I did learn, over time, how to work out what my long-distance friendships would look like.
To read the rest of this post, head over to timandolive.com. This is my contribution to their guest post series “What I Learned”, which is about lessons their readers have learned about relationships. Tim is a friend I met a few years ago when I was part of a session he led on transitioning out of university, and I’m very glad for this opportunity to guest blog for him and his lovely wife, Olive!
P.S. Yes it’s been a while since I’ve blogged, and I apologize. Life has gotten really busy, and I just haven’t had the time to maintain this blog. I will try to do so more often, but cannot guarantee anything. Sorry!
Well that time of year is upon us again! Some of you might be running in fear because of nutty Christmas shopping, some might be thinking “Didn’t we JUST have Christmas?!?!?!”, but I am excited because it means several awesome things:
1. A great time to be reminded of why Jesus is amazing. (Not that we NEED to have Christmas to do this, but I always find it a great time to reflect on the sacrifice Jesus made to reconcile us to God. I mean, if He was never born, he would not have died and risen again.)
2. I get to go home in a little less than a month to hang out with my much-beloved family and friends who live 4000 km away!
3. I can add all my Christmas songs to my iPod! (Alas, my iPod is not nearly big enough for all of the music in my library.)
So in light of the season, I present to you the Christmas albums/artists I love, with a sample song from each. Some are new, and some I have been listening to for a long time, but I hope you enjoy these and perhaps add to your music collection! (If you have recommendations for me, please comment and let me know, I’m always looking to expand my music library.)
A Christmas Together – John Denver and the Muppets
I don’t know how well-known this album is, but I think this is the first Christmas album I ever listened to, and one that my brother and I HAD to hear every year growing up. My parents have this one as an album (yes, that’s right, for record players – I may be young, but I know what it looks like and how to use it!), and I remember being so happy when it would get pulled out around Christmas time. Many a Christmas tree was decorated while listening to this album. I still love this album for the nostalgia it induces, not to mention that John Denver has a lovely voice and the Muppets are absolutely hilarious! It also includes some lovely Christmas songs that I’ve never heard on other albums, like “The Peace Carol”, “A Baby Just Like You”, and “Where the River Meets the Sea”, not to mention that many of the songs are about the original meaning of Christmas (yay Jesus!). Their version of “Silent Night” also includes John Denver explaining the origin of the song, which you can read here.
One of the little-known songs which I’ve linked to below is “A Baby Just Like You” because it’s such a peaceful and lovely song, and I remember that as a kid, it struck me as very cool that Jesus was born as a baby, just like the rest of us humans.
A Charlie Brown Christmas – Vince Guaraldi Trio
Most people I know have watched “A Charlie Brown Christmas”, and truthfully it’s hard not to love watching the lovable Peanuts go through the ups and downs of Christmas. I am a particular fan of the fact that the true reason for Christmas is stated explicitly (when Linus reads from Luke 2:8-14). The Vince Guaraldi Trio (piano, bass, and drums) do a beautiful job with the music, too, and it’s hard to imagine the TV special without all that wonderfully relaxed, hip jazz music.
My favourite off the album is “Skating”, because it’s so upbeat, light and fun. I would love to actually skate around to this some day…
Josh Groban – Noël
Oh Josh Groban, if I could marry a voice it would be yours (and he’s not bad-looking either!). But honestly, he has such lovely, warm, pure vocals that you can melt in them. Alternatively, it sounds like hugs, as my choir director would say. (Josh also has a fantastic sense of humour – Youtube search “Josh Groban Never Mind the Buzzcocks”, which is a British music quiz show to see what I mean. He is SO FUNNY.) Anyway, his Christmas album is wonderfully delightful, generally very tranquil and calm. I like to listen to it when I need to relax from a hectic day of Christmas shopping, or just in general to relax. He also sings in French, which makes my bilingual self so happy!
I absolutely LOVE the song I’ve featured below, called “Thankful.” It’s a song that encourages us to be grateful for what we have, and not focussing on what we don’t have or in trying to get everything perfect for Christmas. Listen and be encouraged. =)
Mannheim Steamroller – “Mannheim Steamroller Christmas” and “Christmas Extraordinaire”
I have always found this band a bit difficult to describe, but the best I can come up with is that it’s New Age electronic music, with a lot of synthesizers and new takes on old songs (thanks Wikipedia for the help). You can also thank Chip Davis for this, as he’s the mastermind behind it. They’ve done other albums but found their most success with their various Christmas albums. I first heard of them back in high school when we played their version of “The First Noel”, and I remember everyone, including me, was SO CONFUSED when we played it through the first time because it doesn’t sound anything like the original carol at first. However, we all eventually got used to it and played it quite well, too. As mentioned in the subtitle above, I have two of their albums, and will showcase a song from each since both are awesome.
First up is “Deck the Halls” from the “Christmas” album, which employs some lovely trumpets and a funky drum beat to jazz up this Christmas carol.
Next is “Hallelujah”, a fantastic take on arguably the most-sung chorus out of Handel’s entire repertoire. I bet you never expected to groove and dance around to the “Hallelujah” chorus, but it is totally possible with this version!
Trans-Siberian Orchestra – Christmas trilogy of albums
I couldn’t pick a favourite Christmas album by these guys, because all of them are great. And really, classical instruments + searing electric guitars + Christmas = epic metal Christmas music. So instead, you get 3 songs, one from each album. I love that each album tells a story as a whole, usually involving angels and some great story of reconciliation or hope for Christmas. I highly recommend checking all of them out here, and plus, they’re a trilogy, so you should listen to all of them if you get a chance.
First up is “Christmas Eve and Other Stories”, whose main story is about a young man who meets a mysterious man at a bar on Christmas Eve. This man proceeds to tell him a story about how Christmas Day has affected humanity, which is pretty cool. The song I chose from this album is “A Mad Russian’s Christmas”, and if you’re a Tchaikovsky fan you’ll love this song that gives a hard-rock spin to some of his beloved tunes.
Next is “The Christmas Attic”, in which God sends an angel from heaven on a mission to “leave the one thing behind that would most benefit all of mankind.” He then meets a girl and helps her discover the meaning of Christmas. The track below is called “Appalachian Snowfall”, and if there was a scene in a movie with tons of snow falling on mountains, I would pick this track to play along with it (provided the director wasn’t looking for calm, tranquil music). This video also happens to be of a house whose lights play in sync with the music!
Last is “The Lost Christmas Eve”, in which the angel from the last two albums goes off on a mission again to find someone who is most like Jesus at Christmas, but he can’t use his wings on Earth apart from arriving and leaving. So he lands in New York City and encounters a man who hates Christmas, and then tries to help him out. The song I present to you is “Wizards in Winter”, a glorious rock song with some dizzying guitar playing and hints of some songs you may know.
Straight No Chaser – “Christmas Cheers” and “Holiday Spirits”
Once upon a time, back in the late 1990s, 10 guys formed an a cappella group at Indiana University called “Straight No Chaser.” They arranged Christmas and non-Christmas songs alike, putting hilarious spins on them and being amazing at harmonies. Fast-forward to 2006: They put up a Youtube video of themselves singing their adaptation of “The 12 Days of Christmas”, and the CEO of Atlantic Records sees it, contacts the original members, and asks if they would like to reunite for a five-album deal. Most of the guys do, and they add a couple more, and BAM! Straight No Chaser then goes on to record 2 Christmas albums, and another album and EP of non-Christmas music.
So without further ado, from “Holiday Spirits”, the ORIGINAL video that started it all, SNC’s “The 12 Days of Christmas.” If you have never seen this before, prepare to be amazed and amused! Also, I’m pretty sure the tenor belting it out at the end has a higher range than me… *sigh*
And lastly, a song that I think sums up the Christmas season nicely, here’s SNC’s “The Christmas Can-Can”, from “Christmas Cheers.”
I know this post was a bit long, but I figure since I haven’t blogged much since February, a long post is fine. Until next time!
First, though, I should say hello to my 10 or so subscribers, and apologize for the lack of blogging (last post was in February!). Life has been really busy and I’ve been so busy living it that there hasn’t been time to write about it.
Anyway, today I got a letter in the mail that made me sad, but before I tell you what it was, let’s back up the story a bit…
I started sponsoring a child through Compassion Canada four years ago, a beautiful little girl, after attending a Hillsong United concert. I was already familiar with the organization since my parents have been sponsoring a child since they were in university (I won’t say how long ago that was…har har har), but decided to take the plunge and sponsor a child of my own as I had a part-time job in addition to school. If you are not familiar with the organization, you give monthly to Compassion, and all of the money goes directly toward the benefit of the child(ren) you sponsor (who are all from low-income, often rural families in developing countries around the world). This pays for things like nutritious meals, health checks, education, and medicine if needed. I also love that they do this in conjunction with local churches in the area, as this helps them to be more rooted in the community and better serve it and the families who live there. And they teach children about Jesus and God, although if they or their family are not part of the Christian faith this has no bearing on whether or not they stay in the program at all, and children are not pressured to believe.
The best part, though, is writing to your child(ren). Every few months, you get a letter from them (written with help if the child is too young to write), and it’s been a fantastic experience all around – I’m a firm believer in not letting the power of the handwritten word die, as there’s something so meaningful knowing that someone took their time to write you a letter. I’ve had the pleasure of building a relationship with my sponsored girl over the past 4 years through these letters – she has a lovely family, wants to be a teacher, and loves singing. I’ve also told her about my own life, expressing my care and my prayers for her, and trying my best to breathe encouragement and Life into the words I write. I send her pictures when I can (I sent her pictures of a trip I took last year where I saw starfish, and she had never seen a picture of one before!). I also get new pictures of her with an update on her education progress at least once every 2 years, and it has been a pleasure to watch her grow. I am always excited to get her letters, which often open with “Greetings in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.” Ah, it makes my heart happy. Did I mention she’s only 11? Reminds me of this verse: “From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise.” (Psalm 8:2a)
Last year, based on my finances and the fact that I had seen the positive effects of sponsorship in the life of my first child, I began sponsoring a second child. I looked through the pictures of children who were waiting to be sponsored on Compassion’s website, and I saw this adorable five-year-old boy with too-big-for-his-face glasses perched on his nose. Having once been a dorky kid with giant glasses (Mom, please destroy those pictures forever…), I immediately picked him. And so for the past year, I built a relationship with him as well – he loves to play soccer and play with toy cars, and he draws me pictures (he can’t write yet), which I cannot always decipher but are adorable nonetheless. His mother also said he loves to help around the house, which I encouraged him to keep doing! (He will be a good husband one day, I’m sure.) His letters also came more frequently as the country he lives in is closer, geographically, to Canada, than my other child (usually it can take up to 3 or 4 months to get letters to your child and vice versa, but his usually come once every couple of months).
I first suspected something was up last week when I checked my bank account balance. I have automatic withdrawals to Compassion set up, and I noticed that the amount was much less than usual. I called Compassion, but had to leave a message since their office hours were closed (yay time differences…). However, they didn’t call me back and I forgot about it among the craziness of my busy life.
I didn’t have to wait long for an explanation, though. Today, I got a letter in the mail (technically yesterday but I didn’t check my mail until today) from Compassion, informing me that due to some administrative problems between Compassion and the local church that my sponsored boy attends, Compassion has had to terminate their partnership with this church, so my boy and all other children who were there are no longer in the program.
My first thought was: “Oh…this explains the bank statement.”
My second thought: “What will happen to the children now?”
My third thought: “Why, God???”
And I felt (still feel) sadness, and disappointment. I even put on some melancholy music to accompany my mood.
I’m disappointed that this church and Compassion could not come to an agreement. I’m sad that because of this, the children who were in the program may now have limited access to food, medicine, health care, education (sponsorship often pays for tuition if necessary), and all the other things that were provided. This is going to negatively affect their well-being, and that hurts. I understand that sometimes cooperation does not happen and that Compassion keeps high standards for how they partner with churches…but couldn’t they work something out for the sake of the children? Sigh…I wasn’t provided with any more details, other than that there were multiple attempts to work things out, but still…sad, sad times. I will not be able to watch my sponsored boy grow up the way I have watched my other child grow. I will miss hearing about his life, and receiving my first letter written by him and not a child helper. I can no longer encourage or speak Life to him through my letters.
There is one small consolation: I can write one last letter to him before the sponsorship officially ends.
But how do you explain to a now-6-year-old that you will no longer be able to sponsor him because of some issues between the church and Compassion that have nothing to do with him at all? That he won’t be writing you letters, he won’t get any more letters from you, and that in all likelihood, you will not communicate again?
I’m staring at the blank page, wondering what to say and how. As I stare, thoughts materialize. I know I want to say that I love him, even though our sponsorship is at an end. I will tell him I have so enjoyed being his sponsor, and encourage him to stay in school and keep learning. I will tell him to keep playing with his friends, and that one day he will achieve his dream of being a doctor. I will tell him Jesus loves him, and that I will keep praying for him even though he and I will no longer correspond. I will keep praying for him, and trust that God will continue to be a part of his life.
On second thought…maybe I do know what to write. And I trust God with his life, as I do with mine. This will work out for good.
But for now, it’s time to write a bittersweet letter.
Okay, so I know I haven’t a) blogged here in a while and b) this is not a 30-day challenge question, but after a little over a year of blogging, I’ve realized that the way I run this blog is to only write entries about things I feel like writing about when I have free time (which, let’s face it, is rare). I still don’t feel like tackling some of the 30-day questions, so I won’t be blogging about that now. But trust me, dear reader, hang in with me and it will happen. In the meantime, here are my latest thoughts!
So earlier this week, I posted a video on Facebook that my friend Paulman shared, which I’ve posted below. It’s a video from a pastor named Justin Cox, who preaches at the Passion for Christ Movement Christian Fellowship in Los Angeles. He’s a pretty young African-American pastor who is – there’s no other word for it – he’s hip. Or cool. Or whatever other similar word you can use. He’s also HILARIOUS, and pretty in-your-face in a crazy way. Now, I don’t agree with everything he says or does, but what I can say about him is that he’s real, he’s not ashamed to preach the Gospel, and he earnestly loves people and wants to engage with them about God, and encourage them to pursue greater things. This particular video is called “15 Questions Christian women need to ask a man before getting involved with him.” Loaded title, eh? It’s ten and a half minutes long, but if you have the free time, I highly recommend watching it (warning: a crazy hilarious pastor who says crazy hilarious words is about to yell loudly through your computer speakers).
Now, when I first watched this video, my reaction was like “THIS GUY IS AMAZING!! He’s encouraging girls to set their standards high, which is awesome, and not to settle or sell out!” It also inspired me to think more carefully about what I am looking for in a guy, and the things to keep in mind.
But after some very good dialogue in Facebook comments on this video, I realized that the standard Pastor Justin set out is VERY high, and legalistic if taken the wrong way. I mean, I wouldn’t walk up to a guy I even thought I might like and say “Okay, answer these 15 questions perfectly RIGHT NOW and then I will figure out if I can date you,” much less a guy I actually liked. That’s just ridiculous and frankly, quite embarrassing for both you and the guy. So needless to say, ladies, I don’t recommend this approach, or you’ll never get any guys to pursue you! (Unless he’s the kind of guy who WANTS to be asked all of these questions immediately…in which case, you’re set!) But I think there are some good principles in this video, and some really good questions to think about, minus some of Pastor Justin’s stipulations (e.g. a guy who is a genuine Christian with good theology, is open to accountability, wants physical purity, wants to mature, etc. are all really good things, but accountability every month with church ministers who might not know you well, or bringing up exes early in the relationship when you’re probably not ready to talk about that kind of stuff, isn’t necessary IMO). Also, many of the questions seem more appropriate to discuss when the relationship gets more serious, not at the beginning. Finally, it is ridiculous to expect a guy to answer these questions “perfectly”, since these questions don’t take into account a newer Christian, or a guy who is still working through some issues (like we all are), or who is still working through how he would answer them. I would say that as long as a guy can give a well-reasoned, genuine answer to these questions (and similar ones) while still keeping to the big things in the Christian faith, then you’re probably good to go. To sum up, I quote a favourite movie of mine: “Hang the rules. They’re more like guidelines anyway.” (Bonus points if you know that movie without Googling it.)
After some more thinking and emotional processing, I took the 15 questions that Pastor Justin set out, and wrote a modified version of them, more suited to how I was thinking about asking the questions when I watched the video, which are laid out below. They’re also not listed in the same order as Pastor Justin, since I grouped them into 3 appropriately specific question categories: Before the relationship, at the beginning of the relationship, and during the relationship. So here goes:
The Modified Fifteen Questions
To ask before a relationship starts
How did you come to faith in Christ?
What is your theology or stance on major tenets in the Christian faith? (e.g. Bible as inspired Word of God, the authority of the Bible, the Trinity, Jesus as one and only Saviour, etc.)
What do you think God’s purpose is for dating and marriage? (I would only bring this up if the guy was a friend (not an acquaintance), or we just happened to be talking about it in everyday conversation)
At the beginning of the relationship
What is the purpose of our relationship?
What practical things do you think we should do to be physically pure in our relationship?
What kind of physical relationship should we have? (kind of goes with question 2)
What can we do together to grow in spiritual maturity?
Are you cool with each of us getting an accountability partner of the same sex (hopefully close friends) who will be willing to ask us about our purity, spiritual growth, example and progress as a couple at a time interval we agree to (e.g. weekly, monthly, bimonthly)?
Are you willing to hang out with my pastor and my church family so they can get to know you better? (This is only if he does not go to my church. If he does go to my church, I would suggest we hang out with people from church so that we can have a good community around us. Also, my current church ROCKS. :D)
During the relationship (as it progresses and gets more serious)
Do you have any previous relationships, and if yes, what were they like? If not, how were you spending your single years before our relationship?
What is your relationship like with your exes (if you have any)? What do they think of you (if you are still in touch with them)?
Why do you want to be with me?
Will you look past your own wants and needs and call me out if I begin to idolize our relationship over God, and do your best to help me keep on track?
What is it about me that attracts you to me and makes me someone you would potentially want to marry and spend a lifetime with?
What areas in my life do you think I need to grow and mature in?
I was definitely encouraged (and highly amused) by Pastor Justin’s talk, because even if it was quite ridiculous, there was a lot of good stuff in there. I would encourage all of my blog readers, regardless of your current relationship status, to think about what kinds of questions you would want to ask a potential boyfriend/girlfriend, or what you can ask a current partner in order to deepen your relationship with each other and spur one another on to doing good for God’s glory and not just your own.
It’s taking me a bit longer than I expected to write about the next topic in the 30-day blog challenge, so I’ll interrupt that with some geeky stuff!
Last week I was out for dinner with some friends and one of them mentioned a comic strip called “DM of the Rings”, which is a comic strip made of still-frames from “Lord of the Rings”, but in the style of Dungeons and Dragons. Now, I know very little about DnD, but from what I’ve gathered from reading through this strip as well as the Wikipedia entry for DnD, the Dungeon Master (DM) is in charge of the setting and overall storyline, and the people taking part in the story (the “characters”) attempt to fulfill quests and whatnot, each one being someone different and possessing various skills and tools and whatnot to contribute to the whole party.
Now, take that and apply it to LOTR, in which you now have characters who have no idea how the story is “supposed” to go, and bam! You have a hilarious comic strip! I quite admire the way Shamus Young (the author) works in various elements of LOTR as well as Monty Python, Doctor Who (yes you read that right!), and just making the players say ridiculously hilarious things. As I said, I know very little about DnD and have never played it before or anything similar, but I love LOTR a lot and I’ve been reading through it for part of today, and I’ve been rolling over laughing at every single strip. Shamus also writes funny little blurbs after each one, and the cool thing is that he’s also a Christian! The list of comics can be found here.
The geekiness isn’t done, though. After “DM of the Rings” wrapped in 2007, a few guys were so inspired by it that they decided to make their own based on Star Wars, and give it the clever name “Darths and Droids.” Theirs is a bit different since they have decided to make more of their own coherent storyline with theirs (while “DM of the Rings” follows the LOTR plot more closely), but it’s still quite funny. I’m not as big of a Star Wars fan as I am of LOTR, but I’m still giggling with all the strips for Darths and Droids (to start reading click here). So far, these guys have gotten through Episodes I – II and are partway through Episode III, and I’m looking forward to seeing what happens!
Alrighty, after a long hiatus, here comes the recommencing of the 30-day blog challenge! I can’t guarantee I will faithfully post every day, but I will try.
This post is going to be short, considering I don’t really know where I’d like to be in ten years. I love the city I live in now, and am having a fantastic time here, but as much as I love it, if God wants me to move somewhere else, I will go, because I believe that the safest place to be is in the will of God.
I do want to be married and have children, but as for where that will all happen, I don’t know and I don’t mind not knowing either. As I said, I’m open to moving to a lot of different places, and it depends on what my future husband and I are doing at the time. One thing is certain, though – wherever and whatever I am doing in ten years, I want it to be all for the glory of God, whether I am working in a secular or Christian environment. I want to continue to follow my passions and use my talents for Him. Hopefully in ten years, I will also know better how to use the gifts He’s given me to fulfill my purpose here.
So I’ve been gone for a while, and I apologize. The start of the 30-day blog challenge coincided with me cancelling my Internet at home (it’ll be back in January), which made it understandably difficult to blog. I also got REALLY busy in November/December wrapping some things up at work and church, plus I went to Hawaii for a week (OH YEAH!) and then flew home for Christmas, where I have been happily spending time with family and close friends.
I have not forgotten the 30-day challenge, but I will resume it relatively soon. In the meantime, the end of 2010 is upon us, and as usual (though through a blog this time), I am going to reflect on what has happened this year (with a little help from previous blog posts).
– I started a blog, which started the whole world laughing…right? (Or at least the people who have contributed to the 1152 hits this blog has had (!!) might think so). At the end of January 2010, I started this blog, and while I haven’t been as faithful to write in it as I would like, it has been a great outlet for my somewhat random and sporadic thoughts. Dear readers, thank you for your comments and for taking the time to read through what I’m up to.
– The OLYMPICS happened!!! February 2010 was possibly one of the most exciting months ever. As you may all recall, I LOVE the Olympics (and I have since I was about 8 years old) and I wrote blog posts every day (see here) summing up how Canada blew everyone out of the water with our amazing performance. In March, the Paralympics also happened, and it was fantastic to get into those games as well, because I realized how much heart and dedication those athletes are. I don’t think I’ve ever felt so patriotic as I did during those Olympic and Paralympic days.
– I have had a few trying times this year (as happens every year), which have made me realize more and more that I need to depend on God when they happen, instead of trying to fix them on my own or get annoyed. That being said, I’ve seen how I’ve grown in the past couple years in terms of how I deal with trying times – before, I would often yell and get mad at God for letting them happen, but now I tend to approach them as opportunities for me to grow. A good step forward, no? Thankfully God never changes and He’s always there for me, and patiently helps me to work on issues in my life. =D
– This past summer was probably one of the best in my life. I was able to go deeper in building relationships with new friends in my new city, and I just had the most fantastic time getting to know people and doing life with people (grocery shopping, coffee dates, making dinner, etc.). I also set achievable goals for the summer and completed most of them by summer’s end, which made me very proud! (See posts here.)
– In September I celebrated one full year living on my own! It has not been without its challenges, but I think I have learned a lot about juggling work, play, laundry, bill payments, budgeting, house cleaning, eating and sleeping! I’m still not quite “there” in terms of how much time I spend (or would like to spend) on each, but I’m working towards it. (See goals below.)
– I have become fairly involved in my church, which has been fantastic!! I feel so loved and accepted by everyone who is part of our small (but growing) congregation, and free to be myself. The best way to describe this church, I think, would be organic. We do have leaders in charge of the different teams (outreach, music and arts, admin, pastoral duties, kids ministry, etc.), but there is a very loose structure to everything. Trying lots of things and doing things differently is very much encouraged. It was a bit odd for me to get used to this, coming from churches that have more organization in terms of how things are done, but I really like the more loose feel at my church, because there’s a ton more room to experiment and diversify and do basically anything that’s in line with the core vision of the church. To church members who are reading this – LOVE YOU ALL! =D
– The overwhelming thing that happened to me this year, as evident by my blog posts, was that I was introduced to several bands/musicians that I absolutely LOVE…bands whose music has really resonated with me, whom I truly respect and admire, who truly have talent (unlike some popular music of today…), and (best of all) are still making music! Those bands are RUSH, Arcade Fire, Muse and Brooke Fraser (and possibly a few others I don’t remember at the moment). I will definitely do blog posts of the latter two artists in the New Year. Thank you to all my friends who introduced me to these great artists!
– Finally, I’ve been very content most of this year. I feel very secure in terms of knowing who I am and what I like to do (and not do). Knowing who I am has freed me from feeling pressure to conform to what others want of me, and I feel free as a bird to express myself while glorifying God. In that sense, it has been a most fulfilling, fun, sweet year. =D
So with a year like that, what do I want to see happen in 2011? Here are a few of my goals/resolutions:
– I am joining Beth Moore’s SSMT – “Siesta (Sister) Scripture Memory Team” for 2011! (h/t to Amanda for letting me know about this) The instructions are here. Basically, on the 1st and 15th of each month you are expected to comment on Beth’s blog post with the Bible verse you are going to memorize for the next two weeks. As often as possible, it should be a verse that speaks to your current walk with God (though nobody is going to check on you). So I am going to memorize 24 verses of the Bible in 12 months, starting tomorrow! I think it will be great because there is great power in memorizing Scripture, and having verses ready when the Enemy attacks. Okay, ready…set…go!
– I want to have a set time for studying God’s Word. I’m pretty undisciplined in this area, so I would like to spend at least 15-20 minutes every day in the Word. Not necessarily in the morning, but whenever during the day, I am going to spend that amount of time learning more from the Bible. (And likely some of that will be spent memorizing the 24 Scriptures I mentioned above!)
– I am going to do Interval and Century Training on my own! (IT link here, couldn’t find the right one for Century Training) I like these because I can do them whenever I want – in the morning when I get up, or in the evening before dinner. Interval training is a good cardiovascular workout (according to the Wikipedia link above), which I haven’t been doing at all. Century training is not me training to run or bike 100 miles, but me doing 100 sit-ups and 100 push-ups in a day, whenever I can. I could do 10, 20, 25 at a time, or however many I feel like, but the goal is to do 100 per day. This is apparently a very good thing to do during TV commercials, so couch potatoes, get active!
– This one will sound funny, but I need to clean my apartment on a more regular basis! So far, the only consistent chores I have done are dishes, laundry, garbage and cleaning the toilet. However, I find that I’m often tired at the end of the day and don’t want to clean, and I also don’t want to clean on the weekend because, well, I like to hang out with friends on the weekend. =D
Well, I think that’s all from me for now. A most Happy New Year to you and yours, whatever you are doing tonight!! Catch you in 2011!!
I am currently single and have been so for pretty much my entire life. I know some other 20-somethings might be shocked to read that, but it’s true – as of press time, I’ve never been in a serious dating relationship. 😛
Let me first be clear to say I don’t oppose dating and I don’t want to be single for the rest of my life – I do want to date a guy, get married and have kids (and hopefully sooner rather than later), but to my knowledge, he hasn’t arrived yet.
So how is single life? I can honestly say single life is FANTASTIC. Now, I don’t love it so much that I’d say no to a dating relationship with a guy I liked, but I truly do like being single. I haven’t always liked it, and I’ll admit that I sometimes get a bit jealous of my girlfriends who are in relationships, but overall I am satisfied being single. How is that possible, you ask? Well, the primary reason is my relationship with God. Ultimately, there is no relationship that can satisfy me more than this cherished one with my Saviour and Lord, who loved me before I was born (Psalm 139:13-16), sent His precious Son to die for me when I was living in sinful rebellion toward Him (“while we were still sinners, Christ died for us”), who has good plans for me (Jeremiah 29:11), who loves to help me walk in His ways (“I have no greater joy than this, that my children are walking in the light”), and many other things I can’t think of right now. No human relationship is or can be more fulfilling than this one, nor is it more important. I also want my future dating and subsequent marriage relationship to be based on Christ, and if my relationship with Christ is not healthy and growing, I will not be a good girlfriend or wife.
The single life has afforded me opportunities like no other to grow in my relationship with God and to allow Him to work in my life – weeding out deep-rooted sin, developing my talents and passions (music, chemistry, encouraging people, leading people in Bible studies, etc.), learning to develop better relationships with people, and overall learning a lot more about the often complex person that I am. I see now that if I had been in dating relationships in the past, I would not have been able to take the time to allow God to help me work on my weak areas or even to get to know myself better, because I would have been wrapped up in getting to know my boyfriend and focussing a lot of time and energy on that relationship. I’m not saying dating relationships are bad, just that it wouldn’t have been good for me in the past. And I am so thankful to God for lovingly keeping me from dating, because there have been several times where I thought I was ready to date someone, and each time God has said no so that He could patiently help me work out something I desperately needed to work on. It hasn’t been easy for me, because at those times I so strongly desired a dating relationship and got rather upset at God because I felt He was keeping me from something I was entitled to (which I’m not, by the way), and I couldn’t see why on earth He was doing it. But as time passed, He graciously revealed to me the many serious sins and weaknesses I needed to deal with and work through, and I realized it was in my best interests to not be in a dating relationship at the time. If I had gone against God and started dating a guy anyway, I would have been a bad girlfriend as I worked through my issues AND tried to have a healthy dating relationship. I’m not saying that you can’t work through personal issues while dating, but I do think that serious issues that affect how you relate to other people (not exclusively a boyfriend or girlfriend, but anyone), or even trying to figure out who you are and what you are, need to happen before you start dating anyone.
So to wrap up, I’m so grateful for the single life because I’ve been able to work on my relational skills and make solid friendships with both girls and guys, in addition to learning more about myself and more about the wonderful God I serve and love. I know that God is sovereign – He’s proved that time and time again – and if He wants me to marry, I can trust Him to bring a guy into my life at the right time. But for now – I’m single and happily mingling! 😀
The next artist in my “Feature artist” series is indie rock band extraordinaire Arcade Fire! I have to thank my wonderful friend Nathanfor introducing me to this great indie rock band back in August. I had never heard of them before that, probably because I don’t listen to much indie rock – you should all know by now that my taste in music leans heavily toward classic rock. At the time, Arcade Fire had 2 albums out, “Funeral” (2004) and “Neon Bible” (2007). My first impression was that I really disliked most of “Funeral” (“hated” is too strong of a word) because I thought it was WAY too trippy. Right off the bat with “Neighbourhood #1: Tunnels”, I was like “ummm what the heck?” I thought lead singers Win Butler and Régine Chassagne’s voices were weird, their overall sound was kind of strange and I didn’t understand the song at all. I did like “Wake Up” and “Haiti”, but I wasn’t a big fan of the rest of the album. I did like Neon Bible a lot, especially their exploration and take on religious topics and other things. There were still a couple of trippy songs (e.g. “Antichrist Television Blues” and “Black Wave/Bad Vibrations”), but they weren’t as weird-sounding to me as the songs on “Funeral.”
About a week or two after that, “The Suburbs” came out and I got that from Nathan as well. Let me tell you, it was INSTANT LOVE. Right from the first chord of the opening song “The Suburbs”, I was like “I love this band so much‼!” I could really identify with most of the songs, having grown up in the suburbs, and I loved their depictions of urban life – social constructs, feeling like an outsider if you weren’t “cool”, writing letters being a thing of the past, etc. I’ve listened to this album over 20 times straight through, and it’s fantastic. I also loved “The Wilderness Downtown”, an experiment that Arcade Fire and Chris Milk did with Google (link here). Let me tell you, it was a bit eerie to see the person in the video running through the streets where I grew up. You can see it here if you like, but be prepared – it’s crazy. And awesome.
In early September, I found out that Arcade Fire was touring “The Suburbs” near me, so my friend Ben (the same one who gave me tons of classic rock music, and a recent Arcade Fire fan) and I joined Nathan and a few other friends at the end of September to see them. Leading up to the concert, I had been listening to all 3 of their albums on repeat, forcing myself to sit through “Funeral” because I figured I should at least be familiar with those songs even if I didn’t like all of them. However, I sometimes skipped “Funeral” and just listened to “Neon Bible” and “The Suburbs”, and even when I did listen to “Funeral”, I was always so happy to hear the beginning of “Keep the Car Running” (the first song on “Neon Bible”) because it meant “Funeral” was over. Such was my dislike of that album.
And then something happened a day or two before the concert. Something strange and inexplicably wonderful happened.
I started to LIKE “Funeral”.
And not just like it.
LOVE it.
In fact, I found myself loving it almost as much as I loved “The Suburbs.” Crazy stuff, eh?
I’m not really sure WHAT that caused this sudden switch. Perhaps it was because I looked up the lyrics to some of the songs and realized what they were talking about, and how deep they were. Perhaps their weird sound took that long to grow on me. Somewhere along the way, I realized that I liked Win and Régine’s voices and that they were a perfect fit for their sound. I came to love the mix of unusual instruments like the glockenspiel, celesta and accordion, along with the keys, drums, violins and guitars. (Most of you probably didn’t know what those first two were, unless you’ve done some serious music studying, am I right? For my part, I had no idea what a celesta was until I looked it up.)
Anyway, I’m thankful this happened before the concert, considering they played 7 songs from “Funeral” (out of a possible 10). The concert, by the way, was FANTASTIC. Ben and I had seats WAY up in the nosebleed section because we bought tickets so late, but nonetheless, it was so great. Watching them perform is incredible, not just because they are phenomenal at singing and playing, but because most or all of them are multi-instrumentals. I swear, when the lights dimmed after every song, each member picked up a different instrument! It was also really fun to watch Régine dancing around during songs like “Haiti” and “Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)”, because she may not look like a “dancer”, but the way she moves her body to the beat of the song definitely matches whatever the song is about, and I quite like that. Also, there was some sort of technical difficulty during “We Used to Wait”, so the intro took longer than usual, and I found that quite funny!
Since the concert, I’m amazed to say I’ve had a RUSH-like experience with Arcade Fire – I can’t get enough of them and listen to them at least once a day! No, they have not replaced RUSH as my favourite band, but they DO rank very highly in my “favourite bands” list. I suppose it’s partly due to the fact that while they are musically different from RUSH, they have great lyrics that talk about a lot of different issues and topics, and it seems like every time I listen to them, I pick up on something new, which is also something that I love about RUSH. I’m so glad I’ve found a relatively young band that I like whom I will hopefully follow for many years to come!
As with all other Feature Artist posts, I’ll finish off by posting videos of five songs that I like in particular.
1. Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains) (from “The Suburbs”)
Oh man, I love this song so much. When I realized that it was talking about the sprawl of the suburbs, and how we sometimes can’t get away from the mentality of “the cool kids are in, the weird kids are out”, I was like YES. YES. YES. Or something like that. Sometimes I would really like to walk down the hallway where I work and have this song BLARING out, while I dance around and sing it as loud as possible. However, I do not think this is possible, as I would want to do it after hours when nobody else is around, and I don’t think there are any speakers in the hallway. Oh well.
Anyhow, here’s the video. This particular performance is from a recent Arcade Fire appearance on SNL, and it is SPECTACULAR. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Régine put so much emotion into this song. Unfortunately it’s been taken down on Youtube but it can be viewed here.
2. Neighbourhood #1 (Tunnels) (from “Funeral”)
I always have a wry smile on my face every time I listen to this song because was the first song I ever heard from Arcade Fire and it almost turned me off from listening to their music, as I mentioned above. 😛 In all honesty, I really do like this song now. It’s got a bit of an apocalyptic theme (at least from my interpretation of it) but is still hopeful. Hearing it at the concert was phenomenal, too. The video is kinda trippy, but hey, what else can you expect from these guys. 🙂
3. Rebellion (Lies) (also from “Funeral”)
According to Win Butler, this song is about how companies and other people are always trying to sell you something you don’t need, and that you need to get up and start pushing back at them, saying “Stop it! Stop it!” I really like how the keyboard part has the same note on top (B-flat for anyone who’s interested), but the chords keep changing underneath. I think that fits neatly into the song’s lyrics as well (the words and tactics may change, but the message is still the same – you need to buy A from B to be happy). The music video, which I’ve posted below, is chilling in how it drives the point home, but in a good way. Have a look.
4. My Body is a Cage (from “Neon Bible”)
I used this song recently on Facebook to describe how being sick was keeping me from going out this past weekend. (“My body is a cage that keeps me from going out…”) This is the closing song on “Neon Bible” and I like how it talks about how sometimes we feel paralyzed to do what we want to do or what we know needs to be done, but it isn’t our bodies paralyzing us – it’s our minds. I couldn’t find the official video, so here’s one with some random movie footage.
5. City with No Children (also from “The Suburbs”)
This song is about the city of Houston, where Win and his brother Will (who is also part of the band) grew up. This is the most played Arcade Fire song on my iTunes (currently 67 plays) and I just love it so much – the 3-beat intro, the melody, the haunting lyrics – all of it is great. I’ll leave it up to you to figure out what it’s about (other than the obvious).
So there you have it, my thoughts on Arcade Fire. The little Canadian (oh yes, Régine and possibly a few other band members are from Montreal and they are based out of that great city) indie rock band that I once hated, but now has a special place in my music-loving heart. 😀
I got this from my friend Hansen and thought I’d try it out as well, starting tomorrow. However, I KNOW I’m not going to be faithful to doing one each day because, well, when life gets busy I just stop blogging. However, I will write a blog post on these 30 topics within the next month and a half. These are pretty interesting and I’m looking forward to writing about each of them.
Day 01 – Your current relationship, if single discuss how single life is.
Day 02 – Where you’d like to be in 10 years.
Day 03 – Your views on drugs and alcohol.
Day 04 – Your views on religion.
Day 05 – A time you thought about ending your own life.
Day 06 – Write 30 interesting facts about yourself.
Day 07 – Your Myers Briggs Personality Type and if you think it fits your personality.
Day 08 – A moment you felt the most satisfied with your life.
Day 09 – How you hope your future will be like.
Day 10 – Discuss your first love.
Day 11 – Put your ipod on shuffle and write 10 songs that pop up.
Day 12 – Bullet your whole day.
Day 13 – Somewhere you’d like to move or visit.
Day 14 – Your earliest memory.
Day 15 – Your favorite blogs.
Day 16 – Your views on mainstream music.
Day 17 – Your highs and lows of this past year.
Day 18 – Your beliefs.
Day 19 – Disrespecting your parents.
Day 20 – How important you think education is.
Day 21 – One of your favorite shows.
Day 22 – How have you changed in the past 2 years?
Day 23 – Give pictures of 5 girls who are famous who you find attractive.
Day 24 – Your favorite movie and what it’s about.
Day 25 – Someone who fascinates you and why.
Day 26 – What kind of person attracts you.
Day 27 – A problem that you have had.
Day 28 – Something that you miss.
Day 29 – Goals for the next 30 days.
Day 30 – Your highs and lows of this month.
Tangential Thoughts 