thoughts....

where is the christian voice and outrage in the midst of the danish cartoon mess?

where is the christian voice that condemns the actions of the danish press?

why aren't christians protesting the cartoon images made of mohammed?

why aren't christians standing up for the oppressed? the marginalized?
yes, even for the muslim?

blessed is the peacemaker (Matt. 5:9)

is 'silence' the voice of a peacemaker?

have we fallen prey to the 'us-them' mentality?

we have become numb and desensitized to the pain inflicted on others. it doesn't matter if it's a comment, a cartoon, a crime....

"as long as i can speak and act in ways that promote my self-preservation and rights..."
"as long as i can do as i want..."
"as long as my right to speak and act as i want is not being challenged or taken away...."

how often have you heard that? maybe even thought it?

when will i realize that my actions have consequences?
when will i realize that my actions have an effect on someone else?
when will i take other people into consideration?
will i always insist on my rights? on my voice?

what am i afraid of?

where is my voice?

when will north american christians finally wake up and speak out against the injustices of this world? when will we look beyond our north american border and actually confront the oppressors (even if it is recognizing that we may be the oppressor)? when will we find our voice?

sometimes i think we (as christians) buy into the scare/fear tactics of the religious right.... are we afraid of another 9/11? how can we believe the lie that all muslims/arabs are terrorists? is that why the patriot act has so much support in christian conservative circles? jennie's friend is right.... the laws we write into effect now will only come back to haunt us - and we will be on the receiving end....

the US is not any more blessed by God than any other nation or people.... how dare we think so arrogantly?

we are a secular, relativistic nation.

i'll get off my soapbox now.... but i'm interested in any thoughts you may have..... these are rumblings in my mind.... things to mull over and process.... to sort through.... i dont have all the answers.... and you may disagree with me... much of this seems accusatory..... but it's time.... it's really time to start being followers of jesus and not followers of man-made doctrines and laws....

An: Andreas Horeld

andy h. ~ bitte, bitte schicke das Foto!!! bin ganz gespannt!!! (mel will auch ein Kopie!)

don't let me wait too long! ;)

should i be concerned?

hmmmm.... so, this is the second class to be cancelled this week... ususally i wouldn't think twice about it... i'd probably even relish in it... however, since these are 4 hour class sessions.... i'm starting to get a bit worried about the disorganization found here..... this morning we sat through 25 min of waiting before someone told us class doesn't start this week... course it wasn't communicated to any of us.... it is just one of many little situations where the disorganization of SIT seems to be coming through... scary for a grad program..... sigh....

my mediation class will be only the second class i have had all week long.... :)

maybe i will relish in it a bit....

another virus of sorts....

there's something else in the air besides the bird flu virus.... it's the engagement frenzy!!! i kidd you not, when i tell you that in the last four days, six couples have announced/confirmed their engagements.... all people i highly value and treasure.... people who have impacted my life in one way or another and in different phases of my life!! but 6 in 4 days.... isn't that amazing??? congrats to all of you!!!

on a side note, though, i confess that i dont know if it's a feeling of being overwhelmed by all of this news that is settling on me, if i'm frantically trying to get on the moving train, or if i'm still feeling too [fill in the blank] for all of this.... i don't know.... wow....... wow..... wow......

thanks to brad, amy and mom for helping me understand that i'm in the lord's will right now... and there's no better place to be......

so, again, congrats to all of you out there..... i'm sooooooooooooo excited for each of you!!!!!!!!!!!

[and for any of you other yahoos who think that you have something to announce to me, please wait at least another 5 months.... ;)]

there is just something very peaceful about this picture.... i took it today after lunch while strolling through the woods with some friends.... the more i look at the pic and ponder it, the more i'm drawn into the serenity of it....

for those of you wondering....

folks (especially andy!!) .... in case you were wondering if henno ever made the friday deadline... ummmmm.... no.

however, he did just post on sunday a lovely pic on his blog, so if you click on the nice h23bubbles.blogspot.com (or on the link provided on the right... just click on 'henno') then you'll see the wonderful pic of julie and henno. you guys make a nice couple!!

thanks, henno, for making me go dig for it... hahahahhaha... i told you i'd get word out.... ;)

my other side....

whew.... so i feel like i'm living a double life now that i've activated another blog.... in some strange way, i feel like i'm cheating on my beloved 'chickenscratch'...

no worries, i will maintain the random ramblings on 'chickenscratch' as well as the occasional post on www.xanga.com/otomotis

i just don't have it in me to be unfaithful..... chickens and ducks.... (and yes, amy.... my first permanent summer back in mi will bring a little duckling my way..... i promise!!)

decisions, decisions....

argh..... why??? i swear, sometimes i have the hardest time making decisions.... well, actually it's more of always wanting to leave the backdoor open for something else... just... in... case.... rediculous, actually. especially when i already know what i want to do... but then always feel like i have to think it over and over and over.... and i end up going back and forth.... even though i know what i will do, i always feel like i'm letting people down.... and where do boundaries come in?? ... why can't i just say 'no'??? sigh.... this indecisiveness definitely seems to be the long road .... i think this is hereditary.... i got it from my parents and it'll probably get passed on to the next generation after me... sigh.... this is crazy... it urks me to no end in terms of my parents and then i fall into the same traps.... argh!!!!

henno, you are in big, big trouble.....

sigh... i'm so ready to get back to michigan.... my friends are living their lives without me!!! ;)

i know that sounds selfish.... hahahahahahaha..... i just miss you guys way too much!

yesterday i FINALLY was clued in that henno has started to date someone... after what? 6 weeks?? i mean, come on, henno, you are one of my best friends and you can't pick up the phone to call me and tell me??? and maggee, what are you thinking??? you are supposed to keep me posted especially on news such as this! bah!! my question is... andy or phung, did the news travel your way already??

after years of sitting through skiles with you two boys... that's all you can offer??

okay.... well, so much for being in on the loop!! hahahahahaha

henno, you have until friday to send me the picture! don't forget!!!

red

that special place....

do you have a place that you escape to? a place that is just your place? a place where you can let down your guard, not worry about what people think, say or do? a place that you don't want to run into anyone you know.... a place that you might not want to take others to? a place that is so familiar to you that it allows you to dream... to remember... to meander....

my friend, emma, just wrote about her special place... it was so descriptive that i longed for that place myself.... i wish i could 'return,' though i've never been there myself....

and then i remembered one of my own places that i used to have while growing up.... my quiet place was in the horse barn, curled up in a corner, smelling the mixture of sweet hay and straw, feeling the gentle breath of the horse on my face, hearing the grinding of the hay in the horse's jaw, and knowing that i was safest there.... a place where i was understood... a place where i could dream.... a place where i could cry... a place that i could get away....

it seems like it's been a while since i've had a place to escape to... no horsebarn to sit in.... i miss that.

red

food for thought....

here is the most bizzare of all fortune cookie tags i have ever come across.....

If you think you are too small to be effective,
You have never been in bed with a mosquito.

clever, isn't it?? i mean, the more i think about it, the more it makes sense.... mosquitos are pesky little critters... either they zoom around by your ear all night long, or they bless you with bites all over the place... they don't go away... until they get squashed....

let's hope we don't get squashed in the midst of trying to be effective agents of change!