Archive | October 2004

Rugby

Oct20

Thomas Hughes, author of Tom Brown’s Schooldays, was born on this date in 1822. In addition to writing the definitive fictional treatment of the boys’ public school experience in Victorian England, he also started a Utopian community in the mountains of Tennessee called Rugby, named after Dr. Thomas Arnold’s school for boys that is the subject of Tom Brown’s Schooldays.

It was to be a cooperative, class-free, agricultural community for younger sons of English gentry and others wishing to start life anew in America. At its peak, some 350 people lived in the colony. More than 70 buildings of Victorian design graced the East Tennessee townscape.

I am quite interested in intentional comunities, even those of the nineteenth century which rarely seemed to last as established communities. In fact, we were discussing these types of communities and the religious groups that started them in our American Literature discussion group today as we discussed Emerson, Thoreau, and the Transcendentalists. I would like to do a study of Utopian and planned communities and what causes them to fail or succeed or perhaps become manipulative cults.

May the Best Team Win!

Oct20

On the marquee sign of Clear Lake United Methodist Church, Houston, TX:

God loves both teams. . . .Go Astros!

In a similar vein:

God loves both Democrats and Republicans . . . Go George W. Bush!

Drummer Hoff Fired It Off

Oct19

Ed Emberly, children’s book illustrator, was born on this date in Massachusetts in 1931. He’s probably best known for his Caldecott Award winning book, Drummer Hoff. However, some of his most popular books around this house are his drawing books: Ed Emberley’s Drawing Book of Animals(1969), Ed Emberley’s Drawing Book: Make a World (1972), and Ed Emberley’s Great Thumbprint Drawing Book (1977). Karate Kid loves to sit down with a drawing book and produce a masterpiece.

Join Me in Glad Adoration #6

Oct16

There Shall Be Showers of Blessing

There shall be showers of blessing;
This is the promise of love;
There shall be seasons refreshing,
Sent from the Saviour above

Showers of blessing, showers of blessing we need
Mercy drops round us are falling,
But for the showers we plead.

There shall be showers of blessing
Percious reviving again;
Over the hills and the valleys
Sound of abundance of rain.

There shall be showers of blessing
Send them upon us, O Lord;
Grant to us now a refreshing
Come and now honor thy Word.

There Shall be showers of blessing;
Oh that today they might fall,
Now as to God we’re confessing,
Now as on Jesus we call.

Showers of blessing, showers of blessing we need
Mercy drops round us are falling,
But for the showers we plead.

I grew up in West Texas where the rains truly were a blessing, where we sometimes had to ration water, where the image of “showers of blessing” is and was a meaningful word picture of the spiritual refreshing that I need from the Holy Spirit. My father-in-law used to sing this hymn whenever it rained, and it always reminded me of the wonderful abundant grace of God that rains down on me everyday and of those special times of refreshing that come every now and then. Thank you, Lord, for the mercy drops and for the showers.

Whose Faith is Dead?

Oct14

“What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” James 2:14-17

Last night in the last presidential debate, John Kerry quoted a portion of this passage more than once. What exactly was he trying to say? I assume he was trying to imply that Bush shouldn’t just talk about his faith, but rather he should put his faith into action. But the Democrats ciritcize Bush for acting on what he believes as a Christian. No, wait, Kerry said he would never impose his own Catholic faith on others, would never let it influence the way he acts
 in regards to abortion or homosexuality. No, wait, I’m confused again because Kerry did say that his actions in the areas of environmental policy and anti-poverty programs were guided by his faith.
You figure it out. Key quotes from John Kerry:

What is an article of faith for me is not something that I can legislate on somebody who doesn’t share that article of faith.

And I think that everything you do in public life has to be guided by your faith, affected by your faith, but without transferring it in any official way to other people.

That’s why I fight against poverty. That’s why I fight to clean up the environment and protect this earth

So he can legislate Democrat-style anti-poverty programs, and he can try to pass laws that protect the environment because he’s being guided by his faith in those efforts. But he can’t try to protect unborn life or marriage between one man and one woman because he would be transferring his faith to other people. And Bush is the one who is confused about the relationship between religion and public policy?
With George W. Bush, what you see is what you get. If he believes something is right, he’ll try to get it done. You may not agree with him on issues, but at least he doesn’t try to draw some phony line between what he believes and what he he wants to do as president. At least, his faith isn’t dead. Key quote from Bush:

I never want to impose my religion on anybody else. But when I make decisions, I stand on principle, and the principles are derived from who I am. I believe we ought to love our neighbor like we love ourself, as manifested in public policy through the faith-based initiative where we’ve unleashed the armies of compassion to help heal people who hurt. I believe that God wants everybody to be free. That’s what I believe. And that’s been part of my foreign policy. In Afghanistan, I believe that the freedom there is a gift from the Almighty. And I can’t tell you how encouraged I am to see freedom on the march. And so my principles that I make decisions on are a part of me, and religion is a part of me.

Frodo Lives

Oct14

In his 30 years of teaching and writing about Tolkien, Wood has never grown tired of the trilogy. “After you’ve read a text several times, you begin to grow weary of it,” Wood said. “But “Lord of the Rings” is richer with every reading. You discover it has hidden depths.”

From a newspaper article about a lecture series on Tolkien by Baylor professor Ralph Wood.

I absolutely agree. A few people I know have said that they are tired of Tolkien after all the hype about the movies, but I think those who are “bored of the Rings” may be mostly those who have never read the books. Eldest Daughter will be taking a Tolkien course with this professor next semester. I’m jealous, but I expect to learn something vicariously.

Does Kerry Know Someone We Don’t Know?

Oct12

P.J. O’Rourke has a column posted entitled Putting Words in the President’s Mouth:
Sixteen obvious points that George W. Bush should make during the Wednesday night debate. Point #13 is this one:

(13) You say you’re going to get our friends and allies to take a bigger role in Iraq. Senator Kerry, what friends and allies? You’re a sophisticated fellow. You’re well-traveled and speak French. Are there some countries out there that you know about and the rest of us have never heard of?

I would add: France and Germany both have already said that they won’t send any troops to Iraq under any circumstances–whether Kerry is elected or not. So what “role” does Kerry have in mind for them? Chief consumers of Iraqi oil as soon as we get the pipelines pumping again? Or does he plan to bribe them as Saddam did? Is bribe money a line item in his budget plan?

Grammar: It Ain’t What It Used to Be

Oct12

Camille at BookMoot has a post with a list of children’s books about grammar and words. I have some of these; I want them all. Words can be so much fun. I would add Usborne’s book The Word Detective to her list. (I couldn’t find this book at Amazon or at the Usborne Books website. I guess it’s out of print?)
I really think playing with words should be at least half of teaching good grammar and English usage. Unfortunately, we don’t always get around to the playing part of our homeschooling; we’re so busy trying to keep up with the disciplined learning part. I think playing with numbers should be a big part of math education, too. So someone tell me how to cut loose and play sometimes without losing what little structure and discipline we have in this place. Good books are a start.

Women Voting

Oct12

Women are voting in large numbers in Afghanistan in a country where three years ago they couldn’t even leave their homes unescorted, couldn’t go to school, and couldn’t live in any semblance of freedom.

But what has been most remarkable is the large scale participation of women. In the northern Balkh province, women came out in their bridal finery – with beads around their necks and henna on their hands – to vote.
In Kabul, at the end of the day, emotional women told the BBC that it had been the most memorable day in their lives. Some of them were in tears. One old woman said she’d woken up early in the morning and then woke up her sisters saying: “We have to get out to vote. The future of Afghanistan is at stake.”

I got this via worldmagblog from the BBC blog about the elections in Afghanistan.

Years with Frog and Toad

Oct11

Thanks to Camille at BookMoot for the tip about the 25th anniversary of Arnold Lobel’s classic beginning reader, Days With Frog and Toad. I blogged about Lobel and the Frog and Toad books here. An article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette calls Lobel’s books “a rite of passage.”

In fact, it’s become a rite of passage for beginning readers to marvel at Frog’s ingenuity in waking up sleepy Toad in time to enjoy the spring, to laugh as Frog attempts to teach him about will power and cookies, and to cheer as Toad finally manages to get his kite aloft, thanks to a large dose of optimism supplied by Frog.

I just know they’re fun–and full of life lessons for all ages.