It must be one or the other.

Just last week, President Obama called on religious leaders to take on the healthcare debate by transforming it into a moral and ethical issue. And such a tactic is potentially effective if people begin to believe that the it's the government's responsibility to do so--that is what he wants, right?

But can Barack Obama legitimately call on the moral code of Americans and simultaneously tell world leaders that we are "no longer a Christian nation?" Something's gotta give here. The atheists in pluralist America would (or should) be deeply offended by being told it's their moral obligation to reform healthcare by promoting this public option. What if my "morals" are widely different than President Obama's morals? This is the problem we face by abandoning our explicitly Christian heritage.

And how is healthcare reform a "moral obligation," but protecting the lives of unborn children is not?

C.S. Lewis' perspective on literature:

“Literature exists to teach what is useful, to honor what deserves honor, to appreciate the delightful. The useful, the honorable, and delightful are superior to it [literature]. It exists for their sake. Its own use, honor, or delightfulness is derivative from theirsʼ.”

Punchdrunk Nostalgia...

One of the things the Lord has taught me this summer as I prepare to teach English again (it's been over a year since I've taught an English class) is this:

Show, don't tell.

For the math teacher, such a practice is easy--work through the difficult math problems with the students. For the chef, easy. Walk through the steps of a recipe with the learner. For the coach, easy. Demonstrate how to properly perform a layup for the athletes.

For English teachers, this means one thing: We have to write--about anything and everything, really. If we want our students to be effective writers--writers that will change the culture in which we live--we must be attempting the same. As Christians, our goal is to advance the kingdom of God by being faithful and wise followers of Christ. Nowhere in Scripture are we given permission to sigh, wash our hands of the world we live in, and refuse to become informed, involved believers.

In my preparation for the beginning of the school year, I re-read a wonderful passage from Gene Veith's Reading Between the Lines. The book is a call for Christians to once again become readers--readers of books that are true, good, and beautiful. We are, he argues, people of the Book. God designed His Word to be written and recorded for us to read and teach to our children and our children's children. And that means we must be readers.

My goal this year as I begin my third year of teaching is to show my students what they need to learn, not merely tell. My goal for them is that they develop a love for the true, the good, and the beautiful in the written word (both their own and the words of the great authors).


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On an entirely separate note...

At random moments throughout my day, I will be stopped with a specific memory of my time in London. I love those moments but I also wish I never had them. It will be a while before Michael and I make it back over the Great Ocean, but I stumbled upon a review of the play "Faust" which we saw in London, and I wanted to share the article with you.

The link is below.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/17/theater/17glus.html?_r=1

It was written on December 17, 2006, only a few weeks after we had seen the play. Taken from Goethe's Faust, the play tells of a man who, in a quest for unlimited knowledge and power, sells his soul to the devil. You can only imagine what horrors follow.

Set in an abandoned warehouse, the play ran through two times over a 90 minute period, and it was wholly interactive. You could travel freely through various rooms of the warehouse and catch a scene taking place. Once the actors ran from the room, you had the freedom to follow them (if you could keep up) or find another room to enter, where other actors performed a different snippet from the play. Like a puzzle, you had to sort the pieces together to develop an understanding of the play itself. This was definitely one of my favorite experiences while in London.

A copy of the play is available on DVD through the punchdrunk.org, but you have to become a member of their "Friends of Punchdrunk" to get a copy (for a mere 20 pounds, or 40 USD).

Thoughts from a History teacher...

In his inaugural address over 200 years ago, Thomas Jefferson, probably not a believer, said this about government:

"A wise and frugal government, which shall leave men free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor and bread it has earned - this is the sum of good government."

As Barack Obama swore an oath today to "protect, preserve, and defend" the Constitution this morning in front of millions of people (odd in itself since he believes the document is "fatally flawed")*, so many Americans echo the cry of Jefferson in what constitutes "good government." Imagine a world where government allowed its citizens to live without interference--in business, in healthcare, in education. Two hundred years ago, those men who shaped our government desperately wanted a government institution that punished evildoers and protected its people--that's it! There are countless examples of presidents like James Madison and Thomas Jefferson vetoing bills that they deemed "unconstitutional" because they were outside of the federal government's jurisdiction. Look at just a few of the quotes from our founding fathers and former presidents:

"I can find no warrant for such an appropriation in the Constitution, and I do not believe that the power and duty of the General Government ought to be extended to the relief of individual suffering which is in no manner properly related to the public service or benefit."
-- President Grover Cleveland vetoing a bill for charity relief (18 Congressional Record 1875 [1877]

"Those who would give up essential Liberty to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
-- Ben Franklin, Respectfully Quoted, p. 201, Suzy Platt, Barnes & Noble, 1993

"I cannot find any authority in the Constitution for public charity. [To approve the measure] would be contrary to the letter and spirit of the Constitution and subversive to the whole theory upon which the Union of these States is founded."
-- President Franklin Pierce's 1854 veto of a measure to help the mentally ill.

How vilified would our President be if he refused to give government money towards healthcare? He would be seen as arrogant, selfish, and evil. The media would destroy him. And yet so many of our former presidents feared gratuitous interference by the federal government.


Nevertheless, Neal Boortz, however polarizing he is, made a good comment about today's historical events:
"The institution is larger than any man, and any man in that office deserves our respect: Perhaps not our support at all times, but always our respect."

It is good to be reminded of that, and despite my disapproval of virtually everything Barack Obama says, he is our President and he deserves my respect.

Reverend Joseph Lowery, however, does not. As a white person (which makes me evil, in case you did not know), I took serious offense at his closing remarks this morning during his benediction following Obama's speech:


"....help us work for that day when black will not be asked to give back, when brown can stick around, when yellow will be mellow, when the red man can get ahead, man, and when white will embrace what is right."

His assumption is that over the course of history, white men and women have rejected what is right, what is moral, what is just. If we have still not "embraced what is right," then what exactly was happening when thousands of American men gave their lives to prevent the Nazi world from taking over? And what was happening when William Wilberforce abolished the slave trade in England in the 19th century? Or when Jim Elliot selflessly gave his life to evangelize to the Waodani people in Ecuador?

The list goes on, folks; he should have thought more carefully before he said what he said. But of course, the media refuses to address these issues--for now we must continue to idolize Barack Obama by shooting footage of weeping women waving their American flags with Obama’s picture plastered over the stars and stripes. We must continue to honor him, not because of the “content of his character, but because of the color of his skin.” Martin Luther King, Jr. would be ashamed.

*http://www.examiner.com/x-1597-Charlotte-Law--Civil-Rights-Examiner~y2008m11d3-Obamas-AntiCivil-Rights-Movement)

Christmas 2008 and a New Year!

After two relaxing weeks of break, I returned to work ready for another semester. Christmas break was incredibly relaxing, and Michael and I really enjoyed the time off that we got to spend together. His parents gave us a wonderful gift: money to buy a coffee table! We found one at Rooms-to-Go, although there was a slight misunderstanding with the one we unpacked in our living room and the one we ordered, so the right coffee table is going to be delivered this Saturday.

Owning a home (well, almost owning a home--in 30 years) gives us so much to be thankful for. Just last week, he and I sat on our couch and commented on how much of our "home furnishings" we owe to others, whether it be hand-me-downs or gifts.

Even though we made this purchase back in November, our Christmas gift came in the form of a golden retriever/lab that we adopted from the nearby animal shelter. We kept it a secret from Michael's guy friends who love giving him a hard time about his tendency to buy on impulse and regret the decision later (as evidenced by our Great Dane whom we owned for 3 days back in April). She is affectionately called London, and I am convinced that the Lord made her calm, docile, and sweet--knowing that I couldn't handle much more than that. Haha. All in all, we've had very little destructive behavior, save the chewed dry-wall in the garage and the strip of carpet that evidently tasted so good she had to pull it up. She's certainly not a great dane but playful enough that Michael and I really enjoy her company. Seriously, in a million years, I never imagined that owning a dog (or in pet lover terms, "a new addition to the family") would be so much fun.

On another note, I'd like to remove all doubt about whether or not I've become an old married lady. Yes, I think I have, and here's why. I play the Grocery Game. If you think that sounds like some sort of Supermarket Sweep board game, you're wrong! My dear friend Shannon told me about the Grocery Game back in November, and since then I have saved hundreds of dollars at the grocery store--a cause totally worth being called an old married lady.

The website is www.grocerygame.com if you're interested. The idea is to buy items at their lowest price (using coupons and the sales at the grocery) so you begin "stockpiling" instead of need shopping. It takes a little bit of time to build up to that point, but eventually you're spending virtually no money because you already have a mini-grocery at your house. If you're willing to take the time to do it, you will find that it's totally worth it! Just last week, I spent $36 dollars at Lowes Food and saved $31. This week I spent $40.59 and Harris Teeter and saved $30.96. There are times when good coupons fall on the same week as a super-sale item and you get it for free. So I have become one of those people who clip coupons, stroll slowly through the grocery store while flipping through the pages of my coupon book. Fun!

*Baby It's Cold Outside*

This Christmas season has been fun for us in a lot of ways, one of them being the ability to decorate our new home. Michael insisted that we buy a real tree, and as of today, the tree is still a rich green color and it still smells like fresh pine! We have begun a new tradition of collecting an ornament every year (my parents did this, too)... here are a few pictures from this holiday season. Merry Christmas everyone!

*12.1.2007*

One year ago today, our lives were changed forever when the Lord allowed us to
become husband and wife.

One year later, here we are!  Having dated for 5 years before
marriage,there was not much to learn about Michael
post-wedding, although you are never prepared for the
adjustment of living 24/7 with your spouse.  For the
huge adjustment that it is, I have been blessed with
a husband who makes it very easy.  I'm amazed by his
incredible patience with me.  I am proud of who he
is as a husband, worker, son, and sibling (both
with his own family and with mine). One day, when
the Lord chooses to bless us with children, he will
be a wonderful father. In my short 365 days of marriage,
here are some lessons that I have learned:

1.  Keep small accounts.  The more you harbor inside,
the more unhappy you both are.
2.  Lighten up.  Have fun together.  Laugh about
the things that won't matter a week from now (yes,
I realize I need to take this advice to heart... I am
working on it!).
3. Show humility.  However difficult it is to say sorry,
DO IT.   Michael is so good at this, even when he knows
I am at fault--this amazes me about him.
4.  Recognize your differences... and there are plenty. 
Be flexible and considerate of those differences.

Michael, thank you for a wonderful first year of marriage. 
Thank you for being a faithful husband, in thought, word,
and deed.  I love you!

Here are some wonderful memories from the past year:

Honeymoon in Jamaica.... :)

About 3 hours after we were married... arriving at the Westin in Charlotte :)

Gatlinburg, TN with Rachel and Eric:

The Beach, 2008 with my side of the family....
Photography, courtesy of Tara Molles:

Atlanta, GA...
Fort Macon, NC... Michael's "business trip"... :)

Our first "mini-moon" in Asheville... winter 2008