Compassion

As some of you already know, I am an Advocate for Compassion International.  For those of you who don't know, Compassion is a Christian child sponsorship organization that provides healthcare, supplemental food, education, etc. to children in the poorest countries in the World.  My favorite promotional video is this one: http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=180351094789

Last night, Compassion put on a special event here in Atlanta that I was very fortunate to be a part of.  They began with the stories of two different teenage girls: the first one raised $40,000 for a program in Kenya and the second was raising awareness and funds for malaria in Africa.  Very inspiring stories.

However, the main speaker for the night was Ricmond Wandera, who is one of the four individuals featured in the video link above.  There are no words to describe the magnitude of his story.

His father was murdered in Uganda when he was 8.  Richmond, his mother, and his six siblings were forced to moved to the slums because they couldn't pay the rent.  During that time, many of his friends died of malaria, diarrhea, and other preventable deaths.   Fortunately for him, he was enrolled in a Compassion project in Uganda where he was sponsored by a 15 year old girl.

After being sponsored, he was singled out for his leadership qualities and became a part of the Leadership Development Program (LDP) where he was able to get a Bachelor's degree in Accounting while being mentored.  He graduated first in his class.  He became the youth leader at the Church that he use to be a sponsored child at.  He is currently one of four LDP graduates who was selected for a special scholarship for a Master's degree at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago.  He currently promotes Compassion and plans to return back to Uganda to be a leader.

He shared that sponsorship changes 3 groups
1.  The sponsored child
2.  The sponsor
3.  The Body of Christ -- he shared how his mother and all 6 of his siblings became a Christian as a result of the act of this one 15 year old girl

I get to do concerts and events from time to time.  Last year I heard the musician Shaun Groves speak on Compassion.  He talked about how his family had decided to move to a smaller house and move from two cars to one car and lived simpler.  It was incredibly convicting to me.  I knew that I should give up my monthly cable bill.  I loved watching Mike and Mike in the morning on ESPN, but that was money being spent that could be going for something way better.  When I thought about it rationally, I knew what the right thing to do was, but I still wanted to hang on to a comfort.  So it took me a couple of months, but I ended up doing it.  It's easy to pretend like it's some great sacrifice, but hearing stories like Richmond's only emphasizes how little I know about sacrifice.

As an advocate, I have an amazing opportunity to present to different groups on what is Compassion is about.  If you know of any group at all that would be open to having a presenter, I would love to come and talk about Compassion.  If you're in another city from me, I can find someone who will be able to come.  And even if only 1 child becomes sponsored as a result, that is at least 1 more life that is saved.

Playing in the snow...

I get excited by snow -- maybe not as excited as I use to when I would drop anything for the nearest snowball fight (I did grow up in Florida after all).  While work and other sorts of grown up obligations make it more difficult, I still make a point to enjoy the few snowfalls I get in some manner.

Today, I decided to go down to Piedmont Park to enjoy the snow.  The wind chill was brutal, but I bundled up and went for a stroll; there is something so beautiful about a new snowfall.  After I had wandered around for a bit, I came across a hill that several people were sledding down.  I stayed and watched for a while.  I thought about how much fun it would be to enjoy something like this with someone else.  It is so much more fun to let out that inner child when you have someone else to enjoy it with.  Given that I was by myself (and that I also didn't have a sled), I just watched.

There were two groups that caught my attention.  The first was two young girls, who I assumed to be sisters, who were sliding down together sitting up on the same sled.  They were laughing and having so much fun.  The second group was a father and his young daughter sliding down together.  He was face first on the bottom of his sled while she rode on his back.  These two groups made me think about being a father.  I want to be the father who doesn't get upset about icy roads, but seizes the opportunity to go out and have a fun afternoon with his daughter.  Those are the memories that you don't forget.  The two girls just seemed to capture childhood so well.  Sometimes life is just about having fun and laughing and nothing more.

Well, I didn't come to the park to just muse about life and fatherhood and whatever else; I came to enjoy the snow!!  I continued walking and started throwing snowballs at inanimate objects.  I marched onto the fields at the park that were already speckled with snowmen.  I got on my knees and started making a snowman.  It then occurred to me that he needed arms.  And then I thought it would be pretty fun to put my beanie, scarf, and sunglasses on him.  I hate to brag, but it was a pretty sweet looking snowman!

I don't ever want to forget to make these moments a part of my life.  In fact, these moments are usually the only things I remember later on.  I barely remember any of my classes, but I do remember flapping my arms and squawking loudly like a hawk in Red Square.

"In the short term it would make me happy to go play outside. In the long term, it would make me happier to do well at school and become successful. but in the very long term, i know which will make better memories." -- Calvin and Hobbes.

Breaking down the barriers

It seems to me that God has really been working in my heart.  There are far more examples than I can cover in this blog.  A few weeks ago, I was riding on MARTA to the airport.  It is not uncommon to have a homeless person stand up in a car and make a speech for money before moving on to the next car.  On this day, I pulled out my Bible to do some reading.  A homeless man sitting across the way from me saw this and got very excited.    He started motioning and pointing towards my Bible with a sense of joy in his spirit.  He came over to me and handed me a piece of cardboard saying that he was deaf and homeless and needed some money to shower and get a place to stay.  He even mimed like he was showering.  Being put on the spot, I took a few moments and decided to pull out my wallet where I found a $1 bill and $5 bill.  I'm ashamed to say that my mind flashed to an email exchange I had with another person where I mentioned giving a homeless person a $5 bill.  Because of this, I gave him the $5 bill.  Again he got very excited and pointed up in the air towards God and then he came over and gave me a hug.

Later, after I had gotten off the train at the airport, a woman came up to me.  Her and her friend had been sitting down the car a bit facing me.  I was very bewildered as she tried to give me a $20 bill.  She said something to the effect that I had been very gracious to the man and that she had been moved by it.  She kept on insisting that I take the $20.  As I tried to object, she told me to give it to someone who needs it and she left.

Last night, I had the incredible privilege to join a group from my Church to bring and eat dinner with the men of Trinity House Big Bethel.  This is a shelter and rehabilitation program for men on the streets -- many who have come from a background of alcoholism and drug addiction.  I have rarely seen such joy and warmth and service that I saw in these men.  Special things are happening here!  At the dinner, we all went around and shared our stories.  After each of us said our name, the whole group would say "Hey [insert name]!"  And then the evening concluded with the Power Clap, which was full of awkward dancing.and great laughter.

As much as I hate to say it, stereotypes plague my mind.  As I looked for a parking spot before dinner, I suspiciously eyed the men loitering on the street.  God is trying to teach me that people like these are no worse than any other person that I encounter.  They are loved by him and can teach me much.  We let fear and stereotypes consume us and we put up barriers up to try and protect ourselves.  What am I protecting myself from?  If God is on my side, whom shall I fear?  Slowly, he is chipping away at my heart of stone and teaching me the value of love and relationship to all I encounter.

The last couple of weeks, I've carried around that $20 bill in my pocket as a somber reminder of that day on the train.  To look at it is to see my judgments of people and the barriers that are still in my heart  I'm not sure what I am going to do with it, but perhaps it will be used to break down some more barriers.

What's your story?

I have this friend Sara Toguchi who is one of those people who can only be described as one of a kind -- you just have to know her.  One of the things she often does when first meeting someone is asking them "What's your story?".  It is always rather blunt and comical and usually puts the person on the defensive.  It is remarkably efficient at cutting out the small talk, but it also inadvertently draws attention that we all have a story.

I just finished the latest Donald Miller book A Million Miles In A Thousand Years and it blew me away.  It's the best Miller book I have read -- yes, that means better than Blue Like Jazz (gasp).  I really liked the Publishers Weekly review:  "Readers who loved Blue Like Jazz will find here a somewhat more mature Miller, still funny as hell but more concerned about making a difference in the World than in merely commenting on it". 


The book is all about story and about how we are all living a story.  The only problem is that many of us are leading a boring story that isn't going anywhere.  He offers the following definition: "A story is a character who wants something and overcomes conflict to get it".  I really like what he had to say about conflict in the great stories.  "Somehow we realize that the great stories are told in conflict, but we are unwilling to embrace the potential greatness of the story we are actually in.  We think God is unjust, rather than a master storyteller".


He goes on to talk about how our stories can be about wanting a Volvo or being a couch potato or we can instead look for the epic stories full of memories, meaning, and relationships.  Learning about story led him to pursue three different stories: riding a bike across America, finding his father, and one about a girl.  Eventually he comes across what he calls his epic story, which was starting up a program called The Mentoring Project that provides mentors for boys without fathers.  This is a program that is being run through local Churches nationally. 


And so that is the challenge for us.  Our story can be about nothing in particular or we can strive to find greater stories in our lives.  It won't be as easy as plopping on the couch in front of the t.v. -- in fact, it probably won't be easy at all.  There will be conflict and hard work and plenty of distractions.  But think about your favorite stories: books, movies, whatever...the best stories are never easy for the protagonist.

Chasing Clowns

A little while ago I was at a benefit concert for anti sex trafficking.  It was a good thing with some great musicians that I enjoy listening too.  The funny thing was there was a stretch with a lot of depressing breakup songs and he even cracked a joke about it.  I wouldn't have thought much of it except that I had been at another concert several weeks prior where it was even more obvious.  Now I've been jaded by girls plenty myself and I can appreciate a good breakup song as much as the next guy, but there was something stirring inside of me that shouldn't we have something else to write about?  I don't know God or family or even yellow submarines.

I started thinking about this idea of heartbreak just not seeming so important anymore.  And then for some reason, this got me to thinking about Camp Side By Side -- a camp for kids with cancer that is very close to my heart.  I started thinking about the many stories we've all heard of the person everyone loves slowly dying in front of all their friends and families -- the story where they are the beacon of strength and clarity and joy.  I ended up writing a poem about it.  The funny thing about this poem was my favorite line was the line "Chasing Clowns".  I have never seen a terminally ill child chase a clown, but that line seemed to capture everything I was trying to say so perfectly and so vividly.

Chasing Clowns
Growing pale
Looking frail
Finding joy left within

Seizing time
Making rhyme
Smile so big

Laughing, playing
Like we did back when

Hearbreak, traffic jams, dollar bills
Just don't seem so important anymore

Not held down
Chasing clowns
Fooling us around

Teaching us
Refusing fuss
Just the way things are

It will soon be done
But not before some fun

Need not cry
All must die

Going for it all...

A couple of months ago I went bowling with some folks from my apartment complex.  When I go bowling, a game is a complete failure if I don't crack triple digits.  The first game I'm bowling okay and I need something like 8 pins in the final frame to get 100.  So what do I do, I step up and come up 1 short to get a 99!!  I am utterly crushed and looking for a reason to live.

But the real story is what happens next.  I don't mess around when it comes to bowling.  I don't try anything crazy because I don't want to throw a 50 up there.  But I am just so jaded and dispirited by my 99 that all rules are off.  Everyone knows that all the pros bowl with spin so I decide I'm just going to do it because I don't care anymore.    Let me preface this by saying at this point I've probably tried spinning a ball 3 times in my life so I have no idea what I'm doing. But the stars aligned, I went out and bowled a 165, the highest score of my life!  I bowled 4 strikes in one game -- this has never happened before!

So the obvious metaphor here is that sometimes you just have to go for something instead of playing it safe.  This has certainly been true of my life where most of my childhood, my hearts playing career, and various other points in my life I've been too afraid to go for it.  I see it all the time in tennis where I start playing not to lose instead of playing to win -- and then of course I lose.

But here's the crazy thing, I just went bowling again last Thursday.  At this point I'm walking on a water because I'm coming off a 165.  This happens to be a guy / girl mixer and I'm talking up my new found spinning expertise.  So what do I do?  I step up and roll a 148.  Pretty solid score, almost all the balls are right on target -- this spinning thing has got a future in my life.  But then game 2 comes and all a sudden I've lost it.  Balls were finding the gutter, they weren't spinning back far enough, it was just a mess.  I was like Samson with his hair cut off!  Somehow I salvaged a 106.  So game 3 comes up with a very important bet on the line and I need a big game. I have faith in the way of the spin so I stick with it.  Even worse, I bowl a 92.  I'm already a Has Been four games into my spin career.

So what's the lesson here?  I'm not really sure.  Go for broke and prepare for when broke comes along.

Irishisms revisted

I was visiting an old friend from Belfast the other day who reminded me of a recurring email segment that I use to do in Ireland called "Irishisms of the Week".  Considering that it is by far the most read thing I've ever written, I've decided to compile an anthology.  Since I am lazy, this is largely unedited.

11/25/05 Happy White Thanksgiving

Irish Spellings: Tyres, Cheque, Colour

Pronounciations: Croissant (said with a french accent...and I thought they didn't like the French), vit- (like fit) amins, and Nike (pronounced like Pike and this is an American company!

Definition  bap - hamburger bun or some sort of breaded food...(I think)

12/20/05 There's no "happy" in Christmas

Through my travels of the UK, I have heard or seen the phrase "Happy Christmas" more times than I can count.  Well, I have quickly chastised the locals and pointed to "We wish you a Merry Christmas" and every Christmas movie I can think of to illustrate my point...so there you go.

Most people consider themselves British and not Irish (although they can get Irish passports)

C.S. Lewis was born and raised in Belfast

"Tea" can refer to well tea or more oftenly dinner

The keyboards are almost identical, except that some genius thought it would be funny to switch the ' @ ' and '  "  '  keys

Taking your hand and putting up two fingers (like the sign for smoking or the number two if you were counting) is like flipping someone the bird -- even though you can do that as well

Locals will be highly amused if you ever use the words "fanny" or "pants" in a sentence

platform = stage

gallery = balcony (nothing like someone telling you to put away the "platform" or to get something from the "gallery" and you just staring blankly back at them.

main Church = Sancutary

car park = parking lot

Christmas dinner = really big 4 course meal with more forks than I know what to do with

brill = brilliant = well done

2/7/06 mourning the Hawks in Belfast...
-- repeating yourself
e.g. I went to the store so I did...I've got a paper to write so I do

skip = dumpster

fit = hot, attractive, etc.
e.g.  Wow, that girl's really fit

celidh (caley) = traditional Irish Dance

2/26/06 Postal Strike is over!!

If you meet anyone named Sam, their name can only be pronounced "Psalm"

This place could really use a lesson in road signs.  Apparently, they
thought it was a good idea to place an obscure sign on a building side
at either end of a street and to ignore the 25 BLOCKS in between!
(rule also applies to London)

It's just not a sandwich unless it has butter and lots of butter on
it.  This phenomenon also extends to buttering hot dog buns with hot
dogs on them...I kid you not.

"cheeky" -- roughly equivalent to "sassy", but not really negative
"slagging" -- poking fun at a friend
Both words tend to get used around me quite a bit, and I also seem to
be developing a reputation at being around the girls -- I don't know
how these things get started

"yer man" -- could be anyone from a friend, to the president, to
anyone with loose ties to you..."Yer man George Clooney is up for best
Director at the Oscars, so he is"

Random Steve quote of the week: (new section devoted to my Northern
Irish co-worker Steve Kee who may just be my hero in life)

 "The early bird gets the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese"

3/6/06 working for the IRA...

I'm convinced that there are more KFCs in Northern Ireland than in all
of Kentucky (on a side note, this guy from Kentucky brought a bucket
of the Colonel's finest to an International food fest...hillarious)

Ulster = essentially Northern Ireland (but not exactly)
Ulster fry = heart attack on a plate -- eggs, bacon, sausage,
pancakes, soda bread, potato bread, beans, tomatoes, mushrooms, etc.
ALL FRIED (seeing a theme?)

nackard = tired
snog = kiss
mucker = friend -- and to think that it sounds so derogatory

ack = random filler with no discernable meaning -- often used before
the word 'no'

Guy 1: Hey mucker, you look nackard.  Were you snogging last night?
Guy 2: ack...no

Steve joke of the week:

What do you call a dog with no legs? It doesn't matter, he won't come
Where do you find a dog with no legs? right where you left him

3/26/06 Husky heartbreak...

Ireland:  the only place that could hold a national drinking holiday
in the middle of Lent

List of famous Northern Irish bands in no particular order: Van
Morrison, Snow Patrol, and ummmnnm.....

If a Northern Irish person ever makes fun of American sports, point
out that Northern Irish soccer holds the World record for consecutive
scoreless minutes and that the scintalating sport of Cricket can last
5 days.

bill (on a baseball cap) = peak...what's that all about?

Radom Steve quote of the week (while standing around): "I'm good at
looking and I'm good to look at"

4/15/06 Happy Easter!!

American concepts foreign to the locals: Sloppy Joes, Corn Dogs, Dairy
Queen, Jimmy Buffett, Slurpee's, real milk shakes, real hamburgers, PB
& J -- which will really get you a perplexed look as "jelly" is
"jello" over here

Aluminum -- pronounced (Al - u - men - e [as in bee] - um) ...that's just weird

nappie -- diaper
pram -- baby carriage
petrol -- gas
trainers -- sneakers / any sports' shoe
jumper -- jacket or hoodie

Random Steve quote of the week:

(As our minister is trying to illustrate this really complex point
about OT people dying and going to heaven where he repeatedly uses the
phrases "over here" and "over there")

Steve: "That appears to be mutually exclusive ... from over here that is"

4/26/06 pics from Scotland and other fun news...

The 26th letter of the alphabet is 'zed' not 'z'.  I've repeatedly
pointed out that "x -y -zed, now I know my a - b - c's " doesn't rhyme
so it is clearly wrong

ketchup = red sauce
BBQ sauce = brown sauce (a very flowerly language they have over here)

a period (at the end of a sentence) is a "full stop" and no I am not
making this up

The Yankees' marketing behemoth is in full force over here with a
ridiculous number of people wearing their stuff who couldn't tell you
that the Yankees are a baseball team, that they play in New York, or
that George Steinbrenner is the scum of the Universe


Steve quote of the week as Kairos is located in his hometown of Cookstown:

"After the cinema, the second most exciting place in town is the kids'
play park where people come to snog...oh, and then there's the
recycling center..."

5/11/06 Tis' the season to BBQ...

Irish greetings: How's you, hiya, heya, what's about you?, how's the craic

Is that us? = Are we done?
That's us = We're done
cheerio (say it like a posh [snooty] English person for full effect) = goodbye...and to think it's not a breakfast cereal

The following are all real Crisp (potato chip) flavors:  Lamb and mint, Heinz Tomato Ketchup, Marmite Yeast Extract, Pickled Onion, Prawn Cocktail, and Smoky Bacon...to name a few...Marmite Yeast Extract...yum

Steve thought of the week (and he took physics so you know this adds up)

So:                          

                  women = time * money
and everyone knows that:              time = money
so:                                              women = money²
and of course:                              money = √EVIL
which follows that:                        money² = EVIL
so:                                              women = EVIL

...and we wonder why we don't have girlfriends

5/29/06 Christmas in May (and almost June)?

Does anyone else find it alarming that the church phone number contains 6666 all in a row?

The modern marvels -- on / off switches on every electric socket; the electric shower (you never run out of hot water) -- I feel this is right up there with the shopping cart escalator in Northgate for 8th wonder of the World!

Great Belfast engineering feats -- The Titanic and the DeLorean

class - that person / place / thing is really great

flip - loosely translates to "I'll be darn" or "crap!"

dead on - great - generally refers to people

"Flip, yer man's dead on.  That was class."

eegit - idiot

minger - ugly person - the equivalent of "loser"

"does your head in" - drives you up the wall

"That mingers an eegit.  He does my head in."

Steve's Irish jokes of the week

What do you call an Irishman hanging from the ceiling?  Shaun - de - leer

What do you call his wife? Crystal Shaun - de -leer

What do you call an Irish beer thief? Nick - ed mc Guinness

6/19/06 back in Seattle with phone...

World Cup thoughts:

    1.  It has been incredibly addicting...this can be the only reason to explain why I've been watching games like Switzerland - Togo?

    2.  The Italians are the biggest bunch of pansies, floppers, and whiners!

    3.  I watched the game in a bar next to a bunch of sterotypical Italians raising their arms in yelling the player names like a very disappointed Italian grandmother -- very funny

Tea time -- when the amount of tea they drink here, you think it would be well... "tea" time, but you'd be wrong!...it's actually dinner

e.g. "I'm going to grab my tea"   -- of course, if it was after 9, it would be your supper and they're also firm believers in the dessert spoon to eat things like cake, pies, etc. -- very weird

daft -- stupid, foolish

In Florida, it's "coke" ... in Washington, it's "pop" ... and in Belfast it's "fizzy drink" -- what's that about?

And finally, the Queen's English is in full effect with words such as "tidy", "naughty", "proper", and "posh" -- tally ho my dear chap

7/05/06 back in Seattle with phone...

Slieve Donard -- That's right I got to conquer the highest point in all of Northern Ireland (all 2600 feet of it! ... pic below) which was promptly celebrated with ice cream of the "chockee bear" (highly recommended) variety at Maudes' Ice Cream

Final North Coast trip -- took one final trip to the North Coast which included running down the sweetest sand dunes and the jousting match of death

Free Irish Whiskey -- after realizing that I spent an entire year without having any Irish Whiskey, we stopped by the Bushmills factory and we ended up securing complimentary Irish Whiskey

Prank of the minister's office -- as part of the final night festivities, I was a part of a prank of the minister's office that can only be described as "teddy bear picnic" -- craziest adventure since crashing the sailboat into the island at Firwood! -- pics to come later

Favorite Irishisms of the year:

What's the craic [crack]?  or How's the craic?  -- sad to say that I can no longer use these in a sentence unless I wind up at Pike's Place Market in the middle of the night

anything with the word "wee" or "yer" in it -- "There goes yer wee man"

Wha abouch ya? -- If you ever meet someone from Ballymenia...of course, you might have a hard time understanding them