I'm Back!! {Lattes & Rainy Days Re-Launch Day}

Welcome!! (And welcome back!!)

Seeing as today is the 5 year anniversary for this blog, I thought it the perfect time to relaunch. I hope you'll take some time to look around and get familiar with the new surroundings. You will notice that not only does this space has a new look, but it has a new and clarified focus as well.

Because we're kicking off the blog again with a new look and feel and focus, I thought it only appropriate to tell you about these things on video. Here, I give you a brief history of the blog, why I'm relaunching it now (and why I'm doing it at a time when I'm pulling back a bit from posting as frequently on Team-Ewan.com), and what you can expect from me in this space.

(Please excuse the tired eyes and bad hair day.)
(And is that video frozen at an attractive moment in time, or what?!)




As I noted in the video, one of the biggest changes on the blog are the static pages you will see linked at the top of the blog. I've used these to provide a background and points of focus for readers who are coming back or those who are coming for the first time, as well as to keep those things clear in my own mind as I write and share in this space.

Here's a quick rundown of what's on each page:

Who She Is: A brief (well, depending on your understanding of "brief") description of my background, where I'm from, and high points of my story over the last several years. A good place to get an idea of who I am if you don't already have a context for that.

About the Blog: On this page, I talk about what the nature and focus of the blog is. This helps not only me in clarifying what I'll be posting here, but will (I hope) help anyone who comes here know whether or not this is a space they want to read and/or be involved in. I explain here what you can expect from me in terms of content and how frequently I expect to have new posts available.

Faith & Spirituality: Because my faith and spirituality are things that I consider to be central to who I am, and will comprise a good deal of the content that will be found on the blog, I spend some time on this page explaining my faith history and where I'm coming from now.

Reading List: Also known as, "Letting the Internet Know Just How Big a Nerd I Am." This is just what it sounds like: a list of books that I'm reading now, that I've read recently, and that I hope to read soon in the future. Right now it includes only non-fiction works, but may at some point in the future include some of my favorite fiction works on there as well.

Photography: Pretty self-explanatory! On this page, I speak to my photography and the role it plays in my blogging. For anyone who's interested in using one or more of my photos on their own blog or website, there are also instructions on how to contact me so we can discuss the details of that.

Other Venues: Other places where you can find me!

Feel free to take your time exploring. Leave a comment if you wish. I'm excited to be back here and look forward to meeting you here again soon!!

a little illumination

The story of the passion and crucifixion is one Christians know well. But I had never heard this before and thought maybe if you didn't either, you might like to understand a little better our Lord and our God. Learning this (the content of this video) made me choke, gasp, and weep. It humbled me utterly.

(The video is approximately 4 minutes long)

Note: This sermon series (as you may notice) is from the book of Luke. Since I've been spending time studying the book of John, however, I am sharing the account given by the disciple whom Jesus loved.

When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his garments and divided them into four parts, one part for each soldier; also his tunic. But the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom, so they said to one another, "Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it to see whose it shall be.” This was to fulfill the Scripture which says,

"They divided my garments among them,
and for my clothing they cast lots."

So the soldiers did these things, but standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, "Woman, behold, your son!" Then he said to the disciple, "Behold, your mother!" And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.

After this, Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said (to fulfill the Scripture), "I thirst." A jar full of sour wine stood there, so they put a sponge full of the sour wine on a hyssop branch and held it to his mouth. When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, "It is finished," and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

John 19:23-30 (ESV)

imagine it

White Box from makoto yabuki on Vimeo.

advanced citizenship

I can't believe it is finally that day. After twenty long months of speeches, campaign ads, and vicious verbal attacks, it is finally here.

[insert HUGE sigh of relief here]

I've been reluctant to engage in any kind of political discussion in this space -- I've been part of and have been witness to some political discussions that have gotten downright nasty. Otherwise civilized and friendly people were slinging labels and accusations, using words like: imbecile, idiot, jerk, and drawing comparisons to Hitler. My convictions (political and otherwise) run deep, but to me that is just not worth it.

Though we do so imperfectly, one of the things I love about our country is that there is a freedom to disagree. The first amendment of the Constitution guarantees us the right to speak freely. That's all well and good if we agree with the speaker, right? But what if someone is speaking freely about something that makes our blood boil?

That's America.

What follows is one of my favorite movie quotes from The American President. Toward the end of the film, the president finally responds to the character accusations his opponent has been raising against him. And he speaks to this idea: that American citizenship is tough. It requires so much of us all.

I love you no matter who you vote for. I may disagree with you ideologically and we may have some different ideas about how we should encounter the important issues facing us. Or maybe we agree. I'm up for discussion whenever you are, because really ... nothing is going to change or improve and there is no chance of the dialogue advancing as long as we stay on our sides of the aisle, reaching over only to toss the occasional piece of rotten produce.

So speak freely, friend, and I will, too. Let us listen to one another.

America isn't easy. America is advanced citizenship. You gotta want it bad, 'cause it's gonna put up a fight. It's gonna say "You want free speech? Let's see you acknowledge a man whose words make your blood boil, who's standing center stage and advocating at the top of his lungs that which you would spend a lifetime opposing at the top of yours. You want to claim this land as the land of the free? Then the symbol of your country can't just be a flag; the symbol also has to be one of its citizens exercising his right to burn that flag in protest. Show me that, defend that, celebrate that in your classrooms. Then, you can stand up and sing about the "land of the free".

welcome home

Welcome to the new digs, friends!!

Anna and Elyse and I signed the lease on the new place on Saturday.

I'm also happy to report that Kaari and Melissa have already found an amazing gal to take my place in our current house. God is good!!

Come on in and take a little tour with me ...

the last lecture

You never would have known he was dying of pancreatic cancer. But Randy Pausch of Carnegie Mellon University lived for less than a year after giving this lecture.

A friend let me know about this lecture when we found that we were both facing circumstances that had us questioning: What about something else? What about venturing out and finally doing what I really want to do?

The Last Lecture is part graduation speech and part passing on life wisdom as a father would to his children. It's long -- just over 76 minutes -- but I think that anyone might find some truth to challenge and inspire no matter what unfulfilled childhood dreams and aspirations still hide in the deepest parts of you.

But that's just my opinion; you can decide for yourself.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts.

P.S. Di was wonderful enough to point me to an abbreviated version of the video here (about 10 minutes). Thanks, Di!!

one world dancing

No politics, no borders, no guns; it's just one man doing a silly little dance and the world is joining in.

Check out Matt's blog here.