I am not the greatest wordsmith in the world by any stretch of the imagination however, I do appreciate the written thoughts of myself and others. I am fascinated by the way people put words together to express themselves and reading is a great joy in my life.
I must admit, I never thought of carrying my writing as far as Mr. Aaron Purmort. I can only say, Bravo! So many of us fear dying and refuse to face the fact that we will all experience at some point in time. It is obvious that Mr. Purmort did not fear and I applaud him for carrying his obvious love of words and stories into the here-after.
Mr. Purmort wrote his own obituary, tongue-in-cheek to say the least...I would have liked to have met him in real life...
You can find his final words, here....
Showing posts with label Words. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Words. Show all posts
Friday, February 6, 2015
Thursday, January 8, 2015
Who knew
...life would get so busy that I would allow it to interfere with one of my great loves. Putting words to page...it is my one artistic endeavor. Clay would just stay in it's original form, paints and brushes would stay clean, paper would be as pristine as the day I opened it, measures would remain lines on a page without any notes to grace them...but give me a chance to write and I am possessed!
When I first began this blog, I had hopes that people would follow in droves! After a while, and with a few who read my ramblings faithfully, I realized that I write for myself more than anything else.
I do love the written word...and I plan to share them regularly from this point on...
Hope you enjoy!
When I first began this blog, I had hopes that people would follow in droves! After a while, and with a few who read my ramblings faithfully, I realized that I write for myself more than anything else.
I do love the written word...and I plan to share them regularly from this point on...
Hope you enjoy!
Saturday, September 1, 2012
The written word...
I read the following piece, written by Rabbi Lewis, several years ago. And even after all this time, I still find that the message is to be savored. This unique form of writing uses only 1 syllable words. This is an ancient discipline which is meant to be simple but not simplistic.
What if God were to speak to us now; to give us a fresh look at what's real, true and the core of our world? Might God say, "Be just, be kind, care, share, give, take, love, laugh, cry, feel the pain and dance in the time of joy"? And what would we hear? Would it be what we want to hear or what was said? Could we each hear in our own way? Must we all be of the same mind? Must the one who hears at 12 feet fight with the one who hears at 12 yards? Will the black one and the white one and the child of the land all know God in
the same way? And if not, will they fight?
What if God said, "I grant you a gift: a world full of peace, health and food for all. I give you a time, now, when each may sit by his vine and by her fig tree and none will cause you fear"? Would we heed the words? If God came to each of us in a dream, would we hold the dream in our hearts and souls, or would we cast it off as just a dream? What would it take to look deep within, where we live and know truth, and there to
find the one God, who cries for us and waits and hopes and says, "I am here. Do not fear. Live, love, talk and walk hand in hand with me. Let no child learn war anymore, but let each bring what is right and just in his home and in her land"!
What if God were to speak to us now; to give us a fresh look at what's real, true and the core of our world? Might God say, "Be just, be kind, care, share, give, take, love, laugh, cry, feel the pain and dance in the time of joy"? And what would we hear? Would it be what we want to hear or what was said? Could we each hear in our own way? Must we all be of the same mind? Must the one who hears at 12 feet fight with the one who hears at 12 yards? Will the black one and the white one and the child of the land all know God in
the same way? And if not, will they fight?
What if God said, "I grant you a gift: a world full of peace, health and food for all. I give you a time, now, when each may sit by his vine and by her fig tree and none will cause you fear"? Would we heed the words? If God came to each of us in a dream, would we hold the dream in our hearts and souls, or would we cast it off as just a dream? What would it take to look deep within, where we live and know truth, and there to
find the one God, who cries for us and waits and hopes and says, "I am here. Do not fear. Live, love, talk and walk hand in hand with me. Let no child learn war anymore, but let each bring what is right and just in his home and in her land"!
Sunday, June 10, 2012
Excellent Sermon!
Note: The Rev. Baughman preached this sermon June 3, at opening worship of Annual Conference 2012 of the North Texas Conference. (Read the entire sermon here)
Greetings beautiful people of the North Texas Annual Conference....
...I have hope for the United Methodist Church because this is a time, yes, for young visionaries and yes for young prophets, but this is also a time for old dreamers. We need the dreams of those who are wise to hold us firm to the story of God and God’s people. Without dreams, we will not find the promised land and may succumb to the temptations of the wilderness.
I have hope for the United Methodist Church because no matter how bad things get, we have the eternal promise from God in this scripture: “I will not let my holy one see decay!” Even if a congregation dies, if a pastor is ‘deemed ineffective’ even if our denomination as a whole collapses the body will not see decay. We follow a resurrection God for whom death is never the end!
I have hope for the United Methodist Church because all of the warning signs that give others despair give me hope upon hope. That’s the way God works! This is the God of the great reversal where the last are first, Alpha is Omega, the high are brought low, the low are brought high and a child shall lead them. The ground may remain fallow for a time but only to prepare for the great harvest of God.
We are a thirsty church in a thirsty world, but look to the wisdom on Peter in our text for Annual Conference. “When the crowd heard Peter they were cut to the heart and said to Peter ‘what shall we do?’ ‘Repent and be baptized.’ Peter’s prescription is water.
It is time to stop storing up resources for a rainy day. I’m talking relationship capital, I’m talking financial capital. It’s time to stop storing up resources for a rainy day because it’s already raining and God wants us to join in the downpour.
The downpour of justice
The downpour of God’s spirit
The downpour to end evil, oppression and injustice in whatever form they present themselves
The downpour of new ministries and new faith communities
The downpour to free the oppressed, welcome the immigrant and work towards economic justice
The downpour of salvation being offered to those who do not know Christ
Are you ready for the downpour?
Monday, May 14, 2012
The winner is...
truly a winner.
Phillips set the contest and Ridley Scott chose the winner.
Commenting on his choice of winner, Sir Ridley Scott said: “I chose Porcelain Unicorn to be the winning film as it had a very strong narrative; a very complete story that was well told and executed.”
Phillips set the contest and Ridley Scott chose the winner.
The contest, which received over 600 entries from around the world,
invited aspiring filmmakers to create an original short film using the
same six-line dialogue as the Cannes Lions award-winning Parallel Lines
short films directed by RSA talents Carl Erik Rinsch, Greg Fay, Johnny
Hardstaff, Jake Scott and Hi-Sim.
Commenting on his choice of winner, Sir Ridley Scott said: “I chose Porcelain Unicorn to be the winning film as it had a very strong narrative; a very complete story that was well told and executed.”
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Words
Words are very important. When we say to someone: "You are an ugly, useless, despicable person," we might have ruined the possibility for a relationship with that person for life. Words can continue to do harm for many years.
It is so important to choose our words wisely. When we are boiling with anger and eager to throw bitter words at our opponents, it is better to remain silent. Words spoken in rage will make reconciliation very hard. Choosing life and not death, blessings and not curses often starts by choosing to remain silent or choosing carefully the words that open the way to healing.
Henri Nouwen
It is so important to choose our words wisely. When we are boiling with anger and eager to throw bitter words at our opponents, it is better to remain silent. Words spoken in rage will make reconciliation very hard. Choosing life and not death, blessings and not curses often starts by choosing to remain silent or choosing carefully the words that open the way to healing.
Henri Nouwen
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Hello....
I am a word person. Through and through. Whether written on a page, set to music or spoken in my ear, I find them delightful.
But, as it is with anything you love, I must admit that words sometimes frustrate me. Most frequently I am disappointed in words used in our Bible translations. Or perhaps it is the inadequacies of the English language. I'll read a passage and interpret it one way...only to find that in the Greek, Hebrew or Aramaic that one particular word can have several meanings. And thus the translation chosen affects the interpretation of the passage. Please don't think that I am “putting down” the English language...it is my mother tongue...the words I will speak until I breath my last. But case in point:
In English we use and over-use the word Love. Think about it...we all do, don't we? In Greek there are four words for Love...
1.Eros: Erotic or physical love
2.Storge: familial love...a love for family...it is strong and requires commitment
3.Philia: Brotherly love, it is not a repetition of storge but is love felt for our
fellow man
4.Agape: Unconditional love...I have heard it called “God Love” it is the strongest
and most desirable of all love.
Since most of the words in the English language have their roots in other languages, is there any reason we can't incorporate some “new” ones into our everyday lives and conversations? I recently ran across a couple of new words that I would love (see, there's that word again!) to use:
Sawubona:
Is a Zulu word which literally means not just hello but “I see you”. It is considered an offense to pass another without this greeting. In doing so, you have unequivocally told this person that they do not exist to you...they are not worth greeting. It's as good as a slap in the face!
The response to Sawubona is Ngikhona
which effectively means
I am here
I exist
I matter
What a joy to be able to convey such depth of feeling with one or two choice words. Keep these new ones in mind the next time you greet someone. But when you do, stop and really "see” them!
But, as it is with anything you love, I must admit that words sometimes frustrate me. Most frequently I am disappointed in words used in our Bible translations. Or perhaps it is the inadequacies of the English language. I'll read a passage and interpret it one way...only to find that in the Greek, Hebrew or Aramaic that one particular word can have several meanings. And thus the translation chosen affects the interpretation of the passage. Please don't think that I am “putting down” the English language...it is my mother tongue...the words I will speak until I breath my last. But case in point:
In English we use and over-use the word Love. Think about it...we all do, don't we? In Greek there are four words for Love...
1.Eros: Erotic or physical love
2.Storge: familial love...a love for family...it is strong and requires commitment
3.Philia: Brotherly love, it is not a repetition of storge but is love felt for our
fellow man
4.Agape: Unconditional love...I have heard it called “God Love” it is the strongest
and most desirable of all love.
Since most of the words in the English language have their roots in other languages, is there any reason we can't incorporate some “new” ones into our everyday lives and conversations? I recently ran across a couple of new words that I would love (see, there's that word again!) to use:
Sawubona:
Is a Zulu word which literally means not just hello but “I see you”. It is considered an offense to pass another without this greeting. In doing so, you have unequivocally told this person that they do not exist to you...they are not worth greeting. It's as good as a slap in the face!
The response to Sawubona is Ngikhona
which effectively means
I am here
I exist
I matter
What a joy to be able to convey such depth of feeling with one or two choice words. Keep these new ones in mind the next time you greet someone. But when you do, stop and really "see” them!
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