Let me recommend a short story for you to read. This is a re-imagining of the account of Jesus' 40-Day fast and temptation in the wilderness. It is in 3 parts. Here are links:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
Discovering Poetry
I've never been a big poetry reader. In fact, I haven't read much poetry at all. But one of my favourite authors (Don Miller) recommended the poetry of Billy Collins on his blog. I just picked it up today from the library and have already read about 20 of his poems. Let me share with you a couple of my favourites:
Earthling
You have probably come across
those scales in planetariums
that tell you how much you
would weigh on other planets.
You have noticed the fat ones
lingering on the Mars scale
and the emaciated slowing up
the line for Neptune.
As a creature of average weight,
I fail to see the attraction.
Imagine squatting in the wasteland
of Pluto, all five tons of you,
or wandering around Mercury
wondering what to do next with your ounce.
How much better to step onto
the simple bathroom scale,
a happy earthling feeling
the familiar ropes of gravity,
157 pounds standing soaking wet
a respectful distance from the sun.
My Number
Is Death miles away from this house,
reaching for a widow in Cincinnati
or breathing down the neck of a lost hiker
in British Columbia?
Is he too busy making arrangements,
tampering with air brakes,
scattering cancer cells like seeds,
loosening the wooden beams of roller coasters
to bother with my hidden cottage
that visitors find so hard to find?
Or is he stepping from a black car
parked at the dark end of the lane,
shaking open the familiar cloak,
its hood raised like the head of a crow,
and removing the scythe from the trunk?
Did you have any trouble with the directions?
I will ask, as I start talking my way out of this.
Earthling
You have probably come across
those scales in planetariums
that tell you how much you
would weigh on other planets.
You have noticed the fat ones
lingering on the Mars scale
and the emaciated slowing up
the line for Neptune.
As a creature of average weight,
I fail to see the attraction.
Imagine squatting in the wasteland
of Pluto, all five tons of you,
or wandering around Mercury
wondering what to do next with your ounce.
How much better to step onto
the simple bathroom scale,
a happy earthling feeling
the familiar ropes of gravity,
157 pounds standing soaking wet
a respectful distance from the sun.
My Number
Is Death miles away from this house,
reaching for a widow in Cincinnati
or breathing down the neck of a lost hiker
in British Columbia?
Is he too busy making arrangements,
tampering with air brakes,
scattering cancer cells like seeds,
loosening the wooden beams of roller coasters
to bother with my hidden cottage
that visitors find so hard to find?
Or is he stepping from a black car
parked at the dark end of the lane,
shaking open the familiar cloak,
its hood raised like the head of a crow,
and removing the scythe from the trunk?
Did you have any trouble with the directions?
I will ask, as I start talking my way out of this.
Monday, March 03, 2008
Jeff Healey 1966 - 2008
I was never a huge fan of Jeff Healey, but I often felt I should be. I didn't realize until today that it was cancer than blinded him. The cancer got the rest of him yesterday.
Check out any of these youtube clips:
See the Light (incredible blues solos - he even plays with his mouth for a bit - great blues voice, too).
Angel Eyes - the classic Jeff Healey song.
Jamming with the Scandinavian Rhythym Boys - Jeff is the one on the right playing the trumpet. Then he sits down and plays an accoustic guitar.
He was 41.
Check out any of these youtube clips:
See the Light (incredible blues solos - he even plays with his mouth for a bit - great blues voice, too).
Angel Eyes - the classic Jeff Healey song.
Jamming with the Scandinavian Rhythym Boys - Jeff is the one on the right playing the trumpet. Then he sits down and plays an accoustic guitar.
He was 41.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)