a week of down time (but where has it gone?)

This week has almost come and gone, but it has been a good one. I have really enjoyed the down time, as I am between summer semesters, but at the same time I am looking forward to getting back to the academics. During this coming summer session I am enrolled in Medieval Church History and Sociology of Youth; remarkably, I am actually looking forward to the content of both these classes.

For the first time this summer I have actually engaged in some deutschlernen, if I don't get on top of that I will be in for a rude awakening come September when I step into the intermediate class, German 1500.

soggy camping fun

This is me getting wet while I try in vain to keep our stuff dry

Wesla, Weida, and Wynne

Mmm smores!

This past weekend we went camping with some family and friends, there were twelve of us in all. Despite the rain we had a great time and we were able to celebrate Wesla's big 25th B-Day.

moutain top experience

mountain top experience


Another shot from the top of table moutain

This shot dates back to last weekend when we hiked to the top of table mountain wtih some of the youth from our church. It was a great experience, even though they beat us all the way to the top!

P.S. When you click on the top photo you can just make out the rollerblading scar I wrote about back in April in a hurtin' unit

finished my first practicum

Yesterday was my last day of my first summer semester at the U of L, with that came the end of my first practicum. Overall, things went very well. The teacher associate that I was observing was amazing in many ways, and the class was great too. I found it hard to get into the journaling portion of the course, but I was able to slog through the requirements and get the job done.

Today I had my interview with the prof who was facilitating the seminar sections of the course and supervising us in the field. I wasn't worried about the content of the interview, but I was thrown for a bit of a loop when I discovered just how it was going to be conducted. In each of the categories that were being evaluated I had to say what I thought I deserved in the course, and then the prof would put something different down if she disagreed. Man, did that ever take me out if my comfort zone! On more than one occasion she asked me why I was so hard on myself, and I guess I had never realized how much that is the case. When we were going through each one of the categories I was so afraid that I would rate myself higher than what the professor believed that I would 'play it safe' by picking a lower mark.

Maybe I shouldn't read too much into this, but I couldn't help but consider the deeper spiritual and emotional significance of what came out of that interview. What does my attitude about myself say about my self-image? Does this in any way give some kind of insight into unresolved issues of guilt?

a different read

Today I picked up a book unlike any I have ever read before. It is a documentary called Down to this by Shaughnessy Bishop-Stall. I am only about seventy pages into it, but it definitely has me intrigued. It is about one man's experience living for one year one Toronto's inner-city streets. He was raised with every privilege, and yet he was compelled to take this drastic step in his life, and obviously he has turned it into a book.

He is slowly revealing his motivations for making this move as the book progresses, I won't reveal anything that I have discovered to this point in the off chance that you are interesting in picking this book up, but I will say that it certainly does provide some first hand insight into life on the streets.

There is one quote that has particularly stood out to me.

"If it is true that absolute power corrupts absolutely, then so does powerlessness"

In these words the author is describing how powerlessness has pushed him to do things that his convictions would never allow under 'normal' circumstances. Activities such as: accepting welfare, begging, or even to stealing all became reality when he was pushed to the brink of powerlessness.

go for the flavour

My new favorite snack is without question the new Tostitos product: "Hint of Jalapeno" nachos. Simply put, they are amazing. They are not insanely spicy, but they add just a little extra kick, especially when compared to a plain nacho when you are dipping into some salsa.

i guess i'm it

Jayson laid a tag down on me a couple of days ago, now here I am trying to catch up with things...

How many books do I own?

I have a little over 300 books, and Wesla has about that many again

Last book I bought?

Fiction: Digital Fortress by Dan Brown (second hand)
Non-Fiction: Paris: 1919 by Margaret MacMillan

Last book I read?

The last book I read was Digital Fortress, I am still working on Paris: 1919.

5 Books that meant a lot to me (in no particular order)?

1. The Message paraphrased/translated by Eugene Peterson. I constantly find myself going back to his quasi-translation in my devotional reading.

2. The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer. This is a book where the testimony of a man's life gives extra credance to the words he placed upon the written page.

3. The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. These are remarkable works of fiction that inspire the mind and stir the soul.

4. The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown. It is not so much the content of this book, or its theme that makes it so engagin to me, but rather the way it is written; every time I pick it up I am unable to put it down until I am finished.

5. Tale of the Tardy Oxcart by Charles Swindoll. This is a book of engaging, interesting, and funny sermon illustrations that have saved my butt on more than one occasion. There are many illustration anthologies out there, but this one, in my opinion, is one of the best.

I am sending out tags to: Greg & Estelle ... you it!

steppin' it up, perhaps, we'll see

This last weekend was Wesla and I took part in our youth camp, which was held at Waterton Park. Not only was the experience a lot of fun, it was remarkably refreshing in a number of ways. It has been a while since I have had the opportunity to hang out with a bunch of young people for an extended period of time, and it was great to be able to cut loose and get a little bit stupid. There was a lot of adult help at the camp, so I wasn't worrying about logistics the whole time, I was actually able to spend quality time with the campers.

Out of the twenty-five or so campers about eight of them brought their guitars, and we were able to have some great jam sessions. Some of them were really into helping out with the worship sets, there were up to six of us leading the songs at one time! We were also able to bust out some great games of Axis & Allies and Settlers of Catan into the wee hours of the morning.

This is a time of transition for the youth group at our church as Lisa Latimer, who has been the youth leader at Central Church of Christ for the past three years or so, has just moved to Calgary with her husband - where he just got a new job. The opportunity that is presenting itself, combined with the experience of this past weekend has really got me searching and discerning about what role (if any) I should (or could) play within the context of this ministry.

My primary concern about getting involved is centered around my ability to do a good job with the youth, while at the same time being able to maintain my commitments to my family, and to my studies at the University. Pastor Wes and I have been speaking about this at some length, and there seems to be a good possibility that sharing the responsibility with a second leader might be a solution to this issue.

I am going to be helping out with the youth event tonight and I am looking forward to seeing what transpires.

interesting

This is a blog with an interesting concept, Postsecret is a place where you can anonymously email your deepest secrets on one side of a postcard for the world to see.

just feeling blue

I had one of those days today. There is no one reason. So I thought I should mix it up with a little humor (please see below).

the funniest prayer request ever!

Hands down, it was the funniest thing I have ever heard in a church service. It was last Thanksgiving, and Wesla and I were visiting my grandparents in Tofield. We were mixing and mingling when we met a man and his wife who were also visitors that particular morning. They were married just one day earlier, and the new groom wanted to visit with the pastor who ministered to him while he was in prison, yes that's right he had also just gotten out of prison. (I know there is another joke inherent within this senerio, but I'm not going there!) We talked for a while longer, he was clearly uncomfortable with his unfamiliar surroundings, but he was also determined to go to church, and so he stayed for the service.

Nothing eventful happened until it came time for the prayer. Everyone was invited to share the many reasons why we were thankful to God, since it was Thanksgiving and all. Being a farming community, many of the folks gave thanks for the harvest. With each person who shared the eyes of the visitor grew wider and wider, he was bursting at the seams until he could contain himself no longer, he just had to share the prayer of thanksgiving that was weighing upon his heart. He said, "Many of you are giving thanks today for seeds sown and harvests reaped, well, my wife and I were married yesterday and I would like to give thanks for the seeds that were sown - we are also hoping for a harvest someday very soon."

At that moment every bit of air was sucked out of the auditorium in one great gasp. Instantly the face of the new bride turned a shade of red I cannot even begin to describe, and there was an awkward silence that lasted until someone finally dared to laugh. This gave permission to the whole congregation to do the same. Even better than the good laugh, we were able to pray for God to bless their union and to grant them the gift of a child.

water for the weary

It may be soggy and overcast, but at least there is a little bit of green on the horizon. Having moved from southern Ontario, which always seemed to be green and stunningly beautiful, Lethbridge resembles little more than a desert wasteland.

This shot was taken off our townhouse balcony, if you look closely you can see the new billboard overlooking our skyline.

a teacher's integrity

We had a very interesting discussion in our ed 2500 class today relating how a teacher is to handle potentially controversial issues in the classroom. This all started with some of the content in a story that my Teacher Associate is reading to her grade five class, it is called Bridge to Terabithia. Part of what was so shocking to me was the overt references to Christian faith in the content of the story, even to the point where it went into some significant detail of Christian belief - and we must remember that this is a public school. When I spoke to the teacher after the class about this kind of content being allowed in the classroom, she explained that this book has been approved as an appropriate resource in the Alberta curriculum and so there are no issues about this book being used. She further elaborated that if the content of her lessons dealt in any way with some of the finer theological points she would speak to her students about the different religious beliefs that people hold.

This issue really became interesting when it came time to discuss it with my peers back at the university during our seminar session. The moment I related this question to the class, there was instantly a stream of discussion coming from all angles. A deeper level of significance was uncovered when we considered the question, "What is a teacher to do when he or she is called to teacher material in the curriculum that is in conflict with her or his own personal views?"

Is it possible to have integrity as a teacher while at the same time teaching a lesson that contradicts his or her own value system? To what extent should a teacher challenge the system? Is a teacher to simply teacher the material as the curriculum demands or hit the road?