Guy Montag

I recently finished Bradbury's landmark book Fahrenheit 451. Its one of those books I have heard about for so long, but never actually took the time to read. What a book!! I really enjoyed the story but even more then the story was the message behind the writing. At first it was easy to jump to the conclusion that this book is yet another powerful tool against the evil of censorship. In fact, prior to reading it that was what I had heard about it and assumed it was about. Yet after reading it, I discovered a far more profound message then mere anti-censorship.

The primary thing that stuck out to me was the the laziness of humanity. Written in 1953, the book is extremely prophetic on the apathetic & lazy nature of people today. Essentially the people of the story have given themselves over to mindless entertainment with an expressed goal of simply having fun. Life becomes about seeking pleasure, having fun, and finding happiness. As a result people stop thinking, stop caring, and stop learning. Books become evil and are burned not so much as a result of censorship but because people are too lazy to use them anymore. Its easier to simply become numb to the simple pleasures of life. Book require thinking, challenge assumptions, and do not allow people to rest comfortable. All of that is too much for the lazy culture. I was blown away because in much the same way I see that of our current culture as well. How many people do not read anymore? Internet, movies, television, and other forms of mindless entertainment have taken the place of reading. People do not want to learn and do want to be challenged anymore. We have become a lazy culture. Is it too much of a stretch to say that it will not be long before books "die" for us as well.

The other thing I gained from the story was the blame we often put on governments and government systems for our own inadequacies. We do not spend our own money well - and yet rail at the government for poor spending. We do not educate our kids at home - and yet rail at teachers for not doing enough for our kids. We do not like a variety of things - and yet it is often ourselves who are to blame for society's ills. In the book, the city and life of the people is ugly and pathetic. And yet the reality is that the people in the story have all earned their place. Too many refused to do anything about their situation and as a result their society crumbled. The firemen who burned books were not the problem. The culture that allowed for books to be burned was the issue.

Fascinating book. I am glad I finally took the time to read it.

A Beautiful Story

Behind him came the baripity of the pickup, but he couldn't turn around. He tried to run faster, but his father passed him and stopped the pickup just ahead, then jumped out and ran back. He picked Jess up in his arms as though he were a baby. For the first few seconds Jess kicked and struggled against the strong arms. Then Jess gave himself over to the numbness that was buzzing to be let out from a corner of his brain.
Katherine Paterson, Bridge to Terabithia, (New York: HarperTrophy, 1977), 156-158.

My wife and I have a frequent argument over movies and books. She uses both to escape and generally does not like stuff that makes her cry or feel bad. I, on the other hand, like stories that spark emotion within me. Whether its joy, sorrow, happiness, sadness, anger, or shock - I like stories that move me. To that end, I have always loved Bridge to Terabithia. Along with reading Charlotte's Web this weekend, I took the opportunity to read Bridge this weekend. I remember exactly why I loved it. It is so easy to understand the emotions and feelings of Jesse Oliver Aarons Jr. His feelings of inadequacy, loneliness, turmoil, joy, friendship, lack of courage, lack of strength, competitiveness, anger, and raw emptiness all speak so true from the page of Paterson's great work. I love his friendship with Leslie Burke and how much she brings out the best in him. I cried (once again) over her death and the raw emotion and pain felt by Jesse. The passing of the torch to his sister May Belle and his discovery of understanding his enemies Janice Avery & Mrs. Myers.

However, the part of the book that always gets me the most is the scene sketched by Paterson above. Jesse never seemed to see eye to eye with his Dad and for most of the book you see Dad as cold & distant. He is there - but he spends so much time working and doing what he can to provide, that as the reader you feel the distance between the two. Jesse longs for the closeness of the relationship he had with him when he was just a little boy. And then in an instant you see this incredible depth after Jesse finds out Leslie has died. He runs away and his Dad chases after him and swoops him into his arms. I can just feel my own Dad wrapping his arms around me as I struggle to make sense of my own shattered world of hurt, pain, and lack of understanding. You feel the love and care that Jesse's Dad obviously always had for him - even if he did not do well with showing it. And I found myself crying over the absolute beauty of the scene.

A beautiful book. One of the best I have ever read. I am thankful I decided to spend the weekend traveling "back in time" to the books of my youth.

Some Pig

• Wilbur was merely suffering the doubts and fears that often go with finding a new friend. In good time he was to discover that he was mistaken about Charlotte. Underneath her rather bold and cruel exterior, she had a kind heart, and she was to prove loyal and true to the very end.
• "No," said Charlotte. "They don't catch anything. They just keep trotting back and forth across the bridge thinking there is something better on the other side. If they'd hang head-down at the top of the thing and wait quietly, maybe something good would come along. But no - with men it's rush, rush, rush, every minute. I'm glad I'm a sedentary spider."
• "Children pay better attention than grownups. If Fern says that the animals in Zuckerman's barn talk, I'm quite ready to believe her. Perhaps if people talked less, animals would talk more. People are incessant talkers - I can give my word on that."
• "You have been my friend," replied Charlotte. "That in itself is a tremendous thing. I wove my webs for you because I liked you. After all, what's a life, anyway? We're born, we live a little while, we die. A spider's life can't help being something of a mess, with all this trapping and eating flies. By helping you, perhaps I was trying to lift up my life a trifle. Heaven knows anyone's life can stand a little of that."

E.B. White, Charlotte's Web, (New York: Harper Collins, 1952), 41, 60, 110, 164.

I took the opportunity to read Charlotte's Web this weekend. It was one of my favorite books as a kid, and I do not believe I had read it since about third grade. I zoomed through it Saturday morning and fell in love with the story all over again. What a beautiful portrayal of loyalty, friendship, and the inevitable sadness that comes when we lose someone we love. The life lessons that are taught through the writing are as applicable to the 28 year old version of me as they were to the 8 year old version. Anytime a book can literally move your heart, the writing is solid. It was a good reminder that no matter how many things I can learn, sometimes the most crucial are the lessons I already have learned. Excellent read.

Monkey Mind

I can prattle away to God about all my feelings and my problems all the livelong day, but when it comes to time to descend into silence and listen...well, that's a different story. When I ask my mind to rest in stillness, it is astonishing how quickly it will turn (1) bored, (2) angry, (3) depressed, (4) anxious or (5) all of the above. Like most humanoids, I am burdened with what the Buddhists call the "monkey mind" - the thoughts that swing from limb to limb, stopping only to scratch themselves, spit and howl. From the distant past to the unknownable future, my mind swings wildly through time, touching on dozens of ideas a minute, unharnessed and undisciplined. This in itself is not necessarily a problem; the problem is the emotional attachment that goes long with the thinking. Happy thoughts make me happy, but - whoop! - how quickly I swing again into obsessive worry, blowing the mood; and then it's the remembrance of an angry moment and I start to get hot and pissed off all over again; and then my mind decides it might be a good time to start feeling sorry for itself, and loneliness follows promptly. You are, after all, what you think. Your emotions are the slaves to your thoughts, and you are the slave to your emotions.
Elizabeth Gilbert, Eat Pray Love, (New York: Viking Penguin, 2006), 132.

Gilbert's description of religion & spirituality is very interesting. At times I think she takes the easy route and uses a form of universalism to support her inability to choose truth. However, I do think she narrows in on some key concepts that are very applicable to my own life. For most of her time in India, she is highly focused on meditation and its practical benefits. She spends her time searching for the proper way to meditate as well as spend time in solitude & silence. All of these are invaluable spiritual disciplines. And uniquely I find my own life a mirror image of her's in terms of struggling to sit still, silence myself and actually listen to God.

Rest in stillness. My mind never seems to do that and frankly I am not completely sure how to make it. I admire the idea of retreating to a place that would cut me off from the hustle & bustle of every day life. I don't have the luxury of seeking seclusion in India, but I do think the first step in finding quietness for my mind is seeking an environment that would could help encourage it. The other key point is being a slave to my emotions. How easily true this is of me. I often find my actions & speech reflective of my current wave of emotions. The danger of my monkey mind - is that certain emotions & thought processes can easily derail me.

So now I am left with - how do I accomplish what Liz Gilbert set out to accomplish? Where do I go & how do I take it upon myself to accomplish a mind that seeks stillness? And even more importantly - what am I missing by being the only one talking in my relationship with God?

World Champions!

I can distinctly remember watching the Packers lose in the Super Bowl to the Denver Broncos and how upset it made me. I even remember picking a fight with my friend Ben Swails in my frustration. After that night it became a waiting game for another chance to see my beloved Packers play in the Super Bowl. Most years ended with hope being dashed on the rocks of yet another Brett Favre interception. So after all the waiting...it was incredibly fun to watch them win it all again. Great game & great win. Another team effort led by the best quarterback in the NFL brought the Lombardi trophy home. Good job Green Bay. And hopefully they don't make me wait that long again for another title!

(AP Photo / Kathy Willens)

Play of the game. There were a lot of great moments in the game - but as has often been the case this year, Matthews made the hit that made the difference.

(AP Photo - Chris O'Meara)

Super Bowl MVP. One of the best QB performances in Super Bowl history. Aaron Rodgers was a beast in the playoffs. What a ride!

(Green Bay Press-Gazette / Corey Wilson)

The architect behind the Packers. Ted Thompson is one of the the smartest men in football. His bold & controversial move of saying NO to Favre was one of many brilliant moves he has done.

(Green Bay Press-Gazette / H. Marc Larson)

Underrated & under-valued. Coach McCarthy deserves all the praise for leading this team through adversity after adversity, injury after injury. Great coach!

(AP Photo / Eric Gay)
The drops were awful to watch. But Jordy kept pushing foward and made himself a Super Bowl hero.

(AP Photo / Paul Sancya)

Nothing better then seeing the pick six. Great pressure by Green & great finish by Collins.

Riotous and Endless

I look at the Augusteum, and I think that perhaps my life has not actually been so chaotic, after all. It is merely this world that is chaotic, bringing changes to us all that nobody could have anticipated. The Augusteum warns me not to get too attached to any obsolete ideas about who I am, what I represent, whom I belong to, or what function I may once have intended to serve. Yesterday I might have been a glorious monument to somebody, true enough - but tomorrow I could be a fireworks depository. Even in the Eternal City, says the silent Augusteum, one must always be prepared for riotous and endless waves of transformation.

Elizabeth Gilbert, Eat Pray Love, (New York: Viking Penguin, 2006), 75.

I could write a lot of posts on the good and bad portions of the first third of Elizabeth Gilbert's book. The writing is very good. She does a great job at describing places, emotions, feelings, and questions of the soul. On many different pages I found myself laughing out loud and feeling the ache of loneliness & depression. Yet, I also see a feminist woman who is pretty self-centered and seems to think her way is the right way. She seemingly complains a lot and her justifications do not always land just right. Plus, she was able to get a publishing company pay for her to spend a year on the road. Not a lot to whine about Ms. Gilbert. So in all that, I must say I have found myself really enjoying her writing. So as I go along, I'll jot some thoughts down on passages that have made me pause and think. (Side-note: she dives into a worldly type view of spirituality a lot. I will probably not touch much on this. I don't agree with a lot of her thoughts in this regard - but I would rather focus on what I am gaining, not on what I disagree with).

The above quote comes from a part of the book where she is taking a personal walking tour around Italy, and comes across the Augusteum. Having just finished a book on Augustus - my curiosity was peaked. What was once a grand mausoleum in honor of Augustus, the Augusteum has undergone a variety of transitions through hundreds of years. Her take on its experience and ability to transcend, adjust and grow with the times was very insightful. The reality is our world is chaotic & constantly changing. What we think and hope for right now - can instantly change depending on what the world brings us tomorrow. Transformation will come. It will be endless and riotous. And no matter how much I desire to remain in the past or cling to some supposed path - I must be prepared to deal with what comes my way. Life might not look at all the way I want. That's okay. The key is found simply being able to endure.

The above picture shows the Augusteum today. Hardly a magnificent looking building to house & honor the great Octavian! Yet, the reality is it still stands. It is broken down. It has wild plants and weeds growing all over it. It is old and weary looking. Yet it remains. Can I say the same thing about my own life and journey? Or do the waves of change and transformation wash over me leaving nothing left behind?

Chick Book

So I have decided to read a chick book. Not sure what I will gain by reading "one woman's search for everything" - but the fact is I love good writing. I have heard many good things & many bad things about this book, and now will investigate it for myself. I have no shame in reading it and I hope that its writing moves me as much as it has moved others. At the very least, I'll be able to see what the fuss is all about and formulate my own thoughts. So here we go...