past, present, and future

I was happy to see that we had a pretty good number of folks at church today. We are more of a "go home and see your parents" church than a "bring your parents and relatives to church" church. Today, I got to meet some friends' parents. That was very nice. And it was fun and different to have more of a classically-based service for an interesting change. I was really proud of the work that the choir did, especially considering that we never or almost never use a choir.

After watching today's rather ridiculous demise of the Packers (yes Gumball, those actual Packers, not the Cowboys you keep calling the Packers), I thought that even though it was good for us that they went down today, it was kind of sad, too. I'd rather (in most cases) see Favre have a good day. When he doesn't, its kind of like noticing that someone you like and respect has started employing the comb-over. Pathetic, really.

After the game, we decided that if we were going to watch Schindler's List that it had better be right now. So, we did it. I probably won't be writing about this for a while, so I'll just sum it up for you here. My good thoughts for that masterwork only increase with each viewing. It will be some time before I can handle it again as it is just too intense. I still think that the last 30 minutes of that film are some of the best moments ever produced on film.

Joel slept through (as he put it) "all the torture parts," so he "wasn't as soft toward it at the end." But he knew that he missed some of the investment necessary to reap the benefits of Schindler's last monologue.
I came away this time with even more of an appreciation for the fact that Schindler was just a regular, conflicted, flawed guy with questionable motives who grew tremendously. I love the irony in him pointing out that war draws out only the bad in people and never the good - while he himself has the opposite experience. I love his humility and broken honesty at the end. And I love that he truly gave what was so important to him - never to recover his fortune and never to truly see the full impact of his acts of kindness.

Well, I could go on and on. But that is enough for now.

Tomorrow brings a little wee bit more shopping and the beginning of the cooking cycle for Monday night and Tuesday. Once Christmas is over, I suppose I'll reflect about what has been a roller coaster ride of a year and look toward the realities of 2008. We will be hanging around mostly this next week. If you are local or even if you aren't, feel free to stop by. You are always welcome here.

I wish you a very Merry Christmas, my friends.