First Things First
On the odd chance someone should stumble across this blog and read what has been written I thought it fair they should have some idea about who I am. It gives "context" to my ramblings. It allows a person to say, "Ah, I understand why he says that." So a bit about me. (More than the paragraph at the top of the blog. Although, those words probably say far more about me than I know.)
Yes, I really am a pastor. I serve a small Lutheran congregation in a remote rural area. I like it here. The people of this parish are sincere. I enjoy being able to walk outside and watch the horses in the field behind my office and watching the crops grow across the road from the church building. It is where God has placed me for now and I'm glad He did. I love being a pastor and I'll probably write about that another time. It really is a neat story.
I have the wife, three kids and a two dogs kind of family. My wife, who I married twice, (Yeah, that's a blog entry for another day.) teaches High School English. It is her second career. Watching her enjoy what she does is thrilling. I believe she has found herself and what fulfills her.
There are two daughters and a son. The son is in the middle actually. My oldest daughter will finish junior college and transfer to university this fall. She is planning on being a high school teacher also. Her brother will graduate from high school this spring and also begin university this fall. He wants to become a pastor. Their little sister will graduate in two years and wants to go to veterinary school. If things work just right I ought to be able to afford a pizza in about ten years.
I am the youngest of five children born to depression era parents. My birth was an "oops" my youngest sibling is nine years older than I am and the oldest is 18 years older than me. I think sociologists call it "Second Family". It was interesting growing up with a brother and sisters that were more like "uncles and aunts". As I grow older the family structure and behavior becomes even more odd. My parents are dead and I am not close to my siblings so my wife and children are important to me.
There is more but it can wait. That's something I am working on. Learning to tell people the time not telling them how to build a watch. I need to let go and let life take its course, let things grow on their own. It's hard to do but I'm trying to improve.
I titled this entry before I began writing. As I got closer to the end I saw that a fortuitous coincidence had occurred. "First Things First" is the title of the "Manifesto" written by Ken Garland in 1963. If you have never read the manifesto or know about it I encourage you to do a web search and learn about Garland, his work, and his writing.
"First Things First" pointed to the critical distinction between design as communication (giving people necessary information) and design as persuasion (trying to get them to buy things). As Wilkpedia states: "It tried to re-radicalise design which had become lazy and uncritical" and "it explicitly re-affirmed the belief that Design is not a neutral value-free process."
Maybe that is exactly what I am to be on about in this process. I hope my writing will be faithful to those principles. And when it isn't I'll blame it on bad beer.
Yes, I really am a pastor. I serve a small Lutheran congregation in a remote rural area. I like it here. The people of this parish are sincere. I enjoy being able to walk outside and watch the horses in the field behind my office and watching the crops grow across the road from the church building. It is where God has placed me for now and I'm glad He did. I love being a pastor and I'll probably write about that another time. It really is a neat story.
I have the wife, three kids and a two dogs kind of family. My wife, who I married twice, (Yeah, that's a blog entry for another day.) teaches High School English. It is her second career. Watching her enjoy what she does is thrilling. I believe she has found herself and what fulfills her.
There are two daughters and a son. The son is in the middle actually. My oldest daughter will finish junior college and transfer to university this fall. She is planning on being a high school teacher also. Her brother will graduate from high school this spring and also begin university this fall. He wants to become a pastor. Their little sister will graduate in two years and wants to go to veterinary school. If things work just right I ought to be able to afford a pizza in about ten years.
I am the youngest of five children born to depression era parents. My birth was an "oops" my youngest sibling is nine years older than I am and the oldest is 18 years older than me. I think sociologists call it "Second Family". It was interesting growing up with a brother and sisters that were more like "uncles and aunts". As I grow older the family structure and behavior becomes even more odd. My parents are dead and I am not close to my siblings so my wife and children are important to me.
There is more but it can wait. That's something I am working on. Learning to tell people the time not telling them how to build a watch. I need to let go and let life take its course, let things grow on their own. It's hard to do but I'm trying to improve.
I titled this entry before I began writing. As I got closer to the end I saw that a fortuitous coincidence had occurred. "First Things First" is the title of the "Manifesto" written by Ken Garland in 1963. If you have never read the manifesto or know about it I encourage you to do a web search and learn about Garland, his work, and his writing.
"First Things First" pointed to the critical distinction between design as communication (giving people necessary information) and design as persuasion (trying to get them to buy things). As Wilkpedia states: "It tried to re-radicalise design which had become lazy and uncritical" and "it explicitly re-affirmed the belief that Design is not a neutral value-free process."
Maybe that is exactly what I am to be on about in this process. I hope my writing will be faithful to those principles. And when it isn't I'll blame it on bad beer.
posted by Pastor Bluejeans at 12:46 PM
3 Comments:
You didn't allow comments on the more recent post so I'll do it here. I saw your blog from your profile on rlp. I like the blue jeans church idea. As for your 49th birthday, it is important to remember that this is already your 50th year you are living. It is when you complete this 50th year that you become 50. I just completed mine a few weeks ago, and from where I'm sitting it's not so bad. Still better than the alternative. Join us in chat at rlp sometime.
Sorry about the comments thing. i never was very good at math. and I got very confused with the whole Y2K deal. When did the new millenium begin anyway? Thanks for the idea about being in my 50th year. I am already feeling so much more wise
I began my blog just for me, a place to get stuff out of my head, a place I could go back later and remember the good and the bad. My husband says, "why would anyone want to read about our life." I told him I don't know but that isn't the point of my writing.
I wrote several, long entries about my childhood. It truly helped me for the first time to put it all behind me. I used to rehash it all in my head frequently but now that its written down and stored away I've been able to quit thinking about it and I've never felt the need to go re-read it. Funny how it freed me. I do go back and read the funny things that have happened to me, my husband and kids.
Don't forget to tell us the stories you've hinted at: "My wife, who I married twice" and the childhood injury that makes it difficult to pen words.
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