December Newsletter
Twas the Beginning of Advent
'Twas the beginning of Advent and all through the Church
Our hope was all dying-- we'd given up on the search.
It wasn't so much that Christ wasn't invited,
But after 2,000 plus years we were no longer excited.
Oh, we knew what was coming-- no doubt about that.
And that was the trouble-- it was all "old hat."
November brought the first of an unending series of pains
With carefully orchestrated advertising campaigns.
There were gadgets and dolls and all sorts of toys.
Enough to seduce even the most devout girls and boys.
Unfortunately, it seemed, no one was completely exempt
From this seasonal virus that did all of us tempt.
The priests and prophets and certainly the kings
Were all so consumed with the desire for "things!"
It was rare, if at all, that you'd hear of the reason
For the origin of this whole holy-day season.
A baby, it seems, once had been born
In the mid-east somewhere on that first holy-day morn.
But what does that mean for folks like us,
Who've lost ourselves in the hoopla and fuss?
Can we re-learn the art of wondering and waiting,
Of hoping and praying, and anticipating?
Can we let go of all the things and the stuff?
Can we open our hands and our hearts long enough?
Can we open our eyes and open our ears?
Can we find him again after all of these years?
Will this year be different from all the rest?
Will we be able to offer him all of our best?
So many questions, unanswered thus far,
As wise men seeking the home of the star.
Where do we begin-- how do we start
To make for the child a place in our heart?
Perhaps we begin by letting go
Of our limits on hope, and of the stuff that we know.
Let go of the shopping, of the chaos and fuss,
Let go of the searching, let Christmas find us.
We open our hearts, our hands and our eyes,
To see the king coming in our own neighbours' cries.
We look without seeking what we think we've earned,
But rather we're looking for relationships spurned.
With him he brings wholeness and newness of life
For brother and sister, for husband and wife.
The Christ-child comes not by our skill,
But rather he comes by his own Father's will.
We can't make him come with parties and bright trees,
But only by getting down on our knees.
He'll come if we wait amidst our affliction,
Coming in spite of, not by our restriction.
His coming will happen-- of this there's no doubt.
The question is whether we'll be in or out.
"Behold, I stand at the door and knock."
Do you have the courage to peer through the lock?
A basket on your porch, a child in your reach.
A baby to love, to feed and to teach.
He'll grow in wisdom as God's only Son.
How far will we follow this radical one?
He'll lead us to challenge the way that things are.
He'll lead us to follow a single bright star.
But that will come later if we're still around.
The question for now: Is the child to be found?
Can we block out commercials, the hype and the malls?
Can we find solitude in our holy halls?
Can we keep alert, keep hope, stay awake?
Can we receive the child for ours and God's sake?
From on high with the carolling host as he sees us,
He yearns to read on our lips the prayer: Come Lord Jesus!
As Advent begins all these questions make plea.
The only true answer: We will see, we will see.
Todd Jenkins
The virus that most of us catch during this season of the year is the shopping virus. Michael Kearl, in Seeds, says: "Shopping malls are our modern cathedrals of consumption. It used to be the church where you saw fellow community members. Now it's the mall. The parking lots are filled. There's an almost sacred quality given to the act of consuming. There's a certain standardized feeling in the malls, just like the old cathedrals of yore."
Competition for Sleep
Adequate sleep is the foundation for wellness. But, as we know, Americans are not getting enough of it, and are paying the price. Studies have told us for some time what should be obvious, that we are more likely to fall asleep and have good quality sleep when we let the brain relax before trying to fall asleep. One study we reported on earlier showed good results from listening to quieting music for 45 minutes before going to bed. Instead, however, too many of us spend late night time stimulating the brain instead of quieting it.
A study of teen sleep reveals that those with four or more electronic devices in their rooms (e.g., cell phones, televisions, computers and video game) were twice as likely to fall asleep at school. Over 25% of high school students fall asleep at school at least once per week. When I discuss sleep problems with adults, I also hear them stimulating their brains late at night instead of quieting them. Attractions include TV, computer games, games of chance that can trigger dopamine (such as solitaire) and pornography. Often, we realize we are choosing short term gratification over adequate sleep, and, as we know, stress promotes short term thinking. But behavior based on such short term thinking actually undermines our ability to tolerate stress tomorrow, as the case of sleep exemplifies.
Teens are also choosing cell phone availability over sleep, keeping their cell phones on so they can talk to friends who call to chat at any time of night. More parents are confiscating cell phones when they go to bed to restrict such unnecessary disruption of their teens sleep.
LETTERS TO SANTA
I need a new skateboard for Christmas. The one I got now crashes too much. Band-Aids would be OK too. David
Dear Santa, Would you rather I leave you cookies and milk or pizza? Dad says you'd probably like the pizza. Write back right away to let me know. Love, Lisa
Dear Santa, Please give me a tank, a jet fighter, 20 green soldiers, and a bazooka gun. I'm planning a surprise attack on my brother. So don't tell anyone. Thanks, Danny
Dear Santa, How will you get into our house this year? We don't have a chimney and my father just installed a very expensive security system. Julie
Seven Things to Be Thankful For
* for automatic dishwashers. They make it possible to get out of the kitchen before the family come in for their after-dinner snacks.
* for husbands who attack small repair jobs around the house. They usually make them big enough to call in professionals.
* for the bathtub -- the one place the family allows Mom some time to herself.
* for children who put away their things and clean up after themselves. They're such a joy you hate to see them go home to their own parents.
* for gardening. It's a relief to deal with dirt outside the house for a change.
* for teenagers. They give parents an opportunity to learn a second language.
* for smoke alarms. They let you know when the turkey's done.
The attitude of gratitude is important for several reasons:
Thankfulness acknowledges that God is our provider.
Thankfulness prevents a complaining spirit.
Thankfulness creates a positive outlook on life
Thankfulness invites joy to dwell in our hearts.
PUTTING IT IN PERSPECTIVE
Barry Ritholtz, a financial blogger, has run the numbers on the bailout, and he cites a guy named Jim Bianco of Bianco Research who crunched inflation-adjusted numbers and compared some previous federal government expenditures to the current total of the bailout. The total bailout money to date is either $6 trillion or $7.4 trillion. They just ran it up to $4.6 trillion. The current national debt is $7 trillion. This current bailout, calculated only up to $4.6 trillion, has cost more than all of the following government expenditures combined. - The Marshall Plan. The Louisiana Purchase. The race to the moon. The S&L crisis. The Korean War. The New Deal. The invasion of Iraq. The Vietnam War. And NASA.
All of those combined, in inflation-adjusted dollars, equal $3.92 trillion in today's dollars. This bailout is more than all of those combined. The inflation-adjusted dollar amounts for each of these line items ---- The Marshall Plan, back when we did it, cost $12.7 billion -- and it rebuilt Europe after World War II. If we did the Marshall Plan today, it would cost $115.3 billion. We rebuilt European for $115.3 billion in today's dollars; and we have just spent $4.6 trillion on bailouts of the US financial industry. The Louisiana Purchase, in today's dollars, would cost $217 billion. The Louisiana Purchase was Thomas Jefferson. That's how we got New Orleans and much of the territory all the way to the Left Coast, and it gave us the Lewis and Clark expedition, which Jefferson ordered to go find out what we just bought.
The race to the moon, in today's dollars, would have cost $237 billion. That's more than the Marshall Plan and Louisiana Purchase in today's dollars. The S&L crisis. We bailed out the S&Ls and fixed that. In today's dollars, it would cost $256 billion. Back then it was $153 billion. The Korean War, $54 billion back in the fifties. Today's cost would be $454 billion. The New Deal. Today's dollars, estimated to be $500 billion, if we did the New Deal today. That's half a trillion. We have spent $4.6 trillion. The New Deal was half a trillion in today's dollars. We have spent $4.6 trillion, and probably more than that, at least six or seven. The invasion of Iraq, $597 billion in today's dollars. The Vietnam War. Back in the era of the Vietnam War, it cost $111 billion. To do it today would cost $698 billion. And NASA. This is not the race to moon. This is the whole NASA budget. Over the years, $416.7 billion. In today's dollars, it's $851.2 billion.
So, all of these add up to $3.92 trillion: Marshall Plan, New Deal, Louisiana Purchase, race to the moon, S&L crisis, and we have spent $4.6 trillion. The only thing that comes close is World War II, and even that cost less than what we have spent. But at least in World War II, we were producing something, and everybody was working, and there was a tangible result, and that is we were able to stop Hitler. We did a great thing in World War II. This is using a figure of $4.6 trillion as the bailout today. It is far more than that.
'Twas the beginning of Advent and all through the Church
Our hope was all dying-- we'd given up on the search.
It wasn't so much that Christ wasn't invited,
But after 2,000 plus years we were no longer excited.
Oh, we knew what was coming-- no doubt about that.
And that was the trouble-- it was all "old hat."
November brought the first of an unending series of pains
With carefully orchestrated advertising campaigns.
There were gadgets and dolls and all sorts of toys.
Enough to seduce even the most devout girls and boys.
Unfortunately, it seemed, no one was completely exempt
From this seasonal virus that did all of us tempt.
The priests and prophets and certainly the kings
Were all so consumed with the desire for "things!"
It was rare, if at all, that you'd hear of the reason
For the origin of this whole holy-day season.
A baby, it seems, once had been born
In the mid-east somewhere on that first holy-day morn.
But what does that mean for folks like us,
Who've lost ourselves in the hoopla and fuss?
Can we re-learn the art of wondering and waiting,
Of hoping and praying, and anticipating?
Can we let go of all the things and the stuff?
Can we open our hands and our hearts long enough?
Can we open our eyes and open our ears?
Can we find him again after all of these years?
Will this year be different from all the rest?
Will we be able to offer him all of our best?
So many questions, unanswered thus far,
As wise men seeking the home of the star.
Where do we begin-- how do we start
To make for the child a place in our heart?
Perhaps we begin by letting go
Of our limits on hope, and of the stuff that we know.
Let go of the shopping, of the chaos and fuss,
Let go of the searching, let Christmas find us.
We open our hearts, our hands and our eyes,
To see the king coming in our own neighbours' cries.
We look without seeking what we think we've earned,
But rather we're looking for relationships spurned.
With him he brings wholeness and newness of life
For brother and sister, for husband and wife.
The Christ-child comes not by our skill,
But rather he comes by his own Father's will.
We can't make him come with parties and bright trees,
But only by getting down on our knees.
He'll come if we wait amidst our affliction,
Coming in spite of, not by our restriction.
His coming will happen-- of this there's no doubt.
The question is whether we'll be in or out.
"Behold, I stand at the door and knock."
Do you have the courage to peer through the lock?
A basket on your porch, a child in your reach.
A baby to love, to feed and to teach.
He'll grow in wisdom as God's only Son.
How far will we follow this radical one?
He'll lead us to challenge the way that things are.
He'll lead us to follow a single bright star.
But that will come later if we're still around.
The question for now: Is the child to be found?
Can we block out commercials, the hype and the malls?
Can we find solitude in our holy halls?
Can we keep alert, keep hope, stay awake?
Can we receive the child for ours and God's sake?
From on high with the carolling host as he sees us,
He yearns to read on our lips the prayer: Come Lord Jesus!
As Advent begins all these questions make plea.
The only true answer: We will see, we will see.
Todd Jenkins
The virus that most of us catch during this season of the year is the shopping virus. Michael Kearl, in Seeds, says: "Shopping malls are our modern cathedrals of consumption. It used to be the church where you saw fellow community members. Now it's the mall. The parking lots are filled. There's an almost sacred quality given to the act of consuming. There's a certain standardized feeling in the malls, just like the old cathedrals of yore."
Competition for Sleep
Adequate sleep is the foundation for wellness. But, as we know, Americans are not getting enough of it, and are paying the price. Studies have told us for some time what should be obvious, that we are more likely to fall asleep and have good quality sleep when we let the brain relax before trying to fall asleep. One study we reported on earlier showed good results from listening to quieting music for 45 minutes before going to bed. Instead, however, too many of us spend late night time stimulating the brain instead of quieting it.
A study of teen sleep reveals that those with four or more electronic devices in their rooms (e.g., cell phones, televisions, computers and video game) were twice as likely to fall asleep at school. Over 25% of high school students fall asleep at school at least once per week. When I discuss sleep problems with adults, I also hear them stimulating their brains late at night instead of quieting them. Attractions include TV, computer games, games of chance that can trigger dopamine (such as solitaire) and pornography. Often, we realize we are choosing short term gratification over adequate sleep, and, as we know, stress promotes short term thinking. But behavior based on such short term thinking actually undermines our ability to tolerate stress tomorrow, as the case of sleep exemplifies.
Teens are also choosing cell phone availability over sleep, keeping their cell phones on so they can talk to friends who call to chat at any time of night. More parents are confiscating cell phones when they go to bed to restrict such unnecessary disruption of their teens sleep.
LETTERS TO SANTA
I need a new skateboard for Christmas. The one I got now crashes too much. Band-Aids would be OK too. David
Dear Santa, Would you rather I leave you cookies and milk or pizza? Dad says you'd probably like the pizza. Write back right away to let me know. Love, Lisa
Dear Santa, Please give me a tank, a jet fighter, 20 green soldiers, and a bazooka gun. I'm planning a surprise attack on my brother. So don't tell anyone. Thanks, Danny
Dear Santa, How will you get into our house this year? We don't have a chimney and my father just installed a very expensive security system. Julie
Seven Things to Be Thankful For
* for automatic dishwashers. They make it possible to get out of the kitchen before the family come in for their after-dinner snacks.
* for husbands who attack small repair jobs around the house. They usually make them big enough to call in professionals.
* for the bathtub -- the one place the family allows Mom some time to herself.
* for children who put away their things and clean up after themselves. They're such a joy you hate to see them go home to their own parents.
* for gardening. It's a relief to deal with dirt outside the house for a change.
* for teenagers. They give parents an opportunity to learn a second language.
* for smoke alarms. They let you know when the turkey's done.
The attitude of gratitude is important for several reasons:
Thankfulness acknowledges that God is our provider.
Thankfulness prevents a complaining spirit.
Thankfulness creates a positive outlook on life
Thankfulness invites joy to dwell in our hearts.
PUTTING IT IN PERSPECTIVE
Barry Ritholtz, a financial blogger, has run the numbers on the bailout, and he cites a guy named Jim Bianco of Bianco Research who crunched inflation-adjusted numbers and compared some previous federal government expenditures to the current total of the bailout. The total bailout money to date is either $6 trillion or $7.4 trillion. They just ran it up to $4.6 trillion. The current national debt is $7 trillion. This current bailout, calculated only up to $4.6 trillion, has cost more than all of the following government expenditures combined. - The Marshall Plan. The Louisiana Purchase. The race to the moon. The S&L crisis. The Korean War. The New Deal. The invasion of Iraq. The Vietnam War. And NASA.
All of those combined, in inflation-adjusted dollars, equal $3.92 trillion in today's dollars. This bailout is more than all of those combined. The inflation-adjusted dollar amounts for each of these line items ---- The Marshall Plan, back when we did it, cost $12.7 billion -- and it rebuilt Europe after World War II. If we did the Marshall Plan today, it would cost $115.3 billion. We rebuilt European for $115.3 billion in today's dollars; and we have just spent $4.6 trillion on bailouts of the US financial industry. The Louisiana Purchase, in today's dollars, would cost $217 billion. The Louisiana Purchase was Thomas Jefferson. That's how we got New Orleans and much of the territory all the way to the Left Coast, and it gave us the Lewis and Clark expedition, which Jefferson ordered to go find out what we just bought.
The race to the moon, in today's dollars, would have cost $237 billion. That's more than the Marshall Plan and Louisiana Purchase in today's dollars. The S&L crisis. We bailed out the S&Ls and fixed that. In today's dollars, it would cost $256 billion. Back then it was $153 billion. The Korean War, $54 billion back in the fifties. Today's cost would be $454 billion. The New Deal. Today's dollars, estimated to be $500 billion, if we did the New Deal today. That's half a trillion. We have spent $4.6 trillion. The New Deal was half a trillion in today's dollars. We have spent $4.6 trillion, and probably more than that, at least six or seven. The invasion of Iraq, $597 billion in today's dollars. The Vietnam War. Back in the era of the Vietnam War, it cost $111 billion. To do it today would cost $698 billion. And NASA. This is not the race to moon. This is the whole NASA budget. Over the years, $416.7 billion. In today's dollars, it's $851.2 billion.
So, all of these add up to $3.92 trillion: Marshall Plan, New Deal, Louisiana Purchase, race to the moon, S&L crisis, and we have spent $4.6 trillion. The only thing that comes close is World War II, and even that cost less than what we have spent. But at least in World War II, we were producing something, and everybody was working, and there was a tangible result, and that is we were able to stop Hitler. We did a great thing in World War II. This is using a figure of $4.6 trillion as the bailout today. It is far more than that.
posted by joypastordon at 3:34 PM
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