Pic-nickering Days

Picnicing weather is here!!! I love picnicing weather. (What a unique word. Picnic. I wonder where it came from.) It's the kind of weather that makes you want to kick off your winter boots, peel off your woolen socks, and let your toes reunite with old friends. Old friends like grass, dirt, the sun, lakes, the ocean, the sand. There is still enough crispness in the air so that you don't forget the winter past and are more appreciative of the suns warmth.

These kind of days remind me of May back in Idaho. Hiding in the deep shadows of our forsythia bush by the front walk are left-over patches of icey snow, dirty and forgotten. The forlorn remnants of a once smiling snowman lie dejected in the middle of our front yard, surrounded by grass that is just starting to turn the slightest tinge of green. Joel and I race out the door, barefoot, with Chestnut right behind. We squeal and run a little faster as our winter-naive toes hit the frigid stone sidewalk. The door slams behind us and the faint tinkle of the musical door harp sounds almost ethereal in the background. The day is full of endless possibilities. There are bikes to be ridden, forts to be built, trails to be cleared, trees to be climbed, and a father to be persuaded to play basketball. Schoolwork can be caught up on tomorrow.

Maybe we'll even set up a tent outside and sleep out there for the next few weeks. "What? No? But why not, Mom? It's not that cold outside. The last of the snow will be melted by tomorrow. We'll be fine! We get lots of blankets, we promise!" ... ... "Ok, *sigh* we'll wait until June."

Today is full of endless possibilities! What are you going to do with it?

tips for your next hot date

Have you ever taken an eight year-old autistic child on a date as your chaperon? It's a marvelous idea, you should try it sometime. It works very efficiently. First, he insists that one of you sit in the back seat with him and share his cheese-its. Then he sits in-between the two of you when you eat. He frequently offers you bites of his food and he loves to switch all the straws around. He walks between you and holds your hands, requesting to be run and be swung in the air. He tests your parenting skills as his attention is short-lived and he, forgetting that "we're gonna do this together, ok?", tries to wrestle free and run off. He makes your heart smile when he slurs out his rendition of "Take me out to the ballgame", "If you're happy and you know it", and "Zacheus was a wee little man" in the back seat of the car. He tries your patience when he sits down in the middle of the Walmart isle declaring (in very unclear "yes" and "no's") that he'd rather have a spanking then cooperate. And if you weren't already convinced that this is something to try, he gives you both hugs, telling you that he had fun and you get the privilege of carrying him, fast asleep, to bed. Yep, definitely something to try on your next date.

Accent Religion Page

So some of you (ok, mainly my mom :D) have been wanting to read my articles in the Accent. (I'm the new and very-much-still-learning Religion Editor). Yes, I could just bring a stack of newspapers back home but I figured I could just post them up here. So I'm going to play catch-up and post several of them all at once. Note: I'm not posting the stuff that other people have written and been published under the Religion page. For that you're going to have to wait for the stack of newspapers. :D

Love ya mom :)

Adventist-Forum: an opportunity for open discussion (2-7-08)

As SDA youth who, many times, have grown up in the church, it is difficult for us to come to conclusions about why we believe what we believe. We take what we have always been taught at face value, never searching out the evidence for ourselves.

That's not to say that what we have been taught is wrong. But many of us don't have the Biblically founded proof that we need in order to share it with others. And what if we haven't been shown the whole picture? Is our grasp of Christianity an illusion?

The Adventist-Forum, a group of students, faculty, and community members, seeks to bring into perspective many of the issues that SDA youth are afraid of. They meet together to discuss the issues relevant to modern Seventh-Day Adventists (SDA). It is their goal to provide an open and non-threatening dialogue concerning the collective heritage of the SDA church.

The discussion is structured around the book Seeking A Sanctuary by Malcolm Bull and Keith Lockhart. It is written by non-SDA's but takes a fair and historic view of Adventist Heritage. The book is not meant to be the final say in the Forum. Instead it is just meant help facilitate a better understanding of SDA history and what we can accomplish because of it.

They met this past Friday, the first, and their discussion was centered on what it means to be a SDA and what issues are important within the SDA sphere. What role does Ellen White play and is this the role she should play? What part should reason play in our search for truth?

The atmosphere was friendly, yet professional. There was a variety of faculty, students, and community members present. Shaunda Helm, a History and International Studies major, was the group facilitator and helped direct the session.

Several students, along with History professor Dr. Diller, spearheaded the Forum. The students include Raymond Thompson, Shaunda Helm, Marjorie Ellenwood, and Matthew Herman.

Raymond Thompson, a junior International Studies major, is really excited about the possibilities that the Adventist-Forum brings. "Many times our generation is accused of apathy concerning these matters. We need to wake up and realize that we are the church! The future SDA church will be better lead by people who have asked the tough questions. That is what we're doing in the Adventist-Forum: asking tough questions."

There will five more forums focusing on Seeking A Sanctuary. The forums will take place every other Friday from 12 to 1 pm. For more information, visit www.adventist-forum.blogspot.com. A videotape of Friday's forum is posted as well as more details concerning the book and how the Forum began.

By seeking to provide a safe environment to discuss spiritual issues, the forum is meant to be a place where students can talk about things that many wonder about but are afraid to bring up. If you wish to contribute to the discussion, learn more about current SDA issues, or are just simply curious, you are invited to come out on the 15th of February and join in on the next Forum.