Sepia Tone Loving

I was looking through old photo albums yesterday, to make sense of my life. Put the puzzle pieces together.

No, not really. It had no profound ulterior motive. Just for good old time's sake - not that time now is any less good. In fact, what's with "the good old time"?

Here are bits and bobs, bits and bats, - whatever you may choose to call it - of my early years I wish to share with you. Be inspired, not sure why, but why not?

You are allowed to go "aww", yes yes.

Tuscan light

Ilago - pre little brother time

Family reunions always encompass some kind of odd dimension - that day, we were sailors, much to my amusement

Apparently, I sung myself to sleep every night. I still know how to plonk the piano just as well - only now I use two fingers

Passive cross-country skiing

I heard my calling at a very early age

Those boots are made for walking, and that's just what they'll do

Always go against the flow

Eden; I was there. Eating blueberries.

Peeing is always more interesting when done in exotic places

Conversing with my next door neighbours

... not sure what I was looking for, or telling my sister about

Gelato on the doorstep

Hours of fun in the garden

Monkey see

Monkey do

On partageait la même eau sale...

Forget barbie dolls and co

Quicksand

Preoccupy yourself
Remain "busy"
Never lie alone in the deafening silence
Keep running
Soon the ground will disappear
From underneath your feet
Keep feeding off the same addictions
Always come back to the same conclusions

But turn away from the truth
Please, the truth isn't easy to stare at
Fix your eyes on your next fix
Maybe tomorrow you can find the time
Maybe tomorrow you can find the time

Until then, pull yourself up
Let the choking strings
Walk you into the glamorous spotlights
Just play your role,
Smile while the cameras click
Feed off the wild applause
Maybe tomorrow you can find the time
To break free.

How long will you run away?
How many more times will you turn away?
Do the bruises heal that quickly?

The world is dying,
And taking you along
Do I have to watch you
Get stabbed in the back?
You hold on tight
To what you know
To what is safe

Let go, His hands are there to catch you, beautiful child.

My ears are currently seduced by: 3 Doors Down - Seventeen Days

She's Got A Ticket To Ride

holy crap

holy cow

holy trousers

The best way to earn your way into the pearly gates of heaven. It only takes a few steps.


"... Walk right in, sit right down, daddy let your mind roll on, everybody's talkin' 'bout a new way of walkin' - Do you wanna lose your mind?"

My ears are currently seduced by: Ottis Redding - Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay

For Thine Fine Palate

I made the greatest and oddest discovery in history today - much greater, important and life changing than Columbus and Da Vinci's discoveries put together.

Nearly.

Looks like the Swiss have been under the influence of Rocky Vander Benderscum.

Go Switzerland.



My ears are currently seduced by: Telecast - Beauty Of Simplicity

Thoughts

Too many to know where to start.

Dear friend, it's good to see you again,
It's good to still see you travelling
Through the terrain of your soul.
It's good to know
Little things still drive you
And put a smile across your face.

Dear friend, you hit the same wall
Time and time again
I listen to you speak - it's all the same.
It's a shame.

My friend, run towards Him,
Never cease to fight,
Fight that good fight of faith.
He will make you whole.
In Him, you have life
And the room to breathe.
Seek refuge in Him,
From the arrows of discouragement
And deception.
May He leave footprints
For you to follow
In this confusing darkness.
I'm praying for you.

It was good to sing and play with you
Hey, apparently we're a good team
"Moving and inspiring" -
We should tour the world
Like troubadours

My friends, I miss you.
Sometimes I wish
I had super power-ranger powers
To be in two places at once...
Anything is possible through God who strengthens me!

Dear God, thank You
For breathing Your life in me,
For being a God of revelation and of compassion,
A God who daily pursues His child,
Thank You for exceeding every one of my expectations,
For being a God full of mystery,
Glory
And majesty.

For knowing what delights my heart most.
For knowing me so perfectly,
For loving the me, not the who-I-try-to-be
Thank You for times when I don't have answers,
When You remind me that You are God.
Thank You for never failing at coming through.
Thank You because You're the only one I can depend on,
The only One who will never fail me.
Thank You for being Love,
For breaking my heart for Your people.

For every good and perfect gift You enrich me with.
Thank You for every single person
You have woven into the tapestry of my life.

Thank You for knowing where I'm coming from
Each time I speak with You.
Thank You for always finding me where I am.
Thank You for times of brokeness
When I see the idols I made for myself
Can't save me.

Thank You because a whisper alone
Stills my fears and restlessness,
And Your presence quietens my rushing questions.

Thank You for making Yourself known to me
Through the people I encounter daily.

Thank You because Your word is alive.

Thank You because You are truly more than enough,
If only I'd drink that in,
And abide in You,
For more than a day.
Thank You because apart from You
I can do nothing.

Thank You for loving me so much
That when I turn away,
When I seek a life of my own
It grieves You
And You come back and wait for me
Always.
Thank You for Your measureless grace.

Thank You because You are turning my rags
Into beautiful garments.

Thank You for being uncontainable;
Immeasurable.

Thank You for every breath You grant me
For every dawn You bring,
For every season You hold me through.
Thank You for letting me hear the songs
You sing over me.
Thank You for every thing
That brings a smile,
A laugh.
And for the tears only You can hear.
Thank You for the things
Yet to come.
Thank You for the life of abundance
You come to breathe into Your children.
Thank You that Your joy is my strength.

Thank You that You take the time
To discipline me,
To teach me,
To be patient with me.

Thank You for the gift of Your creation.
For the swallows that dance,
Glide,
Soar,
And dive
Into the dimming sunlight

For making every new day
New.

Thank You for the gift of friendship
And the gift of music -
May my life be an ongoing harmony
To the song You sing over me.




My ears are currently seduced by: Rockwell Church - random mix of songs

Epilogue

...I ushered them into the lift, placing them at each end of the little elevated room, in such a way that they were facing each other.

They hadn't seen each other face to face in a long time, maybe since they had arrived here, I speculated.

Still startled by his wife's radiating beauty which was only magnified by love's lines written upon her face, he wheeled himself over to kiss her.
"My darling" he said, "it had been so long since I had been placed in such a way that I could see all of your face."

Habitually, he had to settle with kissing her hand and holding her arm by his side, with the wheels of their chairs always keeping them at a distance from one another.

Tears silently started rolling down her cheek.
"65 years of marriage" she murmured, "I'm afraid I won't see him again."

Mr. B was to be taken to the hospital for tests in an hour.
Tests for his cancer.
He only has a couple more days to live.

I brought them over to a table where they started playing cards. They both won a game; he then let her take the last win.

The time was now closer to his departure, they moved closer to the main door.

He held her arm tightly, they exchanged words, punctuated by silence and tears. As the doctor walked in, he kissed her again and shook the doctor's hand, in a manner which suggested he had accepted his fate.

Drying her tears, she watched him leave until he was out of sight.


"Death smiles at us all; all a man can do is smile back." - from the movie Gladiator


"We understand death for the first time when he puts his hand upon one whom we love." - Madame de Stael

...

Tales of two cities
Originally uploaded by Drift Words.

Haven't really taken the time to sit down and think about this. I'm still left with my initial thought of "why?". Just why? What's this going to advance besides unforgiveness, intensified hatred and further the antagony swelling between the west and "the others".

Lost somewhere in between frustration, incoherence and desensitisation, I wonder if it has actually sunk in.

I was ironing sheets when someone at my work place came in and said bombs had exploded in London. I didn't entertain many thoughts about it. I didn't understand the context.

Later on, I was bringing something over to the changing rooms and one of the nurses stopped me to bring me to the nearest television to see the mediated version of what had happened.

This picture caught my attention. I'm still left with one question: "why?"

This hasn't failed to remind me we live in a fallen world. Rotten to the core.

The roots go deep. The shoots never cease to entangle this world.

I wonder, where is God's glory displayed in this?

But shall what is formed say to him who formed it, "He did not make me"? Can the pot say of the potter, "He knows nothing"? - Does a book say to its author, "He didn't write a word of me"? Isaiah 29:16b

Cookies & Infectious Melodies

I got a parcel the other day full of fun little surprises. It wasn't from Rainham, to my great discontent, but it looked like the parcel had gone on a little trip to Ethiopia before arriving to my letter box - it's a parcel with a long history, I can tell you, it's got battle wounds and all.

It's so much fun to get things in the mail. Maybe emailic technology makes life easier, gets you in touch with people quicker, and reduces the chances of getting paper cuts, but nothing replaces the joy of opening a hand written letter, or even better, of opening a parcel.

Among the humorous content of the package came a discreet cd of grand quality. A singer/songwritter by the name of Teitur , emerging from the Faroe Islands. His cd is the kind which you listen to in a loop for hours on end. The kind where each song flows into the next, forming a satisfying whole. The harmonies and acoustic guitar keep you hanging, wanting more.

Much thanks goes out to the Petit Sommelier for introducing me to quality music. Teitur's up there on my list of favourites.

"There's too much sky, not enough blue
There's too many questions to why I love you
There's too many clouds, not enough sun
The rain must fall on everyone

I'm fire - you're the ocean
I'm energy - you're the rhythm
Love is somewhere in between
What you believe and what you dream
I'm just trying to make you mine
You're the ocean

There's too much doubt and not enough dare
There's too much decision everywhere
There's too much talk and not enough time
Let's close our eyes and not our minds

I'm fire - you're the ocean
I'm energy - you're the rhythm
Love is somewhere in between
What you believe and what you dream
I'm just trying to make you mine

You look for leads, I follow clues
You love to win, I dare to lose
Mostly, you're a mind game in my head
You are earth, I am water
I can give you what you're after
You can be the word : I can be the rhyme

There's really nothing you can do
You're going where I'm going too
Stay beside me, stay beside me
I want you

I'm fire - you're the ocean
I'm energy - you're the rhythm
Love is somewhere in between
What you believe and what you dream
I'm just trying to make you mine
You're the ocean"

"Been thinkin' bout you tonight, how sweetly you bring light.
You're the ray of the sun, and I'm the shade of a shadow"

Ps: Contrary to popular belief, the Faroe Islands aren't the ones next to Egypt.

My ears are currently seduced by: Teitur - Poetry & Aeroplanes

Mountain maker

Ocean tamer

Glimpses of You

Burn in my eyes

The worship of heaven

Fills up the skies

You made it all

Said, "let there be"

And there was

All that we see

The sound of Your voice

The works of Your hands

You do all things well

You do all things well

You do all things well

Star creator

Wind breather

The strokes of Your beauty

Brushed through the clouds

Light from the heavens

Touching the ground

Imagination runs wild

And breathes the breath of life

Across the fields

Across the miles

'You Do All Things Well', Chris Tomlin

Inspiration Found In Unsuspected Places

I really love meeting new people and getting to know them.
I love "connecting" with them.
I love to know someone's "story".
I love this job, not because I have discovered a secret passion and calling in the washing clothes field, but because I get to interact with people.
I get to work with people who I could easily walk by. I don't need to use my brain too much for this job, so I get the chance to focus on the people around me instead. People who don't pretend to be anything they're not. People who are straightforward.

Clarissa, from Peru, is the one who's caught my attention most. Maybe because she follows the Spanish work ethic rather than the rigid Swiss one, which suits me best. She doesn't get stuck up on details. If a sheet's not perfectly folded, it's fine. If I make a mistake, she extends grace to the ends of the earth, and helps me fix what I did wrong.

I laugh with her, to the point of getting tears of laughter. It's good.

We did something wrong today, tried to fix it, without the "mean" woman seeing us, we laughed at our lame attempts to fix the problem. I felt like I was being naughty, I felt like I was a kid again.

She speaks to me in broken French; every other word is Spanish, it's great. She's completely unorganised, maybe I recognise myself somewhere there. She's the most well intentioned person around. She's a pleasure to work with. It's appeasing to be in her company.
She studied in Peru to get a degree, but she told me that she couldn't use it here because she can't speak French well enough. But she wants to learn. In a few years, when her little girl will be older, she'll be able to take up her studies again.

I admire her. This job is a killer. You're up all day, doing all sorts of things that physically demand resistance. Your back aches. Your legs ache. Your arms ache. But she goes home to her kid and husband, is a mother, a wife and a friend to her entourage. Finds the energy there somewhere to be all that too.

I get home and am about to collapse. By 9:30 I'm in bed.

Her simplicity and dedication gave me a real apprecation of life. Of how genuinely spoilt I am to have the life I have. Of my parents for raising us kids, for putting up with us after long hours at work. Of her.

She's off on her holidays tomorrow. So I won't work with her before I finish my time there, but she's left a lasting impression. My thanks goes out to her. Hope I'll bump into her some time again...


My ears are currently seduced by: John Mayer - Room For Squares