No, this post is not about the
election...
It's about Ethan.
Since turning two recently he's really ratched up his level of energy and
intensity. Over the weekend he:
- Learned how to consistently escape from his crib
- "Helped" (or tormented?) Marta by throwing all their toys into her crib (while she's stuck in it)
- Figured out how to open closed doors
- Rummaged through the cupboards and made himself "breakfast"
Probably the most exciting moment came yesterday afternoon after he took
most of the tupperware lids and oven mits and put them in the
oven—where they promptly melted and caught fire once Meghan turned
the oven on to pre-heat it. (Note to self: remember to check the
oven for foreign objects before pre-heating it.)
Ethan also opened the front door and went outside to play with the other
kids... except he couldn't find them, and wandered in the direction of the
creek. Barefoot. A four year old neighbor found him and brought him
home.
We now have door knob covers, new outlet safety plugs, and one less crib.
We still need some new tupperware and oven mits. With luck Ethan will
yet survive to see his third birthday and any hair Shauna's
lost recently will regrow quickly... :-)
— Michael A. Cleverly
Tuesday, January 20,
2009
at 10:16
286 comments
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My friend (and fellow Tcl'er) Will wrote
an
insightful post on freedom yesterday. He begins:
I was at the mall this weekend, and I saw a sweat jacket with
these words:
“Freedom is the ability to
do what I wish.”
And it occurred to me that although many people would define freedom
this way, it isn't so. Rather, freedom is the ability to do what I
ought to do. This is a notion that causes most of us to
recoil in horror. What I want to do and what I ought to do often seem
all too firmly opposed. So let's look at that.
Will is 100% correct, in my view. In this life I am free to choose;
however, only by doing what I ought (as opposed to what the
natural-man in me might want) can I find lasting freedom.
I am reminded of Lehi's counsel to his sons (2 Nephi 2:25-30 in
The Book of Mormon; pages 69-70 in
Mormon's Book;
emphasis added):
- Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy.
- And the Messiah cometh in the fulness of time, that he may redeem the
children of men from the fall. And because that they are redeemed from the
fall they become free forever, knowing good from evil; to act for themselves
and not to be acted upon, save it be by the punishment of the law at the
great and last day, according to the commandments which God hath given.
- Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are
given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose
liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or
to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the
devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto
himself.
- And now, my sons, I would that ye should look to the great
Mediator, and hearken unto his great commandments; and be faithful unto
his words, and choose eternal life, according to the will of his Holy
Spirit;
- And not choose eternal death, according to the will of the flesh
and the evil which is therein, which giveth the spirit of the devil power
to captivate, to bring you down to hell, that he may reign over you in
his own kingdom.
- I have spoken these words unto you all, my sons, in the last days of
my probation; and I have chosen the good part, according to the words of
the prophet. And I have none other object save it be the
everlasting welfare of your souls. Amen.
Verse 27 holds the key: to do as we ought means to
"choose liberty and eternal life"; to do as [the natural man]
wishes is to "choose captivity and death."
Following God's commandments doesn't limit our freedom; doing so
actually actively enhances it.
It is worth noting that the English word
command
& commandment have their origins in the Latin
Commendare ("to recommend").
Prayer,
scripture study,
chastity,
Sabbath observance,
baptism, and even
abstaining from harmful substances are all, literally,
divine recommendations instituted for our happiness that
God invites us
to follow.
Some of the best advice I ever received as a teenager: "Let His will
be your will, and then you will be free"...
Will concludes:
In
Christ, however, there is true freedom. For God is the
summit of all that Good, True, and Beautiful, and Christ Jesus is God's most
perfect revelation of Himself to us. And in Christ, and through His
sacrifice, I receive the grace to follow Him, to avoid sin, to grow
in virtue, and, in short, to pursue the Good He shows me. And that
is freedom.
To which I say, amen.
— Michael A. Cleverly
Thursday, January 22,
2009
at 12:37
193 comments
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I've got a 245-page draft English/French document I need to have
duplex printed so I can give it to a fluent French speaker for review...
- The cost to have FedEx
Kinkos print the document: $159.60(!);
- The cost to buy and ship a 23-ppm
duplexing wireless laser printer [on sale] at
NewEgg.com so I could print it
myself: $154.99;
- Remembering I have
a loving sister who has
a fancy duplexing printer already: priceless!
— Michael A. Cleverly
Tuesday, January 27,
2009
at 11:45
186 comments
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This "modernized" translation of
Matthew 5:40
(helpful for those trying to
maintain a Christian attitude toward the stimulus package)
made me laugh nearly to the point of tears...
- If Congress seeketh to take away thy coat,
let them
have thy cloak also and thy cloak, and thy chariot, and thy gold,
and thy silver, and thy vineyard, and thy calves, and thy oxen, and thy home,
and thy 401k, and verily all that thou hast and all that thy children
might have, and verily all that posterity might have until seven generations,
and shall seek to make thee and thy posterity into abject slaves,
give also thy iPod.
(Emphasis added.)
— Michael A. Cleverly
Thursday, January 29,
2009
at 18:48
181 comments
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