Now Boarding
My greatest fear in life is the danger of a box, of only knowing four walls of habit that cage you in without escape; The danger of becoming so familiar with everything that you just float through the routine of life without ever actually living.
As I sit in the airport terminal and see these two words flash on the screen I smile. I'm going. I'm leaving. I don't know what I will find, who I will meet or if I will be coming back but there is a whole world out there and just maybe God could use my life in some way.
Two of my favorite words in any language, "..Now Boarding". Why? Because I believe we were not created to just exist and that you and I have a purpose beyond just survival. I believe everything in life comes down to a choice, we can choose who we want to be, we can make a difference in this cold world.
I believe if we find the courage to care we can change our future and the future of others.
If we are willing to go beyond the borders of our routine and comfort we will see things no eye has seen and discover something greater then words can describe. We have to be willing to see life through another's eyes. Through the eyes of the mother who is in prison for ten years because she could not pay her rent and has never even seen a judge. Through the eyes of an eight year old little boy who saw his whole family killed by drug lords that invaded his house. Through the eyes of a man who has no eyes and sits on the street in the rain every day. But no matter how how hopeless there situation is, there is hope in Christ and I I believe that hope is worth fighting for.
As I sit in the airport terminal and see these two words flash on the screen I smile. I'm going. I'm leaving. I don't know what I will find, who I will meet or if I will be coming back but there is a whole world out there and just maybe God could use my life in some way.Two of my favorite words in any language, "..Now Boarding". Why? Because I believe we were not created to just exist and that you and I have a purpose beyond just survival. I believe everything in life comes down to a choice, we can choose who we want to be, we can make a difference in this cold world.
I believe if we find the courage to care we can change our future and the future of others.
If we are willing to go beyond the borders of our routine and comfort we will see things no eye has seen and discover something greater then words can describe. We have to be willing to see life through another's eyes. Through the eyes of the mother who is in prison for ten years because she could not pay her rent and has never even seen a judge. Through the eyes of an eight year old little boy who saw his whole family killed by drug lords that invaded his house. Through the eyes of a man who has no eyes and sits on the street in the rain every day. But no matter how how hopeless there situation is, there is hope in Christ and I I believe that hope is worth fighting for.
I would rather risk dying, then never risk danger and spend my life just living to die. - Ruth
Come
(A pome I wrote.)
I am sad I am broken, I am completely forsaken,
I am handicapped, I am poor, I am an orphan untaken.
I am lame, I am mute, I am deaf and dumb,
Can anyone hear me, will anyone come?
I have no-one to listen and yet something to say,
I am blind and helpless and I have lost my way.
I am ignored, forgotten and considered as scum,
Can anyone hear me, will anyone come?
I try to stand, but just keep falling,
No one answers and yet I still keep calling,
I only hear them say, “get out of hear bum"
But can’t someone hear me, won’t anyone come? .
I know you don’t know me, but you could meet me,
Please don’t let this world defeat me.
I have forgotten my name, please remind me,
Please keep looking until you find me.
I am a stranger, I have no where to go,
The identity I had, I no longer know.
I am hungry, could anyone feed me,
I am blind, could someone lead me?
I am cold, I am sad, I am hungry and week,
I suffer injustice, and am afraid to speak.
I am a prisoner alone who stares at the wall,
Can anyone visit me, can you hear me call?
Could you hold my hand, could you push my chair,
Could you possibly be, the answer to my prayer?
I am naked, I am homeless, I am deaf and dumb,
I am poor, I am week, I am Jesus, will anyone come.
"Whatever you do to the least of my brothers, you do to me" Matt.25:35 |
There is nothing more exciting than the beginning of a journey-
What we say often matters quite little, What we do can matter very much.-We are the music makers
And we are the dreamers of dreams,
Wandering by lone sea breakers,
And sitting by desolate streams;
World losers and world-forsakers,
On whom the pale moon gleams;
Yet we are the movers and shakers
Of the world forever it seems.
One man with a dream at pleasure,
Shall go forth and conquer a crown;
And three with a new song’s measure
Can trample an empire down. - An Irish Poet
Can trample an empire down. - An Irish Poet
They say it’s not the destination it's
the journey. Very true. Especially when the journey takes 7 hours to go 150 miles and there’s like 9,000 potholes and speed bumps, fallen trees, mudslides, livestock in the middle of the road and of course long gaps where there is no road. My brothers and I traveled by a bus in South America from one city to another about an eight hour trip. In the middle of the night the bus stopped moving. When a bus stops in the middle of the jungle in the part of the country where we were it is defiantly not good. I woke up with a bit of panic and talked to the driver. He reassured it me it was due to a bridge that was down and because this was a one lane two direction highway each side had to wait to pass. He said it would just be a short wait and we would be our way. 25 hours later we were past the bridge and the bus exploded in applause. There were like three guys working on it and two were on break, oh yeah.
I have not had a chance to update this blog in such long time and sometimes it's really hard to find access to decent internet. We have been in Brasil, Rio and Sao Paulo for some time. It was been an unbelievable experience! Everyday has been an adventure. We were in Rio de Janeiro, during the Pope's visit in July. There were over three million people there and we performed for very large crowds. We were in the front page of a number of news papers both in Rio and Sao Paulo.
I have learned Portuguese decently well but still mix up Spanish and Portuguese and occasionally make an idiot out of myself. Sao Paulo is such a huge city! The streets are just packed with people. Because public transportation is rather expensive here, we did a lot of walking but so many cool things happen to and from our destination that is was well worth it.
We were invited to a prison a few hours outside the center of the city. It was a long, cold, bumpy, long, hilly did I say, long drive, way out in the mountains, but worth every moment. These prisoners are completely forgotten by society and were so grateful for the love and laughter we were able to bring. I have learned Irish dance fairly well and love performing it especially in prisons. The energy and excitement it brings to men who are so sad and depressed is really beautiful to see. A few years ago I broke my leg real bad and was in a wheel chair. The pain was unbelievable and it did not seem likely that I would be able to run again, mush less dance. But thanks to God Almighty I recovered so much as to pound my feet on pavement dancing Irish step dance. I share my story in a theatrical way before I dance to explain that no matter how bleak a situation can seem, God offers real hope and healing. (My leg is still sore as heck when I'm done but the joy out weighs the pain.) The time I spent in a wheel chair has given me a deep respect for those who are handicapped and spend a lot of time confined to a wheel chair. It has opened my eyes and taught me a greater compassion and I would not take back my accident for anything.
I will try to upload some pictures of our time in Brazil when I get a chance and hope to keep a more consistent blog but might do so on another website so I'll let you know. We are hoping to drive from Colombia through South America ending up back in Rio hopefully for the World Cup.
the journey. Very true. Especially when the journey takes 7 hours to go 150 miles and there’s like 9,000 potholes and speed bumps, fallen trees, mudslides, livestock in the middle of the road and of course long gaps where there is no road. My brothers and I traveled by a bus in South America from one city to another about an eight hour trip. In the middle of the night the bus stopped moving. When a bus stops in the middle of the jungle in the part of the country where we were it is defiantly not good. I woke up with a bit of panic and talked to the driver. He reassured it me it was due to a bridge that was down and because this was a one lane two direction highway each side had to wait to pass. He said it would just be a short wait and we would be our way. 25 hours later we were past the bridge and the bus exploded in applause. There were like three guys working on it and two were on break, oh yeah.
I have not had a chance to update this blog in such long time and sometimes it's really hard to find access to decent internet. We have been in Brasil, Rio and Sao Paulo for some time. It was been an unbelievable experience! Everyday has been an adventure. We were in Rio de Janeiro, during the Pope's visit in July. There were over three million people there and we performed for very large crowds. We were in the front page of a number of news papers both in Rio and Sao Paulo.
I have learned Portuguese decently well but still mix up Spanish and Portuguese and occasionally make an idiot out of myself. Sao Paulo is such a huge city! The streets are just packed with people. Because public transportation is rather expensive here, we did a lot of walking but so many cool things happen to and from our destination that is was well worth it.We were invited to a prison a few hours outside the center of the city. It was a long, cold, bumpy, long, hilly did I say, long drive, way out in the mountains, but worth every moment. These prisoners are completely forgotten by society and were so grateful for the love and laughter we were able to bring. I have learned Irish dance fairly well and love performing it especially in prisons. The energy and excitement it brings to men who are so sad and depressed is really beautiful to see. A few years ago I broke my leg real bad and was in a wheel chair. The pain was unbelievable and it did not seem likely that I would be able to run again, mush less dance. But thanks to God Almighty I recovered so much as to pound my feet on pavement dancing Irish step dance. I share my story in a theatrical way before I dance to explain that no matter how bleak a situation can seem, God offers real hope and healing. (My leg is still sore as heck when I'm done but the joy out weighs the pain.) The time I spent in a wheel chair has given me a deep respect for those who are handicapped and spend a lot of time confined to a wheel chair. It has opened my eyes and taught me a greater compassion and I would not take back my accident for anything.
I will try to upload some pictures of our time in Brazil when I get a chance and hope to keep a more consistent blog but might do so on another website so I'll let you know. We are hoping to drive from Colombia through South America ending up back in Rio hopefully for the World Cup.
We arrived back in Bogota Colombia last week. So good to be back. The city is all lit up for Christmas and looks so pretty. We have been training and practicing a lot this week in order to perfect our presentation. We are learning a new dance and also going to put Tae Kwon Do moves to a dub-stop beat. Before we left the States I got Goodwill to donate some stuffed animals and shirts so we can give the homeless families something for Christmas. The need here is so great it can be overwhelming. But it is amazing how grateful the poor are for even the simplest things like just talking to them and caring about them for a while.
We all put a lot of the stuffed animals on our back packs because the airline only allows so many check throughs. So we kind of looked like a walking zoo going through customs. Picture eight people with eight huge back packs with stuffed animals hanging out all over (plus tuns of boxes), and we wonder why we get searched.
Six word biographies
Love is the weapon of my choice.
Learning to make the supernatural practical.
Coming from a position of "Not".
Love is the weapon of my choice.
Learning to make the supernatural practical.
Coming from a position of "Not".