Poem – A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol Poem by G. K. Chesterton
The Christ-child lay on Mary’s lap,
His hair was like a light.
(O weary, weary were the world,
But here is all aright.)
The Christ-child lay on Mary’s breast
His hair was like a star.
(O stern and cunning are the kings,
But here the true hearts are.)
The Christ-child lay on Mary’s heart,
His hair was like a fire.
(O weary, weary is the world,
But here the world’s desire.)
The Christ-child stood on Mary’s knee,
His hair was like a crown,
And all the flowers looked up at Him,
And all the stars looked down
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A Christmas Carol Poem |
Keeping Christmas
Posted by Jim in Faith and Family, Stuff Jim Wonders About on December 13, 2009
A short sermon from The Spirit of Christmas, Henry Van Dyke (1905). Probably even more timely now that it was a century ago… while Mr Van Dyke almost certainly held a few beliefs that would be far from in step with either Catholics or Protestants of the modern era, he was a great thinker of his time.
Keeping Christmas
It is a good thing to observe Christmas day. The mere marking of times and seasons, when men agree to stop work and make merry together, is a wise and wholesome custom. It helps one to feel the supremacy of the common life over the individual life. It reminds a man to set his own little watch, now and then, by the great clock of humanity which runs on sun time.
But there is a better thing than the observance of Christmas day, and that is, keeping Christmas.
Are you willing to forget what you have done for other people, and to remember what other people have done for you; to ignore what the world owes you, and to think what you owe the world; to put your rights in the background, and your duties in the middle distance, and your chances to do a little more than your duty in the foreground; to see that your fellow-men are just as real as you are, and try to look behind their faces to their hearts, hungry for joy; to own that probably the only good reason for your existence is not what you are going to get out of life, but what you are going to give to life; to close your book of complaints against the management of the universe, and look around you for a place where you can sow a few seeds of happiness-are you willing to do these things even for a day? Then you can keep Christmas.
Are you willing to stoop down and consider the needs and the desires of little children; to remember the weakness and loneliness of people who are growing old; to stop asking how much your friends love you, and ask yourself whether you love them enough; to bear in mind the things that other people have to bear on their hearts; to try to understand what those who live in the same house with you really want, without waiting for them to tell you; to trim your lamp so that it will give more light and less smoke, and to carry it in front so that your shadow will fall behind you; to make a grave for your ugly thoughts, and a garden for your kindly feelings, with the gate open-are you willing to do these things even for a day? Then you can keep Christmas.
Are you willing to believe that love is the strongest thing in the world-stronger than hate, stronger than evil, stronger than death-and that the blessed life which began in Bethlehem nineteen hundred years ago is the image and brightness of the Eternal Love? Then you can keep Christmas.
And if you keep it for a day, why not always?
But you can never keep it alone.
Henry van Dyke (1852 – 1933) was an American author, educator, and clergyman.
Days of Old — Good Reads
Posted by Jim in Hobbies, Stuff Jim Wonders About on December 13, 2009
Yeah, it’s been a while .. we’ve been keeping up a blog elsewhere, but are now returning to offer up ideas from our family .. I (Jim) am the resident pseudo geek so no doubt will have the lion’s share of posts, but the (not so..) little ones have an interest in sharing ideas too so we’ll see what they can offer up ..
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Been doing a lot of reading lately, both for school and beyond .. ran across this passage in a story that I just had to capture so I could return to it… Of all the handicrafts in the world there is none cleaner, pleasanter, and more fragrant than that of the carpenter. He works in friendly stuff. If he knows it well enough and can feel its qualities, it yields readily to his working and takes the outward shape of his thought – chaor or table or bed, window-frame or shelf or beam. Ah yes, the carpenter of Nazareth (though we tend to think more about his little boy..) .. a good read this little story .. and well timed reading as I hit around the midpont of Advent. Good story indeed… |
A new toy discovery
Okay, seven kids in the house .. from new driver to new baby .. and a lot in between. You’d think we’d seen (heck, I’m pretty sure we’ve owned..) every toy on the planet…
Nope… here is a new one…. the phoneless cord!!
Here is Jasper, showing off his creation…
- The Phoneless Cord!
Pain at the pump – logical AND absurd?
Posted by Jim in Stuff Jim Wonders About on September 28, 2008
Okay, so here’s one I’ve never been able to understand and finally got around to pursuing. If you drive (or at least if you’re the one filling the tank!), this topic is near and dear to you. Hopefully, this quick and dirty explanation will at least give you a framework for understanding what is happening — as for motives, well, I’ll reserve judgement on that front!
Over and over again, we see a news story indicating a rise in crude oil prices and it seems (heck, seems nothing, this happens!!) like your fill up station down the block jumps their prices. This has always absolutely baffled me — and doubly so since we never see the reciprocal effect when the price of crude goes down (and least not in such a timely manner).
So, here’s the deal as I understand it (though I’ll readily confess that veering into economics territory is not exactly my strong suit…). Franchised stations do their current pricing based on the futures market rather than physical inventory. So in very layman terms, when crude goes up, sometime in the not too distant future, the stock physically on hand at the station will have cost more when delivered. And you know, I suppose I could live with that if it went down as far and as fast when the futures market points that way. Guess that one will need to just stay on the wish list.
Here’s the analogy .. we know that grocery prices will go up as fuel costs go up. Note .. “will” go up. I still haven’t seen the folks down at the Piggly Wiggly repricing the lettuce an hour after that latest price on a barrel of crude is announced.
The fix? Well, not a fix, but here’s a tip that sometimes pays off. The truly independent stations tend not to operate like this. The pump price is based on the price they paid on whatever is in their storage tanks. While not a universal rule, probably worth knowing who the independent local folks are .. they might just have a real deal for you when the big guys are running up their prices.