The Chapel Light - October 2009

Just some random thoughts on the passing scene… … I find most public “apologies” ridiculous. Congressman Joe Wilson (R-SC), Kanye West, Serena Williams and David Letterman have all recently offered public apologies for bad behavior. But they didn’t offend the public; they should apologize in private to those slighted – and that should be the end of it. A good number of public apologies seem to be more about ego/publicity stunts. A celebrity’s personal failure in most instances isn’t of much public consequence. His words just aren’t that powerful or far-reaching, and he shouldn’t be permitted to think so. … I agree with Congressman Joe Wilson that President Obama was not being completely truthful about the health care plan, but I think the Congressman’s remark during the speech (“You lie!”) was bad form. Speeches in British Parliament are always this way, with opponents regularly shouting down the speaker. I guess this is freedom of speech; but it makes it really difficult to understand what anyone is saying—and I don’t think it’s the best way to do things. I prefer civilization to barbarity, wherever possible. … Why are we so shocked by the rising price of health care? We’re not shocked at the rising prices of houses, property, cars, the newest electronic technology or anything else. I have found articles of deep concern about the “crisis” of rising health care dating back into the early 1990’s. How have we survived all these years in the face of such a “crisis”?!?! … Facebook users – Why should I care which Disney Princess or SpongeBob Squarepants character I am – or, for that matter, which one you are? … I believe “adolescent” is an artificial social category. If you list the characteristics of “child”, “adult,” and “adolescent,” I think you’ll find little significant difference between “child” and “adolescent.” So what are we really saying when we say that the adolescent years are being stretched into the late-20s? … Many people expect nothing of their children any more – and that’s exactly what they get. … I generally don’t allow my children to “hang out.” If they can’t state a purpose in going somewhere, why should they go? … When I’m umpiring, the people that yell the loudest about my calls are nearly always people who know little or nothing about umpiring and baseball. I think about that every time I’m tempted to yell about anything … … The guy who doubts his own existence and the guy who says that words have no meaning should either be laughed at or committed to an asylum. He should NOT be paid to teach “serious thinking” in a university. … People ask me how it feels to be a grandfather. I’m not a real “feely” guy, but I have observed that whereas the relationship with my children was natural and almost automatic, grandparenting depends on how much you choose to intentionally insert yourself into the child’s life, and how much you invite her into yours. You must MAKE the grandparenting relationship happen. I never much thought about that before. I thought I’d raise my kids and then die. For some reason all notions of grandparenting as a significant stage of life eluded me. I’m in for some pleasant discoveries, I think. … I enjoy holding my granddaughter Emma. I ponder that I’m touching the hands of a girl who may live to see the year 2100. And she’s touching the hands of a man who knew people born in the late 1800s. It makes great swaths of time seem so small. It also reminds me of the brevity of life, and the significance of “moments.” Some only come once—and you dare not miss them. … Recently my wife and I visited a restaurant called California Tortilla. When I told the cashier taking our order that it was our first time there, I did so hoping to get help with their rather large and varied menu full of unfamiliar Mexican terminology. Instead, the young man began clanging a brass school bell and shouting through a yellow megaphone, “Hey everybody!  We’ve got a first-timer here! Let’s give him a big welcome!” I am neither young enough hip enough to find public embarrassment either amusing or an acceptable form of preferential treatment. The fact that I still use the word “hip” probably makes that doubly clear. Perhaps I will eventually get comfortable with it, or forget about it, but presently I have no need or desire for California Tortilla.