Jan 27, 2012

A Parable


There was once an elderly man who loved bird-watching. He knew every bird he happened upon, and he had an ongoing checklist of birds he wanted to see before he died. He never went anywhere without his binoculars, bird-watching field-guide, and a meticulous itinerary of birds he wanted to see. He was a member of a local birdwatching club, as well as a national association of bird-watchers. He went to conventions. He started sticky-threads on bird-watching forums.

One day, the man wanted to take his 8-year-old grandson out into the field with him. He longed to share his experience with his grandson, hoping his grandson would enjoy it. Also, he hoped to spot one of the seasonal species and he had read about being seen recently in this area.

While carousing the field with his grandson, the man went on and on about his knowledge of birds, talking about all the birds he had seen in his life, what kind of birds they can expect to see today, and what times of the year are best to see particular species of birds. But as the minutes turned into ours, the man secretly became frustrated at his lack of a sighting.

Then the boy said, "Look Grandpa, there's a bird!" as he pointed up towards the top of a tree.

"Oh, that's just a crow," said the man. "That doesn't really count as a bird sighting. They're much too common."

"Well," said the boy, "I think its beautiful."

The man stood stunned at what his boy had just said.

After a minute of silence as they both stood watching the crow, the boy said, "Thanks for taking me bird-watching, Grandpa."

Jan 26, 2012

World, meet June Embers

No, it's not the name of old lady. Or an Adele protege trying to come up with the newest nonchalant stage name. It's my new band, and we can be listened to here:




(Or here, if you insist: June Embers)

You can download it for free. Just do us a favor and come to a show. :)

Jan 9, 2012

A devotional for people who don't like devotionals

If your looking for a great, inspirational, and practical book to read in little pieces every day (i.e., a "devotional"), check out End Malaria. It's a compilation of 2- and 3-page blurbs from successful business guru types on how to be successful, relevant, and most importantly joyful in our post-industrial world of work.
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And best of all, you don't have to be a business guru or entrepreneur to enjoy these little blurbs of wisdom. You just have to apply it to whatever it is that you do--work or hobby. (Unless you do something that you don't care about.)

As an added bonus, when you buy the paperback for $25, 20 of those dollars go the Malaria No More. When you buy the Kindle edition for $20, 100% of that goes to Malaria No More.

Check it out.