Two years ago today my Mom left us for heaven.
She spent her last 10 years in increasing pain. We never realized quite the depth of it until after she passed. She left writings behind. Now we have a much clearer picture.
She was an incredibly stong woman.
I should rejoice for her, but I'm only human and the loss is still too great.
Yet she continues to teach me. In my faith journey, I realize that I can't be complacent in a faith that can't get beyond myself and my loss. I cannot yet be joyous for her.
My grief is more about my selfishness and less about love. I miss seeing her, talking to her, sharing everything with her. That's all about me.
I'm realizing that shedding selfishness is going to be a lifelong journey, but a worthwhile one.
One day I want to be able to love my Mom and all the others in my life with a love that truly celebrates their joy, especially when they have the joy of heaven.
In the meantime, to nobody's surprise, when I turned on my mp3 player this morning, a Switchfoot song was playing. The song was Let Your Love Be Strong from the Oh! Gravity CD. It seems appropriate today.
In this world of news, I've found nothing new
I've found nothing pure
Maybe I'm just idealistic to assume that truth
Could be fact and form
That love could be a verb
Maybe I'm just a little misinformed
As the dead moon rises, and the freeways sigh
Let the trains watch over the tides and the mist
Spinning circles in our skies tonight
Let the trucks roll in from Los Angeles
Maybe our stars are unanimously tired
Let your love be strong, and I don't care what goes down
Let your love be strong enough to weather through the thunder cloud
Fury and thunder clap like stealing the fire from your eyes
All of my world hanging on your love
Let the wars begin, let my strength wear thin
Let my fingers crack, let my world fall apart
Train the monkeys on my back to fight
Let it start tonight
When my world explodes, when my stars touch the ground
Falling down like broken satellites
All of my world resting on your love
Happy Birthday, Mom.
Showing posts with label Music: Switchfoot. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Music: Switchfoot. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Giving
We often hear about people inspiring others. Some inspire us by the way they approach the struggles in their lives. Often we find art, music, or good writing inspirational. Bravery and selflessness, such as that demonstrated when people risk their own lives to save others, has the same effect.
But what does it mean to be inspired?
This question is on my mind a lot because, as anybody who has read my previous entries knows, I was just at the best concert of my life. It was....yup, here's the word...inspirational. I've been to some good concerts in my lifetime, but this was way above anything I've ever seen.
In fact, I'm not the only one saying that. Check out this blog from another fan who came to the same conclusion.
The evening was so memorable that I want to find a way to say "thanks" to Switchfoot. After reading more about them, I realized that they have a passion for making the world a better place. What better way to give back than to try to do the same thing?
I started a new thread at the message boards at Switchfoot.com. The thread asked for ideas on how to give back to a band that has given us so much pleasure.
There weren't very many responses. I then suggested we find a way to make small differences. I wasn't talking about major efforts; I was just suggesting we do things like noticing who needs a kind word that day or other similar efforts. We could post what we do as a gift to Switchfoot. It would directly show Switchfoot the ways they impact others.
It surprised me how quickly that thread died.
What about you? What do you do when something moves you? Do you let it make a difference, or just enjoy the feeling of inspiration while it lasts?
Think about this: if enough people made a conscious effort to do something each week to make the world better, even something that seems small, the impact would be huge.
The next time you feel inspired by somebody, find a way to give back. You never know how you might change a life.
We were meant to live for so much more!
But what does it mean to be inspired?
This question is on my mind a lot because, as anybody who has read my previous entries knows, I was just at the best concert of my life. It was....yup, here's the word...inspirational. I've been to some good concerts in my lifetime, but this was way above anything I've ever seen.
In fact, I'm not the only one saying that. Check out this blog from another fan who came to the same conclusion.
The evening was so memorable that I want to find a way to say "thanks" to Switchfoot. After reading more about them, I realized that they have a passion for making the world a better place. What better way to give back than to try to do the same thing?
I started a new thread at the message boards at Switchfoot.com. The thread asked for ideas on how to give back to a band that has given us so much pleasure.
There weren't very many responses. I then suggested we find a way to make small differences. I wasn't talking about major efforts; I was just suggesting we do things like noticing who needs a kind word that day or other similar efforts. We could post what we do as a gift to Switchfoot. It would directly show Switchfoot the ways they impact others.
It surprised me how quickly that thread died.
What about you? What do you do when something moves you? Do you let it make a difference, or just enjoy the feeling of inspiration while it lasts?
Think about this: if enough people made a conscious effort to do something each week to make the world better, even something that seems small, the impact would be huge.
The next time you feel inspired by somebody, find a way to give back. You never know how you might change a life.
We were meant to live for so much more!
Friday, October 27, 2006
Switchfoot
This seems to be the year for meet-and-greets. On Monday I received word that we'd won a meet-and-greet for a Switchfoot concert in Minneapolis. We won the tickets through a contest sponsored by Artist Arena.
I want to publicly thank Katherine from Foot Soldiers Headquarters for allowing this honor.
I also want to thank Switchfoot for a memorable evening. I can't write much about it yet because I can't do justice in words to the incredible night we had.
What I can say, though, is that if you have the opportunity to see Switchfoot in concert, don't even think of missing it. I love their CDs (which is obvious, it's the only reason we'd drive that far for a concert) but their live performance put the CDs to shame.
My daughter is 14 and I'm ... well, I'm not considered young anymore, but both of us thought this was the best concert we'd ever been to. It's now 24 hours later and we're still in awe, still basking in the glow.
After the concert I found that these guys are incredibly down-to-earth. I'll write more about that later, too.
My words, when I find them, are going to be completely inadequate.
I want to publicly thank Katherine from Foot Soldiers Headquarters for allowing this honor.
I also want to thank Switchfoot for a memorable evening. I can't write much about it yet because I can't do justice in words to the incredible night we had.
What I can say, though, is that if you have the opportunity to see Switchfoot in concert, don't even think of missing it. I love their CDs (which is obvious, it's the only reason we'd drive that far for a concert) but their live performance put the CDs to shame.
My daughter is 14 and I'm ... well, I'm not considered young anymore, but both of us thought this was the best concert we'd ever been to. It's now 24 hours later and we're still in awe, still basking in the glow.
After the concert I found that these guys are incredibly down-to-earth. I'll write more about that later, too.
My words, when I find them, are going to be completely inadequate.
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