Second Drafts

Mizzou-Rah

I would have completely forgotten I graduated from college 20 years ago without this note (which, of course, also included a petition for funds) congratulating me upon the anniversary. While I doubt I'm too specifically "remembered," I'll give a shout out to all my MU peeps and offer a "Mizzou-rah" for all those times that seem like ancient history now.

(Shameless self-promotion: If you want to read more about my time at Mizzou, order a copy of TwentySomeone and skim it before you give it to your favorite graduate this May.)

Leithart on Leadership

I really like what Peter J. Leithart has to say at the end of this meditation on leadership:

"Leaders must regularly transgress settled boundaries because churches (and schools) constantly redefine themselves in ever new circumstances and in response to ever new challenges, in a way that is faithful to Jesus and His Word. Official leaders might be the ones breaking barriers. If they are not, then the real leaders of the church are the ones who do. If no one is breaking through old boundaries, the church is implicitly claiming that it has reached the eschaton and that it has no more growing to do. It might as well shut its doors, because it is dead.

Yet leaders that don’t love their people, who don’t plow the ground they want to plant, who give no indication of which direction they’re headed, who head this way and that way without warning or reason, will fail. They may be blazing ahead down a new and promising path, but no one will follow. And without followers, no one can be a leader."

Good stuff, Maynard.

Sticky Note Processing

After finishing up another Biblical Imagination Conference (our largest to date - 150 wonderful people!), I'm sitting in the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, enjoying the Upper Midwest accents and waiting for my flight back to OKC. After a full travel day on Friday and the conference that evening and all day Saturday, I got to sleep in at bit this morning in my hotel room (which rarely happens at home), so I'm feeling fairly rested and reflective as I enjoy the free wi-fi.

I've been a part of these conferences for two-and-a-half years now, developing the program and serving as emcee/educator for the first year-and-a-half through the gospel of Luke, and now finishing up in another two weeks the past year with our final Mark conference. Matthew starts up in September and will run for a year-and-a-half, and then we'll finish out with John for almost two years. When it's all said and done, it will be a total of six years that I've been involved with this initiative.

One of the things I try to facilitate during the conferences is a warm, funny (often "punny"), and vulnerable atmosphere that lends itself to folks being comfortable enough to listen without defense and contribute without suspense. A great way I've found (or more accurately, stolen from my friends Bill, Bruce, and John) that lends itself to meeting this goal is "sticky note processing" - asking conferees to write down a thought on a sticky note in response to a question, discuss it with each other, and then post it on the wall for all to read. Everyone can then check the stickies out over the breaks, and I read a few at the beginning of the next session and comment so folks know we're taking them seriously.

Yesterday afternoon, after a session on the "unmiraculous miracles" Jesus did in the New Testament and now does in our daily lives, I asked attendees to complete the sentence, "Lord, give me the eyes to see your miracle in/concerning..." The responses were both heart-breaking and, if you're involved with people to any degree, sadly all too familiar:

Lord, give me the eyes to see your miracle in/concerning...

...bringing faith to unsaved friends and family.

...my prodigal sister disowning our family.

...giving our children the daily knowledge and experience to grow up healthy and happy and desiring to know You more.

...my joy.

...contention in the church body.

...the lost in our state, country, and the world.

...my daughter being critical of everything that her husband says or does.

...the lives of my grandchildren.

...healing my relationship with my ex-wife to be able to communicate over family matters.

...the healing of our son-in-law's body and finding a job for him.

...Your vantage point always in every moment.

...my 3-year-old adoptive daughter and her progress and ability to talk.

...our daughter and son-in-law's marriage and how they treat and talk to each other.

...our children's lives.

...the two years of pain and suffering and death of my mother because I don't understand it.

...my job search and where you want me.

...our daughters.

...giving me the courage, wisdom, and opportunity to teach my young grandchildren about You.

...my wayward daughter.

...my youngest daughter as she truly is, not as her illness makes her.

...the effects of a Christian friend on a unbeliever.

...bringing my brother and his wife into relationship with You.

...my child.

...our church, its growth and vibrancy, and how it can touch our community.

...how to stop the persecution of Christians.

...in our finances and living situation.

...my faith in Your plans and times for the future.

...my personnel problems at work, my family conflicts, and my own depression.

...my prayers to open the eyes of close family members.

...our son watching our daughter-in-law crack under the pressure of living overseas in such an oppressive culture that devalues life.

...our budget despite the loss of income.

...our son's death.

...my son in med school who seems so far away from his Christian upbringing.

...Your work through my work.

...the loss of a visa and job in east Asia.

...my husband's careful and loving provision for me - always a model of how You love us.

...the starving people in the world.

...restoration, healing, and wholeness for my children who grew up in lots of chaos and crud, that they would be able to forgive me for their past pain.

...my 21-year-old son, who is very introverted and not motivated to move forward in life.

...returning our pastor to our church.

...the broken relationships with my youngest son and my two daughter-in-laws; I stay away to avoid troubles, even at the expense of not seeing my only granddaughter.

...my oldest son, who struggles with You, his faith, and himself.

It can be overwhelming reading all these, but when shared in the temporary community of the conference, it's amazing how God enables people to find and hold each other up in the midst of the hurt. My prayer is people can do the same in their local church communities, but it isn't easy when all of us wrestle with our own versions of the list above and have to relate longer-term than across a short weekend.

Still, by God's grace, perhaps folks can get a taste at the conference of what's possible at home and pursue this potential within a local expression of the Body of Christ. It's a lonely and lamentable existence otherwise. All it takes are a few sticky notes to figure that out.

The Classical Capstone

(l to r): Sarah Baskerville, Ruth Serven, Mackenzie Valentin, Austin Clark, and Todd Wedel

"A well-spent day brings happy sleep."
Leonardo da Vinci

"At this I awoke and looked, and my sleep was pleasant to me."
Jeremiah 31:26

I slept well last night, not because I was tired (I was), nor because all's right with the world (it isn't). I slept well last night because I had just witnessed truth, goodness, and beauty at work, and it was comforting.

Last night, I (along with four other teachers - Abby Lorenc, Alex Kelley, Josh Spears, and Todd Wedel - and four sets of super-supportive senior parents) had the privilege of hearing from our four seniors - Sarah Baskerville, Ruth Serven, Mackenzie Valentin, and Austin Clark. Each presented what we're calling our Classical Capstone - a 25-minute speech followed by a 10-minute question and answer period, during which the student fields questions from parents and faculty advisors concerning what he or she has just presented. In addition to the presentation, students have the opportunity to create something that goes along with the topic discussed.

As the Capstone is a year-long project, Academic Dean Todd Wedel put together a 35-page booklet detailing the initiative's requirements. Here's the overview paragraph:

The Classical Capstone is the culmination of the Classical and Christian education at Veritas. Through the process of developing their Classical Capstones, students will be required to determine a topic of interest to themselves, formulate a driving question or concern, conduct background research, take a position, motivate the position or concern to their audience, work through drafting the Classical Capstone, publicly present the Capstone Project and answer questions from the audience, defend their project during a formal examination, and reflect up on what they have learned about the learning process, themselves, and a Christian worldview through the various stages of the Classical Capstone. 

The project is designed to encompass the students' classical Christian education:

The Classical Capstone will demand that students demonstrate all the elements of a truly classical education, familiarizing themselves with the grammar of their topic or subject, determining the connections between/among viewpoints/sources/positions/expressions, and expressing their viewpoint cogently, clearly, and winsomely. The Classical Capstone will demand, as well, that the entirety of the Project is imbued with a Christian worldview, from the way students select an appropriate topic, to the way they conduct research, to the type of argument or position they formulate, to the way they express their position, to the way they respond to questions and challenges. 

So that students avoid becoming overwhelmed or lost in the process, they are able to choose a faculty advisor to walk through the year with them:

Students will work with a Faculty Advisor during the course of their Project in conjunction with the Classical Capstone Director. The Faculty Advisor will help with the selection and narrowing of topic/focus, aid in direction of research, aid in the formulation of appropriate argument, and serve as one of the members of the examination panel.

Finally, when all's said and done (as it was last night), there are "deliverables":

Although the most common form of the Classical Capstone’s final deliverable will be a paper, students are not limited to this form. Other forms of rhetoric-level instruction are acceptable and encouraged if they comport with students’ natural gifts and abilities. The scope of the project will still involve background research and may require written work even if the final deliverable is not written (e.g. a student may need to write an analysis and defense of a painting or musical composition). Deliverables will be evaluated on their ability to demonstrate standards of biblical aesthetics including order, balance, harmony, unity-in-diversity, etc.

I'm not sure I can think of a better way to invest two hours. Our students presented very thoughtful and well-written papers on the topics of our human need for art, what good art is and should be, how our relationship to food has everything to do with our relationship to others, and (just for fun), an in-depth analysis of William the Conqueror and the Battle of Hastings in 1066.

As Mackenzie's presentation involved a study of journal-making, she made two beautiful leather-bound journals - one with paper she bought, another with paper she made out of (I'm not kidding here) old jeans. Ruth, having talked about art more literarily, brought copies of an original short story heart-wrenching in its description of two boys caught between dysfunctional parents called "The Tree".

Sarah, advocating for a cultural return to "cuisine" (and not just "cooking"), baked amazing homemade pumpkin muffins using her own recipe for everyone in attendance. And Austin had obviously invested his "project" time in a ton of extra reading and research, as evidenced by his phenomenal grasp of the complexities of the Normans and Saxons during his Q&A time.

With only a month of school left (and a thousand thoughts having to do with it running through my mind), it was nice to sit back and witness why it's all worth it. Last night was a celebration of our seniors' hard work and accomplished rhetorical gifts which served to reaffirm the trivium as a tried and true educational methodology. In addition, seeing their desires (and not just their words) shaped by education that is truly Christian was inspiring.

Make no mistake, their grasp - like mine - of the nuances of life is far from perfect and still developing (some of the parents' careful but challenging questions spoke to this). But, it is being shaped and redeemed by the truth, goodness, and beauty of the Gospel, reminding me of Philippians 1:6, that He who began a good work in these students will bring it to completion at the day of Christ.

I'm not sure there's a more comforting thought with which to hit the hay.

Leonard Bernstein's Mass

Our two oldest have been rehearsing their hearts out for this performance in a couple of weeks. Proud of them for their efforts, glad for them for the opportunity. Tickets available.

Losing the Fight Over Love

My heart is heavy with all that is taking place right now concerning the debate over gay marriage. Apart from the issue itself, I lament the hostile rhetoric of it all and the way sides are being taken with so little nuance (see Facebook's pink equal signs and their "Christian" cross variations), not so much for a position but against someone else taking the opposite one.

With this in mind, I appreciate N.T. Wright's perspective on framing the discussion and would encourage you to give thought to it in terms of how Christians should engage:

As to the issue itself, I wrote about it here on the blog five years ago and you're welcome to agree or disagree. For a more recent treatise that I think worthy of your time, Voddie Baucham's article, "Gay Is Not the New Black," is an important piece that does a good job addressing the issues at hand in the context of the current rhetoric.

All that said, pray for our country, that regardless of whatever differences people have, we can show love to one another in our discussions of them.

Something of the Marvelous

"In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous."
Aristotle

Few things take my mind off the past and the future like camping does. I've just returned from spending two days and two nights living almost exclusively in the present, and it was so good I didn't want to come back.

I'm late to the joys of camping. Some of this is not my fault (I only remember one camping trip my family took when I was a kid and it was eight miles from my house); most of it, however, is (I lived 12 years in Colorado Springs, worked at a camp for 10 of those, and never even owned a sleeping bag, for crying out loud).

Come to think of it, I still don't even own a sleeping bag. I really am (and always have been) a camping lightweight.

Lightweight or not, when I hit my late-30s and felt the need to do something unique, experiential, and (let's be honest) cheap with Megan and our growing girls, camping suddenly became a legitimate option. Megan found a great family tent on Freecycle, we borrowed some gear, and presto - we were campers.

Our girls - all four of them - absolutely love it. This blessing is not lost on me, as it would stink if even just one were only slightly amused or (worse) completely repulsed by the idea of hiking, eating, and sleeping outside. In addition, while I wouldn't say it's her favorite thing as she longs for a Winnebago, Megan's usually good for at least a couple days and nights without a shower, so I've got that going for me.

This most recent trip (our first over a Spring Break) was different for a variety of reasons, most notably the addition of a set of young foster boys (4 and 3) to the mix. While overall a positive experience for everyone (especially the boys), let's just say there's another reason I didn't start camping until after our girls were five and older - taking two little kids camping overnight was a boatload of work for all of us.

We decided to go to the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge - 60,000 acres of southern plains set aside to preserve buffalo, longhorn, and elk - about 90 minutes southwest of Oklahoma City.

We didn't see any elk, but we saw enough buffalo and longhorn to say we did.

We got to the Refuge on Monday late afternoon and promptly set up camp. The girls know our routine and helped the boys find a place within it.

After getting set up and taking a walk down to the lake, we cooked some hoboes...

...then built a fire and roasted some s'mores (the boys' first).

It was a cold evening (mid-40s) in the tent...

...but everyone made it up for a breakfast of eggs and bacon.

That first morning, we took the boys on a nice little adventure up Little Baldy, which was about a twenty minute hike from our campsite. As it was the first activity of the day, the little guys managed, but the girls ended up carrying them some on the way back.

We hung out at the campsite some and then grilled some hotdogs for lunch.

After lunch, Megan offered to lie down with the boys in the tent so the girls and I could jump in the van to drive six miles to the Sunset trailhead to hike Elk Mountain. This was a longer hike (about four miles roundtrip) and a little more of a challenge, but the ladies love them some hiking, so it was fun.

After being gone for a couple hours, we came back to camp and the boys just waking up. We hung out for an hour or so in camp before loading up for a trip to the visitor's center and a drive up to the peak of Mount Scott.

We then headed into Medicine Park to experience a little southwest Oklahoma culture and Ann's Country Kitchen. Good food, lots of local color.

After picking up some ice and water, we drove back to the Refuge, built another fire, and had another round of s'mores. We were all pretty wiped and called it a night around ten, though the girls could have stayed up longer playing cards by lantern light.

The next morning, we had a muffin breakfast, broke down camp, packed up (it's amazing how much stuff we brought for a two-night camping trip - again, we're lightweights), and made the drive back to OKC. We got the van unloaded, started some laundry, ate lunch, and then the boys took a four-and-a-half hour nap while I took the girls to see The Hobbit at the dollar theater - a nice end to three days of fun.

Father the Fathers

(Every now and then, I fancy myself a poet and see what I come up with. Here's one I'd been working on that I suppose I'll call finished (or at least posted). Read at your own risk.)

I am a father to several, but often a father to none.
I am responsible, but not always responsive.
Do I think of You in this way? Perhaps.
You have a Book to explain Yourself; I have only a tongue.

Do I seem distant to them as You seem distant above?
Would that they saw You as a Father
when I mostly just see you as God.
Respect is a poor replacement for love.

Speak to me, Your son, that I may speak to them with Your care.
Comfort me as Your child, that I may comfort them as mine.
Hold my hand in Yours, that it may become mine to them.
God, father the fathers who long to be more than just there.

(The Return of the Prodigal Son by Rembrandt, 1667)

Mockingbird Sun: "My Hometown"

It's a rare day when I'm on the cutting edge of what's coming up in the music scene, but if you're into a band that "draws from the slow blue heat of vintage country to solder whiskey-washed folk with classic American rock and roll," then Mockingbird Sun might be for you.

What's my source? Well, I happen to periodically work with the father of one of these guys, but this is not a case where dad thinks too highly of his offspring. They're good, as evidenced by their song, "My Hometown," on CMT - great story angle, solid musicianship, tight vocals, and a gentle humility that serves the song well.

Check 'em out and enjoy.

42

I turn 42 today. Here's the obligatory birthday blog post to prove it, but since I don't know how many of these birthdays I have left to obligate me, I'll try to make the most of this one.

According to the novel, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, 42 is the ultimate answer to "life, the universe, and everything."

There's a reason I never finished that book.

Now at 42, I'm pretty sure I'm not the answer to anything. For example:

• At 42, I'm certainly not the answer for the five-year-old foster boy living with us who hits me at bedtime and repeatedly screams in my face every night that he wants his dad. I wish his dad wanted him, but I can't do anything about it.
• I used to think being 42 would be old enough to influence others while not being thought of as completely old-fashioned. I gave that idea up at 32 (seems I've always been an old-fashioned guy).
• It sure doesn't seem that me at 42 is enough financially in a nation whose government is increasingly intent on spending what I earn. Especially when they - Republicans and Democrats alike - spend it the way they spend it.
• Some might think 42 should make you old enough to know better and secure enough to tell everyone, but I don't and it doesn't. My dad says that didn't really happen for him until his fifties. Nuts.
• I won't even talk about 42 not being the ultimate answer physically. These days, I speak of myself as being in a shape (never mind what shape that is).
• I hope to wear 42 with as much class as Jackie Robinson did, but that may be asking too much. Believe it or not, there's only so much abuse I can take.
• I suppose I hope 42 might lend me some of its mystique as the atomic number of molybdenum or the last of the mysterious numbers, 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, and 42 in LOST. Alas, I feel about as intriguing as dirt.

Maybe I'll just stick with what Job learned in chapter 42 and call it a year:

Then Job answered the Lord and said:
“I know that you can do all things,
and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’
Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.
4 ‘Hear, and I will speak;
I will question you, and you make it known to me.’
5 I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear,
but now my eye sees you;
6 therefore I despise myself,
and repent in dust and ashes.”

That feels more like the ultimate answer to "life, the universe, and everything." Happy 42nd to me (and happy 11th to my third daughter, Katie, who is still the best birthday present I've ever received).

OKC: A City on the Rise

Idyllic overkill, but there are worse places to live. Glad to be part of the renaissance.

Things I Got to Do in January

I know the month is hardly over, but I'm not sure I'll have time to post again until February. In the meantime, here's a visual record of some things I got to do in January:

Sell an old car (our 1998 Delta 88 threw a rod and died a peaceful death in our driveway)

Buy a "new" car (meet "Victor the Volvo," a 23-year-old car whose official color is "wine")

Chronicle blatant church hypocrisy (best picture ever)

Take part in City Pres' first-ever leader retreat (I'm the one about to throw up on the right)

Eat (and live to tell about it) at a place featured on Man vs. Food

Care for our first foster child (this 3-year-old was cute as a button)

Study with daughters at Starbucks (also known as caffeinated homeschooling)

Launch a new school (The Academy) with friend and fellow Head of School, Nathan Carr

All in a month's work...

 

Booklist 2012

As we close 2012, I give you the 21 books I read this year (along with my rating of each out of ten). Here's to 2013 being a year of reading and big ideas for all. Happy New Year!

January (2)

• The Third Conversion: A Novelette by R. Scott Rodin – A small book on relational fundraising as told through a set of conversations between development officers. Meh. (4)
• The Price of Everything: A Parable of Possibility and Prosperity by Russell D. Roberts – Really liked this book and its narrative approach to understanding economics. (8)

February (2)

• Samson and the Pirate Monks by Nate Larkin – I’ve read several of these “men and porn” books and this is the best of the lot. (7)
• Still: Notes on a Mid-Faith Crisis by Lauren Winner – A quiet book that brought me up to speed on some sadness of my friend’s last few years. Lauren always writes well; I just didn’t know what to do, say, or how to help after reading it. (6)

March (1)

• Mark: The Beginning of the Gospel by Michael Card – The second of a four-book layman’s commentary on the Gospels. No one makes Jesus and the disciples come alive for me like Mike does. (7)

April (1)

• The Enemy Within: Straight Talk About the Power and Defeat of Sin by Kris Lundgaard – Liked this book’s distillation of John Owens’ books, Indwelling Sin and The Mortification of Sin. Helpful. (8)

May (3)

• American Government: Brief Edition by James Q. Wilson – A succinct and helpful summary of all aspects of our American form of government. Now if it would just work… (7)
• A Patriot's History of the United States by Larry Schweikart and Michael Allen – Enjoyable history text that leans way right at times. (7)
• A People’s History of the United States by Howard Zinn– Enjoyable history text that leans way left at times. (7)

June (1)

• I Am Charlotte Simmons by Tom Wolfe – Loved Wolfe’s writing and story of a small town girl who goes to a big-time college and learns some hard (and sad) lessons. I want my girls to read this before they leave home…and I don’t. (9)

July (2)

• Desiring the Kingdom: Worship, Worldview, and Cultural Formation by James K.A. Smith – Best book I read all year. Smith is a very good scholarly writer with even better ideas about education. Thesis: “What if education wasn't first and foremost about what we know, but about what we love?” Yes. (10)
• Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson – Listened to this with Megan and the girls in the van on vacation this summer. A classic. (9)

August (0)

September (1)

• Bad Religion: How We Became a Nation of Heretics by Ross Douthat – my other favorite read of the year, Douthat’s book about the state of American Christianity (and how and why it is what it is) blew me away in its historical, cultural, and theological analysis. Wow. (10)

October (2)

• Making It All Work: Winning at the Game of Work and Business of Life by David Allen  – Listened to this on a road trip and was glad to do so – best stuff I know of for getting better at getting things done. (8)
• New Sales. Simplified.: The Essential Handbook for Prospecting and New Business Development by Mike Weinberg  – Dynamic debut from my friend on the meat and potatoes of making the sale. Applied much to my marketing and fundraising plans for Veritas. (8)

November (2)

• The Baylor Project: Taking Christian Higher Education to the Next Level edited by Barry G. Hankins and Donald D. Schmeltekopf – Can a Protestant university be a first-class research institution and preserve its soul? Engaging collection of essays on how Baylor is attempting to do just that. (7)
• Community: Taking Your Small Group Off Life Support by Brad House – Seemed almost too co-dependent and used way too much Christian-ese to make the argument for why and how life should be lived in small groups. (5)

December (4)

• A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens  – Wanted to like this one more than I did. Let’s just say it all makes sense when you realize Dickens got paid by the word. (6)
• The One World Schoolhouse: Education Reimagined by Salman Khan – Great analysis of the limitations of traditional public education; good ideas about teaching true mastery; bad ideas about what a complete education can and should be. (5)
• Redemption: Freed by Jesus from the Idols We Worship and the Wounds We Carry by Mike Wilkerson – Liked this one a lot as a primer on how sin works and how the Gospel calls us to respond. Best part: Exodus is the key text considered. (8)
• King Alfred’s English: A History of the Language We Speak and Why We Should Be Glad We Do by Laurie J. White and Marika Mullen – Really liked this book and its engaging convergence of literary, historical, and philological studies of English. (8)

(Peruse booklists from previous years here: 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006.)

Review: Les Miserables

Most people interested enough to read this review already know the musical storyline of Les Miserables (here's a quick refresher if you need one), and the movie (thankfully) is quite faithful to it. That said, I'll jump right into my observations and you can accept or reject whatever you like (feel free to leave comments below concerning either).

Hugh Jackman is always good, and while his acting is stellar as hero Jean Valjean, I was hoping for more vocally. Jackman is a huge talent and I'm not sure anyone else (in Hollywood, that is) could have pulled off half the performance he does, but his voice is not nearly as full as his Broadway or West End predecessors, particularly on the higher stuff ("Bring Him Home" seemed really pinched vocally). Still, he is very smooth to watch and completely believeable, both as convict and Christian, and while the only other Jackman song that somewhat disappoints vocally is "One Day More," it's probably more due to the choreography than anything (Jean Valjean seems slightly emasculated as he repeats the song's main line from the window of a moving horse-drawn carriage).

Russell Crowe is way out of his league as Javert, and there are some downright painful moments watching and listening to him play the self-righteous constable pursuing Valjean. My sense is Crowe got it in his mind that, because of Javert's strict adherence to the letter of the law, he was going to act and sing that way...and he does. Unfortunately, his face needs little help help playing dull, and his voice is just not interesting enough to be interesting (for those who know me, imagine if I were playing the role and you'd get about the same quality of performance).

Anne Hathaway's "I Dreamed a Dream" is indeed powerful and amazing to watch, but as much because of Tom Hooper's directing choices as her performance (though she is fantastic). As he did with Valjean's conversion scene at the beginning of the film, Hooper goes all Scorsese and films one long take with Hathaway's Fantine. What makes this effective in both scenes is that he has Jackman and Hathaway sing close up and right into the camera, which makes for a very intimate experience. Make no mistake, both Jackman and Hathaway make the most of these scenes (easily their best, and will surely earn them Oscar nominations), but they are most definitely elevated by Hooper's direction.

The other Hollywood-recognizable names in the show (Sacha Baron Cohen, Helena Bonham Carter, and Amanda Seyfried) all do well enough, and the kids who play Cosette and Gavroche are wonderful. But as is always true with live theater, the secondary and background actors in this movie are really the ones who steal the show, as they had to rely on talent (and not just name alone) to actually get (and keep) the job. Eddie Redmayne (Marius), Samantha Barks (Epinone), and Aaron Tveit (Enjolras) all turn in top performances, and it was a nice touch to have the original (and personal favorite) Jean Valjean, Colm Wilkinson, play the role of the Bishop who forgives Valjean.

Much has been made of how Hooper went about filming this musical, recording the vocals live on set and then replacing the piano that tracked the actors with a full orchestra later. While this approach certainly benefits Jackman's and Hathaway's aforementioned key scenes, it also causes a fair amount of what feels like phasing at times, particularly when Jackman starts too many songs with spoken (rather than sung) lyrics or when Crowe is simply trying to keep up. Here the music suffers, and even if the audience may not know the show's score at all, I imagine they may feel a bump or two.

We took all four of our girls (9, 10, 12, almost 14) as they are all big fans of the soundtrack, and I was probably more uncomfortable with the few sensual scenes than the greater number of violent ones. That said, none of the scenes (sensual or violent) are graphic or gratutitous, and all are contextualized to the story being told; redemption, after all, requires redeeming what is not supposed to be. We want our kids to see, feel, and talk with us about these hard things even when they're hard to watch, but some parents may not share our conviction on the matter. (Note: The film's rated PG-13 for those who care about such things.)

One of the good discussions we all had on the way home was the end of the film and its transition of "Do You Hear the People Sing?" from a call to revolution to a call to Heaven. As Jean Valjean peacefully passes away (escorted by an angelic Fantine), he joins the ranks of those who fought and died on the side of the revolution in celebration of new freedom and spiritual existence. The scene is hardly ethereal or weird, but it is a big one and presumes a universalist take on salvation, namely that everyone who has died has (of course) gone to a better place. As our kids asked questions and pointed out the problems with this assumption, we had the opportunity to discuss how a sentimental universalist view of Heaven may make for a warm and fuzzy movie ending, but it does not line up with true and accurate biblical theology.

Is Les Miserables worth 157 minutes of your life? Yes. Is it perfect? No, but impefection never stopped Jean Valjean (and it shouldn't stop you from going to see and hear his story). Leave a comment and let me know what you think if/when you do.

Is Any Place Safe? Sadly, No

I've not had much time to follow the tragedy of today's elementary school shootings in Connecticut, but here are a few quick thoughts in their wake.

Few things strike us as painfully as the loss of children; we see Jesus love them in the New Testament and, as parents, we love them and would do all we can to keep them safe. Unfortunately, "safe" can become an idol, which shootings like the one in Connecticut reinforce.

In the next few days, we'll hear calls for more security and cries for more training - just like after Columbine, just like after Virginia Tech. Safety at all costs will be both the goal and the solution, but even with new safety protocols the Connecticut school district had just implemented, "safety" was not enough.

The simple fact is this: As long as evil still exists, none of our kids are truly ever "safe." It's not the way it's supposed to be, but it is the way it is.

This, of course, doesn't mean we as parents and administrators don't try. Like the doors in your home, we have locks on ours at school; as you keep tabs on your kids when they're outside, so do we when they're with us; similar to how you watch who has access to your kids, we do the same. We run "stranger danger" drills, we ask those we don't recognize to identify themselves, and we train staff to never leave kids alone.

Indeed, we pursue safety, but accurate thinking on safety is in degrees, not absolutes. Thinking more this way keeps us from being overconfident that, because we have locks on the doors and have run drills, nothing bad should ever happen. Walking our halls, I'm much more vigilant because I DON'T believe we're totally secure than I would be if I mistakenly thought we were. Despite our best measures, no school is "safe," and this should motivate us to do all we can to be "as safe as we can."

But none of us does it perfectly and, regardless of how safe we want to make this broken world, there's only so much we can do this side of God's complete restoration of it. I don't pretend to understand God's hand in this, another school shooting, but when I consider the extent and depth of our human depravity, I'm frankly amazed it doesn't happen more than it does. As much as some may want to blame God for the former, I choose to give Him credit for the latter.

Pray for the families in Connecticut. And pray for our Veritas families that, yes, our kids would be safe, but also that we would recognize how limited, vulnerable, and dependent we are on the God at work restoring the world we have so badly broken.

Thanksgiving (or "How to Make Upper Schoolers Squirm")

Tuesday was our last day of school at Veritas before Thanksgiving break, and as I was scheduled to lead our morning assembly called RISE, I thought it might be a good opportunity to do something appropriate to the day. Our students and staff seemed in a pretty good mood (as they usually are on the last day before a break), so what did I have to lose?

I started out by talking about the fact that Thursday was Thanksgiving and that most of us are told to think about what we're thankful for this time of year. Then I told the students and staff that I wanted to turn the tables on the what thinking, and instead offer some thanks for (and to) whom I was thankful. I then proceeded to work my way around the room, calling each of the 80+ 6th-12 grade students and staff by name, and taking 10-20 seconds each to tell them why I was thankful for them.

You've never seen a more quiet group of Upper Schoolers squirm. It was great.

I had some fears in doing this. First, while I know the names of all of our Upper School students and staff, I was a little nervous that my rapid-fire approach would backfire and, for some reason, I might momentarily blank out and forget somebody, embarrassing him/her (and me) along the way. I had a few milli-second lapses, but nothing too huge...until I came to one of my daughter's best friends, whose name I could not for the life of me recall. (I had already gone through about two-thirds of the room with no major snafus so far, but this one was unfortunate; thankfully, she was very gracious - it was my daughter who was later less forgiving).

Second, while I knew this would take a little time, I didn't know it would take as much time as it did (about 20 minutes, which was double what it should have been within our normal parameters for RISE). When I finished the first half of the room and it was 8:30 already, I knew I was in trouble and I internally lamented that I was taking time from our first-hour teachers (particuarly since I still had half a room to go and it wasn't going to be until 8:45 until everyone finally made it to class). Thankfully, our teachers were their normal flexible selves, several of them came up to me afterward to express appreciation for doing what I did even as they scurried to their classrooms.

Third, I was just afraid that this whole idea would come off as obligatory or trite, as if I wasn't really thankful for every student or staff member in the room but had to be because I said I was, or that it would seem like I was just making stuff and keeping it general enough because I really didn't know any of those I was thanking. If I would have had the idea earlier (and the time to do something with it), I might (and probably should) have printed a formal list and prepared a more solid sentence or two of appreciation for each person. Unfortunately, not all of my best ideas (very few of them, actually) come with prep time built in, so I just prayed and went with it on the fly.

Though there were plenty to mention (and I mentioned plenty), I tried not to focus on obvious outward things like talents and abilities, but instead concentrated more on character virtues in our students and staff for which I was thankful. This was hard, of course, as we are so conditioned by our culture to thank people for what they do rather than who they are, but I wanted to try to help our students and staff understand that, though they have many, they are not their gifts.

A few observations:

• Whether students or adults, none seemed comfortable with genuine public appreciation. I noticed two different main responses: 1) forced eye contact, in which they were bound and determined to look at me because I was speaking to/about them in public; or 2) the avoidance of eye contact at all costs, as it was just too intimate of a moment to share in front of others.
• While I don't think it was too obvious externally, I recognized internally that I just knew some students (and even staff) better than others, which mentally worked against me if I let myself go too far down the road of evaluating real-time every ten-second attempt at thankfulness. I had to let this go (at least for the time being) so as to not sabotage the attempt, but it was a good reason and reminder to work harder at getting to know all of our people better.
• The twenty minutes it took to work through everyone was the easiest period of full attention I've ever requested from a room full of 6th-12th graders. Students were fascinated (appalled?) by the fact that, not only were they being singled out in front of their peers, but they were being singled out for positive and personal reasons. While there were plenty of laughs and lots of smiles, there seemed a subtle insecurity running through the room that I might come to one of them, not have anything nice to say, and just skip over someone to someone else as a result. Thankfully, that was not the case.

What was the case was a renewed appreciation in my own heart for whom these students and staff are as people, as well as a really nice start to a really nice last day before Thanksgiving break. We forget - I forget - how desperate all of us are for validation. We're affirmation junkies! My little attempt at something different for RISE was a big reminder personally that gratitude must be communicated (and not just stored up) to fully harness its helpful (and often healing) power.

"We ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers, as is right, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing." 2 Thessalonians 1:3

Keeping Track of Our Kids

I snapped this picture in a coffee shop near Franklin, TN, last week (for a few pics from my trip, click here) because I thought it was a clever and diplomatic way to remind parents to keep track of their kids.

I wish I could be so clever and diplomatic. Unfortunately, this will be more bumbling and annoying instead.

Do you know where your kids are? I'm not talking about which part of the house they're in or who they're staying overnight with this weekend. I'm also not asking about where they should be or what they should be able to do at this stage in their development (nothing diminishes our kids' humanity more than speaking of them in terms of "percentiles").

Honestly, I wonder if someone giving espresso and a free puppy to our kids would be enough of a wake-up call to ask the question. How long until we noticed the smell and the barking?

The sign above made me think. Megan and I are to the point now (and it is a glorious one) where we are comfortable leaving our 13-, 12-, 10-, and 9-year-old daughters unattended at home for short periods of time. So far, no one's burned down the house, physically maimed another, or run away thinking this was their one-and-only chance at freedom.

But we still have to attend their hearts and help them deal with things like disappointment, frustration, and anger. We know this because we still have to attend ours regarding the same things.

During this "fall back" weekend, why not invest your additional hour by attending your child's heart (and not just their activities)?

Espresso and a free puppy are the least of our concerns.

Providence Hall's Dickens Symposium

Our friends at Providence Hall Classical Christian School have put together an exciting celebration of author Charles Dickens and "his inimitable legacy." Mark your calendars!

Tech Talk

I haven't watched Saturday Night Live in probably 12 years, but I came across this clip and was surprised by both how funny and sociologically spot on it is.

Reunion Blogging

So last night was the twentieth-year reunion for Megan's high school class of 1992. Seeing as how I grew up in a town where a good percentage of the class gets together every weekend at The Bucket anyway, I'm not much for the whole reunion gig. Still, I went and ended up posting these updates for anyone who enjoys such things more than I.

6:43 pm: In Owasso for @MeganDunham's twenty year high school reunion. I'll be the one spiking the punch and dancing on tables.

7:40 pm: Arrived at reunion w/ worst of rain - clothes drenched. Good news: someone just turned on disco ball by flipping "atmosphere" switch. #phew

7:42 pm: Third Bryan Adams song in 25 minutes. Long live 1992. #reunionliveblogging

7:48 pm: Can't handle pressure of accompanying former Miss Owasso High School (@MeganDunham) to reunion. Room spinning; must sit down.

8:05 pm: Food disappointment: promised "heavy hors d'oeuvres" turns out to be something in crock pot, plate of Ritz crackers. #reunionliveblogging

8:08 pm: Still dripping from deluge outside. Hoping party pic gal has "Anti-Wet Rat" filter in Photoshop. #reunionliveblogging

8:16 pm: That awkward moment when the reunion emcee tries to yell over the crowd and forgets that the Best of the Early 90s CD is still playing.

8:21 pm: That awkward moment when emcee instructs everyone in attendance to vote for sexiest male/female present. #reunionliveblogging


8:33 pm: The scene of the crime...a step up from The Bucket in Griggsville (but only a step).

8:49 pm: Can't remember the last time I was around this many 38-year-olds all in one room. #reunionliveblogging

8:58 pm: Almost two hours into inane conversation. Bring on Wayne's World imitations, Kurt Cobain lip sync contest. #reunionliveblogging

9:02 pm: Former Miss Owasso High School and her court (actually these were just people at our table - I have no idea who they are).

9:12 pm: Program highlight of evening so far: 1992 yearbook. I honestly can't remember the last time I had this kind of fun. #reunionliveblogging

9:16 pm: Finally: someone remembered an hour-and-a-half after turning it off for the drunk emcee that there had been music in 1992.

9:19 pm: Had absolutely no idea that Megan had gone to school with a young Joe Don Baker. #reunionliveblogging

9:33 pm: Pseudo-theological reunion thought: glad we're going to have work to do in new heavens, new earth. I couldn't take an eternity of mingling.

9:43 pm: Possibly most unfortunate thing of the evening: only being able to make out bass line (and nothing more) to Prince's "Purple Rain." #sad

10:24 pm: Drunk emcee nowhere to be found, so party over. Probably catch pneumonia from three hours of sitting in wet clothes. Thanks for reading.