River

The following is a poem written for my senior-level British literature class in high school. It was partially inspired by Susan Ashton's song "Lonely River" - an absolutely beautiful song. It's an older song, but worth looking up if you have a moment. Enjoy. : )


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River

I am a river ever winding
Turning corners, ever wandering
Sometimes swollen, sometimes peaceful
Never still, never satisfied
I must push on to see
What lies round the bend
What lies along my banks
Ever curious, ever seeking
Rushing here, rippling there
I want to travel to my Source
To discover where I began
To find my purpose, why I was made

Why a river and not a tree
Or a flower or a bee
But I must content myself
With ceaseless rushing, ever wondering
A river forever flowing, forever roaming

Somewhere down around an unexpected bend
Will a meet another rushing, rippling river
Our waters will converge, our lives may merge
And mysteriously our Source is the same
Two winding rivers become one
We seek and search
Wondering at every mystery along the way
Not completely satisfied until the day we find it

What is Poetry?

The following is a poem written as a collaborative effort in my Advanced Composition class in college. Grace Spradlin, Sarah Clark, and I were assigned to the same group and asked to write a poem about poetry that included as many figures of speech as possible. Hope you enjoy it! Although maybe I should just say as a disclaimer... We were trying to be melodramatic, make the others laugh, and also be as creative as possible... So maybe you should take this with a grain of salt. : )


What is Poetry?

Poetry is like a river -
It flows from the soul.
Poetry laughs, it cries,
And occasionally, it dies.
Poetry is the sky -
Open and free.
Poetry is wordless language,
Painfully beautiful, aesthetically morbid.
Poetry is meaningfully meaningless.
It is nice.
Poetry drips from the pen
And splashes across the page.
Poetry is like duct tape -
It holds the world together.
Poetry is like the fragrance
Of a rose garden after the rain.
Poetry owes itself
Only to the morose.
Poetry is the most perfectly
Pleasant pastime.
Flow river! Flow from the soul!

Reflection

It is truly amazing to me that simple things can bring such unexpected perspective on life.

Tonight, I attended an appreciation dinner for my dad, who recently resigned from his job to begin a new ministry. I was a little nervous going into it, worrying too much about what to say to them since I don't know them well. I expected the night to be good and to be honoring to my dad, but I didn't expect to be deeply impacted by it myself.

As part of the evening, his staff members - those who have worked with and for him - were given an opportunity to step up to a mic and say whatever they wanted to my dad. As they began to talk about what an example he is, what a passionate heart he has for developing healthy marriages, how he lives out the Gospel in a way they've rarely seen in other Christians, how he loves people and sees the good in them, how he "took a risk" on hiring them and trusted them, how they were so thankful for his life and ministry over the last nine years, I was reminded of how blessed I am by the family God has given me.

But even more than that, I was challenged (sorry, I've been using that word quite often lately, but it just seems to fit... Maybe convicted is a better word) to look at my own life, to examine the things I consider important. I have a sneaking suspicion that the examination might not prove positive. To live a life worth emulating, to love people in a way that changes their lives, to follow the passion God has given no matter how crazy it may seem to others - these are the things I want to do, the legacy I want to leave. I must not be motivated by the fact that doing those good things might get me recognized by others or earn me some accolades along the way, either. Purity of motive and clarity of purpose - those are things that I'm praying for, things I'm reminded that I need tonight.

So thank God for random events that spur reflection and give perspective. The next step I must take is to allow that fresh perspective to shape the way I live my life. May He give me the courage to recognize what needs changing and the strength to follow through.

As Promised...

First, let me say that I am indebted to the book Next Generation Leader, written by Andy Stanley, for the background of the thoughts in this post. He brings to light principles that have challenged my concept of leadership, and the following thoughts are a product of that challenge.

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Have you ever been at work and your boss came to your cubicle/work station/desk and said, "You know, you're just doing too much. We should figure out how to scale back your responsibilities"? I didn't think so. In my observation, many leaders of organizations seem to focus their energy on getting more things done rather than how to do things more efficiently. What if leaders and those under them began to ask different questions, began to capitalize on the strengths of their employees? Wouldn't that make a difference in the organization? Wouldn't that allow them to do more and to do it with excellence in the long run?

I've been learning that, as a result of our fast-paced culture and the current concept of leadership, many young leaders feel they must be good at everything and do everything themselves. In some jobs, this is required of them; but a job that allows a leader to thrive is one in which she can focus on the two or three things she does best, and only do those things. It follows that while those leading the organization focus on their strengths, those under them are given the opportunity to rise to the occasion, develop their own strengths, and earn a greater degree of leadership by showing proficiency in an area (which just happens to be the same area in which the leader of the organization is weak).

This system not only relieves the stress of the leader/leadership team, allowing them to pursue what they are gifted in, it also develops the other leaders in the organization and allows them significant contribution to the team.

The concept that "Less is More" - well, it really works! So next time your boss asks you to scale back a little (I know he does that all the time...), you can have your spiel ready - your two or three areas in which you feel you can contribute the most to your company. I take no responsibility for any consequences of that conversation with your boss, good or bad. : )

Just some thoughts...

Game On

Ok, so I'm feeling a bit like Julie in the movie "Julie & Julia," but if that's what it takes to get me motivated, I'm ok with that. : )

Over the next three and a half months, I am going to challenge myself to write every day or every other day on this blog. I would love to say I would do it every day, but, realistically, I think every day OR every other day will need to work for now.

I am allowing myself to write about what I'm reading, current events, stories from everyday life, etc. I hope I won't bore you... : )

So this is my goal in issuing myself an actual challenge with a time frame: I want to be intentional about improving my writing. If this is something God wants me to do long-term, I need to be the best writer I can be and this is a means to that end (I hope).

That being said, any comment, constructive criticism, observation, etc., will be most welcome from anyone who wishes to offer it.

Thanks for reading. : ) Here goes!