jeff's blog

A few dragonflies from yesterday.

An excerpt from Brian Mashburn’s excellent blog. Thoughts we all would do well to remember.

Forgive everyone of everything now.
Never care if you someone else is preferred over you, ever.
Repay evil with kindness every single time you are wronged.
Love everyone. Everyone.
Fight for everyone’s heart. Everyone’s.
Stop hiding.
Withhold nothing from your spouse, your kids, and your parents.
Stop lying. And stop believing that “not telling the whole truth” isn’t lying.
Use every single dollar you ever have stewardship of to bless others.
Say “I love you” way too much.
Show “I love you” way too much.
Be with those you love way too much and poor, rather than away from them a little and rich.
LISTEN!
If you must talk, talk about what matters.
Respect everyone. Everyone.
If you don’t look at your kids and marvel, figure out what is wrong with you.
Get over yourself and become a “hugger”.
Walk slowly through the crowd.
Stop being offendable.
Believe.
Be still without being asleep.
Be present without having to be noticed.
Notice without having to be reminded.
Say the negative things after you have exhausted everything you can say that is encouraging to anyone.
Find yourself in every single other person’s flaws, that you may love them.
Accept suffering as a gift, that you may leave nothing wasted.
Think the best of all people, that you may be a blessing.
Humble yourself constantly, that you may be lifted up, and not by yourself.

Receive anything good at all as undeserved grace, that you may be a lover of God, and a benefit to those closest to you and to all mankind.

Monday I picked up a used 200mm macro lens. Slightly larger and heavier than the 150 macro, but with incredible working distance and DOF control. Here’s a quick gallery of what I’ve done with it so far.

Hopefully back to writing soon.

On the way to Illinois, I passed through the new terminal at DFW. Quite impressive. A few pictures, with a funny one at the end for good measure.

A few random insect shots from the Holistic Garden and the Bush Library. I’ll get back to writing soon – I promise. It just so happens that this is the perfect time of year to get out and take these shots!

another trip to the holistic gardens, and the original gallery has been updated. (Actually it was updated when the original post was made but I didn’t post a link to it… yeah…).

Until you return, remember the glory of God.

When you see the stranger or person in need,
may you be the hands and feet of Christ,
offering food, drink, and grace
to all you meet
serving in truth the God you profess.

Spent some time Saturday in the Holistic Gardens on campus. Some excellent flowers, and at least one excellent lizard.

second part from the front yard…

some pics from the front yard this morning, part 1.

As I sit here writing this, I’m hungry.

It’s not that I haven’t eaten. Earlier today I discovered my tortilla supply to be contaminated with mold and my bread supply to be 2 months old, and as a result of not wanting to walk across the local grocery store parking lot in the rain, I made the decision to drive through a local fast food restaurant for dinner. No problem, right?

It’s not that I don’t have anything to eat. Those of you who know me realize that I am the owner of more snacks than could possibly be consumed by a human being, in spite of the fact I rarely consume snacks. As a result of several semesters of Aggie Mom’s and parents’ visits, I have no shortage of snacks and food that could instantly be marshaled in order to assuage my hunger.

So why haven’t I done anything about it?

Even now, as I glance down beside me to a bag of Chex-Mix (my all time favorite snack food, and indeed a danger to my health, if I’m not careful), I am reminded of the thousands of people who didn’t get the first meal I had tonight, people who don’t have the ability to run into the kitchen and grab a Star Crunch or heat up a piece of pizza.

I’m a person who doesn’t deny myself very often. If I want something, I generally buy it. If I need something, I get it. If I’m thirsty I get a drink, and if I’m hungry I get something to eat. It’s very rare for something I truly need (or in many cases even want on a basic level) to be out of my reach.

I think there is tremendous value in self-denial about small things, if for no other reason than it helps us practice self denial in bigger things, and reminds us that many others aren’t as fortunate as we are.

As we go about our days, my prayer is that we, and specifically I, would remember to not rush instantly to satisfy every desire, but rather would act with moderation in all we do.