If I promise to miss you will you go away?

"Uh, Hans? I tink ve still haf some technical issues to vork through."

Did you know that before it was Veterans Day it was Armistice Day? The original date - Nov. 11 - was chosen because it was on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918 that the truce (armistice) was signed to end WWI. It was changed to Veterans Day in 1954 to honor all service men, not just those from WWI.

WWI was called "the war to end all wars." Seemed like a good idea at the time.

Speaking of dates, and events and being OLD, in Foundations last Sunday we were talking about the Book of Joshua - Israel entering the land and then dividing it up among the tribes. Someone asked what the current boundaries are for Israel so I drew a map on the board that showed the original allotment made by the UN in 1947 and then the land Israel has occupied since the Six Day War of 1967. I got the date wrong and said 1968, which is why I asked, "How old were you in 1968?" Dead silence. And then some smart Alec pipes up and says, "Negative four." Turns out I was the only person in the room old enough to have been alive in 1968. The fact that I graduated from H.S. that year only made it worse.

I saw a couple of the segments of Matt Lauer's interview with Sarah Palin on the Today Show this morning. More will air tomorrow morning. I was surprised, almost to the point of shocked. She is NOT who we saw on the campaign trail. And I can only attribute that to the effect of campaign "handlers" who had too much influence on her.
The interview was done in the Palin kitchen while she prepared dinner. She answered Matt's questions easily and directly. No doublespeak, no equivocation, just clear and transparent, and never more so than when she answered some of the challenges made to her actions (e.g. the wardrobe story, which turns out to be obviously bogus). She was plain spoken, articulate, direct and personable. She was NOT the ditzy hick she appeared to be (that's the conclusion I had reached).
I found myself thinking, "OK, Sarah, you get to work. Do TONS of homework on national and international issues. Master the content; you're clearly capable of that. Show up on the political stage from time to time, SANS handlers, just to keep yourself in the public consciousness. And then, four or eight years from now, let's see if it isn't the GOP's turn to make history in the Oval Office."

I also saw in this a parallel to Bob Dole's run for the White House. After he lost he did several interviews, including on the late night talk shows. We saw a side of him that was blocked out of his campaign persona. He's genuinely funny, witty. So why did he come across as such a stiff, stuffed shirt during the campaign?

Yeah, I could do this stuff:
Danny Macaskill

On the way home today I heard an absolutely gorgeous version of "There's a Place for Us" from West Side Story (Tony and Maria, Jets and Sharks, fatal love). This rendition of the song was a trio, with a cello (Tony), a violin (Maria) and just enough piano to provide a light foundation. The back and forth between the cello and violin was the definition of emotive. Stopped me in my tracks.
Side Bar: You've probably noticed that West Side Story is a fresh setting for Romeo and Juliet. Instead of two feuding families we get two opposing gangs on the streets of NY. That's not an uncommon tactic for modern writers - borrowing a plot line from a classic story. Name one relatively contemporary setting of the play Pygmalion. OK, two. One stage and one screen.

Tonight the Trustees had their first meeting. Tomorrow night the elders will meet for the first time. I told the Trustees that their meeting is more significant than they probably realize. Here we are eleven months after the birth of Pathway and we have moved into this new phase of our development. The role of elders is a sine quo non of a biblical church. The office of Trustee doesn't have a biblical mandate but it certainly doesn't conflict with any passage, and it represents a level of organizational efficiency that facilitates growth. Sure, we could probably do OK at our current level without Trustees, but then, we don't believe we're going to be at this level very long.
Deo Volente