Eureka!!!
First:
Well, I have good news. I came up with an idea for my portfolio website and I spent about 8 hours working on it the day before yesterday. The design looks sharp and I'm super excited about it. Tim is swamped right now, so I don't know how long it'll be before it actually gets up on the web at www.ecooperdesigns.com. Probably in a week or so. I am so excited! Now I need to order new business cards that match my super cool new site.
And in other news:
I just finished reading this great book by a man named A.J. Jacobs. It's called, "The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest To Obey The Bible As Literally As Possible". It was a fascinating read and pretty funny in parts as well. (I liked the part when he tried to "stone" an adulterer without them knowing.) More importantly, it reminded me of lessons I learned very early in life that I had sort of forgotten. It is difficult to be totally honest all the time, to avoid negative thoughts and behaviors. As I get older, I realize that weeks go by where I don't thank god (my interpretation of god ) for the wonderful gifts and blessings I have in my life. I have made a little note to myself to remember to be grateful more often, be kinder to EVERYONE (even those jackasses on the road who WON'T let you in, even though you've had your blinker on for ages!) to be honest, to refrain from complaining, to savor the world I live in, and to appreciate the beauty in the little things.
Now, as most of you know, I grew up in the church. BOY did I ever. When I was 18, I left home and didn't really look back. I love my family of course, but there were some rough years where I wrestled with the meaning of life (and still do on occasion) and tried on a lot of bad ideas for size. I don't think if I'll ever KNOW entirely what the meaning of life is. But I'm pretty sure it's not all about the bible. It might be all about god (energy, light, whatever), but however I interpret that, it's pretty safe to say that I'm not going to become a missionary anytime soon.
That being said, I have often wondered what I will say to my children when I become a parent and they start asking me all the "why?" questions. I was getting worried because I just don't have it all figured out yet. How do I keep my kids from being the ones smoking crack and setting things on fire? I want them to have a moral compass, and the benefit of understanding why it's so important to be kind and try to do good. Tim told me yesterday that he thinks it's okay for our kids to know that we're still trying to figure it all out. That's the thing. You can't ever know. I don't believe anyone has all the answers (even if they THINK they do).
Eventually it all comes down to how big of a leap of faith you're willing to take. The more I thought about it, I realized that it really is all about living the best example you can. By letting our children see us make the right choices, maybe we can avoid the whole, "Do as I say, not as I do..." scenario that can confuse children and deride their confidence in us. * the end of my parenting seminar * ;)
and finally:
My Halloween extravaganza preparations are now at fever pitch. I'm busy sewing and planning and plotting and decorating for the big event. I can't tell you how excited I am. I CAN tell that I am so SICK of Halloween candy already. blech. I think I'm getting a cavity. :) Good thing I have dental insurance now! ;)
That's all for now,
~e
Well, I have good news. I came up with an idea for my portfolio website and I spent about 8 hours working on it the day before yesterday. The design looks sharp and I'm super excited about it. Tim is swamped right now, so I don't know how long it'll be before it actually gets up on the web at www.ecooperdesigns.com. Probably in a week or so. I am so excited! Now I need to order new business cards that match my super cool new site.
And in other news:
I just finished reading this great book by a man named A.J. Jacobs. It's called, "The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest To Obey The Bible As Literally As Possible". It was a fascinating read and pretty funny in parts as well. (I liked the part when he tried to "stone" an adulterer without them knowing.) More importantly, it reminded me of lessons I learned very early in life that I had sort of forgotten. It is difficult to be totally honest all the time, to avoid negative thoughts and behaviors. As I get older, I realize that weeks go by where I don't thank god (my interpretation of god ) for the wonderful gifts and blessings I have in my life. I have made a little note to myself to remember to be grateful more often, be kinder to EVERYONE (even those jackasses on the road who WON'T let you in, even though you've had your blinker on for ages!) to be honest, to refrain from complaining, to savor the world I live in, and to appreciate the beauty in the little things.
Now, as most of you know, I grew up in the church. BOY did I ever. When I was 18, I left home and didn't really look back. I love my family of course, but there were some rough years where I wrestled with the meaning of life (and still do on occasion) and tried on a lot of bad ideas for size. I don't think if I'll ever KNOW entirely what the meaning of life is. But I'm pretty sure it's not all about the bible. It might be all about god (energy, light, whatever), but however I interpret that, it's pretty safe to say that I'm not going to become a missionary anytime soon.
That being said, I have often wondered what I will say to my children when I become a parent and they start asking me all the "why?" questions. I was getting worried because I just don't have it all figured out yet. How do I keep my kids from being the ones smoking crack and setting things on fire? I want them to have a moral compass, and the benefit of understanding why it's so important to be kind and try to do good. Tim told me yesterday that he thinks it's okay for our kids to know that we're still trying to figure it all out. That's the thing. You can't ever know. I don't believe anyone has all the answers (even if they THINK they do).
Eventually it all comes down to how big of a leap of faith you're willing to take. The more I thought about it, I realized that it really is all about living the best example you can. By letting our children see us make the right choices, maybe we can avoid the whole, "Do as I say, not as I do..." scenario that can confuse children and deride their confidence in us. * the end of my parenting seminar * ;)
and finally:
My Halloween extravaganza preparations are now at fever pitch. I'm busy sewing and planning and plotting and decorating for the big event. I can't tell you how excited I am. I CAN tell that I am so SICK of Halloween candy already. blech. I think I'm getting a cavity. :) Good thing I have dental insurance now! ;)
That's all for now,
~e
posted by saucybritches at
10/10/2007 01:09:00 PM
3 Comments:
Assuming that you find my personal moral compass satisfactory, I think I can stand as testament to the possibility of raising your children to be ethical, functional adults without the "benefit" of God. My beliefs are guided by empathy, compassion, fairness... and no single definition of God is required to understand those concepts.
Mr. Jacobs refers to himself as "reverently agnostic." I think I'm more "reverently atheist" but the point is similar. Recently, someone overheard me explaining Yom Kippur to a non-Jew, and asked if I was Jewish. "No," I said, "but I'm a sympathizer." :)
If you'd like to hear A.J. Jacobs talk about his new book, "The Year of Living Biblically," check out this audio interview link.
I wish I had more examples of people who were honest with me and told me they didn't have it all figured out. I just recently found out that EVERYONE is basically "winging" it. This would have been good to know in high school when I thought stupid shit mattered. As for children, I don't think there is a specific way you can keep them from being horrible people. I mean sure, you could lock them up in your basement, but those people usually go to jail. SO your guess is as good as mine. I think honesty is a good idea... otherwise I'll be reading the idiots guide to get me through parenthood.
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