Family
Fire gets a bad rap.
It has become synonymous with pain and destruction.
But this is the wrong light to cast this beautiful creation in.
Much in the same way, family can be cast in a bad light.
Now I’m not going to get up here and tell you family is never painful.
It has painful connotations, memories we try to block out, eggshells we try not to crush as we tiptoe our way around.
But this is a very small aspect of true family.
Every family is a bit dysfunctional. Like fire, family can burn…as it’s the people closest to us that can hurt
us the most.
But like fire, we can’t let the bad rap define family…we can’t let it overshadow the good.
Family is the fire that provides warmth to make it through the winters of our life.
Family is the embers of the stove that give us food to nourish our soul.
Family is the little flicker of light that keeps us going when darkness crowds around us.
Family is a beacon, a lamp to help us on our journey.
Family is the fire that provides fuel to the engine of our heart.
Family is the camp fire we sit around and swap stories,
And the fire we gaze into and reflect, and learn a bit more about ourselves.
Family is the fire that refines us, molds us, and makes us who we are.
Family is defined differently for different people, and comes in all shapes, colors, sizes, and distinctions.
But like fire, we need family to survive.
Like fire, family draws people in, consuming them with warmth and love.
And it is THIS kind of fire, THIS kind of family, that we are excited to see brought together and expanded
today.
To everyone that Adam and Kara call “family,”
Welcome.
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Revelations in the Dark
There are days I wish I could just disappear.
To fade... like a shadow into the night
Hiding under skyscrapers with lights so bright
Their majesty takes eyes away from me.
Walking the streets unseen,
A sanctuary within,
Opening gates to solitude and peace.
A certain serenity allowing me to be free
To scroll through my inner-most being.
An untainted reflection of self...
Found in the dark allies,
Home to that which "cannot be" yet exists in full.
Not an escape from reality
But rather a head-first dive into that which is far too real,
Concealed deep within my heart and soul.
Darkness is my ally...
It is the one who can cover the sky
And blanket me without anyone questioning why I desire to be alone.
Where am I going?
On a journey deep below the facade,
Slashing at scars to get a broken understanding of the raw.
The fresh wound bleeding out what has been unknown,
Yet whose impact is plainly felt.
Here... in the lonely confines of the mind
And cavernous depths of the heart,
You ain't gotta be on point.
No one sees when you stumble and fall.
No one needs for you to be strong.
No one measures how tall you stand.
No one defines for you the meaning of "man."
Invisible.
You ain't gotta stand guard,
You ain't gotta put up walls and always be hard,
You can simply melt into the fucked up puddle of tears that you really are.
Beautifully Broken.
Some say if you wanna measure a man,
When his world starts to fall see how tall he stands.
I say...however tall he is when he's on his knees,
Recognizing sometimes the greatest strength...
Is to be weak...
For in our weakness we are eternally linked,
Bound to ancestors from Genesis to Revelation,
All of creation coming together in a shared state of being.
Our humanity is tied up in the humanity of others.
In our weakness we have need.
Our differences making the human mosaic complete.
In the darkness of night I look within,
Finding an understanding of me.
And in this understanding I see...
It is only through unified vulnerability that we can truly be free.
To fade... like a shadow into the night
Hiding under skyscrapers with lights so bright
Their majesty takes eyes away from me.
Walking the streets unseen,
A sanctuary within,
Opening gates to solitude and peace.
A certain serenity allowing me to be free
To scroll through my inner-most being.
An untainted reflection of self...
Found in the dark allies,
Home to that which "cannot be" yet exists in full.
Not an escape from reality
But rather a head-first dive into that which is far too real,
Concealed deep within my heart and soul.
Darkness is my ally...
It is the one who can cover the sky
And blanket me without anyone questioning why I desire to be alone.
Where am I going?
On a journey deep below the facade,
Slashing at scars to get a broken understanding of the raw.
The fresh wound bleeding out what has been unknown,
Yet whose impact is plainly felt.
Here... in the lonely confines of the mind
And cavernous depths of the heart,
You ain't gotta be on point.
No one sees when you stumble and fall.
No one needs for you to be strong.
No one measures how tall you stand.
No one defines for you the meaning of "man."
Invisible.
You ain't gotta stand guard,
You ain't gotta put up walls and always be hard,
You can simply melt into the fucked up puddle of tears that you really are.
Beautifully Broken.
Some say if you wanna measure a man,
When his world starts to fall see how tall he stands.
I say...however tall he is when he's on his knees,
Recognizing sometimes the greatest strength...
Is to be weak...
For in our weakness we are eternally linked,
Bound to ancestors from Genesis to Revelation,
All of creation coming together in a shared state of being.
Our humanity is tied up in the humanity of others.
In our weakness we have need.
Our differences making the human mosaic complete.
In the darkness of night I look within,
Finding an understanding of me.
And in this understanding I see...
It is only through unified vulnerability that we can truly be free.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
I Am the City
I gaze out to the horizon in time to see the sun drop out of my vision. The majestic purples and blues fade to black. The big city lights ignite the darkened sky, a torch to the night of my soul. We are one. The city erupts with life, yet my world slows. My heart beats to the rhythm of the cities drum. The cities pulse runs through my body, sustaining life and giving me breath. A constant hum rings like white noise. Soothing. Woven in the tapestry is rawness, resiliency, pain, beauty, joy, despair, hope, questions, answers, unrealized potential, masterpieces covered in dirt spit and decay, brokenness, redemption, reconciliation. Running through my veins is the same. Out of chaos comes Shalom. In the city, I find my sanctuary.
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