Here is my sixth post of links to what I’ve found intriguing, compelling or convicting lately. Perhaps you’ll find something of interest in what I’ve been reading online and in print!
Who isn’t a Calvin and Hobbes fan? At my house The Daughter, #1 Son and Mr. Garner can recite at a moment’s notice panel after panel of dialogue between the boy and his tiger. Mental Floss’s article 7 Things You Might Not Know About Calvin and Hobbes, was right. For example the thing about Steven Spielberg and George Lucas.
Our historic neighborhood is filled with Bungalows, Four-Squares and the occasional Queen Anne Victorian, so we found this Arts & Crafts Guide to Bungalow Gables interesting.
Mr. Garner is interested to see what will come of this Monty Python reunion!
Friday, November 22nd will be the 50th Anniversary of C.S. Lewis death. Cal Thomas says this: “He asks readers to join him on a journey he himself has taken and, like a tour guide, shows us a better world and a better life than the one he describes in The Chronicles of Narnia as being “always winter, but never Christmas.” I think this is one of the best descriptions of reading C. S. Lewis I’ve ever heard. Go read something by C.S. Lewis.
We are striving to memorize Isaiah Chapter 40. You’ll recognize large chunks of it from Handel’s Messiah, Christmas Lesson Readings, inspirational posters, anthems and the like. The chapter includes several reminders about our ultimate insignificance as individuals, nations, and the powerful:
“All people are like grass, and all their faithfulness is like the flowers of the field. 7 The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the Lord blows on them.” v. 6b-7a
“Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket; they are regarded as dust on the scales; he weighs the islands as though they were fine dust… Before him all the nations are as nothing; they are regarded by him as worthless and less than nothing.” v. 16-17
“He brings princes to naught and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing. No sooner are they planted, no sooner are they sown, no sooner do they take root in the ground, than he blows on them and they wither, and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.” v. 23-24
And so in this context, I found Adventures of a Serial Trespasser an interesting confirmation.
The Daughter and I are in the midst of the 8th century right now and though the Isle of Lewis (Scotland) is somewhat Northward of Alfred’s battle with the Danes, we both found this post Peats: The Story from the Peatbank to the Stove by Homeschool on the Croft fascinating!
I can speak to the sense of peace and calm at a Catholic hospital. Isn’t it interesting that a self-professed atheist can too? Why I have faith in medical treatment delivered by the devout, Mireille Silcoff writing in Canada’s National Post.
Pope Frances once again shows that he’s the real deal. Seriously, can you imagine your pastor doing this?
On the homeschooling front, Dr. Joel McDurmon hopes to put The final nail in the “properly socialized” coffin, summarizing three additional studies of students and their preparedness for work. Hope springs eternal. Facts have never been the problem. He concludes:
And thus the outcome of the secularized, public schools’ “proper socialization” is being seen in increasing waves of students who cannot behave properly in a standard work environment. They can’t communicate, take orders, relate to clients, manage jobs, get along in teams or be trusted to have the self-discipline to complete tasks independently (thus they can’t work alone or with others), prepare written summaries or presentations, present persuasive arguments, or speak in public.
As a result, same-age, multi-religious, peer socialization develops young adults who have no boundaries in regard to culture, religion, or sexuality—but along with this also goes implicitly (and explicitly in many cases) boundaries in regard to authority, traditional religious values, proper subordination, discipline toward tasks, delayed gratification, service to others, humility, etc.
And thus the outcome of the secularized, public schools’ “proper socialization” is being seen in increasing waves of students who cannot behave properly in a standard work environment. They can’t communicate, take orders, relate to clients, manage jobs, get along in teams or be trusted to have the self-discipline to complete tasks independently (thus they can’t work alone or with others), prepare written summaries or presentations, present persuasive arguments, or speak in public.
– See more at: http://americanvision.org/9710/final-nail-properly-socialized-coffin/#sthash.D4Dan74r.0g6jYbCX.dpuf
As a result, same-age, multi-religious, peer socialization develops young adults who have no boundaries in regard to culture, religion, or sexuality—but along with this also goes implicitly (and explicitly in many cases) boundaries in regard to authority, traditional religious values, proper subordination, discipline toward tasks, delayed gratification, service to others, humility, etc.
And thus the outcome of the secularized, public schools’ “proper socialization” is being seen in increasing waves of students who cannot behave properly in a standard work environment. They can’t communicate, take orders, relate to clients, manage jobs, get along in teams or be trusted to have the self-discipline to complete tasks independently (thus they can’t work alone or with others), prepare written summaries or presentations, present persuasive arguments, or speak in public.
– See more at: http://americanvision.org/9710/final-nail-properly-socialized-coffin/#sthash.D4Dan74r.0g6jYbCX.dpuf
Whatever your stance regarding the “culture wars” and the politics of higher education, it is undeniable that a great many graduating students have little idea of what genuine intellectual exploration involves. Too often, learning to think is replaced by ideological scorekeeping, and the use of adjectives replaces the use of arguments.
Such blinkered thinking has serious implications for civic culture and political discourse. It discourages finding out what the facts are, revising one’s beliefs on the basis of those facts, and being willing to engage with people who don’t already agree with you. What does that leave us with? A brittle, litmus-test version of politics. It is one thing if people move too quickly from argumentation to name-calling; it is another to be unable to tell the difference.
Whatever your stance regarding the “culture wars” and the politics of higher education, it is undeniable that a great many graduating students have little idea of what genuine intellectual exploration involves. Too often, learning to think is replaced by ideological scorekeeping, and the use of adjectives replaces the use of arguments.
Such blinkered thinking has serious implications for civic culture and political discourse. It discourages finding out what the facts are, revising one’s beliefs on the basis of those facts, and being willing to engage with people who don’t already agree with you. What does that leave us with? A brittle, litmus-test version of politics. It is one thing if people move too quickly from argumentation to name-calling; it is another to be unable to tell the difference.
This morning on our walk we found a world absolutely aglow! Our street is lined with Sycamore Trees which have pretty much finished dropping their enormous, crunchy dinner plate sized leaves, but we also have Crepe Myrtles which bloom a brilliant fuschia through the summer, but haven’t done much in the fall. This year, the alchemy of rain, temperature and sun have transformed them into glowing balls of fire! We almost took off our hiking boots!
Earth’s crammed with Heaven and every common bush afire with God
But only those who see take off their shoes
The rest sit round it and pluck blackberries
Elizabeth Barrett Browning
These few sentences are pulled from a portion of the poem Aurora Leigh by Elizabeth Barrett Browning. If you’re pushed for time you can read the portion this is lifted from here on Bartleby.com
Mr. Garner and I still love this video put together by Number 1 Son’s teammates! Frisbee is no longer a gentle toss on the college green with your bandanna clad dog!
My next Nunc Cognosco Ex Parte will be after Thanksgiving – so I will leave you with a few things!
First – this article from the Wall Street Journal: Cut Calories With Better Chewing. I will be chewing, and chewing! Anything to cut calories!
Second – A collection of Poems for Thanksgiving collected by Poets.org.
And a favorite work by George Winston entitled – Thanksgiving!
And a link to my Autumnal Equinox Playlist on Spotify…
Happy (early) Thanksgiving!
The post title I’ve chosen for these sorts of posts is obscure on purpose. Meaning “now I know in part,” the phrase is found in Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians towards the end of chapter 13. It refers to the fact that our knowledge of God and His mysteries unfolds only in part during our human existence. We must wait for full disclosure. This should instill a great deal of humility in our thinking…
Rabbit Trails 
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