Some Photos from Today's Event

I attended my first presidential rally today! I must say it was worth all the waiting, standing, and sitting. The atmosphere was charged and the crowd was fired up. I don’t intend to get into political discourse on my site but I wanted to share this experience. Obama's ideas made sense to me and he came across as a genuine man. There was something almost spiritual about the experience. Many times the speech sounded somewhat like a sermon. At one point in the rally a man stood to his feet and proclaimed Hallelujah! I think that sums it up.

This first pic is an official photo from Obama's website, this gives you some idea of how many people were there. Keep in mind this was one side, there were people in the opposite balcony as well. The following pics are my photos of Obama speaking.

Forbidden Post

Ok at this very minute I am sitting at a team meeting that has been going on since 8:30AM. I am about to insane so, here is my attempt to distract my mind for awhile. I thought I would do the forbidden and post a blog while at work!!! After you catch your breathe from the horror please read below.

I am not trying to make a political statement, that is the job of the professionals but I recently ran across this video that I thought was inspiring. No matter your political stripe I hope that you find the concepts behind what is being said to be inspirational. Let me know what you think.

Staying up to date with the Bobcats

TV Returns to its Throne

Wow I am so glad that the writer’s strike has come to an end!! As my good friend Steven Staton stated on his blog The Office will not be back on till April 10th, which grieves me greatly. I have been faithful watching previous episodes of The Office which has given me proportionate comic relief. I am so excited that this show will be back on soon. Yet there is some immediate sunshine in this strike coming to an end. Saturday Night Live returns to the air waves this weekend. I don’t stay up late on Saturdays, I mean I do have big responsibilities on Sunday, but through the wonders of DVR I have now renewed my passion for SNL. All this to say that I am ecstatic that this strike has come to end and I am ready with remote in hand to get back to some quality television!

Let There Be Peace On Earth, Let It Begin With Me

I love Christmas, the lights, the music, children's laughter, all these make for a wondrous season. A theme in my own life has been that the Christmas season often brings challenges and changes for me personally. I can look back on my life and remember several occasions where life was tumultuous during the holidays. I think that it is interesting as I look back and track these changes.

In my type of ministry setting I see people everyday who are coping with how they are going to deal with the Christmas season. For many this will most likely be their last Christmas on this earth. Families are not only feeling the stress of the holiday season but on top of that they are dealing with anticipatory grief and hoping to make this Christmas special for their loved one who is dying. Patients and families continue to be my best teachers. I marvel everyday at the life lessons that I am taught by the people I serve.

Although I have never faced the changes and stress of the holidays that I am seeing in patients and families, I am dealing with my own struggles. Nevertheless they are my challenges and my questions. There may be several reasons why this time of year has brought change in my life. Perhaps I am more introspective? After all Christmas is celebrating the Advent of the Christ child, God breaking into this world bringing about the changes to fulfill the plan of redemption for us all. I am coming to understand that the chnages, the feelings, the struggles, and the questions that I have may be the very work of God fulfilling something in me. Perhaps for me winter is not the only season that changes in December.

Holiday Humor

I had to share this holiday humor with you all. I was introduced to this site by a coworker of mine. I found it absolutely hilarious. I hope you get a laugh out of this. I guess this is my animated Christmas card from my family to yours. Follow this link and enjoy.

Tribute to another King

Yes what would a pilgrimage to Memphis be with out a stop at the holiest of rock and roll shrines, Graceland? Besides the fact that I am a huge Elvis fan, Graceland is a beautiful attraction and is worth the money just to see the influence that one man had on music history. The house and grounds were decorated magnificently for the holidays. There were so many highlights to the Graceland tour but the two that stand out for me would have to be the formal living room and the meditation garden. I have included these two pictures in this post. The formal living room is decorated in white and stained glass and the meditation garden is a quiet reverent place that houses Elvis' and his family's graves. Everyday there are fresh flowers that arrive from all parts of the world to be placed on Elvis' grave. It is amazing how much one man's life and music has touched the world for generations.