Singapore Day 28: Only 2 more days ... and zentangles

I love blogging. And I like being part of the "aha!" moments when students set up their own blogs.

Zentangle #1: Going Places.
(one pen-stroke at a time)

This morning, W asks me to help his tech class set up new blogs. Before long, they're up and running. I can't wait to see what they've come up with. Each blog - whether poetry, prose, photography, or art - is unique and reflects the student's personality and interests.

K left for home in the early hours of yesterday. W took her to the airport for a 5am flight. The restlessness of waiting for the 2am alarm kept us all awake. None of us got more than a few hours of sleep.

En route, K sends a reassuring update; her flights have been uneventful. When she arrives late at MN airport, she's worried about missing her connection home. (She'll have to wait 7 hours for the next flight.) However, at the gate, an attendant comes for her, grabs her bags off the conveyer, whisks her through customs and immigration in the diplomat's line, and gets her to the last leg of her journey on time. What a relief!

These feet are made for walking:
the flower painted on my toenail
has stayed on, all these miles

W taught the full day yesterday before we walked to our old neighborhood. Meanwhile, I graded papers and did some art. I have discovered Zentangles, an artistic way of adding line to line that is perfect during meditation and prayer. It takes me an hour or so to complete a 4" square, letting my pen wander over the paper. I find it soothing and the results pretty as they emerge.

In our old neighborhood, the shops on Tampines Market Street are booming. The food is excellent: we walk around the entire complex and explore.

We neither want nor need anything, but it's amazing how much "stuff" is on every shelf. I'm fascinated by housewares (how other people set up their homes). W compares prices on electronics to see what he should bring from home next year or would be better off purchasing here.

Coffee makers include options for
Milo, Teh Tarik, and cappuccino

Today we have an hour or two at home after class before hopping the buses for an hour-long ride into town. We share supper in Little India with Augustine and Sumathi, friends from Cambridge days.

"It seems like we're following you around the world!" we exclaim. They landed in Singapore eight or nine years ago, and have been teaching in Indonesia for a year.

"Now we'll have a place to stay in Bandung. And I'll have a friend to visit," Sumathi exclaims. We've stayed in touch all these years, since hitting it off in England. Our youngest, Jono, who came along to the UK, and their kids (Adarsh and Amitha) became friends during our stay. All are now adults and on their own.

Augustine specializes in Old Testament studies at a university. "I mentioned that I know someone who teaches New Testament," he smiles at W. My TESOL studies may also come in handy: their post-grad (doctoral) students need help with English.

Zentangle #2: The Winding Road

Augustine and Sumathi know a young husband and wife who will be moving to Bandung. They'll connect us. I pass my business card to Sumathi. (As usual, I should have paid attention to the Voice: it said, "Take two." Sigh.) Sumathi promises to pass the card to the couple so we can get in touch. Their interests include working with children.

W and I get home at 10pm, happy with another piece of the puzzle unexpectedly falling into place. Wow. We'll definitely need a guest room or two while we're in language school. And these dear friends will be most welcome visitors!

Read more:
*But if you refuse to serve the Lord, then choose today whom you will serve. Would you prefer the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me  and my family, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15 NLT

*The Lord said, "You had compassion on the plant for which you did not work and which you did not cause to grow, which came up overnight and perished overnight. Should I not have compassion on Nineveh, the great city?” Jonah 4:10-11 NASB

*Jesus said, “I have come to call not the righteous but sinners to repentance.” Luke 5:32 NLT

Moravian Prayer: Dear God, please let Jesus call on us so you may forgive us of our sins. In your name we pray. Amen.

Lent Day 26: Always the same thing

I blogged 391 pages in 2008. I was astonished, scanning in the writing that amassed.

"When did I have time for that?" I asked myself. That year, I set up the first NU groups on Facebook, wrote looong gossipy alumni enews each month, and kept my private journal. I was stressed between work and courses for my doctoral studies (including 4 big papers and a few projects). I probably wrote myself out of insanity that year.

Dad prints out my blog ramblings so my mom can read it. I have posts going back to 2006 and earlier. I'm scanning them to my computer, and compiling the paper copies into categories for future publication.

I peeked at lines from the blog posts while I was sorting them. Several things are constant:

• I love change, the new thing. 
• I'm like a heat-seeking missile on a hunt for information and I delight in passing it on. 
• I enjoy connecting people to resources they need (especially if someone else feels good about sharing their abundance or knowledge.)
• I've always hated being micromanaged.
• People function best in their gifts and strengths, not their weaknesses. Demanding that someone work hardest outside their gifting creates chaos internally and organizationally.
• Secure people create realities that enrich the world, regardless of what others say. In contrast, insecure people think everything is a negative reflection on them.
• Follow your intuition! Just because someone says it can't or shouldn't be done doesn't mean they're right.

I learned a lot of other things that year, but those are a few things I'll be mulling over in the next few days.

What lessons from a few years ago have stuck with you and shaped what you do or how you think?

Read more:
*Lord, you alone are my portion and my cup; you make my lot secure. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance. I will praise the Lord, who counsels me; even at night my heart instructs me. I keep my eyes always on the Lord. With him at my right hand, I shall not be shaken. Psalm 16:5-8 NIV

*Those who are planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bear fruit in old age; they shall be fresh and flourishing. Psalm 92:13-14 (NKJV)

*That in the good soil, these are the ones who, when they hear the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patient endurance. Luke 8:15 NLT

Moravian Prayer: Creator of all that is, we pray for this remarkable, fragile planet: your gift, your creation. Today may we plant seeds of gratitude and hope so that your world will flourish for generations to come. Amen.

Learning new stuff

The vocabulary of this week's tech class includes weird words and capital letters jammed together. VGA splitter. AirServer. Trello. TPT.

I didn't even know my Mac had IMovie. Never mind linking Apple phones, IPads and laptop.

This course reminds me of a previous "Basics of Computing" class I took 10 years ago. My daughter sat beside me and steered me back on track a few times each day. For her, the sessions were elementary. For me, they were eye-opening.

Back then, finding the Explore button on my Windows machine revolutionized how I used the computer. There was a system to finding files? WOW. Who knew? (My daughter: "Mommmm! Really?!")

Up to that point, I'd blindly try the keys. Often, magically, I'd find my way to my documents. Once in a while, I'd shut down the machine and start over. (Reminds me of how I used to drive in Vancouver as a teen: I'd hope to bump into 12th or Granville Street so I could zip back to the freeway by heading east. I had no idea where I was: those were my go-to prompts. Occasionally I'd have to circle around the city to bump onto one of the two roads.)

This week, I've learned more than what I came for. I've been introduced to tools to do work I've never considered. I got a chance to improve how to help others to set up new blogs. (Check out http://jefferyportmann.blogspot.com, http://craiggorc.blogspot.com, and http://daveecole.blogspot.com. Existing blogs include http://troyhjones.com and http://verlonfosner.blogspot.com.)

Do I know what's going on in the tech world after a few days of study? Not really.

But by going "out there" in a new field, I've discovered a few milestones that can help with future navigation. I'm excited to see how the information I've gathered changes my research and presentations.

How do you handle information you've never encountered?

1. Compare it to what you already know. For example, digital files have many things in common with the old paper files.
2. Contrast what you know with the new and different. The process of filing and the ease of sorting differs between paper and digital files.
3. Use what is relevant. Discard or simmer on the back burner what is irrelevant to your context.
4. Enjoy the ride! How privileged we are to have so many new tools for thinking about God and serving the world.

Read more:

*You have given me greater joy than those who have abundant harvests of grain and new wine. In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, O LORD, will keep me safe. Psalm 4:7–8 NLT

*The heavens are yours, the earth also is yours; the world and all that is in it – you have founded them. The north and the south – you created them. Psalm 89:11-12 NLT

*“You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. I, even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no savior.  I have revealed and saved and proclaimed—I, and not some foreign god among you.

You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “that I am God.  Yes, and from ancient days I am he. No one can deliver out of my hand. When I act, who can reverse it?” Isaiah 43:10-13 NIV

*For us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist. 1 Corinthians 8:6
Moravian Prayer: Holy Parent, we pray in Jesus’ words and Jesus’ name that you will protect us and make us one with each other and with you, just as you and Christ are one. Amen.

Thank you!

It's almost the last day of 2012. I want to say a special "Thank you!" to faithful readers of Peacefulones. I'm especially grateful for:

• comments that inspire and teach readers and me, whether sent privately or via the blog
• feedback on what helps or inspires you
• your prayers for requests mentioned in the blog
• sharing your story with me - everyone is intertwined in God's Story

I love writing and would write even without readers. But having you on the other end has made me a better writer. I'm so thankful for you.

Wishing you a final day of reflection on the past year and a wonderful New Year in 2013. If you have a tradition of looking back or making resolutions, we'd love to hear about it.

God is good!

Be careful little tweet...

35% of employers keep tabs on their employees via social media. So says Pink Lady's blog today. It's not what we meant to say, but what our employer hears when he/she reads what we wrote that is important.

So "be careful little mouth" - via keyboard - "what we say," just like in the Sunday School song. 

10 things to keep in mind for tweets, blogs, and FB:

1. If our mom would get upset at the morality or wording, it's probably not for public consumption.
2. Compliment others and post those replies for everyone to see. Sharing kudos is easy and gives others a boost.
3. Be nice in public. Complain or object in person, preferably in private. The exception is if it's a systemic problem and we're willing to go on a limb to point it out in public. There are always repercussions for courageous candor, so evaluate if it's a hill we are willing to die on.
4. Share great ideas and links, not just fluff and stuff. What helps us may also be interesting to another person.
5. That said, it doesn't matter what great idea we share if a coworker feels attacked or undermined. If the boss delineates turf rather than team or enforces a strict hierarchy, remember there are lots of other ideas out there. Don't swim in a coworker's wading pool.
6. Don't slam the door on our own foot. Rather, put our "best foot forward" especially when we're smack in the middle of a "situation." If we can't say anything nice... best to be quiet until we can say it nicely.
7. Remember the words anonymous and names and details have been changed to protect the innocent. The innocent include other persons who can't rebut with their POV. Keeping tabs on a process via words may be fine, but naming names and giving exact details hurts rather than helps. 
8. Memory is fickle. Keep a print-out file of our highs and lows posted online or important replies we make to others' posts. This is a great way to pattern what we like or loathe, especially after a situation is over. Avoid future pain by learning from (not reinventing) the past.
9. Track the progress of a relationship with a boss or coworker by keeping a print-out file of out-of-the-ordinary praise and criticism. Notice details in others' emails or tweets that suggest we might be in danger. Keep compliments that evaluate our strengths. Those provide excellent perspective, emotional distance, and future direction when leaving behind a friendship, church, job, or town.
10. Even when the past is forgiven by God, it's never forgotten online. Someone else may be keeping track or checking on us, too. (See #8, #9.)

Nope, sadly I haven't kept the 10 rules perfectly in the past.  I hope to in the future.  I've offered apologies or explanations where appropriate, too. Maybe that should be #11.

Got any wisdom to add? We'd love to read it!