Spring Break

Wednesday marked the end of a week-long break from classes, a break of which I took full advantage.

At some point (I forget exactly when), those who frequent the Student Discussion Forum on ANGEL held elections, and I was elected Chief Bard and Composer of Odes, Dirges, and the Like; Professor of Theological Studies; and Chief of Grammar Police. Our dear friend Ashton was elected President and Lord of the Realm (and many congratulations to the Gaffer!). My duties have been chiefly exercised in the Poetic and Grammar departments, and I may later share some of the Odes, Dirges and the Like which I have composed in my short time in office, if there is any interest.

Last Friday, I composed a new poem, which is now up on my poetry blog. In the evening, we had the Greenhouse homeschool group over to our house for the study we are having on The Squire and the Scroll and The Princess and the Kiss (separated by gender, naturally); this was something of a special night-time session, however, with the dads. We boys started a campfire in the fire ring, around which the dads led the study on purity and ways to maintain purity and encourage others in it. It was quite a good study, and the book is a "children's fairy tale" with all the deep meaning of the old fairy tales (and perhaps more).
After the ladies and we boys had finished our respective studies, the children and dads played a game of flashlight tag in our yard. That was, quite simply, a blast, even if the full moon made it more difficult for the runners. Some folks came up with some creative hiding places, too.

On Sunday, I had to drive my younger brother up to church early because he was in the Easter play; knowing that we had to get up early anyway, we decided to rise at 0600 in order to have a couple games of Airsoft before dressing. This was, of course, to get the blood moving, and I'm certain that we were the most wide-awake of the Easter play participants. The program itself was rather interesting--definitely non-traditional.

On Monday, my younger brother and I added yet another weapon to our family's arsenal: a potato cannon. Actually, this one replaced the other, whose barrel I had accidentally broken after a failed attempt to remove the cap of the firing chamber. But anyway, we spent Monday afternoon firing that off and experimenting with different propellant amounts and different ammunition. We discovered that corn kernels make a good shotgun effect, and that using a 10-second squirt of aerosol hairspray makes a substantially longer shot than the standard 5 seconds. When we get pictures, I shall share those.

On Tuesday, I spent the morning playing Legos with my youngest brother, and I ended up building a square-rigged sailing ship for my Lego sailors and Marines. I took a few pictures, which you can find here. We were invited that evening to a birthday celebration with some good homeschooling friends, and we had a most enjoyable time with them, as well, discussing many things and eating much ice cream cake.

For the last day of spring break, I drove up to meet another Nebraskan DLer who lives north of Omaha. His dad is a Lutheran pastor/missionary, so he showed me around their outreach, which was quite remarkable--God is doing great things from small beginnings. He also showed me some of the distinctives of the Lutheran liturgy, and we had a good time comparing notes on his Lutheran theology and my more Calvinistic theology. There are some differences (especially in our view of the sacraments), but the similarities, at least for their LCMS denomination, are similar enough that we can make common cause against many of the errors in modern evangelicalism.
In the afternoon, we drove down to the Missouri River, shooting cans with BB guns and skipping rocks, and afterwards took a 2-hour tramp through the woods in search of a scenic overlook. We never did find the overlook, but the hike itself was great fun, and the chance to talk with another PHC student was unforgettable.

I also did some more reading in Martin Chuzzlewit, and am working on John Passmore's The Perfectibility of Man, an analysis of different perfectionist movements, Christian and secular. It looks interesting so far.
In my music, I continued to practice trumpet and guitar, and wrote a new tune, originally for trumpet and piano, but I've also played it on guitar. Actually, I think it would sound good with a wide combination of instruments, especially strings, as it definitely has roots in the Celtic/Appalachian musical tradition. When I can play it well enough to record it, I shall share for those who are interested.
I've started learning Pachelbel's Canon in D major for guitar. The recording of that piece with which I am most familiar is in fact a guitar duet--I have yet to find an orchestral recording which I like as much as the guitar arrangement on which I've been raised. It is a beautiful piece, but performed on classical guitar--I cannot find the words at the moment to describe its elegance. Even the one I have on my Songspot does not compare. My mother likes it as well, and has told me from the time I started playing guitar that I'll be playing it at my sisters' weddings...so I figured that now is as good a time as any to learn it.

I have a couple ideas for future posts, mostly stemming from conversations I've had recently, and I'm willing to take input on what my next post should cover.

--Our family's springtime operation of making maple syrup.

--For those few who don't know: My view precisely of the extent of the will's freedom, and of its relation to God's providence (I'd try to keep it short, but no guarantees).

--The fine line a soldier (and especially a Christian who goes to war) must walk in performing his duty but not becoming calloused and hateful toward his enemies.

--The crucial difference between the conditional salvation of modern "evangelicalism" and the unconditional election preached as the "evangel" by the Reformers and how it affects our view of grace, salvation, and assurance.

--The theological lessons of an excellent board game: the strategy game RISK (since I have a game scheduled for tomorrow, I'm probably going to end up writing this one anyway. Ha!)

--Is art subjective or objective? (again, I'll try to keep this short, but no guarantees)

--Thoughts on cultural (not necessarily political) traditionalism/conservatism v. progressivism/libertarianism/liberalism, as exemplified in Fiddler on the Roof.

--Why I love my car.

:-D

Suggestions welcome.


But for now...back to conquering paper dragons and exam-trolls.

Sola Gratia,
Colin