Do it for Finley!

My friend Don is walking in Portland's March for Babies. He is looking for sponsors. I have done it, why don't you? You don't need to know Don to sponsor him. All you need to know is that the mission for March of Dimes, March for Babies is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth, and infant mortality. Don't waste anymore time. Make a donation today. The event is Saturday April 26, 2008.

The governments role...

As we approach the up coming election there will be numerous conversations regarding the governments role regarding the many issues facing our country and culture, one of which is the governments role in social services and social action. I am simply going to let the following words I read from, With Justice for All, by John Perkins this past week speak for themselves:

The only institution in America with the human resources adequate to meet the needs of the poor is the Church. But racism and misguided patriotism have blinded the Church to this great mission opportunity. Only the Church carries the Good News of Jesus Christ, which, when lived out faithfully, responds to the total needs of the poor (and might I add, all peoples) - physical, social and spiritual - in ways that affirm the dignity and self worth of the individual.

Signs of the times...

Have you noticed? Take a gander at the world around us and see how quickly everything is changing. Right before our very eyes technology is advancing, changing and effecting all aspects of life. I find it very silly that I compare things to “the way things used to be”. Isn’t that something my parents and grandparents do? After all, they have an additional thirty to sixty years on me and have experienced the evolution of change longer then I have. The fact still remains that there is a vast difference between the world I was born and raised in and the world Maya and Finley will grow up in. Take for example:

• Maya no longer says to Heather and me, “I want to talk to Grandma and Grandpa on the phone.” She says, “When can I talk to Grandma and Grandpa on the computer?” See Skype to know what I am talking about. It is free video conferencing that we now use.
• Maya (and now Finley) have there own playlist on my ipod.
• One day when I was on the computer updating podcasts on Itunes Maya interrupted. Knowing what I was doing, Maya said, “Daddy, do I have any podcasts?” She climbed into my lap asking me to locate some podcasts for her. Needless to say, we found some (and there video too). This made her extremely happy. We then proceeded to watch them over and over for the next thirty to forty minutes; there were five of them at 1:25 a piece.
• I am constantly being reminded by Maya as to what I said or where something is. Shouldn’t it be the other way around, after all I am the 31 year old and she is the 3 year old. This simply is a sign that despite my young whippersnapper physique, I am losing my mind (I mean memory). Did I mention she routinely wins at memory when we play (and yes I actually try to win).
• On both computers (my laptop and the imac) in the Harris household, Maya has a favorite’s folder so that she can easily access the websites she likes to play on.
• This past Saturday I took Maya out for lunch and a movie (Horton Hears a Who). I gave her the choice as to where she wanted to eat. She decided upon Carl’s Jr. (a restaurant I haven’t been inside of in over three years). When we walked into CJ’s I noticed two ATM looking machines directly in front of two of the three cash registers. Afraid of ordering my food via a teller machine (I only use them to get cash), I waited in line behind another young couple with children and ordered my food the old fashioned way (when it became old fashioned, I don’t know); via a human being.
  

I am sure this is just the beginning. The signs of the times are all around us, they are continuously changing. I hope I can keep up with them. If not, I am grateful that I have Maya and Finley to help me out.