I've debated for quite a while as to whether or not I wanted to keep a blog. My concerns have always been the same; I'm in a part of my life where my thoughts are still rather formative (read: in ten years I'll look back and think I was an idiot); often, I think I'm a lot more interesting than I actually am; I'm concerned that writing, especially on a medium that exposes you to the world, would been done more as an exercise of vanity, rather than one leading to humility and wisdom.
I suppose that my reasons for actually writing now are similar to those stated by Buechner in the previous post. Autobiography is a form of prayer. Radha and I have become more and more convinced that it is not the fantastic in life that matters most, rather, it is the ordinary, the details. James Joyce made the comment that, "literature deals with the ordinary; the unusual and extraordinary belong to journalism." The bulk of our days consist of menial tasks, taking out the trash, washing the dishes, saying hi to those we pass by, working. The tension arises when we become dissatisfied with this type of life because we yearn for some type of "super-spiritual" existence. We use words like "calling" and "purpose" (often poorly defined, if defined at all) which rarely seem to align with our daily activities and realities.
It's interesting to note that the majority of early church heresies (I'm thinking largely of Gnosticism, Manicheism, etc.) did not deny Christ's deity, but rather, they denied his humanity. These heresies adhered to a strict dualism that denied any value to the material, the ordinary (perhaps, the "secular"). Yet, in the miracle of the Incarnation, deity was united with humanity. The Second Person of the Trinity "came in the flesh," lived among us, ate food, washed feet, and wept. He did everyday, ordinary stuff.
We can spend a lot of time chasing after the spectacular, waiting for the next great moment. In the meantime I'm sure we miss a lot. The details are important. I'd like to pay attention to them, and hopefully in the process pay attention to God. I'd like to make autobiography prayer. That's why I'm going to take the time to share ordinary stuff. Pictures, stories, thoughts, movies, music. I'd like it to be more than entertainment. I hope that it forces me to see what God is doing in my life.
2 comments:
Thanks for keeping a blog. I love seeing pictures of Lily and hearing how you are doing.
I am in the middle of an ordinary-everyday-smallstuff-oftenboring pattern right now and wish it was not happening in rainy and gray London. But I think that some years from now we can look back and see that the mundane was a part of a bigger and more interesting story. (I'll probably say I survived unemployment crisis in London and that can sound exciting when you put the right twist on it!:))
Veronika,
It's great to hear from you. I didn't realize that you are in London. That's pretty cool. It will be interesting to look back and see how seemingly inconsequential things were meaningful. We miss you and hope to see you soon!
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