Improv Everywhere

I just found out about Improv Everywhere, and I love them! They are really original and fun. I wish that this would happen around me! Check them out on youtube, or at their website.

Jesus has a brother named God.

My daughter (4) goes three times a week to a christian preschool/daycare. There really isn't good childcare around here unless it's affiliated with religion or really expensive. I don't know why that is, it could be for a number of reasons, maybe the church (and by extension it's members) help offset the cost of the childcare, maybe it falls under a non-profit organization and saves money that way, or maybe it's just that it's more comforting to drop your kids off at a religious daycare and so you have to be affiliated with religion to be successful. Maybe it's a little of all three. I like to think that it's the church offsetting the cost. It really gives a sense of community, even if it's not quite my community. Anyways, christmas is coming up soon, and according to the school calendar on the curriculum for today was Jesus Christ part 1. I was actually looking forward to it because my daughter and I always have such interesting conversations after some one talks religion with her. I think she really enjoys that not everyone agrees on religion. Everything else I either don't know, or (I think) I do, but god and Jesus are a maybe. So, here is as close as I can remember the conversation that we had after I picked her up today.

Me - How was school today?

Lily - Good. (long pause) Papa, what do you pray for?

Me - I don't pray for anything. I don't believe that Jesus and God are real and so I don't pray. What do you pray for?

Lily - I pray for Jesus. It's good for him. He wants everything to be safe. He wants the trees, and all the leaves that are falling, and the fence and my hair and my hands... (Lily lists off everything that she sees for about a minute)...to be safe.

Me - Oh, that' really nice of him.

Lily - Yeah. Did you know that Jesus has a brother? (really excited)

Me - (smiling big) No? Who is his brother?

Lily - God, but he's better than him.

Me - He is?

Lily - (the following was said very excitedly and quickly)Yes. He's a king and Jesus is a king too. He's a really good king. He wants everyone to pray for him and everything to be safe, but he died. (spoken in a hushed voice) but don't tell Grandma cause I don't think she knows. But you don't believe in his family and Mama doesn't either, but Grandma believes in his family. And Brother and me we're to0 little to know, so we'll decide later (YES! That's my girl!).

Me- That's right, papa (for some reason I talk in third person with my kids sometimes) doesn't think there is any reason to believe in Jesus' family, but Grandma does. Grandma believes that Jesus died, and after three days he came back to life.

Lily - yeah, and when he came back he was different. He changed his name or something.

Me - What did he change his name to?

Lily - Jesus

Me - What was it before he died?

Lily - Jesus too, but it was different.

We pull up in the drive way and I start getting them out. She is telling me again all of the things that she sees and that Jesus wants them to be safe. When I get her out she has a postcard sized piece of paper that I now see has a picture of a girl praying on it, as well as a bunch of food, a happy looking family, a church, and a bible.

Me - What's this girl doing?

Lily - Praying for Jesus.

Me - What's this right here? (pointing at the Bible)

Lily - Um, I know! It's the bible!

Me - Like Grandma reads?

Lily - Yeah! but this ones not a making bible.

Me - A making bible?

Lily - Yeah, this one's not for making stuff, but some bibles are. Grandma's shows you how to make like food and stuff, but this one doesn't.

Me - Oh, I think you are talking about Grandma's cook book, but she also has a bible like this one.

Lily - No, this one is different. Some bibles show you how to make things and some don't.

Me - Oh, I see.

We get inside and her brother throws a tantrum because it's nap time and he is super tired and by the time he stops fussing Lily is all tucked into her bed to take a nap, so we didn't get to talk about Jesus and his brother anymore. I'm sure that more will come soon. She is so impressionable at this age. It's not surprising that so many people can't question their faith. If you were raised that Jesus is an absolute fact, for all of your childhood, then it would be just as much of a fact to you as anything else. I wouldn't be bothered if my kids grew up to believe in Jesus and god, or any of the other countless gods out there, but I would be bothered if they only believed it because someone (including me) told them to.

Edit : I couldn't remember how Lily worded the bible for making stuff. After she woke up and explained to me, she said it the same way and so I changed it. Apparently there are two types of bibles, making-bibles and regular ones. Not sure what she is confused about, but she knows the difference between cook books and bibles, and insists that her teachers said that grandma's was a making-bible.

Not used to being in this state of mind.....version 2.0

This post is an exact 180 of the last state of mind post. I was so annoyed/bored/angry for the last year in Afghanistan, that now I'm not used to being so happy! My cheeks hurt from smiling and it's really great to be back home. I'm really appreciative of my beautiful wife, Jess. She is such a sweet person, so understanding and so caring. If she could, she would hold everyone in the world in her arms and tell them that everything is going to be okay, truly the epitome of what a mother should be. I'm having such a blast with my darling daughter Lily. She has grown up so much while I was gone. She now has the patience and attention to sit and play board games, which is one of my most favorite things to do. She is so intelligent, beautiful, and engaging, and of course she takes after her mother, as a total sweetheart. Last, and certainly not least, I'm amazed by the courage of my handsome son Jack. There isn't a playground (or anything really) that he can't conquer. He climbs, slides, bangs, smashes, and everything else boys are known for, but still has his sensitive side as he carries his pet kitty everywhere he goes. It reminds me of Calvin and Hobbes. The absolute best part? They all love giving hugs! My truly favorite. Goodbye army!

Not used to being in this state of mind...

I'm generally such a happy person. I'm pretty easy going. I usually make the best of things. I've been making the best of things for so long now. I'm just tired of it. I wish Afghanistan was a person, I would punch him/her (that's right, even if Afghanistan was a girl) right in the face. So, to help cheer me up, I'm going to list all the good things about being here. Ha, there I go trying to make the best of things again. Sneaky optimism, very sneaky.

I've met a lot of really cool people. Some of them have become good friends that I imagine will be that way for a long time to come.

I've been a help to a many people; Lots of people a little bit of help, and a few people lots of help. I enjoy being useful, so that's good.

I've realized that my life in the states is pretty close to heaven on earth. I will cherish everything so much more than I did before. I'll also worry a lot less about all the shit that doesn't matter.

I have also managed to save a lot more money than usual. Actually, my darling wife has been doing the saving. It was probably a lot easier for her to do without me constantly buying gadgets and gizmos.

I'm in better shape than I was before I came here. I haven't lost all the weight that I wanted to, but I've still got more time. I've already lost about 25lbs. I want to lose another 10 more or so. Even though I haven't lost as much weight as I want, part of that is because I've bulked up a little bit. So while I've been losing bad weight, I've been gaining good weight, and I feel much more healthy. I go on leave in less than a month, and I think that my wife will like what I've been doing in the gym.

That's about as positive as I can be. It already helped a little bit just to think about it.

Cup of Joe for a Joe

Do you have one of those yellow ribbons on your car that says "I support our troops?" If you have one (or even if you don't), and you wanted to do a little bit more than pay your taxes and sport a car magnet there is a cool program offered through Green Beans Coffee that you may be interested in. You go on to the website at the bottom and give a few dollars and a few words of encouragement or thanks and then Green Bean will give a soldier credit to buy a coffee. If you aren't familiar with Green Beans, it's a lot like a Starbucks, but for deployed soldiers. So instead of waiting in Starbucks for hours on end hoping that a soldier will randomly walk in so you can buy him/her a coffee, just buy them one from the comfort of your computer. Who knows, you might even buy me one!

http://www.greenbeanscoffee.com/coj/index.php

I'm still here...

I haven't posted in a little while. I really hate being away from my family. It's such a drain being here that I have a hard time being motivated to post anything. It's hard to feel proud about being here when I don't want to be here. If I could leave right now I would. It feels like a prison sentence, like I'm being punished. None of this is worth it for me, but there is nothing I can do except wait for my time to be up. Sorry for being negative, but I thought that maybe it would feel better to put it down in words. On a positive note, when I am finished here, I'm finished for good. My obligation to the military is entirely complete. I'll never have to be away from everyone I love for so long ever again.

There are no atheists in foxholes B-huts...

I come across the saying that there are no atheists in foxholes rather often. It's a pretty common cliche, and I'm sure most people have seen it. It's a rather ridiculous claim saying that Atheists are all hypocrites. Although I am an atheist and I have been in foxholes, I've never been in one besides during training. I think the whole point of the quote is that when an atheist is in trouble that they turn towards god for help, especially in the case of mortal danger.

During my recent deployment to Afghanistan I was relatively safe, especially compared to some of my fellow soldiers. I believe the death rate at our base was actually safer than most cities, and highways, but I still think there were some cases where I can personally attest to whether or not there are atheists in foxholes B-huts. The best example would probably be in the early morning of Father's Day 2009 when we were awakened to a large explosion. We were close enough to the blast from an incoming rocket that debris rained down on our B-hut. There could have been more incoming rockets, and I was standing in my room trying to decide what to do. B-huts in case you aren't aware, are little buildings made of plywood and tin that soldiers in Afghanistan regularly sleep in if they are "lucky". An incoming rocket would have no problem destroying the building and seriously injuring or killing any inhabitants. So as an atheist in a life threatening situation did I suddenly fall to my knees and start praying? No. In fact, it wasn't even an idea that crossed my mind. You see, the key point to atheism is that I don't think there is a god. Why would I pray to something that I don't think exists? It's silly and I wouldn't. If there is a god, which I'm not saying there is or isn't, just that I seriously doubt there is, why would he value my wishes(prayers) over the wishes of all the other millions of starving and/or dying people in the world every day? All I wondered about was whether or not anyone was hurt, if more attacks were coming, and whether we should gear up and get in the bunkers or not.

If you are one of those people that like to use the fox hole cliche, maybe you should reconsider. It's silly, and untrue. Here is a link on the attack http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/06/21/terror/main5101364.shtml. Unfortunately we lost two American soldiers that morning. My heart goes out to their friends and family members.