Sabbath Art

I have always been curious about the gems used in Aaron's breastplate and the foundations of the New Jerusalem. Are they the same? In the same order? Do both reflect the different tribes of people? I have heard that birthstones come from Aaron's ephod, and that the signs of the zodiac and some personality tests reflect similar character groupings as the twelve tribes and the foundations of the city. So on Sabbath I requested that we do a craft comparing the gems used in the ephod and the city's foundation. Frank and Matthias helped with the research, and I used gem pictures from this site: http://www.gemstone.org/gem-by-gem/index.html

It turned out there is some question about which gems were meant by the old Hebrew words, but here is our best guess at the ephod:I wasn't sure how to arrange the gems of the foundation: I always envisioned them stacked, under the entire city. But for the purposes of this craft, I arranged them in a square.
Bethany had her own plan for a picture of the New Jerusalem:
Matthias did some cutting, but didn't end up with a final project. That often happens, but I'm sure he learned something nonetheless. Carrie Ann had fun with the glue sticks, but didn't stick anything on the glue afterwards!

I learned two things: we won't know until we get there, and it will be more beautiful than I imagined!

Oboe and Beep

We read a book about musical instruments today, so I had to find a movie of them playing too! I thought this one was very good (for oboe):


Well, I looked on some MP3 blogs, and it turns out they put the mp3s in with links, just like I did in the previous post. So there you go. And here are some more.
Beep
Babaludipoo
Grandma
Okay
Bye

And one more picture -- I wanted this one of the smocking on the girls' dresses. One day, someone came up to me and said, "I really like the smocking on Bethany's dress." Turns out she had done smocking herself. So now I know what it is called!

On a second look, I realized that it is hard to tell from this picture what smocking is: embroidery on top of pleats. I finally found a good set of pictures on this site (though Wiki tells you all the different stitches as well as the history...).

Speaking of crafting, did you notice the quilt hanging in the background? Deb and MaryAnna made it for Carrie Ann, using some pieces of one of Mom's dresses. I finally found a good place to put it!

Pictures and Sounds

I haven't posted pictures in a while!

Here is Carrie Ann, being a munchkin:Bethany loves to read (just the pictures, for now, though).
Matthias created a video camera from Construx.
We spent some time recording our voices. The first "podcasts" should be included with this post (how technologically enabled am I?). "Stories" is a long one by all three children, while "potatoblanket" is a short sample of baby talk. If they work out, there will be more to come.
. . .
Well, I guess I figured out how to send a podcast, but not how to receive one. So if you know how, you can listen to mine. If not, click here (for baby talk) and here (for stories)! If anyone knows how I can get the sound links to appear on my blog page (or even if that's possible), please let me know. Thanks!

PS read on, I posted a couple today.

The Dumbest Generation

I just finished reading a book called "The Dumbest Generation" by Mark Bauerlein (from the library). His hypothesis is that, because teens spend so much time in front of the screen, and they spend it socializing, not learning, the next generation of adults in America will not have the knowledge and intellectual base to support a healthy democracy.

Questions it raises:
Am I dumb (because I don't know most of the historical/civil facts he quotes)? -- Or maybe it's because I'm Canadian, and I have chosen to specialize in geographical and religious facts rather than American social and historical facts.

(Here's a little aside from Carrie Ann: v bbghn http://www.inhabitat.com/2007/11/20/video-grow-a-living-treehouse-with-terreform/bbhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh n Bachlbghnt
PPPPPP"?"^}U^O
???*&^""""""""""""""""VC f /end aside)

Are my screen habits (blogging, Facebook etc) making me dumber? -- The argument being, I may not have as many facts in my mind, but I can easily find them on the computer if I need to. Does that make me dumber, or smarter -- because I'm not tying up my mind in remembering non-essentials to my daily life?

Are videos and computer games helpful or a hindrance in my kids' education? Some videos introduce them to science, geography, current trends, history and literature -- or at least, modern children's versions of literature. Some games develop imagination and spatial intelligence (something I'm lacking in!). But is the balance between that and other forms of learning appropriate, or is it heavy on the screen learning because after all, the computer keeps them busy and out of trouble for a long time?

Are books obsolete, or necessary for developing emotional and intellectual intelligence? Is it the same to read a book online as in the hand? I agree that reading online leads to skimming -- but as a teen I practiced skimming and speed reading as a desirable skill! Is it just the ability to concentrate which must be developed using a more static medium?

Do blogs/gaming promote or hinder analytical reasoning? I liked Rob's blog about complaining expats because it was an analytical dialogue, with reference to history and even past literature. Was it lacking because it didn't refer to more sources outside of "I observe" or "I think"? Mr. Bauerlein, I'm sure, could recommend some resources which would enrich the discussion (in his opinion). Do I agree that it would be enriched with references to past philosophers and social critics, or do I think that would just add knowledgeable sounding fluff?

How can the media/web be used *effectively* to share the most important truths I know? I can add great content -- my own, or based on my friends' work, but how can I get it viewed by lots of people? Or, as Mr. Bauerlein argues, have I even lost the ability to criticize my own work and evaluate if it is great content or not? Do I have to create a "gospel game" in order to attract visits......

What will the world look like when Web 3.0 comes? What is the possible result of all this read/write, control in hands of masses, social rather than political democracy -- especially if good judgment (and spelling) goes down the tubes? Already, the young voters distrust the political system so much that they hardly consider it worth the trouble to vote (including me, I guess...). I guess like Rob and millions of other bloggers, I hope that writing and talking about what is important to me will somehow "trickle up" to the people in power -- even if I don't trust them to act on campaign promises, or even really mean those promises.

Now for a couple quotes I really liked (they stuck out after disagreeing with much of the book):
"Young Americans need someone somewhere in their lives to reveal to them bigger and better human stories than the sagas of summer parties and dormitory diversions and Facebook sites." (p. 199) But are those stories from American history and American literature, as he argues? I would offer a more international mix than Bauerlein seems to choose. ("These are the materials of a richer existence, and they come from a narrow slice of time and one nation only." p. 217)
Did I mention that he is an English professor at an American college? It comes through.

Another quote that stuck in my mind was actually from Thomas Jefferson. "If 'we leave the people in ignorance,' he warned, old customs will return, and 'kings, priests and nobles . . . will rise up among us.'" p. 212. So, if people are choosing ignorance of the rich cultural democratic heritage, will that lead to the rise of arbitrary authority systems again? Ignorance of what, I ask? Somehow I think the value of the American heritage is not inherent in the democratic system, but in the biblical values it originally reflected. Having rejected the ways of God, studying the early American leaders may help, but it won't turn us back to the values that made they system work.

So from my Bible reading today, Proverbs 18:15: "An intelligent mind acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge." We can't throw out knowledge, but we need to be aware of what kind of knowledge we are seeking -- knowledge of what?
And as for the accusation of the "dumbest generation", and his recommendation that "Adults everywhere need to align against youth ignorance and apathy" p. 235, what we need is someone to "...turn the hearts of parents to their children and the hearts of children to their parents, so that I will not come and strike the land with a curse" Mal. 4:6 (quotes from NRSV).

Comments, anyone?

Videos I enjoyed

A link from Rob's blog led us to this neat video of a young man singing with himself!

I love the expression he uses -- it reminds me of Mr. Bean.

Sesame Street sure has changed. I like the international flavour, it reminds me of living in Vancouver.


This video came from a link on Brad's blog:

It is from this page.
I don't know how practical this is on this earth, especially in Canada, but I hope to have a living tree house in heaven for sure!

Okay!

Actually, Carrie Ann's vowels are so fluid still, her Okay ranges from "Ai-tai" to "Ah-tay." She always says it with the same intonation, which is the same as my intonation, so it is totally recognizable! I think what makes it so cute is also the fact that she is showing agreement and cooperation with something I've suggested -- "Ah-tai!" sounds way better to me than "Uh-uh!" (She's not a big "no" sayer, for some reason, but uh-uh works just as well!)

We went swimming yesterday, and I put life jackets on the kids and took them in the deep end. Bethany got so comfortable, she managed a slide down the slide, with splash-down and swimming to the side all by herself! Matthias held on tight to the top of his vest to keep it from riding up onto his chin, but was able to tool around a bit using just his feet to propel himself. Carrie Ann kept rolling her face into the water, but she sure didn't want the life vest off -- she fought my hands off every time I tried to take it off, until she was so tired she was practically ready to fall asleep in the pool! Her favourite part was when I put her on my tummy and did a back float with her riding on me -- she loved it, but I had to kick so hard (to keep my head up) I got a charley horse this morning!

I turned off comment moderation, so if anyone is reading this blog besides Aunt Greta, feel free to leave a comment!

Response to Rob

Hey Rob! Carrie Ann's Okay is way cuter than Lee Hyori's (though I wouldn't give Carrie a B in English, yet, I guess!) "Otay!" I don't remember my other kids saying it this way, but it sure strikes a cuteness chord. I guess it must have been used this way in some TV series or movie?

Anyway, about expat complaining -- have you heard of the three levels of cultural adjustment theory? The first stage is the honeymoon stage -- it is a big adventure. It is easy to pass off the things that bug you, and you are very excited about everything that is new and different. The complaining at this stage is usually along the lines of "the cheese is really expensive!" The second stage is the main complaining stage -- you have realized in your gut that you are here to stay, and the things that bug you start to bug you more and more. It is really hard to fit your previous image of yourself with your current situation. The complaining here comes from the struggle to change, to know what you can and can't change, how far you can go and what you can't accept. Sometimes you try futilely to change the new situation to fit yourself, sometimes you get depressed, sometimes you leave. Sometimes you go on to the third stage, cultural adjustment. You make the personal changes that are necessary to fit in to the place where you are, and start to feel like a composite person -- half this, half that. You learn the language, history, customs, etc. You make some really close friends. You start to feel out of place when you go "home". At this stage, any remaining complaints are likely to fit the "constructive social criticism" category, unless you are a habitual complainer.

I experienced this in Germany, and have heard that it is a common experience for missionaries -- and foreign ESL teachers too, I guess!