For Your Soul

As I was talking to my soul sister Cheryl today, she made me think of a question that we all should perhaps ask ourselves:

Is your focus on things that can't do anything for your soul?

A Jonathan Green Find at the Thrift Store

I've been looking for some artwork for my apartment lately. I need some pieces with red in it because I've adopted the color red as my theme for the time being.

As I was shopping at the Salvation Army on Central Avenue today, I almost immediately spotted a Jonathan Green print that had a dash of my required color. The piece I found features a dark brown man standing on the beach with a fishing pole in his hand. He's also sporting a simple, yet elegant red hat. When I saw that the artist was Jonathan Green, I snatched up the painting, picked up a couple of pieces for my daughter and was out. The beauty of it was that the framed print was only $7.99--a steal!

Now I'm looking for a companion piece to hang next to it. It would be nice if I could find some more Jonathan Green art with lots of red in it. Any suggestions? I can't afford the original paintings of course (some of those cost as much as $100,000!)

Jonathan Green is an African-American artist from the Gullah Islands who has managed to capture the magic, power, and joy of that area. The Gallery Chuma (out of Charleston, S.C) says this about Green on its Web site:

Painter and Printmaker Jonathan Green was born and raised in the small Gullah community of Gardens Corner, located near the Sea Islands of South Carolina. From the moment of his birth, Jonathan Green was a special child. He was born with a caul--an inner fetal membrane covering the head at birth that some believe is a sign that the child is touched by uncommonness and magic that will bring inordinate grace to the community.

Searching for Morgan Freeman

A movie is playing tonight in Charlotte that I wish I could afford to see. It's called All ABout Us and it's part of a benefit program for the Florence Crittenton Services of Charlotte. It pays homage to one of my favorite actors, Morgan Freeman, but unless it gets a major release at a local movie theatre, I won't be able to see it. The tickets for tonight's show are $100 (general admission) or $200 for the VIP hookup.

Here's the synopsis:

Edward Brown (played by Boris Kodjoe) and his wife want to feature Morgan Freeman in their next movie. But it seems Freeman is too busy with life and projects in his beloved Mississippi.

Christine Swanson directs this film, which also stars one of my favorite actresses, Ruby Dee (I can't find any information about her role in the film). I don't know how good this movie is, but the premise alone is enough to get me in the theatre. I'd pay to see Morgan Freeman in just about anything. Let me know if you hear anything about a major release for this one.

Hmmmmmm ... maybe I can rework this theme and turn it into a documentary.

Freeman will also star in a future production, based on the Arthur C. Clarke novel, Rendezvous with Rama. The film, directed by David Fincher, the genius behind the movie Seven, is about a team of astronauts who are sent on a mission to explore a giant interstellar spaceship hurtling toward the sun. I certainly won't miss that one.

In the Beginning...

“Teach us to care and not to care."
T.S. Eliot

(I'm definitely on this path.)

Here's a T.S. Eliot quote that I disagree with:

“In my beginning is my end.”
T.S. Eliot

I believe:

"In the end is my beginning."
or as Pastor Keith in Tennessee told me:

Look at the end to see what the beginning really was.

True, Honorable, and Right

As I continue to meditate on the good, clean, and true things, I'm reading Philippians 4:8 again, but I've turned to the Gullah language text from De Nyew Testament for more enlightenment.

Me Christian bredren, las ob all, A da tell ya, mus keep on da study bout jes dem thing wa good mo den all an wa people oughta gii praise fa. Study bout dem ting wa true, dem ting wa honorable, dem ting wa right een God eye, dem ting wa ain neba mek people sin, dem ting wa mek ya wahn fa lob um, an dem ting wa people know fa be good fa true. Do dem ting A done laan oona (you). Mus do wa A beena tell ya fa do an wa ya see dat A da do. An God wa da gii we peace, e gwine be dey wid oona.

Here's the King James Version:

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Spike, I'm on Your A--!

OK family and friends. I know you’ve heard me go on and on about how I want to make a film, write a script, etc. (I have written some short screenplays, but quite frankly, I’ve got a long way to go.)

Well, I’ve found a fabulous resource right here in Charlotte, N.C. that will help me along with this dream. It’s called the Light Factory and dag nabbit, if they don’t offer classes in Filmmaking, Film Editing, Digital Photography, and more. I’m, oh so excited! Now all I have to do is come up with the money to take these classes. I’m sure God will provide! Praise God.

Here’s a description of the first class that I plan to take:

Making a Short Film: From Concept to Cutting Room
Course Dates: TBD
Times: 6-9 p.m.
Instructor: Nate Fitzgerald
Costs: $195/members, $250/non-members
(I’d better join so I can get that $55 off the cost of the class.)

Always thought you had a great idea for a movie? (Yeah!) This class will provide you with the basic technical concepts of movie-making using digital video cameras. We’ll touch on the basics of scriptwriting, shooting, and even editing (Alleluia!). In groups or individually, students will write their own short scripts, then plan and shoot them (alright now!).

Afterward, you will learn how to log and capture your footage into The Light Factory's Final Cut Pro editing systems. We’ll teach you how to splice, manipulate, rearrange, layer (Man, I hope this isn’t too complicated), and add sound like the pros (Oh my goodness, this is what I’ve been dreaming of). In the end, you’ll have your own cohesive short film. Class size is limited (I’d better register fast yall!).

what you say

There's what you say and then ... there's the truth--what's really happening.

I Waited and Waited

Recently I've discovered The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language. I really like this text a lot. It's written in plain, common, oftentimes poetic language. The guy who translated it (from the Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic texts) is Eugene H. Peterson, a pastor, scholar, writer, and poet.

The description on the title page says that "The Message is a contemporary rendering of the Bible from the original languages crafted to present its tone, rhythm, events, and ideas in everyday language."

Thanks Mr. Peterson. This gives me another way to seek that knowledge and wisdom that Proverbs talks about again and again.

Let's take a peek at Psalm 40:1-3 from The Message:

I waited and waited and waited for God. At last he looked; finally he listened.
He lifted me out of the ditch,
pulled me from deep mud.
He stood me up on a solid rock
to make sure I wouldn't slip.
He taught me how to sing the latest God-song,
a praise-song to our God.
More and more people are seeing this:
they enter the mystery,
abandoning themselves to God.

Somebody's Callin' My Name

Hush, hush, somebody's callin' my name
Hush, hush somebody's callin' my name
Oh My Lord, Oh My Lord, what shall I do?

Hush, whoa, hush, somebody's callin' my name
Hush, whoa, hush, somebody's callin' my name
Oh My Lord, Oh My Lord, what shall I do?

I was compelled to write those lyrics just now. The song came to me a few hours ago and after I sang it to my daughter, she asked me, "Where'd you get that song from?" I don't think I even answered her. I just kept singing the song. Of course, this is a very old African-American spiritual song, but I can't find much information about what the song means. I just know that it popped into my head and it's been there ever since.

I have been feeling like my ancestors and God have really been trying to tell me something since I went to one of my places of refuge in North Carolina this weekend. The water, trees and other greenery in the town seemed to sing and talk to me as I drove through the winding roads. My ancestors were saying, "everything is going to be alright" and "we'll take care of you." It's funny--shortly after I heard that, one of my cousins let me know that he and the rest of the family are available to help and protect me and my daughter. I smiled and told him that I knew this and that's why I chose to move to North Carolina. I know that we've got support and protection, not only from the living relatives, but from the ones who brought us here.

Somebody's callin' my name ...

My Mother is My Life

I'm lucky enough to teach English as a Second Language to people from all parts of the world. I've met some amazing and courageous students from places like Tanzania, Eritrea, Russia, Mexico, Cuba, Brazil, and other countries. Some are here as refugees searching for a haven (I know what that feels like!), and others are here simply as immigrants trying to find a better life (I'm feeling that also).

Last night I was teaching a class about the sounds of letters, how to spell words, and words that are opposites.

One student was exploring the letter M, so I asked her to come up with a word that starts with M. She chose the word mother. I asked her to create a sentence using the word mother and here's what she said:

My mother is my life.

"Beautiful!" I said, as I wrote the sentence on the board. I smiled and she smiled. We're both mothers so I know we both were thinking of our mothers and our children. I didn't want to erase her sentence off the board as we proceeded with the lesson. I did eventually erase the sentence, but it remains in my heart.

I was also teaching the class about opposite words, like absent and present, adore and despise. One pair of opposites that a few of them had a hard time grasping was often and seldom.

I asked the students to come up with sentences using both words. They could use the word often in sentences, but they had a hard time understanding the word seldom.

I came up with a sentence for them:

I seldom make time for fools.

They seemed to grasp it then.

I've got some awesome students. I'm sure they'll give me lots more material to share with you. Look for it.