Royal Flush

What a great October.

I am a Cubs fan first and foremost, and it was a sweet year that came out of nowhere. Ninety-seven wins, a whitewashing of the Pirates in the wild-card game, and then curb-stomping the Cardinals in the National League Divisional Series put the Cubs' future trajectory further ahead than I ever imagined. Even a sweep by the Mets in the NLCS couldn't dissolve the joy on the North Side. The heights are so dizzying now, I'm afraid of ESPN jinxing the whole operation with their way-too-early predictions for next year.

But when the dust settled, I had to be proud of the Kansas City Royals. What a team. What a year. And what a city.

I know I run the risk of incurring the wrath of Cardinals fans here in St. Louis, some who still have raw memories of the bottom of the ninth inning in Game 6 of the 1985 World Series. (News flash: GET OVER IT, PEOPLE!) But the Royals entirely deserved the postseason laurels this year.

Interestingly enough, I've been to about seven Royals games in my lifetime. Every time, Kansas City has won. Without exception. Not that they needed me through this postseason.

Our family has had particular interest in the Royals since 2010. We discovered we could go across the state, get a hotel in KC and get four tickets to a Monday night game for a total cost less than going to Busch Stadium to see the Cardinals. So in late June of that year, we took in a 3-1 win over the White Sox on a beautiful night in gorgeous Kaufmann Stadium. The crowd of 13,000 that night loved their team; it was just a shame that they were mired in last place in the American League Central Division at the time. But I was watching the Royals and saw they had a great cache of talent in the minor leagues that was tearing things up. And I thought, If they keep these guys together, there's no telling what can happen.

2014 came and the Royals found themselves in the World Series, where they lost narrowly to the seasoned Giants. That experience paid dividends for this year. In their eleven postseason wins, the Royals came from two runs down seven times. SEVEN TIMES! Plus, that includes ninth-inning rallies in Games One and Five against the Mets. This was the stuff of legend.

It was topped off yesterday by a victory parade and rally that seemed to attract at least a half million folks for the love-in. No fights, no pushiness, no riots. Just a classy service of reciprocal thanks from town to team and vice versa.

It was a celebration that I look forward to happening for the Cubs in a year or so. But this year, Kansas City supremely deserved it. What a team. What a year. What a city. A Blue October it was.

Why Read?

I know that I tend to have all the annoyance of a prophet calling in the wilderness, but I'm going John the Baptist one more time.

Various educational reformers and program-tinkerers come out with the latest fashions and plugs to try this or that idea. This is not to criticize said talking heads; some good ideas some from those voices. Nor is this the forum to criticize initiatives like No Child Left Behind or Common Core standards. Other people with more skin in the game than I do can skirmish on that terrain. Nor is this a technology rant. Others can scream out the pros and cons of iPads and other digital devices.

I feel the need to point out that all initiatives in educational reform will fail unless people take it upon themselves to be diligent readers. This is not spellbinding cutting edge stuff. This is common sense thinking.

Reading is the foundation of the house of the educated person. You may never be a voracious reader, but you can be a consistent reader, and you can learn to love reading.

There are many reasons why you should yearn to be a reader, but in case you were wondering if I had a list of benefits at the ready, here are twenty of them in no particular order:

1. It slows down your day and relaxes you. 
2. It helps you realize there are other worlds and perspectives than your own.
3. It expands your vocabulary and you can have more descriptive conversations.
4. Reading before going to sleep relaxes you and helps you sleep better. Sleeping better leads to higher quality waking hours.
5. It develops your imagination and provokes you to think about alternative paths and endings to your own stories of life.
6. Reading different varieties of books can offer solutions to everyday challenges.
7. It's productive. Read for thirty minutes a day five days a week and you've read 7800 minutes for a year. That translates to 130 hours of time. Imagine how many books you'd get read in 130 hours!
8. You understand other people's emotions as you encounter characters of other stories, and as a result you become more empathetic in a world that is increasingly less so.
9. Reading improves attention span, concentration, memory, and personal discipline.
10. You are able to assess situations and challenges in a hierarchical manner when you read more. This means you have an increasing ability to figure out what problems are important and what issues are less important, and you can prioritize things more naturally that way.
11. Especially with reading fiction, you realize the world consists of exceptions to the rule, and you can be inspired to solve problems rather than accept limitations.
12. It can challenge your own beliefs, help winnow away error, and strengthen the truth you hold.
13. It improves critical thinking, logic, and deduction skills.
14. It improves your ability to see patterns  and to anticipate possibilities.
15. It keeps your mind fresh and rejuvenated.
16. It strengthens your brain.
17. You become a more fluent communicator because you get a better handle not only on what to say but how it sounds.
18. Reading non-fiction can help you grasp practical aspects of life...what to look for in insurance policies, how to build a spice rack, and so forth.
19. It's inexpensive. Did you know you can borrow books for free from the public library?
20. And--from a personal vantage point--reading makes you a better writer and opens up a world where you can love to write. And that means you can create things that others can love to read. And that is a wonderful thought!

Faith and Fiction (The Promised Download)

As promised, here is the download of the discussion of "The Christian Imagination" from last night at Covenant Presbyterian Church in St. Louis.

Chris Smith, L.B. Graham, and I talk all things faith and fiction in forty-three minutes. Well, maybe not all things, but we cover a generous swath!

Enjoy the conversation here!

The Christian Imagination

I know it sounds strange to say we had a great literary bull session last night at church, but it's true. Not to mention back in the day of Christendom of yesteryear, many book discussions and author talks would take place in the chancels of churches and cathedrals, as the church used to be the center not only of spiritual life, but of cultural vitality as well.

Last night at Covenant Presbyterian Church in St. Louis, I had the privilege of being part of a two-man panel with my dear friend and fellow author L.B. Graham. In the discussion, led by Chris Smith, we explored the relationship between the Christian faith and literature, with our primary focus on fiction. 

Chris started the proceedings with an acknowledgement that some Christians have not delved into literature as they should, preferring to focus on persuading others of the truth of the Gospel. Leland Ryken, professor of literature at Wheaton College, notes with sadness several dismissive attitudes among some Christians about fiction particularly....it does not communicate facts or useful information, it teaches error, it entertains only, is too emotional, is a waste of time, unrelated to life, and is immoral. Ryken dismantles these assertions in the course of his Windows to the World of course, but the sting can be felt in some quarters.

Chris countered that with C.S. Lewis' affirming acknowledgement of the good that fiction does in the Oxford don's An Experiment in Criticism. Our lives, Lewis says, demand windows to other worlds, and desire to live through the eyes of others, to build and feel empathy for others (which is a by-product of reading well).

The rest of the evening was Chris asking L.B. and I questions such as...
--> What has been your history as a reader? What have been some of your favorite novels and authors in your childhood and as an adult?
--> The Bible lays out a storyline of "creation, ruin, redemption, and restoration". How does the Bible as literature, combined with the Bible's storyline, help us read fiction?
--> How did you first develop an interest in writing?
--> What do you find challenging and pleasurable about writing?
--> What is your process? And give us a taste of your literary world: What characters and setting do you create?

This was followed by several questions posed from the congregation and we were done within an hour.

I won't go into detail on our responses here. For one, I've covered some of my own journey on this blog. Also, Covenant should be uploading the Mp3 of the panel discussion soon. When that happens, I'll post the link for your access and (hopefully!) enjoyment.

Hand Over Key

There's a reason why C.S. Lewis--for one--wrote his books by hand, relying on others to type them up for him.

Writing things out by hand, while a slower pace, forces you to think more critically about meaning, about the structure of thought, and about what is important in what you hear.

New research is coming in and--while I've been beating the drum that old-school methods are more in line with how our brains function--it's nice to see evidence-based confirmation of that.

The report is here. While I am no technology-bashing Luddite, we really need to see the sense of this report.

Digest it and give feedback...I'd love to know your thoughts.

It's Worth Investing in Chesterton

One time after he read an article entitled, "What's Wrong With the World?", the Christian thinker G.K. Chesterton decided a response was in order. Because he was G.K. Chesterton, he also decided a pithy response was in order. And so he penned the following:

"Dear Sir, 
     Regarding your article 'What's Wrong With the World?': I am. Yours truly, G.K. Chesterton"

One of the great writers of all time, the lay Catholic theologian and Christian apologist G.K. Chesterton was known for bulldogging his way through paradox, utilizing the delicious turn of phrase, and engaging in serious but accessible theology. If you haven't worked much into the Chesterton universe, it's worth a journey. His classics Orthodoxy (which depicted his own spiritual journey) and The Everlasting Man (his rebuttal of H.G. Wells The Outline of History which serves as Chesterton's depiction of the spiritual journey of humanity) are much revered by even the sharpest critics.

Perhaps you don't have time to read anything by Chesterton. You could also partake of his Father Brown mysteries, given that they are running on many PBS stations around the country. Mark Williams--who played Arthur Weasley in the Harry Potter film series--plays the lovable crime-solving Catholic cleric set in the fictional village of Kembleford. Producers Rachel Flowerday and Tashin Guner have done a fantastic job of creating fresh mysteries in the Chesterton tradition. Check your PBS stations for listings as Series 3 is approaching its completion, although the good news is they are filming for the next season!

Whether in books or on public television, Chesterton is worth a try. Invest in the Prince of Paradox if you haven't yet, or even if it's been a while.

Good Things Will Happen

I get very proud of friends and colleagues who persevere.

I am especially proud of those who have incredibly hard starts in a new environment and then, rather than complain, reloads for the next phase so those they lead are prepared.

From 1997-2000, I was a teacher and assistant football coach at Westminster Christian Academy in Opelousas, Louisiana. One of my coaching staff mates was a great guy named Vinnie Bullara; he taught physical science and biology, I taught Apologetics and Worldviews. We had a number of challenges, but we were part of a unit that took a team from 1-9 to 5-5 (1997), 6-5 with a playoff appearance (1998), and 9-2 with another playoff berth (1999). The success plan was nothing fancy: Just weightlifting, conditioning, and having the players buy into the system while helping them become more intelligent players. It was great to be part of that effort, as well as learning that sticking to a consistent plan will reap dividends.

Fast forward to last year, after some moves elsewhere and then back to Opelousas, my friend Vinnie (I know...sounds like a Joe Pesci movie) is named the head football coach at Westminster. Picking up the pieces of a once proud program, Vinnie went 1-10 in his first year with struggling units on both sides of the ball. It would have been easy to despair. Vinnie never blamed anyone; he was looking toward the future; he'd been through this before. Get stronger; get tougher; get more disciplined; believe in yourselves. That's what I know he's preached.

This year, the Westminster Crusaders--after last night's 40-20 win over Ascension Catholic--have started 3-1, tripling last season's win total. They are more disciplined and much tougher (allowed 76 points through first four games as opposed to 136 last year). It's a great success story in process.

I recall former Notre Dame coach Lou Holtz saying in his book The Fighting Spirit, that "if you believe and if you have a plan and if you believe in the plan, good things will happen."

That's not just good for football; it's good for life itself in all our human endeavors. It counts greatly to exhibit--as Eugene Peterson once termed it--"a long obedience in the same direction."

Well done, Vinnie. May that long obedience continue, my friend.