Lambeau Field.

My favorite Cody got tickets to the Packer game last Thursday and decided to take me.  (All ladies may direct applications for getting to know Cody to me.)  I had never been to Lambeau Field (inside the stadium) before… So, you could say I was excited! 

As we walked toward the stadium in a sea of green jerseys, I felt… privileged.  I guess that is the best way to describe it.  It was like, I was a part of something bigger, I had a ticket to the party, like we all knew a secret and were going to be let in.  A smile was smeared across my face the whole time.  The stadium, inside, was… life-size.  It was giant and full and majestic.  The guys on the field were visible – not like you see on TV – just normally sized.  It was… wordless.

The night was warm and humid – I could not imagine being there in the dead of winter without hand warmers and a good pair of wool socks!  Cody and I had so much fun on this little adventure together.

I would recommend Lambeau to anyone.  The fly-over after the national anthem... totally awe-inspiring!  It left me breathless!  Oh, and we won!  But what else would you expect from the reigning world-champion Green Bay Packers! ?

Thanks for taking me Cody!  I love you bro!

To Aaron Rodgers

Let me start by saying this is my first year cheering for you and your team because in general, I've found it hard to cheer for a team with a number four on it. I enjoyed this season immensely! I, like many others, was really saddened that we will not get to see you play further into the playoffs. Is your neck okay after that Cardinal yanked on your helmet?

I wanted to tell you that although Brett's shadow is long, you have outshined him this year. You play exceptionally well. Mr. Favre has a knack for getting and sitting in the limelight. I am sorry that you must live in that shadow. Be assured that your name will go further than his if you continue to play and lead well.

Your newest fan,

Jaime Sherf

The Count of Monte Cristo

I downloaded this book on my new iPod for something to read at work, without having to lug a book. I fell in love with its adventure and humor. So, I took myself to the library to pick up the real copy for home reading and WHOA... I found out that I'm reading the unabridged 1,200+ page edition! It's all in my little iPod! Amazing.

The other sweet thing that I found out was that I was already on page 650! whew. It's a great read... thoughtful and funny and informing. I recommend it! Pick up the abridged verison if you are strapped for time!

Also, I love my new iPod!

What are you guys reading?

Best Christmas CD EVER!

If you are looking for a great Christmas album for this year's season, I highly recommend Andrew Peterson's Behold the Lamb of God. It tells, not only the story of Jesus' birth, but begins at the beginning... of the universe, of time. It tells the whole story of Jesus. It is amazing. This album brought me triumphantly through my first Christmas without family, in a strange new land. Now, I listen to it remember it while I praise God's amazing plans! Buy it and love it!

Also, a small book-keeping note, I've updated blog tags so that you can search by topic. I encourage you to take a moment and enjoy some of my favorites.

Asher.

If you've talked to me in these last years about literature, you will have surely heard me tell you about Asher Lev, the inspiring creation of Chaim Potok. He is an observant Hasidic Jew who is also an artist. I am halfway through The Gift of Asher Lev for the 2nd time in 8 months. The idea for "The Cave of Now" comes from this book. This book is worth every second of your life that you put into it.

The section I am in now is when Asher is asked to address a yeshiva class about art. He starts with simple questions about why we draw, what we draw, etc... but eventually gets to the deeper events of art. He says, "Art happens when what is seen becomes mixed with the inside of a person who is seeing it." [p.135] It is interpretation of the world around us. He drew a picture of a ram in several different styles, emphasizing different parts of the ram that the artist might see and interpret. It is amazing to think that we each have this power to interpret. I may not be an artist who paints or sings, but I write. What I write is a reflection of how the world around me hits me.

A few pages later, Asher connects this to the idea of the cave of now. A drawing. A painting. Capture something forever. Can see it all at one time. No future, no past. Only a perpetual this-moment, only nowness. While a painting or a piece of music or a passage of writing is a rendering of the artist's "now," it can also be interpreted in the future. Those of us in present time can only attempt to know the intention of the author, singer or painter from 100 years ago, let alone 2,000! And yet, God gave me a Helper to enlighten my mind toward correct interpretation of His Word.

Oh, I am loving Asher for how he helps me think about life. Chaim does not give me all of the answers, but invites me to get dirt under my nails and I dig through it all. It's good.

Recent Reading

When it gets cold and rainy outside in the fall, I'm definitely saddened, but the best comfort has been curling up under a blanket with some new book! I make my list of Dewey numbers and trek to the library. Actually, these ones came to me in different ways.

For me, The Kite Runner began as my EmyJs book. I read it as I was in the coffee shop, but... well, it just got too good and I had to own it, so... I bought it! Hosseini tells an exquisite story. He paints a picture of Kabul, Afghanistan during the last 30 years of conflict. It covers friendship, loyalty and forgiveness as it follows the history of two boys growing up in Kabul. I'd recommend this book to anyone who can read [well, maybe not young readers!]. To be honest, I wept through it. And now, I am entranced with all things Afghanistan.

I also get hungry for some theology in the fall. Perhaps it's because every one is going back to school. Jack recommended [and gave] me a copy of A Reason for God. Timothy Keller addresses popular objections to believe in God in a really straight-forward and readable way. It's fun to come up with the logical fallacies along with him. It's been a good lunch-break book.

Of course, I've got to have a Piper in my pile so Stand came as a result of some clicks around Desiring God's website. I haven't really started in on the meat of it, but the idea is that we must persevere through life with faith in God instead of just giving up [which I'm prone to do] when the incline steepens on the trek. This book is actually a summarization of the 2007 National Conference, with chapters by the contributing speakers. It's a thin book, definitely a rapid read.

The last one that I've been investing in is another Jack recommendation [Jack, I really will read anything you recommend, even though I didn't read any of the books you required for class!] and it's about picking stocks. One Up on Wall Street has helped me understand the market and in light of recent days, made me more conversant in current events. Peter Lynch tells story upon story of his own successes [and failures] on using common knowledge to "out smart" the Wall Street experts. Unfortunately, you'll have to wait a few weeks if you want to check it out from the library in Stevens Point because I've got it checked out!

So, what's on your fall reading list?

Penelope, a whimsical delight

Penelope is born under a curse that gives her a pig snout for a nose. She spends her childhood in hiding until, at age 25, she runs away from home and sees the world [that she's only heard about until then] for the very first time. The most enchanting scene in the whole movie is when she opens her eyes wide and finally walks through the street fair, with the bright lights and street vendors. The cinematography in this scene is perfect, dizzily spinning around her as she drinks in this world that she's only seen in pictures. It is sensory overload, flooding her with new smells, sensations and sights. She cannot get enough as she goes to the zoo, the park and all of the things that we all take for granted.

Sometimes I wonder what holds me back from truly seeing what's real around me, to open my eyes wide and see what God is doing and giving me. What keeps me inside my little tower, unable to experience all that I could? I hide within the barriers of sin, doubt, and guilt... probably all three and a few more. I want to live with open eyes - not able to get enough of what God is doing - sucking up every drop that I can. Oh, let's pray for those kind of eyes, and the courage to open them!