Waving or Drowning?

You Don't See What I See

OK... I hate McDonald's, and I hate people trying to sell me stuff. But, I like good video, so this spot from Fuel International & Sydney Film Company for McDonald's Australia is kind of cool. (Yes, I am a complex collection of contradictions.)

(via ComputerLove)

Two Years Late But Better Than Never

Wes has posted a typically devastating quote from Martin Luther King, Jr.:

You may be 39 years old, as I happen to be.  And one day some great opportunity stands before you and calls yo to stand up for some great principle, some great issue, some great cause.  And you refuse to do it because you are afraid....  You refuse to do it because you want to live longer....  You're afraid that you will lose your job, or you are afraid that you will be criticized or that you will lose your popularity, or you're afraid that somebody will stab you, or shoot at you or bomb your house; so you refuse to take the stand.  Well you may go on and live until you are 90, but you're just as dead at 38 as you would be at 90.  And the cessation of breathing in your life is but the belated announcement of an earlier death of the spirit.
(Quoted in From Wild Man to Wise Man: Reflections on Male Spirituality, by Richard Rohr)

Welcome Aboard, Mark

My friend Mark Petersen has joined the blog world. (Remind me to tell you about how Mark ruined my life sometime...)

Swing by and say hello when you have a moment.

And I Knew Him When...

Here's Pernell Goodyear on 100 Huntley Street talking about The Freeway. (And they didn't pull the segment, which means that Pernell must have been on his best behaviour...)

International Women's Day & HIV/AIDS

WHO Director-General Chan Discusses Effect of HIV/AIDS on Women on International Women's Day [Mar 08, 2007]

World Health Organization Director-General Margaret Chan in a statement released in recognition of International Women's Day discussed the effects of HIV/AIDS on women in sub-Saharan Africa, Xinhua News Agency reports. Chan in the statement said that in 2006, 74% of HIV-positive people in sub-Saharan Africa were young women (Xinhua News Agency, 3/7). Chan also said that women serve as the primary caregivers for their families -- a situation that is "particularly striking" in sub-Saharan Africa because the "burden of care for people living with AIDS and affected children is provided in the home." According to Chan, poverty is the "single greatest impediment" to improving women's health, and she added that WHO is "investing in strengthening the health workforce" to provide services for HIV/AIDS and other illnesses in developing countries. "Women's health is threatened because of the poor conditions in which many women work, the risks we encounter in our reproductive roles, and the discrimination and poverty that women face," Chan said, adding that she "strongly believe[s] that women hold the key to improving health, as agents of change in the family and in the community and as leaders in all areas. Given the right support, women can be a positive force in ways that can lift households and entire communities out of poverty" (Chan statement, 3/7). In addition, UNAIDS, UNIFEM and Johnson & Johnson recently announced that they are providing five countries will grants to address the links between gender-based violence and the spread of HIV, PTI/The Hindu reports. The five countries are Botswana, the Dominican Republic, India, Nigeria and Vietnam. Organizations in the countries that benefit from the grants will be expected to foster strategies aimed at raising awareness, upholding laws, providing medical assistance, training providers and reducing stigma and discrimination to benefit women. "Violence makes women more susceptible to HIV infection and the fear of violent male reactions, physical and psychological, prevents many women from trying to find out more about it, discourages them from getting tested and stops them from getting treatment," UNAIDS Executive Director Peter Piot said (PTI/The Hindu, 3/4).   

Blogging From (Relatively) Cold Ontario

I flew in to Toronto tonight.... I'm attending a funeral tomorrow for a man who was a significant influence in my earlier years. Then, it's back home Friday.

The cab driver from the airport wanted to know if we had "traffic like this in Vancouver." Ah yes, I can't say that I've missed the 401!

About Allelon

Bill Kinnon has been working hard on video content for Allelon's new web site. The original can be found in the About Us section:

What's in a Name?

Mike's Note: My wife Sue reflects on last week's mission trip to the DTES of Vancouver...

___________________________________________________

It's Tuesday morning, and I'm sitting here in the Great Room reflecting on the awesome week we had together on our first mission trip to the dtes. The question that is running through my mind is this:

What's in a name?

A name is so many things. It is identity. It can be a form of blessing, as parents give a name to a new baby. A name can honor a family heritage, a special or significant person. To know a name, to call another by name is to give respect and dignity. In the book of Isaiah God says, "Look I've written your names on the backs of my hands." Names are important.

One of the most amazing experiences of this past week for me was walking around the community and knowing so many of the women by name, and also hearing them call out my name. On our first day we walked into the Dtes Women's Centre and it was like old home week! What a reunion! There were close to 20 women that day alone who we knew by name and also knew something of their stories. By the end of the week we had gathered a list of the names of old and new friends that numbered almost fifty.

Donna, Madeleine, Sarah, Carol, Eleanor, Jen, Edna, Stephie, Suzanne, Anna, Heather, Elizabeth, Linda, Mary, Charlene, Angel, Daralee, Ruth, Tamika, Rosa, Gina, Karen, Regina, Lou, Gail, Catherine, Tracey, Adrienne, Elizabeth, Annie, Leanne, Laurie, Helen, Stephanie, Laura, Tracey, Ofa, Deanna, Sue, Carrie, Shyan, Evelyn, Lishan, Diana, Alison, Maureen. We would love for you to pray for any of these women by name.

We are a ministry about connecting in relationship through story and sacred space. It is always about the one. If we prepared a Journey and only one woman came, it would be enough. If it was only for one woman that we prepared the Great Room, it would be enough. I've been thinking alot about the story of the prodigal son, but I change it in my mind to the prodigal daughter. The preparation and party and celebration that happened just for her. Jesus leaving the 99, to go and find the one. In the Kingdom, it is always about the one.

But this past week, God gave us a real gift. It was as if he gathered all the "ones".........and placed them in front of us to see how, one woman at a time, we are making a difference that goes beyond just the one. He is making a difference through us.

Last week was one of the most profound experiences of community I've ever had. Don't let anyone tell you that there is no community here in the dtes. There truly is, and I've been so blessed to be a part of it.

Sue

Technical Question - PDF Files

Here's one for the techies in the crowd...

I've got a large .pdf file, and I need to chop it into pieces (or smaller .pdf files) and I don't have anything but the free Adobe Reader.

Does anyone know if this is possible? Thanks.

Deeper Life

It really is a small world. Our friends at simplechurches.ca are hosting a couple of friends from The Salvation Army for Kingdom, Justice and Mission in Vancouver - Part II.

Check it out here.