The Iron Diva

Sunday, May 18, 2025

Comic Relief: The Weekly Digest

Looking out the window....

He (or she) was enjoying a snack in the tree outside my big window.

A cool experience (or two)...

Though I'm busy all the time, spring and summer are my busiest seasons at work. Part of this season includes CCU's commencement exercises. This year's ceremonies were in Loveland, Colorado, which is not far from Johnstown, Colorado, which houses the state's only Buc-ee's.

Ah, Buc-ee's, that mysterious truck stop that isn't. That bastion of travel rarities: clean bathrooms, beef brisket sandwiches made on site, and displays of various wares that makes the local Circle K look like a bad yard sale. It is the butt of jokes, but the awe of those who visit.

Our team went there to shop and pick up some lunch. This was my first time to visit and it was everything people said it was and more. I bought merchandise and took pictures just in case I don't get to came back and enjoyed every minute of it.

The Monday after commencement, I took the day off and my friend Jennifer and I went to the Denver Botanic Gardens. I hadn't been there since the "thing," and I'd missed it dreadfully. The sunshine, fresh air, and all the gorgeous flora were the respite I needed from all the previous weeks' busyness. I'd go back more often on my own, but the parking situation isn't the best in the world and the bus drop off is more than half a mile from the venue. How does the Botanic Gardens not have its own bus stop?

Anyway. We had a great time.

Favorite quote(s) of the week...

To serve some masters is to watch over a crabapple tree and eat the crabapples as one’s wages, but to serve the Lord Jesus is to keep a fig tree of the sweetest figs. His service is in itself delight, continuance in it is promotion, success in it is blessedness below, and the reward for it is glory above. - Charles H. Spurgeon, Faith's Checkbook, p. 141.

But literary people are always looking for leisure and silence in which to read and do so with their whole attention. When they are denied such attentive and undisturbed reading even for a few days they feel impoverished. - C. S. Lewis, An Experiment in Criticism, p. 2.

Fellowship, especially in its Greek translation, has a powerful meaning. It speaks of an intimate sharing of ourselves with one another and with God at all levels of our lives, ranging from the spiritual to the material. - Trevor Hudson, Pauses for Pentecost, "Fellowship" section.

I'd rather be jolly Saint Francis hymning his canticle to the sun than a dour old sobersides Quaker whose diet would appear to be spiritual persimmons. - Thomas R. Kelly, qtd. by Richard Foster in Learning Humility.

I'm thinking about...

Comic books. Yes, I know I talked about poetry last digest and now I'm going comic book, but hear me out. My dad and I shared the enjoyment of many things: Braves baseball, pro wrestling, various comedy programs from the 70s and 80s, fried chicken, and Gilbey's London Dry Gin. I stopped drinking in 1996, eat fried chicken on rare occasions, and the rest of this list either doesn't appeal to me anymore, or the activities are only fun with other people. However, I remember that Big Daddy liked comic books. My eyesight was a lot worse when I was a kid, so I couldn't read the small print of a comic book. Now, even with much better eyesight, I don't know how to read a comic book. Yes, I know how to read, but I don't know which direction to read comics. Also, I don't know what kind of comic books exist right now. Manga doesn't seem to be my style. Do they still make superhero comics that I would recognize? Are graphic novels and comic books the same thing? (Those who know, don't get mad; I really don't know).

A friend helped me better understand poetry. Maybe I can find someone to help me learn about comic books and enjoy a little something that's a good reminder of my dad.

What I read since my last digest...

The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron* ✮✮✮✮ (a glorious reread)
Hollowed Out by Jeremy S. Adams* Please see my review here. (recommended read)
Pauses for Lent by Trevor Hudson* ✮✮✮✮ (a glorious reread)
Word in the Wilderness by Malcolm Guite* ✮✮✮✮ (a glorious reread)
Following Christ by Charles Spurgeon * ✮✮✮1/2
After Prayer by Malcolm Guite ✮✮✮1/2
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J. K. Rowling ✮✮✮1/2 (Category: kiddie lit)
The Pilgrim's Regress by C. S. Lewis ✮✮1/2
The Loveliness of Christ by Samuel Rutherford ✮✮
An Experiment in Criticism by C. S. Lewis ✮✮✮1/2 (a glorious reread)
According to Promise by Charles Spurgeon ✮✮✮

I'm currently reading...

Pauses for Pentecost by Trevor Hudson
Faith's Checkbook by Charles Spurgeon
The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin
Celebration of Discipline by Richard J. Foster
On Reading Well by Karen Swallow Prior
The History of Tom Jones: A Foundling by Henry Fielding
The New American Standard Bible

Recent blog posts...

I Can Only Blame MyShelf review of Hollowed Out by Jeremy S. Adams is here.

My previous digest: Poetic Speed Run is here.

I am thankful for...

Commencement 2025 is in the books. Despite a kid pulling the fire alarm at the venue and the power going out for about 15 minutes, the ceremony went very well.
Sunscreen. Yes, I sometimes need it too.
Warm sunny days that boost my mood.
Being able to go back to using standard laundry detergent because of the new washer in our laundry room.
Having one more month of sermons from our lead pastor before he goes on sabbatical for the summer.
Friends who are happy to see me instead of sorry that I showed up.
Prunes.
Continued progress in many areas of my life. That almost makes up for the areas where I seem to be marking time.
God's blessings and favor.
The music courses I took at JSU. They gave me such an appreciation for various types of music. My new "song on repeat" is this Liszt piece

Sunday, May 11, 2025

2025 I Can Only Blame MyShelf Reading Challenge: 01

Title: Hollowed Out

Author: Jeremy S. Adams

Rating (on a scale of 1-4 stars): ✮✮

Category (ies) - Recommended reads(?): This book was a suggested read by the president of the university where I'm employed. The author visited campus and gave a lecture based on the book on April 24, 2025.

Synopsis: Adams, a high school and postsecondary educator, documents both academic research and his own empirical data showing the decline, or "hollowing out" as he terms it, of the current generation. From phone addiction precluding learning to unwarranted and unsupported anti-American sentiment (usually fueled by social media), Adams fears that children who choose to remain in the "hollow" state will be a detriment to the future of education as well as the country. He assigns educators with the task of minimizing and/or undoing the damage.

Select Favorite Quotes:

I didn't have any specific quotes of interest. However, Adams mentions a government report outlining a brief history of the founding of the country and the signing of the Declaration of Independence. This "1776 Report" also includes a few tips on accurately teaching history, such as training students to use as many primary sources and firsthand accounts to research historical people and events. It is not a sugar-coated version of history, neither is it a maligning of the founding fathers. I appreciate Adams including it since I'd not heard of it.

The good, the bad, and the ugly:

I had a difficult time finding anything positive about this book. While much of Adams' information was accurately related, his approach was quite offputting. More importantly, the information did not (and does not) apply to all children. As I said in my First Line Friday post about this book, "I'm afraid that this may be what this author is going to do [be prejudiced against the younger generation or write them off as incorrigible] while blaming teachers--rather than parents--for the state of the children." Unfortunately, this is the tone of the book (i.e. the attitude of "the sky is falling" and "tell the kids to get out of my yard."). My trepidation was the main reason I wanted to hear the author's presentation before sharing my opinion of the book.

Mr. Adams' presentation clarified a few things for me. First, this book was written during the throes of the pandemic. During that time, teachers were struggling even more with many student's apathetic attitudes and the additional distractions that come with online classrooms, in addition to inattentive parents. The book came across as overly negative because negativity was all that could be seen during that time. I do understand that. Sometimes seeing so much negativity can blind many to any good that is around them. The good news, according to Adams, is that the tide is turning and the hopelessness brought on by the situation is starting to wane. It would have been nice if some of that could have been included in the book.

Conclusion/Takeaway:

The one question/statement I wish I could have posed to Adams (there was a Q&A, but the participants were most likely prescreened) concerned the younger generation and sexuality. While I understand the ramifications of sexual confusion, promiscuity, and the irrational fear of marriage and/or intimacy because of bad examples or trauma, the harping on younger people waiting longer to marry and have children as if it is a felony does the same amount of damage--especially to females.

In my family, many of the girls of the younger generation were raised in single parent homes. Rather than perpetuating the accompanying struggles of poverty and bringing up children without a father in the home, they made the decision to get their educations, have careers, and work on themselves so that if they do marry and have children, their family will be built on a more solid financial, emotional, and relational foundation.

Tell me again, Mr. Adams, what's wrong with that? You just got through talking about how entitled and self-centered this generation is. Do you really want them having children and exacerbating the problem? Or, would you rather have them wait until they are more mature and understand more about how the world works (especially that it doesn't revolve around them)?

I also didn't get much clarity on how he expects teachers to correct all these issues. "Just keep doing what your doing" is not helpful. Besides, the majority of the correction lies at the feet of parents. Teachers have enough to deal with. Sorry (not sorry), but I've taught preschoolers, tutored K-6 children after school, and currently teach undergraduate adult students, and gracefully handling the inattentive parents of the children and/or parents who are inattentive students themselves is hard enough without being blamed for their lack of effort. We educators can read all the books, offer help, make instructional videos, call people, pray, and use all the other techniques in the book, but if a student does not want to be a participant in his own education, the effort is useless!

On a (hopefully) brighter note Adams has a new book along the same lines (but reported to have a much more positive tone) called Lessons in Liberty, My workplace is considering reading this one together and bringing back Mr. Adams. Even if this doesn't come to fruition, I'm curious enough to read this one on my own in the future.

Sunday, March 30, 2025

Poetic Speed Run: The Weekly Digest

Looking out the window....

Gray clouds and snow on the ground. Yep, we're back to winter for a few days.

Favorite quote(s) of the week...

Grace is the best method of being restored. Divine love is the safest tonic for the weak patient. It makes the soul as strong as a giant, even when the bones are breaking through the skin. There is no physician like the Lord, no tonic like His promise, and no medicine like His love. - Charles Spurgeon, Faith's Checkbook, p. 92.

When poetry has done its important work of revealing and describing the hidden hell we carry and perpetuate, it also has this power and privilege to cleanse and renew our vision, and set us on the right road again. - Malcolm Guite, The Word in the Wilderness, p. 90.

Only when he no longer knows what he is doing does the painter do good things. - Edgar Degas, quoted in Julia Cameron's The Artist Way, p. 174.

Experts say that denying bad feelings intensifies them; acknowledging bad feelings allows good feelings to return. - Gretchen Rubin, The Happiness Project, Chapter 4.

I'm thinking about...

I'm pondering over many subjects. I can share a couple.

First, I'm pondering the poetic. I'm rereading Malcolm Guite's The Word in the Wilderness. This is an anthology of poems curated or written by Guite for the Lenten season. I enjoyed my first reading of it six years ago, but only because Guite was kind enough to give clarifying commentary on each piece. Even this rereading requires the explanatory notes for maximum enjoyment. Like my struggles with history, I find poetry another weak academic subject for me. A friend of mine who taught middle school English gave me a few pointers on how to read poetry according to the punctuation rather than where it rhymes. That helped a lot. Now, I'm hooked and want to read and know more.

Another thing I'm thinking about is my book collection. It's been a while since I've paired down my unread volumes. I still have shelf space for the selections I've read and want to keep, but my "to read" shelves are getting a little full. In the past couple of years I've been given a lot of books (and yes, I've bought a few too). I thinking about doing a couple of first chapter speed runs where I go through a stack of books and read the first chapter to see if the writing and/or subject matter pique my interest at all. If so, they go back on the shelf. If not, they go to the thrift store or a little free library for others to enjoy. Yes, I know the nerdy solution would be to buy more bookshelves, but I don't have room for any more. Trust me, when I have my own house, there will be plenty of bookshelves.

What I've read since the last digest...

On Loving God by St. Bernard of Clairvaux ✮✮✮ 1/2
Learning Humility by Richard J. Foster ✮✮
The Power of Preaching by Tony Evans ✮✮✮ 1/2
Invitation to a Journey by M. Robert Mulholland Jr. ✮✮✮ 1/2 (a glorious reread)
As You Wish by Cary Elwes ✮✮✮✮ (a glorious reread)
Words of Cheer for Daily Life by Charles Spurgeon ✮
The Peacemaker by Ken Sande ✮✮ (a reread: it wasn't so "glorious" this time around)