a quote I stole from another blog

“If I had my life to live over again, I’d try to make more mistakes next time.

I would relax, I would limber up, I would be sillier than I have been this trip.

I know of very few things I would take seriously.

I would take more trips. I would be crazier.

I would climb more mountains, swim more rivers, and watch more sunsets.

I would do more walking and looking.

I would eat more ice cream and less beans.

I would have more actual troubles, and fewer imaginary ones.”

-written by a Friar in a Nebraska monastery

[as quoted on Matt Wertz' tumblr]

Lessons from a Flood

So Nashville flooded...

And I learned a few things.

Lesson 1: If you own a buffalo, and that buffalo gets loose because of, say, rain and flooding, you should definitely report this to your local news station. You should do this to warn people? Get assistance in your search for said buffalo? I'm not sure the motivation, but this actually happened. Naomi Judd (not Wynona...I was wrong) called the news station in the midst of the rain/flood crisis to let them know her buffalo was (were? I'm not sure how many) loose.

Lesson 2: People are more ready to believe the fantastic than the familiar, at least when piranhas are involved. When a news report came out saying that piranhas were loose in the Opry Mills mall (they had, apparently, escaped from the aquarium restaurant during the flood), people retweeted and updated facebook statuses, and watched youtube videos all day. We laughed about possible horror movie plots and speculated how the divers would find the piranhas or where the fish might end up. But, alas, we received news that this report was wrong. No piranhas were loose in the mall. And you know what? Immediately, conspiracy theories began. No one questioned the fact that piranhas were loose in the mall, but people questioned the fact that the report was fake. We (because, yes, I refuse to believe, too) think that, while the piranhas may be contained now, at one point, they were battling it out with the catfish in Bass Pro.

Lesson 3: Twitter is often a more efficient place to get information than the news. The people @nashvillest deserve an award for all the tweeting they have done, and continue to do, regarding this flood. They gathered and distributed information faster than any of the TV networks. The only reason I even knew about flooding in the first place is because of their tweets. Twitter has also played a huge role in uniting Nashville--passing around the article I linked in my last post ignited a WeAreNashville hashtag, t-shirts, bumper stickers, and an attitude.

Lesson 4: I live in one amazing city. I have not been in any other place where a disaster of this level has occured, so I can't say with experience that our city responded differently than others. But I do know the response is amazing. I wrote about the immediate response a little before, but this past weekend I had the opportunity to volunteer. I was in a neighborhood in Franklin where one street had been flooded. We arrived early and began tearing out dry wall in one house. By the time we had finished, the neighborhood was filled with volunteers. I'm serious. There wasn't room to park because people volunteering had the curb completely lined with cars. And those who couldn't do physical work were helping those who were able. We were fed donuts and sausage and biscuits, were offered gatorade and work gloves and pizza. One woman who was not affected personally by the flood waters had set up a supply station in her front yard and filled it with boxes, food, and cleaning supplies. Two dads pulled up as we were heading out and asked if they could set up their grill in order to cook for people. They had an entire truck-load of kids, but also packed in a grill, table, and burgers. And the great part was, I knew this was happening all over the city. Amazing. Truly. I am so proud to be Nashville.

And here's the other thing about the response of the city. Someone said that the director of FEMA said (he said, she said, I know, but, at least I'm honest about my sources) that they had never seen a local response like this. Someone else mentioned that other cities should learn from this response. Another person mentioned that it was a great witness. Nashville is the buckle of the Bible belt, but I'm sure that not all these volunteers are Christians.

But all this got me thinking...this is a microcosm of how the Church should be--everyone using their gifts, abilities, perhaps even stepping out of their comfort zone, but loving each other. Helping each other. Having a we're-all-in-this-together attitude. When I learned volunteers were coming in from other places, my first thought was, "We don't need them. Nashville's got this, y'all." What if the Church was like that? What if we just took care of things--orphans, single moms, world hunger, AIDS--and said, "We got this, y'all"?

Vulnerability

What if I were truly vulnerable with people I love?

What if I were more vulnerable with everyone?

Once, I heard a pastor say that someone can only love you as much as you are willing to be vulnerable with them.

When I thought about that, I realized how true a statement it is. To be vulnerable basically means to be open to hurt, criticism, and attack. Vulnerability is not necessarily fun, but it is necessary to form significant relationships. When I think about my relationships, I know that the people I am most open to are also the ones who love me the most. My parents, for example, know almost everything about me. They are the ones the most able to hurt, criticise, or attack me because they know my weaknesses better than anyone. At the same time, they love me more than anyone else does. And, hello, Jesus. He knows even more than my parents, yet he gave his life for me out of love.

This is true even of people outside of the realm of close relationships. My church recently did a series of sermons based on the Beatitudes about recovery. Several members of the church stood before the entire congregation and told us of things they suffer from--everything from co-dependency to addictions to same-sex attraction. They made themselves completely vulnerable. And I loved my church even more.

Then there are people I don't know personally and probably never will--the same is true for them. Think about Taylor Swift. She's doing pretty well for herself. I heard her say once that her last album was basically her diary. I know enough about diaries to know that no one wants people to see theirs. To see someone's diary is to see their intimate secrets. They are exposed and vulnerable. Taylor Swift writes songs about her crushes and her heartbreaks, sometimes even including the person's real name. She is exposed, yet she has won how many awards and sold how many albums? People love her.

Another person this is true of is Jon Acuff. If you have never read the Stuff Christians Like blog, you need to. I'm a big fan. He recently wrote a Stuff Christians Like book and I read several reviews, including this one here. The reviewer in that article is one of many who attributes the success of the blog and book in part to Jon's vulnerability. He is telling Christians what we do is sometimes silly, but that he is right there with us. He tells readers his weaknesses and that makes all the difference. I haven't read the book yet, but the blog is full of "I make mistakes" moments. And he has a huge following. I mean, millions. Even non-Christians like his blog/book because he is honest. Honest and vulnerable.

There are many other examples. Postsecret is a art project/book series/blog based on people's secrets--people getting vulnerable with complete strangers (though, it is for the most part anonymous, so there's a degree of vulnerability not quite reached there). People like watching shows like Biggest Loser and American Idol, where the contestants' weaknesses are revealed and their secret dreams are exposed. The What if series here began from a blog, really from the comments, where people were opening themselves up to attack: they shared their secrets--hopes, dreams, fears.

What if we were all more vulnerable?

I want to be more vulnerable, more honest. I like people who are vulnerable and honest. And so do you. I think if we were all a little more vulnerable, we'd all be a little more loved, and a little more loving.

It's pretty simple. Just try to be like T. Swift, a blogger, an artist, losers, idols, and people at my church. Okay?

Writing for Me

What if I wrote for an audience of me?

I was reading someone's blog, or an article, or a tweet recently talking about writing. They said that most writing teachers will tell you that you should know your audience, and write for them. But, and they quoted some author here, you should write for yourself. If you write things that you enjoy reading, chances are, someone else will enjoy reading it, too.

[an aside: I so wish that I could remember who said/wrote half the things I hear/read. I would sound about 93% more intelligent if I could only remember my sources.]

I agree partially with both sides of that argument (as with most arguments--I like being Switzerland).

More than writing for an audience, I think you should be aware of your audience. Obviously, if you are writing a children's book, you should be aware that children will read it and write appropriately. Awareness is a good thing.

However, I don't think you should write for your audience. The famous author that I didn't even attempt to quote above has a point. Take this blog, for example. I have become aware that I have a readership. It is an incredibly small readership, but there are those who read what I write. And I am a people-pleaser. Therefore, I have tried to write what is pleasing for my readers. It hasn't been horrible. But I've got to stop. It will be better for us all.

What If...

I was reading Donald Miller's blog the other day and he requested his readers to ask a simple question: What if...? The results are lovely. Here's a link. Be sure to read at least some of the comments, because they're the best part.

I made a list of my own What if questions. Here it is, a little stream-of-conscious-y:

• What if I actually, seriously, chase after my crazy dreams?
• What if I used my energy to brainstorm ways to use my passions, as well as my gifts?
• What if I get (more) serious about being a writer?
• What if I never get married?
• What if I write for an audience of me?
• What if I stopped having a mindset of "waiting"?
• What if I leave out the "working on becoming" in the phrase "I'm working on becoming a writer"?
• What if I spent as much time reading my Bible and "keeping up with" God as I do keeping up with mere acquaintances on facebook?
• What if I finally set a time to volunteer with refugees in Nashville?
• What if God shows me a way to reach lost intellectuals here and now?
• What if I make an effort to better maintain long-distance friendships?
• What if I stop thinking about becoming a runner, and actually become a runner?
• What if I listened more and shared less?
• What if money didn't matter?
• What if a specific calling never comes?
• What if I never know for sure?
• What if I were truly vulnerable with people I love?
• What if I stopped worrying about what others will think?
• What if I worked to become more like those I admire?
• What if I really, really believed that prayer really, really works?

Reading others' What if questions and asking this question of myself inspired me to do so many things. And, as most inspiration goes for me, this means writing them out. Therefore, the next several posts here will be unpacking some, not all, of my What if questions.

Definitely ask yourself some What if questions (even in the comments section). In college, we would have "I love" conversations, where we would take turns completing sentences that began with "I love." Those were some of my favorite conversations. I would love to begin having "What if" conversations. I think, like Miller says, that's how we "create exciting and meaningful stories." Beautiful.

One person in the comments on Donald Miller's blog asked, "What if I asked myself this question every single day?" I love that.