An extraordinary man would have followed through with posts to his grandson each and every day following his birth. Alas, I am the most common of the ordinary. Your life has been celebrated and cherished by all those whose lives you touch, myself included. I am blessed among all grandfathers to be present at your day to day development, a privilege that was not afforded me even with my own two precious daughters (the eldest being your mother). All this is to say that my undisciplined and sporadic blogging should never be taken as apathy toward you. I thank God for the gift of your life and for my ability to participate in it.
It would be interesting to ever know what you learn of me from others, but such does not seem to fall in the realm of our human reality. It is, therefore, a degree of selfishness which motivates me to tell you my side of the story. Having been curious for as long as I can remember, I would have welcomed more intimate insight into my grandparents' (and parents') worldviews and how they developed. The longer I live, the more I realize just how significant family is to who and what I am.
From my perspective, the most important thing to know about me is that I believe that I have been "called" to proclaim the gospel of Jesus the Christ. At sixty-two, I am profoundly disappointed by the realization that what this means to everyone is so diverse as to be relatively meaningless. This was made crystal clear to me during the time that I was ordained in The United Methodist Church. Each parishioner had a unique understanding of the pastor's role which was loosely held together by the common thread of doctrine. We all believed in God, but such beliefs are so diluted by interpretation as to, again, be meaningless.
This brief introduction will hopefully serve to explain why I have chosen this occasion to contribute more significantly to this venue which I have chosen to record my thoughts to you. Ash Wednesday is the beginning of Lent, a tradition leading to Christianity's highest holy day, Easter. It is intended as a time of reflection, meditation and self-denial. I am looking forward to the opportunity to share with you those things that are important to me, and to explain why. I close for now with the profound admonition that serves as the foundation of faith: Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.
