Poem for B-Mac

To Benjamin Matthias (a.k.a. Mr. Black Pepper):
A friend, brother, and newly married man

A pinch of black pepper to spice up your day,

Yes just a little bit goes quite a long way,

You bring taste to my food,

You can even change my mood,

You sprinkle me with your love,

Like the gentle touch of a dove,

You have been good to me,

Like that faithful giving tree,

Yet, I wasn’t quite your cup of tea,

No, that’s right, her name was Rebecca Lee,

You entered my life,

Only to leave me for a wife,

But when all is said and done,

I still love you a ton,

So a toast to my friend Ben,

Who found his mother Hen,

Tonight we dine,

With champagne and fine wine,

We honor a faithful friend,

Who is with us till the very end,

And so I end this day,

With just one more thing to say,

With love for each other,

From one man to another,

You are my brother in Christ,

And that is truly very nice.

First Ascent: Realization

A couple of weeks ago, I was at Castle Rock State Park in Santa Cruz. There are a number of great hiking and running trails throughout the park; and in addition to great hiking, it is also a great spot for rock climbing: both bouldering and sport climbing. On this particular day there were a number of rock climbers out on the rocks. It's amazing to see someone pulling themselves up with only a few fingers. What looks to be physically impossible is in fact possible with the right amount of leverage.

Castle Rock just so happens to be the place where Chris Sharma grew up climbing. Chris Sharma was born on April 23, 1981 in Santa Cruz, CA and is considered along with Adam Ondra to be the best climber in the world. In the documentary, Dosage, a young Chris Sharma (20 yrs. old) is interviewed during his first ascent of the climb Realization. At the time, it was the only 5.15 rated climb in the world.

Watching Sharma climb and listening to him talk, I realized that there is much more to great climbing than just strength. Three things need to be present: Strength, Technique, and Mental Prowess.

Realization: First Ascent by Chris Sharma

The Phsyical Strength:
For those who are not familiar with ratings, a 5 is given to anything that is considered too difficult to be a hike. A 5.0 is the lowest rating for a climb. The ratings are numerial from 5.0 - 5.9, at which point alpha-numerical ratings are used. For example: 5.10a, 5.10b, 5.10c, 5.10d, 5.11a, 5.11b, and so forth. A rating of 5.15a is astronomical in difficulty. It is clear that Chris Sharma is a physical beast.

The Art of Technique:
This is an important and often times overlooked quality; partly because the average climber can get by with poor technique. However, in order to progress to the more difficult climbs, good technique is essential. Technique really is an art, and it changes as one progresses in their climbing career.

The Mental Game:
As I listened to Chris Sharma talking, I realized that not only is he the strongest climber in the world, but that his mental game is unrivaled. When talking about the climb, he says the following:

"......and everything has to come together perfectly for me to do this route. I have to be feeling strong, but not too confident. I have to have the desire to do it[the climb], but not be too attached to getting to the top as much as enjoying the climbing; and it has to be a good day. I have to hit everything right, and then it will happen.....I think the best attitude for me to have[on the climb] is just, when it's the right time, I'll do it. And everyother time that I don't do it, it just wasn't the right time. You know, it wasn't meant to be. When it's the right time to do it, I'll do it."

Interestingly, Chris Sharma once was quoted as saying, "climbing is mostly mental," when asked about what makes him a good climber.

I look at everything that makes Chris Sharma a complete climber; I see that he climbs with not only his physical strength, but also his mind, and his heart. He gives everything that he has into his climbing, because that is what is required in order to be the best. He just so happens to do it better than everyone else.

That's how I want to live my life. God commands us to love Him with all of our heart, all of our soul, all of our strength, and with all of our mind (Luke 10:27). We must do this, because this is what is required; thank God that in Jesus, we will be victorious.

-ServantME 

The Mind of Mozart I

I have always enjoyed musical instruments, and the piano in particular has always been a personal favorite of mine. I have a special appreciation for people who can play the piano. I really enjoy when the piano is used to lead worship. It produces such a beautiful sound. What a wonderful way to glorify and praise our Creator.

This week I was listening to some classical music, and a piece by Mozart caught my attention. The song was Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 20 in D minor, K. 466. This piano concerto consists of three parts: Allegro, Romanze, Allegro assai.

It is written for the following instruments: piano, flute, two oboes, two bassoons, two horns, two trumpets, timpani(drums), and strings. I don't have time to go over the entire piece right now, but I made some observations in the first movement. It will be interesting to see how other concertos compare in the future.

Movement 1: Allegro - Mitsuko Uchida plays and conducts the Columbia Symphony

1. Theme I: orchestra (0:38 - 2:56)  
2. Theme II: piano solo (2:57 - 3:22)
3. Theme I: piano and orchestra (3:23 - 5:50)
4. Theme I: orchestra (5:51 - 6:23)
5. Theme I/II: piano and orchestra (6:24 - 7:30)
6. Theme II: piano solo (7:31 - 8:12)
7. Theme I: piano and orchestra (8:12 - 11:31)
8. Theme I/II: piano solo (11:32 - 13:56) 
9. Theme I: orchestra (13:56 - 14:56)

The mind of Mozart shines through in the first movement of this piano concerto. It's even more impressive when one realizes that Mozart not only wrote this music, but also performed it on a number of occasions, including it's opening night on February 11, 1785. All this beautiful music, coming from the mind of one man.

Yet if Mozart could compose such a beautiful masterpiece, how much more impressive is the God who created Mozart.

When I look at a cable stayed bridge with its compression arches and tension cables; as amazing as it is, the designer and creator of a bridge is way more impressive than his/her creation. So it is the same with our Creator.

Although I cannot create the way that Mozart did, I will praise God with the song of my heart. My cousin RC sent me a Bible verse that I would like to quote. Ephesians 5: 18-20, "......but be filled with the Holy Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,"

Thank you Mozart for you music, and thank you God for the life that you have granted me in Jesus Christ.

Hillsong - Forever Reign
"My heart will sing, no other Name,"
"Jesus, Jesus!"

-ServantME

Poem of Hope

Beyond the horizon, there lies Another,
There is no end, the earth is round,

What lies beyond, cannot be found,
By this sight, I'm perpetually bound,

Upon my feet I search for light,
But find no truth within my sight,

Upon my knees, I feel His might,
Upon my knees, He gives me sight,

Past the bright gates, I see the Other,
My Lord, My God, My Greatest Treasure.

-ServantME

Psalm 1:1

I like how the opening of this psalm begins with the word blessed. As children of God we can rejoice in this truth that we are blessed. And what does this mean for us? The psalmist writes that the blessed man does not walk in the counsel of the wicked; but rather he walks in obedience to God's law and commandments.

He walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of scoffers,

We see that the life-style of the wicked leads to destruction:
They are like blind men walking down a treacherous path, because they cannot see.
They are like trees which do not produce fruit, because they have no roots.
They are like a structure that crumbles, because they do not have a foundation.
They are like lost sheep without a purpose, because they do not have a shepherd.

It is written that a man makes his plans, but it is the Lord God who guides his footsteps. Let us thank God that we are not sheep without a shepherd. He is our guide, and in Him we have all that we need. As it says in Psalm 23:1 - "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want."

Thank you Jesus for leading me. I will follow you! I am blessed.

We are blessed brothers and sisters.

-ServantME