Katrina here. Today is the dawning of a new day! I’m going to start writing my *great* posts here on this blog. All of the posts on katrinawillis.wordpress.com will be art-specific, so be sure to check those out (or sign up for an RSS feed) if you’re interested in the art posts (I post those quasi-monthly).

In North America, we have a hard time sitting still, being quiet, or being with others in silence. Noise = comfort. In high school, I used to study with the TV running and the computer and a side conversation going at the same time. And I would venture to say that high schoolers today are doing the same thing still. I’m actually listening to music as I write this now. Try this exercise: take five minutes, and if you have one near, set an alarm to let you know when the 5 minute mark hits. Turn your computer screen off. Sit upright in the quiet and focus on one thing in the room. Breathe deeply. Try to let you mind STOP. Do not go to sleep.

….. how was it?

If you’re anything like me, you probably have experienced days where you’re thinking deeply on something… and there is constant brain chatter (leading to anxiousness). I wake up thinking about “things” and I spend the entire day thinking about “things” as if my thinking will result in some sort of change. “If I just think deeply or hard enough, I’ll live wisely.” If I meet someone who doesn’t “think” as much as I “think” then they’re obviously more hollow headed than me. End of story. Until recently…

I have been seeking peace of mind. Jesus told us that those who listen to him and do what he says will be like the man who built his house on the rock. When the rains come and the winds blow, the house will sit firm. But those who only listen to his words build their house on the sand. The writer of Proverbs says that as a dog returns to its vomit so a fool returns to his folly (26:11). In English, we call this rumination. We’re so comfy with our own vomit that we won’t seek out new food.

I’ve just recently read Armchair Mystic by Mark Thibodeaux and Getting Things Done by David Allen. In the mix, I’ve also been meditating on the Matthew 6:33 mantra (Seek first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all of these things shall be added to you…)

The result has been the freeing art of the brain dump. What? How do you do that? Stay tuned.

As the semester draws to a close, I’ve started getting antsy.  Katrina and I have been working on finding a place to live, I’ve been raising support and looking for any side jobs that sound feasible, and my papers for the semester just keep looming closer and closer.  I’m hoping to have most of the Paper Beast tamed by the weekend.

It’s really tough to know what to share on here, and what not to - I guess I’m having a “mid-blog crisis”.   I want people to be in the know of what’s going down in the Willis world, just like we want to know what’s going on with our friends.  But it feels like so much of my life is in transition (will that ever really stop?) and much of it would be inappropriate to share half-baked online.  In any case, here’s what’s on the up and up on our side of the universe:

I’ve quit my job at the steakhouse here in town.  The money wasn’t covering the bills, and my hours there were getting to be too much to try to juggle with everything else we’re here in Abilene to do.  Support raising has been pretty good so far.  We’re trying to work through how all that works.  More on that maybe later.

Trina is working full time as an artist.  She’s freakin’ awesome too.  Check her website out here.  By the way, she’s turned her blog into an art blog, but since she’s got some super sweet thoughts to share with everyone, she’s now co-authoring this blog with me!  Finally!  A good writer on Godgrown.net!  Welcome her to the fam!

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Hey, by the way - a totally sweet idea coming from a Denver simple church network.  Since Barna’s Simplechurch.com doesn’t seem to be showing any signs of life, the movement is going all Bill McKibben on the internet by staying “local”.  This map is a picture of where the communities of faith are meeting throughout Denver - and how to get in touch with them.  Pretty nifty.   Think I might do that with JFN.

Just a little more inspiration from this post:

Commercials 2007

Commercials 2006

Other cool ones

With the biggest shopping day of the year just around the corner, I’m already thinking about ways to avoid the holiday rush. It’s got me on a few other rants too:

I’ve been listening to Speaking of Faith, a radio program and podcast on American Public Media which sparks some amazing conversations on ethics, religion, meaning, and more. Recently Krista Tippett did a episode on “Money and Moral Balance” (you can listen to it here). She spoke with Nathan Dungan. Dungan is a financial educator and president of Share-Save-Spend, an organization that helps people develop healthy financial habits. It’s a fascinating look at how our culture has moved to a new center - from freedom and a pioneering, adventurous spirit to capitalism and consumerism as the main force behind our culture. After the attacks on September 11, 2001, Bush urged his fellow Americans to show their American spirit and “go shopping”…ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

Bill McKibben, author of Deep Economy, wrote a book back in 1998 called Hundred Dollar Holiday: the Case for a More Joyful Christmas. The average American (averaged including children, the poor,) spends $863 dollars on Christmas presents. (Time) “What we need and long for now are the gifts of time, meaningful family connections, periods of silence, a relationship with the divine,” McKibben writes.

If I still haven’t convinced you to take a chill pill on the holidays, I just won’t shake ya - and I might as well show you this nifty tool.

Mark’s Wish List by mufincutter

Its a web wish list - meaning you can add items from any website. My wish list posted below for fun! Make a wish list and share it with me! We can yearn together.

Happy Turkey Day!

I just recently found the Reba Place Fellowship’s website online.  They are a community of about 35 up in Rogers Park and Evanston (in the midst of Chicago’s north side neighborhoods).  Holding a common treasury, and selling all they have to join the community - they are forever taken care of by the community and given a chance to live life together.

Onlookers watch as families work less, live more, and love more.  By sharing resources, they aren’t playing into the most fundamental element of capitalism: that we compete for resources at the expense of our souls.

I wish I had a video to embed right in this post; but its an RAM file, and I can’t for the life of me figure out how to lay it into my blog.  So - here’s a link to the video - a expose from a public Chicago: Money Matters news show exploring what sounds to me like, “Good News”.

 Click here for the video.