This Space Intentionally Left Blank.

I headed out this evening to pick up a chicken parmigiana sandwich:

Across the street, I saw the lights on and the door open at the church where I used to go. They were having an Ash Wednesday service, I have no doubt.

I didn't go inside.

One More Christmas Story

One of this blog's readers shared this story by email. I asked if I could re-post. I think it is important for liberal Christians, agnostics, and atheists to know that the conservative church is not a monolithic block -- and it is equally important for conservative Christians to know that they can "let their hearts lead" while staying true to their faith.

Here is her story:

"...my sister is married to a Baptist minister. The church they are currently serving is allied with both the Southern Baptists and The Cooperative Baptists. Recently their son, my nephew came out as gay. He is currently living in the Toronto area with his partner. I have been impressed with the way my sister and her husband have made the difficult transition to accepting this aspect of their son. My sister is coming along faster than my brother-in-law. She lets her heart lead. They just celebrated a wonderful Christmas with their son and his partner and have affirmed their unconditional love for them. Their church is supportive - the leadership knows and they are not making a deal out of it. Just thought I would pass this along. They have come a long way."

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas 2011

Wishing you light in the darkness and shelter from cold. May you find comfort and joy wherever life takes you. Much love. Thanks for reading.

Indie Redneck?

"Prejudice against Southerners is generally socially acceptable among people who should know better." - Allan Massie

NPR is an unlikely place to find relevant cultural commentary on the American South, but their review of "Redneck TV" is spot-on. The South of reality television appears to be populated only by stupid white people wearing hats. They hunt. They fish. They talk funny.

The article left me wondering were to find depictions of the other American South -- not Nashville, not NASCAR -- but the strange, half-haunted landscape that I left behind three years ago. Now that director David Gordon Green has moved from George Washington to Pineapple Express, what else is out there? My top picks would include documentaries like Benjamin Smoke and Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus, the gentle comic surrealism of Dorne Pentes' The Closest Thing to Heaven, and indie narratives like Winter's Bone. Granted, it's easy to romanticize subcultures birthed from poverty and decades of isolation...far more challenging to render them convincingly.

Rest In Peace, Zondra Douglas

Zondra Douglas passed away this week from cancer. When I interviewed her six and a half years ago, she was 25 years old. She was young to have so much responsibility: mother of two daughters, single parent, college student, employee at the Chick-fil-A, and a church Elder. She is young to be gone now. Prayers and best wishes for all of her family and loved ones.

We belonged to the same church: Seigle Avenue Presbyterian Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, next to the now-demolished Piedmont Courts Housing Project, where Zondra grew up. She was gracious enough to let me interview her for Southern Cross.

Below are some brief excerpts from that interview:

What would you say to somebody who is from the suburbs and has never really interacted with somebody from a different socioeconomic group?

I think that everybody needs to get out of their environment. However you have to do it. You need to find out what’s going on where somebody else lives. Because then you know what’s going on in the world.

What would you describe as moral values?

Just being honest and real. Like being able to tell people stuff even if it’s not something they want to hear. Like my friends don’t like me, because I say, well, you shouldn’t have called me if you did not want to know the truth. Because I’m gonna tell you, whether you want to hear it or not.

I mean, we just got to be that way. I’ll listen to you whine for a little bit, and I’ll let you get some stuff off your chest that you need to get out, and then I’m gonna tell you, well, why are you still doing that?

I try to be kind when I’m saying stuff.

I’m also asking all my interviews subjects, do you consider yourself an evangelical Christian? Why or why not?

Hmmm. I guess yes, and no. I don’t carry my Bible around and preach to people, in that sort of a way, but I try to treat people the way that I want to be treated. Like I just show how you’re supposed to be.

I don’t go around saying, the Bible says this, the Bible says that, but I really try to be genuine. Like, not hurting people and not doing mean things to them, and just showing them that you need to be godlike, not just preaching to them all the time.

Because even if I’m preaching to them and I’m being mean and hurtful, that’s not going to help them to want to be a Christian. Now I do tell people to go to church all the time! Or I try to invite them to come to church with me. I am definitely an advocate of people going to church, and saying, “You need to get out of bed Sunday, and go to church!”

So I do that, but I don’t go around all the time saying the Bible says this and the Bible says that. I’m just kind of me.

One thing that I’ve noticed about you is that you have a lot of confidence. You’re very clear in what you think and you say things with a lot of conviction. Where do you think you learned that?
Probably my grandma. My mama too. They talk a lot. It’s just kind of, we say what needs to be said. So I got that from them.

one wish

They say if you name your wish, it won't come true.

I am not sure the same is true of prayers, but why take chances?

This one is important. I hope somebody is listening.

R.I.P. Wangari Maathai

Wangari Maathai, the first African woman to win the Nobel peace prize, passed away on Sunday night. She had been fighting ovarian cancer and was 71 years old.

An excerpt from her obituary:

"Her work with voluntary groups alerted her to the struggles of women in rural Kenya, and it quickly became her life's cause. Noticing how the rapid environmental degradation was affecting women's lives, she encouraged them to plant trees to ensure future supplies of firewood and to protect water sources and crops.

"Maathai's agenda quickly widened as she joined the struggle against the repressive and corrupt regime of Daniel arap Moi. Her efforts to stop powerful politicians grabbing land, especially forests, brought her into conflict with the authorities, and she was beaten and arrested numerous times. Her bravery and defiance made her a hero in Kenya."

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