Am I really this old?

Do you ever have those moments where you truly realize that you’re getting older?  Those times where you’re left to just say, “damn…time is flying by!“.  Tonight as I watched the MLB Home Run Derby and saw that Prince Fielder won this year’s competition, I had such a moment.

In my boys’ room there sits a baseball on their book shelf.  It’s not just an ordinary ball from a sporting goods store.  No, this is a home run ball I caught with my bare hands while sitting in left field at the old Kingdome in Seattle.  The home run was hit by none other, than Cecil Fielder.  Recognize the last name?  Yeah…that’s because he’s the old man of Prince Fielder.  The same Prince who dazzled millions tonight on ESPN with his baseball hitting prowess!

I sat on the edge of the couch…looked at my wife…and said, “I have his dad’s ball upstairs, which means I’m getting old”. 

Love and Peace.

Fog of War

Seems like everyday someone famous is dying.  It’s really too bad that a great man like Robert McNamara who died this week at age 93 isn’t being talked about because of America’s need to worship the King of Pop.  McNamara, who defined the role of Secretary of Defense in the US and played a huge role in involvement in the Vietnam War. 

Like so many people do when they reach their later years, McNamara deeply struggled with how he lived his life. His particular struggle was over his beliefs and participation in war.  It was about year ago that my close friend, Ian shared with me a documentary called, “Fog of War”.  Both of us had spent a lot of time discussing the tension of what exactly is patriotism and where does it fit in the life of a Christ-follower.  It’s not that we didn’t want to love our country…but how do we love our country and reject some of the many things that seem to define patriotism?

I went home that afternoon and rented “Fog of War”.  It’s a chilling, honest, and heart-wrenching documentary on the life and career of Robert McNamara.  My eyes were opened to how our military system works, the kind of power the Sec. of  Defense has, and just how easy it is to make a mess of this world.

But why the film remains one of the most important I’ve ever seen, is because of how McNamara looks into the lens of the camera and pours out every emotion and struggle that he was left to live with.  Questions…regrets…shame…

Have you seen it?  What were some of your thoughts from it?  Did it change any of your beliefs about war?

Love and Peace.