confession

I’ve been told confession is good for the soul, so here goes: I have election fever. I’m just a LITTLE bit hooked on what’s going on in the US presidential election. I just find it all so interesting... it’s just the drama of it and every day has a new twist that is torn to shreds with the pontificating analysis and over-analysis by the political blogosphere and media. For example, I stayed up to watch 3 out of last 4 debates (which is something I probably shouldn’t admit to). I’d like to say it was all worth it, but I guess I just wanted to watch the debates in real time, without the media spin the day after. Sad, I know. It’s kind of like being addicted to the west wing except this is the real deal. But sometimes, I think it might as well be a TV series to me for all the impact it actually has on my life... and the sooner it’s over, the better it will be for my dissertation (and general sanity).
Although, I was in the library for 8 hours today. That might be a record for the semester so far and there must be many more days like it as pay back for time spent reading political blogs... It feels like history in the making though... (yada yada - excuses, excuses....)

Too bad that NI politics does nothing to inspire me at the minute... probably should pay a bit more attention to what’s going on here these days besides the policing and justice who-ha/standoff. Guess we’ve had our fair share of drama and history-in-the-making over the years.
Ok, confession over. In the meantime, any suggestions for how to treat election fever are welcome!

3 highlights

3 highlights from the last few days...
1. Watching a film called 'Black' - amazing. You definitely should try to see if you get the chance.
2. Foy Vance live: all I can say is wow. Such a good night - loads of banter mixed in with the soulful depth in his lyrics/voice. Old and new stuff. Brilliant. The best way to start a week i'd say - definitely good for my soul.
3. Blue skies and sunshine ALL DAY today... wahey!

poverty and TB

These photos make me think about a patient from my few weeks in south africa... he was a quiet, subdued kind of guy... although maybe it was just he was fed up with hospital. He had TB which had affected his spine, so couldn’t move/feel his trunk or legs at all and found it impossible to change positions or sit up on his own. He was in a side room, isolated from everyone else in the ward for obvious reasons, staring at the ceiling all day. He always asked to be covered with about 4 blue hospital blankets because of the cold. I ventured in daily, complete with my mask, gloves and apron to do some passive stretching and repositioning – wearing the mask made me feel like I couldn’t communicate properly with him, couldn’t have a proper chat face to face, couldn’t smile at him...

The one thing I remember him saying was he couldn’t wait to leave the hospital and get back to the smaller community TB facility (where he had been before) - the main reason was he had people he could talk to there... there he didn’t have to be in an isolation room...

To me, the prevalence of TB is one clear example of the impact of poverty - when it is essentially treatable/curable. I know multi drug resistant TB is a different story, but the reasons behind its emergence also can be linked to poverty and the lack of adequate / consistent health care. And this is only one disease. I just wonder what the impact of the current global economic crisis will now have on things like the MDGs and the fight against poverty...

sense of wonder

Driving across town this evening Radio 4's series of The Color Purple just happened to be on and this quote just jumped out at me:

"Well, us talk and talk bout God, but I’m still adrift. Trying to chase the old white man out of my head. I been so busy thinking bout him I never truly notice nothing God make. Not a blade of corn (how it do that?) Not the color purple (where it come from?). Not the little wildflowers. Nothing."

It's so easy to get caught up with my theoretical views of who God is and what it all means that sometimes I miss the obvious things around me declaring his glory. It made me think of the Brennan Manning quote in The Ragamuffin Gospel....
"By and large, our world has lost its sense of wonder. We have grown up. We no longer catch our breath at the sight of a rainbow or the scent of a rose, as we once did. We have grown bigger and everything else smaller, less impressive. We get blasé and worldly wise and sophisticated. We no longer run our fingers through water, no longer shout at the stars or make faces at the moon.... We get so preoccupied with ourselves, the words we speak, the plans and projects we conceive that we become immune to the glory of creation."

(just one of the many glorious south african sunsets - plettenberg bay)

love has come

This is a song by Sandra McCracken. I remember hearing her during my first year in belfast - she was singing at a wee halls gig with her husband, Derek Webb. But i haven't really listened to any of her music since. Came across this song today and i just like some of the words... especially verse 3...

how long you have travelled in darkness weeping
no rest in language, no words to speak
but there in the wreakage beneath bricks and bindings
love has come, love has come for you

against the night sky of your waiting
your face is like starlight when he walks in
everything worth keeping comes through dying
love has come, love has come for you

so lift up your heart now, to this unfolding
all that has been broken will be restored
here runs deep waters for all who are thirsty
love has come, love has come for you...

Here's a link to her myspace if you want to hear it - it's called ten thousand angels.