mezzo soprano, violinist, dancer, dabbler in social entrepreneurship
I am an Indonesian living in Seattle, WA, passionate about Jesus, life, the arts, and solving social issues.
I have thoughts and ideas that need to be expressed well. Sometimes these thoughts can even be profound. I completely enjoy writing, so I find this the best outlet for all the thoughts floating around. So this is it. Observations, writings, and personal experiences of this Indonesian in Seattle.
tirzamagdiel
This was recorded by the Portsmouth Sinfonia in an experiment where all the members of the orchestra would swap instruments with each other and attempt to play them to the best of their ability.
This is the result. And it makes me laugh every single time.
It tries to be so dramatic but it just falls flat. Love it.
20th century music? Sort of…
(Source: thelastdandelion, via claybabay)
Disney more often than not paints a somewhat skewed picture of what relationships are supposed to look like. Or even what life supposed to be like.
Once upon a time, I wrote a little rant-post on Disney princess stories. You can read it here.
So, in light of that, I give you this HILARIOUS take on Disney princess’ lives after ever after for your Monday afternoon delight.
The Rune of St. Patrick
The Faedh Fiada; or, “The Cry of the Deer.”
At Tara today in this fateful hour
I place all Heaven with its power,
And the sun with its brightness,
And the snow with its whiteness,
And fire with all the strength it hath,
And lightning with its rapid wrath,
And the winds with their swiftness along their path,
And the sea with its deepness,
And the rocks with their steepness,
And the earth with its starkness
All these I place,
By God’s almighty help and grace,
Between myself and the powers of darkness.
—
I first read this rune in one of Madeleine L’Engle’s books, A Swiftly Tilting Planet. I love it! So this is my gift to you this year’s St. Patrick’s day.
Snapshot Saturday.
What are you willing to die for? What are you willing to live for?
Just a thought: Christ thought we were worth dying for.
Snapshot Saturday. My favorite Dr. Seuss book. Celebrating Dr. Seuss’ birthday today. Why don’t you try and rhyme a little?
Wikipedia article on Dr. Seuss:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dr._Seuss
Too busy to even focus?
Sometimes we go through our days wading through to do lists and appointments and emails and deadlines. Other days, it feels like we’re drowning in the chaos.
Oh, to have a bit of air.
Oh, to have the strength to push ourselves up to the surface.
Oh, to be able to focus…
(via fastcompany)
Rearranging my living room
My roommate just recently rearranged our living room. It now has a large open space in the middle of the room, to better play the Wii. It took me a little while to get used to the new arrangement, mostly because the couch is now so far away from the TV. On a completely different note (there’s a point here, I promise!), at one point in time I wanted to be an interior decorator; I like to decorate space. Obviously, that career option didn’t pan out. However, I still enjoy decorating and arranging the spaces I have control over. One of the questions I ask myself when decorating a space is: what is the focal point?
Focal point. According to the dictionary, it is “the point at which all elements or aspects converge; center of activity or attention” or “the central or principal point of focus.” When it comes to furnishing and decorating a room, the focal point is simply the heart of the room, what everything is arranged around. You want to highlight the best part of the room, whether it’s an accent wall, a collage of family pictures, a really cool fireplace, or an antique vase of some sort. I am now fully aware that my living room is arranged around the TV (and the Wii). That is sad.
What do you consider the best part of you? We can have a lot of different answers to that question: eyes, lips, toned abs (yeah, right!), voice, musical talent, writing abilities, gaming skills… Yes. Those are all acceptable answers. However, they are imperfect things. Not… whole. They are fleeting as well. Writers get writer’s block. Abs get flabby. It’s very depressing that the best part of you can easily vanish.
Jesus is the best part of me.
I had this realization during worship at Transit Assembly last night. We were singing “Jesus at the Center.” Familiar song, but very powerful.
Jesus at the center of it all
Jesus at the center of it all
From beginning to the end
It will always be
It’s always been you, Jesus
Nothing else matter
Nothing in this world will do
Jesus you’re the center
Everything revolves around you, Jesus
You
From my heart to the heavens
Jesus be the center
It’s all about you
Yes, it’s all about you.
Jesus is the best part of me.
It’s not just about him creating me, loving me, saving me. It’s that his plan for my life is way better than what I can plan for myself. His plan is about something bigger than just me. Whoa.
During the journey home from Capitol Hill to Kirkland, I had some time to ponder on this.
I have failed.
Again.
And again.
And again.
I have failed so many times my life probably looks like a Looney Tunes cartoon series. If I’m to be completely honest, I can’t boast in anything because I am flawed. For a perfectionist, that is an awful realization.
I am flawed.
The only thing I can be proud of is Jesus.
The problem is, sometimes (okay, most of the times), I make myself the focal point. You know, that vase that has been broken and re-glued several times. I would put that vase at the center and rearrange the entire living room around it. All the while, a lovely brick fireplace that would make an amazing focal point came with the apartment. Everything in the room that is my life I structured around me - what I want, how I feel, what I have to have. It’s ridiculous! I have spent so much time and energy (not to mention heartbreak) trying to arrange the living room around the not-so-good part of me, while I should be structuring my life around the best part of me - Jesus.
I’m thus reminded of the need to rearrange my living room.
What’s the focal point of your living room?
Beyond the bare minimum
“Duty can pack an adequate sack lunch, but love may decide to enclose a little love note inside… Obligation sends the children to bed on time, but love tucks the covers in around their necks and passes out kisses and hugs (even to teenagers!)… Duty gets offended quickly if it isn’t appreciated, but love learns to laugh a lot and to work for the sheer joy of doing it. Obligation can pour a glass of milk, but quite often, love adds a little chocolate.”
- Linda Andersen, Love Adds a Little Chocolate
Quoted in Joanna Weaver’s book, Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World
The best way to show your love for someone is to act on it. Love that is kept inside and never expressed becomes merely a thought. A theory left to gather dust on one’s shelf. So we try our best to love others, even our enemies, in tangible ways.
However, life gets busy. Between the deadlines of work, the charity projects, the coffee dates, the church events, and attempts for an actual devotional life, we barely have enough time to breathe. The practical side of our love becomes yet another overdue task. Reminder notification on our computers keep on popping up every ten minutes, reminding us how we’ve fallen behind. How we’ve failed.
Aaarrgh!
So we give in. We get it done.
Just the bare minimum.
Just so we can mark it as ‘completed,’ ridding ourselves of the annoying reminder notification. We can go about our busy life then, once again guilt-free.
That’s not love.
The bare minimum is not love. Love goes above and beyond. Love looks at the person instead of the task reminder notification we’ve attached to the person. Love values people’s needs over our obsession to be ‘on top of things.’ It might mean a three-hour coffee appointment. It might mean a little less time to sleep.
Love adds a little chocolate.
“Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.”
- 1 John 3.18, NIV
[Faith for a Rainy Day] Give until it hurts
I’ve talked to some of my friends about this Faith for a Rainy Day blog series I started a couple of weeks ago. Most of the friends I talked to tell me that they, too, have stories to share. Stories about God’s faithfulness, stories about faith, stories about being obedient to God’s call.
This little tidbit is a Faith for a Rainy Day post from my friend, leader, youth pastor, mentor, … (the list goes on). Steve and his wife, Kim, have been a great support for me from the time I was 16-ish up til now. They are the people who cheered for me, prayed for me, and believed in me. They even go to coffee with me just to chat about life. Steve and Kim currently live in Sutherlin, Oregon with their three kids: Kiev, Krista, and Genesis.
***
Faith. If God tells you to give ’til it hurts, will you?
Person A had $55 dollars left. The offering plate comes along, and God asks for the fifty. What does he do?
Person B wanted $250,000 to expand his business. He decides to “tithe” $25,000 of his current income (half of what he’d earned). Guess what happened?
Person C felt led to give $100 to a traveling missionary, but gave $50. The result?
Person D gave his $1,700 house payment to an evangelist. Hmmmm….
Person E pledged $7,000 (that he didn’t have) to buy equipment for 3rd-world pastors.
And….
Person A gave the $50. After church a little old lady walks up and shakes his hand…with $1000 cash.
Person B’s business exploded and he made $250,000 the next year.
The next week Person C got a check in the mail from a random friend for $5,000.
Within one week, Person D found $400 cash in an envelope taped to his door, and a $3,500 deposit in his bank account.
Person E received a letter from the IRS stating that they’d made a mistake and were returning to him a check for $7,000.
Those are all true stories; they are all people I know, and one of them is me.
Faith. If God tells you to give ’til it hurts, will you?
Pierre Andreas Tendean (Jakarta, February 21, 1939 – Jakarta, October 1, 1965) was a victim of the 30th September Movement (G30S) and is a damn handsome Indonesian national hero. I think he was the most handsome. He was completing grade school and attended National Military Academy (Indonesian: Akademi Militer Nasional).
Tendean was the only son of A.L. Tendean from Minahasa and Indo (Eurasian) mother Cornel M.E. of Dutch and French descent. Sadly, In the early morning hours of October 1, 1965, troops loyal to the G30S came to Nasution’s house with the intent to kidnap him. Shots were fired that awakened Tendean who was staying at the general’s housing complex. He was apprehended by the troops and was mistaken for Nasution, as the dark house, as well as Nasution’s escape during this particular night, prevented them from finding the true Nasution. Tendean was brought to Lubang Buaya along with six high-ranking officers of the army. He was shot to death, and his body thrown into an old well with the other deceased captives.
It’s Saturday. So it’s time for a Snapshot Saturday from me.
Why this snapshot? Well. I’m an Indonesian. And proud to be one.
