Is your wallet fat and your soul empty?

A lot of that chain mail can really be worth reading and passing on. Like this one, which went around in 1999 or thereabouts:

The paradox of our time in history is that
we spend more, but have less;
we buy more, but enjoy it less.
We have bigger houses and smaller families;
more conveniences, but less time;
more medicine, but less wellness.
We read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.
We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values.
These are the times of tall men, and short character;
steep profits, and shallow relationships.
These are the days of two incomes, but more divorce;
of fancier houses, but broken homes.
We've learned how to make a living, but not a life;
we've added years to life, not life to years;
we've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul.

This was also used as the beginning of an eye-opening piece titled "Wanting more in an age of plenty" on Christianity Today. Some things may have changed remarkably since the time it was written (2000) but it's still got a lot of food for thought. An excerpt:

Whatever our differences, most of us wish for a culture that:

• Welcomes children into families with mothers and fathers who love them, and into an environment that nurtures families.
• Rewards initiative and restrains exploitative greed, thus building a strong economy that shrinks the underclass.
• Balances individual liberties with communal well-being.
• Encourages close relationships within extended families and with supportive neighbors and caring friends, people who celebrate when you're born, care about you as you live, and miss you when you're gone.
• Values our diversity while finding unity in shared ideals.
• Develops children's capacities for empathy, self-discipline, and honesty.
• Provides media that offer social scripts of kindness, civility, attachment, and fidelity.
• Regards relationships as covenants and sexuality not as mere recreation but as life-uniting and love-renewing.
• Takes care of the soul by developing a deeper spiritual awareness of a reality greater than self and of life's resulting meaning, purpose, and hope.

Thanks partly to the emerging renewal movement, several indicators of social pathology have recently shown encouraging turns. Although still at historically high levels, teen sex, pregnancy, and violence, for example, have all subsided somewhat from their peaks around 1993.Further progress toward the new American dream requires more than expanding our social ambulance services at the base of the social cliffs. It also requires that we identify the forces that are pushing people over the cliffs. And it requires our building new guard rails at the top—by making our business and economics more family-friendly, by reforming our media, by renewing character education in our schools, and by better balancing me-thinking with we-thinking.

Full article at Christianity Today

Operation Christmas Stocking

Time is running out to get the stockings of troops stationed in Iraq stuffed through Operation Christmas Stocking. The deadline to get needed items to the program's warehouse is Nov. 1.

This is the second year that Operation Give and Stars for Stripes have teamed up to spread holiday cheer to those stationed far from home. Operation Give and Stars for Stripes are both members of the Defense Department's America Supports You program, which highlights grassroots and corporate support of U.S. servicemembers.

The drive, which kicked off in July, is receiving assistance from FedEx to get supplies shipped free of charge to the Salt Lake City warehouse and then on to locations overseas.

In 2005, more than six tons of stockings were sent to servicemembers in Afghanistan. This year, organizers have set a lofty goal of getting 20 tons, more than 10,000 stockings, to those stationed in Iraq.

Full story at HappyNews.com

Playing dress-up

Okay, now I can say that I cannot ignore all the commentaries, news and feature articles that I've been stumbling on almost daily in the past 10 days or so. They revolve around the way that girls and women have been dressing up for Halloween and how this occasion would be more appropriately called "Dress-Like-A-Prostitute-Day" because of the costumes.

In the US at least, girls vamp it up when it's time to go to Halloween parties. But this pattern in costumes is about much more than just fashion concerns -- it reflects the direction that society has been taking as regards the practice of decency, genuine respect for oneself and others, the concept of beauty, and even the upbringing of children. In fact, the trend has prompted initiatives from concerned blogging parents like "Moms for Modesty" (which was picked up and linked to by hundreds of blogs, including BlogHer), and a professor at Panamerican University in Mexico to discuss the subject of helping adolescents know themselves and find their authentic style. Thank God there are people who offer sound advice and practical solutions -- this and this are particularly helpful to parents, aunts and uncles, or older siblings. This includes a very specific situation with a little daughter and how to go about explaining some things at her level.

And here's what some pro-active fellas have been doing about the lack of modest clothing in stores! But if it's clear definitions you want as to what modesty is in the first place and how it can be lived, check this out. On the other hand, if you've been living by the "If you've got it, flaunt it" philosophy and equate cleavage-baring and relentless pursuit of career with authentic femininity, this would be an intriguing read for you.

Pumpkin pie

My best friend in our neighborhood while growing up was Mark Sherman, who lived two houses up the street. I liked going over to his house (which was often) to play, play and play some more. I found it exciting that the sliding door on one side of their living room opened up to an office (his parents ran Eastern Book Service), and that things with his family were generally different from mine. Even his toys were impressive to me -- I remember being quite fascinated by his "Speak 'n' Spell" and a spaceship-looking electronic plaything that flashed colors and tones (you were supposed to repeat the melody that the toy played -- sort of like a memory game sans cards). Mark's dad, Mr. Sherman, was always warm and friendly; Mrs. Sherman was the same, and I remember being delighted (and perplexed) upon watching her take out homebaked bread from the oven once in a while. I had never seen loaves or pan de sal not come from a plastic or paper bag before being set on the table!

"Would you like some pumpkin pie?" Mrs. Sherman smilingly offered me one afternoon as Mark and I ran into the house, all sweaty from playing leap frog in the garden. I had never heard of pumpkin pie before that but I think I did try a slice. I don't remember at all how it tasted but since then I've held a fascination for pumpkins and the whole "pumpkin culture" surrounding halloween.

Too bad I didn't exert more effort to stay in touch with Mark before he left for the States to pursue college (or to work, I'm not so sure). Then his parents sold the house a few years later and moved to a more quiet neighborhood. I haven't heard from them but the sight of pumpkins (which is likely to happen at this time of the year every year) sure reminds me of Mrs. Sherman and the baked treats she'd churn out from the oven.

Of course with halloween in the air, pumpkins are everywhere again. I wish I had a copy of "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown," but for now I'll have to make do with borrowing a friend's and hope he lends me the whole Charlie Brown Halloween-Thanksgiving-Christmas DVD collection.


Well, well...as I surfed to look for Peanuts photos to put here, I discover that it's the 40th anniversary of "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown"! Happy anniversary!

Snap up a copy!

The magazine is now available at more bookstores! Besides Totus bookstore in Greenhills, Love Life is being sold also at Books for Less and Shepherd's Staff.

Books for Less branches are at SM Mall of Asia, Alabang Town Center, Pearl Drive in Ortigas Ctr., Roces Ave. in Quezon City, Robinsons Metro East and Robinsons San Fernando in Pampanga, among others (the website lists the other branches' locations).

Shepherd's Staff is located in Greenbelt 1, Glorietta 4, SM Mall of Asia, Festival Mall, Market Market, and SM San Lazaro.

If you missed the press release I posted here several weeks ago, here's another to give you a glimpse of what's in the mag's latest issue:

Love Life magazine puts a different spin on family life, marriage and children in its latest issue packed with news, features and facts on various life issues. A publication of Pro-Life Philippines, Love Life offers interesting reads in its sections on family life & marriage, life before birth, and features. Other sections are “What in the world is going on?” which gives a lowdown on global news, and “Photofinish!” which showcases the pro-life world in pictures. Feature articles delve on infidelity, the pre-born baby’s 9-month journey, and the issue of sex education.

Love Life is available at Totus Bookstore (2nd flr. Red Ribbon Bldg., Connecticut St., Greenhills), Books for Less Bargain Bookstore and Shepherd’s Staff. Call Pro-Life at (02) 422-8877 for subscriptions, advertising and other inquiries.