Advent(ure)

Dad loved this cognate, that Advent resonates a sense of adventure (even the treasure island kind). I enjoyed writing 'Advent Emma's turning two' some 5+ years ago and hope to update that soon.

For now, two sketchy reasons for posting here today. Three if I include the perspicacious desire to have Stillwater postings every month (still 25 days left in December, btw):

• Our beloved colleague Tony Ackerman, fellow erstwhile Bop (you've met him, Mom and Dick) and great guitarist, is retiring this year. By May I'll be involved in sundry tributes--I understand a pastiche of 'Fiddler on the Roof' is in the works highlighting the 'tradition' he represents at our school. Meanwhile, I want to work on a poem dedicated to him for a memory book we'll give him. Of all the fatherly advice I got in 1999, I remember his very clearly: play music to your infant Joey in the key of D. I did, and songs like "Go to Sleep You Weary Hobo" and "Dear Prudence" (Tony doesn't adhere much to rock n roll but would love to do a second doctoral thesis--a 'real one', he'd say--on the Beatles' White Album), "Goin' to California" and a few others have been mainstays in our milking-the-cows sessions. I cannot play Bach's aria to suite #3 in D major, but I'm on record for wanting that to feature at my funeral. Tony warms up every day to Bach. I don't know exactly how to craft this poem, and of course I could try to compose a song for him...but he has enjoyed when I've made poems for parting colleagues, and I don't know if I want to strain his ear with my hack musicianship.

• My group of ten sophomores comprising an elective course of Journalism this semester (and Creative Writing next) have this as their newsblog so far: http://blogs.isp.cz/news/  Any feedback from y'all would be invaluable--feel free to comment on any story or feature you'd like. We are troubleshooting some interesting territory, like a student using his/her YouTube account to create something for the newsblog and then, unwittingly, availing whatever other videos YouTube deems worth our follow-up (the infamous 'if you like this, maybe you'd like this...').

So not much of an Advent reflection here--Josh, can you supply the theology we forever need?--but December is here, days are busy, you're all in mind and prayers.

And Advent Emma has turned seven. As Dad would say, "Ho!"

love,
Dan