Sometimes I wonder...

I wonder if people are reading this blogger/journal, or if they are still hoping I'll update the mutterings on our homepage. This really is the best option, and I hope people find it.

I wonder if people will get sick of me talking about my daughter Allison, either online or in person. Not that I'll stop, though.

I wonder if I should quit doing fantasy football this year. I love the guys in my league, but I'd rather not spend my Sunday afternoons hoping Domanick Davis gets into the end zone.

I wonder why Christians are so bothered by The Da Vinci Code. It is an excellent book that is obviously fiction. If the biblical controversies raised by the author cause more people to test their faith, that should be a huge positive. Of course there are already three Christian authors out with books that offer all the answers.

Meanwhile, The Da Vinci Code is an excellent and entertaining work that I read and finished last week. I couldn't put the thing down. Chapters were short, engaging, and suspenseful from start to finish. Characters were extremely well-developed, and the plot-twists were surprising.

I also wonder when we'll stop getting upset at non-Christians for their views. The author of said "Code" offers a plot that challenges traditional Christianity and Catholicism in a subtle, memorable way. Why not embrace the challenge and enter the discussion? A friend of mine got the audiobook (unabridged) from the library, and listened to it while driving around town on the job. It inspired him to study the origins of our modern Bible, how the text was protected and preserved by the Church, and become more solid in what he already believed. I confess I've had the same response to reading The Da Vinci Code. I got out some of my seminary notebooks, read a bunch of the Old Testament, and feel a much-renewed desire to study (and yes, defend) what I believe.

I wonder if Allison will like to read as much as Jennie and I do. I know you all think she's going to be a Buckeye-watching, fantasy-sport playing, movie-critiquing fiend just to win dad's approval. (ha ha). That couldn't be further from the truth. Last week, in one of our few quiet moments, Allie and I read the first few chapters of Proverbs and the book of Ruth. She was thoroughly engaged.

I can end this rant by saying... it seems like people who don't read, don't grow. That sounds simplistic and strong, but it's pretty true. I could take it one step further and say it really helps to read about things and people that view life differently than you do, as I described in The Da Vinci Code.

On a personal note, I think the timing of Allison's arrival, coupled with the stuff I've been reading lately, is pretty interesting. This is the time of year when I barely watch TV, because there are no sports on that I like. The Indians are getting better and have four all-stars, but I'm just not interested.

Usually this time of year is a downer for a sports fan like me, but maybe this time it's an eye-opener. In other words, life has been incredible these last two weeks, and I haven't missed it.

Uh, Allison is waking up now... I guess I'll talk at you later. Thanks for reading - post comments below if you want, especially on the Da Vinci thoughts or reading...