I Believe . . .
2011 August 12
I believe in:
- swinging at the first pitch (if you like it);
- red onions in guacamole;
- rare steaks and raw oysters;
- unreasonable forgiveness;
- heavy pepper on nearly everything;
- well-crafted novels;
- wrestling on the floor with your kids;
- clever wit and sharp humor (more than Reader’s Digest jokes);
- old hymns (not to the exclusion of new ones);
- friendships that cross decades;
- dancing with granddaughters;
- a future that won’t disappoint.
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I believe in:
- baths (not showers)
- savoring a glass of white wine
- the images and hopes of Israel’s prophets
- more scripture and less sermon
- winter Olympics
- heart-pumping walks with a girlfriend
- chocolate
There. I said it. I believe in chocolate.
I don’t know why this caught my attention the way it did, but just the first line, swinging at the first pitch. Balls are flying all around me and I keep striking out for no reason except my fear to swing. I wait myself back into the dugout. But God has kept me in the lineup. Like he knows something about my swing I don’t know yet. So with this one “I believe,” I suddenly image the dare to come out swinging. Thanx!
I love this. I believe in guacamole, period, and give you a hearty “Amen” on the well-crafted novels, old hymns, sharp wit and friendships that cross decades. How lucky I am to count you among my several generations of friends.
Sounds like a Don Williams song !
I batted lead off and I loved swinging at the first pitch (see Ricky Henderson).
swinging at the first pitch and if your Vlad Guerrero doesn’t matter where.
guacamole is good fat especially with red onions.
i still eat my burgers with a pepper on each bite.
donuts and chocolate milk with granddaughters.
going from LAX to the beach, putting feet in ocean and hearing the waves announce. “Welcome Home”
I take issue only with your belief in red onions in guac. The precious avocado, accompanied by little else, is enough. Call me a purist, but that’s what I believe.
The rest of the list, spot-on. =)
Love your list! Agree with clever wit, friendships and love your adjective on forgiveness. Here’s mine:
I believe in… contradictions!:
- hot coffee with a tall iced tea at the table
- wearing a sweater in an air-conditioned room or car
- breakfast for dinner
- working at night
- and a love that comes from a well-lived life of mistakes, bumps and dings, like an old car, that you scrape together again and again because the love is worth it.
Gotta take issue with swinging at the first pitch, from a guy whose dad played in the minors, and who was a torn rotator cuff away from playing in college.
No reason to swing at the first pitch, unless its in your zone. I always used to think “one pitch, one spot”. Looking for fastball, middle to inside, lower than the belt. If someone is gonna throw an offspeed first pitch for a strike, I’ll give it to them every time. Baseball is nothing if not discipline. That’s why people who are raw athletes, and excel at basketball and football, more often than not don’t excel, or in fact are horrible, at baseball.
Not a lot of guys that are first pitch swingers with good batting averages.
Love these other insights.
Justin, we could be saying the same thing. What I meant by “if you like it” is “if it’s in your zone.” I’m reacting against little league coaches who want their weaker hitters to sit up there with the bat on their shoulder in hopes that they’ll draw a walk.
The best pitch you get may be the first one. If you like it, whack it!
Credo… that life is too short, period.
…that a kid’s uninhibited laughter is the closest to heaven on earth.
…that me + more than one kid at any one time violates a cosmic law.
…that crumbling vessels are grateful to contain even a drop of living water.
…that ice cream can be for breakfast, sometimes.
…that the internet is pretty awesome.
…that God probably invented it.
…that giving God credit for everything even a little bit awesome, including roller skates and bubblegum, is never bad.
…that often the smartest thing I’ve ever said (or written) is nothing at all.
…that uncomfortable or welcome, change is inevitable. Might as well get ready.
…that we’ll never quite be ready, regardless.
….that we should still try.
….and be grateful, even when we fail.
…and that sometimes, floating in the pool, staring at the back of my eyelids, blocking out most sound and sight and experiencing the world only in muffled waves of feeling and occasional blips of noise is not a bad way to spend an afternoon.
…even if I forgot my sunscreen. Sometimes, occasionally, the burn is worth it.
I believe you look like John Piper!
http://blog.pastors.com/piperinterview/
Kent, Mike bears little resemblance to Piper, inwardly or outwardly.
I like John Piper. Sorry, can’t help it.
Grandchildren are God’s reward for the angst of teenage daughters. Loved your list. Especially a well crafted novel. I hate to finish one because it has become my life and family and friends. What are your favorites. Old and new. My old is “To Kill a Mockingbird” and new is The Help. Ok not so new, how about “Sarah’s Key”
My belief levels are so strong I still believe summer rain is the best smell of all.
Mike -
I guess we were saying the same thing. I interpreted it initially as “swing at the first pitch, regardless” is better than letting one go by.
I grew up playing competitive/travel ball… there weren’t any guys on the team that the coach would tell not to swing in hopes of drawing a walk. Our experiences are our interpretive lenses in more than theology, I suppose.
And as an addendum, I love old hymns too. As a former/fired worship minister, my mantra was always good music + solid theology = keep it in the rotation. There are plenty of old and new songs that are bad art, from a lyrical or musical standpoint. I just assume we not sing them, since our theology is so often shaped by our song selection; even moreso than by the preaching.
It believe that Mike Cope believes in his fourth belief. Which is hard to believe, for so few do.
Mike,
I believe……. your right.
When it comes to baths(not showers) I believe Lewis Grizzard had it right when he said he wasnt going to wash his face with water he had been sitting in.
I love it. Great list, Mike. This is inspiring me to think of my own list, of course. Some of which I’m not sure I should publish