Book Review: "Moonwalking with Einstein"

"If only I could remember his name."  "It's on the tip of my tongue."  "I know that I need to pick something up from the store but I can't remember what."

We've all had these moments.  The times when our memories have failed us.  Or is it that we have failed to properly understand and train our memories?  That's the question that Joshua Foer sets out to answer in his 2011 book, "Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything."  After observing and interviewing "mental athletes" - yes, you read that correctly - Foer embarks on a year long journey of discovering the secrets of memory and eventually competes for the U.S. Memory Championship.

I was interested in this book after reading about in TIME Magazine last month.  I feel that I am blessed with a good memory, and I wondered if this book could help me to further improve it.  I can't say that my memory is better after reading this book or that I have memorized the order of a deck of cards recently (a memory competition staple).  But I can say that I have a better understanding of how to remember things that I really want to recall.  Its this new understanding that will help me to remember names more effectively, create more memorable sermon points and remember novel and completely useless facts and stats.  Foer uncovers some valuable insights and tools such as utilizing a "memory palace." One of my memory palaces helped me to memorize the following shopping/to do list (found in the book) in a matter of minutes: pickled garlic, cottage cheese, salmon, 6 bottles of white wine, 3 pair of socks, 3 hula hoops, snorkel, dry ice machine, email Sophia, skin toned cat suit, Paul Newman film "Somebody Up There Likes Me," elk sausages, megaphone and director's chair, harness and ropes, barometer.  Now I just have to worry about forgetting that useless list.

The tools and insights were valuable, but it was the journey that Foer embarked on that made this book a fun read.  Foer found an English mental athlete who took him under his wing and trained him.  Along the way, Foer met with some very interesting people such as the original Rain Main, Kim Peek.  He also tracked down a few individuals with the rarest forms of amnesia to attempt to capture the reasons why we forget.  Furthermore, he had himself tested for his memory capabilities and shared the mysteries of "chicken sexing" (not as bad as it sounds).  These and other fine details helped to make a captivating story.

The great story and the valuable memory tools both served as a reminder that our brain is a magnificent creation.  Even in this information age, most of us have only scratched the surface of what it can do. The fact that there is a man in England who has memorized and can recite the first 22,514 digits of pi is proof of that.  The origin of our awesome brain, however, is where I disagree with the author.  On more than one occasion he refers to the evolutionary process in how our brain has developed.  But almost in the same breath, Foer concedes that science has yet to uncover all the secrets of how our memories function.  This, of course, is problematic since it is impossible to prove that evolution is responsible for the current state and function of the brain if we cannot even explain everything about the brain itself.  Obviously I am approaching this text from a faith perspective, but I still think the scientific and literary community would be well served if they began to embrace the beauty and mystery of God's creative genius.

Despite this hiccup, Joshua Foer's quest to answer the question, "is it possible that we have the capacity to remember everything" is wonderfully interesting and its a book that I would recommend.  After reading this book, you will not only discover how Foer faired at the 2005 U.S. Memory Championship, but you will also be challenged and encouraged to test the seemingly unlimited power of your own amazing mind and memory.

Ash Wednesday - Worth a Shot?

As I'm camped out at my usual studying spot at McDonalds this morning, I notice a group of seniors who have gathered at tables next to me.  It's not a group that I have seen here before, but they all have one thing in common - a dusting of ash on their foreheads.

My earliest memory of Ash Wednesday was when a friend of mine in middle school came to class with ash on his forehead.  My observation?  "Hey, you have some stuff on your forehead."  Cue the theological explanation and the subsequently awkward "ohhhhh, right."

Since then, I have slowly grown to appreciate Lent.  That is, from a distance.  Since I have many Catholic friends, I appreciate the dedication and anticipation for Easter.  But when it comes to observing, listening to conversations of what others are giving up and saying, "thats cool" is as close as I've come.  But just last year I learned of a couple in our church that had begun practicing Lent and that it was a very meaningful spiritual practice.  I had often wondered if I should give Lent a shot in my own walk with Christ.  Now I have a good excuse.  My parishioners have inspired me.

So this year it begins.  The original purpose of lent - a practice that dates back to the 8th century - is to prepare your heart to focus on the sacrifice of Christ by sacrificing something yourself.  When checking out www.whattogiveupforlent.com the phrase "a controlling factor of your life" stuck out. What am I giving up?  Eating after 8pm.  I usually eat one to two snacks at night despite warnings from my wife such as, "Don't do it" and "You don't need it."  Seems like this would be a good place to start.

As with any spiritual practice, the original purpose and design can be lost.  Consequently, the practice becomes an empty ritual.  This was the case for the Pharisees in New Testament.  Even something as simple as keeping the Sabbath had become rigid and legalistic.  As Jesus so adamantly pointed out time and again to the Pharisees, they were missing the point.

But as the prophet Isaiah so aptly described in verses 5-7 of chapter 58, its not about "going through the motions."  Every spiritual practice on the outside should correspond with our thoughts, feelings and actions.  Giving something up must start and end with us offering something up from our hearts.  In other words, as I give lent a shot, I need to worry more about what will change in my heart rather than what will change in my stomach.  And so it begins.

Getting the Glory for Giving the Glory

If one year ago I told you that the two most talked about and tweeted sports figures for the 2011-12 seasons were Jeremy Lin of the NY Knicks and Tim Tebow of the Denver Broncos, you would say I'd eaten too many pepto flavored Valentines hearts.  Let's face it - nobody saw this coming.  Tim Tebow, the guy that every sports analyst wrote off as a NFL quarterback, set the football world on its head with win after last second win.  By season's end, everyone was "Tebowing" and talking Tebow.  He set a twitter record and was one of the few athletes to ever stake the claim as the most talked about person in a given week.  And every time he was in front of a camera or mic, he gave glory first to his Savior and then to his teammates.  


Then there is Jeremy Lin (see my youtube video bar). He is an unsigned free agent from Harvard that has spent most of the NBA in the development league or the end of the bench. He is also the guy who everybody looked past and now everybody is wishing they hadn't.  The last GM that cut Lin said this week, "I have egg on my face."  And the former coach of the San Francisco University Basketball Team said, "maybe if I would have offered Jeremy a scholarship, I'd still have a job."  From out of nowhere, Jeremy Lin has taken the NBA by storm.  He scored more points in his first five games than any other player in history - including Michael Jordan.  After his latest triumph - a last second three to beat Toronto - he stepped up to the mic and thanked his teammates for bailing him out (after turning it over 8 times).  Then, he tweeted this: "Gutsy win...5 in a row! This team is so unselfish and has so much heart. Love playing with them! God is good!"  So much for the egotistical superstar.  


What's so surprising in all of this is not the unlikely rise to stardom for these two guys. Its that people are surprised that so many people are attracted to their selfless, gracious and humble attitudes.  People love to love on these guys because they love God and their team more than themselves.  Unfortunately, the biggest stars in sports often have it the other way around.  Who wants to cheer for that?  Best of all, their thanks to God is genuine.  They give him glory when they speak AND the way they play and live.  


Frankly, I'm not surprised that two underdogs with humble personalities and extraordinary faiths are dominating the attention of so many.  I think it's exactly what people are longing for in a hero.  And God found two faithful, obedient and talented men who were ready to get the glory for giving the glory.  I guess all I'm wondering is, "who's next?"

The Plane is Going Down! Oh wait...

Practically everyone has considered the question, "What would you do if you knew you were going to die?"  Unfortunately, for passengers of a British Airways Flight from Miami to London, that question became very real.  A flight assistant accidentally pressed the button that announced that the plane would be making an emergency landing at sea.  Now that will make you put down your package of peanuts.  As the passengers began to panic, a stewardess announced that the message was a mistake.

My first thought after reading this article was, "where is this button located?"  If it's next to the pilot's "fasten seatbelt" button, it should probably be moved.  Something that serious should have one of those button flip cases like you see in films about nuclear missiles.  Because a whoops like that is going to stick with people for quite a while.

My next thought was, "what would go through my mind for the first few moments following an announcement like that?"  It's hard to imagine and even more difficult to predict, but if I were to guess, I would think, "I don't want to die." I mean, who wouldn't?  A close second would be my wife and kids.  Whether they were with me or not, I would gravitate to thinking about them.  I would hate the thought of my kids growing up without a father and also not being able to live out my days with my wife.

After these two sure things, I would venture to say that some serious prayer would be in order.  I'd definitely be praying for a Captain Sully type landing.  And with it, I would surely pray the "if I get out of this thing alive" prayer.  We all have the list of things we want to accomplish and experience, and for whatever reason, we have put them off or have just been too lazy to see these things through.  I know that I would come up with a small yet significant list for things that I would change or follow through with.  I would love to hear from this group of passengers and whether or not it changed the way they lived.

The sad thing is, it shouldn't really take experiences like this to motivate us to maximize our opportunities.  We all know that "life is short" and that tomorrow is not guaranteed for anyone.  But do we live like it?  I love what the Apostle Paul says in the book of Ephesians, chapter 5 - "Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days."  If we follow this word from Paul and make the most of every minute, hour and day, then we don't need any accidental recordings to get us thinking.  Sure it takes discipline, courage and strength from God to make the most of our days here on earth, but God never promised that it would be easy.  So don't put it off.  Spend some quality time with your family, go the extra mile for someone today and see what happens next!

Jesus, Can I Borrow Your Pillow?

I don't know about you, but it seems like there has been one story that's dominated the headlines for the past month.  Of course I am being facetious.  The debt ceiling debate, talks, analysis and commentary has lead to temporary paralysis for our country as the rest of us wait for something to be voted upon, or dare we hope, passed in Washington D.C.  No matter where your political ideals rest, most of us agree that we want something done and soon.  And once it's finished, I submit that the phrase "debt ceiling" be officially banished from use in mainstream media.

But until then, what are we to do?  Yes, we can call our Congressmen, Senators or the White House, but in the end, it's out of our hands.  And that's the toughest part to swallow.  Our future is, for the most part, out of our hands.  It's disheartening and frustrating, and if you spend too much time reading and listening to the talking heads concerning this issue (as I have), then you end up worrying.  Because when something big is on the line and we don't have any control, the natural tendency is to worry, be fearful and stew over it.

This is where I was on Tuesday morning as I surfed through articles online explaining, or rather reiterating that things haven't changed and we are still headed for crisis.  I was worried.  If this continues, how bad will things get?  How should I prepare?  Were the Mayans and John Cusack right about 2012, and the end is really near?

When I went into my extended prayer time, I was still worrying.  It was hard to concentrate during prayer so I started sifting through scripture and ended up in Mark chapter 4.  At the end of the chapter we find the disciples getting bombarded by the waves as Jesus was snuggled up to a pillow at the back of the boat.  The disciples rushed to Jesus and woke him up to ask, "don't you care that we are all going to drown?"

After reading this a couple times, I had two questions.  First, what kind of pillow was Jesus sleeping on? I have a new Tempur Pedic pillow that rocks but I'm not sure it would keep me asleep at sea during a storm.  My other question was, did Jesus calm the storm to teach the disciples something about their faith or say "peace, be still" so he could hurry up and go back to sleep.  Let's face it, being woken up from a nap or too early in the morning is quite possibly the most frustrating thing ever.  I am slightly annoyed when my wife wakes me up a few minutes before my alarm is scheduled to go off.  If I'm woken up to early and in the middle of a dream (where, let's say, I'm fixing pancakes for Warren Buffet), the only thought on my mind is how quickly can I get back to sleep and finish that dream?  With that in mind, I have to believe that Jesus wanted to say, "you woke me up for this?  Don't you remember who my Dad is?"

Even though we're amazed at Jesus, the subtle beauty of this story is that we all relate to the disciples.  We all rush to the back of the boat and scream, "God, don't you care?"  We all worry too much about anything and everything that we can't control.  And if the crisis involves money, you can be sure that we will scream so loud that God and anybody near us would have trouble sleeping.  This story reminds us though, that if we are riding in the ship with Christ, you don't have to worry.  You don't have to scream.  You don't have to fear.  You can grab your favorite pillow, bean bag or snuggie and cuddle up in the back of the boat.  Why?  Because of faith.  As the book of Hebrews puts it, "faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see."

Jesus Christ is the reason for our faith.  He is the only one who can bring real and lasting peace to any situation.  Whether Washington DC figures out the mess that is before them or not, we can comfortably rest in the peace that Christ is with us.  If a storm is just ahead, we can weather it with Christ's help.  As the scriptures remind us, He wants our burdens and He really does care.  In fact, with a storm on the horizon, we might as well stop worrying and move to the back of the boat.  As the disciples learned the hard way, that's were its most comfortable.

 

The Legacy of Star Wars

It's 5pm on Friday and I'm finishing up the day on my computer at home.  I'm doing this with the sounds of Lego Star Wars echoing through my basement.  My son is guiding Darth Vader through the various levels of his favorite game.  Two years ago I dressed up as Darth Vader and delivered his 4 year old Star Wars cake to his birthday party.  Not long after, we were looking through my old pictures and found a snapshot from my four year old party in 1979.  I was wearing a Star Wars shirt and blowing out candles atop a R2D2 cake.  Imagine that.

This is a familiar story for our generation.  The love for "the Force" that is passed on (genetically?) from father to son.  "A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away" is recognizable to young and old in America and beyond.  When I passed on some of my old figures that I had saved - including the iconic Bobba Fett - my son was in awe.  The awesomeness of Star Wars began in the 70's, elevated through the cheese of the 80's, was re-imagined at the end of the 90's, survived Jar Jar Binks at the turn of the century, and has cemented it's place in every toy aisle and video game store for the foreseeable future.

The vision of George Lucas for this amazing story is well chronicled and a great story within itself.  United Artist and Universal Studios passed on the script (I wonder how much cooler Universal Studios would be if they hadn't!).  Harrison Ford thought "A New Hope" was weird and that the lines in the script were...uh..."crap" that you could only type, not speak.  An early private screening of the first installment with Director friends like De Palma, Milius and Spielberg produced only one positive review (Spielberg).  The process for getting A New Hope to the screen was a stressful one for Lucas including a diagnosis of Hypertension, budget battles with 20th Century Fox and with last minute edits, including Obi-Wan's death (since he wasn't needed in the next two films).

Lucas and his producers didn't know what to expect on opening day.  Producer Gary Kurtz was doing a radio call-in show when, to Kurtz's surprise, one of the callers raved in detail about the movie.  The caller finally admitted, "I have already seen the movie four times."  Lucas spent most of opening day in a sound studio and only realized it's fast start after being hit up for autographs at lunch time.  Years later and billions of dollars later, Star Wars is recognizable on every continent and most countries.  The logo is on toys, clothing, televisions, video games and much more.  Despite it's humble beginnings, the vision of creating an epic story surrounding the journey of a lone jedi and his lost father would not only hit the screens, but also transform a generation and impact many more to come.

This had me thinking about the epic story found in the Gospel and the legacy of Jesus Christ.  Over 2,000 years ago, God sent his Son to Earth, to the little town of Bethlehem, to walk among us, to teach us and to later die for all of us.  More people misunderstood Him than embraced Him.  He wasn't anything what people were expecting from a Messiah.  The religious institutions hated Christ and were determined to kill Him.  His ministry was only chronicled by a handful of disciples and yet years later, the life changing message of hope and grace was spreading like wildfire.  The life saving vision of God through the life, death and resurrection of his Son Jesus Christ could not be contained.

Today, the legacy of Christ can be found in the slums of Calcutta, in mega churches in Seoul, Korea, in Cathedrals in Rome, in rural churches in Indiana and even in the jungles of South America.  The teachings of Christ, although sometimes abused and used for greed, are still adored and embraced by billions around the world.  The stories about Jesus that my Great-Grandfather shared with my Grandfather are the same I share with my son at the dinner table, in the car and before bedtime.  The Christmas story has been shared from father to son and mother to daughter more than any other story.  Passed on from generation to generation, the legacy of Christ will continue to transform lives until the very end.  And the kicker?  The end, with Christ, is not the end.  It doesn't end with Vader saying "Nooooooo" (or with Rebels dancing at Endor for those who pretend the last three don't exist).  What makes the legacy of the Gospel so special is that it includes this life and the next.  Now, I'm not sure what to expect when the next life comes, but I am confident - because of Christ - that the awesomeness of it will far exceed that of Star Wars.  And I'm very thankful for that.  

Thank you for raising your rates!

I wonder what the board room at Netflix is like today?  After announcing a new pricing plan that raises rates 60% for anyone who wants both streaming online and dvds in the mail, the reaction has been less than enthusiastic.  As of today, there almost 60,000 comments (and netflix is deleting hundred's by the hour) on the facebook page about the price change, most of which are very negative in tone.

Last night I checked out the page and spent a few minutes reading a few of these comments. I chuckled at some of the creative stabs at Netflix and their rate hike.  I also checked Google news and the articles covering the backlash.  On person commented that they had a four dvds at a time plan with online streaming that was going from 24.99 to 34.99 and had decided it was cheaper to buy the movies.  I love movies, but who watches that many movies?

My wife and I discussed it as we are Netflix users. We'll probably drop having one dvd mailed to us.  We're confident that life will go on since currently a movie will sit on the counter for days.  But as I laid in bed last night and thought about it more, I really started to get angry.  No, I wasn't angry at Netflix or "corporate greed" as one disgruntled customer put it.  I was frustrated that 60,000 + people could be so angry about an issue that has no lasting value to our world.  I shifted my thoughts to more important issues, and as my frustration built, I kept my wife up a little later when I started asking her what we could do to help children who were victims of abuse.  Why is it that people can be so upset about meaningless issues in sports, pop culture and entertainment and practically ignore significant issues such as poverty and child abuse?  I should know the answer to that question since I have been guilty of obsessing over the meaningless minutia in our world.   When I lived in Springfield, MO, I wrote a letter to the editor of the News Leader about why Pete Rose shouldn't be allowed into the Hall of Fame.  And they printed it.  With my picture.  Yikes.  So I know that it's easy to get caught up in the less important issues and lose site of the big picture.

But we do this with countless big issues staring us in the face.  What would happen if we transferred the energy we wasted into areas of life that mattered?  If we stopped getting angry and motivated by the things that people won't be talking about one year from now?  Instead, we could focus on issues that could really make a difference.  For example, did you know that every 10 seconds a report of child abuse is made in this country?  And that almost five children every day die from some type of child abuse (more than 3 out of 4 are under the age of four).  Now that's something to get outraged about.  That is what is keeping me up at night recently.

What if 60,000 people a day did something to prevent or raise awareness about child abuse (other than those already doing it)?  What if 60,000 people a day started tackling poverty?  God created us with the capacity to serve Him and serve others.  And when we begin to discover and enlarge this capacity, God can use us to do great things for others.  This is what Bill Hybles wrote about in his book, "Holy Discontent."  The journey of following Christ should lead us to find that one aspect of our broken world that when we see it, touch it and hear about it, you are so troubled by it that you must get in the game and do something about it.  

But our Adversary would like nothing better than for our redemptive energy to be wasted.  For us to never uncover our "Holy Discontent."  That's why we are tempted to go through the motions and get wrapped up into the petty things in life.  All the fun, yet less than meaningful stuff in our lives are not worth hours on the computer or long rants on radio shows.  Find a real problem and fix it.  Choose a real cause and embrace it.  Get involved in your local church and live out your faith!

I may sound outraged, but honestly, this is the stuff that saddens me.  I Corinthians 2:9 reminds us that "No eye has seen, no ear has heard and no eye has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him."  The reality that there is so much more for people to experience in an active relationship with God makes it very difficult to see people wasting their energy on the mundane and meaningless.  And after reflecting on the 60,000 posts and what really makes me angry, I find myself thankful for the 4-6 hours I won't be wasting because of Netflix's new plan.  So, thank you Netflix for saving me time and energy.  Time and energy that will be spent better elsewhere.  And to the 60,000 people who commented, as the saying goes, there are indeed "greater tragedies in life."  Find one.