Archives for category: communication

Let me say up front that I am usually a little bit over my head whenever talking about art.  I have never formally studied art or art history.  I likes what I likes and I read up on things that are interesting to me, whether because of aesthetics, medium or message.

I was intrigued by the inclusion of well-known street artist Banksy‘s Wall and Piece on Rob Bell’s Poets, Prophets & Preachers conference required reading list.  The street art/grafitti world has always intrigued me (and, no, not the “let me doodle my tag on lockers and bathroom stalls” variety) because of its subversive nature.  Along with raising important issues such as who own public space, I love how well-placed street art can reconfigure the ethos of a particular environment.

While doing some back-end work for a recent Ecclesia Collective article, I was introduced to the work of an artist called Specter.  Notice how simply adding a word or two to this awning communicates volumes about this neighborhood:

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… as face to face interaction.

That’s not to say I’m jumping on any anti-Twitter bandwagons.  No, I’m not a big fan of using Twitter (or any other social networking media, for that matter) to randomly shout every bit of personal minutiae into the darkness (although, I must say, sometimes it is nice to catch up on the mundane parts of far-away friends’ lives). I think platforms like Twitter can be very useful for collaboration, and even building friendships. Eugene Cho hosted a  thoughtful dialogue about Twitter, faith and church life a little while back.

As much as I believe Twitter can be a good thing (although it’s killing my ability to write longer thoughts!), I don’t think it can ever replace face to face interaction.

Last Saturday, our family went to the San Diego Childrens Book Festival (which was lots of fun, by the way!).  Our daughter was really excited to meet the illustrator from the Fancy Nancy series, Robin Preiss Glasser, who was signing autographs at the Book Festival.  Our daughter is a little shy, so she practiced what she would say to Robin while waiting in line.  However, even after practicing, she was still too shy to say much to Robin when she was finally able to meet her in person.

This is where face to face interaction is irreplaceable: Robin was signing our daughter’s book and seemed to perceive that there was more she wanted to say.  So Robin had our daughter come around to the other side of the author’s table, asked a lot of great questions and took time to listen to her.  At the end, Robin gave her a big hug and took a great photograph with her.  My wife and I were so grateful for Robin’s perceptive, thoughtful interaction with our daughter.

This kind of empathy and perception is really difficult to emulate in a purely online conversation.  How many of us have misread the intent behind comments in the blogosphere because we couldn’t read non-verbal cues on our screen?

While coming back from a great day at the beach (is it too late for a new year’s resolution? I’m determined to learn to surf, so that I can teach my daughter to surf!) earlier this week, we saw a very curious sight: a man at an intersection with a sign asking for money, but talking on his cell phone.  Kind of like this photo, I guess, but minus the “honesty” in his sign.

Now, I’m sure some people would be extremely offended by this (“Well if he can afford a phone then he shouldn’t be out begging!”) but it just struck me as being really surreal.  Only in La Jolla, I guess.

Just for fun, while we’re on the topic of signs, how about this one [h/t: Guy Kawaskai]:

The nerd in me might actually give this Cylon a dollar.

I designed this graphic for our church’s web site last week:

welcome-god-has-not-given-up-3

As Brian McLaren writes in Everything Must Change, “Eschatology always wins.”  That is, what we believe about the future distinctly shapes how we live today.  Believing that we’re just hanging on until we can escape this sin-soaked mess will lead to a profoundly different way of life than believing God continues to be very much in love with the world and the people He created. One leads to despair; the other, hope.  The church I want to be a part of is not a monument; it is a movement of hope & redemption.

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On a side note, I am currently in the midst of a web design project with my friend Richard.  If you, or someone you know, needs some graphic and/or web design work, drop me a line.  We offer great work at reasonable prices!

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And, speaking of movements, I encourage you to support Eugene Cho’s organization dedicated to fighting global poverty.  Let’s get the Facebook group to one million people (it’s already at over 690,000 people) — join the cause today.

The Freeze Project San Diego video is now online!

Today, there are over 27 million people trapped in slavery and human trafficking — more than at any other time in human history.  The US State Department estimates between 600,000-800,000 women, children, and men are trafficked across international borders each year. Approximately 80% are women and girls and up to 50% are minors.

And yet, so many people are unaware of this global nightmare.  Through The Freeze Project, we are raising awareness for those trapped in this terrible injustice.  Join the movement and raise your voice for freedom!

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Special thanks to Shirley Hwang for spearheading The Freeze Project San Diego movement and to Joe Baek for filming and editing the video.