Why I could have been a Viking

I was going to write about the Chili Cook-off that I am going to be a part of this weekend, but I thought instead I would use this post to explain my thoughts on why I could have been a viking... In the past few years Pirates have become big business. With the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, a slew of cartoons and Jimmy Buffett, pirates are the new Cowboys and Indians. At a recent event I told everyone in attendance that I think I could have been a great viking. This isn't really based on any hard evidence its just a feeling I have. I can grow a great beard which is probably one of the most important parts of being a viking.

( the beginnings of a great viking beard )

And I can also endure cold weather which is another "must" for Vikings. If you think about it, Vikings were like the first pirates. They sailed around and looked for treasure and stole stuff, but they didn't have fancy boats or cannons. They just had swords and axes and of course beards. If we all have an inner person mine would be a guy who wears furs and swings a huge ax. By the way, this isn't really going anywhere. I haven't drawn any life lessons out of this new thought, and I am not going to quit my job to sail the Nordic seas. At most I might rent one of the many adaptations of Beowulf and think about what might have been. Who knows, maybe I will get my wish and Disney will start making viking themed movies and roller coaster rides.

After going through some old family photos I came across this gem of a picture. This is of my brother (on the left) and me (on the right.) We are in the middle of an autopsy of a shrew that my cat rootbeer left on our back porch. Not sure how old we were but I find it interesting that even at this early age my brother knew he wanted to be a doctor. I, on the other hand, probably wanted to be an astronaut at this point, but that didn't really turn out. A few other things I would like to point out about this picture is my awesome camo pants, and the ninja like stance that I am crouching in. Oh nostalgia you bring a smile to my face.

Starving for the playoffs

So at the turn of the new year I decided that I would commit to a 10 day fast. I had done this last year and generally enjoyed the experience so I felt that it would be a good idea. Let me start out by saying that fasting can be incredibly productive and beneficial if done correctly. Let me also say that I do not believe I am capable of fasting correctly. I was (and am) able to give up eating solid foods fairly easily. This came as a surprise during my first fast. I love food and didn't think I could give up eating for one day let alone 10. The problem wasn't in giving up the food it was in giving the time to seek God while giving up the food. I came to this realization when on day 4 I was given the choice of being able to eat and not watch the playoff games or continue fasting and watch the playoff games. I actually chose to keep starving myself so that I could watch football. This is something that I am not proud of, but I feel is pretty revealing of my nature. I can be very dedicated and follow something to the point of being hazardous to my health, but I don't want to give up the things that I really like because it is inconvenient. I believe someone put it quite poetically when they said "What I want to do I don't do and What I do I don't want to do" (Thanks to Paul.) And that was my main complaint of the fast. Fasting was getting in the way of me being able to spend time with my friends because I couldn't eat. Fasting was inconvenient. And this brings me to my point and the lesion I have gleaned from all of this. I had trouble during the fast not because of the food but because it hindered my ability to do what I want. And isn't that what a fast is all about in the first place? We are meant to fast so that our will can be replaced with His will and no amount of not eating will fix this if we are still doing what we want to do. Next year maybe instead of not eating I will finally try to give up the thing that tends to take a large chunk of my day away... watching the TV.