Sound Effects

Today I had the privilege of taking two young girls to see the play "It's a Wonderful Life." They weren't too sure about it since it wasn't specifically for kids, but they agreed to go. The classic movie was presented as a radio show. There were two microphones at center stage for the speaking parts, framed by a table on each side to handle the sound effects. The actors played multiple parts and created the sounds. There was an miniature door that was opened and closed, a bicycle bell for a telephone ring, a washboard being scrubbed with a soft brush for the sound of a train stopping, shoes tapping together for walking sounds, bottles in a box for glasses tinkling at a party, a wheel moving under a stretched sheet for outside wind, and much more. It was fascinating to watch the sounds that were created.

Proverbs 20:12 The hearing ear and the seeing eye, the Lord has made them both.

The girls understood the story, but were more interested in the experience of the sounds. My daughter mentioned that it was neat to see the sounds being created by something that wasn't electronic. The creativity, based on the days of radio, was astounding. I'm looking forward to just hearing the play, as it was recorded and is scheduled to air Christmas night at 7 on WDUN.

Stone Cold

Thursday I took on the role of chaperone for my 8-year-old's class field trip to Stone Mountain. I was given the task of keeping up with 3 little girls. It was easier than I thought since it was in the 30s and no one wanted to run off and play. We toured The Plantation, which consisted of multiple buildings from the late 1700s. The kids were attentive until the began to get hungry for lunch. We ate on picnic tables, in the shade, in 30 degree windy weather. My, but it was cold. I'm not sure what I ate, but it did not warm me up at all.

After lunch the whole class rode the lift to the top of the mountain. Whenever I've been on top of Stone Mountain, I've always been amazed at seeing downtown Atlanta from a distance and trying to pick out other landmarks. These kids, many of whom were there for the very first time, were more fascinated with the ice that had formed in the small pools of water on top. They started playing with the ice, even with the frigid winds that were trying to topple us over. I had to tell one of them to stop eating it!

Job 37:9b-10a And cold from the scattering winds of the north. By the breath of God ice is given.

Perhaps their fascination with something God made right in front of us was better than my attention to something man-made in the distance.

Overwhelmed

I had to go out of town for a day. (Big surprise, I'm sure.) There was a federal conference in Atlanta last week and I determined that Thursday had the best options for learning new things. It took 90 minutes to drive 48 miles, hence the reason I only wanted to go one day. The conference was located at the World Congress Center in Atlanta. I had never been inside that monstrosity before and I was completely amazed. First there was the 7 level parking deck, then the massive buildings that covered multiple city blocks. There were 6000 people attending the conference. In the individual session rooms, there were enough seats for as many as 500 people. It was unreal. I did manage to run into a few people I knew, but the whole experience was overwhelming.

Psalm 142:3a When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, then you knew my path. 

I got through the day and made it home safely, relieved to have my path complete and the day behind me.