Hi all,
I was going to start this with a completely different story but two friends from the UK, members of our church sent me this.
COLUMBINE STUDENT'S FATHER 12 YEARS LATER!!
Guess our national leaders didn't expect this. On Thursday, Darrell Scott, the father of Rachel Scott, a victim of ...the Columbine High School shootings in Littleton, Colorado, was invited to address the House Judiciary Committee's subcommittee. What he said to our national leaders during this special session of Congress was painfully truthful.
They were not prepared for what he was to say, nor was it received well. It needs to be heard by every parent, every teacher, every politician, every sociologist, every psychologist, and every so-called expert! These courageous words spoken by Darrell Scott are powerful, penetrating, and deeply personal. There is no doubt that God sent this man as a voice crying in the wilderness. The following is a portion of the transcript:
"Since the dawn of creation there has been both good &evil in the hearts of men and women. We all contain the seeds of kindness or the seeds of violence. The death of my wonderful daughter, Rachel Joy Scott, and the deaths of that heroic teacher, and the other eleven children who died must not be in vain. Their blood cries out for answers.
"The first recorded act of violence was when Cain slew his brother Abel out in the field. The villain was not the club he used.. Neither was it the NCA, the National Club Association. The true killer was Cain, and the reason for the murder could only be found in Cain's heart.
"In the days that followed the Columbine tragedy, I was amazed at how quickly fingers began to be pointed at groups such as the NRA. I am not a member of the NRA. I am not a hunter. I do not even own a gun. I am not here to represent or defend the NRA - because I don't believe that they are responsible for my daughter's death. Therefore I do not believe that they need to be defended. If I believed they had anything to do with Rachel's murder I would be their strongest opponent
I am here today to declare that Columbine was not just a tragedy -- it was a spiritual event that should be forcing us to look at where the real blame lies! Much of the blame lies here in this room. Much of the blame lies behind the pointing fingers of the accusers themselves. I wrote a poem just four nights ago that expresses my feelings best.
Your laws ignore our deepest needs,
Your words are empty air.
You've stripped away our heritage,
You've outlawed simple prayer.
Now gunshots fill our classrooms,
And precious children die.
You seek for answers everywhere,
And ask the question "Why?"
You regulate restrictive laws,
Through legislative creed.
And yet you fail to understand,
That God is what we need!
"Men and women are three-part beings. We all consist of body, mind, and spirit. When we refuse to acknowledge a third part of our make-up, we create a void that allows evil, prejudice, and hatred to rush in and wreak havoc. Spiritual presences were present within our educational systems for most of our nation's history. Many of our major colleges began as theological seminaries. This is a historical fact.
What has happened to us as a nation? We have refused to honour God, and in so doing, we open the doors to hatred and violence. And when something as terrible as Columbine's tragedy occurs -- politicians immediately look for a scapegoat such as the NRA. They immediately seek to pass more restrictive laws that contribute to erode away our personal and private liberties. We do not need more restrictive laws.
Eric and Dylan would not have been stopped by metal detectors. No amount of gun laws can stop someone who spends months planning this type of massacre. The real villain lies within our own hearts.
"As my son Craig lay under that table in the school library and saw his two friends murdered before his very eyes, he did not hesitate to pray in school. I defy any law or politician to deny him that right! I challenge every young person in America , and around the world, to realise that on April 20, 1999, at Columbine High School prayer was brought back to our schools. Do not let the many prayers offered by those students be in vain. Dare to move into the new millennium with a sacred disregard for legislation that violates your God-given right to communicate with Him.
To those of you who would point your finger at the NRA -- I give to you a sincere challenge.. Dare to examine your own heart before casting the first stone!
My daughter's death will not be in vain! The young people of this country will not allow that to happen!"
- Darrell Scott
Do what the media did not - - let the nation(s) hear this man's speech. Please don't just share this with everyone you can but post it on web sites, mail it, send it to your MP, pin it on boards and photocopy it, put it up in Churches across the world, please DO SOMETHING, whatever you do don't just read it and move on, think what love and courage it took to say it. You are at this moment sat with a pc capable of communicating with anyone in the world...use it. Only God can take hate and violence and replace it with love and compassion, I know, Chris.
Guess our national leaders didn't expect this. On Thursday, Darrell Scott, the father of Rachel Scott, a victim of ...the Columbine High School shootings in Littleton, Colorado, was invited to address the House Judiciary Committee's subcommittee. What he said to our national leaders during this special session of Congress was painfully truthful.
They were not prepared for what he was to say, nor was it received well. It needs to be heard by every parent, every teacher, every politician, every sociologist, every psychologist, and every so-called expert! These courageous words spoken by Darrell Scott are powerful, penetrating, and deeply personal. There is no doubt that God sent this man as a voice crying in the wilderness. The following is a portion of the transcript:
"Since the dawn of creation there has been both good &evil in the hearts of men and women. We all contain the seeds of kindness or the seeds of violence. The death of my wonderful daughter, Rachel Joy Scott, and the deaths of that heroic teacher, and the other eleven children who died must not be in vain. Their blood cries out for answers.
"The first recorded act of violence was when Cain slew his brother Abel out in the field. The villain was not the club he used.. Neither was it the NCA, the National Club Association. The true killer was Cain, and the reason for the murder could only be found in Cain's heart.
"In the days that followed the Columbine tragedy, I was amazed at how quickly fingers began to be pointed at groups such as the NRA. I am not a member of the NRA. I am not a hunter. I do not even own a gun. I am not here to represent or defend the NRA - because I don't believe that they are responsible for my daughter's death. Therefore I do not believe that they need to be defended. If I believed they had anything to do with Rachel's murder I would be their strongest opponent
I am here today to declare that Columbine was not just a tragedy -- it was a spiritual event that should be forcing us to look at where the real blame lies! Much of the blame lies here in this room. Much of the blame lies behind the pointing fingers of the accusers themselves. I wrote a poem just four nights ago that expresses my feelings best.
Your laws ignore our deepest needs,
Your words are empty air.
You've stripped away our heritage,
You've outlawed simple prayer.
Now gunshots fill our classrooms,
And precious children die.
You seek for answers everywhere,
And ask the question "Why?"
You regulate restrictive laws,
Through legislative creed.
And yet you fail to understand,
That God is what we need!
"Men and women are three-part beings. We all consist of body, mind, and spirit. When we refuse to acknowledge a third part of our make-up, we create a void that allows evil, prejudice, and hatred to rush in and wreak havoc. Spiritual presences were present within our educational systems for most of our nation's history. Many of our major colleges began as theological seminaries. This is a historical fact.
What has happened to us as a nation? We have refused to honour God, and in so doing, we open the doors to hatred and violence. And when something as terrible as Columbine's tragedy occurs -- politicians immediately look for a scapegoat such as the NRA. They immediately seek to pass more restrictive laws that contribute to erode away our personal and private liberties. We do not need more restrictive laws.
Eric and Dylan would not have been stopped by metal detectors. No amount of gun laws can stop someone who spends months planning this type of massacre. The real villain lies within our own hearts.
"As my son Craig lay under that table in the school library and saw his two friends murdered before his very eyes, he did not hesitate to pray in school. I defy any law or politician to deny him that right! I challenge every young person in America , and around the world, to realise that on April 20, 1999, at Columbine High School prayer was brought back to our schools. Do not let the many prayers offered by those students be in vain. Dare to move into the new millennium with a sacred disregard for legislation that violates your God-given right to communicate with Him.
To those of you who would point your finger at the NRA -- I give to you a sincere challenge.. Dare to examine your own heart before casting the first stone!
My daughter's death will not be in vain! The young people of this country will not allow that to happen!"
- Darrell Scott
Do what the media did not - - let the nation(s) hear this man's speech. Please don't just share this with everyone you can but post it on web sites, mail it, send it to your MP, pin it on boards and photocopy it, put it up in Churches across the world, please DO SOMETHING, whatever you do don't just read it and move on, think what love and courage it took to say it. You are at this moment sat with a pc capable of communicating with anyone in the world...use it. Only God can take hate and violence and replace it with love and compassion, I know, Chris.
While we are on the subject of children,other than on a visit to the USA where I met a lot of young people having their Autumn break, they were polite and friendly, however I can honestly say the children of India are probably the most polite young people I have ever met, they are brought up to respect their elders and each other. That upbringing can be seen in their young men and women and in their society as a whole. No not everyone, there are like everywhere in this world nasty, evil people who you do well to avoid but here in my humble opinion they are in very very much a minority.
A few days ago was India's Republic day when they celebrate gaining their own constitution and have parades similar to those held on remembrance Sunday. All the Army, Navy, Air force commandeers where there as were representatives of all area's of government employers, floats of trains, buses, ships planes etc. Their is a massive sense of pride for their country among all Indian's, from the rich to the poor they are proud to say I am Indian, and frankly they have every right to, they are building a country, it may seem slow to us in the west but that's just our view, one day they are going to be a nation as big and as powerful as any on this planet, my prayer is that they do not lose their tolerance of different faiths, their respect for others or their love of life in the process..
HOME
As some of you will know I pulled the extensor tendon in my foot and as anyone who has ever done this then they will know just how painful it has been. Thank you to all who prayed for me, I an now up and about without the stick, the swelling has gone way down and the pain has become little if any! I'm off painkillers and sleeping tablets, back to work next week. A really rapid recovery, average is 4-6 weeks. With Gods Help two.
One good thing though it has given us the chance to get the garden just about done, (please note not 'me' personally), labour is quite cheap so I have been sitting in the sun 'supervising'!
We have put loads of sand and compost into the very clay soil so as time goes on it should be good soil.
Kris has been painting the wall with a mix of white paint and cement, she describes the technique as 'glopping it on' must be one of these artistic terms!
Ah, you can almost hear Michael Angelo in the Cysteine chapel can't you, laying on his back, considering his next brush stroke, a hand reaches out to an assistant, and those immortal words are heard, 'pass me the glopping brush'.
Things that made me go Mmmmmmm
Looking out as Kris arrived home and seeing a large grey monkey sitting on our wall!
The Royal Enfield arriving, although that was more of a WEEEEEE than a Mmmmmm.
Sitting on the roof one evening with Kris watching the light and shadows change on the local hills as the Sun went down and again thanking God for this beautiful home.
Watching the electrician check out his wiring on the site at the back of us............maybe just a little too much load perhaps, now where did I put that trip switch.
The heavy cable (black one) you can see entering the top left of the
box is tied (or perhaps I should say, twisted onto) the overhead three phase supply for the whole estate....oops!
One good thing though it has given us the chance to get the garden just about done, (please note not 'me' personally), labour is quite cheap so I have been sitting in the sun 'supervising'!
We have put loads of sand and compost into the very clay soil so as time goes on it should be good soil.
Kris has been painting the wall with a mix of white paint and cement, she describes the technique as 'glopping it on' must be one of these artistic terms!
Ah, you can almost hear Michael Angelo in the Cysteine chapel can't you, laying on his back, considering his next brush stroke, a hand reaches out to an assistant, and those immortal words are heard, 'pass me the glopping brush'.
Things that made me go Mmmmmmm
Looking out as Kris arrived home and seeing a large grey monkey sitting on our wall!
The Royal Enfield arriving, although that was more of a WEEEEEE than a Mmmmmm.
Sitting on the roof one evening with Kris watching the light and shadows change on the local hills as the Sun went down and again thanking God for this beautiful home.
Watching the electrician check out his wiring on the site at the back of us............maybe just a little too much load perhaps, now where did I put that trip switch.
The heavy cable (black one) you can see entering the top left of the
box is tied (or perhaps I should say, twisted onto) the overhead three phase supply for the whole estate....oops!
To disconnect..... cut wire, odd nobody wanted to do this job, this guy got elected! Please note the use of the rubber glove, on the hand not holding the old pair of pliers he is using to cut, luckily all the power is still off at this point in time.
Even with so small a knowledge of Hindi I didn't need a translator when he saw it, Indians can be very expressive!
JOY OH JOY
This is one very happy Chris, this beast is a Royal Enfield 'Desert Storm' 500 cc Single, fuel injected, electronic ignition, hydraulic valved, twin spark fun machine!......and its mine.
I have been around the block but until I am sure of a fully healed tendon I am resisting a good run, the damaged tendon foot works the brakes..................
What a fine pair. We were asked 'why not a car?'
Nine or ten months of Sun two months of showers and rain who wants a mettle box to sit in when we can have these!
Ok in the monsoon we get rickshaws, nobody rides in the wet here, I was calling them all softies until it was explained to me that some of the water filled holes in the road can be a foot deep where the tarmac/mud has been washed out. Nodding wisely, (as if I had always known) I agreed that it was silly to ride in the monsoon!
This was creeping up the wall by the front door, didn't have time to put something into the photo for scale or to use super close up but it was about 1 1/4" (30mm) , doesn't sound much, just an inch or so, now imagine it has just landed on you in bed! Left it alone on the theory it would do the same for me!
Comments from Kris
A NEW FEATURE FREE WITH THIS ADDITION!
By popular request and much nagging Kris has at last consented to write something. I hope she makes this a regular feature, you know the sort of thing, knitting patterns, baby stories all the girlie things, like pink helmets and how it goes so well with her bike. (Sorry sweete had to say it!) Chris.
You are in trouble now, (I will make him pay for it later). K
This is a very happy Chris when I got him his rotavator for Christmas. It is a shame he hurt his foot and has not been able to use it, ahh what a shame. At least he will really enjoy it when his foot has improved.
This is a weed, but I liked it very much and after all a weed is only a plant or flower in the wrong place. Alas I had to have it removed in order to get the garden Chris and I really wanted. I took this photo so I had a memento.
Well this is Chris in his supervisory mode, he directed all the garden wall building and dumping of soil from here. He did a good job so long as I kept him supplied with Kingfisher Lager. Doesn't he look contented if not a little frustrated that he couldn't do it himself (those who know him well will realise he is not good at just sitting around letting others do the work)
Our neighbours are very intrigued by what we are doing (they probably think we are mad, well we are a little different I suppose). We keep having groups of people just stopping there work to watch our progress. Our immediate neighbours want to watch us do the actual planting but that will have to wait until Chris is fit enough to do things, he is still in some discomfort and needing pain relief after walking to far or upstairs a lot etc. (not as many painkillers as before thank God, things really improved after Finny and Debi prayed for him).
Well as you can see at last I have physically added something to the blog after many complaints for not having done so, especially from Chris and my brother Ian. Hope to continue to do so but I am not as good at this sort of thing as Chris so please bear with me if I ramble.
As you may be aware I got a new scooter a Yamaha Ray it is fabulous and it is so good to be out riding independently again after not being able to do so for so many years. Chris has been very supportive which is great I would have found it difficult if he was the kind of guy who said no I should not be riding.
I have not been into the town yet until my confidence improves it has much smaller wheels than I am used to so it is very very responsive. Alas poor Chris has only been around the colony on his bike as his foot (the one for the brake) is not up to anything more at the moment. We continue to pray for complete healing for him.
On the subject of my health I will be very brief, I am walking much better and further than I have done for years, I still get pain and a lot of aching. I am still taking pain relief. Unfortunately I have had a lot of deli belly type bugs, just recovering from a bad upset stomach I think I picked up a bug that was going around the area, I now have a very sore throat and nasty cough but it is improving. I find it amazing that I am constantly told I should go to the hospital for these things, when we would not do that back in England. Of course as most of you know me I am treating my own symptoms, and will only seek medical advise if it gets serious. I have lost some weight which is great but still a lot more to go. By the way I found a supplier of Pork mutton (that's what they call it here). I seem to be finding lots of things just by chatting to people, the locals are so friendly.
Must tell you we woke up today and for the very first time there was no Sunshine, it is clouded over, still warm though and this is the Indian Winter.
You should have been here to witness the fiasco of our neighbours fire, it was only through the quick thinking of Chris and his Nay, Nay, Nay and body language that prevented it from being a lot worse. The guy was about to throw a bucket of water directly onto an electrical fire, Chris advised him to use soil and sand to put it out which is what happened. Luckily our neighbour next door arrived home from work and I got her to ring the appropriate people, she works in the electric department that deals with electricity supply so got the electric switch off immediately. It was amazing to watch and Chris has a number of interesting photos of the event.
Kris.
Work
Not a lot I can say about it this time, the foot has limited me. We have had an enquiry from a gentleman about supplying water filters to his home village, I have put him in touch with PMF.
The design for the solar panel is finished and low and behold we now have a welder so hopefully when I go in on Monday some progress will have been made building the MK1. After that it comes here to be built into a glassed box and to install on my roof so I can experiment with different tanks, or storage methods, its not hard to produce the hot water, the main difficulty will be in storing it. Insulation will be the key, now where can I find something that is an excellent insulator for zero cost? The same question must also be considered for pipes and tank costs, its no good building a wonderful efficient system if the thing costs so much that no one will be able to buy it.
The idea is I design and build a Mk1, test it and prove it, then we help set up Mr X who will develop it into a small business with the help of micro finance from PMF this is why it MUST be cheap to build and be from easily sourced local materials.
Well as they say 'thats all folks'
One of these days I promise I will finish showing you around our house.
God Bless you all, and thank you for all your love and support.
Chris and Kris
