January is a relatively quiet month; eclipsed by the cold, the sun’s gaze does little more than sweet across the cold ground. It is a time of res- olution.
Even a world where there is no moral consen- sus, my heart knows the truth. I am a conflicting blend. If I deny my good- ness and say I am all bad, I am grotesque. If I deny my badness and say I am good, I blaspheme. Denial is a subtracting process. I am apathetic, surreal, un- approachable. Honesty is my only solidarity, my re- demption.
What does this silence say? I listen. Invite open dialogue. The God of my redemption has some- thing to say.
Incline your ear and come unto me; hear,
and your soul shall live (Isaiah 53:3)
February marks a sea- son of fearful pruning. Winter, which was last month, has now grown somewhat thin. It waits with bags packed for de- parture. New growth is on the way and seeks its va- cancy.
Branch structure de- termines a tree’s stability. When massed, the wind can launch the entire tree on a tragic flight. A twig to me has an expression of purest happiness. It is not yet committed. It is too fragile to be saddled with a rope swing, it sways alone, unhampered. No shade is demanded of its wave. It is a testament of the trunks health But as it grows, its relationship to the trunk becomes criti- cal.
Unlike a new twig, life must, upon its emergency,
be severed to survive. A baby’s first cries protest its disconnection as well as announce its hunger, its need from warmth and comfort. The hand of time weaves larger bones, keener minds, and prompts a need to commu- nicate. Our bodies change along with our needs. But the needs of the spirit are those of connection. Above all, it requires union, to be known com- pletely and still be loved. Born to disabled arms, the best intentions of our parents fall short.
Connection is formed by anger. Anger makes an undiscerning cry. It tells us that something should be happening and is not. When we are angry, it is because that which we ex- pected has not occurred, that which we have pre- pared for is not forthcom- ing. Just as hunger can- not fill the stomach, anger cannot soothe us.
Connected to anger, the spirit dies. The sword of redemption renders the soul viable. One side of the blade is repentance. It serves us from anger. The other side is forgiveness. It sears the wound. Sud- denly we are free to make safe connections. Unions with those who do not think themselves superi- or. We are free to connect with joy.
The LORD wants us to be encouraged and to en- courage one another.
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gar- dener ... apart from me you can do nothing (John 15: 1,5)
Lonza Seadrow
Tifton
Opinion
Your Opinion: Things we hear in silence
- Opinion
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- Rants & Raves – May 22
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Students aren't blueberries
Dear Public School Teachers in Georgia: It looks as if you have survived another year of underwhelming support from state legislators, many of whom would kiss a tree toad if so instructed by the anti-public education crowd. I know it is frustrating but as my daddy used to say, consider the source.
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Letter to the Editor – May 22
You knew this was going to be a special season.From the season-opener, a 7-5 win over Crisp County and UGA signee Robert Tyler, to the very last pitch in Marietta May 15, the Tift County baseball team took us on a great journey that reached even further than on the baseball field for me.
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May 21 Column – George F. Will
Leaving aside the seriousness of lawlessness, and the corruption of our civic culture by the professionally pious, this past week has been amusing. There was the spectacle of advocates of an ever-larger regulatory government expressing shock about such government's large capacity for misbehavior. And, entertainingly, the answer to the question "Will Barack Obama's scandals derail his second-term agenda?" was a question: What agenda?
- Rants & Raves – May 21
- Rant & Rave for May 16
- Rants & Raves - May 15
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Letter to the Editor for May 15
As a grandson of Henry Harding Tift and a long-time resident of Tift County, I would like to tip my hat to Edd Dorminey for the pivotal role he played in petitioning the state legislature to officially recognize the original intent that Tift County be named in honor of Capt. Tift.
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A day late and a dollar short...sort of
I caught a lot of flack the past couple of days because, and I quote, “You write a column and you didn’t write about your mom for Mothers Day?”Yeah. Um. Just yeah.
- Letter to the Editor: Here we go again
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