tim’s thought property

Finally, the strongest manufactured piece of plastic that I own, has now been destroyed. My Nalgene has been broken. Yes, it lasted me close to two years, faithfully holding water, Gatorade, hot chocolate and whatever else I desired to put inside. It was a great joy to throw around, seeing how high it could be tossed, how far it could go and what heavy objects it could withstand.

From the heights of Sulphur Mountain, in Banff National Park, were the water started to freeze on that morning November trek; to the scree of Guatemala’s fiery volcano, Pacaya; this little green Nalgene went everywhere.
I purchased it two Octobers ago, after losing my former Nalgene on a canoe trip. The Green One came to Vancouver on our Urban Plunge, where it was adorned with Moneen stickers from the concert there. It hit every rock and patch of dirt at the Rocky Mountain YMCA, and then stayed at CMU over Christmas holidays. Upon finding it again, a minor culture of mold had grown, only to be washed out in the Camp Nutimik Hobart Dishwasher. To Guatemala it came, and withstood the scorching heat of noon-day, in the cornfield where we helped to build a house for a deserving family. It came to the beaches of Monterrico and Tilapa. It was thrown around Puerto Barrios, Antigua and Tikal.
At Camp Assiniboia, it became the model of what a traveled Nalgene should look like. It was the gauge on how much damage new Nalgenes should expect. It was a testament to perserverance. It came along to Washington, and stayed there with me for eight months; hitting the paths and roots of many a mountain trail, the pavement of the cities and all that comes with the suburban city life.

It went through three lids, two splash guards before finally giving out. On a sunny Saturday afternoon, while frolfing with Tim Goose at Camp Assiniboia, I decided to toss the old Green over to the next hole. Well, it fell short of the pool fence and struck the pool deck, cracking the bottom all the way around, abruptly ending it’s usage. An eight meter toss, with a half full Nalgene was a small feat in itself, but alas, it’s time has come to an end.
For all the hydration and throwing memories, I thank you Nalgene. Your products are something else.

The life of a Penguin, from what I gathered is primarily survival. Perhaps personal survival at first, and then the survival of the species. There is something very elemental about that. Something sad. As I was running this evening in the middle of a sweltering 32 degree, very humid end-of-the-day, I could not help but ponder. There is no higher level of thinking that a Penguin or any other animal is really capable of; no capacity for sentience or self awareness. An animal cannot think on ethics or morality, just on survival. Yet how many people who occupy this world, live only for survival? How many people work from paycheck to paycheck, only to keep up their current level of status? If we, as humans are capable of so much more than gathering food, fighting our natural enemies and reproduction, then why aren’t we doing more?

A human brain is probably the most advanced part of the body of any creature on the earth. We have this wonderful gift, yet we continually supress it, damage it, waste it, and neglect it. How much time do we, (collectively) spend watching tv, or doing things the easy, technological way? How often do we decide not to read, because we’d rather be entertained at the least amount of effort? Why have we as humans, with the most developed brains, only developed new ‘enemies’ to ourselves and to our own survival? As a culture, I think we are desensitizing ourselves at an alarming rate, declining in intelligence and increasing in our own sloth-like tendancies. Sure, technology can allow us to do more and to do things more quickly, but for what reason? To stay pacified by our entertainment, our lack of growth, due to our now free time?

I don’t want to come across as if I’m asking for a meaning to life, because I’m not. We are here, we have been created and given these parts and abilities to do so many things. My point is more of a pondering - do we, in general, realize that we are living below the level that we were intended to live at? We have been given the best of the best, and yes, we have misused it. But, are we going to begin to remedy this? Whoever said to settle for what you can get? I say that’s rubbish. One of my biggest problems in high school was not using my full capacity. Why go for 100%, when 90% is attainable without effort? This is something I think all of us needs to come to understand, that we are so much better than what we’ve allowed ourselves to be. We can be so much more than what we are, and we need to know that.

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure. 1 John 3:1-3