LESSONS

I have this amazing, wise uncle (actually my dad’s uncle, making him my great uncle and even wiser, right?…right).  He is one of the smartest people I know… phD and everything.  But there’s another great thing about him.  He is incredibly kind, and even though I rarely see him, I know he cares about me… and my family.  All this so say, when he talks I listen…

My uncle told me I should write.  He said, as I go through life, learning things as one does, that I should write it down.  Write what I learn.  Pass on the knowledge that I have attained.  Hmm.  He told me about a violin maker who created the best violin that ever existed.  The man told no one, and now this magnificent violin design can never be recreated.  What a shame.  What good is what you know if you keep it to yourself?

As my uncle was sharing this with me, I couldn’t help but think of the Gospel.  I know a loving Savior, I have knowledge of who God is and His desire to redeem us.  If I keep that to myself, if I fail to pass that along, it is not only a shame… it’s a tragedy.  And yet, I often do.  The reasons don’t matter.  It needs to change.  But what does it look like for me to be more bold in this area?  I don’t know… perhaps this is one way.

So, Uncle Brandt… I am starting a blog.  I will write what I know, I will write what I learn, and I will write what I’m in the process of learning.  I really don’t know what will end up on here, my grammar will not be perfect, I will start sentences with “and” and “but,” and I will use a lot of “…’s” and smiley faces.  I don’t know who will read it, who I want to read it, or why people would read it.  My hope is that God will use this.  That, by some miracle, someone might be encouraged or challenged, learn, or just laugh while reading about the constant learning curve that I hope my life never veers off of.  And so begins the lessons of my life.

listening to: Washington Mile