March 14, 2023

The Ides of March has always held a fascination for me (technically it is tomorrow, but we are in the ballpark). I know it is apocryphal that Julius Caesar was assassinated on this day mainly because of Shakespeare, but it is one of those stories that I always remember on that day. There are certain dates that we remember. Like our anniversary, birthdays, the Ides of March; and it usually has to do with something significant happening on that day.

My parents can tell me where they were when the moon landing happened. I can tell you where I was when 9/11 happened. My children can probably tell you the date they went home from school in March of 2020 with their teachers telling them to take as much stuff as they can because they were going to be on a “little” break.

We try so hard to make as many things as we can, “epic” or “memorable.” Activities ramp up more and more as we compete with our neighbors. Competition across the board fuels these comparisons, between schools, between sports teams, and even between neighbors.

But I was sitting at Tom Stowe’s house the other day playing music. If you don’t know how the Altar Egos (our in-house bluegrass ((is bluegrass the right word)) band (is band the right word?)) rehearse, it’s pretty great. We get a list of songs emailed to us. We all show up at the same time, we play through the songs, and we leave. And I told someone, we spin our wheels trying to come up with things that are new and innovative to try and grab people’s attention, when just sitting together for an hour playing music is so healing to our soul.

As part of our humble journey to the cross, let’s let go of our competition and need to be innovative and special, and appreciate the good things for what they are.

Peace,

Jordan