Stress tests

Some pleonastic phrases are part of a language's idiom, like "safe haven" and "tuna fish" in English. They are so common that their use is unremarkable, although in many cases the redundancy can be dropped with no loss of meaning. Often, pleonasm is understood to mean a word or phrase which is useless, clichéd, or repetitive, but a pleonasm can also be simply an unremarkable use of idiom. It can even aid in achieving a specific linguistic effect, be it social, poetic, or literary. In particular, pleonasm sometimes serves the same function as rhetorical repetition — it can be used to reinforce an idea, contention or question, rendering writing clearer and easier to understand. Further, pleonasm can serve as a redundancy check by computer scientists to insure smooth transmission of data across a business network. And if a word is unknown, misunderstood, or misheard, or the medium of communication is poor — a wireless telephone connection or sloppy handwriting — pleonastic phrases can help ensure that the entire meaning gets across even if some of the words get lost.

So, why the foray into lingo-land? A couple of reasons, actually. First, I've recently finished reading an interesting book about teaching children faith, written by Arthur Henry King- an expert in language-detail research and teaching. Second, I've been pondering the meaning of the phrase "stress test". I'm not sure whether the phrase fully qualifies as a pleonasm but it certainly seems to contain two words which are at the same time useless, cliched and repetitive. And the phrase is used so frequently that it definitely can be considered common. And yet, underlying its use is a fertile ground of meaning. Images of tension, suffering, pressure and apprehension come to mind. Life, it seems, is basically a series or sequence of stress tests.

Some tests provide more stress than others, but all- by their very nature it seems- cause us to pause and consider how well prepared we are for their results. And pretty much every test does generate a result. When we say that we've failed a test or that the results of the test were abnormal then the stress seems to escalate. So perhaps the phrase should have the word "test" before the word "stress" since the former leads to the latter. But few people would have any idea what you were saying if you said you were about to take a "test stress". In fact, the simple reversal of the order actually seems to lessen the stress felt since it is the stress that's now being being tested (rather then the one who is taking the test feeling stressed).

Gratefully, when one passes a test or the results end up being normal then stress is usually relieved. If only we could tell going into a stress test that our stress would soon be relieved. However, that sort of outcome would require a different figure of speech. And some faith. Maybe even the faith like that described by Tennyson when he wrote that "[f]aith unfaithfully kept him falsely true." But that would be oxymoronic.

Overcoming

A beautiful sunny Spring day today. I rode my bike in again and enjoyed being serenaded by birds along the way. Noticed a few more walkers out on the trail as well. But mostly I noticed the inside of my own thoughts this morning. Lots to think about these days. I find myself facing some new challenges that have redirected my thinking.

This morning I was studying some scriptural verses from the book of Revelations in the New Testament that all contain the phrase, "to him that overcometh". The promises that St. John the Divine records for those that overcome are intriguing. They include receiving sustenance ("manna"), access to the fruit of the "tree of life", the ability to translate or interpret ("white stone" aka "Urim and Thummin"), power over the nations, clothing and forgiveness ("white raiment"). Those who overcome are also told they will be come a pillar in the temple, have their name praised by the Lord Jesus Christ to God the Father and be granted a place to sit next to Christ the same as he has been granted a place next to His Father. Interesting symbols to consider this week following Easter. Interesting symbols to consider in a world of economic and moral uncertainty.

The "tree of life" symbol calls out other interesting concepts and words for thought. Not sure what species of tree John had in mind but in a later verse he indicates that the tree he was thinking of "bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations". I suppose much of this would be symbolic of the 12 sons of Israel referred to as the "House of Israel" and its future role as the covenant people. Given all the angst in the Middle East we could sure use a grove of those trees along with healing leaves by the bushel. Elsewhere the fruit of the tree of life is described as "desirable to make one happy".

As the leaves bud out, the grass starts to green and life returns to the prairie, I appreciate these sorts of symbolic promises. They provide good reasons to hang in there and overcome.

Riding my bike

I rode my bike to work today. It was still a little brisk but the sun was shining and it felt nice to be doing something that is wholesome, energy efficient and fun. In an era of societal uncertainty, its always nice to find something that is uncontroversially good.

Almost anyone can ride a bike if they choose and nobody is going to argue with its merits. It consumes no gasoline, produces no CO2 and is probably as safe an activity as anything in life. No creative financing is required nor does the activity scream of any moral statements or judgment. Amazingly, its also an activity that's fat-free, calorie-burning, energizing and enjoyable. Riding a bike gets your heart and legs pumping, amps up the circulation to your brain and opens up the mind to deeper meditations. And unless you paste a billboard on your back or strap a boombox to your bike frame, you can generally wear whatever you want and ride wherever you want unnoticed and anonomous.

My childhood revolved around the bicycle for several seasons. Between the ages of 5 and 12 I rode my bike everyday and everywhere. It was my vehicle of choice for going anywhere or going nowhere in particular. I remember the thrill when my little brother also learned to ride his bike because then he could join me on my rides. Life was simpler then. The lazy days of summer passed by effortlessly, in large part due to the wide access a bike provided me to the woods, streams, gullies and neighborhoods of my childhood.

So, why my rapture about something as mundane as riding a bicycle? Hard to say, but perhaps it hails back to something I read earlier this week. The author, a university professor and former member of his country's education commission, comments on the importance of children reading and being read to. He also talks about the benefits of repetition. Young minds grow and develop in very particular ways and hearing the same storybook read over and over has been found to be very helpful for a number of reasons. Anyone who has experienced this can testify to the fact that young kids love hearing the same story over and over. Just ask yourself how many times have you read, "Good Night Moon", "Right Foot, Left Foot", "The Hungry Caterpillar" or "Green Eggs and Ham".

It appears that repetition of ordinary tasks such as reading and re-reading a storybook enables both learning and positive value development. For it is during the repetition that one is able to enjoy deep thoughts and find treasures of knowledge in the midst of the mundane. Contrast this with what happens to kids that are forever reading new books, watching TV or playing the newest of the never ending supply of video or computer games or movies. Kids that get caught up in the pattern of seeking the latest, greatest and newest of everything often find themselves on a never ending treadmill. Their minds and lives are never satisfied with the ordinary. These kids then grow up and become adults who are accustomed to always having something new and exciting before their eyes. And in the process the inquisitive spirit is deadened as the ability to fail to take notice of the joys that come from life's common events fades.

Gone are the times of a lazy afternoon throwing the ball with Dad, camping out in the backyard, riding bikes with the neighbor kids or building forts with scrap lumber. None of these hold the same superficial appeal as the latest Gameboy or iPod or Facebook gadget. And yet, how often can you stop and smell the newly emerging crocuses or listen to the sound of recently returned robins while playing Nintendo?

I did both on my bike ride to work this morning.

Potholes and Ruts

Its pothole season here in Minnesota. As Spring reluctantly comes to the north land the roads become the battle ground of warm weather and cold. Warming during the day followed by freezing at night causes fissures and cracks in road surfaces. These in turn cause holes which grow up to become full-fledged potholes. The seemingly-endless freeze-thaw cycle endemic to our weather, in combination with the snow-melting salt we use to make our streets passable each winter, breaks apart pavement. Often, deep craters are formed- some rival those on the surface of the moon for size!

A rut on the other hand is a depression or groove worn into a road or path by the travel of wheels or skis or by erosion from flowing water. In cold climate areas, such as Minnesota, studded or chained tires can cause significant road surface wear in terms of rutting. Ruts can be removed by grading a road surface. A vehicle with wheels or skis, travelling on a rutted road, if its wheels or skis enter an existing rut will have difficulty steering out of the rut. If it proves impossible to steer out of a rut, though forward and backward progress can be made by the vehicle, it is referred to as being "stuck in the rut". The term "stuck in a rut" can be used figuratively to refer to a situation in which, as time progresses, the situation is unable to be changed or steered in a desired way.

So, generally speaking potholes and ruts are things to be avoided. Sure they might serve as landmarks or to help us find our way to a particular destination, but more often than not they impede our progress. And yet, choosing avoidance as our life's strategy seems to be incomplete. Choosing a lifestyle that merely dodges the inconveniences placed in our way by others is certainly safe, prudent, and appropriate much of the time, but its also kind of boring and reactionary. Telling ourselves that we've successfully avoided all negative ruts and potholes is much like saying we avoided eating too much sugar. Yes, it's probably a good thing not to eat too many Snickers candy bars but that practice alone says very little about what healthy, invigorating or pleasurable food we sought out and actively chose to eat.

Saying that we've successfully avoided the potholes and ruts created by others says nothing about whether we played any role in either creating or removing potholes or ruts. Sure we've missed hitting the bad things that lie in our path- that's good. But if all we're doing is trying to steer clear of the bad things that may come our way it seems we might be missing out. There seems to be so much more to living- finding, seeking, learning, chancing, experimenting, yearning, creating, and yes, even risking. All proactive, all aimed at moving well beyond known boundaries. All with the potential of finding new roads and paths to travel...and then pointing the way for others to experience that which is unique, new, novel and delicious.

So while it's a good thing to be safe and avoid crater-like potholes and deep, ornery ruts which prevent us from going where we want to go, perhaps these should be done in balance with other more overt acts of choice. As the church hymn asks, "Have I done any good in the world today, have I helped anyone in need? Have I cheered up the sad and made someone feel glad? If not, I have failed indeed." A nice way of saying its good not to get stuck in a rut.