So I have a small addiction to NPR and while gettin high on it today I heard about the auctioning of the waters of northwest Alaska to the oil companies. 29 million acres to be exact. There was a record bid of $2.6 billion, which leads me to believe that anyone can get what they want for the right amount of money. It made me kinda sick. Not to mention this is polar bear land, and they are already being threatened by global warming- the first species to be on the list. (which leads me to the next reference to polar bears that I had today- did you know their skin is black and their fur is actually transparent so that it absorbs heat... you go talking about polar bears and you learn all SORTS of stuff).

Now I'm not a super freak environmentalist or anything. It was more like a gut feeling of wrong with the situation. It seems like the last lingering of hope of any preservation. I know we need oil (I also have my own conspiracy theories on that... just look up the hemp industry in this country if you think our country has good intentions about our resources), but I wonder if this oil is going to be worth all the destruction it will cause. They estimate a 50% chance of an oil spill because it is water not land. Those stakes seem a little high to me. I have never been to Alaska but my sister-in-law's family owns property there and I saw pictures of my brother's trip- it was the kind of beauty that makes the world still seem okay, like we haven't completely killed it yet.

Oh and here rare the cute babies. Yes, that's right, babies babies babies. :P

Missing Image ;(

Missing Image ;(

Okay, so I don't know if anyone has seen the Simpsons where Homer finds the screaming worm and wants to kill it but it's endangered, so he has to care for it? Well, that's what Fern sounds like the past week or so, and I'm super proud of her for trying out her lungs but I feel like my head is going to implode. Oh, man she looks so proud of herself when she does it! Man babies are lucky they're cute, or there would be a lot more porch drop-offs at the orphanage...

Okay, so I signed up for this site ages ago (well (e:enknot) signed me up really) and for some reason I have never written a journal. And it's true, I'm not much for airing my personal issues out to dry, but I am mostly just reserved for a preliminary period. Watch out after that's over!
I felt very compelled to respond to the journals written regarding children and religion (I know, I'm one of the creepys who reads but doesn't contribute). Religion is so huge in my life, yet so very insignificant. I am fascinated with all types of religion, but never could commit to one. I try not to commit myself to any one absolute, any right answer. How limited that would leave me as a person. But I am always interested in new ways of finding strength and good, be it in myself or others.
For some reason, my 5 year old decided to pursue devout christianity a few months back. How this came to be is only speculation and really does not matter to me. What matters is her interest in knowledge. I do anything I can to support that, even if I don't agree with the information.
I do agree with the morals, however. I was raised methodist and was given the choice to continue my religion immediately after I was confirmed at 11. By then all the fantastical allure of religion had faded and I really didn't believe anymore. But I still decided to go to church with my mom, because I wanted to work in the daycare. I can't say today whether or not religion played a part in me having sound morals, but I don't think it could have hurt.
Religion gets a bad rap sometimes. I'm not saying that it is entirely undeserved- there is some messed up stuff that is undeniably wrong with every religion. But what kind of idiot takes ANYTHING for face value? Religion is supposed to inspire thought, not replace it.
And as far as the whole science and religion thing.... I totally misled Mya when I told her some people believe science, some God ("I pick God!"). My intentions with my children is to give it to them straight no matter how ugly (as much as is reasonable, they're both really little), and I wanted her to know of the classic dichotomy between the two. How fortunate it isn't so cut and dry anymore, but unless history is understood it is bound to get repeated. I unintentionally repeated that, but hey, I've got a few years to correct all that I hope.
One final note. Exposure is the path to good choices. Restriction leads to poor choices (come on, I know some of you had super strict parents then lost your mind in college. I know I did). My job as a parent is not to tell my children what to do or believe, but to make them understand what they should do and find what they truly believe. I know I won't always succeed at this, but I do hope I always strive for it.