10.31.06
I Always Wanted to be a Ninja
I always thought it bizarre growing up that kids wanted to be fire fighters or police men. In that day there was no 9/11 tragedy to give glory to these humble souls. In my mind it was all risk with no payoff. Why bother? What I wanted more than anything was to be a ninja. But, like so many childhood dreams it never materialized. I don’t know why exactly. Perhaps my parents never heard my subtle sighing as we passed the karate dojos around town. Either that, or they knew they’d be out 50 bucks the first time I was hit in the face while sparring.
What was it about the Ninja that was so appealing. The black pajamas? Cool weapons? Or the thought I might on day get my own video game? I never wanted to be a reptile but I always longed to have T-U-R-T-L-E Power.
I think mine was the ninja generation. We had double dragon, ninja gaiden, shenobi, TMNT, Dark Wing Duck. Maybe Drake Mallard wasn’t a ninja in the classical sense but he had the cool hat. If it hadn’t been for dinosaur mania and pokemon we might still live in a ninja world.
It is great when one of our friends gets to live out our dream. Sometimes it’s hard when someone close to you is doing what you always wanted to do, but only when there was a legitimate possibility you could have fulfilled the dream yourself. My ninja hopes were always fantasy in the truest sense. No only am I without training, my body was not made for anything more dexterously demanding than yo-yoing. No so my friend Brian. He is only 15, just a kid, and he just made Nidan this week. In his brand of ninja styles that makes him a full Sensei able to train others in their ninja skills. I know a real ninja. It’s true, he is technically not a ninja, a stealthy assassin trained for silent kills and covert operations, but what other word fits? Popular culture has filled up this word with supreme power, discipline, training and control; all words that describe Brian.
Congratulations Ninja Brian.
I am taking Greek and Hebrew this semester in school. Just Greek and Hebrew. I made the choice to attend Western Seminary because I have a lot of friends in the area, and because the school seemed to have a focus on ministry. That, and because it was half the cost of a similar program at Wheaton, the school where I got my MA in Church history. Wheaton was the first choice for this stage of my academic career until I was won over by the atmosphere and surroundings of the Portland area. Portland is a quaint city that is two hours from anything worth seeing: mountains, waterfalls, the ocean, the desert. While the drivers and pedestrians could all learn a lesson in road etiquette, it is much more comfortable and easy going than Chicago.
So, I just started the “#1 Bestseller” Eragon by Christopher Paolini. On the back of the flap I read that he started this book when he was 15 and he finished by 19. When I started I was suspicious that the entire book would be written in text speak. I am happy to report this is not the case. I am still getting introduced to the characters but it reads like someone who just finished studying for their SATs. I am coming across words like taciturn, incredulous, convoluted. Don’t get me wrong, I have no problem with a hefty vocabulary, I just can’t forget the images on the flashcards I used to learn these words myself. If I hadn’t read that he was so young I would have passed over these without a thought.
I recently finished “1984″, a terrifying anti-utopia that pushed Stalin’s communist ideology to extremes. At least that’s what I am told. In this world of perfected totalitarian communism the government is sponsoring the creation of a new language to render rebellion impossible. They believe that thought cannot take place without words, so by controlling language you can control what people think. Eliminate all words that refer to a specific concept, like freedom or rights, and the concept cannot be discussed or even considered. We can see the truth of this in science and philosophy. When something new is discovered it must be named. Without a name there is nothing to discuss. Only when something has been given a name, its own word, can that word, or the idea the word is meant to express, be given meaning. Eliminate all scientific language and you eliminate science itself. Destroy the language of liberty, and freedom will become impossible to pursue or even think about.