The Kindlings Muse

Our TKM favorites had a winsome seasonal evening  this year with host Jennie Spohr, and Dr. Jeff Keuss along with panel contributors Charity Osborn, Suzanne Wolfe, Christine Chaney, and Michael Gruber.  Poetry, story, Music, tradition and more as each contributor shares how each comes to Christmas.

If you have you ever felt alone, lost, or like you are floating untethered, then listen to this exploration of isolation as it is portrayed in film. Alfonso Cuaron's (Children of Men) newest film "Gravity" starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney plumbs the depths of human frailty and what can be reborn out of extreme adversity. How does one's spirit triumph in the face of deepest despair? We'll talk about the film and loneliness with Dr. Christine Chaney, Dr. Jeff Keuss, cinematographer Heath Ward, and host Jennie Spohr.

Host Dick Staub with Reverend Earl Palmer in a lively discussion about the last published work of C.S. Lewis. This show originates from the Burke Museum Cafe on the campus of the University of Washington.

From The Lovesong of Alfred J Prufrock  to the mysterious complexity of The Wasteland and more, Earl Palmer gives us a detailed biography of one of the greatest poets of the 20th century - T.S. Eliot. Centered around The Complete Poems and Plays of T.S. Eliot as a reference, Earl draws an image of the man through his poetry. What shaped Eliot's poems? How did his difficult first marriage, his fame, his joys and journey write the words we've come to know so well?

"We are all in this together. Whether we know it or not, we are all fragments, all pieces of heaven." Each KindlingsFest is colored with the daily whimseys of Nigel Goodwin. Along with the theme of "Broken Beauty," and specifically a look at "Madness" in brokenness, Nigel reads from the Poets and Playwrights and of his own journey. In this podcast he reads the works of Tennessee Williams,  Christopher Marlowe, C.S. Lewis, and R.S. Thomas.

What makes a person of Excellence? Is it talent? Is it hard work? Is it intelligence? How is our current culture defining the best way to grow  - our children and ourselves? Gone are the trophies just for trying and the "everybody is a winner" mentality. The new buzz word in self-actualization is "grit." Research suggests people who work hard over long periods to master a specific skill have more chance at success than do naturally intelligent people. What effects will this new "tough it out by your own boot-straps" fad have on a new generation?  Dr. Jeff Keuss, and your host Jennie Spohr, law-professor and musician Charity Osborn, and middle school Associate Principal Mark Blomquist.

"Children are the most important creators of tradition in a family." Where do traditions come from? What place do traditions have in creating culture? Earl Palmer talk about towo sets of traditions for Christians:: the great events of God's love toward us Christmas and Easter  and the other set is made up of the different ways the people of faith make along the way. Earl looks at two books that track this second set of tradition making: Water from a Deep Well by Jerry Sittser & St. Francis of Assisi by G.K. Chesterton

“Thank you so much for being human with me." As part of our “What I've Learned About The Good Life So Far" series from Kindlingsfest 2013, Freya Kennedy shares how the Good Life is found in brokenness, humility, emptiness and grace - offering and receiving it. Jerry Root spoke earlier about how the Good Life is found in our poverty, Freya lives it out day to day in her family and occupation.

"Was Jesus just an illiterate peasant?" Reza Aslan's Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth. This controversial take on the life of Jesus caused waves across the country with a Fox News Interview with Reza Aslan that moved the book into the spotlight, but what does the book really say and why does it matter? We'll talk about the life of Jesus the man and how his passion is still stoking fires today with Rev Richard Dahlstrom, NYT best-selling author Michael Gruber, Dr. Laura Sweat, and your host Jennie Spohr.   In the Seattle area and wish to join the live audience? Find a Show

Each morning of KindlingsFest began with a devotional led by Dr. Jerry Root - who earned his Ph.D. at British Open University. Thesis: C. S. Lewis and the Problem of Evil: A Pervasive Theme. He is co-editor of the classic: The Quotable Lewis. In this third talk, Jerry walks us through the story of living with a look at mercy, the difference between Empathy and Sympathy, and how seeing from the other's perspective can bring about the Good Life.

"Why not embrace our Insignificance?" Author and Kindlings Muse Host, Jennie Spohr, shares what she has learned about the Good Life - what she thought it was and has come to find it really is. Could it be the Good Life is found in the insignificant and mundane of everyday living?

Each morning of KindlingsFest began with a devotional led by Dr. Jerry Root - who earned his Ph.D. at British Open University. Thesis: C. S. Lewis and the Problem of Evil: A Pervasive Theme. He is co-editor of the classic: The Quotable Lewis. In this second of three talks, Jerry Root shares his experience with Lewis' works and words and what they seem to say about what makes for the Good Life.

 “The Good Life includes Beauty: Is it in the eye of the Beholder or is inherent in the object of beauty? Both." Artist and Sculptor, Roger Feldman, creates spaces that force the participants to adjust their sense of belonging and balance within the space. In this short vignette from KindlingsFest 2013, he asks a series of questions as he answers, “What I've Learned about The Good Life So Far." You can watch a video of one of Roger's installation at Laity Lodge here: “The Story of Threshold."

Skip is an extraordinary man. Kidnapped at age two, a refugee from the Chinese Communist revolution, a man who had seen the world by the time he was sixteen, Chi-Dooh Li had earned his comfortable life in America. But a throwaway comment by a man he had never met shook him awake to a shocking realization and soon this Spanish-speaking Chinese lawyer from Seattle said “yes" to a crazy idea and write the book Buy This Land. Beginning with Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's commentary on Western culture and delving into the Wachowski's “The Matrix" and  Christopher Nolan's “Inception," Skip exposes the guilt, pain, loneliness and isolation we have come to accept as part of The Good Life when it is not for others. He offers that the big idea of Jesus is to “Wake Up! Face Reality," sharing his own wake up moment and the founding of Agros Interntational, a non-profit “committed to breaking the cycle of poverty for rural families in Central America and Mexico by enabling landless communities to achieve land ownership and economic stability."

Laurie Wheeler is one of the finest preachers in America. She is a pastor serving on the staff of University Presbyterian Church. She is a scholar having completed an M Div. at Fuller Theological Seminary, and is currently completing her PhD in NT at Durham. More importantly, she is passionate about the Kingdom of God and helping each person find their place in it. At Kindlingsfest 2013, Rev. Wheeler explores how communion is integral to Reimagining The Good Life, but she will shake up your understanding of community. She explains how you cannot truly experience the Good Life apart from a community in four parts: I Tell You a Mystery Communion is a Verb Choose Your Covenant Carefully Beds and Tables "What is the Good Life when we don't share all the same goods, the same space? We are not called to Community but to Communion..."