An overturned table and the chaos around it is a symbol of hope for me this post-Easter week. Jesus’ longing for people to be intimately connected with God lead him to a radical rejection of the things that compete for space with God.

The Attention Merchants is a sobering history of advertising and commerce driven communication. It isn’t a screed against technology but a quiet warning about how our lives can be overwhelmed with technology’s easy access. Here’s a quote I found helpful; “What is called for might be termed a human reclamation project. For comparison, consider the sort of effort undertaken to reclaim some (other) natural resource, as when returning the land under an abandoned parking lot to wilderness. Over the coming century, the most vital human resource in need of conservation and protection is likely to be our own consciousness and mental space.” (The Attention Merchants Tim Wu, Knopf)

“It’s just gossip”, I thought as I listened to the talking heads on a Canadian news show. They all were in high dudgeon about comments a senator had made. They were angry, judgmental, self-assured and ready to have her shredded on a venetian blind for her sins.

Conversation has been an important word for me- I spend my life thinking I am engaged in them. Recently looking at the linguistic roots of the word, I found “live among”, ‘be familiar with” and “keep company with”. (New Oxford American Dictionary) Conversation, relationship and community seem to walk together.

Maybe while you read this the seasons are changing – we are shedding winter to open up to spring’s hope and growth. Light, warmth, and new life are the upward lift that we ride whether we know it or not. If my friends in New Zealand are reading this, spring sprang for you 6 months ago.