Well, better late than never, right?
Even Linsanity and the bound-to-happen racially-charged-headline couldn’t pull me back into the blogosphere because who I am not is a consistent blogger.
But I am a writer, and perhaps that was decided the moment I ignored the money, the thread, and the rice, and I grabbed the pencil and scribbled into a notebook on my first birthday.
Most days people will say I am a mom. My three amazing children and their ridiculous schedules keep me busy trying to figure out ways to two-way sync individual google calendars with my iCal so that at any given moment anyone of us can magically change the family calendar. There are still many nights when I check in on my sleeping kids (ages 16, 12 and 10) and still see them as they were when they came home from the hospital.
If you had told me 20 years ago that three people would call me “Mom!” I would have laughed.
My parents every now and then will say I turned out to be a decent wife, despite my feisty spirit (which is code for opinionated, stiff-necked and stubborn). Twenty years ago I was starting out my journalism career with little desire to marry, but then a few months later Peter changed my mind about the marriage part. My dad didn’t shed any tears when he “gave me away” because he was so happy someone would take me. (His words, not mine.) I take that as a compliment to the strength and confidence my parents nurtured in me.
Many folks know me as part of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship (you know, that Christian fellowship group that had an impact on a now-famous Asian American Christian NBA player). My business card says that I am the regional multiethnic ministries director. What that really means is that I love learning how God’s people in all of our diversity and shared humanity fall in love with Jesus, are transformed by His grace, and then leave their former lives to follow Jesus. My passion for the Gospel, culture and communication intersect beautifully most days in a full-time vocation that gives me space to preach, teach, write, rant, meet, learn and listen.
But as we interact here, please think of me as your neighbor. We might not know each other well, but hopefully our interactions over the internet fence will help us to get to know one another and, if we’re lucky, learn from one another enough to break some of the barriers down. When I’m not here, you can find me on Facebook, Twitter or my own blog.
I’m going to put it out there that Muhammed Ali probably did NOT make you investigate Islam or look at it differently or even gain any affection for it.
Like Michael Chang, our last great Asian American male athlete, Jeremy Lin thanks God every chance he gets. Faith must play some factor in their success in overcoming stereotypes, because as noted sociologist of religion Carolyn Chen writes, “the sacred makes people utterly reorganize their lives for something outside of themselves.” By playing not just for themselves, but for God and His Kingdom, they have that much more motivation to do well and represent.
But I have to admit, I’m terrible at it. Don’t have a reliable jumper. Turn it over like pancakes. Can’t dribble. I just sweat a lot. Basically, I’m the equivalent of a human folding chair that players use to dribble around in practice. But what can I say, I love the game.
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