I first stepped into Tolkien’s world through a boxed set of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings sometime in the mid-70s. Taking on the larger-in-scope-and-theme Lord of the Rings was daunting, but I made it through and was captivated by the characters and the story. Today I’m marking the 47th anniversary of a film that left a mark onContinueContinue reading “Observing an Anniversary: Ralph Bakshi’s The Lord of the Rings (1978)”
Tag Archives: music
The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald
On a cold November night fifty years ago, a massive freighter vanished beneath the waves of Lake Superior. Gordon Lightfoot’s haunting ballad captures the storm, the ship, and the 29 men lost on this day in 1975: an enduring story of courage, nature’s power, and memory that refuses to fade. August of 1976 I wasContinueContinue reading “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald”
The Moment of Surrender: A Meditation
Sometimes at church, words, music, and the quiet stirrings of the heart converge at a single intersection. This particular Sunday, as the teaching on obedience and guidance unfolded, I felt it, the invisible thread pulling through the message, drawing me into a space both ordinary and sacred. The Crossroads of Reflection Let me be clearContinueContinue reading “The Moment of Surrender: A Meditation”
Links added to ‘New Trails’ page
Two new links have been added to the New Trails page: Middle-earth Blog — Michael Martinez has been writing Tolkien essays for about 26 years, starting with online posts in the late 1990s and notably on Suite101 from 1999 to 2003, continuing through his blog and books to the present. TuneFind — If you’ve everContinueContinue reading “Links added to ‘New Trails’ page”
Carried on the Swells: Reflections from Worship
Yesterday, I floated in the vast sea of God’s presence.No land in sight.The swells rose and fell.The waves whispered.Words failed. Prayers dissolved.The hush of the room settled over me, gentle and expectant.I was small. I was still. The crystal voices, simply instruments of praise, led through the quiet like light across the water.When we sangContinueContinue reading “Carried on the Swells: Reflections from Worship”
Veni. Vidi. Scripsi. 