but give me love over, love over this

For most of us there is something we could point to in our past that crafted us into what we are today. Some had the benefit of a loving family, or an intimate relationship with that one person who has loved you more than you ever thought you deserved to be loved. It's that scene from "The Fisher King", when Robin Williams promises Amanda Plummer that he loves her because of her "issues", and swears he will always call. The kind of affection and commitment that sees past all the short comings, all the vices...the hurt and the insecurities. Some of us though, can't grasp that experience. For our entire lives we've been cheated out of love, and forced to find it on our own when it should have been lavished on us for as long as we could remember. The bruises we all carry underneath and try so desperately to cover with smiles and pleasantries like, "I'm good. You?" are the real us.

The name of this blog, "wounds that heal and cracks that fix", is a line from Coldplay's haunting, yet hopeful "Politik". The song seeks a worldview and asks for an explanation. We could give our own and that would be fine, but there's something deeper going on. If one was looking at us "from outer space", would they see all of humanity searching for "a place", and that fisher-king love? The second verse reads:

Give me one 'cause one is best
In confusion, confidence
Give me peace of mind and trust
Don't forget the rest of us
Give me strength, reserve control
Give me heart and give me soul
Wounds that heal and cracks that fix
Tell me your own politik"

As the song moves from its haunting drive, it culminates in its hopeful cry, "But give me love over, love over, love over this". The love that we cry out for, the love we long for is the only thing strong enough to heal the wounds and fix the cracks that we spend a lifetime hiding.


There are few books that carry with them a weight quite like Fyodor Dostoevsky's, The Brother's Karamazov. Throughout the monumental work we find a continuous theme. The picture Dostoevsky paints of the "lascerations of the heart", represent the deepest passions of humanity. Whether harmful or beneficial, they cut us to the core and leave wounds and cracks that make us a "Karamazov" - they make us who we are. We don't hide them, we recognize the bruises as reminders of weakness and a cry for the desperate love that will fill in all the gaps.

When I think of the horrors that some have endured, that perhaps some of you have endured, I can't pretend to know the pain or the hurt. Our wounds and cracks dont seem to all be the same size, or as deep. All I can hope is when you sing, "but give me love over this", the perfect love, the epic love of history, the love of a father for the wayward son, would be the end of the coverup, and would heal the wounds, and fix the cracks. May we give love over all to each other. May we find it.

The Only Thing Left: An American Soccer Dream

On the heels of what many would say was a dissappointing showing by the U.S. side, a chance for soccer to claim a stake at the American sporting table will unfortunately have to wait until South Africa four years from now. International competitions have come rather easily for us Americans throughout the years- dominating the Olympics, being unrivaled in basketball (until recently) and always having superstars all over the individual sports.

Americans love the sports that are unique to them. Baseball is the so-called pastime. Football is the American game. No one else plays it. To most Steeler and Raider fans, it is our gift to the world. The only problem is, the world was back at the gap the day after Christmas exchanging that way too pretentious sweater we bought them for their favorite color t-shirt - real football.

As a Miami Heat fan, there is nothing better that winning a championship. But our sports landscape is all about our professional clubs (i.e. Miami Dolphins, New York Yankees, etc.) When one of these teams win a championship, yes it's a big deal, but only to the city they play in, the region surrounding them, and their fans scattered throughout the country. So, what then would be the biggest thing that could happen to American sports? What could be the event, championship, that would captivate an entire nation and claim to be the single greatest moment in American Sports history right with the Miracle on Ice? A World Cup Title! If in 2010 this presently young team continues to grow and makes a legitimate run at the finals, and if they won the whole shabang! hands down it would be the biggest thing ever in American Sports! We are expected to win in every sport we play...except soccer. And when we do, either in 2010, or sometime in the next 25 years, not only will soccer find a seat at the table, but it will own the restaurant.