Author: Ben Clapton

I'm a violinist, teacher, composer and arranger from Ellenbrook, Western Australia. I love my family, coffee, AFL and running.

Friends

by Ben Clapton, posted in Archive, Life

Over my life so far, I have had the opportunity to make friends in very different situations. From the various primary schools, high schools, university, church and now work, I’ve got lots of friends. My Facebook (which is the way to show how many friends you have) has 620 friends, and I am proud to say that I have a personal connection with most of them. There’s a couple that I’ve only met online (mostly through my time on Violinist.com, which I was a regular for a number of years), but most of them I have met in one form or another through my life.

I’m also glad that through all these different places, I still keep in touch with a number of my friends. There are some that were friends for a while, but we’ve since lost touch. For example, one of my first mates from Pre Primary I now no longer see or really talk to, while I’ve renewed a friendship just recently with another primary school friend after moving close to him.

But there have also been those that are in the close group of friends that I see regularly. Since meeting these guys at church from around when I was in year 8, we’ve been close ever since. When they got their licences when I was in year 10, weekends would often end up with them coming around and us going for a random drive somewhere. I remember driving all over Perth with these guys delivering invitations because we thought it would be cheaper. It was memorable especially after coming down a steep hill and our driver poured stale coke on the brakes to cool them down. Wasn’t a great idea, but those brakes had fantastic grip for years to come.

See, friends aren’t just those guys you hang out with regularly. Friends are the ones who are there when memories are made. Friends are the guys who make the memories. Friends are not the guys who bail you out when you get in trouble, there the ones who are sitting there saying “Well, this sucks, but it was so totally worth it!”

To all my friends, big and small, who have made an impact on my life over the years, thanks. You’re totally awesome.

Postaday2011 links

Truth

by Ben Clapton, posted in Archive, Life

There’s a plane travelling in a straight line, with a  completely clear tube which runs directly straight from the bottom of the plane to the ground. There’s someone on a hill standing directly behind the plane, and another person on a different hill standing  at a 90° angle to the first person. A marble is dropped down the tube. Both people are asked what path the marble takes. The first person says it dropped straight down. The Second says it travelled in a curve. Which one is correct?

They both are. Both have told the truth, as they have seen it.

Sometimes the truth can hurt. The reason being is that it is often at odds to what we have seen. But I feel that it is better to know the truth, even if it will hurt. But both the receiver and the giver need to understand that they may well have seen the truth from their point of view, even if it is at odds with yours.

Postaday2011 links

In Memoriam: Who I miss and who I’ll miss

by Ben Clapton, posted in Archive, Life
Image of Alan Alda taken at the World Science ...
I think I will miss this actor the most. (Image via Wikipedia)

I’m dispensing with today’s two Daily Post Prompts because the first one is similar to one I’ve already written on in this Challenge, and I’m not particularly interested in the second. So I popped into Plinky to take a look at some of their prompts, and one caught my eye: Which pop culture icon’s unexpected death affected you the most? Now, not many stars deaths have affected me badly, however, I expect to have some more affect me in the next few years.

See, up until now, most star deaths have been people who I didn’t know. I hadn’t seen their movies, or haven’t listened to their music. However, stars such as Alan Alda, whom I love from Hawkeye in M*A*S*H, is getting older. Now I know that I cried when I watched episodes in M*A*S*H when Radar left, or when Henry left. How will I be when they leave for good?

Stars from Star Trek I’m sure will bring similar reactions. And more. So while in this past year we have lost many great actors, such as Leslie Nielsen, and pop culture icon Gary Coleman, I know that one day, we will lose the actors that mean so much to my generation, and on that day we shall remember them.

Postaday2011 links

What’s the most important thing I’ve been putting off?

by Ben Clapton, posted in Archive, Life

This post apparently… That was today’s Postaday2011 topic. What’s the most important thing I’ve been putting off? Why haven’t I done it, and what do I need to do to make it happen.

I struggled to think of what to write all day. It’s tough. There’s some things that I’ve been putting off that are quite personal, and shouldn’t be shared on here. There are other things that are so very mundane, such as mopping the floor (I might get to it tomorrow on my day off) that don’t really make good reading on a blog.

So what have I been putting off? There’s one task at my job that I was given in my first week. I was to go and talk to all the staff about how they used the database, and how it could be made better. I’ve been in my job over 6 months, and I still haven’t done it. At my three-month review (which really happened at the end of 6 months), I highlighted this as something I hadn’t done, as did my manager. During my reflection in preparation of the review, I thought about why I hadn’t done it.

At first, it was because I was shy. I didn’t know everyone. I didn’t know what everyone did. I didn’t know what sort of questions to be asking. So I put it off. A while later, we had a work experience person who came to our unit, and I was asked to show her around. I knew all bar one or two people who I hadn’t had much to do with. So when I came to doing my reflection, I realised that I did know everyone, I just hadn’t realised it.

So I said in my review that when I got back from holidays, I’d get around to doing it. I still haven’t done it yet, because I came back and I’ve been in full swing in getting the directory ready. So what’s holding me back now? Time. Soon I’ll have some, and I’ll get around and do it. Though it probably won’t be for a couple of weeks yet. But soon I’ll get back on track.

Postaday2011 links

Good thing about posting later in the day is that I get to see some blogs I don’t normally see posts of. So make sure you check them out, there’s some good posts there.

Floody Brave!

by Ben Clapton, posted in Archive, Life

 

Water in the Loddon River has risen higher than the level levees in Kerang were designed to cope with. (ABC Local : Deborah O'Callaghan)

There have been some awful stories coming out of Queensland and Victoria. Heart-wrenching stories. Yet through all the stress and heartbreak, there are stories of incredible heroism and bravery. Like Jordan Rice, who pushed his brother into the arms of SES rescuers, telling them to save him first, only for him to be washed away by the flood waters before they could return to rescue him.

 

Or the town of Warracknabeal in Victoria, who upon hearing that the flood was headed their way, all banded together and built a makeshift levee, to help protect the town. They then proceeded to make repairs during the night, and pump water from overflowed drains back into the river. Their efforts will most likely save a great number of homes that would have been inundated by the floods. At a time when so many people could have been forgiven for packing up as much as they could and running – having seen the terrible devastating effects of the floods in Queensland, this town showed their brave side, took on the flood and saved homes.

I’m sure there will be many more stories of bravery coming out of these floods as we get into the recovery effort. The great thing about Australia is that when people are in need, we band together and help out where we can.

Postaday2011 links

God’s Love

by Ben Clapton, posted in Archive, faith, Life

God is patient, God is kind. God does not envy, God does not boast, God is not proud. God does not dishonour others, God is not self-seeking, God is not easily angered, God keeps no record of wrongs. God does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. God always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. God never fails.

1 Corinthians 13:4-8a (NIV, Paraphrased by me)

I love this passage, especially with this paraphrasing. I preached on this passage last year at a youth service. The basic premise of it was that God is Love, and when we look at the passage above in that light, we see what God’s love for us is like. God is patient – he will wait our entire lives if necessary to share in the joy of us accepting him as our Lord. God always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. But the most hope-filled verse comes right at the end: God never fails.

When you trust in God, and fully rely on God, how can you not be full of hope, because you believe, just like I do, that God never fails. He can do the impossible, and the improbable, and the unexpected. How can anyone be filled with anything other than hope when they know that?

Postaday2011 links

An interventionist God?

by Ben Clapton, posted in Archive, Life

The topic from The Daily Post today is a tough one. Do you believe everything happens for a reason? Why or why not? It’s a tough topic to look at, as a Christian.

Photo by Oladimeji Ajegbile on Pexels.com

See, as Christians, we believe that we have free will – God gave us free will, which led to the fall of man, and the need for Jesus to come to forgive all our sins. Yet, God is all-knowing, and all-powerful, and knows what we are thinking before we even think it. So does that change things, for although we have free will, God knows what we’re going to do before we do it.

There are also Christians who believe that God is an interventionist God – basically meaning he is still active and changing things in the world, and others who don’t. I tend to lean towards the non-interventionist God in a way, believing that he’s still active in our lives, but not controlling such things as the weather. This would not sit comfortably with those Christians who believe that the floods in Queensland were a message from God.

So, do things happen for a reason? Yes and no. Some things happen because we cause them – cause and effect. I know that if I pour a beer over someone, I’m likely to get punched in the face. Or if I help someone out who’s struggling with something, I’m likely to get warm fuzzies. However, somethings happen because it’s the way the world is designed, and there’s nothing we can do about it. We can’t stop the wind blowing, the rain raining, or the sun shining (although sometimes I wish its UV was a little less potent to my skin). What we can do is control how we react to these situations. Do we want to use natural disasters as an excuse to judge people, or do we want to use them as a catalyst to spark Christian action, helping those we do not know?

Postaday2011 links

Marriage advice from women

by Ben Clapton, posted in Archive, Life

Little Black Dress
A Little black dress never goes astray (Image by dragon762w (trying to catch up) via Flickr)

At our engagement party, we had two sheets, for marriage advice from men and women. I’m not certain where the advice from men went (maybe my wife hid it… just kidding), but here’s the advice we received from women.

  • The wife is ALWAYS right.
    • Always remind him of that ^^^
  • Give him breakfast in bed
  • Never use sex as a bargaining tool.
  • Once you got him he ain’t gonna change bad habits… or good ones either… we hope
  • Don’t touch the tool box
  • A LBD (Little black dress) never goes astray
  • The laundry basket is where the dirty clothes go. The wardrobe is where the clothes go. Don’t mix ’em up!
  • Forgive MUCH and never go to bed angry
  • Don’t listen to him. Women are right.
  • Utility bills go in his name. Credit cards go in hers.
  • Visa cards are a girls best friend but not when you have to pay for them so get him to do it!! Every girl needs retail therapy.
  • Don’t let your husband touch a tool box
  • Remember to treat the extreme highs & lows of marriage with the attitude of “it will pass” and love bears all things.

Postaday2011 links

Golf weeks 4 and 5

by Ben Clapton, posted in Archive, Life

Dolder driving range on Adlisberg in Zürich (S...
Image via Wikipedia

I forgot to write last week so I’m including it in this weeks post. I went to Hamersley Golf course and played 9 holes with my dad and uncle david (on my wife’s side – I have to say that because I also have an Uncle David on both my mum and my dad’s side). I shot a bit better than my last round – if you remember while I 2-putted every hole at Marangaroo, I didn’t hit a fairway off the tee. This round, I hit one third of them, a slight improvement, which saw me saving 4 strokes on my previous round, scoring 62. Consistency is still the big issue, sometimes I’ll hit it straight, other times it’s horrible. Hit a great drive on the 8th, however I pushed it and it ended up landing on the edge of the driving range. Had a shocker on the 9th, after hitting it behind the fence on the driving range (drop for recovery, no penalty), I missed the green, but shot a beautiful lob wedge at full swing to land just shy of the hole – an easy 1 putt to finish.

So that was last week. This week, I’m back at Wembley, on the driving range. One of the things I wanted to work on last week was my 3 iron from the fairway. There was a par 5 at Hamersley that while all my shots we straight, they had no distance on them. Ended up taking 3 or 4 3-iron shots before I was in range to use my 5-iron. So today I made sure to hit a good number of strokes from the grass with my 3 and 5 irons, and my 5 wood. They weren’t great, but there were a few good ones in there, so if I can just remember what I did for those when I get out on the course next week, I’ll hopefully be doing a bit better, and be able to save a few more shots.

Next week, I’m playing a round at Embleton golf course, a tight little 9 hole course of par 3’s and 4’s. Because of this, it has a par score of 32, as opposed to the usual 36. So for me to improve my score, I’m going to go up against my par score from Hamersley – plus 26, or a stroke score of 58. Embleton is a very different course than Hamersley or Marangaroo – no bush to speak of, the rough is actually very clear, so there shouldn’t be any lost balls… I hope…

Posted with WordPress for BlackBerry.

Time Travel

by Ben Clapton, posted in Archive, Life

Example of a music manuscript: Johann Sebastia...
Image via Wikipedia

1720, Köthen. Johan Sebastian Bach has just completed his latest composition, Sei Solo – a violino senza Basso accompagnato, or as they are more commonly known, Bach’s Sonatas and Partitas for solo Violin. Out of all the dates, all the remarkable events, this is where I would choose to spend an hour if I could time travel. To hear Bach himself play the second partita in D minor in the cathedral where he worked, to hear the sound that Bach would have made, and to ask him about the Ciaconna.

For while there are other important moments throughout history that I would love to visit, there has been no other piece that has made such a significant impact on my life. On their own, each movement is incredible. As a sonata or Partita, it is an excellent example of violin writing. As a set, it is a masterpiece.

I’m going to leave it at that, and while there’s no videos of Bach playing (because it was a good couple of hundred years before even Audio recording was a possibility), I’m going to leave you with one of my favourite violinists, Yehudi Menuhin, playing the Ciaconna (an exceprt, because the entire piece is longer than 10 minutes, and I couldn’t find the second half).

Postaday2011 links