kristova leta

i realize i've done a lot of stuff in czech on here. sorry if that's weird to you. it's the world i live in and it seems normal to me. i meander in and out of czech and english all the time and sometimes we just don't have equivalent words in english to the czech. take the above phrase, for instance. it means, literally, "Christ years."

for the last year as i told people my age when they asked i got a smile and nod as they said, 'oh, next year is your Christ years.' i was 32 until yesterday. the first time i heard this i demanded that the speaker go back and explain to me what that phrase meant to them and how on earth the most atheistic nation in europe retained such a biblical description for a year of one's life.

the usual response to this demand is 'uhhh. isn't that how old he was when he died?' and the answer is, of course, yes. the question is almost always put back to me, 'don't you say this in english?' and my response is usually 'uhhh. no.'

amazing. i sat down with my czech tutor today and we went through many of the czech phrases that come from the Bible and/or a judeo-christian background. some were familiar to me because of their english equivalent: sacrifical lamb, forbidden fruit, doubting thomas. others are not used in english: job's news (bad news); benjaminek (given to the youngest member of a family, team, group, etc); 'don't stand there like lot's wife' (!); and others. i can give you more if you're interested.

it's remarkable how much has been retained by the language and the culture that flows from it. God promises a remnant when belief in him and faithfulness to him wanes. and it seems to me that no matter how dark this place seems and feels and is, there is a remnant of belief in God here—evidenced in the language of this place.

so how should this year be different from all the others? it is, after all, my Christ years. that's quite a mantle to hoist on an age. (and i always thought there were no more good birthdays to look forward to after 25.) i don't really know. a good friend send me an sms last night that said, in essence, since it's your Christ years, stay sober! hm. i'm not sure what prompted that but it's not bad advice. staying sober insures you won't miss something (well, unless you fall asleep or aren't paying attention) that you would if you...ahem...weren't sober. and i, for one, have had plenty of regrettable moments that would have been blessedly avoided had i followed the above advice.

i can say without hesitation that i hope my Christ years will not end with public (or private) crucifixion. and i hope not with another form of death either. but it is odd to realize that, at my age, Christ had been walking alongside his 12+ friends—teaching them, healing others, dining with outcasts—for three years already, and he was almost done. i think i'm just getting started. i might have used my time much differently had i known i only had 36 months or so to accomplish my goals. that's a startling thought and not one i'm sure i want to entertain. (do i really want to think that through?) one thing is certain: i don't feel old enough to be done with life, and i don't feel old enough to know much about life, either. i'm just getting started.

at least i hope that's the case.