Thursday Three For All: Bodyguards, Not Mattering, and a Stumbling Deer
It’s Thursday, kiddies: the day when I roll out a few things I’ve been reading over the past week. Three of ‘em, to be exact. Enjoy. (Remember: click on the big bold print to read the entire article.)
My Bodyguard, My Self
(via @jamiekeiles) I found this to be a fascinating long-form article about how the – ahem – people different than us walk around.
The history of the security detail is arguably as old as the history of power. For as long as there have been people at the top, there have been knights, samurai, somatophylakes, housecarls, Varangians, and Praetorian Guards cast in the role of personal protectors. Like today, the guards of bygone times shared a close relationship to the military and police. The image of the modern bodyguard, with his no-frills suit and unflappable demeanor, dates back to 1901, when the United States Secret Service—initially an anti-counterfeiting agency—served after the assassination of William McKinley to protect the new president-elect, Teddy Roosevelt. Since then, the industry has expanded in step with mass media. As the world of media and the paparazzi grew, famous faces with something to fear increasingly turned to bodyguards for their protection.
The Glorious Freedom Of Mattering…And Not Mattering
(via @_michaelkelley) And in a complete pivot from the last article…
When I feel big, there is the gospel that reminds me that I was dead in my sin and transgression, too lost to even know that I was lost. That every supposed righteous thing I might do, say, or think is tainted with my own selfish ambition and vain conceit. That although I might be the instrument that offers the word of peace or comfort to another, I am far from necessary when I consider the hand of the One holding me. That it could just as easily be another who was speaking or writing or talking at a given moment, for God will have His way with or without me.
Stumbling Deer Paired with “In the Air Tonight”
(via Josh Ballico) Of course you’ve seen this clip. Of course you have. But if you’re like me, returning to it for…oh…the 20th time won’t matter one little bit.
photo credit: Jason Mathis
