edrocha1961

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College Memories

Posted by edrocha1961 on April 29, 2017
Posted in: English. Tagged: college, drafting, talking. 2 Comments

Some of my best memories from college were the nights I would stay up, finishing projects due next morning. I remember the music playing on the FM radio and the smell of the coffee that I would drink to stay awake during the countless hours. The best were the technical drawings that we would prepare on size A-zero paper, since Computer Aided Design was not that popular at that time.

Sounds nerdy, but seriously it brings me fond memories.

But another vivid memory I have is from one class in college when we were working on our designs in this large classroom filled with drafting tables.

After some initial explanations from the professor, we were all working on our projects.

I was there multi-tasking: working and talking to my friends around me, when the professor came behind my drafting board. He was a short man and all I could see was the upper half of his head, but I still remember his eyes when he said to me: “Young man, you talk too much!”

That caught me by surprise, but it did not prevent me from replying with, what I thought was a smart comment: “You are right, my mother always tells me that”.

His reply was the best: “You need to remember that I don’t love you as much as your mom!”

That was a good answer that, in a rare moment, left me speechless.

 

The truth is: I am not a young man anymore, and I still talk too much.

Now, it is not my mom, but my wife who reminds me of that, once in a while (good thing she loves me as much as my mom, and way more than that professor).

 

I feel really guilty when I read the Bible verse in James 1:19 that says: “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry” (at least I am quick to listen and slow to become angry, so I get like a “C” on this – 2 out of 3).

I need help! Please offer some suggestions (“just shut up!” does not count as a suggestion).

Thank you.

Don Quixote de La Mancha (Reprise)

Posted by edrocha1961 on April 22, 2017
Posted in: English. Tagged: Cervantes, Don Quixote. 1 Comment

39

Today I will re-publish one of my favorite posts, from 2014 with minor updates:

 

A few years ago I was in Stratford, Ontario, not far from Toronto, in Canada.

During the time I was there I had the opportunity to go to the theater to see the “Man of La Mancha”.

The play shows Cervantes’ character “Don Quixote de La Mancha” interacting with a group of thieves, prostitutes and murderers in a makeshift prison-village, during the Spanish Inquisition.

The play is full of madness, mixed with idealism and optimism.

Among the characters there is “Aldonza”, known by the others for her past as a prostitute, and still treated by them as such.

But Don Quixote calls her “Dulcinea” as he treats her like a lady, protects her, and shows her a very respectful love.

Puzzled with the unexpected attention, she resists his love, repeating that she is not worth it.

Upon his persistence, she comes to a point when she approaches him and says “Look at me! What do you see?”

After staring at her for a few seconds, he says “Beauty. Perfection.”

When I heard him saying that I thought “that’s exactly how God sees us when we have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus”.

Despite of our past, despite of our mistakes, we were made clean. Justified.

God sees Jesus’ perfection in us, and loves us deeply.

So we can have a relationship with him, and a victorious life, knowing we are loved by Him!

Romans 8: 37-39 seems a great closing for those thoughts:

“In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.

For I am convinced that neither death nor life,

neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future,

nor any powers,

neither height nor depth,

nor anything else in all creation,

will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord”.

The Day They Laughed At The IRS

Posted by edrocha1961 on April 15, 2017
Posted in: English. Tagged: Easter, file, IRS, Language, taxes. 1 Comment

Filling out tax forms can be complicated.

Even more so when you are a foreigner trying to understand the system in a new country.

Now, double the difficulty when you had income in two countries in the same year.

Well, I have been there!

 

My company transferred us from Brazil to the U.S. in the middle of 1994, so they hired a Price Waterhouse tax expert to help with the process.

The lady came and asked for my W-2, the bank statements, receipts, etc. so she could fill out the forms.

Since we were too close to the infamous tax day in April, she proposed we should send a check for the estimated amount, while she would prepare the forms. So, we did it.

After a couple of weeks she brought the filled out forms and said, “Now all you have to do is file it”.

About a month later I got a letter from the IRS stating that, even though they had received my check, they never got the forms.

I called our Human Resources Director to my office to complain: “Price Waterhouse made a huge mistake: they never sent my forms to the IRS”.

He replied: “But, you are supposed to send the forms.”

“No, no” I exclaimed, “the lady said all I had to do was to file it” I said as I opened the drawer on the file cabinet next to my desk and showing him the envelope from Price Waterhouse.

“To file means to mail it to the IRS. You were supposed to sign those forms and mail them”, he explained.

“Are you kidding me? I already know several meanings for the word ‘file’: to file metal, your nails, or to file a document in a cabinet… so it also means ‘to mail it tax forms to the IRS?” I sighed in frustration.

So, I immediately sent the forms (filed them) with a letter explaining the whole story above.

I still believe that is still the only day they laughed at the IRS.

 

Tax day is coming again, but I want to discuss the lesson behind this story: how many times we are so familiar with a process that we use a language that is normal for us, assuming the other side understands it.

I see this happening at work when technical terms or acronyms are used as if everyone, including the guy who started yesterday, knew exactly what they mean. That is mean!

Now, since this is Easter weekend and its whole theme is in the air, I wonder how many times we do the same in spiritual matters. Speaking in a language that may be familiar to some of us, but completely foreign to others.

Can you imagine telling a Chinese who just arrived in our country that he needs to be ‘born again”, otherwise he is condemned to ‘eternal damnation’?

 

Wouldn’t it be better if we would talk about how God loved us, and share our personal story? Talk about our relationship with God.

Or even better, start by loving and caring for the person, in a way your life will reflect God’s love, so you can talk about it at some point?

By the way: it is not about Religion, it is about Relationship.

Happy Easter!

Blessed

Posted by edrocha1961 on December 24, 2016
Posted in: English. Tagged: blessed, sad, stressed. 2 Comments

walking

I have always considered myself blessed:

I grew up in a great family that loved me and took care of me…

I did extremely well in school and have had many good friends…

My professional career has been very successful and rewarding…

I married a beautiful and wise woman and had two strong and smart boys…

My health has been pretty good…

And I have enjoyed a great relationship with God throughout the years.

Blessed. Very blessed.

 

In the last few years, though, some painful things happened. They have been like swords to the heart.

Dreams were shattered.

Those things occupy a large space in my brain, and it seems that I have focused on them more and more, becoming deeply sad.

 

In the last few days I have been sending messages to my friends wishing a Merry Christmas and a blessed 2017.

Now I stopped to think about 2016, and suddenly I questioned myself: Was it a blessed year for me?

Immediately my mind wanders to what it means to be blessed. Is it to have good health? A family? A job? A house? Is it to have everything go our way? Is it to have no problems?

 

Last Sunday when we were reading about Jesus’ birth I read the verse where Mary is called “blessed”.

Yes, she had the tremendous privilege of giving birth to the Son of God. She held the Messiah in her arms. She lived with Him for 33 years, heard his teaching, and saw His miracles.

But she also saw Him being rejected, humiliated, beaten and being put on a cross. I can hardly imagine the pain she felt when she was at the feet of the cross watching her son die.

Was the apostle Paul a blessed man? He had a personal encounter with the Lord. He had a great relationship with God. But also he was stoned, thrown in prison, and killed for his faith.

I could keep on going, but I believe these examples support the question above: What does it mean to be blessed? Yes, the short list above are for sure valid examples of blessings that we can have, but I find no guarantees in the Bible that our lives will only have good moments.

So, what is it then?

When Peter is writing to the Christians that are being persecuted by the Roman Empire, he tells them that when they are suffering for the name of Christ they are blessed (suffering = blessings ??).

He then explains why: “for the spirit of glory and of God rests on you”.

Or if we go to James we find: “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.”

 

I know this post is already fairly long, but I could not leave out II Corinthians 4: 7-11:

“We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed… so that His life may be revealed in our mortal body”

 

In other words, we may have hard times, and we may receive great blessings in our life here (and we do receive more than we even notice), but the real blessing that is promised to us is the relationship with the Creator of the Universe, the opportunity to have His Spirit in us, and the assurance that we will be in His presence forever.

That has to be our focus. The rest is bonus.

Merry Christmas and a blessed 2017!

 

Disruption

Posted by edrocha1961 on December 10, 2016
Posted in: English. Tagged: bill gates, disruption, disruptors, elon musk, forbes, jesus christ, mark zuckerberg, oxford, steve jobs. Leave a comment

disruption

According to the Oxford dictionary the definition of Disruption is: “Disturbance or problems which interrupt an event, activity, or process”

So, in my mind “disruption” was a bad thing (at least that is what my third grade teacher told me when I was talking during class).

Some time ago, I even wanted to change our company’s Quality Policy, replacing the words “zero defects” by “zero disruptions” to include other events that affect the customers, such as late deliveries, packaging issues, etc. that are not directly product defects.

Disruption is a bad thing, right?

 

Well, in 1995 Clayton Christensen, a Harvard professor, started using the term to explain a kind of innovation that displaces existing markets, industry or technology.

Now, being a “disruptor” became a good thing (unless you are the industry being displaced).

The world praises Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk…

In 2013 Forbes Magazine started publishing “The Most Disruptive Names in Business”.

It is inspiring to think that one person with one idea can cause such an impact. What is the next Uber, Amazon or Netflix?

As I am writing this my brain is going through history looking for disruptors, and even if the use of the word is new, the concept is not. For example, the automobile was a great innovation, but it was too expansive and the production was too limited to be a disruption until Henry Ford made it affordable.

 

I continue this journey of rewinding history in my mind looking for disruptors, thinking of big inventions, or philosophical ideas or concepts that radically displaced the existing model…

Until suddenly I am thinking of Jesus Christ.

Probably his photo should be next to the word disruptor in the dictionary. I don’t think the calendar will be changed to use any of the other disruptors birth date as reference.

One man, and a small bunch of followers turned the world upside down.

There were many other teachers and philosophers at His time, but none of them was the Son of God. None of them died and resurrected.

None of them changed so many lives. None of them can give an eternal relationship with God.

Do you want an inspiring concept for these closing days of 2016? Look no further than Christmas.

Disruption can be a very good thing!

1982

Posted by edrocha1961 on October 15, 2016
Posted in: English. Tagged: 1982, chevette, passat, worthy. Leave a comment

passat-evaldemeia

 

The year was 1982.

The youth group in our church planned a weekend trip to another city some 300 miles far from São Paulo where we lived.

We needed about 10 cars to take everybody, but I had a 1974 Chevette, and I was not sure if it would be able to handle the 600 mile round trip.

At that time I was dating Liz and she had an aunt who was running for a State Representative for one of the major political parties. To help their candidates the party made available a brand new VW Passat painted with their name, as well as several other candidates for other positions. Besides that, the car had loud speakers on the roof, so the candidates could advertise their platform as they drove around.

Well, I was offered to take that car for our trip and I gladly accepted, so we hit the road with this moving billboard.

During the trip we made a restroom stop at a gas station, so we fell behind the other cars from our group. That’s when I decided to catch up by going a little faster than the speed limit, which didn’t last very long: I was stopped by the Highway Patrol.

As soon as the officer came to my window he expressed his frustration over my behavior.

He said that by breaking the law I was hurting the image of “our party”. He went on and on about how bad it would look for people to see a representative of the party doing something illegal.

Despite the embarrassment, I was happy that he decided to let us go, after finishing his sermon and obtaining my commitment that I would not do that again.

Actually I had to admit that he was right: I was representing the party, and my behavior would reflect in people’s perception.

 

This memory hit me the other day when I was preparing the Bible study we are doing in Paul’s letter to the Ephesians.

As I started studying chapter 4, I read this: “Therefore, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received”.

In the first three chapters of Ephesians Paul presents how God has loved us and provided salvation by His grace, so we can have a relationship with Him. Now Paul starts to describe the expectations for our lives as a consequence of that relationship.

We don’t need to behave a certain way to be accepted by God, but because we have been accepted by Him.

People are watching us and the way we live may bring them closer to the Lord, or push them away.

Are we living a life worthy of our calling?

Who Invented the Airplane?

Posted by edrocha1961 on August 13, 2016
Posted in: English. Tagged: airplane invention, santos dumont, wright brothers. 1 Comment

Rio de Janeiro - Cerimônia de abertura dos Jogos Olímpicos Rio 2016, no Maracanã (Reuters/Damir Sagolj/Direitos Reservados)

Last week many people watched the opening ceremony of the 2016 Olympic Games that are happening in Rio de Janeiro, in Brazil.

It was a beautiful event, which included a variety of things that represent the country: from the natives, to the Portuguese, the slaves and all the other people groups that immigrated to Brazil over time, making it such an interesting place.

Besides showing Gisele Bundchen grand entry to the tune of “Garota de Ipanema”, there was another display that caused some controversy: the simulated flight of the 14Bis, an airplane flown in front of a large audience in 1906 by Santos Dumont, a Brazilian that lived in France and is known in Brazil as the “Father of Aviation”.

As soon as that was shown on TV last week I got a text from a friend, saying: “what are they going to say next: that a Brazilian invented electricity, the telephone, the iPod…?”

Well, my fellow Brazilians, the truth is: Santos Dumont did not invent the airplane!

My American friends are now saying: Obviously not. The Wright Brothers flew in 1903, so they are the inventors of the airplane. That is why we call Ohio “The Birth Place of Aviation” or North Carolina “The First in Flight” (because that is where the brothers flew the first time).

Sorry, Americans, I will have to wipe that smirk off your face now: The Wright Brothers did not invent the airplane also (Gasp!!!).

Before you ask me to return my American passport and leave the country, please give an opportunity to explain why I am saying that.

 

People were flying with hot air balloons and gas filled balloons since the 1800’s. But you will say, those are not airplanes, to be called an airplane it has to be “heavier than the air”.

 

Ok. Thousands of years ago, people were flying attached to huge kites. Then you say: but those were attached to the ground, those were not airplanes. To be called an airplane it has to be “heavier than the air and fly without any connection to the ground”.

 

A  paper plane does that! Ok, it has to be “heavier than air, fly without any connection with the ground and carry a person”.

 

What about a glider? In that case Sir George Cayley flew in 1858, in a somewhat controlled manner with his glider.

No, you say again, to be an airplane it has to be “heavier than air, without any connection to the ground, capable of carrying a person and able to maintain flight by its own means”.

 

In that case either Felix du Temple or Clement Ader should be considered the creator of the airplane, since they adapted engines to their machines and flew for a few meters in an uncontrolled flight in the late 1800’s. Well, than we may need to call an airplane something “heavier than the air, without any connection to the ground, capable of carrying a person, able to maintain flight by its own means, and be controllable”.

 

At that point we meet the Wright Brothers, whose big contribution was to develop a way to control the flight, which allowed them in the early 1900’s to fly several hundred meters in the beginning, and reach several kilometers after additional development.

 

That is when a Brazilian will join the discussion and say: But the Wright Brothers machine was unable to start flight on its own. It required some sort of rail, adequate winds, and sometimes a catapult. To be an airplane it has to be “heavier than the air, without any connection to the ground, capable of carrying a person, able to take of and maintain flight by its own means, and be controllable”.

That puts us at the creation of Santos Dumont, the 14Bis, which could start movement in any field, by its own means, take of and fly in a controlled manner, carrying a smiley Mr. Dumont in it, and land safely.

 

So, the truth is: all these men were extremely bright, and contributed tremendously to the way we fly today, but honestly: no one “invented” the airplane – it was an evolution of ideas (please don’t hold that against your Elementary school teacher).

 

I may get some comments on this one.

Less than 10,000 Days

Posted by edrocha1961 on July 31, 2016
Posted in: English. Tagged: life expectancy, life mission, sleepy. 2 Comments

rumble strips

I am known for becoming very sleepy when I am driving (I really appreciate those rumble strips on the side of the road).

I believe that driving doesn’t use enough of my brain to keep it “on”, so it goes to a kind of “hibernation” process. It is like “the lights are on, but there is nobody home”.

Liz can actually see it on my face because my eyes are no longer wide open and my jaw drops just a little to give me that dead fish look that she recognizes. That is when she will poke me, throw water on the back of my neck, or demand a stop for a power nap.

 

A few weeks ago I was by myself driving back from Detroit after a stressful meeting, and I knew I would have a hard time staying awake, so I tried to keep my brain active.

As I was thinking about my life I figured out I just completed 20,000 days of life not too long ago (a good math exercise will keep the brain gears turning).

Based on the most updated life expectancy charts (not that I googled as I was driving) that calculation lead me to the conclusion that I have less than 10,000 days ahead of me, even without any tragic event.

That means each day represents more then 0.01% of the rest of my life!

 

That is a sobering thought: Two thirds of my life are behind me. I’d better use every day very well.

This made me think about the purpose of my life, and the legacy I am building.

I want to live a life that glorifies God and influences others to do the same.

That has to be my mission as a husband, a father, an employee, a friend, a citizen, a Christian, …

That should guide how I use the days I am given.

 

Also, I’d better stay awake when I am driving otherwise those 10,000 days could a lot shorter.

Obsessed

Posted by edrocha1961 on July 23, 2016
Posted in: English. Tagged: license plates, obsession, states. 1 Comment

usa_license_plate_map_lg

Earlier this month Liz and I made a real nice trip, combining some vacation days with work and a wedding.

Our sequence was from Wooster (Ohio) to Louisville (Kentucky), to Nashville (Tennessee), to Charlotte (North Carolina), to Peach Tree (Georgia), back to Charlotte, then Cheraw (South Carolina) and back to Wooster. We drove over 2200 miles and really enjoyed the trip.

 

To entertain ourselves we started checking the license plates of every car and truck around us, collecting the different states we could find.

In the beginning the list grew fast: Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois, Wisconsin…

Obviously as the list got longer it became progressively more difficult to find new ones. We would celebrate finding the more difficult ones: California, Rhode Island, Washington, Alaska, and we learned there are many trucks with license plates from Maine (we still wonder why).

As we passed 30 of the 50 states it started to be really hard to find additional ones, but we kept looking. By the time we reached the furthest point of our trip we had added the Southern states (North Carolina, South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, Florida) and our list was at 41.

Sometimes I drove dangerously close to other cars to try to read the plates. When we were half way back, and still with 41 I passed a truck and I had to slow down to confirm: got Oregon for 42. Already in Ohio a pick truck passed us and we could read North Dakota: 43, which ended up being the final number.

 

The problem came after the trip: after doing this experiment for 11 days, I can’t stop! More than a week later I am still looking at the plates of every vehicle around me. I don’t want to, but I can’t shake it.

I am obsessed! I need therapy!!!

The human brain is amazing: by doing something repeatedly it becomes a habit, then you do it naturally.

This applies to good things and bad things, good thoughts and bad thoughts.

 

Now I understand better why Paul says in his letter to the Philippians:

“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”

 

P.S. Yesterday I saw South Dakota, but I don’t think I should count. That trip is over.

Then and Now

Posted by edrocha1961 on May 29, 2016
Posted in: English. Tagged: brooklyn tabernacle, cymbala, fresh fire, fresh wind, holy spirit. Leave a comment

bg3

A couple of months ago I read a book that really impacted me: “Fresh Wind. Fresh Fire.” by J. Cymbala from the Brooklyn Tabernacle in New York.

He explores many real life examples that happened in his community, but he makes an interesting point, that I have put in my words below:

Imagine this scene happening about 2000 years ago (try to picture this in your mind):

  • You enter the temple in Jerusalem or a synagogue somewhere in Galilee
  • Jesus is also there
  • He sits on the front row
  • The priest opens the book of the law
  • He reads and teaches from it
  • The priest talks about Yahweh and the great things He has done for His people
  • Nothing wrong there
  • Yet, God Himself is present there, and He is being ignored
  • The promised Messiah is with them
  • Christ’s name is not even mentioned
  • Emmanuel – God with us – is in the room and the service goes on as if that was not the case

Doesn’t that sound absurd?

How could the religious people ignore the presence of the very God among them? How could they miss the opportunity to have a relationship with the Son of God?

 

Let’s come back to today:

  • You enter a church on any given Sunday
  • The priest opens the Bible
  • He reads and teaches from it
  • The priest talks about Jesus and the great things He has done for His people
  • Nothing wrong there
  • Yet, God Himself is in the room, and He is being ignored
  • The promised Holy Spirit is with them
  • His name is not even mentioned
  • The Comforter is in the room and the service goes on as if that was not the case

Doesn’t that sound absurd?

How can the religious people ignore the presence of God among us? How can we miss the opportunity to have a relationship with the Spirit of God?

The Spirit of God is with us. He is in us.

He is interceding for us. He wants to use us to do great things. He empowers us to do what we cannot do alone.

 

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