Party Party Party

In a song called 'Paso (The Nini Anthem)', produced by Sak Noel, the singer croons:

Monday – Party!Tuesday – Party!
Wednesday – Party!
Ok!
Thursday – Party!
Friday – Party!
Weekend, weekend, weekend – Party! Wow!

I’m telling you mama, there's no need for drama. I don’t wanna study. I just wanna party.

I’m a nini, mom;
You know what a nini is?
Don’t wait for me awake.
I’m coming home late –
Maybe at 5 ... maybe at 6.
Look at me, mom,
I’m dressing like a ...
I just wanna party, party ... Mama, yo paso de todo. Wow!

The lyrics are a little sparse, but the music moves!

If your Spanish is a little rusty, 'nini' is a word that is used to describe a young, rebellious, global generation person who is only interested in having a party – no job, no study, only party. This kind of person is a 'nini' because the word 'nini' comes from ni estudia ni trabaja, which means 'neither work nor study.' I'm not really sure about yo paso de todo, unless it means 'I'm giving the party all I got.'
If you've ever read the Apocrypha you may remember something that's stated in Ecclesiasticus 31:31. It goes this way: "Don’t correct your neighbors at a wine banquet, and don’t show them contempt when they are partying; don’t say any reproachful word to them, and don’t trouble them with any demands." I think the point there is that correcting your neighbors while they're partying is probably not the best time to do it.

I would never correct the singer while she parties, but I will say there comes a time when partying wears you thin. The drinks, the laughs, the monotonous small-talk – all of it can leave you feeling hollow after awhile. Like you realize the parties add very little meaning to your life. Sure, it's fun to celebrate when it's called for, but celebrating just because it's something to do gets old quickly. Find a little time to be by yourself, to be quiet, to be open to something unexpected that might happen. Too much partying will leave you numb.

Which Will You Employ

James Allen once asked a rhetorical question. He wrote, The will to evil and the will to good are both within thee, which wilt thou employ?

I know he asked this in an old stuffy form of the English language, but you've got to admit, it's a darn good question. So which will it be? And careful now before you answer, because doing right can be costly.

Isaiah says by the time a child turns twelve years old, he or she is able to make moral decisions (Is. 7:15). So the question is not can we do it; it's will we do it. Will we choose to do what we feel is right even when it costs us, or even when no one else agrees with us?

The actor, Edward James Olmos, said, "Life has a tendency to teach what's right and what's wrong, and you learn it from experience. Trust, integrity, commitment – we must have that. If we have that, then we have everything." And Maya Angelou, "If we are honest and fair, then we are known by that. If we're not, alas, we're known by that as well. What we want to do is do right, but you have to say it. You have to show it, and not stop." Like they say in the Union Bank slogan, "Doing right. It's just good business."

The next time you are conscious of the will to evil and the will to good scuffling deep in your soul, remind yourself you have a choice, and do good. You'll feel better in the morning.

Bloom Where You Are Planted

In prophecy given after the Babylonian exile, Isaiah promised that Israel's children would sprout up like trees in the grass, like poplars beside channels of water (Isaiah 44:4). Drawing on that imagery, I would suggest that God intends for all us to grow up in our walk with him. If you need a biblical proof-text, take Paul's "God wants us to grow up, to know the whole truth and tell it in love—like Christ in everything. We take our lead from Christ, who is the source of everything we do" (Ephesians 4:15 MSSG). If you prefer a source from outside the Bible, take the quote attributed to Francis de Sales, who said, "Bloom where you are planted." Grow up in Christ. Be real. Love yourself, and sprout up like flowers in the garden.