tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59008362024-03-14T00:48:58.538-05:00Michael HomanA personal journal about teaching the Bible and ancient Near Eastern history/theology/religion/archaeology to university students in New Orleans, and whatever else happens to be on my mind.Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.comBlogger1086125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-69049116129993383392020-10-19T12:14:00.003-05:002020-10-19T12:17:30.982-05:00Death AnniversariesPeople who we've met who have experienced the death of a child all told us that the annual anniversaries of the tragedy are difficult, and after going through our first anniversary of Gilgamesh's accident and death back in the middle of last September, I can say this accurately reflected our experience. Anticipating this, we drove 7 hours away to Cheaha State Park in northern Alabama. I'm glad Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-47648416526512070192020-08-17T22:32:00.004-05:002020-08-17T22:32:58.943-05:00Therese's Birthday Therese's birthday was last weekend. There were fun parts about it, like Xy's pool, and the chocolate mousse that Kalypso and I made was great, but mostly it was sad because of Gil being gone. It was Therese's first birthday without a Gil hug in many years. Some of Gil's friends it seems were on social media letting each other know it was Therese's birthday, so she heard from many of them. Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-45811121299463689732020-07-11T09:54:00.001-05:002020-07-11T09:54:51.813-05:00Gilgamesh Voted OnceTherese, Kalypso, and I went to vote today. We were sad to see Gilgamesh's name on the voting registration, immediately preceding Kalypso and me. They gave me an LR-34(79) form, also known as "State of Louisiana Application for Cancellation of Deceased Registrant by Relative" application. Gilgamesh only voted once. We went to the Lake Vista Community Center to vote early, probably on November 24,Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-89347742168450877052020-06-22T09:24:00.001-05:002020-06-22T09:24:59.873-05:00Father's DayYesterday was Father's Day. Happy Father's Day to all the fathers. My father William Homan passed away in 2007. His birthday was June 21st, so I always saved money by giving him one gift for both events. This was my first Father's Day since my son Gil died. Sadly, there used to be two people in the world who called me "Abu," and now there is only one.Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-67793834258811077042020-05-19T10:27:00.000-05:002020-05-19T10:27:15.353-05:00DreamI rarely remember my dreams. But when I awoke this morning I was in the middle of a very strange one. I was in the desert riding a camel, and it was not a very good camel. I was doing some sort of archaeological survey, but the camel was unpredictable and dangerous. I exchanged it for a much larger camel, and I was impressed with how it handled. I was nervous it was going to throw me as I tried Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-73343538943313552802020-03-29T16:35:00.003-05:002020-03-29T16:37:13.817-05:00Stupid Meaningless PlaceToday Therese, Kalypso, and I drove to Baton Rouge to see the place where Gilgamesh hit his head on the concrete. It's been more than six months since he died, and it took quite a bit of mental energy to make this trip. I really don't know how to describe the location now that I've been there, it just seemed stupid and meaningless. We also drove around LSU's campus to see where he lived. Therese Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-41155309883237128212020-03-02T16:01:00.002-06:002020-03-02T16:35:03.698-06:00Mardi Gras Sans GilgameshThis year it was our first Mardi Gras without our son Gilgamesh. It was difficult. I sat out most of it and laid low. I'm tired of running into people who tell me how sorry they are about Gil. Others who lost children foretold to us that the grief would get worse before it gets better. Both Therese and I have admitted that we feel worse now than we did a few months ago. It's like a giant weight Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-50789804669842675392020-01-28T21:41:00.004-06:002020-01-28T21:41:39.394-06:00Thomas Harding LetterI very much liked this article by Thomas Harding. He witnessed the death of his 14-year-old son Kadian. Seven years later, he wrote a letter about advise he would give to himself when this tragedy happened. The point is sadly that the pain never goes away. He said it gets less "raw" but there is always a hole. When my son died, I had this idea that things would get better with time and the pain Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-63063007872524978722020-01-23T12:31:00.001-06:002020-01-23T12:32:56.285-06:00Two Dreams
I had two dreams last night about Gilgamesh.
In the first we were in a small engine boat on a wide and swift river with some sort of a pet seal. We docked, and then I saw a bear with a hat in a boat come near us a bit further downstream. Then a second bear was swimming below the surface to catch up to the first. Our pet seal jumped in the water and swam to where the bears were. Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-42561406085008478832020-01-17T16:33:00.001-06:002020-01-17T16:33:42.998-06:00RealizationI didn't know how much I loved my son until he was gone.
Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-42379415242564589082019-12-30T20:49:00.000-06:002019-12-30T20:49:07.164-06:002019 Good RiddanceI'm not a fan of 2019. It's for many reasons, but mostly because of death. The most difficult loss for me was my son Gilgamesh on September 17th. I also lost my sister Chris Homan on July 2nd, my biological brother Patric McKenzie on September 24, and finally, tomorrow, the final day of 2019, will be the funeral for my dear father-in-law John Francis Fitzpatrick who passed away the day after Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-44795522630969989162019-12-11T15:33:00.000-06:002019-12-11T15:33:29.256-06:00Condolence Letters
When Gilgamesh died, we received 156 letters of condolence in the mail. There were many more emails, tweets, Facebook messages and comments, but 156 envelopes with 55 cent stamps were put in our mailbox. Some of the envelopes contained checks donating money to the Gilgamesh Homan Memorial Scholarship fund, and we were very thankful for the outreach and the donations.
We began with the Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-40721720967893478902019-11-21T17:40:00.004-06:002019-11-21T17:40:25.859-06:001919 years ago today, Gilgamesh was born in Jerusalem.Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-59579494002979588582019-11-16T09:11:00.005-06:002019-11-16T09:26:55.402-06:00Facebook PostsHere are some of the posts from Facebook pertaining to Gilgamesh's accident:
Sept 16
Yesterday our son Gilgamesh Homan fell off his skateboard and fractured the back of his skull rendering him unconscious. At the hospital they put him on various life support mechanisms including a breathing machine. There was quite a bit of swelling and bleeding from the brain. They tried to take out part of hisMichael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-77215480001731094192019-11-14T12:29:00.004-06:002019-11-14T12:29:48.393-06:00Gilgamesh is GoneHi, it's been a while.
I began this blog way back in 2003 as a means to write about my teaching. My intentions were partly altruistic, as I thought that this might make me a better teacher and help others who teach and learn in the field of Hebrew Bible and the history and archaeology of the ancient Near East. Partly it was selfish, as in 2003 I was in my third year at Xavier University of Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-73357732126464301682014-04-09T12:29:00.001-05:002014-04-09T12:29:57.534-05:00Poverty Point and PalestineA couple of years ago I had the good fortune to visit Poverty Point. I was blown away by place. I'm a big fan of archaeology in the Near East, and never was that interested in archaeology in the Americas. But the amount of work that went in to engineering the bird shaped mound 3000 years ago was inspiring. Lately Poverty Point has been in the news. It's nominated to be a UNESCO World Heritage Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-35512803621951586392013-09-27T12:08:00.004-05:002013-09-27T12:08:59.144-05:00"In To Wonder"Check out this short and interesting animated film by Katherine Hogan. See if you can recognize Kalypso as a drawing.
In To Wonder from Katherine Hogan on Vimeo.
Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-86109383278162938352013-09-20T08:45:00.000-05:002013-09-20T08:45:05.845-05:00Pope FrancisI'm quickly becoming a very big fan of Pope Francis. His emphasis on mercy and inclusion rather than dogmatic enforcement is very refreshing and more in line with my views about Catholicism.Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-11245307039679791502013-08-23T08:36:00.001-05:002013-08-23T08:39:07.634-05:00Card from Marj RabbaI received a very creative card from three of the people who worked with me in Area AA at Marj Rabba: Madeline, Phoebe, and Tova. It's full of inside jokes so I'll do my best to translate. The card is made out of a brown paper finds bag, hence the stamp with locus and basket numbers. So why is there a fat hat-wearing turkey with a beer on the cover with the words "Happy Thanksgiving"?
The Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-349298039326145642013-07-27T08:58:00.002-05:002013-07-27T08:59:43.410-05:00Marj Rabba Updates on Galilee Prehistory Project BlogIf you are interested in learning more about what's going on at Marj Rabba, where my two Xavier students Alexis Parker and Melissa Nguyen are excavating along with Gilgamesh and me, check out these resources for updates:
Marj Rabba is part of the Galilee Prehistory Project. They're blog is here:
http://galileeprehistoryproject.org/
Also follow Marj Rabba on facebook.Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-23519542803696783312013-07-27T08:50:00.001-05:002013-07-27T08:54:25.289-05:00Rujm el-HiriWe just finished week two at Marj Rabba. Interesting site, great people. I've been enjoying learning more about the many mysteries of the Chalcolithic period. We work Sunday through Friday with Saturdays off, though we seem to tour something on either Friday or Saturday. Last weekend we toured the excavation at Akko. Today we took a trip to the Golan Heights to visit Rujm el-Hiri. I had Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-84046672701157933162013-07-13T00:45:00.003-05:002013-07-13T00:45:59.194-05:00How Gilgamesh Tried to Kill Me at Ein GediI learned some valuable lessons yesterday. We rented a car and drove from Jerusalem to Ein Gedi. As we'll be working at Marj Rabba soon, I wanted my students to learn more about the Chalcolithic period. So our goal was to hike to the famous Chalcolithic temple above Ein Gedi, and talk about Ghassulian material culture, objects such as cornets and the ritual objects from Nahal Mishmar. So we Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-50041655972100476712013-07-01T11:37:00.002-05:002013-07-01T11:37:35.496-05:00$1.50 Merit Raises for TeachersThe company that profits from red light cameras in Baton Rouge released a study claiming that yes, the red light cameras saved many lives over the past five years. In other shocking news, advocates for Charter Schools claim massive success in education reform for the New Orleans area.
When I travel I get this a lot. People from all over the world have heard that charter schools saved New Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-23439011873190737802013-06-28T12:16:00.001-05:002013-06-28T12:16:13.651-05:00The End of Department Chairs at XavierToday I am the Chair of the Theology Department at Xavier University of Louisiana. But as the first Summer Session ends on Monday, there will no longer be a Chair of Theology. Instead, all of the Humanities (Theology, History, English, Languages, Art, Music, Philosophy = "THE LAMP") will be grouped into one Division. They will be led by the Division Chair, and each department will be led by a "Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5900836.post-78912023555594482422013-06-07T13:26:00.002-05:002013-06-07T13:26:39.076-05:00ChalcoliciousThis is the summer of the mighty Marj Rabba.
I am heading there in early July with Gilgamesh and two of my brightest Xavier students: Melissa Nguyen and Alexis Parker. Leading the excavation are my two friends Dr. Yorke Rowan (Oriental Institute) and Dr. Morag Kersal (DePaul University).
Marj Rabba is a Chalcolithic site in the hills of Galilee located near Karmiel, halfway between Michael Homanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18181447899898714157noreply@blogger.com1