WHITE PRIVILEGE

 

I really cannot remember when I first heard the perjorative "white privilege". Like a dog with a bone, I have (consciously and unconsciouly) chewed on the idea. At no time has anyone clearly and definitively identified what "white privilege" means. Adding to the unclearness of what is meant, we learn of "white" men and women railing against "white privilege". So, what are we to make of this example of cognitive dissonance? Or am I the only one who recognizes something "ain't" right here?

 

Without a doubt, we can point to many people who have filled exalted places in society and have been for the most "white". When we look at the people who have attained to Forbes' exalted list of the wealthy we do see many "white" individuals.

 

At this point I see there is more to this idea than just "privilege" in terms of having more than non whites. In fact, it really has nothing to do with the color of our skin; it goes much deeper than that.

 

Truth is we are in a battle between good and bad; right and wrong, darkness and light. The greatest definition of "white privilege" I can think of has to do with those who believe in a living God Who, created all of creation and, is able to cleanse sin and make a person "whiter than snow". When we look at this definition, we see why there is such a clamor to do away with law; to decriminalize sin and lawlessness. We can now get a picture of the "white" men and women lamenting "white privilege" without ever giving up everything they have. Isn't that kinda like the bottom line? If you really despise "white privilege" and are in fact "white" should you not totally disown anything you have gained? Yet, we see these plaintiffs doing nothing but shouting and pointing fingers.

 

All down through the history of creation, and mankind, we can find numerous examples of people intent on destroying; removing all semblence of belief in a living God. That is not unique to today. The battle between light and dark, right and wrong, black and white is still being waged with vigor on the side of darkness. Thus we are able to see how "black lives matter" (have publicly declared their underlying principle is Marxism) is so strongly pursuing eliminating anything good. Do not be mislead; all the anarchy, rioting, destroying property, killing police and firefighters all have the intent of destroying any belief in a living God.

 

None of us are exempt. When I look at the orderliness of creation and all we are aware of, I realize there is a lot more to this existence than merely a freak of nature caused by an unexplainable explosion that happened somewhere somehow.

A Fairytale

 Earlier today, I was reminded of the story of the Warm Fuzzies. I looked it up, and since it is now in open domain because it is 50 years old, I decided to post it here so I would always be able to find it without going through all my files.

    Grossmont College

    A FAIRYTALE
    Claude M. Steiner, Ph.D.

Once upon a time, a long time ago, there lived two very happy people called Tim and Maggie with two children called John and Lucy. To understand how happy they were, you have to understand how things were in those days. You see, in those happy days everyone was given at birth a small, soft, Fuzzy Bag. Anytime a person reached into this bag he was able to pull out a Warm Fuzzy. Warm Fuzzies were very much in demand because whenever somebody was given a Warm Fuzzy it made him feel warm and fuzzy all over. People who didn’t get Warm Fuzzies regularly were in danger of developing a sickness in the back which caused them to shrivel up and die.

In those days it was very easy to get Warm Fuzzies. Any time that somebody felt like it, he might walk up to you and say, “I’d like to have a Warm Fuzzy”. You would then reach into your bag and pull out a Fuzzy the size of a little girl’s hand. As soon as the Fuzzy saw the light of day, it would smile and blossom into a large, shaggy, Warm Fuzzy. You would then lay it on the person’s shoulder or head or lap and it would snuggle up and melt right against their skin and make them feel good all over. People were always asking each other for Warm Fuzzies and, since they were always given freely, getting enough of them was never a problem. There were always plenty to go around and as a consequence everyone was happy and felt warm and fuzzy most of the time.

One day a bad witch became very angry because everyone was so happy and no one was buying her potions and salves. This witch was very clever and she devised a very wicked plan. One beautiful morning she crept up to Tim while Maggie was playing with their daughter and whispered in his ear, “See here, Tim, look at all the Fuzzies that Maggie is giving to Lucy. You know if she keeps it up, eventually she is going to run out and then there won’t be any left for you”.

Tim was astonished. He turned to the witch and said, “Do you mean to tell me that there isn’t a Warm Fuzzy in our bag every time we reach into it?”

And the witch said, “No absolutely not, and once you run out, that’s it. You don’t have any more”. With this she flew away on her broom, laughing and cackling hysterically.

Tim took this to heart and began to notice every time Maggie gave up a Warm Fuzzy to somebody else. Eventually, he got very worried and upset because he liked Maggie’s Warm Fuzzies very much and did not want to give them up. He certainly did not think it was right for Maggie to be spending all her Warm Fuzzies on the children and on other people. He began to complain every time he saw Maggie giving a Warm Fuzzy to somebody else, and because Maggie liked him very much she stopped giving Warm Fuzzies to other people. As often and reserved them for him.

The children watched this and soon began to get the idea that it was wrong to give up Warm Fuzzies anytime your were asked or felt like it. They too became very careful. They would watch their parents closely and whenever they felt that one of their parents was giving too many Fuzzies to others, they also began to object. They began to feel worried whenever they gave away too many Warm Fuzzies. Even though they found a Warm Fuzzy everytime they reached into their bag, they reached in less and less and became more and more stingy. Soon people began to notice the lack of Warm Fuzzies and they began to feel less and less fuzzy. They began to shrivel up, and occasionally people would die from lack of Warm Fuzzies. More and more people went to the witch to buy her potions and salves even though they didn’t seem to work.

Well, the situation was getting very serious indeed. The bad witch who had been watching all of this didn’t really want the people to die, so she devised a new plan. She gave everyone a bag that was very similar to the Fuzzy Bag, except that this one was cold while the Fuzzy Bag was warm. Inside of the witch’s bag were Cold Pricklies. These Cold Pricklies did not make people feel warm and fuzzy but made them feel cold and prickly instead. But, they did prevent people’s backs from shriveling up. So from then on, everytime somebody said, “I want a Warm Fuzzy”, people who were worried about depleting their supply would say, “I can’t give you a Warm Fuzzy, but would you like a Cold Prickly”? Sometimes, two people would walk up to each other, thinking they could get a Warm Fuzzy, but one or the other of them would change his mind and they would wind up giving each other Cold Pricklies. So the end result was that while very few people were dying, a lot of people were still unhappy and feeling cold and prickly.

The situation got very complicated because since the coming of the witch there were less and less Warm Fuzzies around, so Warm Fuzzies, which used to be thought of as free as air, became extremely valuable. This caused people to do all sorts of things in order to obtain them. Before the witch had appeared people used to gather in groups of three, or four, or five, never caring too much who was giving Warm Fuzzies to whom. After the coming of the witch, people began to pair off and to reserve all their Warm Fuzzies for each other exclusively. If ever one of the two persons forgot himself and gave a Warm Fuzzy to someone else, he would immediately feel guilty about it because he knew that his partner would probably resent the loss of a Warm Fuzzy. People who could not find a generous partner had to buy their Warm Fuzzies and had to work long hours to earn the money. Another thing that happened was that some people would take Cold Pricklies - which were limitless and freely available - coat them white and fluffy and pass them on as Warm Fuzzies. These counterfeit Warm Fuzzies were called Plastic Fuzzies, and they caused additional difficulties. For instance, two people would get together and freely exchange Plastic Fuzzies, which presumably should make them feel good, but they came away feeling bad instead, since they thought they had been exchanging Warm Fuzzies, people grew very confused about this, never realizing that their cold prickly feelings were really the result of the fact they had been given a lot of Plastic Fuzzies.

So the situation was very, very dismal and it all started because of the coming of the witch who made people believe that some day, when least expected, they might reach into their Warm Fuzzy bag and find no more.

Not long ago a young woman with big hips born under the sign of Aquarius came to this unhappy land. She had not heard about the bad witch and was not worried about running out of Warm Fuzzies. She gave them out freely, even when not asked. They called her the Hip Woman and disapproved of her because she was giving the children the idea that they should not worry about running out of Warm Fuzzies. The children liked her very much because they felt good around her and they too began to give out Warm Fuzzies whenever they felt like it. The grown-ups became concerned and decided to pass a law to protect the children from depleting their supplies of Warm Fuzzies. The law made it a criminal offense to give out Warm Fuzzies in a reckless manner. The children however, seemed not to care, and in spite of the law they continued to give each other Warm Fuzzies whenever they felt like it and always when asked. Because there were many, many children, almost as many as grown-ups, it began to look as if maybe they would have their way.

As of now it is hard to say what will happen. Will the grown-ups join with the Hip Woman and the children in taking a chance that there will always be as many Warm fuzzies as needed? Will they remember the days their children are trying to bring back when Warm Fuzzies were abundant because people gave them away freely?

Copyright 1969, Claude M. Steiner, 35 Westminister, Kensington, CA 94708
Transactional Analysis Bulletin, October 1970, pp. 146-148

Interesting but not earth shattering

Came to me this morning while getting breakfast together.

 

Once upon a time, there was a song on the radio that did very well on the rock and roll charts. I have come to see that perhaps it started out to be an anti rock and roll song. Flying Purple People Eater appeared to be a song showing how popuar rock and roll was, because a critter that spent its life eating people was willing to forgo that passion to play music in a rock and roll band.

 

Now, for the other side of the story. The artist that brought the song up in the charts was Sheb Wooley. A country music artist in his own right. Consider the ramifications of a interterrestrial critter coming to earth; not just any critter, but one that eats people. Now add to that, he has a horn growing out of his head, and he is able to play rock and roll music through this horn.

 

Quite an interesting picture of rock and roll musicians. Obviously, I have no proof that this is so, but as the pundits of old might have said, the facts speak for themselves.

CinC

This morning I am struck with the thought of the awesomeness of God.

 

Here, in this country, we have the Commander in Chief; God is the Commander in Creation!

 

Consider this world we live in. There is so much we do not see, know, or understand about our world or universe. There are some who posit this world, universe came into being by a fluke explosion somewhere back in history. To my military mind there is too much minute integration involved in what we do know, see, or understand. Consider how coordinated life is: Humans breathe in oxygen, and breathe out carbon dioxide; trees, plants and grass take in carbon dioxide and expel oxygen. If that is not a balance, I have no idea what is.

 

Consider the human body. Science informs us of the materials which make up the human body. Scientists know these materials but are not able to put them together to create a human body. I recall a joke I heard years ago: A consortium of scientists agreed they were now able to create a human being. One scientist was elected to go to God and prove that God was no more relevant. After explaining to God what they could do, God said, go ahead and show me. The scientist reached down and grabbed a handful of dirt, and God said, get your own dirt!

 

To my mind I find believing in things I have heard regarding evolution to be impossible and improbable. Consider, we are advised that somewhere, perhaps milions of years ago, a fish flopped up on land and developed legs in order to walk on land. I suppose that could be believable, but consider the intelligence of fish. Throw a hook in the water with a wiggling worm on it and fish will grab it; oops!

 

Now, consider: "In the beginning God created". My mind wonders how, a world that came from a freak explosion in nothingness is able to maintain for all these millenia. Think about it. The One who created is able to sustain creation. In spite of all the created beings are able to come up with to destroy.

Beam me up Scotty

So, it appears, professor Patricia MacCormack, United Kingdom, has come forth and declared the best way to save the planet is let humans become extinct.

 

Unfortunately, this is not new with this prof. This mind set has been around for a long time. Sadly, those who profess this idealism are never ready, nor willing, to lead the way in humans becoming extinct.

 

Scripture tells us love is laying down your life for others.  What the prof is saying is love is you laying down your life for me.

 

The popular mythology dictates that man is destroying the earth. Truth be told, the mythology doesn't address how the earth came into being, or how it is sustained or maintaned. Of course in order for that to come to light would be to admit that man has no ability to create or destroy.

 

Scripture also informs us not to trust in man. We have chosen to worship man, especially those who claim to be more intelligunt than the rest of us, or even more gifted. We have definitely, collectively, lost our way.

 

No wonder I woke up this morning singing in my mind, "There is joy in the camp a sinner has come home...there is joy wonderous joy in the camp.

The time's they are a changing

How interesting...Loretta Lynn has mentioned that country music is dead.

 

I could have told her that years ago.

 

Having been born in the 40s, I grew up on country music @ KLAK radio in Denver. I vividly recall how the music transitioned to rockabilly and into rock and roll. Which was followed by heavy metal, acid rock, disco and what we call rock and roll today.

 

For the past twenty years I have been here, and listened mostly to KXRB the local country station. I guess it was probably in the 80s but moreso in the 90s when country music began sounding much like the rockabilly of the 50s. It didn't take long for the music to start sounding like the beginning of rock and roll.

 

Probably two years ago or so, KXRB had a change of ownership/leadership and came up with an additional FM station. Since there was a lot of music played during the week that sounded so much like rock and roll I reserved my listening to Saturday when the day was committed to country classics. Even that changed somewhat because the classics were no longer played by the original artists but by covers of more recent artists and claimed to be classics.

 

Perhaps the debarkation point came for me last year when the station implemented "country variety". Yes! variety. I suppose we could sit and debate, all day, what variety might mean. In my mind, it was an open door to transitioning to a more rock and roll format.

 

Then, about half way through last year, the format changed again, and classic Saturday became classic Saturday afternoon, from 12 to 6. Most recently, classic Saturday is no longer a part of the programming.

 

Yes, I know, change is the only constant. Didn't someone, somewhere, say there is nothing new under the sun, what has been will be?

 

Well, that is enough for today.

Whatever will be

I have been living under the assumption that squirrels hibernate for the winter. That just isn't so.

 

As I sit here at the computer and look out my window, I can see the squirrels running around and cavorting in their squirrely way, in spite of the sub-zero temperature and the snow on the ground.

 

Perhaps this is a manifestation of the "glow-bull worming" or "Klimate change" we have been hearing so much about. Perhaps the old "Wendy's" commercial is coming back to haunt us..."It isn't nice to fool mother nature!"

 

Whatever it may be, up here in the southern frozen tundra we have squirrels being squirrely all year long.

Time and Tide

Well, the "oldies" station in Minnesota plays this record quite a bit that has a guy trying to get in touch with a girl on the phone, but her mother will not let her on the phone.

 

He interjects with the words "And the operator says forty cents more for three more minutes".

 

How well I remember those days. Seems like you could not call anywhere without having to go through the operator and if you were on a pay phone, you better make sure you have enough quarters in your pocket.

 

I am afraid that my children have never had to work through that kind of a call, and I am doubly sure, none of my grand children will ever understand.

 

But, when I think about it, I never experienced having a neighbor holler over that you have a phone call.

 

Yes, time does roll on.

Caught you looking

So, last night, about 10:15 I got ready to get ready for bed. As I walked by a window, I thought, what is all the light shining through?

 

When I looked out the patio door, it was snowing, and it was as light as day. I confess, I am not so sure I can recall another time when the night was as bright as the day. Talk about cognitive disonance!

 

Next, when I got up at 5:45 this morning, it was still bright as day; and now, two hours later nothing has changed except the cloudy sky is now a grayish-purple kind of color instead of dark grey.

 

These definitely are interesting days to be alive in which God delights in giving us situations to stretch our mind and cause us to smile and say thank you, LORD, for your awesome blessings.

Social media

The time has come to put away childish things. I think that is what I am thinking.

 

I guess it has been about 12 years, or so, I have maintained an account on face book: that social media that took the internet by storm some years ago.

 

The childish part that I mentioned was how I spent the majority of time on facebook playing games. The bingo games available definitely held my attention for hours at a time.

 

Truth be told there were friends I kept up to date with that I will miss. I first met Breda many years ago, on a blog she maintained. I do not remember the name of the blog, but she caught my attention and was able to keep it.

 

I met Katherine through her blog Smoky Mountain Cafe. A transplanted Louisianan to Tennessee. With facebook, she didn't need to maintain the blog mch anymore.

 

Lori, whom I met when we were driving school bus back, seems like centuries ago. She no longer utilized email, and thus kept me up to date with her photos and adventures through facebook. We still call and text on occasion and get together every once in a while for coffee of lunch.

 

It seems, to me, there is value in social media. Though it can become an addiction like anything else that will consume your time and attention.

 

After the many years I participated in facebook, recently I ran up against their algorithims for logging in. Within a two week period, I was locked out the system, which refused to verify my loggin security information. Three times in that two weeks I was forced to change my password in order to log in. The fourth time I was prompted to change my password, I decided, enough is enough. My world does not revolve around facebook. I do not have a "smart phone" that would keep me in constant contact with any social media on the internet, so why get my granny pants in a wad over petty stuff. Ergo, I emailed the support people and asked them to remove my account.

 

Thus I have come back to this blog I started a number of years ago, who anyone can access.

 

May the Good Lord bless and keep you, til we meet again.

Passing thoughts

Have you ever said something along the lines of: “You are as bad as a two year old”?  Think about it for a moment!  What is so “bad” about being a two year old?

What comes to mind is the picture of small children asking a lot of questions and finding excitement in seeing and learning new things. As adults, we just don’t have the time and patience to be answering questions all the time {in fact, aren’t we a little perturbed that no one has the time for our questions?}, or lolly gagging around to see the beauty of a rock or water flowing in a stream.

We talk a lot about “adult supervision” as if adults really know it all. And we talk a lot about “don’t waste time”; “time is money”; “we only have so many minutes in an hour, or so many hours in a day, and so many days in a year”. Well, I am worn out just thinking about that.  Makes my mind tired.

“At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying “Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”  Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt 18:1-3, NKJV)

WOW!  Just when my adulting is getting really geared up to show how great I am, how erudite I can be, how special I have become over the years; reality smacks me up side the head, and reminds me that there is something special about being like a two year old.  And as I look around my world, I see so many examples of how we have allowed ourselves to lose the awesomeness of life; the awesomeness of Creation.

More cogitating

Sitting here, quietly, over my breakfast, I am picturing trees, specifically fruit trees. And to some extent grape vines. Keepers of orchards and vineyards will readily attest to the need to prune the trees and the vines.

Along with that thought is the idea that the farther from the root, the weaker the tree and the fruit. When I lived in California, I had the privilege of visiting many orange and grapefruit orchards. I learned that the trees needed to be pruned each year to keep the tree from getting to tall, and to concentrate the branches into a smaller area, to allow the fruit to grow better, stronger, and sweeter.

It seems this is also true in our lives. The closer we are to the root of life, the better, the stronger, and the sweeter is our life. As I look around at the world today, I realize that in many ways we have gotten too far from our root. That root would be The Creator, The Sustainer of all we are aware of. Just like the trees and vines, we have ceased to be fruit bearing, because the life flow has been reduced so much.

When this great nation was conceived, it was under the assumption The Creator had made it available for people to live lives believing, hoping, and trusting in The Creator and Sustainer. The earliest schools were held in churches and used the Bible for most of the teaching. Along the way, we have segregated our schools into buildings far from the churches, and have removed the Bible from teaching. We no longer believe, hope or trust in The Creator and Sustainer, for we are convinced that man is able to forgive sins, provide sustenance and generally take care of everything.

Yes, we have allowed ourselves to be led away from the True Life Blood that creates and sustains to a life blood that destroys.

Just a Pause

At 71-1/2 years I find myself reflecting. I have seen a lot; but I haven't seen everything...in fact, I am sure there are many things I have no desire to see at all. I have been to a lot places; I have not been everywhere. I have done a lot of things; but I haven't done everything...and I realize there are a lot of things I really would rather not do.

Every place I have been, every word I have thought, spoken or heard, everything I have done or not done, everything I have seen has collaborated to bring me to who, and where, I am today.

I recall entering the base exchange, a vendor was demonstrating some kind of a juicer, and he shouted to me something along the line of "Hey, this is just what you need, it will add years to your life." I looked at him, and asked him "how do you know how long I will live? I have made it through a tour in Vietnam, and recovered from a head-on motor vehicle accident at 85 miles an hour, from which three people died. How can you guarantee your juicer will add years to my life?"

When I realize that my dad's dad died at age 34 when dad was a year and half old; my dad died at 54, dad's mom died at 89, mom died at 93, her mother died at 44 and her dad died at 79, I truly recognize there really is no way to guarantee how long we are going to be walking on this earth.

The Psalmist informs us, that when God put us together in the secret of the womb, He also knew the numbers of our days on earth. There is a bit of an argument going around now and then whether God is male or female. In truth, He is both. God embodies the perfection of male and female. When God said let Us make man in our own image, he meant specifically that man would be both male and female. However, that didn't seem to work out, so, God took the woman from out of the man and made two people. Thus we understand the Biblical injunction that a man and a woman shall come together and become one.

Well, anyway, as I reflect on my life and all it encompasses, I can say without any reservation my life was not worth a plug nickle until the day God confronted me in my apartment, 43 years ago, and accused me of destroying something that He had made beautiful. We had a pretty in depth discussion, and I accepted His offer to be cleaned up and made new. It was as if my life had stopped and was began anew. My fellow Marines didn't understand why I no longer wanted to go bar hopping, or imbibing alcoholic beverages all night. Truth be told, it was really quite nice to wake up the morning and not wonder if I had done anything bad during the previous night; not to mention, my pay check seemed to go a little farther each month.

Well, just a little time spent reminiscing and reminding myself that no matter what may happen in this life, I am in God's hands, and I can't think of a safer place to be.

Wisdom of man

1 Corinthians 2:5 -- "...your faith should not rest on the wisdom of men but on the power of God."

 

Is this not a good word in a time of trouble and discord? If we can be honest with ourself for just a moment, where has the wisdom of man gotten us? Over and over again, down the annals of time, history shows us that the widsom of man has, perhaps brought some comfort and affluence to some, but for the most part has been despotic.

 

Look where you will; you will see the trouble brought by the wisdom of man. The Crusades? Yes, the work of the wisdom of man. Religious activism? Yes, the work of the wisdom of man. The Holocaust? Again, the work of the wisdom of man.

 

When the Almighty, the Lord, the Creator, the Sustainer of life, the Great Physician says we should live in peace, and love one another as He has loved us...how can we justify killing each other, or taking away property from each other?

 

When our heart is right with God, we will see and live the peace that passes all understanding, and our hearts will be filled with His love.

Peace

Well, we have come to that time of the year. What time of the year, you ask? Well, that time of the year when our thoughts turn to fuzzy little bunnies and colored eggs. I am convinced, that for the most part we have forgotten the meaning behind Easter. Or more especially what brought us to the point.

 

Think about this for a moment, or all day if you like.  Luke 19:41-44 -- "And when He approached, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, 'If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes. For the days shall come upon you when your enemies will throw up a bank before you, and surround you, and hem you in on every side, and will level you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave in you one stone upon another because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.'"

 

What are the things that make for peace? Well, for one, it is the total vanquishment of the enemy. Once your enemy is hobbled and no longer able to disrupt your peace, you will have peace. Within this thought is the idea that we all struggle with enemies, demons if you will, within us that strive to disrupt our peace. Paul informs us in Philippians 4:7 -- "...the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Jesus is quoted, in John 14:27, as saying "Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you, not as the world gives, do I give to you." This peace that passes all comprehension, comes not from destroying another person, but from destroying those passions that reign so strongly within us. We can never be at peace, until we are at peace within our self and with God. All the martyrs down through the ages have attested to this fact...once we have peace with God, we will have peace unspeakable and full of glory.

cogitating again

So, this morning, I was relaxing, listenning to the radio, when my ears were assaulted by a commercial for tires. What penetrated my mind was the idea that if you purchased so many of certain tires you would get an immediate rebate of $75.

 

I guess, over my lifetime, I have benefitted from rebates of some kind. However, this morning the idea just struck me wrong. If the business has the money to give an immediate rebate, why not just lower the price that amount? Ah, but as the old circus owner once quipped "a sucker and his money are soon parted". Why do we like the idea of getting something back, more than having a lower price?

 

Guess that is why scams are so popular where you are invited to send a thousand dollars to recive a million dollars; only to realize you won't be getting anything.

 

My old father-in-law said it pretty succinctly, "too soon old, too late smart!"

Raindrops keep falling on my head

OK, so I woke up this morning, 5:00. The parking lot outside was damp, but drying out. Then, around 7:00 I noticed the dry spots were damp again, but it was not raining. Then around 8:00 it started raining.

I have been waiting all summer for this. It has now been raining for about three hours. There has been soft rain, and hard rain, but all in all it is rain; and beautiful. Interspered within all the rain are occasional lightnings and thunder boomers.

The weather guessers on the radio are saying temps in low 70s, but sunshine by tomorrow.

So, let me see, humidity is moisture in the air. How funny that when it rains all day, there is not the uncomfortable sense that heat and humidity normally bring. In fact, when it rains all day, it seems to bring the temps down to reasonable levels.

Anyway, I enjoy the rain. Remember the Everly Brothers record: "I'll do my crying in the rain"? Then when I was a child, there was "Singing in the rain".

So much for cogitating on the rain. Enjoy your day.

Lamenting

Did I say, that I hate laundry day?

 

Laundry day, today, is so much different than when I was a child. I remember washing the clothes, then hanging them out on the line to dry. Yes, all year around. I remember bringing in clothes and sheets that were frozen solid. Once the clothes dried on the line, they were brought into the house, and using a large bottle with a cap with holes in it, all the clothes would be sprinkled, rolled up and placed in a basket. Then would come the time to iron everything. Yeah, that was laundry day back then.

 

Then, in the Marine Corps, laundry came once a week. In boot camp we washed on cement tables, then hung them up to dry. In Vietnam, we didn't have any laundry service, so, when you thought about it you would soap up your face, and utilities, then rinse, and wear them while they dried. The rest of my time in the Corps, I did my own laundry, which entailed washing, using a dryer, and ironing. There did come a time when I was able to send a lot of my uniform items to the cleaners.

 

Well, today, I find myself walking the 34 steps from my apartment to the laundry room carrying two laundry baskets of clothes. When the dryer is through cooking them, I fold them up and put them away. Well, it does take some time. Washers have a 30 minute cycle and dryer has a 45 minute cycle. So, it takes me about three hours. Then on other days, when I include the sheets off the bed, that entails three loads and adds another hour and a half.

 

Some might say, find yourself a wife and let her do the laundry for you.  Nice thought. I have had three of them, and found out each time, if you want it done right you do it yourself. How well I remember my first wife, wanting to perform her wifely duty, and doing my laundry; she washed my "wool worsted shirts" in hot water. Yeah, you guessed it, they shrunk up almost half the normal size. I guess people must no longer be taught to separate whites from coloreds. One of my wives turned my white tshirts pink. Definitely do not go well with military uniforms.

 

Well, if I haven't said it before, please know I hate laundry day. But like so much else in life; you do it, get through it, and go on with life.

Well, last Saturday evening my baby married her best friend. It was an awesome wedding, and reception. Her nieces and nephew were involved in the wedding, and his nieces were also involved. It is so awesome when events come together in such a wonderful way.

Just after the rehearsal, I was sitting and talking with the pastor, who is an old (not age wise) friend from back when I was pastoring. As we spoke, I was reminded of something that has accumulated over the years in my mind.

The Hebrew “YHWH”, that we pronounce as “YAHWEH” carries the connotation of male/female. During the Creation event, when God said, “Let us make man in our own image” He was referring to man being also male/female. That is God’s image.

A rabbi friend of mine informs me that according to the Torah, Adam lived and had relations with each of the animals that were created; along with giving them names. After mating with each of the animals God determined none were adequate to meet man’s needs. God stated that it was not good for man to be alone. Rather than chop the man up to separate the male from the female, God removed a rib from the man, and using it as a foundation formed the woman. Is it not interesting, that the form given to the woman, was almost a mirror image of the man? When the two were put together they truly became one.

Perhaps that is why Scripture admonishes us that a woman shall leave her father and mother and cling to her husband. Scripture also informs us when a man and a woman have sexual relation they become one. How true. They become one in more ways than one. The sexual union truly cements them together, which is why we find divorce to be so traumatic. And probably indicates why people experience so much loss and pain after having many sexual unions. Marriage of one man and one woman completes the oneness that is the image of God.

them was the days

When I was young the days were fun and filled with things to do. The terrible words, “you’ve been grounded” were the worst words ever sounded cuz that was when I knew. The great outdoors so big and wide was lost, cuz I was stuck inside I couldn’t wait for it to be through. The only punishment worse than this was having to baby-sit my sis if you’ve been there, you know its true. Life was different way back then kids weren’t collared, or in a pen the great outdoors held lots to do. We’d hunt for arrowheads on some hill and laugh each time our bike would spill those were the days in which I grew. When I was young the days were fun and filled with many things to do.