CHRISTMAS RED KETTLE ADVENTURES

Red Kettle, Jamestown, NC

There are now over one million charitable organizations in this country and it seems most of them have my telephone number soliciting donations.  But there’s a wide disparity in how much of the money they raise actually goes to the intended recipients that are in need.  The Salvation Army is one of those which does a good job and consequently our adult Sunday School class volunteers to ring the red kettle bells every year outside a local grocery store.  This Saturday was our day to ring and I had volunteered to take the last shift after sunset so that I could experience the rapidly dropping December temperatures and see that the gathered monies were securely placed in an official truck.  I always depart the scene after removing my red apron with the sound of that signature and sometimes insidious little bell ringing in my head for days, however!

No matter what the experience, I enjoy observing human behavior and the species never disappoints.  It always restores my faith when I see a loving mother guiding her child to the red kettle with a coin in hand and a smile on both of their faces as the child places their donation into the kettle slot.  I suspect that there are some that will actually be the recipients of this bounty on Christmas day.  Then there are those who purposely will not make eye contact as they rush past the kettle into the sanctuary of the store.  A young lady asked if I was cold as she donated a bill and I replied that “watching folks like her give to others always warms my heart.”  She gave me a hug. 

One man with his wife approached me and asked if I would give him a receipt if he wrote a check.  I assured him that a copy of the cancelled check from his bank would suffice, so he considered it and then put a check of an unknown amount into the red kettle.  Another fellow walked past with a container in hand, hesitated, and then returned.  He stated that he was bringing all of his loose change to the store to run through a coin machine, but instead decided to funnel all of it into my red kettle, which must have added a couple of pounds to the mother lode.  The coins actually helped to compress down all of the bills at this late hour of the day.  No matter how much money was donated, however, I always watched people walk away from the little magic red kettle with an elevated spirit and an extra lift in their step as I wished them a Merry Christmas, raising my spirit as well.

As my shift was nearing the bewitching hour, a dark BMW sedan driven by a middle age woman pulled up in the fire lane and blocked me and my red kettle from the parking lot.  I had witnessed this at the other end of the store as folks had a spouse roll out the door and load groceries instead of simply wheeling them out into the lot.  I probably shouldn’t have been making a snap judgement, especially these days, but I was getting a bit irritated with the woman as I assumed her husband would soon roll out and further block my sacrosanct space.  Then she exited the car, walked up to me, stuffed a wad of bills into the little red kettle and drove off as I meekly wished her a Merry Christmas and softly whispered about twenty-five hail Mary’s in repentance, even though I’m not Catholic.          

HAND-IN-HAND

Children Holding Hands, Chicago, IL

I recently ran across one of my favorite photos showing children at Millennial Park in Chicago on a field trip helping each other stay safe.  The scene immediately caught my attention and I had to walk over and quickly snap this image from behind so that they would remain anonymous.  I was moved by this image and photo of children protecting one another and walking hand-in hand all the while learning how to achieve progress and harmony in the process.  The image is even more sublime to see the smallest child walking securely between her two older classmates. 

Later the scene called to mind a quote from the 13th-century poet Rumi:

 "We're all just walking each other home."

I sent this image to our church staff because I’ve been troubled by all the polarization and discontent in our culture lately in hopes that it might be shared with others, like this post.  Our Senior Pastor sent the following response that stirred the depths of my soul:  

“At a recent service commemorating the 40^th anniversary of the Greensboro Klan/Nazi Massacre, Rev. Frank Dew (a long time Presbyterian Pastor in GSO) told a short story of a search for a missing girl in winter time.  Rescue teams scoured the area the afternoon and early evening the first day of the search.  They feared for her in the bitter cold nighttime temps.  As darkness fell, they resolved to resume their search first thing in the morning.  As they gathered at dawn to begin again, someone suggested they join hands as they moved through the wood and fields.   About 3 hours in, they came upon her lifeless body in the dense undergrowth.    Grieving the loss, one rescuer commented, ‘We should’ve joined hands sooner.’  Indeed.”

"Raise your words, not voice.  It is rain that grows flowers, not thunder." --Rumi

CLOUDSCAPES

Cloudscape, Over Chicago, IL

We live out the vast majority of our lives gazing up at the dark shadowed under belly of overhead cloud formations. And yet only in this period of human evolution can we insert a credit card chip, casually walk aboard a jet powered cylinder and observe a magnificent cloudscape shining down below us that has been blind to all landlocked generations before us.

It never ceases to amaze as we defy the gravitational pull that prevents us from flying uncontrollably off of the planet’s surface!

NAVIGATING AIRPORT TERMINALS

Airport Nomads, Chicago O'Hare

I’ve walked countless miles through airport terminals in my day weaving in and out of the endless columns like African army ants on their relentless march to anywhere. These jungle nomads are either blind or have just one focus lens and consume everything in their path. The antics of these migratory humanoids also never ceases to amaze!

On My long trek to the very end of a concourse at O’Hare today a woman stopped dead in her tracks to check a text ding, a man stood still in the middle of the stream perusing the flight monitor and another exited a restroom at full gallop pulling his earthly belongings headlong into the fray. Europeans, I assume, entered the flow going the opposite direction and a young woman on the arm of her guide guy walked right into a trash cart.

All once again validating the eternal truth that many folks march to a different drummer, amusing and keeping everyone else on the alert lest we are overwhelmed by the madding crowd!

SOMETHING TO LOVE--REVISITED

October Blue Ridge Parkway, Linn Cove, NC

I’m still lovin’ the lyrics from the songbook of Jason Isbell’s album The Nashville Sound.  Some of the lyrics from the track Something to Love include:

“I hope you find something to love,

Something to do when you feel like giving up.

A song to sing or tale to tell,

Something to love,

it’ll serve you well.

Just find what makes you happy,

And do it till you’re gone.”

I enjoy singing along with relatable lyrics or music that matches my mood at the time, but I’ve never been encouraged to seek a recording contract or join the Mormon Tabernacle Choir!  Of course, many lyrics to songs also tell a tale, especially country songs.  Those tales become relatable when they touch home with our own life experiences.  Jason has a good message.  I believe it’s important for good mental and even physical health to focus on something we love and it doesn’t have to be just one thing either!  If we have a life partner it’s good to share some of these things, but having a few apart from one another can be healthy also.

I learned this lesson many years ago and it has served me well through those ensuing years.  Its nice to find a job you love so you never have to work another day the rest of your life, but that may simply not be available or not pay enough to support your family.  That’s where it’s important to find something off the clock that doesn’t have to pay anything.  In fact, it will probably cost some bucks which can be funded by your regular job.  And if that activity gives you pleasure and frequently takes your mind off the issues of your primary job for a short time, that’s an investment worth every cent.  As my wife used to say, “that’s much cheaper than therapy”, although therapy can be beneficial at times!

I’ve observed that the things I love doing the most involve being creative.  One of the key attributes of our creator is that he is always creating and we were created in His image, so that figures.  Everything in this existence including every sunrise is a new creation!

I’ve always enjoyed yard work and planting since I’ve reasoned that I still have a bit of inherited dirt coursing through my bloodstream.  All of my grandparents were raised on rural Kansas farms and managed farms to sustain their families which included my father and mother.  My good fortune along with my other cousins was the inherited DNA those good folks bequeathed to all of us, as we were the first to be born and raised in the postwar economies of our urban lives. 

The game of golf has provided a diversion for most of my adult life.  It gives me the opportunity to get out into nature and enjoy the company of people that I can be around five hours or so on a regular basis, provided the temperature is above fifty degrees.  Playing the game has opened endless opportunities to expand my personal and business social network way beyond anything I could have imagined.  I enjoy researching and trying all the changes to golf improvement equipment which has kept me in the game all this time.  And trying to keep in the game by staying fit gives me the incentive to join a gym and actually attend it!  Every golf shot requires us to be creative.

I’ve also written about my life-long romance with vehicles.  I’m certain that I’ve driven a multitude of vehicles over a million miles so far and I still enjoy the freedom of the open road with “nowhere to go and nowhere to be”, to quote another one of my favorite country philosophers, Kenny Chesney.  I like to drive and listen to instrumental jazz that suits the moment like Dave Brubeck’s Take Five when driving a sports car and pushing the limit out on the endless concrete ribbons of interstate highways.  Or I’ll select a meditative version of Miles Davis’ Generique while chillin’ out on the colorful Blue Ridge Parkway curves in October.  

I’ve had the privilege of living a full life which has provided a lot of tales to tell as I press pause and look in the rear view mirror.  If I didn’t enjoy the creative process of writing, I wouldn’t have been encouraged almost ten years ago to start a blog.  This blog has provided a lot of enjoyment and the release of creative juices that would have probably never been realized without this avenue.  It has provided an outlet combining two interests of both writing and photography.  It inspires me to read more current news articles and human-interest stories, including new releases of non-fiction books.  If I’m going to exchange my limited life hours for the pleasure of reading a book, I not only want to be entertained, but I want to also learn something in the process!  Photography and creative writing also keep me alert to the world around me for inspiration, including traveling, volunteer work, teaching classes and listening to music.

And once I discover something to love, you can bet your bottom dollar it’ll serve me well till I’m gone!

ALWAYS WITH US

ABOVE THE CLOUDS, Charlotte, NC

One of the benefits of flying is experiencing the constant reminder that no matter how dark and dismal it is on the ground, the sun is always shining above.  And another reminder that our creator is with us always, especially in the dark hours of the night when the moon overhead reflects the sun.

HAPPY TOGETHER

Happy Together 1968, Aspen, Colorado

My wife Karen and I were married in 1968 and celebrated forty years together in 2008 just before Breast Cancer took her life.  So, the month of October is always special to me when there’s a full court press on to fight this widespread disease!  Those forty years of course had their ups and downs as with any long-term relationship and I only wish the international bestseller The Happiness Equation by Neil Pasricha had been available early on.  I happened upon the book as I was perusing the book store at O’Hare airport in Chicago for something to occupy the time on my way back to North Carolina.  One of the jewels I took from the book is contained in a final secret chapter that’s not in the Contents page.  Its on The Law of Being Happy Together and it involves some simple but very revealing math.

Pasricha didn’t mention the hit song Happy Together by The Turtles which was released in 1967.  Perhaps that’s because he wasn’t born until 1979, even though the song has been covered by many bands including the Beatles and its been included in lots of movies since then!  These verses especially speak to me and apparently to thousands of others as well:

Me and you and you and me,

No matter how they toss the dice, it had to be.

The only one for me is you, and you for me.

So happy together.

I can’t see me lovin’ nobody but you,

For all my life.

When you’re with me, baby the skies’ll be blue,

For all my life.

But exactly how often are we happy together?  Pasricha reveals the simple statistic that if both of us were happy a good 80% of the time, we need to realize that we will only be happy together 64% (80% x 80%) of the time when our moods overlay together.  These are the best of times, the best days, the best of life together.  This also means that we are in bad moods together 4% (20% x 20%) of the time.  It also means that 32% (36%-4%) of the time one partner is in a good mood and the other is not.  Of course, these stats can apply to anyone you spend a lot of time with including your boss, associates, roommate, or sibling.  Knowing this probability could keep a lot of unhappiness in a relationship in perspective.

The bottom line is that even two of the happiest partners in the world will not be happy together for a certain percentage of the time and we have to be understanding.  I’ve always liked the advice that its easy to love the lovable, but it’s a challenge to love the unlovable!  Some days we’re just not lovable—especially at the same time.  Our moods have a tremendous influence on each other as we roll the dice together and the skies won’t always be blue for all our lives together.  It takes work to be happy together!  

DRIVE THRU GRACE

Drive Thru, Greensboro, NC

We’ve all heard about “drive by shootings” on the news these troubling days, but this morning I experienced “drive thru grace”!  I’m certain that in this day and age, I have literally spent over a hundred hours in fast food drive thru automobile lines.  And the vast majority of those ill spent hours were boring and uneventful and quite probably had some influence on my heart attack years ago.  But there have been a few that stand out in my mind like today’s experience. 

Not long after Karen and I were married, we traded for a new Oldsmobile Cutlass.  I really liked that car and it was one of the best automobiles I had ever driven.  We pulled into a fast food drive thru line to order a quick meal during the crowded dinner hour one evening.  An elderly woman ahead of us was having trouble communicating with the squawk box, so she was maneuvering her big Buick back and forth in a fruitless effort to place her order.  As it seemed that she had finally established communication with the teenager inside, I noticed that her last move had been in reverse, since her backup lights were still switched on.  I quickly glanced in my rear view mirror to check out my options, but we were inescapably trapped in line!  Then as we gasped in horror, the woman hit the accelerator to advance backwards and demolished my front grill assembly.

 After a few seconds I gathered my wits and reconciled the situation as a simple matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time with no malice on the part of the emotional driver ahead of us.  We offered our assurances that accidents happen and exchanged pleasantries and insurance policy numbers.

This morning I was once again confronted with a young lady in a silver Dodge Charger ahead of me in line at Starbucks.  She had sort of cut me off to enter the drive thru line off the main street and I noticed that my car was now the last to clear the street in the full capacity line.  And it wasn’t helping that now the Charger was staying at least one half a car’s length behind the car in front of it.  I inched as close as possible to the Charger in order to provide room for the car behind me while grumbling all the while.  You know there are unwritten rules for operating in drive thru lines!    This actually continued all the way to the window.  As I watched the Charger finally moving away, the cashier informed me that the car ahead had paid my bill. 

There I sat after spending the past 5-10 minutes grumbling to myself at the stranger looking in her rear view mirror.  I was offering derision and she had offered grace.  I had no other response than to offer to pay for the car behind me.  The cashier let me know that this bill was half of mine.  When I arrived back home to finish the handout for a class I’ll be facilitating on the Gospel in Life, Grace Changes Everything, it occurred to me that somebody had just reminded me to stay graceful by personally delivering the same message to me.

Wouldn’t it be great is there was a drive thru dispensing grace?  Well actually, there is such a place with no lines even though many are served.  And the good news is that the price has been paid by One who has gone before us!   

             

FAITH IN THE FUTURE

Beautiful Heartland Corn Crop, Waverly, KS

New Driveway Grass Crop, Jamestown, NC

I recently had to remove a mature Maple tree close to my driveway along with the roots that had begun to encroach under the pavement.  The tree’s shade was welcome but it was also destroying the surrounding grass.  After the work was finished, I was left with a micro plot of land which begged for an over seeding of an appropriate grass blend.  I received some good advice years ago that once you plant seeds they must be nurtured and kept moist until the grass has established a good root system or you might as well scatter the seed into the street.  So, I faithfully watered the seed bed for days as the fresh shoots appeared and began to thrive in the newfound sunshine. 

I have always enjoyed yard work and planting since I’ve reasoned that I still have a bit of inherited dirt coursing through my bloodstream.  All of my grandparents were raised on rural Kansas farms and managed farms to sustain their families which included my father and mother.  My good fortune along with my other cousins was the inherited DNA those good folks bequeathed to all of us, as we were the first to be born and raised in the postwar economies of our urban lives.

I left my small grassy field to attend a family gathering last week with the expectation that nature would at least provide some rain while I was absent, especially with hurricane Dorian tracking up the east coast.  But good news and bad news awaited my return.  Dorian just skirted the coastlines and its rain bands never penetrated deep into the mainland.  The plot of land I had been nurturing was looking parched and forlorn when I arrived home.  There was even a small patch that had died due to a lack of rain.  Fortunately, I have the benefit of instant running water at my disposal and the grass is now recovering.

The trip back to my birthplace through the Heartland of America triggered lots of memories.  I remembered my farming relatives talking about how every spring planting was a true act of faith.  The ground is prepared and seed is sown.  And then it becomes a time for waiting and worrying if the rains will come on time in just the right amounts, which seldom occurs.  But somehow my grandparents survived and the welcoming descendants that gathered on a warm summer day close to harvest time were a wonderful testament to their faith in God and the future.  I have to believe that they endured innumerable dry days and dark nights of the soul where that belief enabled them to persevere.  It wasn’t the thought of an easy life for themselves but the deeply rooted faith in a better life for their grandchildren that must have sustained them. 

And all us gave thanks before breaking bread together that they did just that and we were living the American dream because of their faith in us to thrive where we were planted.

THE NIGHTLIFE

Nightlife, Chicago, IL

I just happened to once again hear the ‘60’s hit song Nightlife recorded by Ray Price this week.  Nightlife or “habitual nocturnal carousing” is an activity we all indulge in, at least on occasion.  Nightlife for babies translates into 2:00 AM feedings.  Then we enjoy our evening bath and go down for the night around 7:00 PM.  During our teen years nightlife curfew extends to weekends between 10:00-12:00.  And it’s always a good idea to follow the rules set by the people that feed you.  The nightlife at that stage starts to involve carousing with close friends and dating.  My mother always reminded me that if you’re out after midnight, you’re probably up to no good!

Once we leave the nest and go off to share an apartment or a college dorm room the parental rules no longer apply.  If you haven’t learned things by that time, then you’re on your own in the school of hard knocks.  And its during this period of life that your mother’s words echo true in your head!  For many, marriage and midlife emerge and nightlife involves dinners and entertainment, generally on Friday and Saturday nights if your work schedule allows the time.  Those who indulge more frequently are sometimes associated with nocturnal creatures with whom we share the planet such as night owls.

The nightlife has settled into our culture as being “cool” and desirable.  Restaurants, bars, theaters and sports figured this out years ago.  But like all things of this world, even the nightlife can be a drag when indulged in excess.  Entertainers must know this all too often as they work nightly in this environment.  Not too surprisingly, Willie Nelson collaborated on the hit song appropriately titled Nightlife:

“When the evening sun goes down,

You will find me hanging round.

Oh the nightlife ain’t no good life,

But it’s my life.”

And then finally there’s the golden senior years of life where you can vaguely recall that you used to silently slip out of the house late to indulge in the nightlife and now you silently exit the nightlife early to go home.

BUILDING BIGGER BARNS

Abandoned Dairy Barn, High Point, NC

I was listening to the passed King of Rock ‘n Roll on Elvis XM radio while driving to the Farmers Market this morning.  Then I passed my favorite abandoned dairy barn that has been in a slow decline for years and it validated an eternal truth that “life and nature can take all worldly things in an instant or at a glacial pace.”  Nothing in this life lasts forever even though everything leaves at different times.  

A very wise teacher once said that if we store up treasures elsewhere instead of building bigger barns and worshiping worldly kings, we’ll have a good outcome regardless of the circumstance or exit strategy.

Also scored some Carolina white peaches and German heirloom tomatoes to celebrate summertime.  Just two of life's simple pleasures!

BLUE MIND

Price Lake, Blue Ridge Parkway, NC

Referring to his book Blue Mind, Marine biologist Wallace Nichols tells USA Today that “The term ‘blue mind’ describes the mildly meditative state we fall into when near, in, on or under water.  It’s the antidote to what we refer to as ‘red mind,’ which is the anxious, over-connected and over-stimulated state that defines the new normal of modern life.”  He notes that research has shown that being near blue water can enhance our mental health and help us achieve “an elevated and sustained happiness.”

And what’s the genesis of our red mind which conjures up images of bulging neck veins and blood vessels about to burst?  Neil Pasricha posits in the opening of his international bestseller, The Happiness Equation, “because life was mostly short, brutal, and highly competitive over the two hundred thousand years our species has existed on this planet.  And our brains are trained for this short, brutal, and highly competitive world.”

So, what’s his antidote?  Pasricha includes one of my all-time favorite observations in life from Viktor Frankl after surviving the horrors of a Nazi concentration camp; “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.”  I’ve often written that there are many experiences in life that are beyond our control—with one exception—how we respond!  Pasricha states that if he knew everything about you “I could only predict about 10% of your happiness.  The remaining amount is not determined by your external world but by the way your brain processes it.”

I’ve learned over the years that one of the best responses to our chaotic culture is drawing on the ancient practice of mindful meditation.  Frankly, it’s a wonderful practice of calming your mind to achieve a peaceful and cleansing goal of reducing the daily stress of life.  Experiencing peace doesn’t mean that our lives are always joyful.  It implies that we have found the path to calming the mind in the midst of a normal hectic life.  Mindful meditation can be practiced almost anywhere if we focus on our favorite “go-to” quiet place in our mind.  Peace and relaxation can be found on vacation and day trips out into the serene beauty of nature.  All of my mindful quiet places occurred in the early morning light near the calm waters of expansive mirrored bodies of water.  

It’s truly amazing how this practice can transition the glowing Red Mind accumulated from the daily external world around us and slowly use its kaleidoscope power to morph into the calming Blue Mind that enables us to calm troubled waters and try again tomorrow.

DAY BLIND STARS

Overcast Skies, Jamestown NC

I’ve boarded both commercial and business jets on some of the most dismal, overcast days of my life.  These are the kind of days in late fall when there is a cold nuisance mist in the air which just adds to the depressing atmosphere.  These are not the kind of days that you wake up for a trip with unrivaled enthusiasm.  The plane begins its slow crawl away from the tarmac and makes its way in line for takeoff.  The engines strain against the grounded brakes and are suddenly set free to race down the runway and lift off into the mucky weather.  Droplets of moisture form lines across the windows as forlorn passengers blankly stare out into the nothingness.

And then it happens!  We burst out of the dense cloud ceiling into a pure white floor of mounding clouds highlighted by the bright sunshine.  That’s when it occurs to you that the sun was shining all the while you were complaining about the dark weather outside.  It was only the temporary cloud cover that had obscured your outlook on the day.  The sun was doing its thing in spite of the brief interlude of a weather front that was slowly dissipating. 

But have you ever considered that even on a beautiful sunny day in June the stars above are also waiting with their light?  It’s actually the intense sun that is obscuring their beauty and rendering us to being day blind to their presence.  Then the sun begins to pale on the western horizon as it slowly slips out of sight, taking its intense light with it.  Soon we are unconsciously aware that the light saber has been passed on to the myriad stars in the evening sky as the moon begins to rise and subtly reflect the sunbeams cast from the other side of our planet.  This becomes even more poignant when flying overhead at this transitional time of the day with a view of the skyline as major city lights begin to appear in the darkness below.  You’re left to wonder what all those millions of souls are doing right now and reflect on the unique smallness of your own being. 

  

Once I began to experience this revelation, dim overcast days and sunny days that I thought would never end came into better focus.  The Light in this world is always with us even though there are times that make it seem we have been abandoned.  We simply need the understanding that there will be times when life is obstructed by the dark things of this world and we need the faith to believe that the Light will never leave us and brighter days will come regardless of the situation.   

FREEDOM'S CHILD

Freedom's Child, Emporia, KS

Freedom's Flag, Jamestown, NC

Reflections on Independence Day, 2019

I’ve had a lifelong affair with vehicles and it must be in my genes as my father managed a service station early in life before operating trains and my grandson loves any kind of train, plane or automobile.  I know that I’ve driven over a million miles so far and I still enjoy an early morning drive through Starbucks for coffee and the freedom of the open road.  I’ve had the joy of driving all sorts of vehicles from my first customized Ford Victoria in the 50’s, dump trucks and all varieties of family and rental cars to the ultimate driving machine.  Those early morning drives are free from worldly distractions and enable one to clear the mind and meditate on what’s important.

That freedom of the road and of my life was purchased by the sacrifice of countless patriots starting in 1776, including WWII which took the lives of two of my uncles.  They were plucked from a Kansas farm life and thrust into the most horrific experiences that anyone can imagine.  The Medic never returned home and the Seabee returned to a completely distorted life after jungle malaria and untold demons.  I remember my grandmother finding solace in the Gold Star Mothers meetings she religiously attended and we sold poppies on Veterans Day to help those who returned with injuries. 

I was born during the war and enjoyed fruits of the post war boom or Pax Romana, a period of relative peace and prosperity in which there is one dominant nation, America.  My cousins and friends all benefited from this bustling period when most of the first world countries were rebuilding and America was riding the crest of the men coming home to a robust economy.  We spent lazy, hazy, crazy, endless days of summer running free in the Heartland pastures and riding bikes on the city streets until sunset.  Denim blue jeans with rolled up cuffs and pure white T-shirts with the sleeves rolled up were the uniform of the day along with flat top haircuts and suntanned skin in stark contrast.  Rock ‘N Roll music with Elvis ruled the airwaves as WLS in Chicago during the day and Wolfman Jack from Del Rio, Texas at night beamed into our cars dragging the gut!

The adults of this era were scarred from the horrors of war and perhaps showed some restraint to the children that were spared the experience.  But now in retrospect, I understand and truly appreciate their sacrifice and courage.  I also understand that freedom is not free and is always just one generation from being lost.  I do not appreciate those today who take our freedoms so casually.  And when it comes to respect for our flag and all that it stands for in this great nation, I will not defend the right of those who denigrate it.      

EXERCISE HAIKU

 EXERCISE HAIKU

Cycle, weights, sweat, sweat.

Always good to see the gym,

In rear view mirror.

QUAKING ASPENS

QUAKING ASPENS, Internet Domain

SPIRIT VOICE

Pneuma is an ancient Greek word for air in motion or breath, wind, spirit and soul.  At Pentecost Jesus’ disciples or followers became apostles or messengers of the good news.  Acts 2 begins with the great sound of a wind from heaven filling the entire house where the disciples were gathered and they received the spirit with visible tongues of fire signifying God’s presence.

 

Some of my fondest and enduring memories of the Colorado Rocky Mountains are the sounds and sights of a stand of Aspen trees shimmering and quaking in a cool, high altitude, gentle breeze.  Quietly sitting near a fresh, snowmelt, mountain stream surrounded by a cloned colony of white bark Aspen trees is one of the most meditative and contemplative experiences of my life.  That feeling alone is worth a trip into an Aspen grove.  They are native to cold regions with cool summers in the Northern Hemisphere, extending south at high altitude areas such as mountains and high plains.  Aspen colonies primarily spread through their extensive root systems derived from a single seedling.  One colony in Utah named Pando is believed to have originated with one male quaking Aspen which has now spread via a massive root system to 100 acres and is estimated to be 80,000 years old.  All of these trees are joined together as one by an unseen force with one original creator, a bond which ensures their survival from devastating forest fires.

But what is the mystery behind these shimmering leaves?  Aspens have a flattened leaf stem that enables the serrated leaves to hang at a right angle which reduces aerodynamic drag on the tree branches in high winds.  Since the Aspen also drops its brilliant gold leaves every autumn, heavy winter snows don’t cause much trouble either.  When a high-country wind makes its presence known to these leaves, the pale summer undersides twinkle in unison as dappled sunlight highlights their movement amongst the stark white trunks.

And then there’s the mesmerizing sound of thousands of shimmering leaves in the wind.  The gentle sound is likened to a gentle spring rain on the roof above your bedroom at daybreak.  It is unlike the sound of any tree in the forest.  Leisure time spent among these quaking high-country Aspens is nourishing food for the soul.  And if we listen with patience and sensitivity, we can hear the eternal spirit voice whisper, “Be still and know that I am God.”              

A CUP OF BLESSING

Summertime Soulmates, Jamestown, NC

“Never lose an opportunity of seeing anything that is beautiful;
 for beauty is God's handwriting—a wayside sacrament.
 Welcome it in every fair face, in every fair sky, in every fair flower,
 and thank God for it as a cup of blessing.”
 —Ralph Waldo Emerson

“A soulmate is someone to whom we feel profoundly connected,
as though the communicating and communing that take place
between us were not the product of intentional efforts,
but rather a divine grace.”
—Thomas Moore

CROSSING BRIDGES

Beach Access Bridge, Kiawah Island, SC

Eugene Delacroix has written that “A picture is nothing but a bridge between the soul of the artist and that of the spectator.”  I took this photo as the sun was rising over the eastern shore and moonlight was transitioning to daylight.  I had risen early so that I could relish the experience and possibly capture an image to remember the moment as I approached a beach access bridge.

Bridges are generally constructed to provide passage over obstacles such as rivers, valleys or dense vegetation without disturbing or closing the way underneath.  Some of the earliest bridges were likely stepping stones or fallen trees that enabled our ancestors to easily cross over to the other side.  Most of us have an image of flooding river water rushing under a stalwart bridge that probably inspired Paul Simon to write Bridge over Troubled Water.

Fredrich Nietzsche observed that “Nobody can build the bridge for you to walk across the river of life, no one but you yourself alone.  There are, to be sure, countless paths and bridges and demi-gods which would carry you across this river; but only at the cost of yourself; you would pawn yourself and lose.  There is in the world only one way, on which nobody can go, except you; where does it lead?  Do not ask, go along with it.”  Bridges in dreams are symbols of stability, connection and transition.  “Love is the bridge between you and everything” according to Rumi.

As I stepped onto the beach access bridge that early summer morning, I was transitioning from the chaos of the world around me for just a short while and entering the peace and tranquility of the ocean waves timelessly washing ashore at my feet.  Nothing sooths the soul like a walk on the beach at sunrise as the world around me sailed away on the sea breezes.  And as the concerns of life began to drift out to sea, I reminded myself not to cross those bridges until I came to them.    

A MOSES LEADER

MOSES, FDR, World Leaders

June 6, 2019  D-Day Seventy Fifth Anniversary

A “Moses leader’ is metaphorically referred to as someone who capably leads his people through an extremely difficult situation safely to the other side.  My personal business experience revealed that it generally takes a different style of leadership to guide a company through trying times of survival versus one who takes the baton and leads the surviving company into more prosperous quarters. 

Moses was one of the greatest Biblical leaders of the Old Testament and led the Israelites out of Egyptian captivity into the Judean desert for forty years seeking the “promised land” in Canaan.  Franklin D. Roosevelt led the United States as president into his fourth term through the Great Depression and World War II. 

Historians and political scientists consistently rank FDR as one of the most influential figures of the 20th century and consider him along with George Washington and Abraham Lincoln as our three greatest presidents.  His biographer Jean Edward Smith wrote that “He lifted himself from a wheelchair to lift the nation from its knees.”  Moses is mentioned more often in the New Testament than any other Old Testament figure.  He along with Elijah is present in Jesus’ transfiguration on a high mountain.  He lifted the people of Israel out of slavery into a hardened nation of consequence.

Moses led the people to the banks of the Jordan River in sight of the promised land.  He passed his authority to Joshua and then went up to the top of Pisgah on Mount Nebo where he died at the age of one hundred and twenty.  FDR was in declining health as World War II was drawing to a close and traveled to Warm Springs, Georgia for rehabilitation and rest where he died of a cerebral hemorrhage at the age of 63.  His successor, President Truman, declared victory in Europe the following month, followed by the surrender of Japan in another four months.

Ironically, both of these great figures in human history were brought through trying times as they led their people to the brink of the promised land and were permitted a brief view of their ultimate goal before their life expired.  And then another personality led the people into the next phase of human history.

THE BLISS OF SOLITUDE HAIKU

SOLITUDE, Kiawah Island, SC

Walking at sunrise,

along a wet sandy beach,

is tranquility.

Shore birds ride the breeze,

and ocean waves lap the shore,

erasing footprints.

A new creation,

emerges from the darkness,

and pierces the heart.

Pleasurable thoughts,

like puffy clouds drift in the,

bliss of solitude.

FATHERS, MOTHERS, SONS, DAUGHTERS AND BASEBALL

Cubs Wrigley Field, Chicago, IL

Little League Baseball, Emporia, KS

We’ll celebrate our parents individually in the next thirty days, along with the beginning of baseball season.  The game of baseball has long been celebrated as America’s pastime, but as with all things, there are many other activities that occupy the present generation.  My father directly had a hand (and an arm) in teaching me the game, but in retrospect my mother drove me to practices and games when my father worked random shifts on the Santa Fe railroad.  One of them never missed a game.

As a young man playing baseball, my father was scouted by the St. Louis Cardinals and he was offered a low paying position at shortstop on their farm club.  He decided to abandon the dream and stay at home to help the family.  That major decision in my father’s life quite probably resulted in our family’s creation.  I was emotionally struck by the parallel life-changing decisions of my dad and Archie “Doc” Graham, played by Bert Lancaster in his final film, Field of Dreams.  One critic’s consensus of the movie is “sentimental, but in the best way, a mix of fairy tale, baseball and family togetherness.”  Archie gives up his baseball dream for a medical career, helping countless others including children. 

Ray Kinsella is a struggling Iowa corn farmer who hears a voice saying “If you build it, he will come.”  Both Ray’s father and mine seemed to live vicariously through their sons on the baseball field, and both sons sought other paths.  It was only later in life that they understood that connection they had severed in their search for independence, which is the end goal of all good parenting.  And it was only at the end of the movie that Ray realized the voice was referring to his deceased father.

Ray’s wife Annie supported his crazy dream to plow up part of their life-supporting corn field to build a baseball diamond in the middle of nowhere.  As the banned ghost players of the Chicago Black Sox emerged from the corn field onto the baseball diamond, they asked “Is this heaven?”  Ray simply replied “No, it’s Iowa.”  He later concluded that it was heaven, a place where there is no more fear, tears or shaming, but a place where families can enjoy togetherness.  I can still remember watching The Game of the Week at Wrigley Field on a black and white television with my grandfather as Dizzy Dean made the calls.

And like the movie Field of Dreams, some of the best times involved the simple act of playing catch in the backyard. It’s a very human act of I-give-to-you and you-give-back connectedness, many times discussing something about life and many times in serene silence, with just the sound of the rawhide ball hitting the leather glove. The final act of redemption in the movie unfortunately doesn’t happen all too often in real life. The prodigal son gets a second chance to say, “Hey dad, you wanna have a catch?” And his dad replies, “I’d like that.”

Ray and I didn’t have sons but we passed along our love for the game to our daughters.  And a game of catch between a parent and child is priceless.  I know she and my son-in-law are passing the torch of athletic games on to my grandson and we’ll all soon enjoy a Cubs baseball game together in Chicago!

THE INHERITANCE

JEWELS OF HEAVEN, NASA

The state of North Carolina presently has over $711,000,000 in unclaimed property in the care of the state treasurer.  Like most states, they have a website on the internet where one can go to sign in and check if they have claim to a variety of abandoned property such as bank accounts, wages, utility deposits, insurance policy proceeds, stocks, bonds, and contents of safe deposit boxes that typically have been abandoned for one to five years. 

  

Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 2:9 that “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.”  And yet many more people than live in North Carolina have left this inheritance on the table and not claimed it for themselves by simply following the teachings, life and death of the Son of God who walked among us over 2,000 years ago. 

Scripture directs us not to store up treasures on earth where rust and moths will destroy them, but to live our lives so that our promised treasure is waiting for us in the kingdom of heaven.  But we must have the conviction and faith in our heavenly Father as we face the challenges of life to claim this inheritance.

When God freed the Israelites from the bonds of slavery in Egypt, he showed them their inheritance in the promised land of Canaan that was occupied by 31 kingdoms.  These people were almost immediately incapable of seizing their inheritance and wanted to return to the perceived sanctuary of the Pharaoh of Egypt.  Hence, they wandered for forty years in the wilderness desert until another generation replaced them that was seasoned to seize the prize!  The generation of slaves no longer had the courage and vision for freedom under the sanctuary of their God.  They chose the easy path, even though it came with the price of slavery.  And people can be the slaves of many things, not just a Pharaoh in Egypt!

The next generation entered the promised land under the protection of their God, defeated those 31 kingdoms, and claimed their earthly inheritance.  That kind of resolute faith can now carry all of us on a path that leads to our eternal inheritance with our Heavenly Father!   

THE ADVENTURE OF OPENING DOORS

Opening the Door, Jamestown, NC

“I say, follow your bliss and don’t be afraid, and doors will open where you didn’t know they were going to be. If you follow your bliss, doors will open for you that wouldn’t have opened for anyone else.” --Joseph Campbell

My two-year old grandson was visiting this Easter weekend and quickly discovered the pass-through door between the kitchen and dining room.  He immediately became fascinated with the ability to turn the door knob and move between the rooms to new adventures and imaginings.  He’s a naturally curious little guy which will serve him well in future life and the door provided endless play time in coming and going.  First, he drove his lighted fire truck through the matrix into new dimensions and then wheeled his tow truck into the portal to new adventures.  Soon he was beckoning his parents and Papa to open the door at his request or opening the door for them as they politely knocked on the other side to obtain entrance into his world.

Joseph Campbell has also written that "people say what we're all seeking is the meaning of life...I think what we're seeking is the experience of being alive."  There’s no better model of behavior for being alive than to experience the life of a two-year old at play.  There are no filters to edit out the most basic wonders of the world around us that we can no longer see or appreciate.  There is no bias or fear of giving strangers a high five if our family has introduced us.  An empty container, a cardboard box, a small fallen tree branch or an everyday door can be the source of endless entertainment when the imagination is engaged.  Having someone whose voice you recognize that is knocking on the other side makes for great fun when you open the door and find them waiting to greet you.

A famous painting exists of a prominent closed door with Jesus standing outside knocking. The subtle focal point of the painting is that the door does not have a door knob on the outside.  It’s the best example I can think of that illustrates the concept of free will which we all have been endowed with to either invite him into our lives or to shut him out.  But I believe that if we follow our bliss and freely open the door, we will encounter joy in life and experience the priceless adventure of being alive forever!