Why Did You Go?

Jesus said, "It is good for you if I go, for I will send the Spirit of Truth and He will teach you all things".

Wow!

It is true. If Jesus were still on the earth, what are the odds that I would even get to see Him today? The physical limits could be solved by something like a broadcast, but would that satisfy? All my favorite musicians are those whom I was in the same room with. People you have never heard of such as Chris Leggerie,  Joey DeVito, and Monteo Myers. There is so much difference being with someone as opposed to a photo or recording. A broadcast is just a live recording, no?

It is true. There is not one thing I have wanted to learn that I was not taught. I am greedy. I want to know so much about everything.

That the Spirit is everywhere and ever available to teach the willing has made my life so much more beautiful. Simply being willing to learn beats student loans by miles.

Of course, there is no degree at the end. At Spirit University there is no 'end'. There is the down side of not having that sheepskin to show a potential employer, but the upside is that I can climb ever onward and upward. The world holds too many mysteries to ever stop, so why would I?

Once Jesus rose from the dead, he spent some forty days meeting with a chosen few (later, He would appear to Paul which Paul called "being born out of time"). Fully God, fully man, Jesus had conquered the last enemy, death. His followers who witnessed his being alive were changed forever and passed that changed state of believing down through our age.

Jesus was seen to ascend into clouds of judgment. There came a change in the world upon His second coming. The Chosen People became those who believed in Him with the destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D.

This is why we learn- to become more productive. The power of believing in Christ taps into the power of the Spirit and the power of Almighty God. There is no limit to what we can do unless we try to appropriate power for selfish reasons.

How hard is that?

Unfortunately, many do seek power to build their own kingdom.

This causes pain.

There is so much love that goes ungenerated. This is not a word. But looky here what spell check suggested. Sometimes you learn things from unexpected places and at unexpected times!

unregenerate-

not renewed in heart and mind; not reborn in spirit; unrepentant; refusing to believe; skeptical; unconvinced; unconverted; unreconstructed; stubborn; obstinate; not reformed; wicked; profligate; dissolute

degenerate-

to fall below a normal or desirable level in physical, mental, or moral qualities; deteriorate

to diminish in quality

I stole the definitions from dictionary.com and edited them into a summary form. We each know people who fit these descriptions. I was one of these. There is hope for change. All it takes is a miracle.

If we flip these words to their opposite, we get this. To rise above physically, mentally and morally, we must be reborn in spirit, renewed in heart and mind by believing.

That is so nice I will type it twice.

To rise above physically, mentally and morally, we must be reborn in spirit, renewed in heart and mind by believing.

Jesus rose from the dead, that is why this is possible.

Be thankful, fully grateful. Give praise to God, who is love.

Happy Easter!

Love someone well today,

Bobby

Music

I have a guitar again!

It has been years since I had all the pieces in place. I replaced the strings the other day on a flea market guitar we own and voila`, beautiful sounds were in the air.

Maybe you will get to hear it.

There was a point since my sobriety started when I lived with two brothers who were both doctorate level musicians. Chris was also in a group I joined called Back to Basics (attempting to recreate the A.A. meetings from the 1930's. He was primarily a drummer and when he played it literally would stun me.

During that period, I found myself highly influenced by the purity of what they produced. My playing definitely got better. I wanted to play all the time. I was writing songs all the time.

It is strange to look back.

Who I am at any particular moment seems to be so dependent on who is closest to me. Of course, there is some 'core' Bobby that is always there, but there seems to be a part of us that reflects others too.

In the course of my sobriety, there have been times when I have had to reject an individual from my life. Thankfully, such occasions are rare because it is a difficult decision to make. I am guessing that most people cannot or will not ever do such a thing. That is my conclusion based on the reactions I get when I explain why I have had to reject someone.

Gary was the saddest story. We became close friends; he was one of the closest friends I have ever had. Over the course of years I had to witness Gary go back to being a drunk many times. Somehow I kept believing he would make it. Finally, it became something I could no longer handle. I told Gary that he was no longer my friend, nor even an acquaintance. The sorrow I was feeling was dangerous to me as a person.

I think it made me grow. It was not something I would have ever imagined doing. I was always the type to just endure in spite of what it cost me.

Somehow I had learned that I was entitled to be strong, to choose my own influences in life. I cannot help anyone if I am weak. Gary made me weak and the result was that not only I, but others suffered as a result of his being in my life. So it was not selfish of me to reject him. I recognized that I was not helping him. That became clear as time revealed the truth.

Snip.

Addition by subtraction.

I have also learned to be very grateful for those who have a positive impact on me.

I have realized that the Originator deserves all the credit for positive people in my life. It is a trap to believe that I choose who to be in relationship with. It is God, after all, who caused other people to exist and it is God who causes their story and mine to intersect. In other words, I cannot just conjure them up. It is God who is ultimately writing my story. So I am aware and thankful for any blessing He brings my way in the form of certain other people.

So, let me return to the title theme. I find it revealing that in writing this I quickly transitioned to using wisdom to choose relationships in one's life. Each topic is a nearly perfect metaphor for the other.

I become a better musician/ person when I have God-supplied, positive relationships. Rich fullness is added to life/ music when there is harmony. I find that as I give/ create that the right people reflect back to me; the result is that I am a beneficiary of my own giving nature. I make others stronger and better, but the process makes me stronger and better too.

When there is discord, I want to endure it. Everyone suffers as a result. One bad apple can ruin your life/ band. Kicking out the bad member is difficult, but necessary for strength, health and productivity.

Within music itself there are so many variables. Variations are the natural result of being human. Add other people and there is generated an infinity number of variations within an infinite variety of combinations!

When I sing, there has never been anything like it. (ha ha ha). Which instrument I choose makes a difference. My mood makes a difference both in what I might produce at a given moment and in what I feel like hearing at a given moment.

From this chaos sometimes come something beautiful. It is communication at the level of the soul.

In a strange twist, and to complicate things, just because there is harmony produced between two people does not automatically indicate a perfect combination. Life is mysterious indeed.

Like music, life is not definable. It rides on invisible, ever-changing waves. We have tenuous control (if any). We can find immeasurable joy; or we can find peace; or our ears may bleed. Every moment is different and every moment yet to come is filled with unexpected highs or lows or both. In the end, there are memories, the melody lingers on.


Love someone well today,

Bobby

Happy Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Today I start a new job. It is only part time.

There is no set schedule for this position. I am a merchandiser for Acosta which gets contracted by their clients as needed.

It has caused me some reflection on other first days.

Just now it is almost time to go.


Remember.

Love someone well today,

Bobby

Eggs

My son posted on Facebook that he finally succeeded in making fried eggs on a stainless steel pan. Why he was so determined to do it, I dunno. The trick, apparently, is low heat.

My bugaboo has always been trying to poach them. It has been rare that I get to eat a poached egg despite it being a favorite. Apparently I am not the only one who has difficulty in making eggs this way. If it were easy to make, they would be available at many more restaurants.

Eggs are a remarkable thing. They come with their own storage container. Once broken, it cannot be put together again as the King's horses and King's men will tell you freely.

They are also remarkable in that most things that deliver so much nourishment come at a high cost. Eggs, however, while being superior in nutritional value are cheap.


Of course, these points about eggs are from a certain perspective. I am not sure that a hen has a perspective, but if it does, it would see eggs quite differently than a yummy source of cheap protein.

Without eggs there would be no more chickens. It goes without saying that without chickens, there would be no more eggs. There are other types of eggs, of course, but to simplify reading I am using the word egg when technically I mean chicken eggs solely.

Ironically, being so delicious, chickens have no natural defenses. All manner of creatures eat chickens and also their eggs. Stupid bird cannot even fly away! This is ironic because, chickens being so delicious, we humans make sure there are always more to eat. It would have been a great tragedy if all the chickens and eggs were eaten before we humans determined to ensure that there would always be more to eat.

Kim and I do not have any chickens, yet. I am looking forward to the day. Kim says they are cute and fun to be with. The major issue is keeping them from being stolen by hungry vandals.


I am not sure what else to say about eggs, nor do I fully understand why I choose this topic. I wrote the above and some other junk I just deleted. While the day was progressing I was amazed at all the memories that came to me that involved eggs. Also there are SO MANY SAYINGS about eggs! Eggs just might be the common thread to communication between people.

The Path in the Portrait

An individual paints a portrait. It is good. It is at once something new, yet it is in the artist's own image. It contains what the artist has seen with perhaps a hint of what he has dreamed possible. Within the portrait is a path. Where does the path lead? The path is symbolic of the unknowable future.

One is the creator, the other their creation. We can think of these two existing in different dimensions, one obviously higher than the other.

So it is with God and man. We exist because of our Creator. He is fully outside of the dimension in which we live, move and have our being. He even lives outside of time. Think of this as the painter never literally walking along the path within their portrait.

The Bible exists for reasons we can only guess at. Some say that the first five books in their original format are literally the foundation for our world's existence. I can see this as a likelihood. After all, in the beginning was the Word... and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. Such glimpses into infinite spiritually should cause one to pause in open mouthed wonder.

We cannot know the future. We are told that acting on our desire to discover tomorrow can be the ultimate crime. We are told that borrowing worry from potential onward pathways adds greatly to our sorrows.

The Bible was validated by prophecy. This happened long ago. Only the true living God could have foretold future events in such detail. The people of God experienced it and as a result cherished and protected the Word. Today we live in the fulfillment of ALL the promises. We get to enjoy the fruits.

Unfortunately, some part of us looks back with longing to that other time. We want prophecies to be part of our lives. In this dreamy imagined scenario, we think of ourselves as the prophet, the one in the know. Secret knowledge is something we desire. We ignore the reality that chances are we would be on the outside looking in.

Plus, in doing this we lose the path. Actually, we arrive at the same predetermined destination, but we have lost all the good God placed there for us to find. We walk in darkness and believe it is right. At the end of the day, we feel the weight of negativity that we have brought upon ourselves. Having limited our vision to our desires rather than the gifts, we now have neither.

We each have a path, just for today. It is from the mind of our Creator and He has painted one just for me, just for you. It contains wonders that we can barely understand. God's world is filled with good. Our problem is that we insist on redefining good. We are creatures who have tasted the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Now we think we know best about everything. But, we do not.

Only when we stop believing in our interpretation of good can we fully experience the higher good. The good that can only come from a higher place, from a higher being, our Father. There is no excuse for not loving Him fully, with all of our being. Unfortunately, we all have trust issues.

It is never about the other person being good. It is not clever to discover the flaws and even the evil in anyone else. Yet, we pat ourselves on the back for this all too often. Other people are not to be focused upon in this way, never. Yet we are industrious in doing this very thing. We focus on individuals we know; we focus on individuals in the news; we focus on 'stars' of every stripe. Then we pick at their flaws.

How incredibly silly!!!

There is a reason we do this. We want to withhold trust and this process of finding fault becomes our proof set for "No one is worthy of absolute trust".

Well, duh!!!

There is no proof needed for this. The assumption should be that everyone is born under sin. Therefore finding this out about anyone is no revelation at all. It is NOT NEWS!

But there is One who is worthy of every ounce of trust we can manage. If we were capable, we could freely give infinite trust, that is, infinite love to God. Sadly, we get confused.

We find in the portrait something that we wish were different. We believe in our way rather than His. We fool ourselves into believing our way would be best. We wish to be God rather than be thankful for His good truth.

Dern.

"Let go and let God" is a phrase coined by one of the original Alcoholics Anonymous members. It certainly applies here. We first need to know that we need to stop believing in our own definition of what is good. Then we need to believe that CAN stop. Then we need to believe there is Someone who is committed to helping us do it. Then we need to believe there is Someone who will ever and always make this "letting go" worth it. Each day is a new portrait with a new path. If we practice every day to trust God for All good things, then we shall see the result. The result is Love, Peace, Joy, etc.

Do you wonder why the twelve steps have become so famous?

Down the road of those steps is helping others. This too is a key that can unlock doors to allow goodness and light into one's life. God knows, others could use some help. Actually, so do all of us. We each have doctorate in how others are flawed. Either help them or let it go. You are not required to always help everyone, beware of that TRAP, but help someone. Just remember it is not the first step or the second, etc.

Like Jesus says, "First remove the plank from your own eye, then you shall see clearly to remove the speck of sawdust from your fellow traveler's eye". Amen?


(you better) Love someone well today (for your own sake)

Bobby

PS- too preachy? Y/N? Hmm, its Sunday!

Hello to Yellow Brick Road

Kim is starting her blog today. I will post a permanent link soon.

I love my blog. It makes me feel good in so many ways.

For the past two days I have had to postpone publishing posts I started. They deal with the origins of science as we understand the word. One never fleshed itself out. It had a lot of potential for metaphors about life. It had so many potential threads that it could become a whole book. So it sits in my draft pile. The second was a knock on Aristotle. Plain to see that it was boorish.

So there ended up being no post yesterday while on Thursday I at least managed to cobble together something different.

Ironically, one of the scientific themes is about momentum. Writing everyday has become a habit, so far. My past history would suggest a lack of consistency on my part. This is not my first blog, rather, my third. This blog started and stopped a few times in the past. Now it on track on a regular basis. I really hope that you enjoy reading it.

Speaking of enjoyment. There was mention of another blog in the Aristotle post that did not get published. I have a keen interest in presidential elections. When I was eleven years old I began avidly watching speeches and conventions. At fifteen, I was up all night following the returns on the radio, hoping for a miracle turnaround as I pulled for McGovern with a passion. My first vote ever was for Carter and as a result was passionately against Obama. I have seen and heard much.

I am betting most of you do not enjoy impassioned ranting about this stuff. So.

I will start a second blog about the current campaign cycle. This way I will not trouble you by sneaking comments into BabyBeetleButts. Whether you agree with me or not on topics political should not ruin your reading of this blog.

I am finishing this writing and about to be the first to read Kim's first draft. I look forward to it and you should too. Remember to actively and honestly encourage her. She is going through angst, which is a sign of artistry. I can state with passion that she will be worth reading.


LOVE SOMEONE WELL TODAY! (I hope you remembered to do that yesterday without me nagging you?)

Bobby

Hoarding

I must make this public confession, I am a hoarder of alternatives.

I cannot seem to ever do the same thing the same way twice, at least not if any alternative exists.

You just never know when you might need an alternate way to open a can, for example. If you consistently do it the exact same way, what will you do when that method is denied you either temporarily or permanently?

It starts with imagining things, what if there were no electricity, for example. I think part of me is so proud of my God given ability to find solutions to problems that I make problems up. Not just once in a while either, I live in a world that is slightly different from reality. I do not take for granted that what exists is there because tomorrow it may not.

As a child, this state of being sometimes caused me fear. I would traumatize myself by concentrating on something like imagining my house on fire and examining my own emotional reaction.

This practiced behavior also meant that if I loved someone, I tried very hard to experience what it would be like to lose them. Talk about a good time!

Yeesh!

Like any good hoarder there is no greater moment than when life validates my insanity. An example for a physical hoarder might be when there is a sudden great need for a cheap plastic bowl and so they actually get to use one of the hundreds of saved take out bowls (with lids!) that are readily at hand.

For me, life has no greater pleasure than getting to use an alternate method during some 'crisis' or another. It validates all those crazy other methods of doing things that I collect/hoard.

So.

If you have a problem, just ask.

I probably have a solution (or two, or twelve) ready to be given.

Remember, I am primed and ready, just waiting for any problem great or small to present itself. I am more than willing to jump right in and present some of this stored up experience.

Hello? Anyone out there?


Love someone well today (in every way),

Bobby

Surrender

When I was a wee lad, my older brother brought home a record album. He was excited and played it right away on our mono record player. It caused me mental distress and I ran to my room and covered my head with a pillow.

That album was Meet the Beatles!

I have no clear memory of my opinion flip flopping. I do remember how my mom loved Paul's crooning 'Til There Was You.

I wish that phones still had those huge metal rotary disks with big holes for your fingers to fit in. I wish I had a nickle (Kim discovered that I used the archaic spelling, how ironic) for every time I have dialed a cell phone and listened to the silence until I realized you now have to press send.

We just got new house phones. They now make you press send too.

I have heard that CD music disks are a thing of the past. So is email and even personal computers.

Gaming systems now use your body as the controller. Shut my mouth about those incredible graphics.

The world is truly experiencing something different. It is very rare for there to be something new under the sun. But there now is, at least to those of us who remember a different simpler time, if you were born before Google, for example.

Information and communication travel nearly instantly, nearly everywhere, and nearly globally.

Everything from relationships to elections to the toppling of dictators is affected.

Texting has become an addiction. Obama is president. Protesters can rally with one mind.

And, of course, there is BabyBeetleButts!

Vote for Trump!

Don't text and drive!

Vive le difference!


LOVE SOMEONE WELL TODAY! (in person if you can)

Bobby

Discovery

Sometime in my lifetime the tipping point came. Advertising aligned with marketing and 'normal' life became a barrage of lures trying to get me to buy stuff. In this new world one has two choices: one can give in and always be in a state of wanting more, or one can resist and be in a constant state of feeling under attack.

In the midst of living through this, once in a great while there comes along products that are keepers.

One such is the NetiPot. My daughter and I share many physical traits. When she was young, she had breathing problems. When I was young I had breathing problems. She saw an allergist and got treatment. Since I never had, I applied what we learned about her to myself as I reflected on my past. It fit well. I had had the same issues with the same physical causes.

I saw an xray of her nose. Her septum runs in a crooked line. One result of this is a syndrome called post nasal drip. In layman's terms, the pipes get clogged easily and cause backups. Backups cause pressure and annoying feelings up in the sinuses. I have always suffered from this too.

So when my daughter, now an adult, posted that she was told to try nasal irrigation, I did too.

I purchased a NetiPot. It came with a little booklet explaining that for thousands of years, some places in the world have used nasal irrigation daily. Just as we have tooth brushes, they have always had NetiPots.

Think of it as a mini tea pot with a bulb at the end of the spout. There are also tiny packages of stuff you dissolve in the hot water. It makes everything smell like the beach afterward, so it must be salty.

The idea of pouring water into your nose seems unpleasant, before you do it. Actually, it is wonderful. Better yet, it works. For me, it unclogs the pipes. I am not aware of these clogs before I irrigate, but so glad that they are gone. For the first time in my life, my sinuses function correctly during the day. My sense of smell improves dramatically. The uneven pressures inside my sinuses are gone. I has allowed me to experience a different and better state of being.

So, that is one recent discovery. Funny though. I must have missed the commercials for this product.

Another device that has improved my life is the nail brush.

This one came as a Christmas present from Kim. She did not know I wanted one.

I was listening to the John Tesh radio show. If you do not know who John Tesh is, I cannot help you, other than to say he suddenly showed up in the car and says strange things all the time. He is a DJ, he mainly plays records (does one even say "plays records" anymore?). Then he rambles on about different stuff that will make your life better (never heard anything about the NetiPot, but then I may hear less than one percent of his broadcasts)

Anyway, one part of one show one day that I did hear was about our fingernails. They are dirty by nature. Under the nails is particularly dirty because it retains debris. Stuff gets stuck under there and washing your hands does not help get it out.

Some people do not have this dilemma. The area under their fingernails is very clean. This is because they bite their nails! WAIT! Do not start biting them, it is a highly addictive behavior. Weaning yourself off of this behavior will take months of dedicated discipline.

Biting your nails is not recommended.

There is damage done... and pain.

Worse yet, biting your nails causes all manner of other problems. In short, it makes you sick, literally. Primarily, it causes sneezing and sniffling, including colds and even the flu. It can cause stomach problems, up to and including diarrhea or constipation.

Not good.

So. Do we have to live with whole colonies of germs and such under our fingernails?

No, we do not.

On Christmas morning, I got all excited after opening one of my presents. I looked at Kim because I assumed she would be puzzled. It was a grooming kit for nails. Nail clippers being the featured items. But included in the various other odd items was...

... A NAIL BRUSH.

I use it every day.

Working with my hands as I do, I use it multiple times a day. It has never hurt me.

Many times, after washing my hands, I can actually see dirt under my nails. But no more, I have this amazingly wonderful product that quickly and easily eliminates dirt from under my nails.

Funny, I must have missed the commercials for this product too.


LOVE SOMEONE WELL TODAY!!!

Bobby

PS- Thank you Kim for being willing to 'heal' these posts from my mistakes.

Photos of the new garden plot

Beth helped Kim choose flowers and plant them. She also found and planted this awesome flag.

God is a pretty good artist, no?

Snap Dragon

This frog planter and his sibling anchor the east and west corners. It is filled with new topsoil and flowers. The frogs came all the way from Virginia Beach to live with us. It was the least we could do to give them a nice home.

The full view from the southeast. The road in the background is our driveway leading up to the garage. The plot is within an oval as there are two driveway paths on either side. The yellow bush is forsythia, they are in full bloom even so early in the spring. To it's right is a lilac, budding already, though you cannot see it. To it's left is a telephone pole, it never seems to bloom.     Too bad there is no before picture. Where the garden now is there was nothing but grass. That is a pelican in the birdbath. It took traveled here from Virginia Beach. Suggesting it sit in the bird bath was my one artistic contribution. I also filled the water cans and folded the tarps.

Visions

I hope you see things that are not there.

I hope you see things of beauty or things functional or both; things that do not exist, yet.

The Bible states, "without a vision, the people perish". This too is the type of vision that can add value if it is fulfilled in the real world. Not spooky paranoid stuff that can get one hospitalized.

It is my opinion that visions can never be fulfilled unless one finds a partner. Going it alone does not work. I am not sure why this is the case, but I can guess. It takes the whole messy process of agreement and disagreement to keep up momentum. Then too, what you CAN accomplish on your own is not thought of as special; a vision is special. Some visions can be just out of reach; some are seemingly impossible.

The kitchen project here was a vision of Kim's, for example.

The kitchen cabinetry that exists here was obviously the vision of its designers. These cabinets are not store bought, rather the polar opposite. There were walls. Someone nailed up wood strips and covered nearly all the wall space and much of the floor and ceiling space as well. Someone built wooden boxes of all different sizes everywhere. Someone made doors from sheets of wood. Nearly every single door is unique, made to fit over it's non standard size opening. There are also drawers built-in, many of them, each also slightly unique. Much of the wood used contains various defects. Some places, like the drawer bottoms are made of odd materials, what ever was t'hand apparently. One thing is certain, it was a ton of work.

Another unique 'feature' is that the backs of the cabinets are still the walls.

When I moved here, the cabinets were all off white drab. In all the work of the original designers, they left out any finish work. No sanding, for example. If some place needed more support, a piece of wood was nailed where it would be most effective. If something was uneven, or not plumb, or not level, it was 'good enough'. Here and there is the odd board secured just enough to provide function. There were lots of gaps small and large. It was drafty inside. Drafts attract mice and spiders. All that is fixed now.

There are two sections, both are big enough to be classified as small towns. Both are L-shaped, together they nearly make a large square. Inside all this wood is the kitchen proper. There are two ways out. One break in all carpentry is a wall through to the dining room. The other is the door out to the garage. Like I said, someone put a tremendous effort into having 'ENOUGH' storage.

Kim saw them as they could be, beautiful. She saw them in color. She saw them as one of a kind.

We are getting there, together. I am just starting to see them as she has all these years. It is special and worth every ounce of labor, every muttered frustration.

I guess that is why 'worth' and 'value' are related. These oddball cabinets were worth the investment of our resources because the feeling we get looking at them now is so worth it! We are coming to the fulfillment stage of the vision and it is better than either of us saw it becoming. It makes our souls feel warm and fuzzy.

But...

That is not what this post is about, that was just the lead in.

We have a new garden plot. Nothing was there before.

You need to see this. It was another of Kim's visions and its reality is truly beautiful. Somewhere in site is the ability to post pictures. I am going to find it so you can see what we now will see.

Love someone well today! PLEASE?

Bobby

Lord of the Sabbath

It sits among the Ten Commandments. Equal to "MURDER- NOT". God works six days a week, so we are to rest one day a week by keeping it holy as a way of honoring Him. God called it the Sabbath day.

I know, this particular commandment is clear as mud.

You need a doctorate to understand what the Sabbath means to us, or not.

Actually, you need a doctorate to join in the arguments about it.

What day of the week is the Sabbath? Most Christians assume Sunday, but unless you understand ancient Greek you cannot make an argument for this apparently. Some actually use the original, Saturday.

The Jew's of Jesus day had created whole manuscripts devoted to what could be done and what could not be done on their Saturday Sabbath. Jesus verbally set these teachings on fire as trash over and over again!

So what is a believer to actually do? Perhaps wrestling with the issue is enough?

Today is Sunday. When I committed myself to making this blog consistent, I wrote a post every day, including Sunday. Then I felt guilty and did not write last Sunday. Was this false guilt? I still have no idea.

One thing has changed. The site is no longer monetized. Since I no longer can profit, does that change whether I can or cannot write a new post on Sunday? Again, I do not know.

Thank God for grace!

My deadline for the kitchen has passed, yet much is left undone. Do I work on it today, or not? For the longest time I was working on the house seven days a week. Do I need to repent? I can tell you this; working seven days a week means eight, nine, ten, etc. days in a row. Eventually our bodies start to rebel. Without some rest, personal productivity diminishes. If the goal was to get more done; chances are that working seven days will be less productive in the long term.

There seems to be no clear answer, particularly to details. There is no one to ask. Depending on who I asked, the answers would vary. None of these opinions would be substantial enough to bet upon as to rightness. Depending on who I asked, I am confident I could predict the answer. Spiritually, I need to answer this for myself.

All I know is that the issue is nagging me. Each week has a Sunday and with each passing one I wrestle with "what does God want me to do?".

My brother once told me a story of his childhood. The Jewish people in our neighborhood would ask him to come in and turn on the light switch as it got dark on a Friday. This is the official start of the Sabbath for them and simply flipping the switch was considered work. See the absurdities this stuff can bring into being?

Yet...

God did mean SOMETHING. That should not be ignored completely.

Some say that it is enough to think about Him on Sunday in a "special" way. This is mainly fulfilled by going to church. Just my opinion, but going to church was often the hardest work I would do all week. Gathering together was often a blessing. It was as if many lighted torches were united into a huge flame. But why on Sunday? I was supposed to be resting not stressed out about getting somewhere and being surrounded by people.

Church is what we are called as believers, not a building, nor an event.

As a believer I want to do the right thing. My dilemma is that both working and resting seem right.

AND...

On top of all this, what the heck is a week?

A day is a rotation of the planet, a year is once around the sun. Months are tied into moon cycles. But what the heck is a week???

Jesus said, "The Sabbath was made FOR man, not man for the Sabbath". That is the best direction I can find in my soul search. Still not sure what is right today, but I will be thinking about it.

Happy Birthday Tatiana! Bless you.

Love someone well today.

Bobby

Corrections

My bad. Before adding Kim's edits this morning, I pushed the "Publish" button. Her corrections are now included in the online post. Sorry.

OH NO!

We are all going to die!

This should not be news, someday each of us, according to historical precedent, are going to fail to function as viable human life forms.

I have been battling a pain in my stomach for a few months. Being a male, this is in turns, (a) ignored (b) means that I am dying. Basically, it really means, "Mom, my belly hurts!"

The Bible declares that death is an enemy. I think we can all say amen to that. What happens after death is strangely vague and subject to interpretation. Because it is such a personal and dramatic issue, interpretations exist in abundance. There are nearly as many flavors as people. There are those who lead and those who follow vast movements, some within the church, some without, and a huge category for other religions with belief systems such as reincarnation.

Very few deny that there is what we term a soul. I was once one of those. I was a follower of the public school system's teaching that we are naught but animals and death meant the beginning of decay. I look back and understand that I was just a parrot for what I was being taught. Somehow, science, which was founded on the search for better understanding of God, His world and our place in it, became sterile. To be an intellectual was to insist on "proof". Sad really.

Back to my achy belly. My latest favorite interpretation is that Kim's first reaction was correct; it is an ulcer. You see, I will not go to a doctor. Not that I have never been. Actually, I like talking to doctors in general. They are smart and sometimes have impressive knowledge. Problem is, they are OUT THERE and I normally choose to STAY HERE, so it is rare that we meet.

Plus, everything that ever was wrong with me was only because a doctor said so. Otherwise it would not have existed, right? There was a period in my life when I had yearly physicals. First I was extremely healthy. Years later I had warning signs. Years later the pills started. I follow the high blood pressure; hypoglycemic; diabetic model. Really what was wrong was the alcohol consumption. Once sober I was tested again and EVERYTHING was fine. Moderate drinkers are not helped BY the alcohol. It is the fact that they are not alcoholics and that means not diabetic, etc.

I consumed alcohol like air, not moderately. But it was like a allergy sufferer inhaling pollen continuously.

So death will come. And I am rambling.

One important note. The Bible does not support the absurd theory of a rapture. I once believed in that too.

The Bible actually says "world without end".

I cannot stop myself from saying more on this. Looking back I see the destruction caused by the "Christian" belief that we are in the end times. When bad things happened in the world, we cheered. Politically, we rooted and voted for the wrong choices. We made decision based on the fact that the real world matter little. Now that I know better...

I will stop ranting. If you actually WANT the limitless details of this particular rant let me know.

I guess I am not dying, at least not today. After all the goal is 120 years old and in great health. However it is an unfortunate fact that behaviors have consequences. I have eaten lots of Oreo cookies, for example.

In the interest of rambling further, did you know that when trans fats were developed, Oreo cookies were the first marketed result. At least I have not eaten too many Twinkies!

Actually, when I reflect on this long unfocused post, it starts to make sense. Remember when I wrote that there are many interpretations on the after death theme? Well I left out the most important and most used thought we ALL have. It does not have a name though. I will call it, WiggleSquirmLeaveMeAlone, I do not want to think about this, AT ALL.

Love someone well today!!!

(after all, we are not promised tomorrow)

Bobby

Email viewing of this blog

You can get my latest and greatest blog post emailed to you. There is a widget here on site somewhere. I know a few of you already do this.

I am for it. There is one issue, however. It is not always the final draft you get to see. Many pages have been posted and then corrected. There can be rewrites as well as corrections, though rarely. The first 'publication' of the blog post is the one that is emailed. I am thankful that no one gets multiples as I go back, edit and publish a second or third time, but wish that the email version was the last, more polished version.

So.

Now I officially have an editor. She is right here on site. The wonderful and beautiful Kim. Yes, yes, yes, I fully agree with your applause!

Concentration

Concentration can mean two things, both related.

Mainly, I think of a place congested with people. Urban Philadelphia was impacting me so negatively, perhaps it always had since the day of my birth.

I once heard that within a certain radius of miles, Philadelphia has the highest concentration of people in the world. At the time of our founding, the city was the nation's most populous. Its subsequent ranking dropped because of suburbs that were encouraged to swell. Then came urban flight as well. Philadelphia's suburbs are HUGE. Now, the city itself is fifth (I think, the others being NYC; Chicago; LA and Houston), but when the surrounding areas are included, it is still first.

This is where I was born, where I lived an overwhelming amount of my life. In my opinion, it had a fiercely negative impact on me in many ways, on many levels.

I sort of believe that some people thrive in densely crowded spaces. I cannot say that I understand though. For me it was hell. For one, I am an extreme introvert defined as someone who is drained of energy by social interaction. It was difficult, nearly impossible, to find the place and time to fully recharge. Hence, most of my life I slept as much as possible. Many were annoyed by this behavior. I guess that was a complement. They wanted me up and productive.

For an endless infinity of lifetimes (poetic), being trapped in some small part of Philadelphia was all I knew. Other than this was the seeming artificial reality of the seashore vacations we took. Then, at seventeen I spent nine months in Happy Valley, better known as Pennsylvania State University's main campus. It was there that I realized that the park half a block from my home in South Philly was not a sandbox the city had brought dirt to. This is funny and sad. At Penn State I rarely left the dorm. Even the cafeteria was connected indoors.

Then, one year when my children were getting close to old enough for summer camp, we went camping as a family. It was a labor day weekend and this particular camp had a family event to entice parents to send their children the next year. Shane did go the following year and Tatiana later as well.

I LOVED the camp; camping; hiking; fresh air; atmosphere; food; morning smells; wildlife (had enough yet? I have more...). The camp had lots of activities going on. There was an orienteering (this is an actual word) hike, like a marathon treasure hunt. After each event, during breaks, I keep suggesting we DO things. My family at first thought I was joking. After the first couple times playing along and seeing that I was NEVER going to run at of energy, they began making me go play by myself. The entire campsite was a bunch of tired children and groaning adults and ONE GOOFY GUY playing basketball or horseshoes or tether ball by himself.

Lately, back here in the twenty first century, I have been wondering what is 'wrong' with me. I do not seem to WANT to sleep late, for example. Suddenly I see (by the way, please find and treat yourself to the original British video of Black Horse/ Cherry Tree by KT Tunstall. She has no accompaniment except her guitar, a tambourine and foot pedals that record and playback loops she plays live, super ubber cooller) (since that was such a long side track I will start that sentence over, oh, and here- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HYEU91d8ngc).

Suddenly I see that life here with Kim in West Virginia is the camping phenomenon all over again. Cannot wait to get out of bed and get moving.

You should try it!

Love someone well today,

Bobby

Fire

Oh the PAIN.

Ah the PURITY.

I now live in a place that allows open fires right outside. Try that in Philly! In Philly you cannot even have a live chicken without a business license and proof that it constitutes freedom of religion.

With this right comes self imposed responsibility. You need to understand how not to burn stuff you did not intend to, for example. You basically set and follow rules that are more detailed than the outside forces of law and community. Too bad people in general cannot be trusted to live life this way, huh?

When to burn stuff is not entirely your own decision. We have a signboard down at the volunteer fire station. It tells whether open fires pose a low, moderate or high risk. Wind conditions are a factor, as is lack of moisture in the ground. For example, a season of rain making everything grow tremendously, followed by weeks of no rain and lots of sun makes for lots of random kindling.

In 2009, Kim rescued me from urban Philadelphia. The loud cheering for that event still echos. Here on the ranch we had a circle burned into the ground. It was filled with buried debris (thank you spell check!). Stuff that even the hottest fires did not turn to smoke and ash.

It took until last fall to get all the debris into the trash. Mostly of it was stuck in the ground. After I would remove an exposed layer, rain would expose more until finally the last of it was gone.  Kim seeded the area with grass. It is growing nicely this spring and soon you will not be able to find the old burn site.

Not everything went into the trash. There was now and again something of value, for example, coins.

The Bible uses fire as a metaphor for destruction. We use fire here to eliminate the unwanted. Not every unwanted thing goes to be burned, only the chosen qualify. We pay directly for trash pick up and there is a weekly (though generous) limit on the number of bags. Stuff that it is safe to burn gets put into a pile in the garage safe for the elements. Then the time come when it gets burned.

Burning makes life easier all around and is kind of fun. Some things we burn have metal as well, like nails. After the burning, the metal gets to go to the scrap yard for dollars.

The Bible uses fire as a symbol of life's pain. Pain sometimes is the burning away of the unwanted- leaving only that which is of value behind. This process of God's is also copied by humans in refining metals such as gold; it is used to make steel; it is used to make pottery; it is used to make bread.

This pinpoint, controlled destruction is used by God and man to create change with higher purpose. The intended result is something that has more value.

As we walk through fire at times in our lives, we do not like it. We question why it is happening. Many times that which is being destroyed is something we were emotionally attached to. Sadly, most of these open fires in our lives are the consequence of bad choices. There is only destruction with nothing of value as an end result. Pain because we deserve it with nothing of value afterward.

In the midst of pain, we should hope that we are being changed to something of more value. We should look forward with anticipation as a child does to an unopened present under the Xmas tree.

It is the only way, the only process, bread always comes from an oven.

Growth can come through painless means as well- plant good seed, water diligently, reap the benefit. But in order for this process to work, there must be no dross that impedes growth. Flowers rarely grow well, if at all, in debris. For our lives to smell pleasant, God sometimes needs to first burn away the impediments. The impediments can be known by their stench. Once burned, after the smoke has cleared, the stench is gone and new growth can be started leading to unimaginable wonders.

Love someone well today,

Bobby

My Belly Says, "Feed Me".

Most of us have experienced absolute distress. Something we needed to live was in short supply. For example, nearly drowning, the experience of being denied air.

Air is possibly the thing we need the most often. Breathing cannot stop for very long. Our need for water is very short term as well. We need to replenish more often than we think before the negative consequences begin. There is also the need for heat or warmth. Rarely thought about, lack of warmth or too much heat can stress a body quickly.

In this light, food actually is down the list a bit. We can go pretty far without serious damage.

Yet, of all these necessities, food is the one we are seeming ever aware of. We seem to have an strong emotional attachment far beyond its necessity. We "love" food.

There is no major emotion attached to normal breathing. Other than becoming aware of smells either fair or foul, breathing is taken for granted. There is no participation by us unless we choose to hold our breath or hyperventilate. We are in favor of breathing, but rarely vote with our heart.

Warmth can be comfortable. When it is not comfortable, if slightly cold or hot, we attempt (and mainly succeed) in correcting the minor flaw. If it is cold out, we put on a coat. We take for granted that there is a house to protect us, sometimes air conditioned. We are insulated from cold or hot that can maim or kill, so we are not frequently aware of the threat. We like warmth. But not to an orgasmic extent.

Food though...

O, it can be SO PLEASING.

Why did God make this so?

Food has been used by God for so many metaphors it makes the mind numb.

Some random examples.

"If you don't work, you don't eat..."

[side comment: It is my firm opinion that this is NOT a hammer to beat others with. It is a metaphor meant to be clear from life. Food does not just happen.]

Be careful who you share your table with.

Do not take food from superiors, you will be sorry later.

Jesus broke the loaves and fishes.

The last supper is a sacrament.

That which goes into the body is not unclean for it is eliminated, that which comes out of the body (speech)  can be unclean.

Then, when you include all the metaphors taken from farming and animal husbandry and hunting (consumables), the list grows to nearly encompass all spirituality. The Bible is nearly all about FOOD.

So.

Eating is important. Eating can be fun.

Do it!

Love someone well today.

Bobby

Choose the Form of Your Destructor!

Ghostbusters.

In the movie, Dan Aykroyd choose the Stay Puffed marshmallow man.

Life is not so comical.

Addictions come in all flavors. Addition can be defined as "loving" anything that hurts others. This thing comes first in the heart of the addict. Love is in quotes because, while it communicates the correct idea; addictions are actually driven by the polar opposite emotion, fear. More to the point fear of not being God (original sin).

Outside of alcohol and drugs, examples like sex, money and food are fairly well known, but the list is as vast and varied as humankind itself. The addition does take a form, but at its core, all forms are destructors. They are destructive of LOVE!

Also, it is my opinion that we do not choose at all. Each of us has strengths and weaknesses. We are born this way or that way. We each are hard wired to fall into favored sin as well. We do not choose the form of our destructor, we are born with a certain form.

Within each form or category, groups of people gravitate towards one another to comfort each another. This enables us to carry on by lessening any annoying guilt.

This is our theme: "my sin is not as bad as their sin".

Well, of course not. (Sarcasm)

The Bible declares that "whoever is guilty of one sin, is guilty of all" for a very good reason. Any sin is the destruction of love. Therefore, any sin, by destroying love, is equally bad in spiritual reality.

Yet, it is common to witness defense of addictions. Defending one's addiction can only be accomplished by putting other groups beneath us. Hence, we use denial, justification, rationalization, etc. to explain that everything is just fine. Meanwhile, those of our particular group say amen. Those "other people" just do not understand.

People are type caste. Just like some are tall, some are greedy. Just like some are born blind, some are born murderous. Just like some have brown hair, some are lustful.

Thank God. Sort of.

At least everyone does not have every type of sin built into themselves. What a wonderful world THAT would be. At least there is some negativity broadcast about each sin, albeit from those who suffer from something different.

So the lustful think they are better than the greedy, and the greedy proclaim themselves better than the murderous, and the murderous believe the lustful are the scum of the earth, etc.- around in a chaotic circle of self appeasement. At least one is part of a group that is not as bad as THAT group!

Meanwhile, the true problem lies untouched and invisible. Love is destroyed. At least, this is the normal course of lives everywhere. Some stories seem more dramatic on the surface, but anywhere and anytime love is destroyed there is extreme tragedy.

Sigh.

However...

But...

... it CAN happen (on rare occasion admittedly), that this pattern is broken.

All It takes is a miracle. But miracles can and do happen. The alcoholic gets and stays sober, so to speak.

The "destructor" can be vanquished and love, like living water, can flow. It can. Yes, it can.

Can i get an Amen?

LOVE SOMEONE WELL TODAY!

Bobby

The Wind

God has far and away created the greatest set of metaphors in the universe.

 I mean, of course, the real God, the one who created everything and sustains it. Not those other make believe pretenders.

You really should read the whole Bible. But I digress. Of course, you should also watch Peter Sellers in the movie Being There. Chance for president!!!

The wind is sometimes part of the classic elements, sometimes not. Most often it is included with air I suppose.

Air IS essential . The wind is its voice. Just as in the Trinity, the Spirit is the voice, the Word in action across time and place.

So. Pay attention to the wind in real life as well. It has meaning, always. Heighten your awareness of it and you will learn to understand.

Having lived until recently in urban settings, I did not understand the wind as well as now. This house is detached. In fact, it is at the highest point of ten acres. The wind has free play all around us without restraint. This is stressful for the exterior of the house, but ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL for my soul. 'Tis!

The wind tells stories. The wind gives glimpses into the future. The wind can show me how to be most productive today, if I tune in. Total stillness counts, it is just a lack of breeze. Of course, most people will fight against the wind like a salmon fighting upstream. That salmon has a mission too, but the constant pounding weakens it continuously until, once it is finish producing the next generation, it dies of exhaustion. In the same way, be cautious as to WHY you fight against what today is about.

Speaking of tunes.

Music is wind, the outward manifestation of song.

I just discovered that not everyone ALWAYS has music in their head. I do. Kinda assumed it was normal. Stop laughing.

Now I wonder if I am in the minority. Or even rare.

Dunno.

Wish you could all tell me somehow...

HEY! There is a comments feature. Y'all can not only talk to me though it, but to each other. Dern!


So, go ahead and do that, k? Just after you click one of the ads, of course. I get paid that way and revenues are down lately.

The question of interest is, "Do you hear music in your head? Always or just sometimes or never or what?

Love Someone Well Today,

DO IT!

Bobby