Hippo gratitude

It’s always thrilling to me to see limiting assumptions shattered by an occasional exception to the rule.

Especially when that exception springs from love.

Jessica and her family are one of those exceptions.

Click Here for video

Hope you enjoy this romp into the unexpected.

The Lord's Prayer -- different perspective

A daddy swan (called a cob)

Someone posed this question:

What would happen if we put “Dear Father” in front of every phrase in the Lord’s Prayer?

Would we think more deeply about that prayer?

Let's try it.

Dear "Father which art in heaven,"

Dear Father, "Hallowed be your name."

Dear Father, "Your kingdom come."

Dear Father, "Your will be done in earth, as it is in heaven."

Dear Father, "Give us this day our daily bread."

Dear Father, "forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors."

Dear Father, "lead us not into temptation,"

Dear Father, "deliver us from evil:"

Dear Father, "Yours is the kingdom,"

Dear Father, "Yours is the power,"

Dear Father, "Yours is the glory,"

Dear Father, "For ever."

Amen.

What then about Dear Mother?

or Dear ever-present Love?

or Dear forever Truth?

or Dear infinite Mind?

or Dear eternal Life?

What then?

Finding a way past anger

“Mom, can you take the boys tomorrow evening? We’re having a small dinner party, and we’d like it to be just adults.”

That’s how I came to pick up the grandsons Saturday afternoon. My preference is one boy at a time, but I am cautiously flexible for special occasions.

However, the eight-year old was not happy. His dad had just instructed that they were not to watch The Three Stooges at Grandma’s house, because they escalate into silliness and wildness afterwards. I appreciated my son-in-law’s preventive foresight.

We set off, Alan in a blue funk. “We have never missed The Three Stooges!” he explained, arms folded across his chest. His contribution to conversation, usually bright and imaginative, was totally negative.

At that point I rejected the scenario that the rest of the evening was going to be overshadowed by this heavy and self-hypnotizing reaction to disappointment.

So I prayed for harmony. My prayer went something like this. Dear Father (one way I like to identify God), thank you for being the only Mind here. You are in charge, you are in control, and your ever-present goodness alone sets the tone.

I wasn’t sure how God was going to fix this, but I was sure He/She would.

Finally younger Lee had had enough of the negativity and said bluntly, “Alan, you just want us to feel bad.”

“No I don’t.”

“Yes you do.”

“No I DON'T!”

“Yes YOU DO!”

Here I interrupted. “May I say something? I think what Lee is trying to say is that when one person chooses to be grumpy, it makes it hard for the others to stay happy.”

Silence in the back seat. Then from Alan, “Well why didn’t you tell me?”

From that point, Alan made an honest effort to change his attitude and to be pleasant. By the time we reached home, he was his normal cheery self. The boys played with Legos, and enjoyed each other all evening. Minor differences were quickly worked out on their own.

I am learning to really appreciate the power of prayer and its role in grand-parenting!

Giving thanks is good for the heart!

Three times this past year, events happened during the day that weren’t on the radar in the morning when I awoke. Untoward things that had to be dealt with unexpectedly.

Each time I felt buoyed, sustained, tenderly guided by the God I have come to know as ever-present Love.

So at this time of year when in the US we as a nation are invited to literally recognize and count our blessings, I am thankful for all who were, and are, there as a special blessing when their advice or help or presence was particularly needed. I hope they know how appreciated they are.

Beyond my own needs, I am grateful for our men and women in uniform who are sacrificing normal and safer lives at home to answer the call of their country to make peace in difficult places. I pray for their safety and protection, and especially for their ability to use good judgment in making quick decisions in life and death situations.

I am grateful that the infinite Love who meets my needs is already universally and unconditionally present anywhere His/Her children happen to be.

Happy thanks giving as you consider your own blessings!

The universal language of kindness

The scratching post

“Kindness is a language we all understand
Even the blind can see it

and the deaf can hear it.” Mother Theresa

And animals understand it.

Kindness is so needed, and sometimes seems so understocked in the world’s inventory. Yet each of us has the ability to multiply the supply!

I hope this simple example doesn’t sound too trivial.

I recently took my cat to have his claws clipped. Although he tries to cooperate and uses his scratching post regularly, sometimes when his claws grow out, he forgets and stretches them on the carpet. After this happens a couple of times, he goes to Victoria for a clipping.

The grooming room at the back of her house can be a cacophony – clippers buzzing, a small pooch yipping for attention, her shop vac inhaling clippings from the floor.

Buster clung to the sides of his carrier defying gravity as I tried to pour him onto the grooming table. So I released the knobs that allow you to separate the top from the bottom of the carrier and picked him up.

We stepped back as Victoria vacuumed poodle fur from the floor. Clinging to me like Velcro, Buster wasn’t about to let go of his one security in that room.

"Oh, you don't have to put him down," she said. Victoria finished her vacuuming, came right over to the frightened feline, gently lifted each paw from my jacket and clipped his nails. In 30 seconds he was done, and back inside what he considered the safety of his carrier.

Afterwards I thought a lot about her kindness to an infrequent cat client. Kindness comes from the heart. In giving kindness, we don’t lose anything; we increase the world’s inventory and improve our own.

I believe God put kindness into each of us as an essential ingredient of our character.

Yet for some of us, acting on our caring seems to come more naturally than to others. Sometimes harsh circumstances bury individual goodness for awhile, maybe for years. But it is God’s design for mankind to express goodness and caring. And being the recipient of thoughtfulness serves to remind us that that’s our nature too.

This, I think, is the secret of kindness:

We see eye to eye and know as we are known,
reciprocate kindness and work wisely,
in proportion as we love.
Mary Baker Eddy

Not in proportion as we are loved, but in proportion as we give love to our world. When we need help, a loving God shows us how to discover this love and share it.

Watching for love gifts

Greek honor guard

at the tomb of the unknown soldier

Chris and I had about three hours free time in Athens. We had been encouraged to go to the Plaka, a unique labyrinth of local shops and restaurants.

Starting out with directions and map, we became distracted by a crowd of people in front of an official looking pink and white structure. We later learned this was the Parliament building.

On a marble plaza in front of the Parliament, an honor guard for the Greek Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was preparing to be relieved by the next shift. These tall, handsome young men performed their carefully choreographed routine with precision, accuracy, focus, and total disregard for tourists bold enough to have their pictures taken next to these on-duty soldiers.

We quickly exchanged a temptation to be disappointed at not finding the Plaka, for recognizing the privilege of stumbling upon the changing of the guard.

God frequently works serendipitously in our lives. He/She hides little gifts here and there along our paths. If we're too busy, self-absorbed, or determined to follow a specific agenda, we miss some, or perhaps most, of the gifts. On the other hand, if we're willing to look at a wrong turn and not label it a "mistake," we often discover something or someone delightful. And to find a God-guided good purpose for our being in an unexpected place.

It's important, for me anyway, to learn the flexibility of looking for the presents in the present, that indicate infinite Mind's ever-present goodness.

God doesn't make any wrong turns, and as I try to stay close to my highest sense of what I think His purpose is for me at any given time, I feel his gentle guiding. I'm learning to trust that direction, even when it doesn't take me to where I thought I should be headed.

It's a more gracious way to live, a less hectic approach to life and relationships. No wonder Jesus taught, Your heavenly Father will give you what you need, "if you give him first place in your life and live as he wants you to." (Living Bible) This approach takes away all the stress.

St. Paul, the whole purpose for my trip to Greece, was so convinced of the solidity of his relationship to God, that he didn't worry about what might appear to others to be mistakes. He could say with honesty and the conviction of experience that nothing could separate him from the love of God, which he had discovered through Christ Jesus.

Thanks to Christine Proctor for the excellent photo

Always a beautiful work of art

On the island of Rhodes, I watched an apprentice potter grasp a dull gray lump of clay. He shaped this lump on his spinning potter's wheel, molding it skillfully with his fingers. Within minutes it had become a beautiful vase.

Prophets from 2500 years ago found the clay and the potter a good metaphor for the relationship of man to God. Isaiah wrote, "O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand."

Paul too uses the potter metaphor in his letter to the Romans. He advises against questioning the skill or the motive of the potter. And he addresses the need to trust the potter, and not become so absorbed in our own projects that we miss God's very presence!

I can relate to that. There are many times when with unbridled enthusiasm I have rushed forth with what seemed to me a great idea -- only to realize somewhere down the line when things began to unravel, that I hadn't asked God's opinion.

So I'm getting better at going to God first. With a "God, what kind of pot would you like me to be today? How can I best serve you today?"

As long as it's is my Maker's idea, I've learned I can be not only content, but rather excited about how He/She shapes and molds my day. And maybe that's where the pottery metaphor ends. Because while a vase or a water pot is a completed object, infinite Mind's (another name for God) creation is actively and continuously unfolding. It just never ends.

And so our Maker's purpose for us continually unfolds, providing us with new views, new insights, clearer understanding, fresh opportunities.

_______________________________________________________

The potter is not in the clay;
else the clay would have power over the potter.

God is His own infinite Mind, and expresses all.

Mary Baker Eddy

_____________________________________________________

Sweet celebration --Veteran’s Day

Alan introduces himself

and his shy "patriot"

At Jefferson grade school, all the kids were urged to bring a vet to school at 1 pm last Friday. The kids who invited their vets were called “patriots.” Patriots is also the name of the school mascot. About 60 veterans showed up for the program in the school library, including my friend Alan with his granddaughter.

The principal warmly welcomed the vets, and invited everyone to sing the National Anthem. The sixth grade chorus in bright red polo shirts sang “Grateful to be American.” Two kids read a neat patriotic poem of gratitude to those who have fought for our freedoms.

Then came the best – and longest – part. Each vet accompanied by his “patriot(s)” went to the microphone, and read from a little sheet they’d filled out when they came in. They told their name, branch of service and years they served, their highest rank attained, and their “patriot’s” name and grade.

The whole room was totally attentive! Vets of all ages, every branch of service, were each honored with a great round of applause. Some had served 8 or 9 years or more; some were career guys; some on active duty – one just back from Iraq, another re-deploying in February. One harked back to WW II. Some were in uniform, some not – from all walks of life.

Group photos of the men (no women this time) with their military branches followed these individual introductions. Then began a great parade through flag-decked school halls, lined on both sides with 800 clapping, cheering, children and their teachers.

Think 6, 9, 12 years old. And you and your brother/uncle/dad/grandpa are being cheered by your classmates, because of their service to their country. What a special memory!

Gratitude is always appropriate. Appreciation for another's sacrifice is never out of fashion. And honoring those who have put their lives on the line for their country speaks of generosity and caring.

Thanks NF for the photo!

Does God have a sense of humor?

Does God have a sense of humor? For sure. How do I know? Because He/She makes me laugh all the time.

For example: driving in Chicago had not been my favorite thing – and, please note, I am putting that in past tense – primarily because city parking has often been a challenge.

I had registered for what promised to be a most interesting program – Hidden Treasures: The voices of women in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam – hosted in downtown Chicago.

So, in my desire to support all things good and womanly, I looked for someone to come along, another set of eyes for locating a parking space. Plenty of interest in the topic, but no takers who were also registered for the event.

I prayed about my reluctance because I was tempted not to go. And the answer that came was Yes, go.

So I just gave it all to God. Something like, “God, since you want me to be part of this gathering tonight, I know you will take me all the way. You would not tell me to go and not provide parking.” I guess this mostly reassured me that I needed to quit grumbling and totally trust that higher power.

My Mapquest route favoring major expressways looked less promising as traffic crawled out of Chicago on the Stevenson – which to my mind should have been uncrowded on a Sunday afternoon.

The idea came to exit on Cermak and take local streets to the church where the event was being held. I had to trust that intuition, because leaving known highways for unknown side streets was pushing me out of my comfort zone.

Exiting the expressway turned out to be an excellent plan. I had to smile while thanking God, who I think of as one infinitely good Mind. When I reached the little residential street where the host church was located, you can imagine my total amazement to see men in orange reflective vests – helping people locate parking spaces on that street!

I was grinning from ear to ear. It was as if the Father (another name for God that’s meaningful to me) was saying, “So, you want help finding parking? Here they are, in bright orange vests!”

“OK, dear Father-Mother, I get it, I’m a believer! Thank you SO much for this sweet gift.”

God's love is expressed in joy and good humor that never puts anyone down, but thoughtfully or spontaneously lets us know God is with us, loving, guiding, rescuing us.

Dogs - partners in play

The Bible doesn’t have much to say about dogs. That could be because the ancient Hebrews didn’t have much use for them. So we must look elsewhere.

Hearts are good. If we look in our hearts, we find that dogs are wonderful companions, ego builders, comforters, buddies, partners in play.

I recently viewed an old 8mm movie of my childhood dog, Cappy. Wherever the kids walked or biked or played (and in those days we did all three - usually outdoors), Cappy was there, participating. He was one of the family, and he felt loved and needed.

Well, here’s a youtube of a 21st century dog -- hanging out with the kids. Who says animals are not intelligent?

Just double click on the arrow in the middle of the photo.




Do you have a dog story you'd like to share?

Dealing decisively with impositions

Caryatids are female figures
taking the place of columns

Our last day in Athens. Yiannis (Yah’ nees, means John) our very capable guide, had brought us to the Acropolis (means high place, and every Greek city has one). Every few minutes he paused to share historical insights. We twenty-six crowded close to learn.

We heard how Lord Elgin in the early 1800s had been given permission by the ruling Turks to take one of the caryatids back to England – where it remains today. Athens wants it back, and has built a large new museum to prove it.

Yiannis was pointing out the nearby seaport of Pireas, which we could easily see from this height, when two other tourists attached themselves to our group. Yiannis finished his talk and the men followed us to the next spot. And the next.

It didn’t feel quite right. I wondered how this was going to play out. These fellows had latched on to an interesting and knowledgeable guide. Yet they were not part of our group.

As we gathered round, Yiannis made his move. Looking directly at the men he spoke loudly and firmly, “You two are not with this group. You must leave.” The men didn’t budge. “Yiannis continued, “These people have paid Euros to have this tour. There are other guides here. You must find your own.”

The men looked at each other for a long moment, before reluctantly walking away. Yiannis’ brief speech was to the point and effective. He did not tolerate the imposition.

Paul also dealt decisively with a disconcerting imposition. While in Philippi he had been harassed by a slave girl “who brought her masters much gain by soothsaying.” She had followed Paul and Silas day after day, chanting after them.

Finally after many days, Paul had had enough. He healed her on the spot of her capacity to “sooth-say.”

When impositions faced him, Christ Jesus took control. He dealt swfitly with whatever opposed his sense of God as Love. He encouraged others to follow his example. So, what would that mean today?

For me it means to take charge. Recognize the imposition as an imposition, whatever it is. Size it up – determine what’s going on. Be clear about the solution. Then speak with authority.

Impositions can take many forms. Sickness and pain are impositions on God’s creation. As I see it, God didn’t create them, so they don’t belong.

Hate, anger, resentment, confusion, and anxiety are also impositions. As I see it, God didn’t create them either, so they don’t belong.

So when any of these things come knocking at my thought door for acceptance and identity, I can choose to refuse to let them be part of my thought group. As I see it, they have no place in God’s infinite goodness, and I can with God-given authority stand up to the intruders as suggestions that can be turned away.

It’s amazing how often and how quickly standing up to such impositions has good results.

For other posts on Paul's travels, click here

By the way, for those who may be interested, this tour was hosted and led by http://www.biblicaltravels.com/

Finding the beauty underneath

Mars' Hill, as it looks today,
where Paul spoke to the Athenians

While waiting for Timothy and Silas to join him in Athens, Paul explored the city. He was impressed by statues everywhere to Greek gods and goddesses.

When he decided to speak to the Athenians, he addressed them from a high spot called Mars' Hill. There he commented on how scrupulously religious they were. They were so careful to include every god that they even created an idol to the unknown god - just so none would be left out. The King James version of Paul's words, "ye are in all things too superstitious," sounds like a put-down. But actually Paul was complimenting them. A more accurate translation would be, "You are in every way very religious."

When in Athens a few weeks ago, we walked up Mars Hill. It's a huge old rock, big enough for many people to congregate. It's bumpy though, with weathered outcroppings everywhere. Marble perhaps.

Greece has LOTS of marble. The ancients paved their streets with marble, built columns of marble, and created beautiful statues. Marble magnificently adorns modern Greece as well.

On Mars' Hill old gray boulders muscle up just far enough to have become part of the path and people naturally walk on them. Over decades, maybe centuries, the rough exteriors have in some places been worn away. Beneath that surface roughness glows a warm and beautiful marbly orange interior that becomes shinier the more it is polished by countless soles of tourist shoes.

As I bent closer to confirm what I thought I was seeing, that rock became a metaphor for people. I've met a lot of folks who were crusty and bristly on the outside. As we walked into each others lives, and maybe even stepped on each other a bit, lovely color, vibrancy, beauty, and caring surfaced.

It is good to not be fooled by appearances, to cultivate the ability to look past unpromising exteriors to the person within struggling to be valued and appreciated as worthwhile. It sometimes takes a lot of love to be willing to move past surface impressions, but the resulting friendships can be precious.

God saw beneath Paul's tough and determined exterior, to the willing and honest heart, which He shaped and warmed so that a transformed Paul traveled to Asia and Europe to preach a God of Love.

Christ Jesus “threw upon mortals the truer reflection of God
and lifted their lives higher than their

poor thought-models would allow
— thoughts which presented man as fallen, sick, sinning, and dying.”
Mary Baker Eddy