God works in mysterious ways.
Sitting outside in my side yard just a little while ago, it occurred to me how very blessed I am and how I tend to take that for granted. I was thinking about the seismic tornados of Oklahoma these past few days. Devastation. Lives up-ended. Lives lost. Children scarred forever. Old people with no mementos of a long life. I could only count my lucky stars. That, but by the grace of God so far, could have been me and my friends and my family. What do I do with these feelings? I'm not one to rush to the scene. I'm not terribly handy. I feel like I would be in the way. I pray. I can send money. I can prepare for the day when something like these whirlwinds may change everything. OpposingViews.com posted a story about how Pat Robertson blamed the victims for their plight. "Robertson said the tornadoes may not have happened if enough victims had prayed: “If enough people were praying He would’ve intervened, you could pray, Jesus stilled the storm, you can still storms." Perhaps God would have intervened. Perhaps that is not what God does. That is not a question I would presume to try to answer. God does indeed work in myterious ways. From my point of view, my belief is that God is always there. S*** happens. That is the way of the Universe. But God never abandons us. His creation simply goes on, evolving and changing...and sometimes causing its imhabitants great pain and sorrow. But through it all, we have each other...and God...to rely on. When all is said and done, that is Life. So what can I do about things like the tornadoes in Oklahoma or the earthquakes in China or the building collapses in Bangledesh or the shootings in Sandy Hook? Probably very little. But I can hold them all up in prayer. I can know the Truth about them and about myself. We are all in this together and it is only together that we can finally work it out. Someday. Somehow. For the whole article and video about Pat Robertson remarks, click here The picture above is taken from an article from www.capitalbay.com, click here
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5/21/2013 1 Comment Forever in MayMay has been flying by. Like all the months before her, May comes with hopes and dreams and then moves so quickly past, she leaves just memory of what was to be. I took his photo at Fairmount Park a while back on a warm afternoon. It reminded me of what it was like to be a child, to get on the whirly-gig and spin until you thought you would never stop. And if you spun fast enough, you might be lifted up and off to some far imaginary land were, like Peter Pan, you would never have to grow up. Play. It is one of the most important things we can do. We do it naturally as a child, but have to be reminded as an adult. We have to allow ourselves to get on the swing and propel ourselves up into the sky as if we would never have to come down. And as we swing back up and down, enjoy the ride, feel the wind on our faces and in our hair and know that that moment is forever. Child's play. It is not just for children. Time to take my bike for a spin. May gray came today. Clouds and mist do the flowers kiss. April rains that brought the flowers, come in May and last for hours. Okay, so much for poetry. It is a gray May day, aye? Yep, for sure. The sky here is overcast. The air is nicely cool. This is springtime at its best...for me anyway. “Every year, back comes Spring, with nasty little birds yapping their fool heads off and the ground all mucked up with plants,” wrote Dorothy Parker. While I am not annoyed with such things as little birds and plants everywhere, I do sometimes wonder when my mood is at odds with a clear spring day. That kind of dissonance can be disconcerting at best. So I guess that is why on a cloudy morning like this, my energy level seems a little lower, mood a little subdued. But for some reason, I love this kind of weather! Go figure. There is always an external reason we can find to explain our inner feelings. Truth is, that is not where we should be looking. And I imagine you know what I'm talking about. 5/15/2013 0 Comments Like the Emeralds in MayThe emerald is the birthstone of May. How did I not know that? The emerald is one of my favorite gemstones. Emerald green is one of my favorite colors. I have often dreamt of following the Yellowbrick Road to the Emerald City. I like emeralds. Did you know that the emerald was the favorite gemstone of Cleopatra? Elizabeth Taylor liked them because they set off her violet eyes. The emerald was and still is, I suppose, a symbol of fertility and rebirth, a good gemstone for May since May is when all that rebirth is going on...well, at least in the northern hemisphere. The emerald was said to be able to be used to see the future. Well, I suppose that would mean that things weren't going to be rosey. Anyway, the emerald is, next to the ruby of course (my birthstone) my favorite. There is no problem so big, no heartbreak so sad, no molehill made mountain so high that an emerald can't make it better. Who knew? 5/13/2013 0 Comments It May Be Hot
Even Sunflowers are Wilting
Okay, so we are having ANOTHER early heatwave, this one in May. I know there is no such thing as global warming and all the "peculiar" weather we have been observing the world over has nothing to do with how we abuse the environment, but really now. 100 degrees plus....in May? Not fun. Yes, it may be hot. uncharacteristically hot, it is only May! But then I guess that is just what the name of this implies. It may be just about anything. Duh. I am not sure what the excuses are for the other months of the year, but May has that built in excuse. There may be an ice wave in Minnesota. There may be wildfires before summer even comes in. There may be a cold snap in So Cal and a heat wave in the northwest. Yes, its just weather. And weather is weather whether or not. That's just how it is. So all I am saying is, It may be hot. It may be not. "Sometimes I'm happy, sometimes I'm blue. My disposition, dear, depends on....[the weather]." * *Sometimes I'm Happy -- Nat King Cole's hit song. |
Rob McMurray,
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