If anything ever happens to my dearly beloved, I would opt for the single life.  It's not that I have regrets, it's just that I'm an organized person and he is not.  For instance, I like to find things where I left them, and in the same condition that I left them in, but in my house that is merely a pipe dream.  I find cupboard doors and drawers left open, trash left on the sink just a few inches from the trash bag, every square inch of counter space filled with something.   

But thank goodness for paper towels.   You see, when I finish using the blender, I turn all the knobs back to the off and low positions.  I usually check them when I use it the next time (experience has taught me to do that), but not always.  Sometimes, when I just want to blend something on low, I will do it using the lid.  But it never fails that the ONE time I forget to check the knob positions before I start to blend without the lid, hubby has already used the blender in the meantime, and you guessed it, he left it on high.

There is good news this morning though.  My kitchen smells really good...like fresh coconut. 

The Human Design

Have you taken time to contemplate the design of the human body?  No?  Well, neither have I, for the most part.  I mean after all, who really has time these days to just sit around and think?  I count it a blessing if I can grab hold of a thought as it goes flying by before it's gone forever.  Perhaps another sign of growing old.

But years ago, I was blessed to read a book entitled Fearfully and Wonderfully Made, or something like that.  I read about the incredible design of the human eye and the perfection of the design of the human hand so that it functions perfectly, and I was totally amazed.  But that was someone else who had studied the subject in great detail and knew all about nerves and tendons and all the things that make these body parts work the way they do.  I could never have imagined any of that on my own.  I don't know about the minute inner workings of the human body.  I'm just a simple person.  I don't even have enough imagination to write decent poetry, though I have tried I time or two, failed miserably, and then decided it would probably best be left to those gifted in that direction..


But I was sitting here this evening looking at this sweet little face...

... and I started doing some thinking of my own.  What if our Creator had made human beings and animals faceless?  Or what if he had given us a face, but it was expressionless, like a robot?  (Ooo...better watch out for botox...)  What if we had no ability to smile or frown, or cry ?  Crying even comes with an added feature...tears!  One human being can look into the eyes of another and see his soul, or so it is said.  As a matter of fact, facial features speak a language all their own, quite separate and distinct from verbal communication.  They can be extremely subtle, so subtle that people not trained in reading them would not even notice give-away micro expressions which hint at deception, for instance.  And yet...maybe they are not missed, but the communication happens on a level so subtle that it is often referred to as a "gut feeling."  Hmmm...

Look at that face.  What do you see?  I see innocence and sweetness, and love.  It's unmistakeable.  What a wonderful gift our Creator has bestowed upon His creation.

Giving Things Away

Mat 19:16  And see, one came and said to Him, “Good Teacher, what good shall I do to have everlasting life?” 17  And He said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good except One – Elohim. But if you wish to enter into life, guard the commands.” 18  He said to Him, “Which?” And יהושע said, “ ‘You shall not murder,’ ‘You shall not commit adultery,’ ‘You shall not steal,’ ‘You shall not bear false witness,’ 19  ‘Respect your father and your mother,’ and ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.’ ” 20  The young man said to Him, “All these I have watched over from my youth, what do I still lack?” 21  יהושע said to him, “If you wish to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven. And come, follow Me.”

I am a very organized person and I despise clutter.  Unfortunately for me, I have spent many years of  my life surrounded by people who, to put it in the kindest way possible, just aren't "neat-nicks."   But recently I made a decision, and that is to get rid of everything that belongs to me that I don't need.  Having made that decision and having separated myself from a fairly large amount of possessions already, I have to tell you, it is one of the most freeing things I have ever done.  It's not the first time in my life that I did this.  Forty-six years ago, I gave away everything I owned with exception of my guitar (which then became "community property"), the clothes I was wearing, and the few idolatrous possessions I'd been given when I made the decision to serve "God" by entering a Catholic convent.  (Thankfully, that didn't last long and I left Catholicism shortly thereafter!)  But I did feel a freedom then that made a big impression on me.

There is a lot going on in the world today and nothing is certain.  But one thing is certain and that is that possessions exert power over people and they do take away one's freedom.  Let me explain.

A number of years ago, I was driving an old car whose paint was so faded that even a good wax job wouldn't make it look good.  There was no point in getting it repainted because it probably wasn't going to last long anyway.  After it "passed away," I bought a nicer looking car with a pretty white paint job and blue vinyl roof.  Suddenly my life changed.  Before, my weekends had been my own, but now, with this new car, I found myself having to spend time every weekend washing and waxing  it to keep it looking nice.  I also had to make sure the vinyl interior and roof were well taken care of.  It was eating up my time!  I also realized that enticing possessions meant that others would be more tempted to help themselves to whatever they could get and being the victim of a burglary proved the point.  So that meant burglar insurance and security measure to protect my possessions.  One day it occurred to me that if I didn't have anything anyone else wanted (e.g., there's not much demand for used Bibles and study materials--the things I value most), I wouldn't have to be so concerned about people breaking in and stealing things, or filing frivolous lawsuits for fabricated injuries so they can get a free ride.  You cannot take what a person doesn't have, after all.

Then there is the government, and in today's world, they are worse than ever, as we all know.  A little over a year ago, the California State Board of Equalization decided to illegally help themselves to my entire savings account.  My personal savings account.  Every penny.  And it is obvious they have no intention of ever giving it back even though I have never owed them any money for any reason.  Imagine require a person to prove where the cash came from in a deposit one made seven years ago, or what a cash withdrawal was spent on.  I'm not talking about one's own personal records here; I'm talking about proof they would accept.  It's impossible, and they know it.  Of course, that's smoke an mirrors, because no money was owed to them anyway and they had no right to it.  It was MINE.  Frankly, I don't really care.  These imbeciles can have it all if they want., It does make life a little more inconvenient because I can't have a bank account anymore, but there are ways of getting around that too.   When they send their demand notices for more money, I laugh.  What are they going to do, put me on a chain gang?  They are pathetic.  Each employee rationalizes within himself, I am sure, "I'm just doing my job."  Well, if you can live with yourself and work for an employer who is in the business of stealing from your friends and family, that's your business.  But you and I are nothing alike.

But all of that is beside the point.  It is such a pleasure and delight to be able to give things to others  who would appreciate them.  I will give things away on my terms in my time as opposed to allowing the beast system to take anything from me.  I would much prefer to do this than let things sit in the corner collecting dust, cluttering up the house, and tempting thieves.  When I spoke with a government representative of Social Security on another matter and I discovered that they had cut my potential benefits in half, I told them to keep it.  I have no intention whatsoever of filing for social security benefits anyway.  It's a Ponzi scheme and their shenanigans just made it all that much easier for me to walk away from them.  I should be thankful.

The Books We Could Write . . .

Dad and I decided we're going to write a book. We're going to call it Dairies of the Blind and Forgetful. The opening sentence is going to be: "I was thinking about the hereafter. I go out to the kitchen and I get there and I wonder, what am I here after?"

The Homeless Guy

Why can't people just mind their own business? There's been a homeless guy in our (business) neighborhood for about the last three years. He's been to death's door and back at least twice that I know of in that short space of time, but recently he's gotten a job and a home, of sorts. It's an old motor home someone sold him. We asked all the business owners in our complex if they had any problem with him parking it behind our store and they all said "No problem." In fact, they (and we) are happy because he keeps an eye on things at night and chases off would-be graffiti artists and vandals/thieves.

Well, wouldn't you know, here came the police to our store the other day wanting to know who owns the vehicle and informing us that they were already writing a citation and had called the tow truck to haul it away (because it's not registered yet). What is the matter with these people anyway? They act first and ask questions later? This man wasn't harming anyone, he's parked on private property, isn't a nuisance, and because someone with nothing better to do than try to make trouble for someone else by "complaining," they waste time and money and cause trouble for a guy who is really trying hard to get off the street? Whatever happened to "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you"?

React First, Think Later

I was headed down to my dad's house the other morning and was stopped at the stop light at a major intersection. To the left of me was another vehicle, and in the crosswalk to the left of him was a pedestrian walking a bicycle across the street to our right. As the pedestrian crossed in front of the vehicle to my left, the guy in the vehicle recognized him as a friend, so he honked his horn and waved at him. The pedestrian apparently didn't see him wave, but he gave him a funny look and continued walking. As he passed my car, he turned around and gave the man the one-finger salute. I looked at the guy in the car, but he didn't seem to be reacting, just looking straight ahead. Then I watched the pedestrian as he reached the sidewalk. He walked a few more feet, then slowed down and just as he was turning around, I realized he was having second thoughts. It was as if he was thinking, "Hmm...maybe that was someone I know. I better look and see." Sure enough, he seemed to recognize the car and started waving at him, but the man in the car didn't react at all. So I looked back at the pedestrian and now he seemed to be rather anxious, trying to wave and get the guy's attention. It was as if he was thinking "Man, I really screwed up. That's my friend. Uh-oh." About that time, the light turned green and as we started to go, I noticed the guy in the car had his right turn signal on. So, I backed off so he could change lanes in front of me. Not only did he change lanes, he scooted all the way across the boulevard to the extreme right lane, presumably so he could turn into the first drive way and get back to where his "friend" was standing on the sidewalk.

I thought to myself how said that people react first, think later, and always assume the worst. No wonder the world is in such a mess.