Old Dogs...and New Tricks, Oh, My!

     You can't teach an old dog new tricks, they say. It really is funny how your perspective changes as you get older. I think looking at this idea from another angle, my own old age now, that I'd say I don't really want to learn "new tricks." I don't want to be re-programmed, I don't want to be trained, I don't want to be someone's cute, maneuverable little puppy. That's a disdain, a disrespect that is remarkably distasteful. [I also hate for young women in their work roles referring to me as sweetie or honey.]  
     Yeah, I know, the "old dog" thing, it's just a nice, little cliche. Don't take it so seriously. Calm down.
     But, you know, everyone has an -ism that they're pushing nowadays. So, maybe I'll adopt a new one myself, for me. Ageism.  Age bias. Not because I feel I'm personally being treated poorly because of my age. But, looking around from my gray-haired perch, I'm seeing way too many other elderly people with inadequate opportunity to live a fulfilling life.
     I never have intended my "ramblings" to be highly supported, all-inclusive treatises--they are mere mental wanderings. So, I won't attempt long discussions of the crimes upon the elderly--the physical, psychological, and financial abuse and neglect, for example, to name a few. Rather, it's the general attitude I'm seeing in these young'ns--40 and under--the snide, laugh-seeking remarks about old people, the knowing looks in eye-rolling asides, the quiet dismissals of opinions, the general attitude that elders are quite the inconvenience in effort and time.
     ...wait, though! That old dog lying slovenly about in his own waste doesn't earn any respect either if he is "using" his age for his selfish advantage. I'm not speaking of him. Nor, of his younger counterparts, the spoiled children.
     I think where I'm finally landing in all this snorting is in a terrain where age isn't a factor at all. It really isn't age that is life's determinant. It's attitude, it's the general respect for the worth of other humans. And, I always contend that human worth is derived from our Creator who chose to mold us in His own image, particularly giving us the gift of making choices. Our entire value lies in that one concept. So, I'm back to speaking once again about sweet Jesus!
     We need to move away from the Old Dog way of thinking and the Young People Are All Idiots way of thinking and thru Faith value each other in all ways. Maybe, that's the "new trick" everyone needs to learn...

Genesis 1:27--"So God created mankind in his own image..."

Our Tree Hasn't Come Down Yet

          It's cold...two single-digit mornings in a row and the promise of three more this coming weekend, with two of those being below zero. I worry I'll have to mess with frozen water pipes, and I'm getting a bit too old for that glorious task. I don't believe Hell has frozen over, but it may be getting close.

          Florida-living {dear Brother} "sounds" more pleasant during spells like this. I'm rather sure I still prefer our God's-Country here, however. The variety offers its own appeal.

          Christmas is Past, once more.  Our tree hasn't come down yet, tho. And probably won't for a few days. There's no hurry to end a good thing. Let it linger. It's like eating chocolate ice cream--hang on for that very last taste. 

         I've been binge-watching NCIS these past 3 or 4 weeks---14 seasons with 20+ episodes each. The gore and bloodiness with each opening get a bit old. The snazzy techno-glib stuff is too "pat," but I'm nevertheless enjoying the entire process (in season 12 now). You know, there's just not enough time for a person to do all the things we like to do...winter does give me plenty of time to be inside, though. I work in my shop, read, watch TV, facebook (wear friends out with Biblical matters), etc.

         Speaking of that "tree not coming down yet." Our media, social and commercial, that permeate our society so entirely, the economic slavery imposed by our god-commercialism, the salesmanship of the so-called entertainment industries, et al---too often lead us to fail to notice the little, wonderful things in life. Like, leaving your Christmas tree up a few more days...Just because. Don't they? 

       Simple folks, un-sophisticates, non-elites---we Deplorables, perhaps?---have a marvelous grasp of what is important and right in life. We know the value of lingering in the arms of the moment, of accepting our littleness and knowing that God truly is in charge.

          Once one starts believing that Man is somehow in charge, one gets entangled in necessities and activities that lead to immoral outcomes, at worst, or, at best, spiritual neutralities. I pray you will return to a faith-driven life that focuses on God and Neighbor and on less human-centered hypocrisy and selfish convolution of values.

          Please, won't you focus more on the simplicities of life and leave those "trees" up just a few more days each opportunity you get!?

          

          

          

The Stillness, the Hush!

          Jan and I find ourselves entirely alone at 2:30 on a Sunday afternoon . . . it's bizarre. We're both kicked back with full stomachs and relaxed in our recliners. But, the stillness, the hush, the emptiness is haunting. I don't remember the last time this has happened; it almost seems as though it has never occurred. 

          At our home, Sundays have been days reserved for worship, for rest, and for family. This pattern started several years back. Lately, some of our grandchildren, being older, have Sunday afternoon activities. Some other family members feel it necessary to work. Various other events occasionally interrupt. Today, it's everyone occupied somewhere. Today is definitely oddball. I don't like it. It makes me feel somehow irrelevant---and lonely.

         The Sabbath most basically was established by God to be a day of rest and recovery---not in some legalistic sense, but as a general, ongoing guideline. God created it this way. Jesus illustrated it. And, we have the obligation to maintain God's universe and ways. 

     My entire life I've tried to guard this principle without being a judicious fanatic about it. Failing to keep God's ordained guidelines, however, brings eventually some sort of payback . . . so I caution all to diligently keep God's Day holy, devoted to Him and His purposes, not to ours. 

     Christmas is less than a week away! Our illustrious Congress is granting us a tax cut and simplification---life is sweet. For what more could we ask? 

  Please live your lives knowing this is a God-centered universe! And we wish each of you a very Merry Christmas . . .
         

Our Selfish Needs Twist Its Significance

     I couldn't sleep this morning, so here I am awake at 4:30...reclining in one of our family room chairs wrapped in a blanket with the Christmas tree lights gleaming.

     

     Since Christmas is a week away, I decided in this stillness to re-read and re-consider the Gospel accounts of the birth of Jesus. The things our culture has done to that fine story!  We've elaborated on it, Romanticized it, twisted it, focused on our chosen parts of it, created artsy Nativity scenes depicting it, turned it into a story for little kids. We've SELF-absorbed this event into a tale that suits our individual tastes---and our culture's permission.

     

     And that's just wrong, folks.

   But, perhaps, not as destructive as those who have dismissed it, mocked it, joked about it. Therein lies a tragedy. To the degree that we've interpreted this Birth in terms of our individual needs and experiences and, thus, belittled its significance---we have failed ourselves and all  of them, thus dressing ourselves in guilt. 

     Interpreting life using only our own experiences leads to partial truth; interpreting it based upon our selfish needs twists its significance. This Birth, and our chance for Second Birth, requires us to avoid those errors---it also demands that we function purely from faith, eliminating logic and emotions and placing ourselves to the degree possible into a willfulness to accept and commit. At that point, intervention happens and one will receive eternal life in a relationship with Jesus.

     There's no "understanding" it or "feeling" it that somehow makes it real---our simple trust and the conviction of the Holy Spirit do that. This mystical part of my personal life with Jesus goes, I fear, without adequate explanation---it's a "knowing," one which many I fear may never grasp. 

     I would challenge each of you to re-read and re-consider. Find some "stillness" somewhere in the busy-ness of your life, and listen. Let the story of that event speak itself beyond your logic and your reason. With that, I wish all a Merry Christmas! 

We Weren't Talking to Each Other at All

     I've been away from my blog almost completely these past several months. Not sure why...got caught up with other activities, I suppose. And now, I'm back to it---also with no known reason why. But, I do want to leave some of my thoughts for my family members (and others who might get curious).

     We recently gave up our satellite TV & internet service and have gone to a program offered by Verizon which includes those [and, oh, that marvelous Netflix!] with our telephones, in a bundle. We put up a $30 antenna that gets us also twenty some-odd channels---trying to save dollars and still be in the know and up to snuff. My retirement allows entire evenings to be utilized by these various fascinating venues.

     Which gets me to where I was heading. These technological pathways are rewarding, time-consuming, and some would say addicting. I don't know how positive or negative this activity actually is. But, I know at one point this past Sunday with 14 people in our home, 12 were absorbed almost exclusively perusing some kind of device---tablet or phone or TV. Communal communication was supremely limited, that is to say, we weren't talking to each other at all. [When televisions first came to my childhood village in the 1950's, I recall several old timers proclaiming them weapons of Satan. My aged grandmother who lived next door even had difficulty determining if televised programs were real or fiction.]

     Perhaps, communication isn't what it's cracked up to be. George Bernard Shaw said, "The single biggest problem with communication is the illusion that it has taken place," perhaps to be illustrated in "Don't you text me in that tone of voice!" All I feel very sure about in this area after 71 years of observation is that Language is just one more tool in the belt of humanity---bringing occasional great Good and occasional great Evil.

     The book of James in the Bible offers some great advice about the use of the human tongue. I would recommend it to all---all who know me understand that I probably should be the first one to put this advice into practice.

     I guess communicating is like everything else. Balance is all-important!

 
 

She Blossoms When They Smile

        I started this blog a few years ago with it in mind that it would be a way for my kids and even more my grandchildren to have insight later on into how I saw life. The birth of Jesus is thus a very appropriate topic.
     
      Another Christmas is arriving! I've had 71 already. My wife's enthusiasm for the holiday activities drags me (lazily, not reluctantly) along with it. She does yeoman service, determined to create wonder for her grandchildren. I marvel at her loving efforts! She blossoms when they smile. The ease of online shopping enhances her ability to accomplish some of her fascinating outcomes for them. Not to be intentionally morbid, but (at my age, such things are relevant) what a head-rattling shock the kids would have if she were gone and I were responsible for making their holiday bright.
        
         Everything, not just Christmas and a beautiful wife of 48 years, is sweeter as one moves toward the end of one's years, if one's health and wealth and relationships allow . . . God has certainly blessed me. 
         
         I, as have many others, would caution all not to get too caught up with the gifts and presents---they are super in themselves. But, that sense of giving is the largest element of the Season. That making others happy. That effort of their grandmother. That awareness of God's gift to humanity---His Son. That saving touch of the eternal into the temporal.
         
         The tree, the lights, the shopping, the fellowship with family and friends, the food---all should increase our understanding and appreciation of Love . . . and please don't get so caught up with the "season" that you forget those who are troubled and deprived. Reach out as best you can. Jesus will honor all efforts!
         
         Let me close with saying Merry Christmas to all my family and friends. God's blessings upon you!