poem

 

 YOU ARE MY SPRING

 

Walking on the Canal today, Bela and I

were serenaded by dozens of birds.

 

Bela stopped twice to cock his head and listen.

I could not escape their songs.

My soul leaned toward Spring.

 

Perhaps they are back too soon

and will freeze in the February night.

But they were there this morning,

trying out their voices,

making music that sounded like April,

when we both were born.

 

Some winters, here in the Northeast,

test the will and Hope, itself.

Others, like this one,

tease us with their mildness.

Either way—Winter Comes.

 

And it is the Spring I lean toward, always,

no matter which winter rolls in.

 

Today, walking with a Puli dog,

listening to the misplaced choruses of birds,

I realized that I lean toward you

the way I lean toward Spring.

 

In all the Winter-times of my life,

I lean toward you.

You are my Spring,

my Hope, my Love.

                              VALENTINE'S DAY 2012 to Bern

President Pot

 President Biden has announced that he will pardon the several thousand federal prisoners in jail for 'possessing Pot'--not selling or dealing, but merely having it.

He also urged governors to pardon those in state prison for merely possessing MJ.

We are on our way to legalizing marijuana across the country and to taking it off the list of 1st level drugs.

I never smoked much weed (It made me paranoid) but I know it's not like Molly or Heroine or other class one drugs.

And those in jail for merely possessing it are majority minorities and not well educated.

Let them get back to their lives.

Possession should not be a crime anymore than possessing Scotch or Bourbon should be. 

Just don't smoke or drink and drive. That should be against the law.

But in the privacy of your own home?

Toke up.....

Way to go, Joe!

I''m an addict

Oh, not to drugs or alcohol--to gummies!

I hadn't ever eaten one until last week.

Bern eats them all the time and I picked up a bag and got hooked.

Now I eat them several times a day.

The bears are fine, but I like the Lifesaver gummies.

Yesterday I had a whole bag of various shapes that claimed to have fruit as their main ingredient. 

Don't know if it's true, but I'm getting more of them when I go to the store next.

Ummmm...Gummies....

 

Some quotes to ponder

 "Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read." --Groucho Marx

(That one was on a card a friend sent me. All the rest are from the Mastery Foundation quote box.)

"It the world is cold, make it your business to build fires." --Horace Traubel

"It takes a life to realize what life is all about/ And life is all about this moment." --John Wallowitch

"Love is not an emotion. It is a policy." --Hugh Bishop

"Ever tried./ Ever failed./ No matter./ Try again./ Fail again./Fail better." --Samuel Beckett

"Happiness,/ Not in another place.../ Nor for another hour./ But this hour." --Walt Whitman

"Daring ideas are like chessmen moved forward;/ They may be beaten,/ but they may start a winning game." ---Goethe

"There no need for temples, no need for complicated philosophies, my brain and my heart are my temples; my philosophy is kindness." --Dalai Lama

"A word ought to be tested before it is spoken." --St. Ambrose

"Strive for that greatness of spirit that measures life not by its disappointments but by its possibilities." --W. E. B. Du Bois

"Life's most persistent and urgent question is: What are you doing for others?" --Martin Luther King, Jr.

Ponder on....

This week's sermon

Only one came back

        In today’s Gospel, Jesus healed ten lepers.

        Only one came back to praise him and thank him for the healing.

        Out of ten, only one came back.

 

        Leprosy, also known as Hansen’s Disease, is a terrible affliction.

        It comes from the Greek words “lepra”, meaning ‘skin’ and ‘lepros’ meaning ‘scaley man’.

        Leprosy damages skin, the respiratory system and the eyes.

        It often results in an inability to feel pain which can lead to not avoiding horrible injuries.

        People can lose parts of their bodies to the disease.

        Since it is so horrible it is hard to believe only one of the ten came back to thank Jesus for the healing.

        Lepers had to avoid contact with healthy people so they were forced into little groups of lepers by themselves.

        None of the normal divisions mattered to lepers. Jew and Gentile, Hebrew and Samaritan were all together in the colonies.

        And the one who came back to praise Jesus was a Samaritan, who Jews thought of as ‘unclean’ and ‘foreigner’, as Jeus called him.

        So, why did only one come back?

        Surely some of them wanted to go home to family and friends, brothers and sisters, children and wives and reengage with their lives before leprosy.

        One or two may not have believed they were truly healed. Not everyone believes in miracles.

        So, fully well, they may have stayed with the leper, living out their lives in exile.

        But one came back and Jesus told him his faith had made him well and sent him on his way.

        One came back.

 

        To make this more personal, have you ever been healed in some way, made to feel more whole than they had been by someone’s intervention in your life?

        Did you go back to thank them? To give them praise for what they did for you?

        Or did you merely go about your business?

 

        And on the other hand, did you ever support and help someone in their lives and have them come back to thank you and let you know what your help meant to them?

 

        I fear not many come back as that Samaritan did.

        Let’s take a few moments and ponder life-changing moments in our lives.

        Let us in our hearts and minds ‘go back’ and give thanks to those who helped us and accept the thanks of those we helped.

        Let us go back to God in silence and praise the Almighty for the many gifts of our lives God gave us.

        Let us go back and give thanks….

 

 

 

Went to Milton today

 I go to Trinity, Milton on most Sundays for church and most Wednesday's for a study group.

We're reading Acts starting today. 

There were 9 there today--a good gathering.

The people at Trinity are great. I love being there.

They are patient with me and my idiocyncratic (sp) ways.

Always a joy.

On the way, just north of Thomaston, there was a cloud burst of rain.

I almost pulled over. My wipers on high didn't let me see enough.

Luckily, I was behind a truck I could follow his lights.

If he'd gone off the road, so would I have.

Lots of rain in CT recently.

Raining now.

Going Upstairs

 I have no trouble going down stairs.

No problem at all.

But going up stairs requires a cane and care.

I have an appointment with my primary care doctor next week and I'm going to ask her to approve me for a disabled sticker.

I hate to do it. I really do.

I don't want to admit I'm getting old.

But I am.

And walking on my knees is hard--especially going up stairs.

Alas and alack.

Age makes us weaker.

Just the way it is.

Going up stairs.

What a pain.