The Waters They Chop Higher

These days since my last blog have shown me the choppiness of our national waters is growing exponentially. There are things literally daily I seek to understand but my well seems to have run dry.  The American people, at least the ones I know, feel the Iran Nuclear Agreement is a disaster looking for a place to land. But I watch the Liberals and feel like I must still be on Sand Mountain with a flat tire. My Alabama friends will understand that.

The equity markets are telling us a major story with the huge swings almost every other day. Markets are a reflection of the culture thus one could assume the culture is in shock. China has cooled and the world is getting pneumonia.  Crude oil prices are at historical lows but price of gasoline, like equity indexes are telling us a more dismal story to come. To see gasoline here in Canton go from $1.93 to$2.29 in two blocks is, well, suspected criminal behavior.

Having worked in management for many years, you learn to look for the right dots that are formative of the core reality thus not getting hung up on peripheral white noise which is so easy to happen.  I have spoken many times of the societal value deterioration and the family unit evaporation that are major contributors to our national backward steps.  I will insert here once more that the percent of population addicted drugs and alcohol is one of the most understated and misunderstood realities of our life. There is consequence we are experiencing but the trends show the results ahead will again worsen exponentially.  Heroine, meth, cocaine, etc are rampant as are guns, gangs and killings.  Where is the outrage!

Given this, the link is to a Foreign affairs article about Henry Kissinger and the worlds he has touched and impacted.  It is an academic piece that is filled to the brim of knowledge so please, take the time to read it and then read my upload paragraphs for context and implication.

https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/2015-08-18/meaning-kissinger

The Shadows

Good morning. Been several days since I did a blog but have awakened this morning in this strange state of quiet with my wife in Pennsylvania with our daughter increasing the GDP of our nation under the guise of Christmas present purchasing but it is really more about them having an annual mother-daughter time away which I think is wonderful.  I am choosing to let longer periods of time between blogs be an ingredient of seasoning and watching the ebb and flow of our times more closely and more deeply.   

I heard someone state a few weeks ago that you define life as a set and subset of memories. For some reason, that few words intrigued me and the essence of its meaning took root deep inside me. As a result I have found myself more often thinking more deeply, watching more closely, listening more clearly to people, to events; to the drumbeat of life.  The other night, as example, I was rubbing the right side of my neck and my fingers came to rest on my jugular where I found myself feeling and counting heartbeats.  The rhythm of the pulse was strong and steady in its thump-thump. In that few moments, this thing called life and its array of memories began to flood my brain; it was an interesting few moments please know! It is at that threshold my mind has come to rest this morning as I arose from my quiet bed and quiet home drinking my quiet coffee and thinking about, well, life as a set of memories.

Having now gone through my normal body of media information which is standard for me each morning, I realize that media, especially print media, is built on finding the bad in our lives, developing eye-grabbing headlines and then take your brain down a pathway hoping to evoke a mental "oh my" triggered response.  I get that for it sells.

Shadows are images real or imagined or remembered through the layers of time and rationalization I believe you will agree. Dreams continue to be an amazing element of living.  Being a dreamer, I can still wonder about the fact that up until roughly three months ago, after working for Goodyear for thirty-six years 95% plus of my dreams were Goodyear-centric. Each morning I would wake wondering many times why I would dream such and such or is that dream trying to tell me something!  It told me one thing undeniably that I allowed my career to dominate me completely thus my brain and its memory banks were dominated as well. I find that sad, now! But it is what it is but interestingly in the last few months that all seems to have been replaced with other types of dreams; shadows on my wall of life.

Memories are powerful images are they not?  Memories, to me, are shadows of life some of which you see at the time while others are there but not visible because your view if obstructed by other priorities; I plead guilty! For me, very personally, I have come to realize that my family for too many years of my life has been asked to metaphorically sit in the lower regions of my brain as other "more pressing" events and actions took center stage with me. That is so sad!  As the world seem to be melting down before our eyes with Syria, Putin, ISIL, this terrible national leadership we are under societal values being demeaned and silenced for the sake of equality and rights meaning no absolutely, for police targeting fueled by race baiting and political favoritism, family structure and values being a relic of the past, national debt immeasurable and growing exponentially each quarter, politics more and more money-driven and not quality of candidate focused .... see what I mean?

Last night our Ms Hope fell and cut her knee requiring six stitches and as I saw the photos my son sent from the ER, I was quickly reminded of the value of what is important in life and falling crude oil prices, for example, is certainly not on the scale of our baby girl being hurt.  So this morning my brain is in hyper-drive in my memory bank like slowly turning the pages of old photo albums you have not seen in far too long.  Some of the memories are still very painful but time tends to ease that I realize.  So many of my memories trigger smiles as I look at the many photos stationed throughout our home in being taken aback at how quickly my grand babies are growing and I am missing so much as I did with my two children.

I will close with a statement of reality. Life is about memories but what we choose to remember is just that; sets of choices to put ourselves into the place and position for our mental cameras to turn on.  At sixty-seven and being around great numbers of elderly, many infirmed, saints each week in speaking and singing. I often wonder what they are seeing and will remember and always intrigued by the life history sitting in each of the seats watching and listening to me realizing that what I am doing is being recorded in their minds to be played back as the days grow shorter.

So this morning I am feeling really, really blessed!

Social Media, Guns and Politics; a Sour Mix, Indeed

I find myself taking more time in absorption in last few months and less time in putting to words in the near term my concerns and hopes. There are so many seemingly contradictory forces abounding that the world seems a whirl. 

The jaunt of the DOW just this week has been dizzying and frightening but so very predictable as the Chinese economy has been overheated for far too long and it is demanding a correction. What people now realize more clearly, I hope, is that China is not that backwater, rickshaw country where everybody works in a tea or rice field.  China is a major global economic force AND is the holder of the largest trove of sovereign debt led by the United States treasuries, gold and foreign currencies.  Their unpegging of their currency, the Yuan, has been pined about for years for it was pegged to the US$. Well, they did and we see what it launched; chaos! I wish to use that as the backdrop or back story to my thoughts this morning for it illustrates how interconnected and yet still quite uninformed of our world in this ever meandering tectonic shifting or national boundaries, desires and drives.

The killings of yesterday in Virgina is beyond tragic for it was brought glaringly to our television screens with the poisonous coloration of the history of the shooter, his anger, his desire to go out with a splash. That splash illustrates, I believe, the unexplainable power of this thing called social media.  I cannot imagine Zuckerberg ever imagined where his FB invention would end up meaning becoming a primary communication currency in a world seemingly gone mad. But ISIL has mastered its power, politicians led by the Commander-in-Tweet has learned to craft policy via 140 characters blasted incessantly from the White House. There is something just not right about any of that as I view it but then, it is what it is!

Then there is the ebb and flow clashing of the mix of guns and mental health. A few people get shot up and the NRA goes quiet waiting for the storm to pass for it always passes. Then the flow of the ebb quickly flows to the issue of mental health so if you add guns to mental health; what we are too used to hits us in the face on ever shortening spans it seems. 

Let me be frank: YES, we have a mental health tsunami in this nation.  YES, we have a gun tsunami in this nation and when you fold the two together, we are left with a catastrophic elixir with no satisfactory conclusion. That is the definition of a Conundrum as I view it.

Then there is the axis of Politics that stirs the pot of dissent, hate, hopelessness, fear and doubt; that describes the general American view of Washington; certainly my view. I have lost confidence in the Legislative Branch as well as the Executive Branch and, oh yes, the Judicial Branch so that pretty much sums to I have lost confidence in the governmental system our Founders created.  The result is weak diplomacy, poor economic policy, tepid foreign policy, suspicion by our allies and our enemies view us as a much easier target. Other than that I guess things are about perfect!

The sideshow called the 2016 Presidential Campaign has been upended by Mr. Trump for his brash, bombastic yet fresh and no-holds-barred approach to the core issues our nation faces and continues to created is resonating with the electorate.  Discount him, demean him, cast doubt on his legitimacy but fact remains; Americans are listening. BONUS, his is using his money and not creating more strings attached to Superpacs, Koch Brothers, etc, etc. That part I am LOVING! No NASCAR driver suits with a hundred brands sewn on it will be part of the Trump Triumph it appears at this juncture.   He literally appears to have his own Elephant candidates fearful to stand up and take a shot at him thus they are all being viewed as weak.  This great concern about Trump destroying the Republican Party; well perhaps it is time that and the other Party were destroyed you think?

Here is all I know, I am deeply, deeply concerned for and by my nation for the concern goes quickly to the amazingly terrible leadership. Oh yes, let us not forget, which many have, that the infamous Iran Nuclear Pact clock is ticking for a vote by the Congress.  But now Congress is threatening yet another government shutdown as leverage on a completely different tangent.  Direction? Who knows!

I wish to think We the People deserve better but perhaps not!

The Enigma of Mr Trump

I have not done a blog for seven days for I chose to give it a week to see how the Trump Conundrum would unfold.  I am actually finding great humor in watching the TV networks poke, ridicule, attack and insinuate the real Mr. Trump.  As an aside, I am certainly no fan of Trump but it is very, very interesting to see how We the People are reacting to this man. He is brash, frank, blatant, in your face and speaking directly to the issues many Americans, the silent majority have simply chosen to just remain silent on due to the constipation of Congress and socialist agenda of the Liberals headed by POTUS.  If it were not so sad, it would be funny to a degree.

America, as a nation and as a political beacon to the rest of the world, seems to be more or less broken. We all feel it. We all hate it. We all fear it.  We just want somebody to step forward, toe the line, square back and attack these issues.  Americans are "fighters" for we understand that to succeed, you have to fight your way 360 degrees, seriously!  So with all the anti-Trump rock chucking, it is interesting that the infamous "polls" seem to keep liking Mr. Trump.

 

Of course, I have not been called for my opinion but assuming the phone rung and my opinion was asked, from what I have seen and heard in this craziness of a the POTUS race, I would today be supportive of the Trump roller coaster. But let me back up on that ... one thing with Trump is you can predictable his assertive, acerbic "tone" but he is saying the things many Americans has been our political system ignore, can down the street or find ways to haul in more billions of dollars from K Street.

 

Let me tell you what I want with no name attached:  I want my POTUS to be bold, frank, offensive and causes the forces of evil inside and outside the US to step back and reassess their motives.  The villains of the planet I sense have lost that wall of fire feel which was the litmus best for aggression and push back.  Keep your friend close but keep your enemies closer.  This Administration has redefined that adage for this President, from what I see, has embraced the bad guys and their sob stories and strategies as our new "friends" with Iran as the poster child for my assertion.  Like more and more Americans, more and more Americans have lost faith in our national leadership and especially in the ineptitude and corrosive environment we call Washington. 

 

There is too much illicit money in the system.  Trump is apparently separate from this NASCAR world of money sponsoring and thus directing our elected leaders.  I detest lobbying. I detest pork barrelling.  I detest the Congressional process that I believe is fundamentally broken.  I am convinced our Founders would commit suicide if they returned to see their handiwork today.

 

It is my greatest desire to see a Christian occupy the White House.  As I look at the field of both parties I have to just shake my head in wonder and disgust.  Trump is certainly no Christian but he would not deny that. I like seeing one thing about him which is he appears to be apolitical.  Clinton, Biden, Sanders; surely not!  The Republican Herd is neutral, vanilla and seemingly playing the political game. I want to see somebody get really angry and aggressive on the terrible state of affairs of my country.  Trump comes close to that and for that I appreciate his boldness.

 

But Trump is a political enigma which I think is good for it makes the rest of them shake as what he will say and do next; personally, it is quite a show. So with CNN, FOX, MSNBC, Leave it to Beaver and Top Gun trying to paint Trump as inept but is failing miserably as per the American people.

 

So who am I voting for? I have not a clue at the juncture!!!!

Show me the Plan, Please!

Those that know me know it is very important for clarity, direction, expectation and future state vision. Once I grasp that constellation, I will then decide to embrace or step away. Our nation, like no other time in my life as I recall, is as disjointed and disgusted as I have ever seen. We all watched the Republican debates this week which, for me, was not a debate at all. I am not at a point to endorse anyone for not a single you creates a fire in my belly to want to embrace. I was disappointed with the FOX team in their inciting  approach of questioning but that was certainly predictable. While I do not care for Mr. Trump, he is voicing the deeply rooted angst of We the People in a very apolitical approach. The dust up in Trump's rebuttal to Meghyn Kelly's blatant attack on his character has shown the power of the media leading to Trump now being made the villain. For me, the debate in the evening I watched was at best vanilla in strengthening my position on any of these men.

I must say that Mr Rubio was articulate, refreshing and clear in his responses. I am pasting in a Foreign Affairs editorial that I believe paints a very clear portrait of our nation today. Not sure he would pull any of the plan into real time but this plan is clear, it is plausible and more than anything, there is a Plan! I highly recommend taking the time to read this writ by this young man.

 

https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/united-states/2015-08-04/restoring-america-s-strength

 

 

The state of our Nation spiritually, diplomatically, militarily and economically is at best concerning and at the worst depressing.  I am convinced at the core of the conundrum we call the United States of America is the result of too many decades where God's Principles and Word has been back seated and ignored.  We are witnessed levels of depravity most could never have imagined but Man's depth of depravity capable is immeasurable.   Planned Parenthood is now rightly in the cross hairs of this blatant legalized killing and pleased to see my home state of Alabama was one of the three States to de-funded this institution of death.

 

Legalization of marijuana is now a sporting contest.  Remember when all the casinos were being sold to the public on all the millions that would go to school funding? How big of a joke is that! Then on these advertisements you see a 1 800 number for "people with problems with gambling" to call; how sick is that?!?!?!

 

The traditional respect for political leaders has evaporated via corruption, lobbyist control and not sense of purpose for what Congress is actually doing. The Supreme Court has now reared its ugly head on societal issues that will have generational impact.  Our POTUS is, well, somewhere in space it seems to me.  The whole world is neysaying the Iran Nuke deal and yet he continues to spend millions in travel, speeches, threats, etc, in trying to convince We the People he knows best .. about Iran! Come on, Man!!!

 

I need to stop now!!  Thank you for taking the time to read my thoughts!!!!

A View from the Cheap Seats

Good morning and yes, I am up early this morning and sitting here in the quiet coolness in dim lighting to not awaken my wife thinking about life, family, our world.  Yesterday afternoon I sang a one hour concert at a local assisted living facility to a sweet group of about twenty or so precious elderly adults.  It was yet another worshipful experience and felt like this amazing ministry God has opened up to me in singing in so many locations like that, getting to meet hundreds of older folks each month, to hear their stories and to see the rapid deterioration of the human mind and body over relatively short periods of time still so striking to me.  With each of those dear people I have met in these last few years of doing this, the precious wisp of the miracle of life becomes even sweeter to me with each new encounter.

 

As I was singing and speaking to those folks gathered around me, I felt a collective closeness that only comes when you know you have connected emotionally with your audience. For that one hour, while tiring and draining, as I departed I felt that God was clearly in the room as the residents made their way back to the quiet reserve of their rooms and thus the drumbeat of life thumped ever onward.

 

More and more in doing this ever increasing work which includes meeting family members of the residents, the agony of children and grandchildren watching their parents or grandparents slip into deeper states of emotional separation becomes so strikingly evident. But even in that seeing the loyalty, the love, the gentleness, the caring for that aging patriarch or matriarch is so precious to me. The sadness really comes when I realize how many of these pillars of life rarely if ever have family or friends to invest time with them so they wile away their hours in loneliness.  That, I have come to realize, is why I believe what I did for a spiritual purpose in singing and investing my life in theirs is so vital and uplifting. I do love it!

 

In another dimension, however, looking into the eyes of these precious older folks that have survived, reared families, lost spouses, are becoming less and less mobile, the minds not processing as we each take so much for granted in our own lives, the brevity of life and its quality, you realize, is more fleeting and precious than gold.  I see eyes staring at me in wanting so badly to fully grasp my words I am speaking which are always intended to lift and encourage that takes me into a song as well intended to lift and encourage the audience.  Some times when you see a gentle clapping of hands to a rhythm or the quiet mouthing of lyrics along with me in a song or see a sweet tear begin to form knowing a particular song has touched a memory or a hope; that is why I feel so much a part of these sweet lives invested in me for a hour or so!

 

But then when I allow myself to step back, usually driving home after the concert, to think about the escalating craziness of our world in wars, suicide blasts, political craziness on a grand scale in our world, I almost envy these sweet people in coming to a place and time in their lives when all of that is meaningless for they are wonderfully shielded from the landscape carving by world events transpiring just outside their doors.  Frankly, I am so glad that the forces of evil in our world that are blasted on airwaves so readily rarely get much attention by these wonderful people.

 

These people have experienced wars, deaths, economic depression, physical deterioration, financial deep holes, anger, angst, etc, etc. They have earned the right to not know, see or understand.  That is yet another reason why I feel so deeply that speaking about a God that loves us, singing songs that praise His Name, witnessing God's love and touch in my life can be and I know is uplifting to these amazing elderly people. That is my blessing and it is so rich in its depth.  Seeing their faces get excited when they see me return to sing to them is a Christmas present that keeps on giving.

 

As well, I have learned all over again the vital nature and ministry of a church pastor and his staff in visiting these precious people if only for a few minutes. For many, that is the only sunlight in their lives that shines into their darkness and I can say the same in watching them light up, smile, touch  me when they see me ready to give them an hour or so of my life in singing, sharing and lifting their souls toward heaven.  You can usually always tell the Christians from the non-Christians by the way they understand what the songs and my words mean versus just enjoying the change of pace by my presence and singing.  

 

As with the thousands of jail inmates I meet and get to know each year, these wonderful folks in these homes many times are left alone and forgotten by friends and family.  There are similarities I realize in the inmates and the residents but so much resides in the area of commonality of their place in life. True one group is there for just having lived long enough to find refuge in a place that cares for their every need while the other is there for rehabilitation and correction for wrongs inflicted on his or her fellow person but still each are in need, each want to be made to feel special and each yearn to be treated special as they so richly deserve. Core to this in either group is the love of God that can solely bring a sense of joy, a lifting of a burden, an opportunity to bask in the Sonlight of God in word and song. So yes, similarities and I do glean so much joy in working with both demographics.

 

So my view from the Cheap Seats this morning; invest yourself in others' lives and guess who will get the blessing? That would be you. Do not fear injecting yourself in just sitting and sharing or listening or in reading to these precious souls that have experienced so much. Never forget, each has a unique story to tell and many long to share their stories; so many simply cannot but it is worth the effort to put yourself in the position to allow them to share for it shows them that someone truly does care! And never forget, but for the grace of God each of you will be there sooner than later and find ourselves in that ever narrowing, darkening space called old age.  This work that I get to do honestly makes me feel more vibrant, younger and an overwhelming sense that I am actually doing something of value and worth in the lives of these folks in either a home or in a jail chapel services and it feels Great!

The Whirling of Life

Today is my number two grandson's 12th birthday and today we had all five grand kids at our home most of the day. To see now two 12 year old grandsons and three beautiful, fun-loving, loved grand daughters and their exploits at Grammy and Poppy's is, well, wonderful.  Later in the afternoon I sang a concert at local assisted living location where I have sung many times in the last three years. As I was singing to an amazing array of wonderful elderly people I have grown to know and to love, the whirling sound of life became excruciatingly evident in my mind's ear.

 

My life has been a life around masses of people.  My Goodyear career brought into the world of literally hundreds of thousands of people of all races, languages, beliefs, competencies, religions; and I loved every connection. My military time was vested in thousand of men as we worked complex issues of men, materiel and mission to accomplish assigned goals to a timeline.  I love the challenge and the smell of victory with each accomplished.  Post Goodyear led me to a decade of students as I got to teach and example to seven thousand young men and women.  That decade was a whirl but so many lives I was given access to via this powerful tool called education. I count every encounter blessed though some were better than others; still blessed. Twelve years in jail and prison ministry still takes my breath when I think of the nearly 300,000 men and women I have been blessed to get to know, to learn about, to communicate with and to share God's Will for their lives. So many disappointments  but so few amazing changed lives I have witnessed. But for me, perhaps the most amazing leg of this journey has been in the last four years through music.

 

As I was singing in one of the twenty-one locations where I sing regularly, I saw, yet again, the pace of physical and emotional shifting and transforming the human body can go through oh so quickly.  Seeing the conditions of vibrant, successful, loving mothers and fathers now aging rapidly and to have such a joyful relationship with hundreds via the music is one of the top five joys of my life.  Part of the joy comes in the reality that it has nothing to do with fame or fortune or ego; just pure, unadulterated joy of using gifts God has given me to give to people that need and love what I am doing. Therein lies the blessing for me.

 

At sixty-seven, I well realize from my work these last few years around so many elderly people that life as we know it can change so quickly it takes your breath. But in saying that, the gravity of spiritually being ready to go comes to the surface as the overarching pinnacle of why all the time, effort, energy and work required to do the best I can do when singing for these people. I strive with every song to make it the best it can be; why? For it is their life, their legacy and their  future that makes it all so worth it. 

 

I spoke, today, that I realized in the last few concerts that I have developed a habit of touching my ear with my fingers each time the lyric is about "hearing" meaning when God's is speaking or we are listening for His Word.  So many songs have that resonating theme. We must listen via study, praying, yearning to hear God's Word. God's Word, for many, come through my vocal cords in this wonderful growing ministry.

 

Not knowing how many more years God will grant me nor how many more concerts I will get to sing or  how many sermons I will get to preach or how many hugs and sharings I will get to experience, I know that it is my greatest hope that when God calls me home, he will grant that I be getting to do exactly as I have just described in doing His Will and not laying in a hospital bed not knowing where I am. I want to go in active mode. I want people to remember that I loved the Lord, I loved my family, I loved my ministries and I loved to ENCOURAGE every person that God put in my path.

 

So when you think about your own whirl; count it a blessing!