Post-COVID

We are both back on track, post-COVID, still fielding "recommendations" from well-meaning family and friends to get the jab-jab. No thanks. I don't mind putting a mask on if it makes people feel "safe" around me, but I draw the line at being a volunteer guinea pig for Big Pharma. If one more person says "But, you can't argue with science!" as their rationalization for taking what (in my mind) amounts to experimental drugs, I may have to be restrained...

Not choosing to take the vaccine does not mean someone doesn't love or care for family and friends - or society in general. It does not make one a bioterrorist. Enough with the generalizing - accusing Christians of being selfish and unloving because they put their trust in God. There are two (or more) sides to every story - yet the media and government tend to share only one version. Getting the shot may have the appearance of slowing down the spread... but who knows if the long-term effects will outweigh the danger of contracting a virus with a 1.6% mortality rate? More than one scientist or doctor has decried calling a "vaccine" that which is not a true vaccine. No one can in all honesty predict the long-term effects.

As to the effectiveness and durability of the shots, it has been pointed out that Israel had a near universal vaccination initiative back from December 2020 through February 2021 and have now found the Pfiezer vaccine's effectiveness drops from 94% to less than 20% after 6 months. Just about everyone knows someone who has come down with COVID after being exposed by a vaccinated person. It's not exactly an uncommon occurrence.

No, I am not a conspiracy theorist. I don't believe getting the shot inserts a microchip for government surveillance... nor do I believe it makes one "magnetic." I don't believe it re-writes our DNA or causes infertility. I do believe that there are real, legitimate concerns about the effectiveness and safety of the shots, and those increase substantially for people with autoimmune and other underlying conditions.

Do you ever feel like you're just wasting your breath? Some of the vile rhetoric that pops up on social media is discouraging, sometimes it's downright appalling. It's okay if people don't agree with me, but it's hard to have respect when I am being called a "dumb-ass"... well, maybe I am, but maybe I'm not. Time will tell.

Kiss Your Mother

I miss my mom. She left us during the winter holiday season of 2014, which did make for a nice family reunion right after Christmas as we gathered from all over for her memorial, but nevertheless... she is still gone.

Since that time, I have on rare occasions had the opportunity to "visit" with her by way of dreams. Most of the time, I have the awareness that she ought to be dead, and therefore not with me. But, fearing that if I mention it she might be gone, I keep it to myself while enjoying our time together, chatting about everything important, unimportant, and in-between.

Not so last night. In that dream, I was busy at my desk trying to process paperwork - or whatever nonsense it is that I waste my time at when at work - with Mom hovering at my side, waiting for an opportune moment to spend a few minutes with me. In the midst of my frustration, I said to her [still in my dream], "Did you need me? I've got to get these papers out." So, ever the considerate person that she always was, she left.

When I woke up, I cried. 

I cried again as I thought about all of the times when I could have - but did not - call her, write her, spend time with her when I was in town visiting all my "friends" from high school [most of whom I can't even remember their names, now.] 

Unlike some friends of mine, my own mother and I were never estranged. We were rarely ever at odds, owing in great part to Mom's gift of mercy and kindness and hospitality... etc. (Too many to list!) She just cared about people. It showed in the things she did, the things she said, the way she treated others. (Don't get me wrong, in private she occasionally had a few comments or opinions, but I cannot recall her ever speaking unkindly to anyone.)

I suppose it hit me harder than it might have otherwise, due to the comparison with my own daughters. I am now on the other end of that Mother-Daughter relationship and can now understand all the feels that go with wanting to spend time with daughters whose lives are spinning in so many directions with their children, jobs, relationships, hobbies, that - without meaning to - leaves Mom low on the To-Do list. Undoubtedly because, no matter how neglected a mom ever feels, she is going to love you anyway, forgive you always, be thankful for the time shared.

That is why I say, KISS YOUR MOM. She needs it. And inevitably, one day, it will be too late.

On vacation in Scotland

Children - Adult or Otherwise

Making the decision to have a child is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body. Elizabeth Stone

I never wanted to have children. Then I reached the age of 24 and, having lost my second child ante nativitatis, suddenly wanted nothing else than to hold my baby.

I was given that gift the following year, at the age of 25, and again at the age of 29. There was not a thing I would do differently, there is nothing I would exchange for the two beautiful daughters that I was most blessed to have in my life. Do I regret missing out on knowing those unborn children and wonder how life would have been different had they lived? Of course I do. But I would not change anything if it meant not having the profound privilege and pleasure of Those Two. 

My daughters are not perfect. But they are clever and brave, intelligent and determined. They are in many ways the same and many ways different from me, and so very their own selves. It dazzles me - and makes my heart ache. 

Having a child is indeed like having your heart walk around outside your body. You can protect them, nurture them, encourage them, teach them... they will undoubtedly have some of your features and quirks, but they will be themselves. And therein lies the rub. 

Just as I did in my turn, so have my daughters done in theirs. No matter the generation, we will inevitably see things differently; we will react to ideas and ideals differently, because we have our different paradigms through which we view life. As one of them so honestly told me once: "I can't learn from your mistakes, I have to make my own."

Somehow, I had the notion that having children would mean that you would always have someone to share dreams and adventures and goals with. And that does indeed happen, at least for a few years. When they come into their own, however, their dreams and adventures and goals will, of necessity, not always include you. That's called "Adulting." Pray that they have paid attention and have learned to do it well, because you will no longer have a say in the direction they take.

But above all, PRAY. When the hour is dark and you feel you have been abandoned or at the very least, rejected, PRAY that the Truth will find them and your mistakes will not have so hardened their hearts that they cannot find their way Home.

- for now, three things last —
trust, hope, love;
and the greatest of these is love.

Just love them. 

You Tell Me

 I have been so preoccupied working on my projects on another blog - this past year a photo-a-day journal, and recently a monthly trek up my paternal family tree - that this little corner of my world has been sorely neglected. (Not that I think for even a minute that my musings are of interest to anyone but my future self...) 

Today, however, with a little time on my hands and being glued to my chair, as it were, for several more hours, I thought I might spin a few thoughts out into cyber space.

I have purposefully stayed away from "social" media and network "news" for the past 5 months... well, as much as is possible in this society that is saturated and fascinated with it... instead I have been indulging in a favorite pastime: reading historical fiction. Since January, I have read 48 books, 24 of those being historical fiction. Yes, I'll admit that likely qualifies as an obsession. The thing is - it's fascinating to escape from the inundation of political and social commentary only to discover that things haven't really changed all that much over the centuries. For all that it disconcerts me to read the constant drivel of ill-informed opinions that one is assaulted with daily in the media (social or otherwise), it is nothing if not a revelation that human nature remains remarkably the same with the passing of time.

There has always been political intrigue, social injustice, power struggles, religious persecution, wars and rumors of wars, the like of which we read daily in the headlines and hear on the radio or see on the nightly news. We suppose ourselves to be so enlightened when we compare ourselves with what we imagine life to have been like during Greek or Roman conquests, Spanish Inquisitions, Russian pogroms, colonialization and the oppression of First Nation populations. We display our ignorance of basic historical facts by tearing down statues and edifices that we have imbued with the essence of slavery and  oppression. We call racist any philosophy which differs from our own.

There is no denying that every day life was immeasurably more difficult in past centuries without the luxuries of electricity, paved roads, instant communication, ready-to-wear clothing, pre-packaged food available no matter the season, antibiotics and anesthesia, just to name a few. A quick trip to any developing country will open the eyes of even the most jaded to all those things that we take for granted. But, all that aside, human nature itself has not really changed, in my opinion. We each want to be the one who is right, who has more [whatever] than the next guy, who "gets there" first, who has experienced the latest thing before anyone else. (Obviously, I am speaking in generalities. None of us want to admit to being selfish, greedy, or self-absorbed.)

A philosopher of old once truly said: 

Indeed, there is no one on earth who is righteous, no one who does what is right and never sins. (Eccles. 7:20)

So, why do I like to escape to the past instead of tilting against the windmills of today? I'll admit to enjoying learning a bit more about how life might have been lived in times past. It's true that in spending some time immersing myself in the culture and lore of the past I often learn to appreciate more of how blessed I am today. But, if I am going to be honest, a very real attraction is the knowing that I share in some part the struggles of humanity down through the ages to come to grips with the world and society and culture in which I live while trying to understand how to be true to my own principles and ideals. 

Is that a good thing or bad? You tell me.

Throwing stones at giants

A friend recently shared something that was very meaningful, which triggered some musings on my part:

(Excerpted from a blog by Susie Larson...

God has wired you uniquely for a distinct purpose. He's graced you with gifts to offer to a world in need. He's writing a story with your life, and it fits you perfectly. Not every battle is yours to fight, and not every wrong is yours to right. Yours is not to be understood but to understand. It's not to win the favor of man; it's to walk in the favor of God. Jesus wants you to trust Him, and that's enough. His assignment is why you're here. Sometimes you'll feel in over your head, and other times you'll feel sure you're not doing enough. But your mission is not up to you. Nor is it up to the masses. Your calling originated in the heart of God and will be completed by the hand of God.

Which prompted my reply:

Interesting that she would talk about being "graced with gifts." We talked about this very thing over breakfast yesterday. 

DH was talking about the pastor's recent sermon (David and Goliath) and he further reflected about how, throughout the Bible, different people were anointed for specific tasks... but people today don't think they have been anointed. Worse still, they doubt that they have been "gifted" to do much of anything for the Kingdom. I came to the conclusion that people today shy away from the term "anointed" because it can have a religious connotation, or they don't believe that they have been given certain gifts to accomplish what God has for them because we make the mistake of thinking God wants us to take out Goliaths.

As DH pointed out, God anointed Betsal'el in Exodus 31 to do metalwork and "all manner of workmanship"... not to take out Goliath but to GLORIFY GOD with the skills God gave him.

To be sure, there have been and will always continue to be those people or experiences that are the equivalent of 'Goliaths' in our lives, but if God is for us, who can be against us? When the enemy comes at us with his agenda of abortion, pornography, racism, or confusion and disbelief about who God Created us to be (think gender dysphoria and homosexuality), are we saying with David, "... 'You come to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the Name of יהוה of hosts, the Elohim of the armies of Yisra’ĕl, whom you have reproached.'?

I love (LOVE!) that Susie goes on to say, 'It's not to win the favor of man; it's to walk in the favor of God. Jesus wants you to trust Him, and that's enough. His assignment is why you're here...'

In the current whirlwind of cancel culture and COVID fear, and mask/vaccine shaming, and Antifa riots and... and... and... fill in the blank of the many ways the enemy has tried to shift our focus from our calling and anointing, it's not hard to know what God has anointed us to: What resonates with us when we look around and see the lies of the enemy taking ground in the lives of those around us? THAT is what He has anointed us to do. 

• Speak the truth in love, 
• serve one another with gladness, 
• feed the poor, 
• teach little children The Way, 
• lift each other up. 

"...your mission is not up to you. Nor is it up to the masses. Your calling originated in the heart of God and will be completed by the hand of God."

I believe it. 

Not So Woke

I listened to an interesting interview between an Australian and an Englishman, discussing (among other things) critical race theory, thoughts about re-writing history and blaming everything on "white privilege" and colonialism:

"The “Woke” religion has superseded all other things and can therefore judge history in whichever way it chooses to."

"Calling everyone a 'racist' who disagrees with you."

It got me wondering why we are so fixated on defining people by something so superficial as the amount of melanin in their skin instead of their faith or integrity or courage or love or commitment to family.

Then I trolled through the posts on Blexit's Instagram feed to get the perspective of those who are not white, just to see if my point of view was so out of bounds:

And now I'm thinking this whole "woke" movement and focus on BLM is just one more ploy to divide and conquer our nation.

Each one of us bears the responsibility - we can do better than this.

COVID Musings (Update)

This is an update of my previous musings about the whole pandemic paranoia. Other, much more scholarly and/or scientific articles and blogs have been written over the past several months. Like this one.

But, harking back to my original comments in March when this whole shutdown began, I quoted CDC when I said:

CDC estimates that influenza has resulted in between 9 million – 45 million illnesses, between 140,000 – 810,000 hospitalizations and between 12,000 – 61,000 deaths annually since 2010.

So... let's just take a peek at what the current COVID stats are and see how they compare. (I copied and pasted from CDC's actual website.)

I'm not sure this is the time or place (nor do I have the data or credentials) to comment on the blatant padding of statistics that we are all well aware of. (We've all seen or heard about the memes...)

We've also read or heard about doctors reporting on the falsification of COVID statistics at various hospitals and care facilities. No one is going to ever be able to give an honest report of how many people actually died from COVID, compared to how many deaths were attributed to COVID. So, while 249k deaths is markedly higher than the "norm" of 12-16k deaths attributed to influenza each year, I think I am safe if saying that: 

• YES, there is a pandemic. (Because by definition, a 'pandemic' is a disease that is prevalent over a whole country or the world)
• YES, the COVID virus has been responsible for the deaths of many people (possibly .02% of those who have actually contracted the virus)
• YES, some people are at higher risk than others of dying from the virus.
• YES, washing our hands and refraining from hugging and smooching during 'flu season is a smart idea.
• YES, staying home from work (or church or the store, etc.) is to be recommended when you are not well.

But, I think I am also safe in saying that certain government officials have grossly overstepped their authority in dictating (I do not use that world lightly) how we live our lives in where we go or what we do. As if we are a bunch of 5-year-olds who don't have enough sense to cover our mouths when we sneeze.

I still believe that most people have enough common sense (and hopefully, enough common decency) to sequester or self-quarantine if they are sick. Or to self-isolate if they are in fact in danger due to underlying conditions of being at higher risk. 

I am just fed up with Nanny State officials assuming that none of us have brains or care about our fellow human being. And I am way beyond fed up with the notion that healthy people cannot be in charge of their own bodies. 

I wonder how the suicide rate this year compares to a normal year... maybe that is something to consider as well. Because frankly, this isolation from family and friends is doing far more damage to our society than anything I have seen in a long time.

Or maybe that was the idea all along?