That Ol'e Higher Power Really Does Work In Mysterious Ways

Have you ever heard that saying the #Lord , God, that #HigherPower works in Mysterious ways? Okay well I know I am probably not the best example to Future #survivors You guys just kind of have to look at me like a Mom lol "Do as I say Not as I do ".

Anyway yes I have been procrastinating about seeing a doctor ... might shock some to know but I have not stepped into a doctors office in well over a year now, and then it was because i had a bad cold that almost went to pneumonia and I got a round of antibiotics and steroids, and was supposed to make an appointment because I knew then I needed to get some blood work done.... well 1 week at a time procrastinating and here I am about 60 weeks or so later.... and still have not gone. The past year it is hard to admit out loud (Or type) but quality of life has somewhat declined, but mainly because of my own stubbornness. Everyone wants you to take pills or schedule tests that load you with chemicals etc.... I just didn't want to put anything into my body anymore... I haven't taken anything at all for a year now, I even stopped taking the levothyroxine for my thyroid completely at this point... early last year I was getting unable to sleep, losing weight, appetite loss... the usual symptoms and I cut the dosage in half and for a few months that was better I slept and ate again.... then it came back so I dropped it completely, that was like last October or so, and again seemed to help.... but yeah I need to get that checked out because I can't cut the dose any more ...
Doctors had said #thyroid was wiped out by #radiation treatments cause in the line of fire but could possibly regrow ... So who knows maybe I'm hyperactive now? I get occasional pancreatitis attacks and pass the random small kidney stones here and there... (I think usually as a result of trying to use over the counter pain relievers... I know its a no no but pain in one body part or another which tends to decide how the day is going that day seems to have designated himself my best buddy.

SO Any way lol #ChemoBrain I digress

So I was saying He works in mysterious ways because Yeah been #procrastinating and Know I have to see a doctor (Yuck I hate going to doctors I don't have time for that (or energy I am too busy trying to do STUFF that I need to do on a daily basis) and now in the course of doing stuff....

I was in the barn getting the horses their grain and son of a bitch something flew into my ear... and I do not mean just flew into (or maybe dropped from ceiling no idea didn't get to see it) I mean this sucker proceeded to intentionally immediately drill deeper into my ear... DO YOU KNOW HOW LOUD A BUG CRAWLING UP AGAINST YOUR EARDRUM IS? Man!!!! I mean this sucker went to town. Of course tried to get it with finger, piece of hay stalk, water from hose, etc..... nope sucker just kept burrowing.... and I am like #WTF How deep can the damn thing go? Finish with animals and by this time cannot stand the vibration in my ear and it's messing with my balance .... Up to the house..... ALCOHOL.... hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm okay well it is quiet now.... but cannot flush out and as if it is not bad enough my poor ears always ring anyway, and I can't hear well now my right ear is like muffled and irritated from alcohol and q tip digging and common sense dictates I am doing nothing but pushing it in deeper... 

GGGGGGGGGGGRRRRRRR.
Now after much swearing and fussing and stomping about in the course of all this.... I mean really I had things to get done.... I ended up doing the only thing we #CancerSurvivors can do some times.... I ended up #laughing, cracking up and looking on the #BrightSide.... Hey so you got a bug in your ear and you can't clean and go transplant the mints you were going to move today..... BUT at least I am calling the doctor... lol been so long probably not there anymore ahahaha... Who would have thunk with all the issues of the past year that I have just got through on my own a #BugInMyEar would be what makes me FINALLY go ? Well I guess since I "Have" to go in I will get some of that blood work done at least that I have put off so long .

Many Religions But Only One God

Ever think  how many wars and divisions have flourished because of our religious differences? Too Many.
One of the strangest divides I do not understand at all is the wall between Christianity and Islam. Between The Jewish, Christian and Muslim faiths there is the clearest evidence that all 3 of these religions (A Triune so to speak) Clearly refer to the same God, and  aside from the western Christians rejection of the Quran, all three faiths share scriptures, Prophets, Angels, etc... Abraham, Noah, Moses, Gabriel, Jesus, John the Baptist, Mary, ALL are named in these 3 faiths, so clearly all 3 speak to the same God. How have we formed such intense differences then? If God is the same, and his word is always true, then the fault must lie with us. The words, the message  doesn't not change, it's how humans interpret the word of God.

Even among just the Christian faith we see division. Catholic, Baptist, Protestants, and Methodists, etc... Were you baptized? Were you sprinkled? Or were you totally submersed ? OOH if you were not submersed you are going to burn in hell. When was your last confession? How much do you tythe? Do you attend  church regularly? If you do not go to church and worship on Sunday your bad. I don't know about anyone else but I can talk to my Lord whenever I want, and I worship him and am grateful everyday.  I enjoy a good church service when I make it:)

In many ways we are selfish to think there is no way anyone else could have had a communication , a relationship with GOD, except the way we are told in The Bible. To say that there are other paths that lead to the same God, does not detract in any way from the accuracy or authenticity of the Holy Bible. Quite the contrary often the more we examine differences between faiths the more we find similarities. In a scientific sense this means they would be corroborating evidence, actually supporting each other.
For example there are many parallels to be found between the  teachings of Buddha and Christ. Here are a few excerpts from the book Jesus and Buddha, the Parallel Teachings by Marcus Borg, Jesus scholar and Buddhist writer, Jack Kornfield. The Buddha sayings are taken from the Dhammapada and the sutras of the Buddha. The Jesus sayings are taken from the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

Buddha: One is the way to gain, the other is the way to Nirvana, knowing this fact, students of the Buddha should not take pleasure in being honored, but, should practice detachment.
Jesus: No slave can serve two masters For a slave will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.

Buddha: Just as a mother would protect her only child at the risk of her own life, even so, cultivate a boundless heart towards all beings. Let your thoughts of boundless love pervade the whole world.
Jesus: This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends.

Buddha: If you do not tend to one another then who is there to tend to you? Whoever who would tend me, he should tend the sick.
Jesus: Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these, so you have done it unto me.

Buddha: Consider others as yourself.
Jesus: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

Buddha: One who acts on truth is happy, in this world and beyond.
Jesus: You will know the truth and the truth will make you free.

Buddha: Hatred do not ever cease in this world by hating, but by love; this is an eternal truth... Overcome anger by love, Overcome evil by good. overcome the miser by giving, overcome the liar by truth.
Jesus: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. From anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt. Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again.

Buddha: With the relinquishing of all thought and egotism, the enlightened one is liberated through not clinging.
Jesus: Those who want to save their life will loose it. Those who loose their live for my sake will save it.

This is only one example, but truly  we must stop being selfish and condemning , judgmental, of each other because we know God in different ways. I personally have always been interested in this finding similarities. You would be amazed at how far back in time we can see these obvious clues. Who were the others in Genesis that after he slew his brother, and was sent out from Eden that Cain had to receive a mark on his forehead so they would not kill him? Western culture sees Noah and his immediate family as the only survivors of the flood, yet there are Flood stories in a number of cultures on different continents. This ongoing phenomenon of forced diversity is confounding to an open mind willing to look at the facts and follow their heart. When I say My God is the creator of EVERYTHING and EVERYONE.... I mean it.
How do people continue to  create boxes that one must fit into? Why do humans argue amongst themselves and continue to insist my God is Better than your God, or berate someone else's beliefs when He is ONE God?  
For example who is anyone to judge the  relationship between the Native American Indian Tribes and God? You think they were not speaking with the Father our Creator before the white man arrived? Of course they were. Just not in the same way as a Christian. In ancient Chinese texts, thousands of years old, Sumerian tablets also thousands of years old, we find similarities.

This is actually a very deep topic, that I am actually working on coherently explaining in much greater detail in a book that I have tentatively named My God Does Not Fit In That Box, I must close here for now it is getting late.
Seek and ye shall find:)

Ode To the Wonder and Beauty of Nature; Inspired by A Walking Stick Bug

Yes anyone that knows me will tell you I am a weirdo that can find pleasure, enjoyment or wonder in any number of the simplest to the most complex occurrences and  inhabitants found in nature. Every day there is something beautiful, interesting, uplifting or amazing, awe inspiring, and occasionally even fear evoking, in one way or another to be found, discovered or observed within nature. Today my interest was captured by one of the biggest grand daddy of them all walking stick bugs I have ever seen. But oh there are so many other wonders of nature intrigue and attract me....

A rainbow back lit by the strengthening rays of a golden sun shining through the scattered remains of the tumultuous roiling cloud bank that the freshening breeze is gathering together and rushing along to the next thirsty and waiting patch of earth.
I have always loved rainbows. When I pulled into my driveway in 2005 upon returning from my trip to Biloxi Mississippi after Katrina, a large Rainbow was arched over our home. The Katrina trip and the rainbow are a true story for another time and telling, here, words can not convey the depth of emotion I experienced as I stood beside my once blue, now almost black, bug encrusted old Ford pick up... and wept.  It was the most peaceful, cleansing crying session :)

Inhaling the heady aroma of a flower at the height of its full and glorious bloom. Walter Hagen is known for saying "Don 't hurry. Don't worry. You're only here for a short visit. So don't forget to stop and smell the roses."  I would like to think that his implication was intended more towards flowers in general, Because I love to stop and smell the flowers:) Taking the time to stop along the way and the smell the flowers can set a memory in your mind, associate a connection between the scent of a certain flower at a special time of the year. Like roses in chilly February for Valentines Day, symbolic of love, or lilies and crocuses representing rebirth and new life after winters passing. Flowers are associated with any number of events and seasons. From joyous gala weddings to somber dark funerals.  I have certain rosebushes here, for example the purple one my daughter Meg picked out at WalMart years ago, that I just can't walk past sometime. They call me "Hey stop and smell me, I smell real good right now." Lol and they are always right, they always do.
Whether it's a couple seconds, thirty seconds... doesn't matter, it is a few seconds of bliss. Release from every worry. Aroma therapy at it's finest. My all time favorite are lilacs. I love Lilacs in springtime. As a child on the farm we had such an impressive grove of Lilacs. We had a fort in among them. I can't recall the name right now, we called it something. Mom loved those purple and white lilacs. The house for those brief few weeks of the year, instead of smelling like baking bread and apple pies with a hint of lysol would be permeated with the sweetness of huge bunches of lilacs that we happily gathered and loved presenting to her. When we were younger I remember we also chose out whooping sticks from the lilac grove. And you better not come back with one that was not slim and supple.lol. Hey, it was the 60's and it was a rare event , and reserved for only the most serious of offenses that I and my 4 brothers were able to get in to.  I must say when we got punished, lol trust me we did something to deserve it:) .

Gazing at the ever changing sky over head. Whether it be watching the sun on its ascension, the first softly glowing rays emanating upward in cool subdued hues signaling another day in the cycle of life, or the brilliant reds and vibrant contrasts as the day ends  and twilight welcomes the Moon with its familiar phases.

Or savoring the fierce destructive power of a summer thunderstorm with its driving rains and whipping wind, the crack and snap of a lightening strike, accompanied by the ear splitting tempestuous rolling reports of thunder.

A welcome warm spring breeze after a long chilly winter, soft and  caressing like the touch of secret lover  and 
There is a connection and closeness to my Creator as I gaze upon the sky above me. The sky with its many faces is the one constant in all of our lives. 

Haha Okay, I have to leave off for a while but I will upload the walking stick pics lol . I'll get back on here later after I d some house cleaning to continue:)

 

He's a Biggun! Bigger than my hand:)

Coping in Tough Times

We all have our own personal crosses to bear the important thing is the grace with which we carry the load:) Yesterday mine was getting almost too heavy to hold on to, and my feet were faltering threatening to trip me, (translation: I was getting snippy and irritated, frustrated with everything, basically feeling completely negative thoughts) and when I thought I had reached a point where I knew I would not be able to take even one more step without dropping and breaking my cross (translation: dealing with health concerns, and finances, doctors and insurance companies) I paused for a moment (Translation: crying my eyes out begging the Lord to lighten my load, to give me the strength I needed to make it through these difficult times). Today I feel like I ate my wheaties lol and I know I can continue on steadily and with grace yet again for at least a while more:)

Truthful Testimony: Is there a God and How do You Know?

I was having a conversation yesterday with the love of my brothers life, you know my brother Ted who is in Afghanistan right now that I have posted about? She is having a hard time dealing with his deployment and worries constantly. In our conversation she said she " is so scared he won't be coming home". I reprimanded her and said " Don't be jinxing my Bro, of course he'll be home, just like last time".

I told her put up a yellow ribbon, I always do when a family member deploys, and every time I check the mail, or walk anywhere I can see that ribbon, I say a prayer for his safety and ask the Lord to give him strength. There are quite a few of those faded ribbons representing returned soldiers out there right now, along with that fresh bright yellow ribbon.

She said she was having a hard time believing that would help, because she had a hard time believing in the power of prayer. Lady M, stay strong, Ted is like the Bull in an antique shop, like the tanks he was trained to drive, very strong, and there is a God, and he does hear us. He WILL be home in time for Christmas. Just believe... With the faith of a child.
We all go through points in our lives where we are afraid, worried, in doubt about life in general, faced with problems bigger than us.

I was baptized as a baby, but for some reason, after my biological Mom was struck by lightening when I was 8 months old, the family stopped going to church. Things got worse after that, and at age 5 I was placed in foster care. That was when I was taken in by the Sweet family, and got four new brothers and the BEST Mom and Dad in the world.

But even before I was 5 I had already decided (knew) that there was a God, even though no one taught me. I think maybe it happened because of my biological brother Steve, who was 12 years older than me, and a registered MENSA member. He was always trying to decipher the Bible.

The family bible was big and full of beautiful pictures, and he was always making grids on the pictures, and looking for answers to what he felt were mathematical clues in the words. I just remember that as a child I loved that book, and I knew that God was real, and that belief stayed with me through my lifetime.

Sometimes though we seek reassurance, and sometimes, if the Lord knows we really need it, he sends us this reassurance,  in signs and symbolism. I don't know if this will help, but this is something I wrote back in the 80's, and it is a true story. Never doubt he hears us:)


A White Dove at My Window

One cold winters Morning
I dropped to my knees in prayer,
Snow and Ice were at the window,
I asked
Lord ?
Are You really there?

I asked for a sign, I begged and I pleaded
I made promises,
if you granted
what I thought that I needed.

His response is embedded
forever in my mind
A beautiful wintry moment,
Frozen forever in time.

A fluttering disturbance,
through the frosted glass caught my eye,
I was filled with peace and wonder
To stunned to question why.

In a cold northern state, at the wrong time of year,
When blue Jays and cardinals are all that are here. . .
It Was A Dove.

A beautiful White Dove,
Sent from Him for me to see,
Through the cold impersonal glass,
separating it from me.

Glowing white purity,
In A halo of sunlight,
It beat against my window pane
In a graceful Hovering flight.

How symbolic I think now,
As I look back and clearly see,
How frantic was the beat of wings
As it tried to reach out to me.

Like the frantic search
For world peace,
So close,
but somehow unattainable
always
just out of reach.


Peace Out all,
and Lady M>   Your love WILL COME HOME,
Believe.

Spirituality and Religion: God by any other name, Like the Rose, is Still God

I guess my upbringing and my lifestyle is what made me such a down to earth, two feet on the ground, spiritual individual. I believe that there is a Higher Power who created everything. This includes all religious deities, spirits, and beliefs from Mohamed, Jesus, Buddhist iconic figures, Everything, and Everybody. I believe that the Bible is a living book, but that the Apocrypha, The Dead Sea Scrolls, The Koran, The Torah, cave etchings, hieroglyphics, and many other texts are also living words. We need to step out of the boxes that have been created. Think about it for a moment... If Your God is THE God, then it stands to reason if he created everything, then that has to mean Everything, or you don't believe all the way.

So what if different cultures have different ways of expressing this belief in A Higher Power.  We have placed too much emphasis on HOW we worship and not Why.

This Higher Power gave us humans everything we needed to survive and be healthy and happy. We humans are the ones who ruin this wonderful balance. Silly humans so greedy and needy, polluting and consuming and doubting.For all we know we have done this before; used up a planet and figured out how to "save" a select few by launching them off to a fresh planet. That is one of the first things we need to do. Let go of what we THINK we know.

Look at what an argument and faithbuster for some people the topic of evolution has been and continues to be. Why couldn't evolution occur? Earth was doing her thing for quite some time before us humans arrived. Whether it was from dust of the earth, molded clay, or outer space. We Do Not Know all of these details. We know some information, we are curious and that's okay, I'm curious too. 

I do not know this Higher Power's real name. Even the Bible mentions we will not know his true name. That's because his name is changeable, personal, and relevant to the people He communicates with. On different continents, across time and space He may be known as  ShangDi associated with Tian, Allah associated with the Prophet Mohamed, He May be known as God, and associated with his Son Jesus, he may be known as Lord Shiva associated with his son Ganesh, or maybe Gluskap the good creator associated with Malsum, or The Great Spirit associated with the Earth, moon, wind, and stars, and moon, maybe even like the ancient Sumerians and the Dogan tribes in Africa, Anunnaki came from outer space with Enki, Enlil, Ninki, Inanna, Utu, Ningishzida, Marduk, and many others.
God works for me, it is the Name I am familiar with because of the time period and place I live in, but I also accept, recognize, understand, know that he has many names to many people. But he is still God too. 

Over time and through translations, and thousands and thousands of years of manipulations by man, for various reasons, we have been taught that our belief in Our Creator has to follow a set of certain guidelines, and that we should behave a certain way, be closed minded, try to "reform" all the "others".  If you had a real life experience with an Angel, or a spirit or messenger from the Lord, or God himself... how would you describe the experience? Would the visitation come to you in the form of a blinding light? A booming voice? Signs and symbols from the animal world? We really do not know, so we should not judge how "God" is interpreted or what name He is called, or fight with each other to the point of shedding blood to prove "our" Version of God is "better". He is One.

What's more important were you baptized, did you complete Holy Communion, were you circumcised, do you go to church every Sunday, do you pray in the right direction at the right time of the day, do you read the "right" book, follow the right rules? Is it okay to believe Jesus was the Son of God, but that he may have been sent to try to help us see the light on more than one occasion, at different times and places?

Or is it more important that your heart dictates your belief and That you are a kind, compassionate individual who cares about his fellow man? You work hard, your honest, you do what's right and you're thankful for everyday, and appreciate that the sun comes up in the morning and sets at night, and then comes up the next day. That flowers smell pretty, and babies are precious. That rainbows are beautiful, and death is not the end?

I like to believe that within every religion there is a piece of truth to it, and if we could all just agree that hey, nobodies better than anyone else, we're all human, and learn how to get along and respect each other, these little pieces of truth would all fall into place like the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle.

It is not all an accident, everything is too perfect, too precise, too orderly, were it not for man's inventions, interventions, and "progress" it would still be perfect.

Well Peace Out all, I hope I have not offended anyone either by omission, or spelling, or my crazy personal beliefs:)