Things do Change

 Back around 1970 at the US Naval Academy I had to take a required course in US Government. Our prof was brilliant in that he knew that most of us in the class were politically conservative. He would say things to get us stirred up, and I would rush to the library to prove the prof wrong. But, the next day, he would be on to another topic.  As you have figured out, he was a very clever teacher.

Very near the end of the term, and it might have been the last class meeting, he told the following story, which is a commentary on today's culture.

"In college, I lived in a boarding house while i was in college. The residents of this house were almost all internationals, and i was about the only American living there.

It was the morning after a presidential election. I came down to breakfast which we ate all together. In the room it was deathly quiet, which was unusual since normally everyone was laughing and talking as they ate. After a few minutes, I couldn't handle the funeral-like atmosphere.

What's going on, friends? I asked.

They replied, "Well there was an election yesterday. Won't there be rioting and disharmony everywhere?"

I laughed and said, "No we don't take politics that seriously here. There won't be anything.'"

My how times have changed!

Monthly Prayer Letter

Some of you probably get our monthly Cru prayer letter. We get prayer letters from a great many missionaries. It is much different to read them than to write them. Since July of 2017 we have been doing these letters. From reading these every month, my first goal was to keep them to about 1 page or less. Frankly, most of us missionaries are not exactly Faulkners, or O'Connors, or Greshams. I know that you probably get several, and that you may not have huge enthusiasm for reading something I have written. Plus, I am a fast writer, so knocking out one page doesn't take much time or energy.

It has been interesting what has appealed to people. Probably the most popular thing we have published in these letters has been pictures of our garden plants, blossoms, pruning, etc. We usually include at least one photo, but my most recent one has not as of this time.

It is amazing how people ignore these too. three and a half years after starting, there are plenty of recipients who have never responded in any way. I don't mean donations, I mean just responding with a comment. the most folks who have even bothered to open the letter is 67%, with most letters only getting about 50% opens, with many months under that.

Fortunately, especially during COVID, our expenses have been very low. We conserve our donors funds very carefully. Consequently our funds situation is quite good, so we don't have much pressure. For those missionaries who must raise their monthly living expenses, this has got to be tough. Though, perhaps, others have a better opening rate than we do.

Because of these things, I try to read EVERY letter and send a few lines of encouragement to every missionary who sends us a letter. If you have the time and energy, perhaps you could do this on occasion also.

But of course, I am a bit biased in all this.

Blessings, friends.

More Reflections on getting Old

 I Finished a book today (1 Jan), The Warmth of Other Suns. It is the story of The Great Migration, which was the flight of millions of Black Americans from the deep south to Detroit, Chicago, Philadelphia, New York, Milwaukee, etc. The book tells the Story of 3 migrants from the Mississippi delta, Monroe LA, and Eustis, FL.

Reading about the lives of three characters, their adventures, personalities, pains, and eventually their deaths made me reflect further on my life. Though the book mentions a couple of the characters' participation in their church, the spiritual content is limited. Though their lives were highlighted in great detail in the book, in the end they all died, just as we all do. The author discussed the three folks that left the deep South and in much more general terms, those that didn't. 

But did it really matter?

Well it mattered then, but does it matter to those three folks now? They are either enjoying the joys of heaven, or the other option. The text quotes from 2 Corinthians 4:17, but would have been more complete to cover vv 16-18.

16 So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. 17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 18 as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

Read that carefully, thoughtfully. The things that are seen are transient. The afflictions we face, whatever they may be, are capable of producing an "Eternal weight of glory".  Not totally sure what this is, but it sure sounds good.

So, as hard as it is, and regardless of our personal circumstances, let us endeavor to look more at the unseen, eternal, things, and less at the things we see, which are transient. We are all getting old, if we are alive.

Blessings,

Bad TV Commercials

 I know we are all together on this, but some tv commercials are terrible. I am happy to admit that I have NO professional knowledge of advertising. But as a long-term consumer with some tv watching over the last 70 years, I do have some opinions.

The worst tv commercials are provided by the insurance companies. One of my Communications expert friends pointed out that there is almost NO difference amongst there products. Think about it. The chances of any given driver crashing are the same for every insurance company in the country. The odds of an insured person dying are the same. So, the chief thing to differentiate among companies is advertising.

I JUST saw a tv advert for Progressive insurance. It was a total silly ad about hand modeling competition and it did NOT make me want to buy their insurance--quite the opposite. I have mentioned the crazy Liberty Mutual ads supposedly filmed with the Statue of Liberty in the background.

About the only good insurance commercials are the recent State Farm commercial featuring a young black insurance agent. His customers are so grateful for their great insurance that they are treating him extra special despite his protests that they aren't receiving special treatment.

BUT, that's the only one that seems wise or appealing.

So, despite that we must buy liability insurance for our car, and health insurance for our bodies, perhaps consumers should express our opinions on these companies based on the quality of their commercials. Our insurance company, which will remain nameless, advertises very little (saving us customers $$) and has always given us great service. In the old days, they didn't advertise at all (saving us customers $$$$).

Oh well, I guess I really don't have much about which to complain, right?

MORE treasures from the Trash

 If you read this blog very often, you know that I LOVE to find discards that I can use. Just in the last week at Panama City Beach, I have found the following useful items:

3 good beach umbrellas (gave away one to a family with a bunch of kids).

1 beach chair.

I neat kite (which I repaired with pieces from a broken umbrella...I found!)

1 wet/dry vacuum

2 Wagner airless paint sprayers (Have only checked 1, but it worked).

4-5 towels that we needed to replace the towel we lost day before yesterday when someone mistook it for someone's in their large group of young people.

1 watch (needs battery)

G^d has blessed us. We could buy all this stuff, if we needed to do so, but there is some satisfaction in salvaging stuff from the landfill that we can put to use.  Just like G^d does with our lives...

I won't apologize, it's just fun.

Speaking at UNA Commencement, 2020

 Last post I described getting ready to speak at 2 of the graduation ceremonies at the University of North Alabama. I consider this one of the greatest honors I have ever received, and was about as nervous as I ever get about my speech. Some of you might relate to that.

The biggest challenge I faced was the shortest time limit for any speech I have ever given. Because of all the COVID hoops, and the necessity of 6 different ceremonies from Friday night to Saturday, my requested time limit was 12 minutes. Yep, whatever I wanted to say, I had 12 minutes to do it, and I pride myself on meeting the time limit set. Typically the time limit is 30 minutes, not 12, so I really didn't have a good feel for a 12-minute talk.

I prefer to use PowerPoint to give talks, mostly because I am a a visual learner and have great sympathy for visual learners. I prepped the PowerPoint, but I was warned from the start that with live streaming etc. they techs were NOT at all optimistic that I could use it in the ceremony. And, indeed, I could not.

So, I wrote out the talk, printed it off, cut some, and rehearsed it. This is highly unusual for me. I am ADHD and the idea of rehearsing is tough, but, as I said, I was taking this very seriously. My first out loud practice, was a bit fast, and I finished just a few seconds under 12 minutes. On the first REAL delivery I went 12:20, and on the second one, I slowed down a bit a went 12:34. So, I didn't meet my goal, but I figured no one would complain about me going over by a few seconds. And no one did.

This was a rare opportunity of speaking twice only a few minutes apart. After the first commencement speech I approached the President and the Provost quietly and separately. I asked if they had any suggestions/amendments to my talk, and they independently agreed it was fine as it was. Whewwww, finally I could breathe.

After the second commencement, I relaxed completely for the first time in a week or more. The Uni had booked us a very nice room in the Marriot Shoals and bought our supper and breakfast. Though it was much later than usual for dinner, we couldn't pass up a free meal in the kind of restaurant we usually avoid. We enjoyed both meals and I especially enjoyed having this task completed.

Thank you O L^rd for getting us through this challenge. I am thrilled for the opp, but also thrilled it is done.

Thanks be to G^d.

Commencement Speakers

 If you look back on 5 June 2017 I posted a blog about why graduation speakers are NOT needed, nor necessarily even desirable at a University Graduation. Well, back in Nov of this year, I received a letter inviting ME to speak at the U of North Alabama Graduation.

Hmmm, I didn't have to think about it long. Sure. With COVID they wanted me to keep my talk under 12 minutes at the undergrad and grad commencement ceremonies of the Education and Nursing colleges. Because of Covid they divided commencement up into 6 different ceremonies, but I only had to speak at 2 of them on Friday night.

What an honor. I really, truly wanted to do a good job for them. I wrote the speech immediately knowing that it takes a LOT more effort to do a short speech than a long one. I studied UNA and consulted with one of my former students who is now an Associate dean there now. I focused on honorign the students, and congratulating the parents and professors who taught them. I also wanted to honor the UNA, and found that there mission statement had 5 points:

Be Innovative

Be Inclusive

Be Eager

Be Engaged

Be Global

I would end by challenging ALL of us to do those 5 things. 

I practiced far more than I ever have before.

So, stay tuned for how it came out...