thoughts on the news of the day: fear of flying

hmmm…..

            Authorities are continuing to look into what seems to be a terrorist plot to ship bombs to innocent victims.  The investigators found two packages on a cargo plane bound for Chicago and are looking for more.

            I have this fear of flying.  That has not always been the case.  My father worked for a major airline when I was little and so we flew all over the United States with all the confidence in the world.  But lately, terrorist threats, heightened security and a couple of bumpy rides have given me cause for pause.  Every time I even anticipate getting on an airplane, anxiety grabs me by the throat.

            But I fly anyway.  I fly because I have a daughter in the Austin area that I want to see more than I want to be afraid.  How do I conquer my fear?  I could jokingly say it’s the anti-anxiety drugs my doctor prescribes, but really, its much more than that.  There’s a saying that goes, “Fear knocked at the door, faith answered and no one was there.”  Faith is the antidote for fear.

            We can overcome our fear by faithfully affirming that God is in charge and that we will be protected.  It doesn’t make the fear magically disappear.  But the paralysis that goes with the fear does. 

            Try walking in faith, and the fear will melt away.

            hmmm…..

thoughts on the news of the day: hope is alive

hmmm…...

            Hope is alive. At least it lives for two Japanese daughters who lost their father in the battle of Iwo Jima during World War II.  It’s a long story, but basically it goes like this:  An American soldier discovered two items on the body of a slain Japanese soldier.  He gathered them up and took them home where they sat until just recently.  After a difficult search, the child’s drawing and the infant’s photograph were miraculously restored to their rightful owners.  "I feel like he has actually come back after all these years. I am very grateful," said the daughter who had been looking for her father since the war had ended.

            The daughter never gave up looking.  She held onto the hope that one day she would find her father.  Sometimes our hope gets the best of us; we cling to ideas that will never come to pass.  But often we give up just before the miracle arrives.  “Hope deferred makes the heart sick” goes the proverb. In other words, when we give up hope, we usually become despondent, depressed, disheartened.   

            It’s OK to hope.  It’s OK to dream.  It’s Ok to wish that things will get better … because oftentimes … they do.

            hmmm…..

thoughts on the news of the day: who's right?

hmmm…..

            My goal every morning is to write a few words on whatever news pops up on my server.  Amazingly, I have managed to stay out of politics during this pre-election frenzy.  That is, until now.  The headline today was: “the election and your money.”  It’s not polite to talk about politics or money – at least that’s the old rule of etiquette.

            But what are the new rules of etiquette?  The old ones have been smashed to bits.  No one thinks a thing anymore of answering a cell phone call or a text in the company of another. Even at a dining table, calls are taken, conversations carried on … a friend of mine has a hold over rule from another era which says that she must answer any phone call by the second ring.  My feeling is that it is rude to answer the phone when you are having a conversation with another person.  Who’s right?  She also holds to the rule of leaving a bite or two on your plate as being proper for a lady.  I grew up in the “clean plate club” where leaving food on a plate was inexcusable.  Who’s right?

            Call me and let’s have a conversation about the new rules of etiquette … but, please …. not while I’m having lunch …..

            hmmm…..

Thoughts on the news of the day: memories

hmmm…..

            A news item today claims that the number one fear of Americans over 55 is loss of memory.  Really?  I would have guessed the obvious trip to meet our Maker, but according to this article it comes in second.  The article lists some remedies for memory loss such as doing crossword puzzles, taking ginkgo and even eating celery (remember when grandma used to say, “Eat your celery, it makes your brain grow”?)  Apparently studies are showing that while these remedies don’t work very well, aerobic exercise does.  In other words, working our feet strengthens our brain.  

            Memorization has never been my strong suite.  I remember even as a child struggling to learn the answers to our Catholic catechism; and I have always admired those who could learn spelling words, or lines in a play. As I get older, names and dates slip away, but doesn’t that happen to everyone?

            Mostly I remember feelings.  You know, the feelings of first love, the feeling of fear the first time I drove a car by myself, the feeling of accomplishment on graduation day.  Feelings stay with us when names, dates, and faces fade into oblivion.  So I guess I don’t mind if you don’t remember my name, my hope is that I have touched your life in some good way, and that you carry that good feeling with you … today and forever more. 

            hmmm…..

thought on the news of the day: Powerless?

hmmm…..

            The weather is in the news today.  A 7.7 magnitude earthquake erupted  off of the coast of Indonesia triggering a tsunami that has killed 23 people and left scores of others missing.  Footage of a tornado in Rice, Texas depicts the devastating damage inflicted on the community there.  Two boys were electrocuted Saturday during a downpour in a suburb of Dallas when they got caught in rushing water and grabbed a live downed electrical wire.    There are many things which technology has conquered and learned to control, but as of yet, the weather is not one of them.

            We think we are in control because we can walk in a room and flip a switch and the light comes on; we can log on to our computer and have the world’s news at our fingertips.  We can enter a doctor’s office and find a cure for most common diseases.

            But there is much over which we still have no control.  We can’t control when it rains, how much it snows and how hot it gets in the summer time. We can’t control what other people do, think or say.  And we certainly can’t control when our time is up here on this earth.

            Powerless?  Just about the only thing we really have control over is our own attitude.  We can choose at any time to defer to a power greater than ourselves. And that in turn makes us powerful. 

            hmmm…..

thoughts on the news of the day ...

Hmmm…..

            Until recently, savings accounts were the traditional vehicle for being wise and frugal with money.  Not so any more says an article on the web today.  Savings accounts seem to be on the outs with financial experts.  First of all, they have dismally low interest rates, and to add insult to injury, many now add costly fees just to maintain a balance.  The wisdom of the writer of the article is to choose some other place to stash your cash.

            Now, prudence with money is always a good thing, but right here might be a good place to review the scripture which reminds us to store up our treasures in heaven and not on earth.  I think what the Master was trying to say is that we need to find a balance.  Our parents and grandparents had a different perspective from those of us who live in today’s throwaway world.  They lived through the depression; a time when food, clothing and other resources were almost impossible to acquire, so nothing was ever thrown away. But neither hoarding nor squandering resources is the way to go – which leaves finding a balance between the two a good solution to the dilemma. 

            I think I might take some of my stuff to the thrift store today – I probably won’t need it again anyway.

            Hmmm…..

thoughts on the news of the day ...

Hmmm…..

            An epidemic of life-threatening cholera has reached Haiti’s capital, Port Au Prince.  Hundreds of thousands of people still live in tent communities there and the sanitation is very poor. So it is likely that the disease will spread rapidly in the densely populated city.

            I had almost forgotten about Haiti and I regret that.  The country devastated by an earthquake 10 months ago was foremost on my mind for many weeks.  We collected aid for the Haitians for several weeks and sent a significant amount of money to our church’s disaster relief fund.   But now, I need to be reminded that the people still suffer; the homes have not been rebuilt; the city has not been restored.

            I guess I should say “shame on me” for forgetting, for ignoring, for going along my merry way, enjoying my prosperity while others suffer in a land so close to my own.  But shame is a rather useless emotion unless action follows it.  So today, I will write the check.  I will commit to giving regularly  – to help the people of Haiti and people all over the world who suffer while I prosper. 

            And, of course, if you are so inspired … you can give, too ….

Hmmm…..