On the Precipice of Change -

On the Precipice of Change –

     As we ponder our future this week we try and envision what our world might look like 6 months from now and beyond, we can’t help but think back about when life was more idyllic. When we were a people of wonder and hope and had dreams for our kids and grandkids that surpassed our own lives growing up in the 50’s and 60’s and 70’s.     

     As a free people we just hope in the vision of a future that is bigger and better that that of previous times. I’ve personally witnessed an erosion of the American dream in the past number of years as society has changed and watched as values have changed. Change is always a needed thing if we are to be innovators and idea people, but some of the changes that have taken place have taken a toll on those of us who baby boomers as we’ve watched with interest in how American business has evolved into a purely profit machine that could care less in the people who make it happen, namely it’s workforce.

    How many people do you know who have had a diminished standard of living in the past 10 years? Who is it in your family that has experienced being “down sized” without a job and left to fend for themselves in a sour economy? We all know someone whose had to deal with aging and at the same time see whatever nest egg they had evaporate just trying to keep the lights on. And the back side of that is that they there has been no “light at the end of the tunnel” in many respects.

    As Americans we have a proud heritage of independence and resolve. We’ve always taken the lemons we’ve been given and made not only lemonade, but we’ve taken those sour fruits and made things like Super Duper Frothy Delicious Lemon Fruit Ta-Ta or some similar concoction. That’s just who we are as a people. We are innovators and entrepreneurs at our core. That’s why we’ve been the best at what we do. We know what’s good and what works.  That’s why immigrants flock here, isn’t it. They want a piece of the large wonderful pie that we call America. Can’t blame them, can you?

    I am hoping for change. And the change I’m hoping for is that we can once again be released as a people to innovate once again. That through collective creative genius we can unleash Americans to re-build America. And when we do that we all get a piece of the action.

    So as we look forward, I hope that we all realize that we really can re-fire the engines of America. If we as a people will untie the hands of business and let capitalism and innovation do what it does best, we will see a spirit of cooperation and excitement that we’ve not experienced in a long time. Don’t you think it’s high time we got back to the American we all knew and loved? Wouldn’t you like to be excited again about the future our great nation? America has been asleep, not dead. It’s been imprisoned, but not with a life sentence.  

It is my earnest hope and prayer that life will once again resemble the America I once knew. And I hope that starts before it is too late to change.

Left Turns. Ever made one?

LEFT TURNS

Right turns when driving are fairly easy, aren't they? Most states allow a right turn on red light, if no other traffic is coming. Some times there are arrows that allow right turns. But for the most part in America we could all agree that turning right is fairly simple.

Left turns however are another matter entirely. My most poignant remembrance of a left turn was when I was a little bit younger (OK, a lot younger!). I met regularly with two older men on Saturday mornings for coffee, encouragement and prayer. The route to our meeting place required a left turn at an intersection. One particular morning when at the signal light and turning left, I proceeded to make my turn at the end of the light’s cycle.

On the other side of the intersection another driver was coming through the intersection, also at the “end” of the cycle going straight. That morning we met without a handshake. It was a small disaster. The other driver T-Boned me on the passenger side of my car. I had my driver’s window down at the time and the impact flung my eyeglasses into the street and we run over later. The right side window exploded and some of the flying glass now resided in my face.

After the spinning stopped I surveyed the scene and realized my little car was done, Caput, totaled and basically a nice new U shape.

I made my meeting that day after a brief discussion with the other driver, the police, paramedics and a few other "concerned" citizens that were worried about us clearing the intersection. My meeting guys saw the blood and the no glasses on my face and said, “What the heck happened?” “I said, well I was just making a left turn, when………”

I survived that crash. My car didn’t. Had my pregnant wife been with me in the passenger seat that morning most likely she or my unborn son might not be with us today. It was that bad of a collision.

How can out life be changed so quickly and drastically with a simple left turn?

As I look back on that day and survey the many days of my life since that time, I can tell you I’ve had and seen many other “Left Turns” in my and countless other lives. Can you recall those times when your world changed in an instant? Was it a phone call? Was it a birth or death you witnessed? Was it coming home to an empty house unexpectedly? Or maybe it was that day you were called into the boss’s office for some bad news?

My bride and I were discussing just last night how many of our friends, co-workers and others we've known of the past couple of years who’ve had some drastic and even fatal left turns. Often without any warning, we’ve seen settled lives get toppled in an instant. Is it that we are just getting older and everyone around us is too, or does it seem that problems for all of us are mounting up like pending storms?

Regardless of why, we will ALL have LEFT turn(s) in our lives. It is just part of the human experience. How, oh how, do we prepare for such events and drastic changes? I think we can’t. We just have to live our lives in such a way that we keep our “bags packed” to some degree. Bags packed thinking also means we need a level of faith and trust in our creator God that He is the one that is ultimately in control of our lives. If you don’t believe this to be true, I surely wish you would consider seriously trusting Him for your own destiny. He’s the one whose set my life back on the road after many, many left turns. He is working out his will in our lives and HE is good ALL the time!    

Clearing the Cobwebs - Seinfeld Style

Clearing the Cobwebs - Seinfeld Style

Ever feel like your mind is a jumbled mess, sort of like a desk with much paper in disarray? Being an ADD type person I can live with a messy desk. I can put my hands on just about anything I need with no Post-It Note or color sticker tab attached. I can locate one page in a three piles of fifty. In my drawer I can locate an obscure item in the midst of a total mess. But my mind is a different matter. I get so many things floating or flying around in the 7 inch hat rack known as my head, that there are times I have to just force myself to sit down and write (type). Today is one such day. Time to arrange my thoughts, release some frustrations, take a stand, clean out the recesses of my gray matter, whether it matters or not.  

Seeing other people blog about subjects ranging from Apples to Food to Faith to Zoology, makes me see that there truly is a place for Seinfeld like writing. Seinfeld was the master of making a long running popular show about nothing. And it worked.

Although I am very busy at this time of year (decade) I seem to thrive on always being a little bit behind and with 40 tasks up in the air at the same time. But I just can’t seem to get that dang belt rack hung in closet at home. It’s been at least three weekends since I promised my wife and myself I’d hang it. Whoops. Hasn’t happened yet. Just can’t seem to get back around to it? I guess she needs to “write me up” or put me on probation from Blue Bell for a while until I get those small tasks done.

I can tackle projects involving millions of dollars (literally) but can’t seem to move that old bicycle from the back yard to a better place. Being the unorganized person that I am Excel has been a godsend lifesaver helping me organize a wee part of my life. Who would have thunk it? I guess it must help because I can add colors to the cells and set up large fonts in BOLD and I can even highlight different columns with the spectrum of the rainbow.

And gadgets seem to help me too. If I see a new product or gizmo and can plug them in or set them up, that seems to help a boring day seem much brighter. I guess us ADD’ers have to have color and variety to give us a buzz?! Go figure?   

While I’ve been typing I see that I am up to 139 unopened emails at this time. So I supposed my project list has just been boosted to orbit (again). Let’s see, where was I before I started writing? Oh I remember I was on my way to get coffee or was that Friday? Oh well I’ll just go get a coke since it is almost noon.

OK, my mind is clear again. I feel much better. Feeling a bit like Cozmo Kramer today.

Ready to Retire? Always!!!

Well, today we say farewell to my good buddy Curtis. I've had the privilege of working with Mr. Curtis for almost 4 years. When I walked into this place for the first time (through what I thought must have been the back door to the business) I was smack in the middle of the customer service department. I was there looking to interview for a new job and Mr. Curtis was the first person that greeted me.

It really helps when you walk into a new place seeking employment to find some like Mr. Curtis. Whatever fear and trembling I must have felt was tempered quickly by the ease of style and friendly character of this fellow. While waiting for the person interviewing me, it was only a few sentences in that I and my buddy were talking food and especially BBQ. Funny how God uses people and passions together very quickly, isn't it?

Well, I ended up getting the job. And I worked in a different building but shortly thereafter we moved to another location and all of us were finally all together. It was here that I learned about the life and adventures of Curtis. And what a storied life! I thought I had done a lot of things in my time. But I met my match.

Once you meet Curtis, you will never be the same. And if you've met him you will understand (without a doubt) that he has a deep and abiding faith in our God. And yes we do share the same One and only God, expressed in the form of Jesus the Christ.

Speaking of Jesus, one of Curtis's common questions is to anyone he knows is this - "Did you know that Jesus loves you and I do too?" I would kid him at times and say "I sure hope so!" Or I might tell him "I know Jesus does, but I'm not sure about you."

He ends all Facebook or email messages with "Love Ya". Now it takes a real "manly man" to boldly tell someone (anyone) that he Loves You. But that's how he rolls. And it is his signature.

He told me last week that he would be moving on to greener pastures this week and move to the retirement home. Well, at least he has plans of staying home more. And fishing. And singing and whistling and humming. And doing just about anything he wants to.

But I have a suspicion that as he enters this new phase of fun that God will have some new things for Mr. Curtis to be involved in. And I'm sure it will be spreading good news somewhere in his world.

We all have “stories” to tell about our lives. But Curtis really does have a life changing story of redemption. He’d be the first to tell you that he was a real stinker in his earlier life. And it wasn’t just doing all the wrong things. He was a real life agnostic. Webster’s defines this with several flowery words. Doubter, Scoffer, Cynic, Skeptic, Unbeliever.  

agnostic - a person who claims that they cannot have true knowledge about the existence of God (but does not deny that God might exist)

It’s interesting that the descriptors of such a person seem to all be negative. But the Curtis that I know is anything but negative. So how’d that change happen?

It was a complex, yet simple, change that he attributes only to God’s “wonder working power”. Not only was Curtis ill and close to death more than once, but he was despondent, depressed and pretty much without hope. Yet in the midst of his pain, someone kept praying for and encouraging Mr. Curtis that he’d turn to God for help and healing. Finally Curtis did “simply” turn to God for his “complex and complete healing power”. I can’t recall how many years ago that was, but the main point is, it was not a temporary “fix”.

God took that piece of clay that was broken and made it pliable again. And what he reconstructed was a “man after God’s own heart”.

I didn’t know the old Curtis Shelton. I only know the redeemed man that God healed and changed. Happy Trails my friend! I know you’ll keep telling the Good News of God’s redeeming power.