Month: March 2020

3-18-20 Midweek Musings

3 rd Sunday of Lent
March 15, 2020

“Complaints, or Trust?”

Exodus 17:3-7
Romans 5:1…8
John 4:5…42

My Brothers and Sisters in the Lord –

One of the things we can say about most of us in the Western World is that we are seldom, if ever, truly satisfied. We always seem to want more. We want things to be better. We are always seeking the new, the different, the more desirable. Often, we confuse wants with needs – and spend money on the wrong things.

When things don’t go our way, we begin to complain. We complain to friends, to those who are close to us – and, often, we even complain to God!

However, in all of our wanting and complaining, we usually forget how fortunate we are in so many ways. There are always others who have much less than we have – others who are far worse off than ourselves, whether physically, emotionally, or economically. We also forget the many blessings that we, sadly, take for granted!

So, how do we extricate ourselves from this downward spiral of negativity? How do we become grateful – and more accepting of our lot in life or of our particular place in the world today? Fortunately, the scriptures for this Sunday give us a great deal of direction in this regard.

When the Chosen People, in the desert, grumbled and complained against Moses, they were really angry with God. Although they were believers, they really had no personal relationship with God. They were seriously lacking in faith and trust. They did not truly know God at all in any personal way. They were too absorbed in their daily lives and with the challenges of living to pay much attention to God.

They had forgotten all the blessings that were theirs – all that God had done for them – Deliverance from slavery in Egypt – Salvation from Pharaoh’s army – The Manna, the quail, the preservation in the desert! Consequently, when faced with a new hardship, they grumbled and complained – instead of trusting in God and offering prayers based on faith and trust!

In the Gospel selection, the Samaritan woman came to the well in the heat of the day, when no one, usually, was around because she was ashamed of who and what she had become. No doubt, she couldn’t believe her ears when Jesus asked her for a drink. However, she must have kept her relationship with God alive, despite her sinful situation. Although she resisted Jesus at first, she, gradually, opened herself to all that he had to say.

Jesus had a spiritual, life-giving water! This water would completely transform the hearts and souls of anyone who entered into a relationship with him. What Jesus had to share was grace – freedom and deliverance from all the wants and desires that distract us from who we really are and what God wants each of us to become. Jesus offers a new way of living here in this life. This new way leads to an eternal life with him and with the Godhead after this life is over!

As Jesus reached out to the Samaritans, so, too, does he reach out to us. He wants a relationship with each of us despite all of our mistakes, failings, and sins. He asks us to trust in him and in God’s unfolding plan for us.

This is the reason St. Paul writes that we can have peace with God through all that Jesus has done for us. We even have God’s love poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit who has been given to us!

So, Brothers and Sisters, far from complaining, we should look deeper into our hearts and lives to discover, once again, all that God has done and continues to do for us. It doesn’t matter if our wants go unfulfilled – It doesn’t matter that we suffer because of others and because of the hardships of life. It doesn’t matter that our life here ends in death! What really matters is our faith and trust in God’s ultimate plan for us. What really matters is that we grow in faith – in our relationship with God through Jesus. What really matters is that we remain faithful to God even in our darkest hours and when others no longer hope!

So, let us praise God and give thanks to Him who has done so much for us and given us salvation in and through His Son, Jesus!

Amen.

March 15, 2020 Msgr. Russell G. Terra
Saint Joseph Roman Catholic Church, Redding, CA
*http://www.stjosephredding.org/parish-homilies.html

Dear KAG: 20200318 Open Thread

Well, withe things the way they are…may as well go with the big guns for a theme song.

And now for the obligatory message from our sponsors:

Here at the Q tree we believe in the concept of CIVIL open free speech and the discussion that fleshes out ideas. When commenting and participating in the OPEN discussion on this thread all comments MUST NOT CONTAIN personal threats, baiting, name calling, or other anti-social words fomenting hate, violence or destruction. Our host Wolfm00n has strict rules about that.

Fellow tree dweller Wheatie gave us some good reminders on the basics of civility in political discourse:

  1. No food fights.
  2. No running with scissors.
  3. If you bring snacks, bring enough for everyone.

In addition, it is requested that there be no swinging from the chandeliers, celebratory gunfire, messing around with the nuclear weapons, and, please, everyone wash your hands.

And, please, what ever you do, do not walk barefoot across San Francisco.

Those who have things to say that do not fit the generally accepted limits of “civil” discussion, Wolf has provided a venue known as the UTree. Please, venture over there for any such thoughts and comments. This sort of thing is always a possibility on that site:

A few other vital notes:

Please, review these rules that our host Wolfm00n outlined toward the beginning of the growth of the tree itself. it won’t take long.

Ridiculing the other side, on the other hand…well….

__________________________________________________


MT 1:16, 18-21, 24A

Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary.
Of her was born Jesus who is called the Christ.

Now this is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about.
When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph,
but before they lived together,
she was found with child through the Holy Spirit.
Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man,
yet unwilling to expose her to shame,
decided to divorce her quietly.
Such was his intention when, behold,
the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said,
“Joseph, son of David,
do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home.
For it is through the Holy Spirit
that this child has been conceived in her.
She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus,
because he will save his people from their sins.”
When Joseph awoke,
he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him
and took his wife into his home.

As always, prayers for the fight against that which seeks to enslave us are welcome.

We ready for more “As the Swamp Turns”?

ChiCom-19 as a 4GW Bioweapon

This is a Twitter thread I just did, which Twitter is WILDLY SUPPRESSING for the ChiComs.

Enjoy.

W

This person’s tweet was in reply to one of mine (see addendum), where I had stated to somebody else that I feared an Italy scenario would have happened in America if Trump had not THWARTED his opponents as he did. I do NOT believe that an Italy scenario is inevitable here – AT ALL. In fact, I feel that such thinking is unwise at best – dangerous at worst.

My initial reaction was that the person subconsciously HOPES for the bad stuff to happen to America to “get Trump”. So did several other posters, a few of whom replied to him negatively.

What is very interesting is that this TDS poster does NOT see himself AT ALL as having a “Schadenfreude for Trump Failure” worldview. And yet, I am pretty sure that most of us, reading his comment, can not only sense it, but can sense the beginnings of both hoax-tolerating TDS, and maybe even hoax-permitting TDS.

To me, this is psychology which the Chinese communists KNOW deeply, CREATE easily, and EXPLOIT routinely. All of our lying, hoaxing socialist Democrat neighbors are – IMO – the product of Chinese communist understanding of how to mass-brainwash Americans through a captive media.

I kindly ask people to treat this person nicely and not give him a bunch of shit. I sense the possibility of psychological breakthrough here. I mean, I’m trying to save Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Maybe HE can learn to save Donald Trump, who has done more to save RBG than ANY OF US.

Thanks!

Moving on again…..

Addendum I – Bill Mitchell Thread

This was a short thread where I repeated some of these ideas differently.

Addendum II – Critiques of This Work

Sorry – just had to share!

https://twitter.com/NoClueSevenTwo/status/1239666757993930753
https://twitter.com/NoClueSevenTwo/status/1239853754637266944
https://twitter.com/LeeLoriT411/status/1239499969205280768

Addendum III – Miscellaneous ChiCom-19 and 4GW Tweets and Important Links

https://twitter.com/psnihn17/status/1239443073806946304

20200317: Dear CoronaVirus/ COVID-19/ Wuhan Flu, Daily Thread

For the time being, given our national emergency, we are switching to DAILY COVID-19 threads instead of weekly threads. Your comments and updates are most welcome. PLEASE continue to include your valuable information, hard source links, and local observations on these COVID Daily Threads. Additionally, within these Daily Threads, we will try to include links to government and official pressers, so those who no longer have cable can remain informed.

We’ll get through this crisis, together. As a group, there is probably no one better prepared than we are.

For our newcomers: The Q Tree community has been diligent in covering the threat of Coronavirus, COVID19, Wuhan FLU. We started accumulating information about this virus in mid-late January, in what became almost weekly threads. We’ve been weeks, if not months, ahead of MSM outlets to vet rumors and other medical papers, etc.

Primary Update Links:

In our past weekly threads, we assembled information on the following:

  • Primary update links. The dashboard from Johns Hopkins which counts “official” cases all over the world, the CDC, and WHO, and includes the links for our past threads.
  • Hard Data Medical Information- Explanation about testing, reliance on China for drugs, analysis of NE Journal of Medicine results and other published papers.
  • Vaccine and theraputics (new/old drugs to alleviate symptoms) news and updates 
  • Trump Administration response (the timeline and links to various agencies)
  • China Responses, timelines, research, attempt to cover actions, or secrecy in results discovered.
  • An aggregate of info/responses from other countries, listed by country.
  • Economic impact from around the world. A change in economic activity will indicate a “return to normal”.
  • Speculation/debunking on how the virus started
  • Media Bias, political response, and debunking section, like the article from AP News, overt bias from Politico, inflammatory headlines, etc.  
  • Other medical info to boost immune system, herbal remedies, ways to keep your house clean and NOT spread the virus to others. Excellent information to incorporate into daily lifestyle.
  • Hard links for OTHER valuable sources/blogs and a brief sentence or two about what they provide
  • Other news items

Our weekly updates. timelines, collection of valuable information, can be found here:

Please try to keep your sense of humor during this National Emergency, and remember, patience is a virtue.

Love to all!

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Embassy and Consulates official advisory.

While San Francisco Mayor has issued an order for everyone to “shelter in place”, the rumor went out that De Blasio of NY was considering the same action. NYGovernor Cuomo stepped in to say “NO, not in favor of a shelter in place order”. Go out to the parks.

Dear KAG: 20200317 Open Thread

Alright, my maties, here we are on one heck of a subdued St. Paddy’s Day. Close your eyes and imagine the pall of cigar smoke in the air, the sound of bagpipes, and entirely too much water of life flowing for everyone’s good. The scene in the header image – from the top of the hill at St. James the Greater, Dogtown, St. Louis, Missouri – was cancelled this year. No vintage firetrucks doing HONK, HONK, HONK with the crowd coming back with “LET’S GO BLUES!” No Irish dancing schools hanging on to trailers for dear life. No Clydesdales…it just won’t be the same.

This site is a celebration of the natural rights endowed to humans by our Creator as well as those enshrined in the Bill of Rights adopted in the founding documents of the United States of America. Within the limits of law, how we exercise these rights is part of the freedom of our discussion.

Guidelines for posting and discussion on this site were outlined by our host, WolfM00n. Please, review them from time to time.

The discourse on this site is to be CIVIL – no name calling, baiting, or threatening others here is allowed. Those who are so inclined may visit Wolf’s other sanctuary, the U-Tree, to slog it out.

Fellow tree dweller Wheatie gave us some good reminders on the basics of civility in political discourse:

  1. No food fights.
  2. No running with scissors.
  3. If you bring snacks, bring enough for everyone.

__________________________________________________


DN 3:25, 34-43

Azariah stood up in the fire and prayed aloud:

“For your name’s sake, O Lord, do not deliver us up forever,
or make void your covenant.
Do not take away your mercy from us,
for the sake of Abraham, your beloved,
Isaac your servant, and Israel your holy one,
To whom you promised to multiply their offspring
like the stars of heaven,
or the sand on the shore of the sea.
For we are reduced, O Lord, beyond any other nation,
brought low everywhere in the world this day
because of our sins.
We have in our day no prince, prophet, or leader,
no burnt offering, sacrifice, oblation, or incense,
no place to offer first fruits, to find favor with you.
But with contrite heart and humble spirit
let us be received;
As though it were burnt offerings of rams and bullocks,
or thousands of fat lambs,
So let our sacrifice be in your presence today
as we follow you unreservedly;
for those who trust in you cannot be put to shame.
And now we follow you with our whole heart,
we fear you and we pray to you.
Do not let us be put to shame,
but deal with us in your kindness and great mercy.
Deliver us by your wonders,
and bring glory to your name, O Lord.”

As always, prayers for the fight against that which seeks to enslave us are welcome. Via con Dios.

20200316: COVID-19/ Coronavirus/ WuFlu, Daily Thread

For the time being, given our national emergency, we are switching to DAILY COVID-19 threads instead of weekly threads. Your comments and updates are most welcome. PLEASE continue to include your valuable information on these Daily Threads. Additionally, within these Daily Threads, we will try to include links to government and official pressers, so those who no longer have cable can remain informed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BNLqQMpsII

We’ll get through this crisis, together. As a group, there is no one better prepared than we are.

March 16, 2020: “We’re going to be backing the airlines. It’s not their fault. It’s no one’s fault, really, ……… unless you go to the original source.” (Which would be CHINA!!)

For our newcomers: The Q Tree community has been diligent in covering the threat of Coronavirus, COVID19, Wuhan FLU. We started accumulating information about this virus in mid-late January, in what became almost weekly threads. We’ve been weeks, if not months, ahead of MSM outlets to vet rumors and other medical papers, etc.

Primary Update Links:

In our past weekly threads, we assembled information on the following:

  • Primary update links. The dashboard from Johns Hopkins which counts “official” cases all over the world, the CDC, and WHO, and includes the links for our past threads.
  • Hard Data Medical Information- Explanation about testing, reliance on China for drugs, analysis of NE Journal of Medicine results and other published papers.
  • Vaccine and theraputics (new/old drugs to alleviate symptoms) news and updates 
  • Trump Administration response (the timeline and links to various agencies)
  • China Responses, timelines, research, attempt to cover actions, or secrecy in results discovered.
  • An aggregate of info/responses from other countries, listed by country.
  • Economic impact from around the world. A change in economic activity will indicate a “return to normal”.
  • Speculation/debunking on how the virus started
  • Media Bias, political response, and debunking section, like the article from AP News, overt bias from Politico, inflammatory headlines, etc.  
  • Other medical info to boost immune system, herbal remedies, ways to keep your house clean and NOT spread the virus to others. Excellent information to incorporate into daily lifestyle.
  • Hard links for OTHER valuable sources/blogs and a brief sentence or two about what they provide
  • Other news items

Our weekly updates. timelines, collection of valuable information, can be found here:

Please try to keep your sense of humor during this National Emergency, and remember, patience is a virtue.

Love to all!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJN2_EN9f1k

Dear KMAG: 20200316 Open Thread

This Stormwatch Monday Open Thread is VERY OPEN – a place for everybody to post whatever they feel they would like to tell the White Hats, and the rest of the MAGA/KMAG/KAG world (with KMAG being a bit of both).

Yes, it’s Monday…again.

polar-bear-dragging-himself-around

But it’s okay! We’ll get through it.

We’ve been waiting for it:

AmericanStorm

It’s the Enemedia who should be worried:

NewsieGetsHit

And the ChiComs, whose propaganda nozzles are being exposed:

ChineseNewsieWindblown

Along with their pet Donkeys:

Free Speech is practiced here at the Q Tree. But please keep it civil.
Discussion of Q is not only allowed but encouraged. Imagine that! We can talk about Q here and not get banned.

Please also consider the Important Guidelines, outlined here. Let’s not give the odious Internet Censors a reason to shut down this precious haven that Wolf has created for us.

With the Storm upon us…please remember to Pray for our President.

TrumpLookSolemn

Wheatie’s Rules:

      1. No food fights.
      2. No running with scissors.
      3. If you bring snacks, bring enough for everyone.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

For your listening enjoyment, I offer this from The Phantoms, titled ‘This is a War’:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5oAuZhh6HU&w=640&h=360]

………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Wheatie’s Word of the Day:

Invidious

Invidious is an adjective that means ‘resentful, envious, or obnoxious’ or calculated to produce ill will, animosity, resentment or envy.

Used in a sentence:

The Democrat Socialists spew their invidious demagoguery to sow division and class warfare.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………….

 

Deconstructing ChiNazi / Iranian / Fake News False Narratives About CoronaVirus and Reconstructing The Truth

Something REALLY stinks in China and Iran, and it’s not just the burning bodies.

The TIMELINES simply don’t add up. They are FALLING APART. And you know it’s REAL because somebody is racing to rescue it.

Facebook is now cracking down on “unapproved” posts about the CoronaVirus.

Yeah, Chinaberg. I can do the math.

There was a point, recently, where I found that I could explain a LOT MORE about COVID-19 by abandoning China’s version of events, and coming up with my own. Part of that was explaining my own SARS-like symptoms, from a definite Corona infection that I picked up in mid-January at an “Iran-connected” meeting. Of course, at THAT time, we knew nothing about Iran.

But how could that be? It doesn’t fit the TIMELINE.

Good thing I stayed out of nursing homes for two weeks, thanks to a 5-day induction period, and having seen the DEADLY GRAPH of COVID morbidity vs. age, but it was close. My friend Suspicious Cat may have saved a few old veterans.

vigilanti semper

I’m still not breathing right, by the way. THAT bugs me. It feels very “SARS”.

My wife and neighbor did well, but my neighbor’s wife was hit pretty hard. I think that she, like me, is an ex-smoker.

But it’s more than personal. Things just don’t add up – and I’m not just talking about the NUMBERS, which are OFF. The numbers are showing too many positives too fast in the wrong countries and specific people – meaning those who generally seem too “helpful” to China and Iran if they caught it.

Bolsonaro? Oh, as soon as I saw that near-hit, I realized that I could WRITE THAT OPERATION. The VECTOR DEFLECTOR on that one – oh – that was “too smart”. Y’all know what I’m sayin’? Oh, that was SLICK. I smell Chinese intelligence ALL OVER that.

No – it’s more than just the numbers.

The Chinese communists and the Iranians – poor victims? No. This doesn’t sniff right. Mass graves in Iran that are the BAD GUYS and not the INNOCENT GOOD GUYS? No. That doesn’t sniff right. Execution-style gunfire recorded by half-hidden phones in China, then disappearing from the Fake News here? No. That doesn’t sniff right.

Young doctors dying and disappearing in China? Hmmmm. Maybe there ARE explanations. Maybe these are the SAME duplicitous ChiComs and the SAME scheming Iranians we’ve always known – SNEAKY – LYING – FAKING – HOAXING – TRICKING – and Fake News is simply helping to sell ONE MORE SOCIALIST / GLOBALIST NARRATIVE.

YES. That’s where I am now. There is a NARRATIVE coming from China, Iran, and the Fake News, and I no longer buy it.

How do we know they weren’t political prisoners from recent uprisings?
With or without death by coronavirus?

I suppose we can thank Rod Rosenstein’s sister, Neutron Nancy, for her early attitude on testing, which OH SO UNFORTUNATELY hid any cases in the United States other than NARRATIVE cases involving cruise ships. And THANK YOU GAIL for that piece of the puzzle, because THAT really helped me see things. They wanted it here. And they wanted it to STICK.

Sorry, this is all bullshit.

And now – NOW – I’m hearing that I’m not the only author here who had a NASTY, NOVEL, RESPIRATORY DISEASE in December or January, where the only reason NOT to think it was probably COVID 19, is the CHINESE / IRANIAN / FAKE NEWS narrative timeline.

SIDEBAR: I am asking all people here who think they may have gotten COVID-19 outside of the Fake News timeline, including those who previously shared information, to please re-post a description of their experience HERE for it to be available to researchers who find this post. The more non-personal details provided, the better.

Wolf Moon 1776

It took ONE OR TWO PEOPLE here to start questioning the ChiCom narrative openly, and all of a sudden – BOOM – many of us who were PRIVATELY questioning it, start questioning it BIGLY and PUBLICLY.

NOW do you see why Mark Chinaberg is having an emergency over at Facebook? They have to shut this stuff down. And they CAN.

That is the beauty of socialist media. Just like China, they can shut it down. Just like 2016, they can support THE HOAX. They have complete control.

Well, too bad, Mark. WE’RE going to discuss it here. We need SKEPTICISM to figure out what’s going on.

SO – I am inviting everybody here to BE HONEST – spill it. What are your thoughts – your speculations – your theories – your questions – your ideas – your inspirations – your absolutes – your certainties – your uncertainties – your fears – your doubts – your revelations – your own experiences – EVERYTHING you think about the CHINESE / IRANIAN / FAKE NEWS narrative surrounding this virus, and what you think is REALLY going on.

Let’s brainstorm this stuff until ChiComs and Fake News Hoaxers are wetting their undies.

SPILL!

W

John Fink and James Coburn discuss case in a scene from the film ‘The Carey Treatment’, 1972. (Photo by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/Getty Images)

Dear KMAG: 20200315 Open Thread

God spoke . . . and there was creation
God spoke . . . and so appeared the light
God spoke . . . and then still became life
God spoke . . . and from dirt arose man

We speak “Trust God in our nation”
We speak “Shun the dark, seek His Light”
We speak “Seek the Truth and the Life”
We speak “Praise our God and His Plan”

God Speaks

In Eden, God spoke to Adam and Eve
And then to Cain, for a curse to receive
God spoke to Noah to build Him an ark
Then scolds Job – he made God’s counsel dark

God spoke to Abraham to leave his land
And for Isaac to settle, all His plan
God told Jacob to return in His care
And Moses, in Egypt, to leave from there

After Moses, God spoke to His prophets
To pass on His Word, just as He saw fit
Then, as a voice from heaven or a cloud
Heard by disciples and even a crowd

Some say “God never speaks now. Not today.”
Though we all know that He speaks every day
God speaks through other things, all by His choice
Through people, events, music – not His voice

God speaks through His Word; there for us to read
And then through His Son, by both words and deeds
God speaks by His Spirit, our Teacher and Guide
To us through prayer, our small voice inside

God’s creation and nature speak, clearly seen
And the learning from music, visions and dreams
Other believers speak with wisdom in words
And events teach lessons not audibly heard

God is not silent, He speaks to us all
For sinners to believe, God makes the call
For believers to grow, give thanks and sing
All for God’s glory and the joy it brings

Do we need to be listening for God’s voice to speak to us outside the Bible?

I am going to say something positive here and not just negative. In fact, most of what I have to say is positive and the first and main thing is to say: God really has spoken. And this word is living and active. It is not a dead word. He really speaks today through the inspired Scriptures. He really, really does. He really does. Not just with information, but with himself by his Spirit.

The Word Speaks

 “The Lord appeared again at Shiloh, for the Lord revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh by the word of the Lord” (1 Samuel 3:21). That really happens. God stands forth from his inspired word as we read it prayerfully and dependently. And, I would add this: the word in the Bible is more sure than anything you can hear outside the Bible. I base that on 1 Corinthians 14:37–38: “If anyone thinks that he is a prophet, or spiritual, he should acknowledge that the things I am writing to you are a command of the Lord. If anyone does not recognize this, he is not recognized.”

That is amazing. Paul is saying you can call yourself a prophet and get messages from God. You can call yourself spiritual and be tuned in to God, but if anything you say doesn’t accord with what I say, you are not recognized, which means that outside the Bible we have fallible, uncertain impressions and messages. Inside the Bible we have rock-solid, dependable messages. So there are treasures and wonders and glories and dimensions of God to be seen in the Bible that we have scarcely seen.

It seems to me to be folly to crave the lesser authority and the lesser riches outside the Bible than the riches and the greater authority that we have barely tasted, let alone digested, inside the Bible.

Now having said that positive thing about the Bible that I love — I just love the Bible so much and I know that after, what, sixty years of reading my Bible I have barely scratched the surface of its glories — I kind of get ticked, frankly, at myself and others who are craving stuff outside the Bible as though there is something better to be had out there.

Having said all that, I don’t see anything in the Bible that would say God can’t communicate with us in extraordinary ways outside the Bible. He can. And if he does, we should test it by his infinitely authoritative risen word and we should commend it to those whose lives show a deep, long wisdom in Christ. There is this community dimension to testing all things like Paul said. Don’t despise prophecies. Test all things. Hold fast to what is good. That is just not a private thing. That is something we do with others as well.

Don’t Seek Signs

But I will close with this. Beware of craving the sensations of a voice. Jesus warned against those who seek a sign (Matthew 12:38–39). So here he is. He is standing there in front of the Pharisees and scribes speaking and they say: Give us a sign. What does that mean? It means that the voice of Jesus Christ the Son of God wasn’t adequate. They needed something more. They needed to feel more, touch more, see more. They wanted more. And Jesus wouldn’t give it to them.

And I think we are in a situation today not unlike that. We hear more of the Son of God than anybody in Jesus’s day ever heard, because we have all four gospels and those people got it in snatches. Therefore we have the wholeness of the revelation that Jesus meant to communicate, and it is speaking to us every time we read the Bible. And if we turn away from that and say: But I need a sign. I need a voice. I need a tree to fall down in the woods when I am talking. I need something. We are putting ourselves in the position of those who demanded a sign.

*https://www.desiringgod.org/interviews/does-god-verbally-speak-to-me

Watch and Pray                      

As Christians, we know the greatest commands,
“Love our God with all our heart, mind and soul”
And then “Love your neighbor as yourself”
These fulfill the Law and Prophets of old.

To fully love is impossible to do,
Our innate nature is not in this way.
We understand what is right in God’s sight,
But that’s not what we do, day after day.

Those who Christ loves, He’s sure to rebuke,
And those He rebukes, He counsels and calms.
Once he has shown us that we were wrong,
He holds us close in His loving arms.

How can we live with this weakness of ours?
Our spirit is ready, but our flesh is weak.
To avoid temptation, watch and pray,
For God has all the strength that we seek.

When our souls are weary with failures,
To renew our strength, we hope in the Lord.
He’ll stand by us, no matter our troubles,
And see us home safe to our final reward.

Easter Baskets

We all have different family traditions for celebrating holidays. When we grow up, develop our own households and families, we tend to take those traditions along with us, insisting on making mom’s casserole/cookies for Christmas, hanging Dad’s angel at the top of the tree, or going to a church or synagogue at specific times. It’s our culture and provides continuity for the next generation.

When we’re young and starting out, it’s almost impossible to conceive anyone else has a tradition which is different than our own. Oh, but the expectations and traditions are wildly disparate. Sometimes we hit a home run, and sometimes we flop. Some days we’re the windshield, and some days we’re the bug.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuAckJQ-gbA

As a kid, I was the first born baby in a very long time into both mom’s and dad’s side of the families….. probably received a little too much attention (hehe). When Easter rolled around, I had a couple of baskets from “Southern Grandma/Grandpa” who lived in Mississippi, northern Grandma/Grandpa, my parents always gave me a few, a huge basket from my maiden Godmother Aunt Dot, and Miss Wilma from across the street always had a basket for me……. and then there were a few baskets from the Easter Bunny. Thus, I hunted for Easter baskets, maybe 6-12 of them every year, not just the eggs. Gosh, I thought everyone did the same thing.

When I moved out and had my own apartment, I dated a New Yorker who was Jewish. We were pretty serious. He was okay with Christmas trees and Easter, but he didn’t have the decorations. That part was up to me. Our first Easter celebration was scheduled to be at my apartment, in Miami, with his two kids (whom I adored), his mom (who was a blessing), and his sister (stunning woman), who had no kids. That’s six people altogether, right?

Obviously, I needed at least 36 Easter baskets.

As a young exec, I was making pretty good money, but 36 Easter baskets would be expensive. What to do? With a month to plan it all, it became clear, I was going to have to make the baskets. I hit the garage sales and never paid more than $.25 for a plain basket. I also bought OLD stuffed bunnies, and laundered them. Spray paint made the baskets Easter colors, six colors, each person had a different color (made sense to me….. at the time). I found off season floral for cheap prices and ripped them apart, gluing flowers back on the edges of baskets. I found little frogs, butterflies, bumblebees on wires, masculine stuff for the guys, all kinds of things at bargain prices.

Sure, I burned the heck out of my fingers with a glue gun, but became better as time passed. Sure, I needed a few plastic eggs, and the golden eggs (which contained a new $1 bill), but didn’t have to buy too much candy at all. I made cookies, chocolates, and popcorn balls to fill up the baskets as well. I also found little games, pinball games, pegboard game, search and word find puzzle books, goofy goggles, and always a squirt gun,……. you know……. like the stuff which was in my Easter baskets as a kid. For the adults, a few nicer things, lotion/soaps, a favorite book, new sunglasses, etc.

After 3 1/2 weeks, I had 41 Easter Baskets. I sighed, that would have to be enough. Time to plan the menu for Easter brunch. No problems, there.

When my guests arrived, I was ready. My little penthouse looked like an Easter explosion, a warehouse for Peter Rabbit. Naturally, the kids would be eager to do their basket hunt first thing, right? It would be impossible to contain kids from that kind of excitement, right? But they were Jewish and didn’t know what to do. They never had an Easter basket.

Talk about a culture clash.

Yet, kids have universal interests, and candy, cookies, and squirt guns always work. It was kind of rough going at first, my preconceived notions fell flat, but the kids swung into action and made the day. Even my potential Jewish mother-in-law had fun hunting for her baskets.

When I left Miami, one of the movers from Wheaton Freight Lines asked me, “Lady, how many Easter baskets do you have?” It was his task to pack them, and he couldn’t figure out how to wrap my precious but cheap-as-heck artwork. He treated each basket like a Faberge egg. Comical.

I made it back to New Orleans for Easter and we dug out my hand-made trinkets, the Easter Baskets. Dad was thrilled, it had been a long time since he had a good holiday. We went overboard that year, but I had to make a few more baskets for new friends added to the mix.

As I settled into Mississippi, married, bought the B&B, had kids, more Easter baskets were necessary for in-laws and new friends. And more baskets for treasured staff members, girlfriends, and their children. In the attic workshop, we made hundreds of Easter baskets over the years.

When Gunner was little, he thought it was his duty to hunt for all 60+ baskets by himself. He really didn’t care so much what was in them, he was thrilled with the hunt…. 100% American boy.

When Dad was besieged with cancer, I had to spend many weeks in New Orleans that spring. While caring for him, I turned the garage into a workshop, making Easter baskets. Even though he was very ill, he insisted on going to garage sales with me, to scout for baskets. He claimed he had a better eye for a bargain than I did. It’s one of the last things we did together. He understood…… and so did I….. it wasn’t about Easter baskets at all. He died three days after Easter.

When Big T came along, he had 4 daughters…….. obviously, we needed 30-40 more Easter baskets, but this time, some of the girls were old enough to help make their own.

With Big T, we worked with the schools for Easter, doing their annual Easter Egg hunts in our back yard. It was 19 classes of kids, 17,000 eggs, and sheer bedlam. 19 parties, 19 cakes, orange juice, fresh fruit, beautiful white skirted tables and wild floral toppers, a visit from a staffer dressed as the Easter Bunny……. What a wonderful time. And Mr. T’s golden eggs always contained loose change or fresh $1 bills. Of course, the schools don’t allow Easter egg hunts anymore. It’s such a shame. The kids had a great time.

As I bring the Easter baskets down from the attic one more year, I realize Gunner is older and all he cares about are Jelly Beans and licorice, his favorites. I was kind of sad. No big Easter basket hunt this year, no parade this year……. but then a small glimmer of hope……. A few of the girls are married, and now we have a grandchild……. of course, more Easter Baskets are required even though they won’t be here this year. Gosh, I better get busy….. maybe?

And just like magic……

This morning, I received a Facebook message and a photo from an old staff member. He worked for me when he was in high school. Now, he is married with three kids of his own. I loved that kid and truth be told, if I could have hand-picked a son, I would have picked him. The message contained a pic was of him, in his garage, with dozens of Easter baskets. The message, “Whaddaya think, Miss D? We’re ready!!”

Yeah, he definitely could have been my son.

And the years will pass…… and we’ll have to re-glue a flower, or re-arrange an errant bumble bee, but the baskets will be arranged. We will make cookies and popcorn balls for whoever may be here and whoever they bring with them.

Gosh, I can’t wait for more grandchildren. We really are blessed.

He found the Golden Egg.