Topaz

Did you know that Topaz in its purest form is colorless? The various shades of the jewel Topaz come from impurities! Information like this comes from my husband, who listens to scientific discussions for fun. Aren't husbands great?!?!?

Oh How I Love Saturdays

For me, Saturday mornings hold the delicious promise of time. Like choosing from a menu in your favorite restaurant, Saturday mornings offer a wonderful assortment of choices like: to listen to Handel's Messiah while cleaning up the kitchen; or to sit, listen and meditate on lyrics from a favorite song; or to gaze out at the sparkle of clean snow; or to call a long-neglected sister. And all the while your story plot sits in the background soaking in it like meat in a marinade. There is no hurry. There is no deadline.

How delightful!

I Am NOT a Mormon

I've noticed Mormon advertisements popping up on my blog. I don't endorse Mormonism, nor do I equate it with Christianity. Mormons do not confess the Apostle's Creed or the Nicene Creed. They do not believe in the Trinity. Their main scripture is called "The Book of Mormon." This book was written by Joseph Smith, the religion's founder, in the United States in the mid 1800's. Mormons also call their church "The Latter Day Saints." Many Christian leaders have categorized Mormonism as a cult. From my point of view, other than the violence of Islam, those two religions treat women in much the same way.

I AM NOT A MORMON nor would I ever encourage anyone to adopt the Mormon faith.

Enjoying Motherhood - a new blog by my friend Estela Rosas

Please check out my friend Estela's new blog. It is fresh and insightful.
Enjoying Motherhood.

Revisiting the Past and Bringing It Forward

Facebook or LinkedIn or MySpace inspired me to start looking up some friends from high school. I had been quite envious of my husband's ongoing relationships with friends he had known since grade school. They all had music in common... and politics... and religion... I had one particular friend, Kay, who had taken piano lessons from the same teacher, sung in the same church choirs, acted in the same plays and stood in the back of the band with me along with the tubas and percussion. She played the timpani and I played stand-up bass. The last time I really remembering seeing her was at her wedding!

I started searching. The old way would have been to ask my parents to give me her mom's address, and then send a letter requesting my friend's phone number or address. This is still a reliable network, but it seemed that I could never remember to ask my parents at the right time. And then, they would have to remember to give me the information... Too many "ifs" in that equation.

I set about an Internet search using Google and found her name on a website of a place where she did some work. I knew it had to be her - it was the right profession and the right town. I finally got up the gumption to call the place and left a message. Low and behold! She called back!

We had a great conversation on the phone, and now, after 30 years, we are getting together.

What a gracious God we serve, who restores relationships and brings good things to our lives!

Abuse of Contempt of Court Imprisonment - It's Happening in Your Own Backyard!

Following is a link to an article that succinctly points out the grave potential for abuse by family court judges in contempt of court incarcerations. Interestingly, the United States has the highest imprisonment rate and the largest number of people incarcerated on the planet - this includes China and the USSR. Some experts state that one of out of eleven males will be incarcerated at one point in their life and that rate increases to one of out four for black males.

For those interested in preserving the ideals of life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, this article should be compelling: http://www.independent.org/newsroom/article.asp?id=2229

To Love or To Hate....

^9-10People conceived and brought into life by God don't make a practice of sin. How could they? God's seed is deep within them, making them who they are. It's not in the nature of the God-begotten to practice and parade sin. Here's how you tell the difference between God's children and the Devil's children: The one who won't practice righteous ways isn't from God, nor is the one who won't love brother or sister. A simple test.

¹¹For this is the original message we heard: We should love each other.

^12-13We must not be like Cain, who joined the Evil One and then killed his brother. And why did he kill him? Because he was deep in the practice of evil, while the acts of his brother were righteous. So don't be surprised, friends, when the world hates you. This has been going on a long time.

^14-15The way we know we've been transferred from death to life is that we love our brothers and sisters. Anyone who doesn't love is as good as dead. Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know very well that eternal life and murder don't go together.

^16-17This is how we've come to understand and experience love: Christ sacrificed his life for us. This is why we ought to live sacrificially for our fellow believers, and not just be out for ourselves. If you see some brother or sister in need and have the means to do something about it but turn a cold shoulder and do nothing, what happens to God's love? It disappears. And you made it disappear. (1 John 3 - MESSAGE)