We went to the King Tut exhibit at the Art Museum!

We went to the King Tut exhibit at the Art Museum.  It was very interesting and there were some amazing monuments, statues, jewelry and even a sarcophagus.  But the most amazing thing was the words that were written and preserved for us after thousands of years:  The words in hieroglyphics that have been translated.

The Egyptians were so far ahead of us in technology and religion.  They believed that we were mortal but that another life awaited us after death.  They realized that the life after death was more important than this mortal life, but that we need to focus on living this mortal life properly to have victory and success in the next life.  What great lessons they have left for us to follow even in the 21st century.

I love this time year with Christmas tree lots popping up everywhere!

It’s so festive to drive around and see all the little Christmas tree lots that pop up everywhere.  Some lots are so small and cute, with just one lighted sign, while others are quite large with decorations, full display, blinking signs, inflated snowmen and the like!

It reminds me of when I was a child and our family used to drive out to pick out a Christmas tree.  Sometimes we got them from a lot, sometimes we went out to the woods to cut them down.  I have carried on this tradition with my child and sometimes we got out to the woods to cut down a living tree and bring it back to our house.  The smell is wonderful, the symbolism is amazing, and the life of the tree reminds us of the true meaning of Christmas.

I had a dream I died and went to Heaven.

When I got to Heaven, at the Pearly Gates, I couldn’t ask any questions.  But I did find a laptop there with a “Frequently Asked Questions” page from God.  I had to click on and read every single one of the Frequently Asked Questions!  And when I got to the last one, it read, “If your questions were not answered, you can approach the Throne and ask there.  Please click this link and a number will be e-mailed to you.”

So I clicked on the link, checked my e-mail, and found that my number  was 425,437,123,210,109 and I felt like the most insignificant person in the world.  But when I looked behind me to see who was next in line after me, it was JFK so I figured, I guess I wasn’t as bad as I thought after all!

If God had a blog, what would he post?

If God had a blog, what would he say or post every day?  Would he talk about the true meaning of Christmas and how it’s about giving and sharing?  That the spirit of generosity is what Christmas is all about?

Or would he berate us for becoming so commercial at Christmas and only caring about getting, material things and possession?  We may never know, unless God starts a blog.  Who knows, maybe He will.  Maybe He will start today…

Every Christmas I also read “How the goblins stole a sexton” by Charles Dickens.

     Like Sir Gawain, this story teaches a strong moral lesson and is applicable today, commenting on the state of the human race and the true meaning of Christmas.

     A sexton is a grave digger and this particular sexton, goes out to dig a grave on Christmas eve.  This would be a nasty job for anyone but this sexton enjoys his work, hates manking, and especially despises children.

     Well, this Christmas, the sexton gets the surprise of his life when he goes out to dig, has  a drink to warm his bones, then receives a visit from the most unlikely of characters, who then takes him on an unforgettable and life-changing journey!  I highly recommend everyone read this short story.  Happy Holidays!

 

Ever feel like a duck with your butt hanging out in the air and your head under water?

Ever feel like a duck with your butt hanging out in the air and your head under water?  I felt like that the other day and that I was very vulnerable, like anyone could take a shot at me and hit me, even a hunter or an oaf like Elmer Fudd could take me out!  Sometimes life is like that and things leave us susceptible, with the weight of care, distractions or deceptions holding our heads under water.  But when we come through these experiences, we find we are stronger and smarter and won’t let the same situation get us down again.

So the next time you find yourself in that predicament, and pull your head up out of the water, sputtering and gasping for air, remember that it is important to learn from your experiences, especially the bad ones, so that you aren’t caught off guard again.  Even though as best we try, we know there will be other circumstances that will put us in a place where we become targets, since life is full of surprises, but we can continue to rise above and become better people, moving always onward and upward.

Every Christmas I read “Sir Gawain” as translated by J.R.R. Tolkien.

     “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” is a wonderful tale from the Middle Ages about a knight from King Arthur’s court.  The court is celebrating Christmas and feasting when they are visited by a knight all in green:  His skin, hair and even his horse are green!  I recount the tale in my novel, “Heavily Lidded Lion,” available on Amazon.com

     The Green Knight issues the challenge to have one person strike him once with his big, green axe, as long as that person agrees to receive the same done to himself one year and one day from the current event.  King Arthur is about to accept the challenge when Sir Gawain takes the challenge instead for the King.  Sir Gawain cuts off the Green Knight’s head but he does not die!  The rest is the stuff of medieval legend and an amazing Christmas tale.  I recommend everyone read it and I guarantee it will launch the reader into the holiday spirit and season!

Pax Vobiscum!

A famous Elizabethan poet once wrote…

“The body’s furniture is beauty,

The mind’s must needs be virtue,

Virtue itselfe is reason but refin’d,

And Love the quintessence of that,” 

by John Ford

If you like this, read some of John Ford’s plays.  “The Dutchess of Malfi” is a good one to start with so enjoy and happy holidays!

A woman’s emotions, descriptive words, conversation are like a river…

and in some cases, they are like a waterfall or even an ocean!  Of course, I speak relatively, not to stereotype, and I speak figuratively.  When a woman writes, an essay, short story, poem or novel, her emotions come out in amazingly descriptive words.  The same holds true for a woman’s conversation.  Depending on the woman, the river can burst into a waterfall and even expand into an ocean.

     On the other hand, when a man writes, his emotions are typically stilted, as is his conversation, and usually resembles an i.v. drip!  There are some men who can rival a woman’s emotions, descriptive words and conversation, but it is rare.  It is this contrast between men and women that creates the opposite polarity, the electricity, the attraction between the two.

We went to the Art Museum on a Tuesday afternoon…

….We went to an art museum on a Tuesday afternoon, yesterday!  It was a field trip and I went as a chaperone for my son’s class.  It was a great father/son time and it was refreshing to see how many unusual and classical works of art are there.  It was an inspirational afternoon!

     We also went to the aquarium on a Tuesday afternoon, but that was in the Summer.  Fortunately this was a field trip so we got to go during the school year, and on a school day.  We had fun singing Christmas carols on the bus ride down into the city.  And we had fun with conversation and watching YouTube videos on the way back.  I highly recommend at trip to any Art Museum or Aquarium any day for everyone!