Slappin' labels!

.is reading 'The Post-American World' -- it's a Muslim's view.

send this to those that think he walks of water and should be the next President of our Great Nation.

I got this in an e-mail. I didn't edit it so the grammar issues would be discernible. Apparently the person who created this e-mail as well as the one who forwarded this e-mail on to me has not read the book. I am glad Senator Obama is reading this book. It is a fascinating look at the dynamics of the new world that is here that we are going to be a part of. I would hope that Senator John McCain is reading the same book. I found the book very insightful and eye-opening.

And so what if the author is a Muslim? To be honest it is hard to figure out what his religious affiliations are in the book. What does the faction of the Christian community that sent this e-mail out, the community of "love casting out fear", and giving of their lives for others, have against a Muslim? I don't know why the person who sent the e-mail wrote that it was a "Muslim's view", other than the fact the composer of the e-mail is ignorant! I am just tired of this nonsense! There is enough to feel queasy  about in the election from either party, without piling on of this nonsense!

I'm voting for history

I talked to someone yesterday who's mind is made up about who they are voting for. There are so many possible historical moments that could be made in this election. In fact history will not not be made, regardless of which ticket wins. The first female vice president, the oldest president, or the first African American president. 

This person has decided to cast their vote for the first African American, simply because that is what the person believes is the biggest historical consequence. And this person has decided to vote for history.

I love it!

I was hard on Famous Dave's for it's "Compassionate eating" campaign. This is their latest ad and I love it.

Looking for quease

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I have been sent some material about the candidates that have been disconcerting at best. After spending some difficult thought provoking weeks and watching the second presidential debate I have finally narrowed down what I believe the election is about.

We have two senators running for president. One hasn't been in the senate for very long, and the other perhaps has been there too long. While both understand politics and law crafting, neither has had much experience with holding and attracting businesses.

If my main focus is on the economy, then Senator McCain is the way I go. He is more cautious when it comes to economy and raising taxes. As a bonus, in the economic arena Governor Palin could be an asset with her experience as a mayor and governor, who’s job it was to attract businesses into her city and her state. I get nervous when I hear politicians, like Senator Obama, talk about making corporations pay their fair share. There is nothing like businesses seeking to improve their bottom line, moving out of cities or country to depress an economy. Moreover, when corporations get taxed, I believe they just pass those increases on to consumers. 

Blame for the bank failures is being flung around Washington like poo from a monkey cage. To me, bank failures are not only the fault of one political party. While people love riding gravy trains, greedy excesses have a tendency to catch up with its commuters, and in this case, those of us who watched the train go by. As a nation, we will probably destroy ourselves because we don't know how to rein in maximal WIIFM (what's in it for me), human nature being what it is.

If my main focus is on foreign policy then I think I have to go for Senator Obama.  He is cautious on controversial issues and he is much more likely to show restraint in the global arena. Looking at President Clinton and President George Bush, President Clinton was far more likely to fire a couple missiles at a factory of an offending nation than commit our troops to additional ongoing battlefields. And up until the last couple weeks when banks were going belly up at a record rate, our political focus was on nations we are at war with or could be at war with. I'm not convinced that Senator McCain wouldn't be "Maverick" from the movie "Top Gun", itching for a fight.

It has been reported in the last few days about how the global markets are working together during this financial meltdown to keep bankruptcies and bailouts from destroying all markets. This has demonstrated for me the necessity to be able to navigate in the global arena. It is my belief that President George Bush, while a decent man, has decimated our standing in the global community. His reckless bullying actions in the world, his black/white thinking, and his cronyism has squandered the goodwill we enjoyed from the global community after 9/11. 

At this point, a month away from the election I am planning to vote for Senator Obama because I think global issues trump economic issues. If we have the resolve, we will work to climb out of this economic crisis we are in. There will be pain and inconvenience and possibly some dramatic changes in the way we live and do business. Maybe we will learn from this. Maybe we won’t. However if we make ourselves unpopular in the world we could be doing battle with a lot of other countries. It is hard to live in a global system with an ever shrinking set of allies. 

I don't believe that Senator McCain and Governor Palin are not the mavericky pair that will ride in and change the way Washington works. I don't believe that Senator Obama is going to save us. I’m not sure that either will be able to continue for a second term. I don’t believe that Senator Obama is the "Manchurian candidate" or that Senator McCain is as out of touch as his detractors contend. Either has the potential to astound or disappoint us. Elections are simply about damage control. 

The good news for me is that in these past weeks I have rediscovered my political equilibrium. I have long stated that if I don’t feel queasy coming out of the voting booth, I haven’t done my job.

Thank God, I now feel queasy.

Silver Bullet

In two weeks I am riding the Silver Bullet to Mexico. After our trip in July, one of the needs identified was a van. With money donated, a silver colored van has been purchased in Minnesota and we are going to drive it down to Valle Hermosa to give to an alliance of churches. It will be a quick trip, and it should be fun to connect with friends made in July. If you want to see the work being done there please click here.

One of the needs that pops up all the time in the area of Mexico we were in is guitars. It is the primary form of accompanying singing in many of the smaller churches. Guitars get an amazing amount of use.A former student of mine, Aaron Madison, who has a company that repairs guitars and works with Guitar Center is donating a guitar he had. If you have a guitar that is sitting around, I would ask you to consider donating it to this work in Mexico. Contact me as soon as possible if you are wanting to donate as we will have a van to take down rather than checking it on a plane. We are also able to give you a letter to be able to claim your donations on your taxes. Please contact me at jimcook24@me.com

Tears in the isle

One of our sons got married this weekend. As the beautiful bride walked down the isle to her new husband-to-be waiting for her, you could see her wiping away tears. Looking at the groom, he was teary as well. Others in the wedding party were red eyed and wiping tears away.  My wife was wiping tears away and so was I. 

I have blogged a number of times about tears. The act of tearing up is so powerful, and if the audience has empathy, tears are a virulent virus that spreads from one to another. And it is very hard to stop tears. I remember sitting at a hospital as a mother and daughter were crying and holding each other, while the father sat looking at the ceiling, breathing deep so he wouldn't succumb to the weeping.

Tears make us stop and take stock of the moment. Tears are signs of significance. They magnify meaning. They are holy.

It's not the days, it's the moments

Last Thursday my wife and I woke up with busy days spreading before us. We were unaware that my wife's 83 year old mom had been in Emergency during the night and on her way out to her car, had not seen a curb and tumbled, fracturing bones and hitting her head. It was the moment, the phone call that changed everything. It changed what was to happen that day, the days to come, the prospect of rehabilitation centers and nursing homes. 

It isn't days that change our lives. It's a misstep off a curb in the early hours of the morning that changed the direction of lives. We can fool ourselves into believing that we are masters of our fates and controllers of our destinies, but we are a step away from being exposed as a fraud.

OCD...really?

I have CDO. It's like OCD but with the letters in alphabetical order, like they're supposed to be.

A renewable energy source

Hope is a renewable energy source. Every morning when I wake up, I am given another opportunity to change, realize, love, ________ (fill in the blank).

It may be renewable, but it is up to me to decide if it is sustainable. I can wake up and start living the dream, or (more likely) I pass it on to the next day. When I stumble, when I become discouraged, I tell myself that it will be better tomorrow, and in doing so I use hope to mitigate my defeat, to let myself off the hook. 

In my life, hope may be renewable, but there comes a time when my mornings run out, and I am unable to defer my deficits.

Cheating the piper

I was talking to someone the other day who was frustrated that he wasn't able to reach his goals because of some choices that he had made. I stated that we all had to settle up our accounts in life, that we didn't get anything for free. The person agreed with me.

As I thought more about it I wondered about all of those who looked like they had gotten away with it, that they had cheated the piper. It appeared that they could make it all the way to death without having to settle accounts for the wrongs in their life.

If one believes in an afterlife, which I do, then I think scores are settled there for sure. The frustration would be that it is to late to make amends. That is what Marley's ghost was telling Scrooge in Dicken's "A Christmas Carol". Turn before it is too late. For Marley it was too late.

As I thought through the concept, I realized that the lucky ones are the ones who are able to wake up and realize the impact of their decisions while they still have the time to do things different. 

I worked with a kids many years ago who was excited that he had passed a drug test, even though he had used that week. I told him that I felt sorry for him. I saw confusion in his drug-hazed eyes. He had gotten away with it. He had cheated the odds. He was the winner! What was wrong with me.

We never ever get away with "it". I feel fortunate when I am able to see the impact of my poorer choices. It may not feel very good at the time, but it gives me the chance to make other choices and to seek redemption.

When you can't edit

I experienced one of the dangers of making comments on the internet. Once you click "accept" you give up your right to edit.

I visited a friend's caringbridge site. In my comment on the guest-book I included the word "here" instead of "hear". I clicked the "accept" button without seeing the error, and waived my right to retraction in perpetuity.

It bugged me for a minute, but I had to let it go. I couldn't change it. I had to accept that for me, being viewed as a fool was conditional. There are things I am willing to be thought a fool for.  It doesn't include my spelling ability.

Compassionate eating

This arrived in my inbox today. I stared at it in wonder as I contemplated its meaning. Okay, if I get this straight, I can devour to help another child not go hungry. Is it just me or is there a disconnect somewhere here?

One of the joys of capitalism is that businesses send out incentives to drive traffic their direction. I am not faulting Famous Dave's. They are a great restaurant, and they aren't the only one to use their products to benefit others. I have a problem with the concept of providing gifts for those who give.  Giving should be its own gift. This ad however seems to march up to the edge and JUMP over. Is this the corporate equivalent to the injunction from our parents to "Clean your plate! Don't you know there are starving children in Africa?"

"Hey waitress, could you bring another rack of ribs? Damn Buddy, have some mo'. Eat up!  We're stuffin' ourselves to feed them hungry kids so they don't have to be hungry no mo'!"

Forever mine?

On Sunday we sang the song "Amazing Grace/My Chains Are Gone. It takes the original song of Amazing Grace and tags on an additional part. It ends with the "but God who called me here below, will be forever mine...will be forever mine...you are forever mine.

In our culture, I don't know if I agree with the phrasing of that song. Can God be "mine?" Can I own Him? I wonder in this culture that needs to possess things, if it would have been better to say that "I will forever be His. He owns me if I let him. I don't think it works the other way around. I don't bring out MY God and show Him to the world. I look at where God is moving and ask to join him.

Sharin' the seed

I have a rekindled love. Pistachio nuts. I have found a variety at a local grocer that sells the nuts with 50% less sodium. I love them.

Today when I was cracking one open, my tongue traced the seed and found a divot in it. The other side of the shell was a little fuzzy. I pulled it away from my mouth and discovered a worm tucked nicely in the shell. It looked deceased. It also appears that it had filled it's belly on the green sweet meat of the nut before it expired.

I threw the offending nut away and pondered whether I would eat any more. I decided that it didn't put me off. I took out another nut shelled it and ate it. I've eaten worse.

Years ago a company that produced dried seed products was shut down because cockroach parts were found in the commodity. One of the people I talked to about it said "the product was good. Who cares if there were cockroach parts in it. We never got sick, did we?"

Signs of Fall

"Fall is in the air. You can smell it." "Look, the leaves are changing!" These are signs of Fall and most look to those indicators to herald the emergence of Fall

For me there is a much more dependable sign. I know Fall has arrived when I see my first smashed pumpkin lying on the road in pieces. I don' t know what it is about this time of year, but there must be a powerful force that activates in the heart of some to pelt a pumpkin. I mean, you don't see summer veggies carelessly flung. I don't see watermelon, apples, peas, green beans, or other produce lying in tatters on the roadway.

Today I know it's Fall because I have seen and I believe!

The 30 pound predicament

In the last six months I have lost thirty pound. I feel better, clothes fit better and my knees don't scream quite as loud when I walk up stairs. I could lose more, but I feel good about the loss I have achieved. 

I lost pounds about ten years ago. I was warned that I have Impaired Glucose Tolerance and was moving towards diabetes. That scared me enough to get me moving and I lost 30 pounds. 

I remember the day ten years ago when responding to some deep emotional pain I said "%&*S@, I don't care. I started eating carelessly and desperately. In a short amount of time I was back to where I had started, and then some. And it has stayed that way for the last ten years.

In my growing awareness of the needs of the world and looking at my own voracious consumer response, I am working to cut back on my consumption. My body is a testament for my own consumption response. Want equalled need.

At 30 pounds I have stalled again. I think it is a combination of several things. One is that it may be an indication that I have reached the outside edge of my self concept at this time. My brain is saying "this far and no further."

The other possibility is that I am spiritually obese. I have been receiving a lot of input from people I look to as mentors. I have things I want to follow, but lethargically I let the days slip by without action. Spiritually I am taking in, but I have not been exercising, spiritually speaking. 

I don't feel I am in the same place I was ten years ago. There has been healing and while I find myself meeting more of my wants than I would like, there is more control, and less insatiable need. I am in the process of assessing where I am, where I've stalled, and how to get going again.

Save me Centro!

Last night I went grocery shopping and when faced with not seeing the product my wife had asked for, I called her up. Through our conversation I was directed to the right item.

This morning I went out on a walk. A block down the street I realized I had forgotten my cell phone. My wife hadn't left yet, so my first thought was, I'll just call her and have her bring it to me on my walk as she would be driving by me.

Call...with what? 

I think I might have dependency issues!

Captured bird

Movement caught my eye up in the rafters of the Valle Hermoso Convention Center. I stared at where I had seen movement. I saw a tiny bird in the steel beams. It flew in random flight patterns around the ceiling, looking for a way back to the outside.

I felt sad that a life would end in starvation and a meaningless death. I moved my thinking to other thoughts.

There were sporadic chirps and an occasional chirp which brought my thinking back to the little bird.

The next morning it was flying into the windows on the stairs and trying to get out. But it was useless. I descended the stairs and used the bathroom.

On my way back to my sleeping pad, there were a few girls out of their sleeping room. They said they were out in the hall because there was a bird flying around their room. I got a towel and in a few minutes had trapped the frightened little animal in the towel. It's tiny black head poking out of the white terry-cloth. It's eyes stared at me. It looked terrified.

I took it downstairs, out the door and shook the towel out as a flutter of feathers headed to the sky, free to forage for food another day.

What I can (never) do

This week the Olympics have consumed our national psyche. Stories emerge about the incredible sacrifices made to get to this point. We see hard bodies that define muscles so precisely so that it wouldn't look much different if we peeled away skin. And these amazing hard bodies do amazing things. And we celebrate the winners. Very quickly those who don't place, lose their place in the story.

I was raised with two beliefs. One was that we in our family were special, that we didn't occupy ourselves with the pursuits of the common folks. Our existence was on a higher plane. The other tenant was that strong, well-muscled men were a cut above the rest. So when I see male athletes standing on the podium receiving accolades for their accomplishment, I have a tendency to feel despondent. I can feel I don’t measure up and I should. I know it isn’t rational. I know the fallacies that lurks behind that thinking. But like a riptide, it has the tendency to set me adrift for a while.

One of the things that helps me find the sand under my feet is this. The Olympics are well-defined arenas to showcase one or several athletic skills that the athletes have been honing for years. Cast in that setting, it looks pretty impressive. In fact, they are really impressive and I do not want to diminish their achievements. But we don’t know how they function after they leave the arena, what goes through their minds when no one is aware. I don’t know that they are better people because of what they have achieved on the world stage. They are simply people who have exhibited a single dimensional skill divorced from a multidimensional life.

And while their awards are well deserved, that is not a basis for the measurement of the worth of a life.

34 passenger van

There are different names for things between here and Mexico. For example, in our country, we have 15 passenger vans... except it is difficult to insure them and people are concerned about the safety of the vans. Studies have shown that 15 passenger vans are three times as likely to roll over in a crash. So we use them less and less here. And few are insuring them.

In Mexico, you can refer to what we call "15 passenger van", by a new name; the "34 passenger van". After kids camp each day, the kids waited patiently while they took their turn getting in the van. The way it worked is like this:

In the very back, there was enough room for five children to stand up between the back seat and the back doors. Then because the back seat stretched the width of the van five children could sit on the seat, which they did. Then another five children sat on their laps which equalled ten. The two middle seats could only hold four children, and with children sitting on laps, that equaled eight times two which is 16. Then there were two children sitting in the front seat and two more on an office swivel chair placed on the floorboards between the driver and the passenger seat.

Regardless of how light the spirits were inside the van, it did nothing to take the load off the springs.

They might have been able to fit another child in the driver's seat, but safety is important!