Born to be Christian?

Whatever any personal view on the war in Afghanistan or the unrest in the Arab world, I find it disturbing, to say the least, the amount of killing that goes on in the name of God/Allah/Yahweh. It cannot be denied that religious wars have caused much suffering throughout the history of the world.

In no way do I condone any sort of terrorism or fanatical extreme views, of whichever side and I certainly don't agree with many practices of some religions, particularly when it comes to the treatment of women as second class citizens who are looked upon simply as possessions of the male population to do with whatever they please. But so do I oppose the outright hatred and intolerance shown by some sections of a 'Christian' population to anything other than Christianity. Some say we should 'give them a taste of what they do to others' but that just makes us the same as they are. It doesn't solve the problem.

 

 

Today I couldn't help thinking, 'what if I hadn't been born into a Christian home in England?' 'What if I had been brought up in a sincere Muslim family somewhere in the Middle East or if I had been influenced by a Hindu or Buddhist family life in Asia?' I know that as a child, I was taught the truths of the Christian Bible and taken to Sunday School and encouraged to spend my life for God according to Christian ways and beliefs. I'm sure that living and being brought up in such an environment has shaped me into who I am today, although I do appreciate that at least in this country I am free to change my ways, beliefs and allegiance if I wish. But I am equally sure that if I had been born into a Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist or any other religious way of life, I would probably at this moment be trying to live the best I can according to such teaching.

So am I a Christian because of accident of birth - that I just happened to be born in England of Christian parents? Maybe, maybe not! But it certainly makes me feel that I should be looking beyond face value of ordinary people who follow other religions. Maybe they are just doing the best they can to be the best they can and be faithful to what they believe is true. And maybe they are not as free as I am to change their point of view if they want to, without any real repercussions. God loves all of His creation, whatever our understanding of Him - and as a true follower of Him, so must I.

Dependent

I'm sure we've all had one of those moments when something isn't right and we suddenly feel 'Now what do I do?' Yesterday I had one of those moments. I had switched on my PC and then as usual moved the mouse to click on the internet access but nothing happened. I wiggled the mouse, moved it about and clicked, moved it again and clicked ... ... but all to no avail. Agh! Now what do I do? There is that moment when panic sets in before we start to think rationally about how to go about sorting out the problem. It is a cordless mouse and so I tried replacing the batteries with new ones. Nothing happened. I plugged in the old cabled mouse ... nothing happened. Oh no! What is wrong? I took out the batteries and put them in again but nothing. I was just sitting thinking and wondering what to try next when there was a small flicker of a green light on the mouse. It was back. What a relief!

I know it sounds silly now looking back but it made me realise just how much we come to depend on machines. In that moment it seemed that my whole life revolved around a small gadget worth a few pounds. It's true that now-a-days I do so much on the computer - shopping, banking as well as keeping in touch with people, keeping records and accounts and finding out information. Life without it of course is possible but a bit more inconvenient and quite time-consuming. Even if you have a very expensive computer, without a mouse you can't really do much. That is unless you're not dependent on the old fashioned type like me but have a lap top or pad or smart phone. Maybe the problem really is that I'm just a bit behind the times?!

Computer of the future.

 

The Elephant Whisperer

Yesterday I received an email from my sister, telling me the amzing story of a man who rescued elephants and how they showed their love and respect for him when he died.  His books can be purchased online through a very well-known supplier.

Lawrence Anthony, a legend in South Africa and author of 3 books including the bestseller The Elephant Whispererbravely rescued wildlife and rehabilitated elephants all over the globe from human atrocities, including the courageous rescue of Baghdad Zoo animals during US invasion in 2003 On March 7, 2012 Lawrence Anthony died. He is remembered and missed by his wife, 2 sons, 2 grandsons & numerous elephants. Two days after his passing, the wild elephants showed up at his home led by two large matriarchs.  Separate wild herds arrived in droves to say goodbye to their beloved man-friend.

A total of 31 elephants had patiently walked over 12 miles to get to his South African House.  Witnessing this spectacle, humans were obviously in awe not only because of the supreme intelligence and precise timing that these elephants sensed about Lawrence 's passing, but also because of the profound memory and emotion the beloved animals evoked in such an organized way:  Walking slowly for days Making their way in a solemn one-by-one queue from their habitat to his house. Lawrence's wife, Francoise, was especially touched, knowing that the elephants had not been to his house prior to that day for well over 3 years! But yet they knew where they were going.  The elephants obviously wanted to pay their deep respects, honouring their friend who'd saved their lives - so much respect that they stayed for 2 days 2 nights without eating anything. Then one morning, they left, making their long journey back home............  A truly amazing story

End of a Season

A weatherforecaster this morning said that because of the lower temperatures it could be said that summer is now over. I can't say that it ever came, never mind went! But that aside it seems to have been a week of endings. The week started with the sound of trees being sawed. Looking out over the back garden we could see that the garden adjoining our next door neighbour was having work done on the huge trees that were near the fence.

The very large trees are at the back left of the photo

 

It took 2 whole days but the result was that the trees were no longer. Their shadow didn't affect us but I'm sure that the owner of the now visible house was glad to see them go and so be able to let some light into their over-shadowed garden.

Instead of trees, a now visible house

Yesterday it was last day for a particular Radio 1 presenter doing his long lasting show. Today a short slot called Odd Box on the BBC News channel came to an end after a number of years. And yesterday I received a letter from the supermarket that I do online shopping with, that their card system is changing and so I would not be able to continue using my present store credit card to do my shopping. I was assured that this was in my best interest and I could continue shopping with them as before. If I wanted to do this then I would need to apply for their new card. This would cost me an administration fee of £3. Somehow their changing system costing me money to continue doing what I have been doing doesn't seem to be in my best interest! (no matter small the amount). So now I am rethinking and have decided to do my online shopping with another supermarket whose store card I also have.

The birds that frequented the tall trees will, this winter, have to find another place to roost in safety and build their nests in the spring (maybe finally some might check out our bird boxes!) and I have to register for online shopping at the 'other' supermarket. Life is always changing and sometimes it takes us by surprise and we need to stop and rethink things through, take stock of where we are and which way we want to continue. I was reminded of the words of St Teresa when she said 'all things are passing ...' and I was comforted by the rest of that sentence '... ... God never changes.' Even when life continually changes and sometimes we change direction and need to re-assess situations, the one constant is God!

Paso a Paso

El repórter estaba hablando con el paralímpico irlandes Jason Smyth. Había terminado su carrera en 10.2 segundos para ganar la medalla de oro. Le preguntó si ahora lo iba tratar a hacer en menos de 10 segundos. Su repuesta fue rápida y definitiva - 'NO'. '¿Porqué no?' preguntó el repórter un poco asombrado. El atleta continuó a explicar porque pensó que eso no era una sugerencia realista, no porque no lo podría hacer eventualmente sino porque él pensó que la forma mejor de llegar a una meta es de a poco - un paso a la vez.

Jason Smyth

 

Para llegar a los 10.2 segundos llevó mucho trabajo y esfuerzo de entrenar. Dijo que para llegar a 10.1 segundos llevaría aún más trabajo y esfuerzo y eso sería su primer objetivo. Cuando ya lo había hecho eso entonces trataría de hacerlo en 10 segundos. Si llegara a ser posible a hacer eso entonces pensaría en tratar a correr en menos de 10 segundos. Su forma de pensar era que si trataba de lograr de hacerlo en menos de 10 segundos ahora, probablemente pensaría que no fuera posible y entonces cada vez que faltaba se creería como un fracazo y eso no le ayudaría en su actitud mental para llegar a su meta. Me parecía palabras muy sabias.

Se dice amenudo que para llegar a una meta lejana deberíamos dividir el proceso en pasos más pequeños. Cada vez que llegamos a un nivel con éxito nos estimula para seguir hasta el próximo nivel y luego el que sigue y así sucesivamente hasta que lleguemos a un punto donde podemos ver el objetivo deseado en nuestra vista, que ahora sí parece posible. Hay una canción que dice 'un día a la vez' y me parece que eso es el secreto. Algunas cosas es cierto parecen muy lejos y fuera de nuestro alcanze que sean los estudios, deporte, carrera, proyecto o cualquier otra cosa que quisiéramos hacer pero al dividirlo en pasos más pequeños y alcanzables, ¿quién sabe a que altura podremos alcanzar o que objetivo podremos lograr?

Step by Step

The reporter was interviewing the Irish Paralympian Jason Smyth. He had run his race in 10.2 seconds to gain his gold medal, a great achievement whether paralympian or not. He was asked if now he was going to try to achieve a goal of under 10 seconds. His reply was quick and definite - 'NO'. 'Why not?' asked the reporter a little surprised. The athlete then went on to explain why he thought that such a suggestion was unrealistic, not because he couldn't do it eventually but that he found the best way to achieve a goal was a little at a time - step by step.


 

 

 

Jason Smyth

To achieve even 10.2 seconds took a lot of hard work, training and effort. He said that with more hard work and effort his first goal would be 10.1 seconds and when he had done that, then he would try for 10 seconds. If that was achievable then he would think about under 10 seconds. His reasoning was that if he tried immediately to go for the ultimate goal, then he would probably feel that it was out of reach and any shortcoming would be felt as failure and this would not be helpful in his attitude to achieve his goal. Very wise words, I thought.

We are often told that in order to achieve a far-off goal, we should break the process down into small steps. Each time we reach the next step, we are spurred on to reach the following step, then the one after that and so on until we are within sight of reaching our desired goal. A now 'old' Christian song has the words 'step by step we're moving forwards, little by little gaining ground.' Another spiritual song says 'one day at a time' and I guess that is the secret. Some things do seem a very long way away and impossible to achieve whether that be in sport, studies, gaining a desired weight loss or reaching some other destination or goal. If we can break it down into smaller, more achievable steps, who knows what heights we can reach and what goals we can attain?

I saw this picture and thought of all my very 'crafty' friends!