Don't Hold Your Breath

The phrase 'Don't hold your breath' as we know, refers to the fact that something is very unlikely to happen.  We shouldn't expect a certain result or we will probably be disappointed.  The truth is that holding your breath can, in extreme cases, be quite dangerous.  I know someone who as a young child, used to hold his breath when he cried.  This was a cause of constant concern for his parents.
Whenever he started to cry, they had to watch him to make sure that within a few seconds at most he would start breathing again.  Otherwise they would need to take some action to make him stop holding his breath.  Holding your breath like this could cause serious physical harm.

Breathing is something we do without even thinking.  We breathe in fresh air so that oxygen can be extracted from it by the lungs and pumped around our bodies through our blood stream.  The air is made up of many things but mainly oxygen, nitrogen and carbon dioxide.  The lungs processing this air we have just breathed in, as well as extracting the oxygen that our body needs to stay alive, also expels the unwanted carbon dioxide as we breathe out.  So, no matter what we are doing, our bodies perform the act of breathing in and out, taking in what we need and expelling what our bodies reject.  It's the same with eating.  We need to feed our bodies with energy but with everything we eat there is some waste that must be expelled in order to remain healthy.


We take into our lives so much, not only in the daily, physical bodily functions that keep us alive but in the things that we acquire.  The trouble is that we humans have a habit of hoarding stuff, 'holding our breath' as it were with material things.  Those who have moved house will know just how much we accumulate without even realising it.  Some people move into a bigger house so they can have more room to stash their accumulated stuff -  and then get more.  It would probably be cheaper to 'breathe' with our material wealth and as we take in more maybe we should get rid of stuff that we no longer need or use.  Some things might have been useful at one time but are no longer necessary.  And yet we hold on to them! 

Saddest of all though is when people hold on to negative emotions or memories.  Holding onto to such feelings can really be harmful to our spirits.  If something is no longer needed, breathe it out or you run the risk of becoming hurt and damaged.  We want to be blessed by God and often experience such blessing but at the same time seem unwilling to let go and breathe out the negative resentments, attitudes, disappointments and grudges.  Holding your breath can be harmful, physically, materially, emotionally and spiritually.  Breathe in the fresh air of God but don't forget to breathe out what you no longer need or what negatively affects your spirit.  You'll feel better for it.    

Recipe for Life

Although I have my own recipes for certain dishes and my  own way of making them, occasionally I like to look online to see just how other people make them.  The other day I was looking for a recipe for pasta carbonara and another one for curry.  We are quite happy with the results of my own way of doing them but I was curious to see if other people did things in more or less the same way.  Often we follow a recipe that has been handed down from previous generations or the way we learnt it.  We like things 'like mother used to make'!  So I wanted to see what other people did.  It seems that everyone has their own particular slant on things.  Each of the different celebrity chefs came out with their version.  I got so tired of looking at the seemingly endless list of curry recipes that in the end I just switched off the computer and went back to my own tried and tested method of always.  And we enjoyed it - as always.

So many variations on a theme!  What was evident, however is that all of the recipes for a given dish had some basic ingredients that were included in every version.  But then each one had some extra something, a vegetable, some special herb or spice or added cream to make it more luxurious (and fattening)  But the basic ingredients were in all of them.  So the question some would ask is, 'Yes, but which one is the true version?  Which is the authentic recipe?'  Well I guess that depends on your particular taste buds.  In the recipe for pasta carbonara, some wouldn't dream of making it with any pasta other than spaghetti.  The bacon has to me smoked.  Well, actually, we don't like smoked bacon so I use unsmoked bacon because that's our particular taste.  So is our version not authentic?  It is for us.

It reminds me of the fact that I can get 3 different buses to go to visit my sister, each one going a different way but all ending up at the same bus stop a few yards from my sister's house.  So which one is the right one?  All of them, of course.  You hear people saying that this or that version of the gospel is the only true version.  Their particular recipe for a Christian life is the real authentic one and anything else is a deviation.  Well, I guess if that particular way is to your taste then maybe it is - for you.  The Bible says, 'Taste and see that the Lord is good'.  So if I don't feel comfortable with a particular way of expressing my faith then maybe it isn't good for me and I need to look for what corresponds to my taste.  Some people like it quiet and organised while others like it happy clappy and noisy.  Ahh! but which is the true version?  Well, as we said it depends on your taste - and often depends on what you have been taught from childhood and learned from previous generations.  Sometimes you're happier with what you;re used to and don't want a new or different version.


Having looked at a number of different faiths lately, including those of Buddhism, Sikh, Unitarian Universalism, Baha'i, Muslim, Jew, Pagan, I have discovered that there are certain basic 'ingredients' found in all of them.  They all seek to worship a Supreme Being.  Many of them accept and follow the teaching of Jesus.  They all acknowledge the need to fight injustice and help the poor and broken, seeking to make life better for humanity and caring for the planet, the world that God has given us as our home.  Most people follow the religion that they have grown up with.  We look to, admire and accept people of other faiths, often quoting their words of wisdom like Confucius, Gandhi, the Dalai Lama among others.  Their recipe for life depends much on geography and their cultural background.  Who am I to say that my recipe is the only true, authentic one?  It is for me but might not be for someone from a different background and upbringing.  There are so many different recipes, different ways to the same end goal.  I have come to accept that you have to find the one that is right for you even though it might not be right for everyone.  

The 3 Ls

Our beautiful magnolia tree with many buds still to open.

We have a rather large evergreen magnolia tree in our garden.  It was getting bigger than we really wanted so after the end of last winter, in early spring, my son pruned it back a bit.  They say that you shouldn't prune it too vigorously all at once but stage the pruning out over a few years.  So that's what we (he) did.  Last year we had a few flowers but this year, since pruning, the tree has produced no end of flowers and continues with more buds well into late summer and the beginning of autumn.  Yes according to the calendar we are nearing autumn.   

Clearing away some of the lawn to plant more produce

As now in the garden there are only  a few bulbs of garlic and the blackberries left to pick, I am beginning to think about next year and planning where I want to put what.  I have decided to get rid of a little bit more of the (quite large) lawn and move some of the strawberry plants in order to make room for more vegetables higher up the garden.  It seems that every year I'm learning new things about what grows best where in the garden.  Things I haven't had much success with then I have to admit defeat in that area and let them go while turning my hand to something else instead, something that will give us some fruit or vegetables.  I'm only an amateur gardener but I do enjoy my garden and am happiest when I can potter around it.  Basically I learn by trying, sometimes failing and discovering through experience what works where and what doesn't.  I am also aware that although I still manage to do about 1-2 hours gardening at a time, it might not be too long before these old bones won't let me do even that.  So each year I re-assess and plan for next year. 

The first signs of fruit on the fig tree.

Happily this year I have seen signs that our fig tree, bought from being a young sapling a few years ago, will indeed next year actually give us some fruit.  It has obviously matured enough now to produce the much awaited fruit.  There are small bud-like figs just appearing and this means that although they won't mature and ripen enough to eat this year, they will survive the winter, as long as they are covered and protected from any frost and continue to grow and ripen next year.  Here's hoping!  I just love fresh figs.  When I look at the fig tree I often think of the story of Jesus when he cursed the fig tree.  Knowing that small fig 'buds' usually appear during the autumn and ripen the following year, maybe Jesus knowing this saw that that particular tree had no signs of producing fruit and if it was a mature tree then he would know that it was indeed dying.  We tend to think of that story as Jesus condemning that tree to die, almost in anger but I like to think more that actually he was pointing out that it was a tree that wasn't giving any fruit, it wasn't fulfilling its purpose and would surely die.

 Sometimes we have to take a look at our lives.  There is a danger that our lives get so full of busy-ness that we leave too little space to actually flourish.  Maybe there are some things that need to be pruned back, cut out in order to open up into greater splendour.  Maybe we need to re-think what we're doing and if it's having the results we are looking for and maybe change direction somewhat, leaving some things altogether and learning new ways of growing and giving fruit.  We are all different and produce different fruit and need different types of soil in which to grow, having a variety of end results if we're nurtured and grown according to our individual purpose.  My garden preaches many sermons to me if I have the eyes to see and the ears to hear what creation is saying.  The 3 Ls - Look, Listen and Learn.

Being Jesus

This week I have finished reading another of Jim Palmer's books - Being Jesus in Nashville.  In it he sets out trying to find out what it would be like living in his home town of Nashville daily submitting to the now well-known phrase 'What Would Jesus Do?' WWJD?  Originally he thought that maybe he should start some project or plan to do something special.  When he studied the life of Jesus though he discovered that Jesus didn't set out to implement some plan but just went about his day-to-day living.  He got a bunch of friends to hang out and travel with and helped people he encountered along the way.  So instead of setting up some sort of help group Jim decided to just carry on as normal but always with the WWJD thought in mind.


He used to frequent a particular coffee shop and through regular visits there met a young woman who introduced herself as someone who had been involved with the media and had made a film about homelessness.  Jim was intrigued.  They chatted regularly when they were at the coffee shop.  Jim had for a long time been involved in helping the homeless, helping out at the shelter and donating money.  It was a cause close to his heart.  So it was a surprise when one day his friend revealed that she was homeless.  She went to the coffee shop so that she could use their free wi-fi.  That was her office.  The owner knew her and made sure that she had at least one meal every day.  Jim was a little taken aback as he had in his mind certain ideas about homeless people, what they were like and why they were homeless.  And suddenly here was this woman with whom he had struck up a friendship and she didn't fit into any of the ideas that he had about homeless people.  She still worked within the media setup but did not earn enough to cover a rent and pay for all the utilities, as happens in many countries without any sort of welfare system.  So here she was, a working but homeless young woman.


One day she offered to buy Jim a coffee.  At first his reaction was 'no way'.  How could he accept even such a small gift from someone who was homeless?  Should it not be the other way around - him buying her a coffee?  She insisted that she really wanted to buy him a coffee as a friend.  She then went on to explain that what a homeless person wants most of all is friendship, to feel accepted and not judged, seen as part of the human race and not some 'outsider' who is excluded from ordinary life.  She wanted to have that feeling of self worth being able to carry out the simple gesture of buying a friend a coffee  It's good that people give money or volunteer at a shelter for the homeless or help by giving a meal to a hungry soul but what they crave is real friendship.  People help but at a distance.  It was then that WWJD came to Jim's mind.  Jesus got involved with people.  He spent time with them, talked to them, where they were.  And so Jim realised that being Jesus in Nashville was not so much about helping out (although that is also necessary) as being a friend.


For most of us, I guess, the way we help is by giving money or being involved in some project.  Sadly when this is done through a religious setup it usually involves trying to convert people and getting them to join whatever religious group is carrying out the project. It's almost used as some outreach programme to get people in.  And many are left feeling that out of a sense of gratitude that maybe they should.   What would Jesus do?  Well I don't read anywhere that he insisted that anyone he helped should tag along to their nightly study group or join with them on their journeys.  More often that not he told them to go back home and remember their encounter and what he said and did.  He saw their real need and met it without any obligation on the recipient.  He was being a real friend when they were in trouble.  It's good to give money and get involved in some charitable work.  This is greatly needed in the world we live in.  It seems though that being Jesus in ... (wherever you happen to be) is not about money so much as it is about making someone feel wanted and included, learning about them as people and not just 'some needy soul'.  It's about giving them a sense of value as a human being and self worth.  It's being alongside them and not just about hand outs.  'What a friend we have in Jesus.'  Being Jesus - being a friend.

What a Life!

Ben Fogle in Laos

I am currently enjoying the miniseries on television with Ben Fogle - New Lives in the Wild (Mondays channel 5  at 9 pm - UK)  He visits people who have opted out of the rat race and spends a week with them discovering just why they do what they do and have decided to live where they live.  The first one in the current series was about a 31 year old former financier from London who one day decided that there was more to life than work and the financial world he lived in.  He was searching for a place where he could be happy.  He bought a one-way ticket and set out for Asia.  He eventually settled in a hand made bamboo hut on a hidden jungle island on the Mekong river, Laos.  He lives like all the other people there and is accepted as one of them. 


Another 61 year old woman from Europe has lived alone for the past 8 years (since her husband died) in a part of the remote outback in Australia caring for the wildlife surrounding her home and a herd of wild horses who come to her when she calls them.  She also was looking for something more than what money can buy.

I saw somewhere this week the words - Making a Living or Making a Life.  Sometimes they are the same thing but more often than not there is a big gap between the two phrases.  Of course we need to work in order to have the things that we need.  Most people work at ordinary jobs so they can enjoy a form of reasonable life.  There our times when our lives seem to be governed by money - paying for this or that essential. (or what we in 21st century Britain accept as essential for life).  Do I buy because I need something or because it's the latest in thing, a 'must have' in order to have some sort of acceptance in society (if that is important to us)?


The thing is that in time most people come to realise that all the stuff that money buys us may make us comfortable but often there is still a space deep down, yearning for real happiness.  The things money can buy are of this world and this life and  have to stay here when we leave this life.  We cannot take them with us.  We have to leave them behind.  So why do we do it?  Why do we work ourselves to the bone so we can have more money to buy more stuff?  If that is your dream and it really makes you happy, fair enough.  But as the Beatles used to sing, 'Can't buy me love'.  You can buy diamond rings or flashy cars or dine out to impress but they don't guarantee love.  You can't buy peace.  You can't buy a happy homelife.  You can't buy acceptance or understanding.  I'm sure you could add more to the list.  So what do we do?  We need to make a living  to a certain extent but do we need to do it at the expense of making a life with things that money can't buy?  




I am reminded of something Banksy shared on Twitter (picture right)


I think that's a good note to end on and leave us thinking about our lives and what are the important things for us.