A Warm Wind

 I was headed to see mom on a hot Thursday morning . No a/c on the truck so I decided to go early , the back way, my favorite. The road less traveled is the story of my life in many ways.That's why I drive an 88 Ford Ranger 4x4. "It don't get to rough " for and old stump jumper.
 I remembered that I had to get my mechanic to look at the  truck so he could order the air conditioner , so I want burn up and make the Multiple Sclerosis worse. (M.S. is an autoimmune disease caused by your body attacking the mylein sheathe that protects your  nerves ,like an electric chord that has brittle insulation. It causes lesions on your nerves , I got three they say one on my brain , one on my spine and one on my optic nerve. It causes heat sensitivity , my neurologist says "don't go outside it's too hot".)There's also Photo sensitivity bright sun and lights can make the M.S. worse and the most challenging thing is exhaustion 70% of all "M.Sers" are exhausted much of the time for no reason. However, I'm very blessed that I have relapsing remitting M.S., it's not progressive, I won't end up in a wheelchair.
 Anyway ,as I turned the truck around I was thinking about my 3 year old granboy. He can go to pre K next year but I think he can learn more and build stronger family ties by hanging with Pop (me) and his " Pop paw" and "Me Me".Which is what I did . It occurred to me how I haven't taught him about nature like I did  with my kids because I can't "stand the heat and exhaustion " of the outdoors any more . At that very moment I saw a flash of red followed by blue go through the air in front of me, a sparrow hawk chasing a cardinal. The smallest of the  hawks lost and turned back when the cardinal made it to a pine thicket. I think God uses these moments to maybe punctuate a thought so I went down the that "rabbit trail" for a few miles.
 I don't have a radio .I call my truck the truck of praise and prayer, what else is there if we get the electronics out of our faces and ears? We messed up when we took the cord off the phone , you really can't get away. About that time my phone rang, not really( lol ). We talked in Men's group last Sunday about fear. We're all afraid of something that we're afraid to tell . So we insulate ourselves with electronics instead of dealing with it . The fear a.k.a longing depression ect. Is like the hawk and we're the red bird .
  Strangely enough today, again I saw a hawk after a redbird just as  I went out with my coffee (yes I go out with my coffee we've had a tumultuous relationship for 35 plus years she calls me every morning, she keeps me up  at night sometimes!). There was a gaggle of crows carrying on because of the hawk ,I guess . It occurred to me , I wish we were like the crows . When there's danger they call to one another and they stay in groups too. Folks like me it would seem , in time of personal danger or struggle run and hide and keep quiet.
  Maybe that's why it's open season on crows, they 're one of the smartest birds and there's tons of them cause they warn each other and share their fears.   I'm reminded of three simple rules that we taught to kids when I was an elementary teacher about talking to or going with a stranger and avoiding a abuse : say no, get away, and tell someone. As an adult I still haven't learned that. When a fear or doubt comes up: say no , get away ,and tell someone, so they can say no, get away, and tell someone .........be encouraged in the Lord. 

Heat

 Too hot to mow no place to go thats not too hot. But, I got a/c and water and this keyboard , plenty to eat , a faithful maltese at my feet , the forever word , a beautiful savior ! a quiet blue house ..... But , I gotta mow 2 acres and it is hot ....so ill leave this keyybored, ive already eaten, my dog has gas( i gotta take him to the vet before he is buried by mistake!),ive read and prayed, so I ll swim in my above ground crystal oasis and get on my zero turn grass eatter wearing my wet  bue dragon bathing suit , particle mask, goggles and my big 75 dollar guaranteed for life hat my big brother gave . I go round and round and round , cause Im the kind of guy that likes to travel round , why did I wait till 1045?

"Weakend"

  "We're all afraid of something and we're afraid to admit it", I heard this line from a movie this week and it is something I've been thinking about...for some reason and it was a theme that came up in Men's group. Mike and I talked about being Warriors in stead of Worriers, there's only one letter difference but it can make all the difference. I want to " Warry " aka -trust , pray and meditate on the Faith of God. Not my Faith , I don't make Faith ,He does!
  Also, my grandboy  Landry , called to tell me that they took his dog to get a haircut and "She's not itching anymore Pop!" That puts life in perspective , getting joy from little things.We can celebrate and include our Father in everything the big and the small because even our small things are big to him! 

  I was thinking weakend b/c I had an M.S. exhaustion thing going till Saturday morning. I rallied  mowed grass Sat. morning and watched Cubs v Cards baseball till Suz and Baby came home from Savannah.
  J, Baby and I went to the Pastime theatre to watch Cameron , Adeline and Paige Lynch Band. It was great , we couldn't believe the crowd was so small. J was very impressed by Lynch bass player. I enjoyed the energy of Adeline and the not unDave Mattew,slike  acoustic guitar of Lynch and the tasteful lead licks of Tyson Pate.
   We were studying the 3rd chapter of proverbs in Sunday morning men's group we had a new member and discussed "the kid" in us that we all battle . The part that hangs on from childhood that says you're smaller , less able , not good enough ect. The lack of self (which we should be deny anyway!) esteem as apposed to the esteem we should feed off from the creator. Which is inherent from the time we get saved until forever!
   After church I invited David's bunch over , (which Suz wasn't planning on) so we came home and frantically cleaned and straightened and I put on burgers on the grill and had them cooked by the time they arrived. They brought a bunch of stff to eat  . We had 13 folks in all I think. David and I swam ,everyone visited ,ate burgers,beans,and brownies and ice cream .J and Reg strummed some too. It was a cool way to spend a hot day. And I hate wasting a Sunday on napping, which I probably would have done if left to my own devices.
  Later,after David's left, J and Reg went and played tennis and Baby and Ed went biking and discovered the Joy of coasting! Susan and I watched the "Answer Man" . A story about a guy who writes "Me and God "a fictional story of how God answered all his questions . But , he actually made it up ! And he has no real relationship to God. There are alot of cool spiritual applications.Then we hit "the cloud " and snoozed!
     

Summer Rain

 
 Yesterday while I was watching my grandboy sleep, I heard the door open and close , my daughter came in and said," That's my favorite smell!"
"What smell ?" I asked.
"The smell of summer rain," she answered.
" I believe your over the migraine," I offered .
" Yes!" she sighed with relief.
" You want to go to Florence with me , ?" She inquired , without much hope in my answer.
" No , I better get back." I answered, wishing I felt like it. After the hour drive over to help with my Landry I didn't look forward to the lonesome drive back, even though it was , a beautiful unseasonably cool August afternoon.
We said our goodbyes , the Ranger fired up and with the cool breeze coming through both windows I headed down the driveway. Looking at my watch ,I thought about the hour and a half I had to spare even after subtracting the hour drive . J's game didn't start till 8;30. I made an unplanned stop at the 7-11 and reluctantly used the bathroom , it was less than clean , so I decided to pass on sitting on a wet lid , I rode down the street to Jack's thinking I 'd try their facilities , grab a 2.99 Big Jack Special , and burn a little time reading the paper. The lid wasn't much better but "duty" called and I answered anyway.
The place was not busy and I was soon chewing and absently skimming the local fish wrapper when I saw an article that surprisingly drew me in to an otherwise dreary string of columns. It was written by a young looking kid under the heading " 40 Years Ago. " A local home had been burglarized by a couple "from California and Chicago " his neighbor had noticed movement in the home. Knowing the house should have been empty because they were on vacation he call the police and went to investigate. The husband of the burgling couple came out holding a crowbar, the neighbor ran. The thief ran to his panel body truck , leaving his wife and 11 month old baby inside. He took off just as the police arrived . They gave chase he headed done a railroad track , after a short bumpy trip he stopped the truck an ran into the woods. He was captured 24 hours later. The wife was arrested and sadly their baby son was put in foster care. When the police opened the back of the panel body truck they found a dog and an 18 inch pet alligator. Pretty good nonfiction for a little town in early 70s Alabama!
It reminded me of an un finished story I had written last year about my little hometown :
“Teach yourself to think dang it ,” our teacher Alf snapped in his former navy MP voice.” If you can teach yourself to think and read and comprehend you can learn any blame thing you want!” Drawing a bead on me with those pearcing coal eyes thru military issue black framed glasses.
 Drawnout answers. And his introspective bright eyes under his greasy CAT hat were as out of place as the hopped up 400 Rocket 88 Oldsmobile Motor he’d squeezed under the hood of his baby blue Chevy Luv truck that sat right outside the window of Ralph’s vocational class. And as usual the hood was up waiting for Duh’s loving touch.
Duh “was a Crim “ , a distant cousin of mine . We shared a common ancestor Readus Crim who beaten and flat broke had walked every step from Appomattox VA to GA in 1865 , living on stolen corn , Chickens and an unknown number of house cats ,( including one that looked remarkably like his own Frisky) he sounded as resourceful as Duh. When He eventually arrived back at his GA farm he was met at the door by his wife Clora proudly holding his fat cat and an even fatter roll of now worthless Confederate script ,she had refused repeatedly to cash -back when it was worth 2 bits on the dollar. His beloved wife alternately hugged ,kissed and rattled on and on about taking care of both of the “kitties” all this under the watchful eye of his “new”5 yr old baby girl Era who didn’t know who he was and wouldn‘t speak to him. When Riley finally interjected weakly , “ Baby please get that sickening cat and worthless cash out of my sight , if I don’t lay down I’m gonna fall down.”
Anyway , Duh’s family lived just down the road from my Pop. Odie ,his dad and the rest of his boys always loved fooling with cars and , had never owned one that they could part with the evidence of which lined the road in front of, and all round their doublewide like a castle wall covered in ivy except it wasn't ivy it was kudzu .And out back was Burley their one armed Monkey named after and old man who always did the 25 dollar drawing and spread the corn meal to start the Legion hall dance every Saturday night .The dance spirits were supplied by Oddie’s neighbor lady who bootlegged out of her wheel chair . She actually had a failsafe system because the law were all men and she only made transactions in the ladies room. Besides where would they put her if she was arrested? The jail wouldn’t be handicap accessible for another 20 years. But ’panty hose legger and her spirit or bribes could have and probably were easily accessible to the law and that would explain her “lawful status”.
All these thoughts steamed through my brain like a shooting star when I saw Duh some 30 years later at his cousin’s (and my old classmates) funeral “You know that little ride James and I took the other week sure seems a lot more important than it did at the time, he seemed to just want to talk.” Duh thought out loud.
“ Its weird how how quick little stuff can get big in a hurry.” I offered, and after a pause “I hate to even think about this loss to his kids , thank God for their granny. “ I added.
  James was only 35 when he and his wife had hit that tree leaving an 8 and a 10 year old to be raised by his mom . For some reason I pondered my death for a while in Jack's before I headed home.