Those who are not in families might disagree, but the facts are, those without families are out of place and feel out of place, often, because of it. Young women who feel out of place in their own families often marry early in life, in an attempt to find the feeling of being in a family.
We get a family by being born into a family. Those who were not born to a family may not agree, but the facts are, those not born into a family often are also feeling out of place and have great difficulty, often, in making wise social decisions.
Family should be the foundation of every life, whether the sad facts of our existence allow that it actually is, or not. It should be.
The orphan, widow, or divorcee is never the goal. Parents and spouses make family. Good parents and good spouses make good family.
And family should be the foundation, and not just a very fine thread that barely holds its members together.
And the one thing that separates families probably as much as, or more than, any other one thing is: entrapment.
Entrapment? What?
Yeah.
You’re not entrapped?
Think again.
We are entrapped by the TV, by games, by workaholism, by imagined standards, by debt, by promises, and by many other controlling factors.
Some entrapments, we never meant to get into, but they slowly encircled us.
Others we judged necessary and entered cautiously.
Family watching television, c. 1958 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
And some, we flew into, headlong, with great delight. And if we notice the entrapment in them, and the way they divide our family, we scratch our heads or shrug, but make no effort to escape. Oh, we do many of them, each at the same time, so we call it family time . . .
Those last ones, the ones we love and shrug about, are the ones I want us to consider.
You see, the word entertain actually mean entrap. Yes, entertainment is entrapment.
Games, movies, music, fantasy, novels–they trap us like sticky traps and we wallow in them as if they were the most important things of life, until we are totally bound up and unable to escape.
If you cannot go 21 days without some entertainment, I’d say your are entrapped.
I was reading a blog site where the commenters are allowed to make attacks. The author of the site feels it makes livelier discussion. She has one commenter who is hateful and who said, “REBORN Christians are the dumbest kind of Christian.” I chuckled and could not wait to read the answer farther down the page.
I kept reading, hoping someone would get to it. No one ever did.
Not wanting to hijack her site, I’ve come over here to get a few things straight.
Reborn Christians are the ONLY Christians. Get that? Don’t we have it from the mouth of the Christ, Himself, that we must be reborn? Am I missing something here?
The word “Christian” means “follower of Christ” or “believer in Christ”. Someone who has no idea what Christ taught could hardly claim to be a Christian. He might be a believer, saved, and even born again, but tell me, what does the word “Christian” mean? — “Follower of Christ.”
Sighs.
Dead Sea Scroll – part of Isaiah Scroll (Isa 57:17 – 59:9), 1QIsa b (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
There were hateful things said about the Bible, too. (Imagine denigrating the Koran!)
All the old-fashioned objections to the Bible were obliterated when they found the Dead Sea Scrolls. Although these scrolls were the most astounding and faith-building archaeological find EVER, the fact of this find was carefully hidden from the public.
Why?
Because they decimated all the old-fashioned arguments against the veracity of the Word.
What was it about them, you ask?
Well, these scrolls were merely ancient, ancient copies of the Bible and had been hidden from enemies for centuries, sealed in jars in caves. What
Qumran in the West Bank, Middle East. In this cave the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
they found was that while these hand-made copies were hiding, the act of copying was continuing to this day, and, lo and behold, there were hardly any discrepancies!
Only one-tenth percent was different.
If we realize how carefully the copyists made sure they copied it right, we would realize how seriously they believed in the absolute importance of getting this right.
For instance, they could not even be considered for the copying job unless they could recite the entirety of the Holy Writ, WITHOUT MISTAKE. A boy began memorizingas soon as possible and worked a large portion of his life to EARN the privilege of being a copyist. Then, once a section was completed, it was read by others who also had it all memorized both ways. It was read both ways to find mistakes. If one mistake was found, it was thrown away.
Period.
They cared a LOT more than the villains who throw up complaints in blog comments, misspelled and full of typos.
And as for objections to retranslation, from time to time, the very argument that so many bring up, that word meanings change, is the very reason we MUST redo the work from time to time.
Whew.
Furthermore–King James did not translate: He hired the most brilliant verbal thinkers of his day to do the work. A very large team of brilliance, some experts in ancient Greek or Hebrew, others experts in the current usage of English. And considering the fact that until then, similar villains would kill anyone who tried to give the English-speaking public a copy of the Word in their own language, this was a huge GIFT.
NOT something to be spit upon.
It is true that the Word is alive and active. It breathes and acts. It speaks. It’s a little like the mystery of holding a conch to the ear and hearing the entire ocean from which it came. The Word contains, indeed, in a way, it IS, the God from which it came. It embodies Him in a unique way, noticed not only by us, but also by the writers of it, when they said it is living and active and able to separate a person’s motives from what he THINKS his motives are. I love that about it. I can read along, thinking I am so sweet and good, and then bang. Right between the eyes. I’m human again. Yay God!
Okay. Now. The Ark. Villains attack the Ark, too.
Noah did not have to gather the animals. The Word says God brought them to him.
He did not bring two of every variety, just two of every kind. Two dogs, period. Two cats, period. We must remember the gene pool was much better back then. MUCH better.
The Word does not say they were adult versions. Very young animals would not have exhibited animosity, as we see from stories of kittens and puppies that grow up together. Also, they would not have needed as much food or litter, nor taken up as much space, nor given off as much stench, and likely would not have feared water nor grown seasick, nor gotten pregnant. Also, they would have slept more.
If we WANT to believe, it is simple to see how it could be done.
Also, go figure: The thing was huge. Like a football field.
There was more I wanted to say, but my eyes are getting bleary. Go to my posts on this topic that begin here.
Do you ever encounter non-Christians in sheep’s clothing? How do you deal with them?
You get your children placed, against your will, in a public school.
You get threatened with jail and permanent removal of your children from your care, if you do anything about it.
IN GERMANY
Sound familiar?
“The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was drafted in direct response to what happened in Nazi Germany. It recognizes that parents have a prior right over the government to decide how children are educated. That’s because German Nazis took over the country’s educational system and used it as a weapon of social dominion.”
Once, long ago, my adorable grandchildren spent a week with me while their mother steam cleaned carpets throughout their house.
I had many plans for fun activities and the first day went marvelously.
Until bedtime.
At bedtime, one of my sweeties began noticing the unfamiliarity of everything, and how Mom and Dad were at home, where she was beginning to long to be, also.
In other words, at the most contemplative time for most children, my granddaughter grew homesick.
She was serious about it, too, complete with tears.
After a short conference with Granddad, I offered her to call home. She was eager, and visited with Mom and Dad for a bit. We assured them we would try to make staying with us work but would call before we came if it didn’t.
At that time, the ball was back in my court.
I thought about times I’d had a tough decision to make. This was a tough decision for a little one: Do I want fun with Grandmother or do I want my mommy?
My tough decision days are mostly over, but I remember them. I know we second-guess ourselves into a state of shock sometimes, because I’ve been there. I also know it’s not too hard to hurdle indecision and arrive at a good choice.
Here’s what I told my granddaughter that night, that made her decide immediately and happily for the right thing:
Sweetheart, whenever Grandmother has to choose what to do, I think about what will happen if I do each choice. I think about how I will feel about it after the choice.
For you, the choice is to stay here with brother and sister and have fun with us, lots of rides, special treats, places to go, making cookies, and many other fun things. OR you can go home right now; I will take you and you can be with Mom and Dad in your own home and in your own bed.
Mohov Mihail. Grandmother and granddaughter (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
She listened intently and I could tell she was liking what I said, as if it was lining up her tortuous thoughts for her, in itself a great help. I continued:
If I take you home, though, you will stay home the whole week. I will not come back and get you again, if you change your mind again. You’ll just be at home.
Nothing fun is happening at home. Daddy is going to work every day and Mom is spending all the time you are gone, with house cleaning. It’s hard work and she will not have time to play with you. In fact, she probably will ask you to help with all that work.
If you decide to stay tonight and play with us tomorrow, and if you still don’t like it then, I will take you home, to spend the rest of the time working with Mom.
But if you decide to stay until tomorrow, we will make beanbags, sample the apple juice popsicles we made today, bake cookies, and barbecue for supper.
I saw her tense up again, which told me I was describing the entire dilemma accurately. Lastly, I talked about her feelings as they would be on the other side of her decision:
So tell me how you will feel tomorrow, if you go home tonight. You will wake up and find no one to play with and only mom working all day long. You’ll have nothing to do but help her or play by yourself. And you will know brother and sister are here, playing, doing lots of fun things, but you will not be able to come back here because I cannot keep driving two hours every day because you changed your mind. So you’ll go to bed that night in your room without Sister there and you’ll know she’s here having fun.
And think how you will feel if you stay the night here, tonight, and you wake up tomorrow ready to play and make cookies and help granddad start the barbecue fire and all the new sand toys we got you will be waiting for you. And then the next day we do the camping , remember? And something special for the day after that, that you don’t even know about, yet.
Which do you want?
Well, I can tell you, she had a smile and a hug and she was all relieved of all those horrible second guesses. She knew what to do, at least that one night, for sure.
Would this method help you make a few decisions?
If so, the main things are:
List all the pros and cons. Do this on paper unless you just do not have time.
Ask yourself how you will feel after each possible choice. Ask yourself about a month later or even a year later: How will you feel about the choice?
That’s all there is to it. Some decisions are too tough to fit into this simple exercise, but those that are a good fit will become SO much easier! You’ll have brain cells left over!
I have noticed it’s that time of year again–lots of searches leading to this one again.
Enjoy.
Itchy eyes, ears, nose, throat; runny eyes, nose; stuffy nose; and cough are just a few of the delights that visit us each year, if we are among the pollen afflicted.
It’s Fall Fever. This is a made-up name for the Fall malady that corresponds to Hay Fever which happens in Spring.
And it makes us feel like yuck.
Outside of chemicalizing oneself half to death, what can a person do?
I have found several ways to beat autumn’s ragweed, and I’d love to share them with you.
The first thing I do is eat honey all year long. Not just any honey will do. It must be raw, as in uncooked. If the label isn’t boasting, the honey probably isn’t raw.
It also must be native, as in: from the area where you live. Even better is from someone you actually know exists.*
Why? Honey contains minuscule flower parts in various forms, and eating it daily helps me beat my pollen allergies, like an immunization.
Outside of honey, I avoid all sugars.
Sugar kills immunities, especially the super-processed sugars.
I take vitamin C. A lot.
Vitamin C is supposed to help with the body’s immunities, so is what I need. Also, for me, the things I’ve read about Vitamin C acting as a mild antihistamine are true.
They say you can tell how much you need when you develop loose stools. They say to cut back a bit if that happens. I usually take 1000-2000 milligrams per day, in divided doses. (Addendum to the 9/13 posting: One teenager I’ve recently met had sneezing so bad that his nose would bleed regularly. After only two 500 mg doses of Vitamin C, he stopped with both symptoms. Now he uses only one dose per day for upkeep.)
I wash my face a lot, and even rinse my eyes with artificial tears.
Every time I feel the pollen effect, I wash it off. Notice the above magnified photo of pollen: It looks prickly like cactus. No wonder it bothers sensitive tissues!
After washing, I apply a coating of lotion, or even make-up, to my face to make a barrier between my skin and pollen. That also helps me.
I stay indoors and keep windows shut.
I know, some cannot do this, but remember, the pollen is out there, not in here. (Addendum for 9/13: This is especially true during the hours from mid-morning to mid-afternoon.)
If I find myself still miserable, I use heat on my face.
I run a basin of hot water and dip water from it with a washcloth to hold on my face, renewing as it cools. Or I stand in the shower with hot water spraying on my face.
Do NOT scald yourself!
It takes 10 or 15 minutes, but this wet heat draws out the histamines in my body. Histamines are what cause allergic reactions, what anti-histamines circumvent. As the heat applied to my face draws out the histamines, my face is itchy and my nose grows stuffy. When that itching stops, all the histamines my body could produce are out. Most bodies cannot produce any more for 4 to 8 hours.
That’s hours.
Of no itching, sneezing, stuffy nose, watery eyes, etc. It’s plenty of time to take a nap, go to a restaurant, or visit a friend like a normal person.
If I happen to become wheezy, I drink hot coffee.
Coffee is supposed to be a good emergency substitute for asthma drugs. I don’t have asthma, but hot coffee helps me breathe when the pollen count is high.
There you have it: what I do instead of taking pills. Sometimes, when it really is tough outside, I have to add pills to my regimen, but not often.
I love not being tied to chemicals, all drowsy or else wired to the sky.
*I’m sure it would shock you to learn that it is quite legal for our honey to have corn syrup in it in large percentages, and for it to come from any country in the world. So stick with a local, known source.
Note for 8/10/13: So many folks have searched and found this page using the terms “sneezing first thing in the morning” I’ve decided to add my opinion, for what it’s worth.
I have noticed that the body shuts down some responses and reactions during sleep. Perhaps you have had the experience of sleeping through a loud storm or sleeping with a headache. It probably is a merciful mechanism that allows us sleep in spite of life’s difficulties.
I have noticed that when I am really sick with a cold, I might cough all night, and that might be good, but once I begin to recover, I also begin sleeping more peacefully, which I am sure also is good. However, on those mornings, I must cough lots to make up for lost time.
Could it be that sneezing is the same? We don’t sneeze at night, so we can sleep, but then comes the morning? Just thinking out loud, here.
Not just any honey will do. It must be raw, as in uncooked. If the label isn’t boasting, the honey probably isn’t raw.
Home's Cool! 