REMEMBER WHEN YOU USED TO HAVE A SENSE OF HUMOR?
NO PROBLEM, I HAVE ONE
A person who loves you gave you this book in hope that you will find your way through life’s inevitable trials with grace, dignity, and humor, thankful to be alive and grateful for this new opportunity to figure out how to do ordinary things again!
The little book is full of reminders, answers to new problems, and ways to think about circumstances that makes enjoyment possible or even probable.
Enjoy the snippets of wisdom and the great cartoons
A SMALL SNIPPET JUST BELOW
I hesitate mentioning, my cats again. (You may insert dog, or hamster, or your favorite pet if and when you want.)
When my cat sits on my lap its claws go right through my pants and through my skin. I have black and blue marks all over and the little incision or needle marks are visible. I look like a drug addict.
Having thin skin is not good.
(My husband calls me thick skinned but he is referring to something else. That may or may not be the case. I am not admitting anything one way or the other.)
I could put lots of blankets on my lap for protection, but that is hard to do this time of year. If friends see me with lots of blankets when it is so hot they will be concerned that my blood isn’t circulating. That’s not the case yet.
I can tell my blood is circulating by looking at the puncture wounds my cat gives me. I circulate plenty.
By now you know that I love my cats and a few punctures and a little pain is a small price to pay.
Of course, if I bleed-out on the floor, I’ll have to rethink that one!
FOR OTHER BOOKS SEE BELOW
There is hope for your feelings of abandonment and hopelessness because God’s love cannot be contained, it goes everywhere, even where you are at the moment.
It is true that people get stuck, frustrated, and depressed for many different reasons. We are complicated and have many different, and often wrong, thoughts racing through our heads and influencing our hearts.
I try to find and approach a specific thought or difficulty that keeps an individual anchored where they are, then I give them, “Building Blocks.” to help them.
We are depressed because we are born into the “human condition.” In this book I explain this condition and the remedy. Abandonment and loneliness are replaced by friendship; hopelessness is replaced by hope and meaning; and depression is eased with love and confident expectation.
All these can be yours as you grow closer to God, gain wisdom, and walk in a fashion that brings these wonderful facts and feelings your way.
Tolerance is not the same as understanding. It’s better than intolerance but it is not what we should aim for. Real understanding (and wisdom) includes conjuring the will power and taking the time to listen to, consider, and discuss another point of view.
It is in your best interest to learn to listen and discuss openly in case there may be any benefit gained from such an effort. That type of personal, sincere, deliberate, effort makes communication and progress among individuals, and nations, possible. That, of course, is an understatement. It may be more accurate to say that refusal to consider, 1. what others may bring to the table, 2. all possible solutions, and 3. how others feel, is a tragic mistake and that intolerance promotes alienation, harm, and failure on many different levels.
Of course, we all understand that on some level we are not all the same, but coming to understand and believe that this is okay and even preferable, is something altogether different. If I may be so bold, and if this book exceeds my wildest expectation, you might conclude the following:
“Being different must be okay and if properly understood it is a welcome part of our technicolor life.”
My interest is in helping us grow gracefully, navigate socially, show respect, and embrace diversity, challenge, and change.
I have four groups or individuals in mind as I write.
- I want to help the church understand the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning (or Queer) community, and care for it as I believe God intends
- I want to help families love members they don’t fully understand.
- I want individuals who have been disappointed in the church and have even been turned away understand how much God loves them and why, and
- I want to support those who are struggling with their identity.
I want to believe, and in fact, I have to believe, that honest, straightforward communication will dispel rumors, east tensions, and bridge the gaps. I want all of us to understand how to communicate, express ourselves, and disclose our fears and concerns in a way that maintains friendships, expresses love, and heals families. We can only do this as we listen, talk, and reason together with each other, (and read each-others “stuff”).
Paragraphs or pages that address another group, their struggle, or a different need will be more meaningful to you, and less scattered when you are invested in understanding them and their concerns.
My hope and prayer are that whoever reads this book will take from any paragraph that which is good, and informative or helpful, for them. Makes no difference to me what group you place yourself in or where you are coming from.