Shine Your Light

A simple garden petunia, growing in an uncultivated state, shines because it can't help being what it is.  Despite being mowed down, ignored, crowded by grasses and weeds, it shines.

Wouldn't it be nice if we could all be like that.  No matter where we find ourselves, be true to ourselves, don't pretend, don't try to blend in, simply shine.

Little children understand this.  Then the world does everything it can to take it away.  God made each of us according to the unique pattern wired into our DNA and then conditioning, circumstances, our environment, peers, parents, siblings, the school system, television, the Internet, and on and on works on us the rest of our life to take that away.  Fight to be true to self.  Be a feral, uncultivated Petunia and shine.

 Under Attack

Sometimes the best sign that you are accomplishing something worthwhile is the increased level of resistance that you face.  To put it into a Christian perspective, why would the devil attack if you aren't doing anything?

We have transitioned from a beautiful Spring to a sultry early Summer.  We still have the humidity of Spring but have added the heat of Summer.  The result is oppressive.  With abundant moisture the plants are growing rapidly and the need to pare back the growth is constant.  You can practically see the grass grow.

With Summer comes a transition in the types of flowers we see.  It also means an increase in the number of insects that tend to swarm any living thing.  Black-eyed Susans and Sunflowers are now becoming the dominant flowers seen across the pastures and roadsides.  If you look closely at them however, you see myriad small six-legged creatures seeking to make meals of them.  Those bugs then become meals for birds and on and on.

Growth comes with setbacks and attacks.  Just like in nature, it happens in our personal lives.  As we grow, new challenges seek to set us back.  The key is to keep on shining like the Black-eyed Susan pictured below.

 Staying Optimistic

It is far too easy to allow negativity to drag you down.  The constant bombardment of challenges and barriers can cause even the most positive of personalities to struggle with anxiety and depression.  At least part of the solution is to focus on the positive things you find along the way.

I have been looking forward to picking lots of dewberries from the plants growing wild on our place, but they have only been ripening a few at a time.  I have a bag in the freezer in which I place the ripe ones that I have picked.  Eventually there might be enough for a pie.  If not, they might garnish a piece of cake or some ice cream.  They are so close to being ready that I daily expect them all to have turned ripe overnight.  Instead, it is one here and one there.

Life is a bit like that.  We look ahead with hopeful expectations, but it seems their realization remains firmly in the future.  Every once in a while, something positive occurs, but the thing we aim for seems to remain elusively later in time.  It is important that we continue to do what is necessary and to remain hopeful.  With my berries it is a short walk each day to check their progress and to harvest the few that are ready.  I expect any day to make the trek and find the bushes loaded with ripe berries and I will have to go find a bucket to gather them in rather than carry the few ripe ones in my hand.

There are several species of dewberry.  I believe ours are the Southern Dewberry (Rubus trivialis).  They create a bright spot in the woods, but don't stumble into them unaware because the thorns will quickly entangle you.

 Another One Down

If a tree falls in the woods and there is no one to hear it, does it make a sound?  I can attest that if it is nearby when you are walking it definitely makes a sound.

The other day we were taking a walk down the driveway and heard a loud "crack" nearby.  There was a light breeze, but nothing too strong.  We could see nearby a tree that was just beginning to settle against other trees, and I made the comment that we might need to watch out that it was likely to come to the ground.  It did.  Slowly at first.  Settling against the upper branches of surrounding trees.  Then, with a final crash it came to the ground about ten yards from where we stood.

The photo below doesn't do it justice for size.  Apparently, the top had broken off previously.  I had seen it lying in the woods but hadn't yet had time to drag it out.  The broken end is about 8 inches in diameter.  I don't know how long it is, but it will take some time to cut up.

It being dead, I knew it would eventually come down, but I wasn't expecting it to do so as I walked by.  It makes you stop and think about how disaster can sneak up on you if you aren't paying attention.  The fact that it was dead was a warning sign.  I simply ignored it.

We need to be aware of the warning signs around us.  If we don't tend to the business of keeping things in order, disaster can occur with surprising rapidity.  That applies to our families, our homes, our businesses and our country.  Plenty of warning signs out there.  A little maintenance can fix much of what is wrong but until that happens, we'd better be paying attention.

 Climbing

I spent a few years believing that I wanted to climb the company ladder.  I made it a fair way up before I learned that it wasn't much fun.  The politics become fierce and the dirty tricks come out.  Too often those rewarded were the least deserving based on merit but were masterful at manipulation and foul play.

Peter Drucker once said something like, "a person will climb to the level of their incompetence."  I think that is very true.  We are each designed with certain gifts and abilities that make us uniquely suited for specific roles.  Those who find themselves outside those roles due to blind ambition or poor choices will reach a point beyond which they can't go.  Others simply reach a point beyond their personal talents and abilities.

One of the most glaring examples that I have seen through the years is to take an outstanding salesman and put him into management.  Some do well in the role, but most are average at best.  Both sales and management suffer due to the promotion.

Pride and greed often get in the way of good decisions.  Pride in the form of "look at me and how far I've come!"  Greed in the form of seeking a higher level of income in a role that makes you miserable.  The key is to find what you are made for and do it to the best of your ability.  Bloom where you are.

The Climbing Prairie Rose (Rosa setigera) is found from Texas to Wisconsin and all the way east to the coast.  The beauty pictured below was in a hidden area of our small acreage.

 Contentment

Jake is the faithful guardian of our place.  He was found by the side of the road as an abandoned puppy, rescued and through a series of connections, ended up as part of our household.  He is, and has always been, an outside dog.  He generally refuses to come in when invited.

Until we moved to our present home, Jake always had a fenced yard in which he stayed.  Until a couple of years ago he had an older companion which kept him company and, in many ways, raised him.  Due to age and infirmities, she did not make the last couple of moves.  Before bringing Jake to his new home, we constructed a fenced area specifically for him.  Our assumption was that he would be more comfortable in an enclosed area since that is the way he had always lived.  That assumption was incorrect.

Jake became an escape artist.  It became apparent that we would never be able to confine him again, so with admonitions to confine himself to our property (yeah, like that was going to happen) we allowed him to roam.  We are far enough from busy roads that we felt the risk of being hit by an unwary driver was low and that he had the age and maturity to remain close.

Jake did introduce himself to our neighbors and was especially welcomed by the children.  He seems to have a way with young humans and is like a big teddy bear.  Our grandchildren all seem to be happy to see him and my father-in-law, who is in his upper 80's always asks about him since Jake stayed with him for a brief while during our transition to this place.

He seems content.  He often lays on the front porch surveying his domain and protecting it from wandering rabbits or other small creatures that stray into his vision.  I don't think he could catch one and am somewhat certain he doesn't really try; he just lets them know that they are in his territory and he is the boss.

Contentment is something that most of the human race never finds.  Learning to live in the moment and know that all is well is rare.  I think we all need to learn to take life a little more like Jake.

 Perspective

According to Merriam Webster the first definition of "perspective" is "a mental view or prospect."  It recognizes that our mind shapes what we see.

The obvious shaping by our mind is the simple interpretation of the light reflected from an object that creates an image on our retina that is then transmitted to the brain by the optical nerve.  The quality of that image is a function of the shape of the lens, the eyeball which determines the focal length and the healthiness of the tissue over which that image is passed.  It is purely physical in nature.  But there is also a mental aspect to perception.  The mental part of interpreting what we see is shaped by experience and knowledge.  It is something I might call positional perspective.

Positional perspective might simply refer to where we are standing.  If I am in front of an object and you are to the side of that same object, we might see very different shapes.  It's like the old tale of the blind men touching an elephant -- each at a different point -- and each describing it very differently.  We do the same thing mentally when we view something.

Sometimes our view is of an idea or concept.

City dwellers see things very differently than those who live in sparsely populated areas.  The problems that face those living in a crowded environment are not the same as those faced by rural populations.  Their perspectives of what are the most pressing problems vary widely.  Even when they recognize each other's challenges, they often perceive very different solutions. Their environment and experiences shape their view or, perspective.

Much of the division in our country is due to this issue of perspective.  Until we learn to "walk in the other guy's shoes" occasionally, we will not solve the problems that we face as a nation.  Understanding comes with experience and knowledge.  If we feed ourselves the same thing every day in the news we consume, the books we read or the people we listen to, our understanding of other perspectives is not likely to occur.  We all need to spend time with those who are not like us -- whatever "us" happens to be.

 Seeking Value

What is value?  We all have a basic understanding of the concept, but I want to clarify the basic meanings of the word.

According to the Meriam Webster Dictionary, value has several meanings: 1) the amount of money that something is worth, 2) the equivalent in goods, services, or money for something exchanged, 3) relative worth, utility, or importance, 4) something that can be bought for a low or fair price, 5) something (such as a principle or quality) intrinsically valuable or desirable, 6) a numerical quantity that is assigned or is determined by calculation, 7) a relative lightness or darkness of a color.

That's a lot of different meanings for a word that we all think we understand.

I think a basic need of people is to feel that they are of value -- that they are needed by others, or that they are considered to be desirable company.  It seems a little strange to me that we sometimes look at others in such a term as value.  The simple reality is that such a view is the basis for many so-called friendships and when the value has been diminished the friendship disappears.

The whole concept of value is a self-centered one.  It comes back to what someone or something can do for me.  It is based on the concept of exchanging something we have for that which we don't.  It might be time, money or some other exchangeable medium.  It is a matter of giving up what we have for something we desire more highly.

One of the keys to sales is to establish the concept of value in what one is offering to be sold or exchanged.  Potential customers must be convinced that the object being offered has greater value that what is being given up.  Sometimes that perception of value is false but momentarily seems real because of an appeal to emotion or some sense of gratification.  This is often the case with much of what we see on television.  Advertising is often targeted at our base natures of envy, greed or again, that self-centered desire to have others "look at me" that creates momentary pleasure which is sometimes at the expense of lasting gain which might be of higher value -- such as relationships.

As I age, I am learning that many of the things I once valued were only temporarily so.  The cost was often higher than that which was immediately realized.  It often wasn't just the monetary exchange; it was in the things that were no longer accessible -- what I gave up in order to have what I momentarily desired.  We often see only the immediate cost and miss the longer-term impact of our decisions.

As the Apostle Paul wrote (very loosely interpreted), I am learning there is much value in being content in whatever circumstances I find myself.  Always striving for more is a common way of life but ultimately a sad one.

The Ohio Spiderwort (Tradescantia ohiensis) is a beautiful flower that graces the roadside in many places.  There is value in the grace of its beauty.

 Life Lessons

When I was young, we had a honeysuckle vine growing beneath the kitchen window of our house.  To this day I remember how it smelled when the blossoms covered it in the spring and the butterflies, moths and bees buzzed around it seeking the sweet sustenance those flowers contained.  My mother showed me how to lightly pinch the base of the flower and gently pull the pistil out which drew a drop of nectar from the flower that was a pleasant treat.  It is a technique of foraging that I suspect is rarely taught to children nowadays.

It would be difficult to make a meal of the tiny drops of nectar, but the energy contained by them would certainly act as a refresher to someone in need.  That source of energy is what attracts the insects to the plant.

Dad didn't want the honeysuckle growing in the flower bed because it tended to spread and crowd out other things that he wanted to grow.  I was tasked with digging it out which was quite a chore since it required finding all of those runners and spreading roots.  I always enjoyed digging in the dirt as a kid and it wasn't the onerous chore kids today might think it to be, but it was bittersweet because I subsequently missed the Spring treat of robbing the nectar from the flowers.

I vividly recall the honeysuckle to this day and am reminded of it when I walk in the woods of our current small acreage.  In it I see life lessons taught to me as a youngster.  1) Nature provides. 2) Understanding how nature provides and how to utilize it is important. 3) There are prices -- the cost/benefit of everything. 4) Work is necessary to gain what we want but it sometimes carries the added cost of what we might have had.

In the Moment

Be present in the moment,

Set all else aside,

All the weight upon your shoulders

Will soon slide

Into the waters.

Be present in the moment,

Leave cares for another day,

Focus on the task at hand;

You will see the way

Across the waters.

Be present in the moment,

Focus on the now,

Let time fade all around you

When you don't know how

To face the waters.

Be present in the moment,

Let your heart be filled with praise,

Know that God still loves you

And that you He will raise

Above the waters.

"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.  When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze." -- Isaiah 43:2

Emotions, Visualization and Sales

A long time ago I figured out that deadlines are great motivators to accomplishing a task.  When we have a specific time by which to have something complete, we are likely to be finished by that time.

I also figured out a long time ago that I have difficulty setting specific goals and then sticking to them.

Think about those two things for a minute; if someone else establishes a goal for me -- a task to complete within a specific time -- I almost always am able to get it done, but I have a hard time if I am the one setting the task and time of completion.  What does that say about me?  It's not a lack of self-discipline, it's either a lack of self-motivation or, it is a lack of inability to determine what needs to be done and how long it should take for completion.

Even though I have difficulty setting goals and sticking to them, I have learned to do it.  That doesn't necessarily mean that I like to do it, but I do like the results.  It's all about the results and a willingness to pay the price to achieve those results.

We all fight inner demons when it comes to accomplishing the things we want in life.  We find ourselves doing "busy work" that creates the appearance of working toward our goals when in reality, it is just something to make us "look" busy -- to give us a sense that we are doing something, even if it is likely it is the wrong things.  Overcoming those things which hold us back is a matter of growth and maturity.  There are some things we may never outgrow, but if we identify the things that hold us back, we can at least begin the process of changing those behaviors and mind-barriers that restrict us.

For me, visualizing the result is probably the most effective motivation.  Visualization is more than just a mental picture -- it includes the feelings of satisfaction and enjoyment that come along with completion.  As much as I would like to say that cold, hard logic is the answer, it is not; we are emotional creatures and depend on emotion for motivation -- even if that emotion isn't necessarily a proper one, such as greed, or envy.

If you struggle with goals, change the nature of how you set them.  Many years ago when I was training sales people I taught them that if they focus on making a sale to a new customer they will quickly become disappointed.  Instead, make it about the number of calls you make on that prospective customer.  If, on the average, it takes 9 calls on a new prospect in order to make the first sale to them, focus on accomplishing those 9 calls.  Make a list of reasons to go see them -- to have contact.  After that first contact in which no sale was made you still accomplished your goal and could feel good about it.  The attitude switched from "they weren't interested" to "that's one!"  Usually, long before that 9th contact, a sale was made.  Not only did their focus change, but their attitude changed in a way that was palpable to the prospect.  Their positive attitude at accomplishing their goals came through rather than the negative attitude which comes with an expected failure.

Those emotions are critical to our well-being.  If you find yourself struggling, think about what emotions are coursing through you and then find ways to overcome the negative ones.  Failure feeds failure and success feeds success -- not because of the completion of the task, but because of what it does for us emotionally.

What Makes a Man

That which is a man is judged

Based on what we see,

Much like what is left

Of this old hollow tree.

We see the outer shell --

Crusty, hard and worn --

Shaped by daily living

Life since he was born.

What we often fail to see

Is that which lies within;

Hidden deep inside of him

Beneath his outer skin.

Sometimes he is hollow,

Just like this rotten log;

There's nothing there but emptiness

Filled with vaporous fog.

If you want to know the man

The most important part

Is to look down deep inside of him

Into his beating heart.

That is where his passions lie,

The things which give him drive

To overcome all obstacles

And make him feel alive.

It's not just the container,

Like some old rusty can,

It's the heart that beats within him

That makes a man a man. 

Relevance in Being Present

There are silent places

That compel you to pause and look

Upon the distant horizon,

Lost in wonder.

Time is no longer relevant.

Miles hide the scars.

Past and future merge

Into our presence in the present,

And for a moment,

We are content to be.

Re-making Boxes

Don't let others define you

Based on arbitrary categories

That align in neat boxes;

Define yourself based on who

You were made to be.

We are each uniquely suited

To some task that lies always before us

And that which we do each day

Prepares us for the moment

We step into the gap.

Our lives become a series

Of those gaps where we are the part

Which fills the need that

None other can fill because we alone

Have what is needed.

Boxes are empty places

Surrounded by walls

That attempt to contain

When what we need is to

Grow to our potential.

We speak of thinking

Outside the box when what we

Should be doing is redefining

The boxes in which we find

Our true selves.

Purpose

We all need purpose in our life,

It fuels our will to live

And keep on striving every day

With all our strength to give.

Without it we are just a rat

Caught within a cage,

We fight against confining bars

And daily voice our rage

At how it is another's fault

But, never is our own

That we are not successful

And it is quite well known

How they must have cheated

Or, had advantage over us

When the truth is so much simpler

Of how we missed the bus.

It's all about our purpose,

Why we get up every morn

And work to do the things in life

For which we were born.

If you are lacking purpose

Spend some time upon your knees

And God will help you overcome

If you ask Him with a "please."

It may not be the way you think

But, He will fill your heart

With reasons to get up every day

Until this earth you part.

So, rise and then move forward,

Don't sit there till you die

Or, think that you are worthless

For that's the devil's lie.

Live your life with purpose,

Moving forward every day,

Take others on your journey

As you travel on the way

And you'll be filled with joy

Even when there are some tears

As you overcome your failures

And conquer all your fears.

Purpose is the answer,

One of life's great mysteries;

Find reason for your presence here

And The Father, you will please.

Yoda, Priorities and Pathways

I realize that it is Fall and the weather is changing quickly, but this springtime image is one of my favorites.  It carries a lot of meaning for us because this is a picture of the site where we thought of building a house.  We no longer own these cows or, the land.  Things change and we decided our best option was to sell them.

It is interesting how things change through the years.  Many of the hopes and dreams of our youth fade into the reality of our present.  We move forward in the belief that the path we are on is the correct one that will lead us to our dreams.  I believe that if we are in tune with God's Will for our life, that is true, but I also believe that if we are within His Will, he sometimes changes our dreams to match the path He has put us on.

Letting go of one dream and grasping another sometimes takes time and the transition isn't always a smooth one.  I know many people at this stage in life who have "settled for" their current situation.  I hope I never "settle for" but, keep on reaching, striving, doing, working to make a positive difference.  What we do with our lives really does matter even though we often think it doesn't.  The impact of a word or, deed on the life of someone else can reverberate down through generations to make either a positive or, negative impact in the lives of many.  We need to be certain that each and every one is positive or helpful.

The most important things in life have nothing to do with what we accumulate or, the trips we take; they are the things that impact eternity.  Everything in this life should be focused on our relationship with God, not on the things of "self."  By "the things of self" I am referring to those rewards we think we deserve -- trips to foreign lands, big houses, fancy cars, a life of ease.  All of those things are focused on "self."  Instead, the important things are those focused on others.  The Bible is clear that we should first focus on our relationship to God and second, on our relationship to others. 

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.  The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself." -- Mark 12:30-31

We aren't yet certain what the next chapter will bring, but I am looking forward to it.  In the words of Yoda, "Difficult to see.  Always in motion is the future."  (from "The Empire Strikes Back")

Ultimately, there is only one thing that is important for determining the next step in life's journey.  I woke this morning with these words ringing in my head:

"Jesus answered, 'I am the way and the truth and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.'" -- John 14:6

Gather Around

In this world that has become divided

By the fractiousness of power,

Be the one to gather around you

Those in need of protection,

Those who are different,

Those whose experiences don't match your own,

Those from whom you will learn

Wisdom.

"Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble.  Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing." -- 1 Peter 3:8-9

Contentment or Distraction?

There were four birds upon a line

Watching cattle grazing.

Said the one upon the left,

"Isn't that amazing?

They eat the grass and then lay down

To chew upon their cud.

They have no ambition

And do no kind of good."

Another bird, one of the four,

Said, "That's not the life for me.

I'd rather go exploring

And nest up in a tree."

And still another looked at them

And said, "Traveling is best;

I'm just stopping here awhile

And then I'm headed west.

Being stuck there in one place

With naught to see but grass

Would simply drive me crazy;

On that life, I would pass!"

The fourth looked at the other three

And said, "I love to fly!

Can you imagine life

Not reaching for the sky?"

So, each of them within his turn

Found reason to complain

While they looked down from their perch on high

With comments all in vain.

Along there came a hunter

Looking for the flying dove

Who saw the birds upon the wire

Distracted there above.

He slipped up quietly on them;

When startled, they took wing

But, only a short distance

Before the shots did sing.

The lesson that they might have learned

While looking on the cow

Is that they should have focused

On the simple here and now.

Judging others from on high

Based on what you see

Distracts you from your purpose

When it might be time to flee!

(If you look closely, in the top right portion of the photo are four birds on the wire.  I didn't notice them until I had posted the picture for today.  They sent my mind down the path of this poem.)

Everything In Its Season

Patiently waiting until just the right time is something that is very difficult for most people.  When we want something to happen, we want it now.  This natural tendency is further exacerbated by a culture that is focused on "the now" and "just do it."  Delayed gratification is an idea so foreign to our society that many don't understand the concept.

The photo above, which was taken yesterday, is of the wild persimmons ripening in one of the many persimmon trees that are scattered about our place.  The crop this year is sparse, unlike last year when every tree was loaded.  The fruit is just beginning to ripen but is still very astringent due to high tannin levels.  You must wait until it is completely softened or, it will pucker your mouth like alum.

Once the fruit is ripe to the point the flesh becomes quite tasty, it will fall to the ground and is coveted by many animals that feast on it and scatter the seeds far and wide in their scat.  If you want to harvest some for eating you have to be patient yet, ready to move quickly or the opportunity will be lost.

It seems a lot of things in life are that way.  I suspect it is God's way of teaching us patience but, also, to be prepared and ready when the time is right.  A couple of Bible verses come to mind:

"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven...." -- Ecclesiastes 3:1

"Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage -- with great patience and careful instruction." -- 2 Timothy 4:2

It's a difficult thing -- to be both patient and vigilantly ready.  Opportunity, though, is something that requires such an attitude.  We've all heard that "timing is everything" and I believe that to be at least somewhat true.  Many pioneers fail.  They get so far out ahead of the pack that they find themselves alone and unable to capitalize on the venture.  The thread linking them to everyone else snaps and they become lost in the wilderness.  (Lots of metaphors here.)  A pioneer isn't really showing the way if they are so far out of sight that no one can follow them.

As I think about this concept of waiting until the timing is right, many examples pop into my head.  In business it could apply to a new product that shouldn't be introduced until people are prepared to accept it.  It might mean that if you are contemplating a career change you shouldn't jump at the first job that comes along, but wait until the "right" one is available.  If you are shopping for a new home you shouldn't "settle" for the one that perhaps is "almost" what you are looking for but, hold out for just the right one.  If you are picking fruit, pick the ripe ones rather than those that need a little more time.

Be patient, but be prepared.  It sounds a little bit like a scout motto, but it is good advice.  I think patience is difficult but, being prepared can sometimes be more so because we tend to be lulled to complacency and lose our sense of expectation.  I desire a life filled with both. 

Greed, Envy and Energy

Greed has a way of capturing and consuming those who succumb to its allure.  We have a lot of common garden spiders on our place.  Their signature webs with the "stitching" through the middle connect many of the trees along the edge of the woods to the grass of the pasture beside it.  They take advantage of what is called "edge" which is the point where one type of habitat abuts against another -- such as forest and meadow.  The spider whose web is shown above seems to have hit the jackpot with a double catch.  It appears a cicada blundered into the net and a Great Black Digger Wasp became entangled as it attacked what was likely a struggling cicada.

The cicada likely became captive out of blind bad luck, but the wasp saw an easy catch and went for it, only to become a victim as well.  It died from greed or, perhaps it was envy?  You can't really attribute human feelings to insects, but for purposes of analogy it might work.  Let's go with envy; the wasp saw what the spider had and decided to take it.

The whole scenario made me think of a verse in Proverbs:

"A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones." -- Proverbs 14:30

In the case of the wasp, it is quite literally rotting as it hangs suspended in the web.  It will be a slow decomposition because all of the nutrition-laden juices have already been sucked out by the spider.  It is really just a shell that once held a vital life that plays an important role in the ecosystem.  Okay, I admit, part of its role is to be food for something else in the ecosystem.  The trouble with that particular aspect of its life-journey is that it terminates any other part of its existence.  Well, maybe not.  I suppose you have to consider that the physical matter will decompose and be recycled, but the vital energy of its life has now been expended.

I seem to be rambling a bit this morning, but it is somewhat intentional.  Let's head back to that verse quoted above.  "A heart at peace gives life..."  That's the part that is so very difficult for most of us.  We are never satisfied -- at peace with ourselves.  That lack of satisfaction drains energy from us.

I'm not saying we shouldn't be continually seeking to improve; I'm saying that each and every moment we should accept who we are and find the value in our daily progress toward becoming what we are meant to be.  Again, it is about being at peace with yourself, not about becoming stagnant.  This life is all about "becoming."  Hmmm....how do I explain what I mean?  Life is about becoming the best we can be.  We should be pouring energy into the system -- helping each other be better, to grow.  It's not about "taking," it's about giving.  It's about lifting others up and helping them to become greater than they believe is possible.

Enough of philosophy this morning.  Come to think of it, maybe the wasp was just trying to help the cicada get free of the web...nah.