This morning we had some more snow. Now here in the Magic Valley we don't usually have a lot of it but in the mountains to the north, south and east that's a different situation. Where I like to ski about 50 miles east of here they have had over 80 inches of snow in the past 7 days. I have always loved seeing it snow. Years ago it could also mean expense in getting country driveways and roads plowed out, anxious hours wondering if family would get home safely from school or work, etc. And on the farm that I grew up on, it meant more work taking care of livestock, chores, etc .From a purely selfish standpoint, the more the better now that I live in town. But I am also a person who suffers from lack of sunshine. I get tired, a little depressed at times and maybe a host of other symptoms. So about now I am looking eagerly through plant and seed catalogs and maybe travel brochures to places like Southern France or Tuscany in Italy. I have thought about a couple weeks in one of those areas, soaking up the intimate culture of one of the hilltop towns I saw and visited a few years ago, shopping in local farmer's markets for ingredients to meals that I could prepare with the helpful tutoring of the owner of the villa I would be staying at. This all comes from some research and communication with someone who owns just such a place there. But the reality is that I am not sure if we will or can do something like that, at least not soon. My wife has had quite a time of it this past year, beginning with a bout with breast cancer, followed by severe difficulty with medication following the surgery. Then there was a fall, and more pain and then a frightening incident one day upon my arrival home from an appointment where she had an " event " that led to an all day visit to the emergency room and countless tests, etc. So for the last 9 or 10 months, little else has mattered other than taking care of things at home , seeing that she got rest and visits to the doctor,etc. Anyone who has been a caretaker in such situations for a child, parent or spouse, doesn't need me to tell them that at times this is difficult territory to pass through ! But we do what needs to be done , right ? And so, here we are, most likely headed to spring and holding up before us the concept of " HOPE ". To me, hope is the possibility that things will be better, maybe much better or at least more tolerable. That something promised might actually still come true or be possible. We all hope for different things at different times. A better job, less sickness, a possible trip, the birth of a child, a loving spouse where there maybe was none, courage, a spring with time to enjoy the smells and sights of flowers and gardens, a fishing trip, hope for more than just this life on earth. The list is endless and different for us all. But there is always " hope ". I for one have had my times when the mention of the word made me think of the word " scoff ". That even thinking of hope seemed kind of far fetched. But after many years I have had uncounted times that the only thing that got me through it was " Hope " and upon reaching some " other side " of a situation, I found that I should never lose sight of the possibilities that hope can give us !
This year we have a presidential election and the word " hope " is being used quite often in campaign speeches. Now I have my own feelings about that and who might be able to accomplish things that are so desperately important to our society , as well as bring our world a little closer to peace and cooperation than we have now. Since this is not a political blog, I will not go into that any more other than to state that my belief in all of this is pretty much summed up in the " Sermon On The Mount " and if you care to, you can go there in your bible and look at it in more detail.
So, getting back to " Hope ", it has been sung and spoken that we live life in seasons. Spring is our birth, Summer is our young and productive years, Fall is our having raised families and Winter our retirement years and the time near our end. Well, here is my take on that. I believe that not only is there a cycle of life that goes around once in the previously stated sentence but we experience that cycle over and over again. We have our spring when all is fresh, starting new, hopeful for life anew. Then comes summer when there is are lots of good things happening, being planned , anticipated. Times unhampered by cold and snow, windy rainy days, clouds of darkness, illness, stress, or shattered hopes. Fall arrives and we start getting ready to put away summer activities, lawn mowers and outdoor activities, etc. or maybe our lives slow down and we are resigned to live out our lives in our current situation, good or bad. Or maybe we have just gotten comfortable in our situation and decide there isn't much more to life than we have experienced and so we put away dreams, store them, maybe, just maybe we will get them out and review them. Then leaves fall off trees, garden plants brown up, temperatures fall. Finally winter is here and ground is frozen, we need more clothes to keep warm. Guess that what is is what there is and will be. But think about it, if there were no winter, we would have no spring. If there were no dark then there could we would have no light. And so that is not all there is . When winter comes it is a clear and wonderful sign that spring will soon be here .There is a cycle and we can learn that one thing gives us hope for the next. That's how I like to look at it.
So, in the next " season ", maybe I will make it back to Tuscany or The South of France. Or maybe make it to the mountains just south of town. That's ok too. With " Hope ", anything is possible. Within a Christian faith, " Hope " can mean justice can still prevail and that things can get better than we could ourselves imagine. Never stop dreaming. If I were not a dreamer, life would have been very hard at times while growing up, wondering if things would get better when they were bad. But there IS always a " spring " after the winter. And in the cycle of life, I prefer not to think of this as my " Fall " of my life, or even my winter, but only the time just before " Spring ". And I dream.
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Hope
This morning we had some more snow. Now here in the Magic Valley we don't usually have a lot of it but in the mountains to the north, south and east that's a different situation. Where I like to ski about 50 miles east of here they have had over 80 inches of snow in the past 7 days. I have always loved seeing it snow. Years ago it could also mean expense in getting country driveways and roads plowed out, anxious hours wondering if family would get home safely from school or work, etc. And on the farm that I grew up on, it meant more work taking care of livestock, chores, etc .From a purely selfish standpoint, the more the better now that I live in town. But I am also a person who suffers from lack of sunshine. I get tired, a little depressed at times and maybe a host of other symptoms. So about now I am looking eagerly through plant and seed catalogs and maybe travel brochures to places like Southern France or Tuscany in Italy. I have thought about a couple weeks in one of those areas, soaking up the intimate culture of one of the hilltop towns I saw and visited a few years ago, shopping in local farmer's markets for ingredients to meals that I could prepare with the helpful tutoring of the owner of the villa I would be staying at. This all comes from some research and communication with someone who owns just such a place there. But the reality is that I am not sure if we will or can do something like that, at least not soon. My wife has had quite a time of it this past year, beginning with a bout with breast cancer, followed by severe difficulty with medication following the surgery. Then there was a fall, and more pain and then a frightening incident one day upon my arrival home from an appointment where she had an " event " that led to an all day visit to the emergency room and countless tests, etc. So for the last 9 or 10 months, little else has mattered other than taking care of things at home , seeing that she got rest and visits to the doctor,etc. Anyone who has been a caretaker in such situations for a child, parent or spouse, doesn't need me to tell them that at times this is difficult territory to pass through ! But we do what needs to be done , right ? And so, here we are, most likely headed to spring and holding up before us the concept of " HOPE ". To me, hope is the possibility that things will be better, maybe much better or at least more tolerable. That something promised might actually still come true or be possible. We all hope for different things at different times. A better job, less sickness, a possible trip, the birth of a child, a loving spouse where there maybe was none, courage, a spring with time to enjoy the smells and sights of flowers and gardens, a fishing trip, hope for more than just this life on earth. The list is endless and different for us all. But there is always " hope ". I for one have had my times when the mention of the word made me think of the word " scoff ". That even thinking of hope seemed kind of far fetched. But after many years I have had uncounted times that the only thing that got me through it was " Hope " and upon reaching some " other side " of a situation, I found that I should never lose sight of the possibilities that hope can give us !
This year we have a presidential election and the word " hope " is being used quite often in campaign speeches. Now I have my own feelings about that and who might be able to accomplish things that are so desperately important to our society , as well as bring our world a little closer to peace and cooperation than we have now. Since this is not a political blog, I will not go into that any more other than to state that my belief in all of this is pretty much summed up in the " Sermon On The Mount " and if you care to, you can go there in your bible and look at it in more detail.
So, getting back to " Hope ", it has been sung and spoken that we live life in seasons. Spring is our birth, Summer is our young and productive years, Fall is our having raised families and Winter our retirement years and the time near our end. Well, here is my take on that. I believe that not only is there a cycle of life that goes around once in the previously stated sentence but we experience that cycle over and over again. We have our spring when all is fresh, starting new, hopeful for life anew. Then comes summer when there is are lots of good things happening, being planned , anticipated. Times unhampered by cold and snow, windy rainy days, clouds of darkness, illness, stress, or shattered hopes. Fall arrives and we start getting ready to put away summer activities, lawn mowers and outdoor activities, etc. or maybe our lives slow down and we are resigned to live out our lives in our current situation, good or bad. Or maybe we have just gotten comfortable in our situation and decide there isn't much more to life than we have experienced and so we put away dreams, store them, maybe, just maybe we will get them out and review them. Then leaves fall off trees, garden plants brown up, temperatures fall. Finally winter is here and ground is frozen, we need more clothes to keep warm. Guess that what is is what there is and will be. But think about it, if there were no winter, we would have no spring. If there were no dark then there could we would have no light. And so that is not all there is . When winter comes it is a clear and wonderful sign that spring will soon be here .There is a cycle and we can learn that one thing gives us hope for the next. That's how I like to look at it.
So, in the next " season ", maybe I will make it back to Tuscany or The South of France. Or maybe make it to the mountains just south of town. That's ok too. With " Hope ", anything is possible. Within a Christian faith, " Hope " can mean justice can still prevail and that things can get better than we could ourselves imagine. Never stop dreaming. If I were not a dreamer, life would have been very hard at times while growing up, wondering if things would get better when they were bad. But there IS always a " spring " after the winter. And in the cycle of life, I prefer not to think of this as my " Fall " of my life, or even my winter, but only the time just before " Spring ". And I dream.
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