Letting Go of the World

"When we love one thing less, we love another more."
Aquinas

So many things and people in this world have held my interest and affection. The people still do.

My dream boats must be sold, and my books. My greenhouse will be sold, and finally my lot with the trailer on it, where my wife and I once lived. When death ended our very good marriage, I began letting go. Her love and our good times together died when she did. My own life, ebbing away, has sealed it.

I think of little things, like beloved pets that we saw die, and the big things like dreams that will be unfulfilled. Except for beloved friends, I have given up on all things, even this life itself.

But this is not my lament, but a statement of hope and happiness.

Two doctor visit's ago, I told my doctor I was about ready to stop taking my prescriptions and to let nature run its course. I remember his strange, sad look. On the next visit, he told me that I had leukemia. Perfect timing! Without medical intervention it should not take long.

I feel sorry for those I will leave behind. Maybe I could have done something of use for them.

You know my belief, of which I have more than ample Biblical evidence, that we are mortal. We will live again through the power of resurrection that Jesus won for us. There was a book titled Life Begins at Forty. Pretty catchy one at that. But for me, life will begin with death.

Spring Beauties

As a child I walked through a little park on my way to school. Early in the spring, the grass would be covered with tiny flowers. Someone explained to me that they were Spring Beauties.

They didn't stay long. They disappeared as suddenly as they had appeared. They even had their own "private bees", the Spring Beauty Bee. It too comes alive for a brief time, just to pollinate these flowers. Then both bees and flowers go back to sleep until next year. The grass they grow in has the longer life, but in their brief life span they have great beauty.

Israel has a very long lifespan too. They are the grass which will cover the earth some day.

I saw a tiny hand blown vase in a shop. It was less than an inch high. I once picked some Spring Beauties and put them in the vase.

This is like true Christianity. It springs up in the midst of Israel for a short time and, like the flowers, will disappear for awhile. The grass will grow lush and green, but the flowers will be treasured in a vase.

Long Keeper Tomatoes

Most of us love tomatoes, but isn't it a shame that their season has to end so soon? What if we could have them in November? This is now possible with a variety known as Long Keeper. There are other varieties as well. Their lack luster appearance can be deceiving, often appearing as unripe when they really are. But when cut open, their red color and good taste are appealing.

How appealing? Some really good friends of mine who lived next door, had a modest commercial garden. They supplied high class restaurants with their home grown tomatoes and peppers. When cold weather hit, the eateries asked for more.

My friends had some, partly buried in a compost heap. They explained the situation, dug out the Long Keepers, washed them, and delivered them to the happy establishment and its customers. While not a recommended storage technique , this does illustrate the keeping qualities of this amazing fruit.

Many are not familiar with this plant, so surplus numbers of them can be sold to those who would like to try them out.

• Gardening forum--Long Keeper Tomatoes
• Tomatoes: Information on Storage Long Keeping Tomato Varieties
• Burpee's Long-Keeper Tomato

Trapped in Circular Thinking

but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, Philippians 3:13

If you have watched the "Niagara Falls" routine of the Three Stooges, or Abbot and Costello, you have seen a comedic rendition of this thinking. A person in normal conversation is suddenly set off by a word or idea that causes them to return to a traumatic event in their lives.

I know two people who are trapped in this behavior pattern. Both revert to childhood experiences and have immature personalities. It is as if they are doomed to repeat, not only the event's memories, but the stage of mind during which it occurred. All forward motion stops as their minds spin their wheels.

One of the troubling aspects of my friends is that they are reluctant to consider new ideas. In one case a lady will accept no new ideas. Conversations with her are about memories from the 1960's. Recently, she confided to a friend that I had slighted her about 40 years ago! Surely, I have upset her more recently than that.

I have not given up on my friends (much as they wish I had). In one case, I suggested that a lady buy a seed starter kit for her daughter who is having a low time. She pretended to consider it for awhile, then declined. My un-gentle tactic: "Don't contact me until you have ordered it." Within minutes she replied that she had.

I figure that there is so much inspiration in watching seeds germinate. It is as if they shout, "We've been seeds long enough, we want to grow!"

Mr. Smarty Pants on Amaranth

Dear Smarty Pants,
I read your entry on amaranthus and watched the video on harvesting it. In your enthusiasm you failed to mention which variety is being harvested.

S.P.. As far as I can see, the variety is Amaranthus hypochondriacus. Did you notice the ones that were not harvested? They are red and look like flowers. There are many varieties that pop up in these plants. They are extremely adaptable, and all the varieties are useful and edible.

Q. How are homeless people or released prisoners going to be able to afford seeds and gardening tools?

S.P. For as little as 3 or 4 dollars you can get the seeds. No chemicals are needed. In total poverty situations, digging sticks can be used. Then nature will take over. Each plant produces about two hundred thousand or more seeds. These could be given or bartered to other growers. I'll bet that many farmers suffering from drought wish they had planted amaranthus.

Q. Do you really believe your dreams are practical?

S,P. It depends on how desperate people become. That applies to gardeners and people with land to rent.

Queen of Heaven

The children gather wood, the fathers light the fire, and the women knead the dough and make cakes to offer to the Queen of Heaven. They pour out drink offerings to other gods to arouse my anger. Jeremiah 7:18

This part of the Bible speaks of sins committed by Israel which aroused God's anger. Of course that was a long time ago, so what's the problem? Some think that now we no longer engage in such pagan practices.

Status Report: The Queen of Heaven is still with us! Only today her name is attached to "The Blessed Virgin Mary".

So now I guess it's okay to worship her? If the mother of Jesus had known what blasphemies were going to be performed in her name, how sad she would have been.

I have seen two extreme treatments of Mary. I have heard Protestants say that Mary was just a common woman of her time. Nothing exceptional about her. The angel Gabriel said otherwise. This attitude of demeaning Mary may be an attempt to compensate for Mariolatry, followed by billions around the world, many of them not Christians at all.

There is a powerful desire in the world to worship a woman. Catholicism makes Mary co-redeemer with Christ. Its adherents are told to pray to Mary who will then intercede with Jesus on their behalf. As a kind of "receptionist", Mary is the gate keeper to Christ and the Grace of God.

So we have two extremes. May I suggest we follow the Bible and what it says about Mary, and stop using her name to perpetuate paganism, or trying to debase the mother of Jesus?

See this entry on Queen of Heaven from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Coming With the Clouds

"Look, he is coming with the clouds," and "every eye will see him, even those who pierced him"; and all peoples on earth "will mourn because of him." So shall it be! Amen. Revelation 1:7

When Jesus returns, it will be with clouds. Both Old and New Testaments testify to this. Are we to believe this is just a weather phenomenon? It is true that the earthly presence of God is so pictured, but what about his coming in the clouds?

I remember my first exposure to the idea of another possible explanation. It begins in Daniel,chapter seven, verses ten and thirteen.

A river of fire was flowing, coming out from before him. Thousands upon thousands attended him; ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him. Daniel 7:10

This wonderful scene continues.

"In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. Daniel 7:13

Have you ever heard a sermon on this? I know I have not. In Corporate Churches the book of Daniel, if mentioned at all, is the Story of Daniel in the lions den, used in the childrens' department. This is consistent with presenting one of the greatest of prophetic books as stories in the past tense.

But how should we view the scene pictured above? The multitudes could be a cloud of angels. Though why the Lord is led into the presence of God at this time is not clear. We may conclude that Jesus is escorted to the Father, accompanied by his church, the Bride's members of all ages.

Daniel is ignored and despised in many of today's churches. I know from personal experience. But for those of us who really care, Daniel chapter 7 is a picture of future glory.