October 25, 2020 thought for the today: If you are an anvil, be patient; if you are a hammer, strike hard. German Proverb

I feel bad....I chose not to go to church today, personal reasons. I have a feeling I will feel the effects of it all day if not all week. I have come to find that I need the Sunday morning refresher to my daily living. It clears my mind and “gives me permission” to keep going with a smile and lessens or sweeps away some of the heaviest dismaying events of the past week, piled on those same feelings of the past few months of strife, sadness, and fear. I don’t always agree with the message of the day but the companionship of my peers and friends and the atmosphere of the church are part of worship. The organ music, even if we don’t sing along, following the words in the hymnal stimulate emotional and thought censors.

Yesterday the photo theme was “rocks”. I didn’t have to go far to find rock. We have a few spots in the back and front yard where small collections of rocks have seems to gather. Planning a rock garden may be on the horizon for next spring. 

We have a mouse in the house. Last night as I sat in my bed reading I saw him searching for food in the other room. We have been mouse-free for several months. He must have come in out of the “cold” and most likely plans to stay. I would rather not kill him so he’d better find his way out again....not very likely.

I still don’t have much planned for today, this being Sunday. I will enjoy looking out the window at nature and the sky as I gather knowledge from searches on the computer and favorable articles from the paper (online version).

The word for the day is opinion.  Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth, Marcus Aurelius.  Opinion has caused more trouble on this little earth than plagues or earthquakes, Voltaire.  He who has no opinion of his own, but depends upon the opinion and taste of others, is a slave, Friedrich Gottlieb Klopstock.  The man who never alters his opinions is like standing water, and breeds reptiles of the mind, William Blake.    I never considered a difference of opinion in politics, in religion, in philosophy, as cause for withdrawing from a friend, Thomas Jefferson. Opinion in good men is but knowledge in the making, John Milton.  Public opinion in this country is everything, Abraham Lincoln, Opinion is the queen of the world, Blaise Pascal. Keep one thing in view forever- the truth; and if you do this, though it may seem to lead you away from the opinion of men, it will assuredly conduct you to the throne of God, Horace Mann.  Errors of opinion may be tolerated where reason is left free to combat it, Thomas Jefferson. Opinions are made to be changed or how is truth to be got at? Lord Byron. Things are not to be judged good or bad merely because the public think so, Tacitus. Science is the father of knowledge, but opinion breeds ignorance, Hippocrates. 

I had to make a quick trip for an errand so while I was out I kept an eye out for today’s photo challenge. I had given it some thought earlier but had a hard time trying to come up with where to look for “an arrow pointing up”. With Bob’s help I came up with a couple of things to look for and as I was driving I saw a few more. 

Here’s real courage and the will and wonder to get every drop and every moment of fun that life has to offer. The article is about a little boy who has Prader-Willi Syndrom, a very serious genetic disorder and how he is handling life. Some of the symptoms of the disease are low muscle tone, abnormal growth and intellectual disabilities and more. The doctors told his parents that he wouldn’t be able to walk alone. Then he started walking, next they said he would never run after he was running then said he would never jump. His mother showed the doctor a photo on her phone of the boy climbing on a climbing rock. The boy’s father introduced him to a skateboard to help his muscle tone and balance during the pandemic when his physical therapy was halted. Apparently the skateboarding has helped him in other ways too. It has helped socially as well as in the areas of reaction time and anticipating things. Because of the skateboarding exercise his running has improved. Other “obstacles” have come into his live. He developed cerebral palsy and is on the autism spectrum. His parents say something I have heard from other parents of children who have special differences in their lives. The parents say “...(he) has been the most rewarding thing in my entire life because it taught me to quit worrying about things I can’t control.” Ways of treating many less than everyday twists in human development way come about by an unexpected happening. When the physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy were interrupted for the boy, his parents accidentally found something that helped maybe in better ways. When these stopped for the boy his father found the skateboard as he was cleaning out the garage. There was a learning period and some nervousness on the part of the parents but all was beyond well. The father is planning a line of skate4boards that will benefit research. The boards will be imprinted with the words “Yes, I Will.”

Sundays have become taco night (or a reliable substitute) for take home for dinner. 

Joy