Where to go

The weather is starting to get a little better and I'm wanting to get outside and hike the trails. Here is the question of the week: If flowers don't talk back to you, are they mums? This one is a columbine and is telling me where to go...

The bad thing about being the early bird

We have pigeon problems in our neighborhood. They nest in our roof (and the neighbors') and make a mess. One of these pigeons ate so many bread crumbs in the park, it laid a roll on my roof. Enough is enough! So I went to Wall mart and bought a pellet gun. I haven't had so much fun in a long time! Anyone know how to get rid of feathers?

My barber

My barber moved away recently and I've been shopping for another one. This is a very frustrating experience. I interviewed one barber and asked "What do you do for falling hair?" He smiled and said, "Rake it up and burn it with the leaves." The barber shop I used to go to had more than one barber (I like panel discussions). Most of the places I'm finding now are all salons with women barbers who know nothing about football. Most women make a reservation at these places. I just go for an estimate.

REI dividend

I got my REI dividend yesterday! The question now is, "what to spend it on?" So I thought I'd get something for my feet. Without them, you don't have a leg to stand on. The nice thing about these shoes is, each toe has its own private compartment. I think my toes will like that.

Fires

We've had some bad fires in Colorado in March this year. While the mountains have had plenty of snow, we've been very dry along the front range and conditions are very windy. This one, the burning tree fire, threatened homes near Franktown Southeast of the Denver area. It was the third large fire this month near Denver.

Miracles

It's interesting that Jesus made something big out of something small, such as the miracle of feeding the 5,000.

But Jesus also works a miracle in reverse by making something big (everything and everyone that wants to be something) into something little, makes it infinitely nothing in humility. Perhaps only God can point out another's weakness to the extent that it's nothing. And perhaps only faith can help one see a miracle.

Dostoyevsky writes, "The genuine realist, if he is an unbeliever, will always find strength and ability to disbelieve in the miraculous, and if he is confronted with a miracle as an irrefutable fact he would rather disbelieve his own senses than admit the fact. Faith does not... spring from the miracle, but the miracle from faith."

Promises of God

I love what C.S. Lewis writes, "if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires, not too strong but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at sea."

The promises of God are staggering indeed. Jesus knew about them because he'd been there. Yancey writes, "Unlike medieval kings who threw coins to the masses (or modern politicians who make promises to the poor just before elections), Jesus had the ability to offer His audience lasting, even eternal rewards.

Jesus came down from heaven knowing that it was worth any misery here on earth. He showed us the way. Those who mourn He says, will be comforted, the meek will inherit the earth, the hungry will be filled, the pure will see God.

Unfortunately most Americans believe; blessed are the happy and strong, or blessed are those who hunger and thirst for a good time, who look out for number one. Most Americans live in the here and now. Believers see it like the old song, 'This world is not my home, I'm just a passin' through..." and are waiting on the promises of God.

Saints

"A saint is one who exaggerates what the world neglects."

- G.K. Chesterton

Snow on the ground

Last night I got in three basketball games, including Gonzaga. For some reason, the media always thinks they're going to lose. Ha! I woke up this morning, took the garbage out and found some snow on the ground. Well, March and April are the wettest months in Colorado. And yes, that is blue sky today!

Deep Peace, an old Gaelic prayer

Let's not forget that St. Patrick's Day isn't just about green beer and parties. I thought I'd share something a little deeper than what our shallow society celebrates. Enjoy!

Deep peace, pure gold of the sun to you.
Deep peace, pure white of the moon to you.
Deep peace, pure blue of the sky to you.
Deep peace, pure green of the grass to you.
Deep peace, pure brown of the earth to you.
Deep peace, pure gray of the dew to you.
Deep peace, of the running wave to you.
Deep peace, of the whispering trees to you.
Deep peace, of the flowing air to you.
Deep peace, of the quiet earth to you.
Deep peace, of the gentle night to you.
Deep peace, of the shining stars to you.
Moon and stars pour their healing light on you.
Deep peace, of the Son of Peace to you.
Deep peace, of Christ, the light of the world to you.
Deep peace of Christ to you.

NFL this year?

Now that the NFL players are locked out due to collective bargaining (where did that get them), this coming season is at risk. My general felling as a fan is that both parties (players and management) are greedy and the fans end up paying the price... in ticket prices. How much money do these guys need to make? It's too bad, because they've all forgotten who the customer is.

Cats

I took this photo a few years ago and it reminded me of an old saying, "A cat may have nine lives, but a bullfrog croaks every time!"

Denver Pow Wow

A few years ago, Nancy and I went to the Denver Pow Wow. One of the things that I noticed about many of the ceremonies, is that it included those who served in the military (U.S.) along with flags and banners of their units. It was clear they took great pride in serving in this capacity and they were honored by their peers and leaders for their service. I'm planning on going again this Saturday, if at all possible. The music is great.

Hiking with Paul

I found this picture of Paul wearing his second hat. His lucky hat was lost in the Colorado River when we flipped our raft. Below is a picture of him hiking up Havasu Creek from the Colorado River. Notice the color of the water. It's filled with minerals from the limestone.

FROG hike to the White House

We went hiking with our friends from FROG yesterday up to Mount Falcon Park and visited the "White House," a summer home for future U.S. Presidents. The home was never finished. Of course this brought a great deal of thoughts to my mind (low budget, since politicians had Colorado kids donating 10 cents each to fund it). All I will say is that our Presidents do the best they can. That should be enough to scare you! Of course, to hunt, fish, or own a dog, you need a license. But anybody who wants to can run for President!

Our FROG hiking group is terrific. There were thirteen of us on this hike. We enjoyed some warmer weather, considering it's early March, and hiked all over the park. The photo below is of the Walker mansion which burned down in 1918 and is near the White House. Walker was a real visionary. He bought the company which made the Stanley Steamer.

Frozen rental car

This week I was traveling in Fairbanks, AK. When I got up in the morning to start the car and warm it up, the temperature on the dash indicated it was -29. On the radio they said it was -31. I opened the door to the car with some difficulty because it was frozen. Then, I couldn't close the door because the latch mechanism was now frozen stuck. Hertz no doubt had taken it to the car wash the day before! I figured it's okay, I can drive with one hand on the wheel and one hand holding the door closed. Thankfully, after 20 minutes and $10 in gas I warmed it up enough to get it working. How do those people live up there?

Mental institutions

Every cloud has a silver lining, as the saying goes. And I feel a pang when I tell a joke about somebody who's going through life without his porch light on. It could be they are smarter than I am! Here goes anyway: A patient in the asylum said to another patient, "I'm not feeling myself today." The other patient said, "That makes four of us!"

Concerned about money

The economy has everyone concerned these days. I know I'm concerned. I was on a hike near our house not long ago and saw these female deer. It was clear to me they were worried about a buck too!

Jerry Driesens

I found this old photo of Jerry the other day. It brought back fond memories of time spent together since college days. While Jerry is now with the Lord, the memories of his friendship live on. Thanks Jerry, for living a life worthy of your calling.

There's more to life than merely living

I took this photo of Norm's boat (yellow) and Jerry's (blue) on the Colorado River a couple years ago. With Jerry you knew there was more to life than merely living. He went way beyond just the joys of the river. And he did it in pain.

Jerry lived in pain and had cancer a fifth of his life. I think pain opens our hearts to search for God. For Jerry and for many of us, pain that causes us to look for God is not the peevish pain of a grumbler who mumbles discontent. And Jerry certainly never asked the painful question, "Why me?" It's not the angry pain of a narcissist who finds out that self-centeredness has consequences. It's not the pain of someone needing a psychiatrist who is trying to like himself better, or enjoy life more.

Rather, it is the pain of someone who wants to enjoy pleasures he cannot find and who fears that misery seems inevitable and perhaps deserved. It is pain that makes us stand still and think about something outside of ourselves, something more important and more interesting than our concerns about who we are and how we're doing. It is pain that compels us to ask terrifying questions about life and God.

Only the frightening, immobilizing, and awe-inspiring, realization that we are out of God's Garden with no way back in and that supernatural powers hover about us will stop us long enough to hear what is beyond our immediate experience. Only then can God speak through His words to introduce us to a new dimension of life.

I like Hebrews 11:6, looking to God: "And without faith it is impossible to please him, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek Him."