Short-Timing It

Do you know what a short-timer is? The term came from the Vietnam era to denote A solider who had less than two months to serve. Other short-timers include people who give notice at work with their intent to leave. The hallmark of a short-timer is that they usually don’t care about what’s going on anymore because they see a different path in the very near future.

With this blog of mine I try to balance my nature to share and my hesitancy to share. On one hand I want to share with people what I’ve learned, what I think, why I think the way I do in hopes that they may learn something and in return that I may learn something about myself. I find it hard to write about deep personal experiences and about the people I know and love. For one thing, a lot of my friends and family don’t want their lives put out onto the Internet. I respect that and I try hard to maintain a balance. So, these words are especially difficult to write and for some, may be difficult to read. But I feel led to write them nevertheless.

I have someone in my family who I love dearly, who I think is humorous, has a lot of wisdom, who is compassionate, caring, loving and giving.

I know he struggles with his own demons – alcohol being one of them. Hell, we all have our own demons and skeletons to deal with.

I really don’t judge or condemn him for his inability to conquer that demon, for I have never walked in his shoes. But when I hear of his distress my heart aches for him.

You see, I think he is short-timing it. He’s had to deal with Cancer, and at any age or disposition in life that is a tough battle by itself. I can’t imagine the pain he goes through with that. But from what I know, I think he’s done an admiral job at dealing with Cancer.

I just wonder if my friend has given up?

I was talking with my mother today about the whole affair and said “Well, at some point in life you get tired of the fight, you tire of the war against the flesh. Maybe he’s just short-timing now, hoping and yearning for the peace of the eternal rest.”

And then it hit me – It doesn’t take old age or an affliction like cancer to make someone become a short-timer.

There are so many people walking through life right now short-timing it. They are waiting for what’s happening today to end, so that they can start anew tomorrow.

To this attitude I pray “Lord, as I grow older and hopefully wiser, no matter what the circumstance, please be with me so that I may not Short-Time the time you have given me. Let me rejoice for everyday that has been given and let me stay grateful for the life I have lived. For the time I have on Earth is not recorded until the day my body is laid to rest.”

To my loved-one, my friend, who is dealing with his demons and afflictions of the flesh, I hope I have more time with you. I hope that in the days, months and years that you may have left, that those days are filled with love, with hope, and joy for the life and time that we have all been given.

You know, it’s hard telling someone that you love them, when at the same time you are sadden that they are unable to conquer their demons and afflictions.

So my friend I’ll just say I Love You!

I don’t have a lot of verses memorized, but as I wrote these words, these words of the father came to me: For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life (John 3:16). But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.(John 4:14).

I’m So Glad God Exist

So many years ago God graciously accepted my invitation – the invitation to save me from my human instincts, to teach me love and kindness, to show me wisdom, to help me to be a better man and to save me from my sins.

As I grow in God’s image and see the world around me, I still have moments of cloudiness, moments of rage, moments of doubt and moments uncertainty.

I watch the T.V. images and stories of the Aurora Theatre Killings and my heart breaks. And in those moments I feel a rage deep in me. How could a man do such an act – to kill men, women and children with no remorse, with hate and anger.

And then, in those moments, a peace overcomes my heart.

You see, I’m So Glad God Exist – I know that he comforts me in these times of unrest, he calms the rage and he shows me his way.

I pray for the families in Aurora who have lost loved-ones. I pray that God comforts them and calms their rage and that even in this time of tribulation, they see God’s way.

My pastor, Dr. Cooper, gave an uplifting message on suffering – clarity during turbulent times – http://www.mountparan.com/mostrecentmessageV.asp

A Fist Full of Haters

The world of seven hundred billion (SHB) people is full of Haters. People who always look for the problem, for this issues, for the mistakes of others so as to make themselves feel better about their own short comings.

It saddens me that the Internet, a tool of collaboration and communication, is used by the sickened to spread their hate and misery. They troll around on forums and comment sections and spout their condemnation to others who try to create with their hands, hearts and minds.

Are you a hater or a appreciator?

Do you look for the good in what your fellow men do or do you simply want people to fail?

Mamma says “If you can’t say something good, don’t say anything at all.”

You know, as years go by, mamma’s words make more and more sense!

When Words Matter

I don’t know, maybe I’m getting old school. In the time I grew up, I learned that “sticks and stones may break my bones, but words never will hurt me.”

Back then we were taught to be tough, to ignore idiot adults and stupid children’s taunts. As a kid it is tough to shun the attack of verbal abuse. In today’s world, it seems that it is still difficult to ignore hurtful words that come our way.

But, I still believe after many years of reflection that words only have power over us if we allow them to have power. As adults we can control our impulses to respond to “stupid, dumb-ass” or worse.

But there are times when words do matter.

While reading a thought-thread that started with Neal Bortz discussing an Obama official citing Karl Marx (the communist), I was reading the comment section of the Rick Bookstaber post, the Obama official citing Karl Marx that Bortz was referring to. In the comment section of Bookstaber’s blog post, a commenter named Abe was able to communicate when words matter.

Abe commented:
“Marx was a notable, even preeminent, social philosopher of that time.”
So you believe that’s a good enough reason to constantly quote him, not only in this, but other posts as well?
Everyone knows who Marx was. Nobody claims he was not a notable social philosopher. It’s the terrible impact of Marxs’ philosophy, the millions slaughtered thanks to his ideas, which offends people terribly, and therefore garners so much negativity when you quote him.
So you see, the fact that he was indeed such a prominent philosopher, is what caused humanity so much hurt. If he’d be an insignificant individual with no one paying attention to his philosophy, maybe, just maybe the world would be spared of communist mass murderers the likes of Stalin, Mao, Castro, Che, Pol Pot etc. most of whom are revered and quoted amongst Leftist Academics and main-stream Liberals such as yourself.
Is this really beyond your comprehension? Although, I wouldn’t be surprised if that is the case. White House communications director Anita Dunn famously quoted Mao as one of her “favorite political philosophers.” Yet When Glenn beck criticized her, the leftists came running with their MSM pitchforks and condemned him profusely. Why? Because Ms. Dunn didn’t specifically praise Mao’s atrocities! That’s a mind-boggling feat of ethical line-drawing! The level of your intellectual dishonesty is simply stunning! Yet you don’t see the error of her, or your ways.
Let me put it to you in simpler terms: You can’t separate the man’s political philosophy from the actions that flowed from it. It’s the same as saying you look to Mein Kampf as a masterpiece of political philosophy but don’t support Hitler’s actions.
I rest my case.

You see, words are ideas. Ideas become powerful when men take them to heart and then take action.

“The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.”
- Luke 6:45

The Cool Technology

of my generation continues to amaze me! I’ve been using Microsoft’s FREE Windows Photo Gallery application for three or so years now and it is great. I’m sure there are other photo/video management tools out there, but I got hooked on this one and it keeps getting better.

For instance, how many people do you see in this photo?

Pictured: Jean Horton, Cindie Horton and Melba Horton (L-R)

Did you say three? Well, actually I would have said that as well had it not been for Photo Gallery asking me who the people on the wall were? See them, the President and those other two who I don’t know? By the way the three in the front are my mom, my sister Cindie and my wife, who became a citizen on the 23rd!

Isn’t that cool? Photo Gallery recognized five faces in the picture (the last one on the right wasn’t recognized for some reason (technology isn’t perfect yet).

When you think about it, on many facets of technological evolution, Humans have achieved what they thought they could. But for so much of technology that we take for granted today, Humanity had no idea we would have so much or be so far advanced!

Imagine, there are millions of people everyday putting effort into improving (evolving) technology to do more – way more than we ever imagined or could imagine.

If humanity can manage to last another 10,000 years without digressing back to the cave, where will we be? What kind of technology might we have.

I am a little jealous of the children of the future, but, I am so grateful that I have the technology that I have today!

How Do You Change the World?

So many great people have walked the Earth. So many great people are still walking that same Earth right now. I suspect that if humanity continues to be blessed, there will be scores of great people to walk the Earth in the future!

From the perspective of a single human being, it is often asked How can one person change the world?

I think at the core of this question are two simple answers: A human can change the World by one act of kindness at a time or, conversely, by one act of evil at a time.

I choose kindness!

In December of 2009 I read about Kiva (www.Kiva.org). Kiva is a microfinance facilitator that works with microfinance organizations around the world to connect lenders to poor borrowers and the borrowers get the loans with no finance charges. I decided that I could start with fifty dollars and help people borrow money so they could make a better life for themselves and their families!

Since December of 2009, by adding $ 25.00 dollars at a time I now have a bankroll of $ 1000.00 dollars in my Kiva account. As borrowers pay back their loans, I re-loan the money back out.  The $ 1000.00 dollars has actually been lent out for a total of $ 3,275.00 dollars to 104 borrowers.

When I first started with Kiva I had no goal. I just thought the idea of helping people help themselves was a good start. Now, as I think and write about my experience, I think my goal is to keep loaning $ 25.00 at a time, one act of kindness at a time.

If You Know Someone in the Music Business…

I have a talented friend, Wayne Vickers, and every now and then we sit down and write a tune. In 2007 we wrote a couple of songs and they are my favorite to date that we’ve written together.

The lyrics for Scattered Road (click the link to listen to the song) were written by both of us in a day. I was listening to Garth Brook’s song What She’s Doing Now and my thoughts turned to old flame from many years back. I sat down and wrote the first verse and half of the chorus in about 15 minutes. I sent them to Wayne and that night he finished the Chorus and second verse in about an hour. Collaborating like that was crazy cool!

Realman (click the link to listen to the song) is a song idea I had after listening to one of Wayne’s one minute music treatments. We were sitting around one day just thinking about what a Realman is and out came this song.

Songwriting with a friend is really fun – when you collaborate it seems like the song isn’t yours or isn’t your collaborators. The song seems to have its own voice!

If you know someone in the music business ask them to get these to some famous artist to record. I’d love to hear a star sing either of these two on the radio.