Sometimes, I like the nonsensical in life.

All my life ….. I have been this way.

As little kids, we made “pretend” for a lot of the time during which we played.  Some people had imaginary friends… and others played dolls.. giving them little lives and little actions.  We would act out scenes, or we became great explorers, superheroes, or homemakers.  We would sit for hours and  draw, or read, or simply play… and escape to great worlds of the unknown.

Then at some point… the  “adults”in our little lives…  began to  “keenly” make us aware that those behaviors were childish, not real, and a “waste of time.”  Period.

And then we became the adults.  We no longer believed in the “pretend” and the “make believe” and the “nonsensical.”  As children, we would throw our tiny arms in the air, and run around in circles… simply because the notion struck us.  As big people… we lost touch with those notions.

To ALL of that.. I say…. Pissshhhhaaawwww.  Do not have it.

Believe it or not…. We still try to find little joys in the “make believe.”  We still read books, listen to music, and watch TV, movies, and plays, which take us to fictitious worlds.

I propose… that every day… we should do something to keep the magic alive.  I don’t think we have to be grown up all the time.  That is just some little rule society dropped on us, when we were eleven.  Make believe in something today.  Have a “pretend” moment.  Throw your arms up in the air like you just don’t care.

Put on the old Donna Summer song… which never made a bit of sense…  Someone left the cake out in the rain…. and I don’t think that I can take it………. ‘Cause it took so long to bake it…..  And I’ll never have that recipe again.  Oh, no.

Find the recipe.  Have that cake.  Twirl around in circle.  Believe in the magic.  Make Believe.

You know the old saying…
“No one ever said life is fair.”

I for one, never got the Big Life Rule Book when I was born. At least, I can’t find it anywhere. And this thing… this whole experience we know as “life”…. it seems like it is fair to some people and unfair to others.

Again, I can’t find the Rule Book… so I don’t know what is equitable or not.

I know I wish that people…. really good people… wouldn’t die young.
I know I wish that hearts didn’t have to break.

I wish that all the people who are feeling immense suffering, and sadness, and pain… can somehow… tonight…. find peace.

Tears come from the heart and not from the brain. —  Leonardo da Vinci

So, do you ever feel like an inanimate object? How does an inanimate object feel, you may be wondering? Because, after all, that which is inanimate…. is lifeless, insentient. It is perhaps, inorganic, or dead, or just plain old defunct.

I have a friend that always offer the same response when you ask him how he is doing. He always says… “Peachy.”

Now, a peach is a living thing… at one time or another. But after you pick it.. well… it is pretty much done living. (Okay… the seed has potential.) But how does a peach feel? Sweet and yummy? Sometimes.

But a peach can be sour, and rock hard too. It can also be covered with fuzz in a bad way, and it always has a huge pit in its gut. So ask you can see… his answer ALWAYS leaves me guessing.

Do you ever feel like a pencil? That could mean a hundred things too. Very sharp and pointy. Depending. Or it could be totally worn down, broken, chewed on, or pointless.

Consider the ever popular spoon…. especially with cereal eaters. Again, the possibilities are endless. Useful. Or…. It can’t cut a thing. Shiny and smooth? Tarnished? Dirty? Bent? Made of fine silver, or cracked plastic.

Just what do you feel like on any given day? Peanut Butter? Straw? Feathers? Cat Litter? Gold?

Today… I feel like a brick. Thick as a brick. Rough, like a big brick. Yep. Today… I just might be a brick.

You cannot have a positive life and a negative mind.  —   Joyce Meyer

Did I offer peace today? Did I bring a smile to someone’s face? Did I say words of healing? Did I let go of my anger and resentment? Did I forgive? Did I love? These are the real questions. I must trust that the little bit of love that I sow now will bear many fruits, here in this world and the life to come.  —  Henri Nouwen

Things don’t always go as we anticipate.

If things ALWAYS went the way we expected them to… we would all be Psychics.  That would be trouble.  I’d know what you were thinking, and you would know what I was thinking.. and … well…. you can imagine the repercussions of THAT scenario.

But back to what we “THINK” will happen.  It seems that I spend a lot of time in “Anticipation Mode.”  I try to imagine what a certain “event” or “happening” will be like.

Sometimes, I get myself downright worked up over it.  Downright Worked Up.  Now there’s a phrase for you.  But it is true.

The main canon of a lot of the stress we feel… is this highly frustrating, nagging and oh-so-scary feeling…. deep down inside …. that WE just don’t know what’s going to happen next. (See Psychic Comment Above.)

Life is unpredictable.  That is the nature of it.  Luck, randomness and chance contribute to this capricious existence.   It is simply unrealistic to think we can control things.  Unfortunately, for this worrying little head… we can’t control that unforeseeable future.

Intellectually, I totally GET this.  Emotionally, I flounder.  I know it would do me well to focus my energy on the things I CAN control.  Which, for the most part…. are my thoughts and my actions!  And. Sometimes I can’t even control my thoughts….   (Again.. see reference above to irrational worry.)

It is best… to stop worrying about the future because…. because we are missing the best time of our lives right HERE, and right NOW.  That is what I understand… in my rational little brain.  But whatever body part controls worry…. hasn’t figured this out yet.

Never be in a hurry; do everything quietly and in a calm spirit. Do not lose your inner peace for anything whatsoever, even if your whole world seems upset.  —  Saint Francis de Sales

Tonight, I offer you a sampling of little facts I found today. But very true.  Coincidentally, I present to you…. some photos I shot today ….which happen to coincide.  In my little mind.

The longest Oil Pipeline in the United States is called the Rockies Express Pipeline.  It is 1,678 miles long and it stretches from Colorado to Ohio.

This is a photo of the shortest Oil Pipeline in the U.S. running from Miller Lane Carwash, Eaton, Ohio, to Miller Lane Carwash, Eaton, Ohio.

Cloud-to-ground lightning bolts are a common phenomenon—about 100 strike Earth’s surface every single second—yet their power is extraordinary. Each bolt can contain up to one billion volts of electricity.

That is a lot.

And these bolts, in the side of an old building…. are representative of up to one billion other bolts… in the sides of other buildings… WHERE electric is used … all over the world.  Amazing Coincidence.  Simply stinking remarkable.

Finally…
Studies show that apes experience dips in happiness in their middle age, much like people do.

And of course… this orange peel on the ground.
The correlation?  Well… Apes in midlife crisis quit loving bananas the way they used to.  They try other fruit.  Peely fruit.  Hence the orange on the ground.  I imagine an Ape in Midlife Crisis was by this place on Barron Street…. sometime during the morning … and threw down that orange peel.  Clowns all over the world are sorely dissappointed, as these are much harder to slip on than banana peels.

And me and the apes are stuck in mid-life crisis.   How bananas is THAT?

You know, I am open to hearing all sorts of ideas, and practices, when it comes to…. well… just about anything.   I don’t discount other people’s beliefs, simply because they are not my own.

There isn’t a one of us…. , I don’t suppose….. , who is smart enough to know for sure.  Yes we can believe, but it doesn’t make it true.  Heck, look at the Easter Bunny… or even Hillary Clinton in 2008.

Any way.

I like to learn about peaceful, quiet prayer practices, such as Zen Buddhism, and Meditative Yoga, and Full-Contact Karate.  (I just threw that in about karate, to see if you were paying attention.)

But there is this “thing” in the Zen Way, that says we shouldn’t be judgmental.  Now, I think this is pretty right on.  I try not to judge others based on this or that or anything.  Yet, the Zennish premise is that we don’t judge anything as good or bad.   We simply just experience the sensation.

As much as I’d like to… this is truly impossible for me.  I have some pretty clear cut feelings about this.

For example… let’s take pizza.  When I have a delicious hot piping crusty, cheesy pizza in front of me… and I take a bite… as hard as I may try… I cannot say this is neither good nor bad.  You bet your butt it is good. So good in fact, I’ll have another piece, thank you very much.

But let’s say you close your finger in your car door.  Now, I can definitely deem this as bad.  When that door slams shut on my hand, I do not have the least little bit of Zen in my body.   I will tell you that right. now.  In fact, I say to myself… and the whole rest of the world… right out loud… “Oh MY GOD.. this is BAD!”  Really bad.  Like… my thumb shouldn’t be bending that way… bad.

I know what feels good, and I know what feels terrible.  And it is genuine.

I like a chicken egg… no matter how you cook it.  Good.

I don’t like rubbing alcohol in an open cut.  Bad.   Or drinking sour, curdled milk.  Again, bad.

Holding a puppy.  Good.  Running into a steel beam with your forehead… bad.  You see how this goes.

A monk, I will never be…NO.    They will never give me the Brown  Robe.
And come to think of it…. I got kicked out of the Brownies when I was in the Second Grade.

So there you have it.  Life’s Precursors are everywhere.  I guess that’s good.  Or maybe bad.  I’m just not going to judge it, either way.

There is something about the Superhero books and movies and shows, which I love.  I think it is the prospect of mere humans who, through happenstance, come to posses those Super Powers.

Like Super Strength, or Lightning Speed, or Slinky Shapeshifting.  The Telepathic, the High-Flyers, and the Weather-Wielders.  And then there are the Heroic Healers.  Their power is to fix whoever is hurt… or worse.

They are the Coolest.

And here is what I have come to find out.  In our real lives, we have many mere humans among us, who are healers.  They can come in many shapes and forms.  The obvious being those awesome doctors and nurses, who really do the Oath proud.

But healing comes in other ways too.  For instance, there are some Massage Therapists who are endowed with the incredible healing touch.  You can feel it as soon as they lay a hand on you.   I am lucky to have found such a person… who has also turned into a very good friend.  I am grateful.

Healing can come in other forms too.  Gifted musicians, philanthropists, Yoga teachers, Reiki Masters, and on.  I am lucky to know people who fall into all these categories.  How blessed is that?

And quite possibly, one of the best Healers is the person who is filled with Life Compassion.  They give you a safe place for your heart.  A listening ear.  A reassuring hug, or a kind word.  They may be your biggest fan, and believe in you, even when you don’t believe in yourself.  Remarkable.

So I say to each of you.  Thank you for making my life better.  Thank you for offering your gift to this world.  And to me.

Thanks for being My Superheroes.  And for crying out loud, remember…. NO CAPES.

“No Capes.”  —  Edna Mode, The Incredibles

What makes people tick, I wonder.  The really good people, who are pretty dang close to Sainthood?  And then, on the other end of the scale, the dark, the cruel, the sinister?

Heaven only knows.  Or maybe hell knows too.  Who can say for sure?  But both ends of the spectrum certainly exist in the world.

While visiting my Mom, the telephone rang.  I just figured it was one of my siblings… who call Mom on a regular basis.  There are a couple of them, and THEY… by the way… are on the Sparkly Side of the Mirror.

Anyway… one ringy dingy, two ringy dingy, and Mom picks it up.  Within a few seconds, I could tell it was some kind of telemarketer, and not a shimmering sibling.  The look on her face was priceless.  Finally, without a word, she hung up the phone.

“Mom, was that a telemarketer on the phone?”
“Well… yes.  It was somebody selling Jesus.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah.  I told ‘em Jesus isn’t for sale.”

Mom and her words of wisdom.

But it gave me cause to think.  Who would be calling a 91-year-old-woman, selling Jesus? I have a guess… and I began thinking about the scammers, and the schemers, the robbers, the hackers, and the pillagers.

What do they think when they roll out of bed in the morning.  “I wonder who I can totally destroy today?”  OR… “I can’t wait to take something, ANYTHING, from somebody.  The more the better.”

How does that work?

I know that times can be desperate.  Things can be downright hard, making your way in life. Ends don’t meet.  And… daggone it.  Some people have a hard lot in life.  I get this.  But why do some turn to crime, and others turn to working their butts off?  I guess ten minutes in a bank with a gun is more appealing than 10 days behind the counter at McDonald’s.

Most “modern” psychology suggests that the goal of achieving superiority is what motivates many people to commit crimes. The criminal usually attacks weak victims in order to be in control and to feel superior.  Generally speaking.

I think there is more to this.  Much more.  Dark vs. Light.  Good Energy vs. Bad Energy.  With numerous complications, transmutations, and variations of course.  I don’t know what the answer it.

Maybe we need more Deer Licks… and less derelicts.  Or more sticks in the grass, than Stick Ups.  And definitely more Photo-Bombs, than Suicidal Bombers.

And…. I DO know THIS.  If there were more Fairy Dust in the world, things would be a lot better.  Fairy Dust, Silly Putty…..  and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice-cream for everyone.  And fuzzy baby kittens…. that stayed baby kittens.  That just might be the ticket.

Today is Yogi Berra’s Birthday.
Not to be confused with Yogi Bear.

Okay, so let’s start with the truth about his name.  His real FULL name is  Yogi Berra.  Now, who really does that to a kid.  He was born in 1925, and he is a Taurus like me.  Or I am a Taurus like him, more to the point.

Now believe it or not, he started out as a door-to-door encyclopedia salesman.  It was his dream from the time he was a boy.  As it turns out, Yogi was no good at it.  He didn’t have a very good memory, and this is critical for an encyclopedia salesman, as you might imagine.  To which he observed… “I’m not going to buy my kids an encyclopedia. Let them walk to school like I did.”

One day he was tossing the ball around with some pals, and they thought he ought to try out for the big time.  Yogi replied…”What the heck.”  And off he went to the Big Apple.

He played in NY almost his entire 19 year career, from 1946 to 1965.

He was pretty good too.  He won the AL MVP award three times.  As a player, coach, or manager, he appeared in 21 World Series, winning 13 of them.

He was the first guy to  pinch hit a World Series homer.
He went errorless as a catcher.  His streak was 148 games.
After the game, he always enjoyed a big dinner.  Once at Antonia’s Famous Pizzeria on the corner of 5th and Broad, he decided to start watching his waistline.  He told the waiter… “You better cut the pizza in four pieces because I’m not hungry enough to eat six.”

He was a really good guy.  AND, in 1972, Old Yogi, & Sandy Koufax, & Early Wynn were elected to Hall of Fame

But let’s forget  about Yogi the Baseball Man.  Let us regard him in a much higher sense.  His philosophical Waxings.  Some of my greatest life lessons I have learned from this man.

And I will share a couple with you tonight.

On life in general….
You can observe a lot by just watching.

Regarding you life purpose….
If you don’t know where you are going, you might wind up someplace else.

When things don’t seem confusing enough….
In theory there is no difference between theory and practice. In practice there is.

And, why giving advice to others may be a bad idea….
There are some people who, if they don’t already know, you can’t tell ’em.

Finally…. Your life destination.  The Secrets to it ALL when it comes to figuring out this thing we call life.

1. When you come to a fork in the road, take it.

2. The future ain’t what it used to be.

3. It ain’t over till it’s over.

Do you ever feel like Hansel and Gretel?

Not like when the witch is stuffing them into the oven.  That would be a really bad day… if you are feeling like Hansel and Gretel at that particular time in their lives.

But much earlier in their day… when they first start out together.

Actually,  the entire story is pretty pathetic, from the very beginning.  I mean… that dang old mean step-mother says they eat too much, so she decides to abandon them deep into the woods and leave them there.  AND, she brow beats the poor father into agreeing to this plan.  Yep.  Go Hansel.  Go Gretel.  Go to the deep dark forest…..to fend for yourselves….  you, you, you little piggies.

But wait… not only are they big eaters… they are smart kids too.  And, as a result, they drop white pebbles and get back home…. by retracing their steps.  And once there… “Muuuummmmmeeeee.  Weeee’rrrrrre Bacccccckkkkkk!”

Oh For Crying Out Loud.   It is back to the woods they go… this next time carrying NO pebbles.  Horrible StepMom makes sure.  But Hansel… he grabs a slice of Wonder Bread.  This time he leaves a trail of bread crumbs.  (They were out of peanut butter, or he might have just made a sandwich.) But alas.. that saving crumb trail….

And the hungry birds…..

Well… you know the rest of the story.

But back to my premise.  Do you ever feel like Hansel and Gretel?  Starting out on an unknown adventure?  Perhaps it may be a little scary, or unknown.  You just don’t know what will come around the bend.  So you try to leave a way…. to get back where you started.  Retrace your steps.  Get back to the safety zone.

Yet.  It may turn out better if we don’t fall back on what we know.  Even if we want to.  Sometimes we have to forge ahead.  We have to traipse through those big woods… and go to that old Gingerbread House, and fight the gnarly, scary, horrible witch.  Although… look what happens.  Once we show our mettle, well… we get the pot of gold, or the treasure… or the really big gumdrop.  Whatever it was… you were after.  Perhaps, even, your wildest dream.

The fact that the crappy stepmother dies when the children have killed the witch,  suggests to me that the despicable  stepmother and the witch are metaphorically the same woman.

So it is with life.  Sometimes that thing to over come… that thing we dread… is directly tied to something else.  Or maybe they are one in the same… but we have to get by that “thing” we dread.  Over the hurdle.  To move on.

And we do.

We overcome.  We win.  We succeed.  We persevere.

And then we return
Right back where we belong.
Even if “Right Back Where We Belong” isn’t where we started at all.  BUT…. …  it is … completely right.

And we know it.
THAT Hansel and Gretel feeling.

Yep, tomorrow, when I start out the day… someone please remind me…… to remember the Wonder Bread.