Paul Harvey ~ A Christmas Story: The Man And The Birds

200

This is post #200 for 2024!
It is only the third time in my 18 years of publishing Out of My Hat that I've reached 200 posts in a year.
Because there really is no theme that ties my posts together, my following is limited to family, friends, and those curious enough to wonder what I might be thinking about on any given day. 
I've tried a couple of themed blogs along the way -- one on healthy living, one on cigars (such is my contradictory lifestyle) -- but mostly I just come back to rambling out thoughts here at Out of My Hat. 

I still look for clicks and comments, but not like I did in the early days. Today, I mostly write as a way of organizing thoughts and it seems to be a therapeutic way of grounding my spirit. I don't expect many views, comments, nor shares, and often think I should just write and publish articles without sharing them on my Facebook or BlueSky accounts (I've dropped X). A lot of my regular readers disappeared (see what I did there?) when I moved away from evangelicalism and my Facebook friends list went from nearly 1000 to fewer than 300 (some I dropped, others dropped me), so I know that most readers come from links to social media and only a few are regular followers of the blog itself.

No matter.
It is said that it is better to write for oneself and have no readers than to write for your readers and have no self -- or something like that.

If you came here for a Wednesday Wisdom post, try this:
Do something for yourself.
Write, walk, run, read, paint, craft, whatever. Do it for you and don't worry about what other people think or say. The hippie mantra of the 60s was -- If it feels good, do it! 
Perhaps, as with most things, moderation is the key.

John

A Poor Practice

It's a rare kind of Monday morning for me.
First of all, I slept much later than I usually do. I'm not sure why, but I did.
And secondly, it is warm enough to have my morning coffee out on the deck today!

Sitting out here, especially on a Monday morning, I am aware of how poor my meditation practice has become. Contemplative time and meditative time can be very different practices. Quiet time and meditative time are different things. 
A purposeful quiet time, a time for contemplation, a practice of meditation -- all are beneficial, but all are quite different. Heck, even relaxing with a good cigar is good for the spirit!

But I have gotten out of the meditation habit since I've moved my morning coffee and quiet time indoors for the cooler season. I'm going to have to find a way to move my practice inside. It's weird how the cawing crows, crowing roosters, and sounds of the outside have become such a part of my meditation that I stopped doing it without them. 

For this week's Monday Meditation post I am going to work on restarting my regular practice of meditating. Maybe you should, too.

John

Third Sunday of Advent

Hmmm...
Well, I have been more thoughtful about being kind and Christ-like this Advent season.
Isn't it the thought that counts?

Actually, having this little exercise in purposeful kindness has been good for me. I have noticed that there are opportunities that I don't really have to look for. I just need to be more aware of others and what they might need or how I might help. I have done better at being more proactive, but that is still unnatural for me. I may need to set up some kind of regular prompt to keep me focused beyond the Christmas season. It does kind of suck to realize that I really am not a naturally nice person.
Is it just me or do others also struggle with being nice? I don't think I'm a mean person. I just rarely think about people or things outside of my relatively small world. I have never really considered the downsides of living in the moment, but perhaps this is one of them.
Hmmm...

In any case, Christmas is getting closer -- fewer than 10 days to go!
I don't feel very Christmassy, but I am okay with that. Culturally, I think celebrating birthdays is a little weird. Picking a made up date to celebrate somebody's birth is even weirder -- even if it is for Jesus! I doubt that Jesus had birthday celebrations as a kid, and I imagine that he would much rather we actually work towards the whole "peace on earth" thing than just sing songs about it once a year.
If we're honest -- Christmas is more for us and satisfying our need to be good, holy, smug about ourselves than it ever was about recognizing the birth of a Savior.

Damn.
Now I've gone all bah, humbug.
I think I'll quit now and just leave you with a reminder to be purposefully kind to someone today.
...or tomorrow.
Whatever
Whenever

sigh
John

Fun Facts for your Friday

Maybe this is what's meant by not seeing the forest for the trees, but on a much grander scale...

At its closest, Uranus is 18.6 AU (Astronomical Unit, the approximate average distance from Earth to the sun) to the planet Earth. 1 AU is about 93 million miles (150 million kilometers) and we found this distant planet before finding an entire continent on our own planet!

     * * * * * 

Here's an interesting map that divides the Earth's population:

I find this truly amazing.
Even being aware of the crowded populations of India and China did not prepare me for this graphic. It's difficult to comprehend.

John

Thursday thoughts

It's Thursday morning and I am really not feeling like a theology/religious post today. I'm sure I could sort through some collected quotes or memes and find something worth posting, but how many times and in how many ways can you express that we need to love one another?

I'm still working on that - being purposefully kind for Advent - thing. As I mentioned earlier, the difficulty is that I just don't have the people encounters that most have. I have managed a few "touches" or contacts via the digital world's text messaging and social platforms, but even find that to be a bit of a stretch when it comes to comfort. I already knew that not being a jerk takes some thought and restraint, but actually being nice is hard work most of the time. 
Fortunately, there is now less than two weeks until Christmas and the end of the Advent season.
Unfortunately, I doubt that purposeful kindness will be a habit by then and I will continue to struggle in being Christ-like in my daily life.
Life would be so much easier if sarcastic assholery was considered a virtue.

Enough about me and my struggles!
Tell me about the nice things you do or nice attitudes you have during the holiday season that are mostly absent the rest of the year.
Are you nicer to people in December than you are in June?
Are you more tolerant of Christmas shoppers than you are of shoppers or crowds at other times?
Are you more generous during the holidays?
And if so ... Why?

It's probably good that we have a season when we are more focused on being nice, but why is it necessary? Are we still trying to make Santa's nice list and stay off the naughty list?

Just wondering...

John

Wednesday Wisdom

 

Did you know ... ?

We are just a scant 11 days away from this year's winter solstice in the northern hemisphere and I am settling into my morning routine of coffee by the fireplace. The living room couch is more comfortable than the deck furniture and the fireplace makes for a cozy atmosphere, but I would much prefer to be sitting outside, listening to the neighbor's roosters crowing and other of nature's morning sounds.

Speaking of crowing roosters, did you know...

According to Greek mythology -- A young soldier was assigned to be a lookout for Ares, the God of war, who was having an affair with the goddess Aphrodite. Unfortunately, the soldier fell asleep and Ares was caught by Helios, the sun god. For his failure, the soldier was turned into a rooster that always crows in the morning to warn of the coming sun!

Now you know.

John

Perspective

It's 50 (10c), cloudy, and between light rain showers in the Ozarks of SWMO. A couple of months ago I would have called it a cold and dreary afternoon. Today I am taking advantage of the warmer weather by sitting on the deck, smoking a cigar, and enjoying the sounds of the rural outdoors. 
Perspective matters.

Because I gravitate towards mindfulness, self-awareness, and the effects of self-talk, the algorithms that control my news feeds often point me to articles that cover the benefits and pitfalls of how we think and how we perceive the world around us. People can live in essentially the same conditions and environments. Some will be peaceful and thrive while others are anxious and struggle. 
At the shelter there are always people that are grateful for a warm, safe place to sleep, and there are always people that complain that it's too warm, too cold, we don't have the oatmeal they like, or something else.
Perspective matters.

So how do we control our perspective?
I guess that really is the key question. I wish I had the answer.
For me, it really is a matter of gratitude. 
However, I've also realized that it is not my place to tell you how you should see things in your world. My way of seeing the world doesn't diminish your way of seeing it from a different vantage point. And while I can try to understand your perspective; I cannot force you to try to understand mine, much less accept it as your own.

In a previous life I was a pretty good salesperson, In the retail world I sold jewelry and building materials and was pretty successful at both. Even as an evangelist (really just a glorified salesperson if you'll pardon the pun) I was pretty good at convincing others to my way of thinking. 
I've found great peace in being able to share my thoughts without the expectation of trying to convince others that they need to convert to my way of thinking. It's unfortunate that I haven't always sold a good product. In fact, I regret that I may have convinced people to believe some things that I now see as loads of horse manure.

I think that "Live and let live" might be too simple of a motto to follow for life, but it's a good beginning.

You may disagree with me, and that's okay.
As for me --
It's 50 (10c), it's December, and it's raining.
And I am grateful that you don't have to shovel rain!

John

It's the Weekend! (or just another day in retirement)

It looks like we are going to get a break from the cold for a couple of days. It won't be a big deal, but I'm all for a little warmer weather. 

Today's kindness will be doing a little housework before Chris gets back home later tonight. It's really not too big of a deal since the house never really gets that messy with just the two of us, and it's only been me for the past few weeks. 
It might seem like a bit of a cop out, but being kind to your spouse or partner should be a pretty regular behavior, don't you think?

As a kindness to myself (self-care is also important), I recently deleted my X (Twitter) account. Since the BlueSky platform is still underdeveloped and I don't think it will be something I really use much, I am saving a lot of time that was once spent on social media platforms. I am now spending that time trying to learn Spanish on a learning platform.
I took advantage of a Black Friday promo to re-subscribe to The Great Courses plus. It has a vast library of educational and informational courses to take and costs less than the monthly ESPN+ subscription that I just cancelled. The only thing I really used the ESPN+ subscription for was to watch the UFC events and I'm sure I can find them elsewhere when I really want to watch them. A little education is a better use of both my time and money. 
With The Great Courses plus app on my phone, I can keep up with the classes on my phone, on my Chromebook, or on the TV via Roku. Maybe I'll end up being a Spanish speaking, ukulele playing, master gardening herbalist by the end of next year! There really is a plethora of courses available.
Chris might find something she wants to learn about, too.

I didn't leave the house yesterday (not even to get the mail!), but I need to run an errand for Chris today, so fair warning, public! John will be on the loose today!

With new stuff to learn, books to read, and cigars to smoke -- who has time to interact with people?
I hope you can understand how being nice to people can be such a challenge.

John

Fun Facts

 Did you know ... ?

John

Thursday Theology

A few years ago I came up with this thought that the further I got from religion, the closer I got to God. 
At that time, I never really considered that Jesus had become my religion, but I would now agree with this statement by Fr Richard Rohr:

By shifting my practice into following the teachings of Jesus and finding God in all things and in the people around me, I have also found the Christ in me. I don't know if it's because it is such a big shift in thinking or because I'm such a slow learner, but I still struggle with it on many days. 

I think I am more gracious than I used to be.
I think I am more compassionate than I used to be.
I think I am more patient than I used to be.
I might even be more loving than I used to be.

But then somebody says something or does something that pisses me off and I have to collect myself and remember that they are a part of God's creation and I am supposed to be gracious, compassionate, patient, and loving towards them, too.
The struggle is real.
The transformation is slow.

It's only December 5th and I'm already thinking this Advent challenge of mine is going to be too difficult to maintain until Christmas. Most of the difficulty comes from the fact that I just don't interact with people as often as most. I did have several good people interactions yesterday and am thinking I might give myself a pass today and just stay home. I have plenty to eat and drink and I really don't have anything important that needs to be done that requires me to venture out.
And I have library books that need to be read before their due date.

Maybe today will be one of those days when the kind thing that I do will be to stay away from people. 

How does your religion or life philosophy guide you to deal with people?
I really want to know.

John

Advent - Day 4

I was glad to make contact and check in on a couple of friends yesterday. For one of them the contact was just a text for coffee today before a couple of morning appointments. 

I am a little surprised at the number of people that want friends but don't feel like they have any -- especially people my age. Most of you know that I'm okay with not getting together with people often. Apparently getting together with others is an often unmet need for people. It would appear that a simple text or call is helpful in reminding people that they are not alone. A "howdy" and a hug can make somebody's day.

I'm going to combine my Advent goal and my Wednesday Wisdom post with this simple encouragement:
Find someone that needs a "howdy" and a hug (and maybe a hamburger) and give it to them. Or maybe a handshake or first bump for those that are not huggers.
And if you are one of those people that wants friends but feels like you don't have any -- be the one to reach out and say "hi." Invite someone out for coffee or a meal. Be the friend you want.

Honestly, it's a bit of a stretch for me. When I'm sitting alone, reading a book, listening to music, or smoking a cigar -- it's never going to cross my mind to call somebody and see if they want to meet for a drink or something. This purposeful kindness stuff is an exercise in growth for me. I don't think that I am purposefully unkind, but neither am I typically the person that is naturally kind to others.
 
Personally, I do recognize a subtle difference between being polite and being kind. I think that having good manners and holding a door open for someone is being polite rather than an act of kindness. I do think that fewer and fewer people seem to have good manners, but I don't think that the civil act of being polite is the same as being kind.

That's too simple.
People say that being nice doesn't cost anything.
I don't know if that's true.
Not being mean doesn't cost anything, but that's not the same as being nice.
I think being nice takes effort, but maybe that's because I'm not a naturally nice person.
Ugly John is a pretty sarcastic, condescending asshole. It has taken a lot of time and a lot of effort to build a mental dungeon strong enough to keep him away from public view. I can occasionally hear the sarcastic shouts from the depths of my mind, but can usually ignore them. Sometimes, however, he manages a breakthrough. That's never a good thing. 

Be nice today.
Make the effort.
Make it cost you something -- time, energy, love.
Let's see if it's worth it.

John

Advent and being kind -- the challenge continues

Yesterday ended a 35 day posting streak. I was out of my usual morning routine and didn't really feel like writing anything later in the day. I didn't even have a set aside meditation time, although the day was a quiet and thoughtful kind of day. I also didn't have a set aside medication time and almost forgot to take my daily blood pressure pill (now a part of my morning routine).

In keeping with my 24 days of purposeful kindness for Advent -- I did get some volunteer time in and managed to thank and compliment the workers at Subway on their fine crafting of my sandwiches (for last night and for today) and friendly service. I don't know if today will hold any actual people interactions, so I'm definitely going to have to be purposeful about finding some way to be Christ-like while sitting alone at home. (Personally, I think keeping this sarcastic, condescending, grumpy old man at home is an act of kindness to the general public, but...that's just me.)

The gospels do tell us that Jesus got away to pray on a regular basis.
Matthew 17:17 tells of Jesus' frustration with people -- "How long must I endure you people?"
But I really don't see Jesus as an introvert. I'm not even certain that an introvert can read the gospels and think, "Jesus gets me." 

I mean I certainly believe that God understands us and loves us, but I also think that serving, helping, and loving others is a particularly big ask of some of us. I don't know, maybe it's a big ask for all of us. 
For now, I'm just going to enjoy my morning coffee and quiet time and share the fire with Groucho, the cat.

Be well, my friends
John

December 1st: Making kindness a habit

Today is Sunday, December 1st, 2024.
If you follow the Liturgical Calendar, it is the first day of Advent and Christians around the world begin preparing to celebrate the birth of the Christ child.

As a kid, I never really got the Advent season. I mean -- why would we prepare for something that happened 2000 years ago?
As a jaded adult, I still don't get it. Why celebrate the birth of a Savior whose teachings about caring for your fellow human beings you choose to ignore? 
Let's face it -- as a jaded adult, there isn't much about religion that I find valuable anymore. 

But I do value the teachings of Jesus, even as I sometimes struggle to value and care for the people around me.
I think I'm going to spend my Advent being purposeful about emulating a behavior or practice of Jesus daily. I'm not going to write about it daily. Although I may write to encourage others to do kind things in the coming days. I really haven't thought this out and I don't know what things I'll wind up doing. I do know that I am already dreading that I'll probably have to spend more time with people and am considering deleting this part and writing something else. 
I'm already on the schedule to work at the shelter tonight, so Day 1 is taken care of. Who knows what Days 2-24 might bring?

I welcome your suggestions and invite you to be purposefully kind and Christ-like in the days leading up to Christmas. The 3+ weeks might be enough to make daily kindness a habitual thing.

John