MuddyPuddles

I was listening to the weather this morning so I would know what shirt I should wear today.  Should it be long-sleeved?  Should it be the thick long-sleeved or the thin one?  The weather man told me that at 10:00 the temperature would be about 50 degrees, at 1:00 it would be about 57 and in the afternoon somewhere around 60.  He then proceeded to tell me what tonight’s low temperature would be and the highs and lows for the next seven days.  He even told me what the wind speed would be on those days and from which direction it would be blowing.  He showed me which days were going to be partly cloudy, which days sunny and the percent chance of rain for each of those days.  He told me that it was likely to be foggy in the morning and why.  He showed me a full-size action map of thunderstorms and exactly where they were and their progression over the last couple of hours.  And he did it all in about 3 minutes. 

I remember when I was in high school in the panhandle.  From our house we could pick up three stations on the television.  On one of the stations there was a weatherman named Dan True.  At school we all called him “Dan True or False” because the likelihood of him being right about the weather predictions was only slightly better than a monkey throwing darts at a weather prediction chart.  He seemed to mean well but the weather was so unpredictable that you had to take his (and all weather forecaster’s) predictions with a large grain of salt.  The Farmers Almanac was just about as good. 

As I contrast these two weather forecasting eras it occurs to me that the weather has not changed the way it behaves from then to now.  Though some would say global warming is changing the weather somewhat, it is our ability to more accurately forecast the weather that has changed the most.  With today’s ever improving technological advancements the accuracy of weather forecasting has risen exponentially.  Every second, thousands, if not millions, of pieces of data are being inputted into powerful computers which take the data and project what will happen based upon the constant principles of physics.  Though the weather has not changed, because of technology, out ability to study it and understand it has changed completely.  I don’t know of a single person who would disagree with this truth.  But if you try to transfer this exact same principal of understanding to our understanding of God’s word you will sometimes be labeled as a heretic.

I remember studying my Bible in the days of “Dan True or False” and having to use the little concordance in the back of my Bible to research a topic.  When I was in college I purchased the “Youngs Analytical Concordance to the Bible, Authorized Edition, Revised”.  It was about 1200 pages long and had an incredible amount of information in it.  I was told “no serious student of the Bible would be without it”.  And I wanted to be a serious student of the Bible.  I also bought a few commentaries and Bible dictionaries, as well.  Again, I wanted to be a serious student of the Bible.  As I would study a topic I would write down various passages and thoughts.  When I had compiled a lot of information I would have to organize the information and re-write it and eventually would file it in a folder in my filing cabinet.  It was a cumbersome and time consuming process.  A lot has changed since then---not about me being a serious student of the Bible, but about the methods of Bible study and of filing and editing and organizing. 

Now, due to computer technology and Bible software and access to the world wide web, I can find out more about any topic, biblical or otherwise, in a few hours than it would have taken me weeks (or longer) to find out about in the “good old days”.  I have access to new findings (like the dead sea scrolls) and about historical information (based upon archeological research and discovery) that was not even available to the common man thirty years ago.  In less than 5 minutes I can pull up every verse in the Bible about faith or any other topic and can read from several commentaries and “copy and paste” it into my word processor and print it off for later study.  With the right software I can read the same verse from dozens of translations of the Bible so that I can compare the way the verse has been translated.  I can have in-depth online Bible discussions at any time of the night or day with people from all over the world.  At any hour of the day or night I can download sermons and lessons from the most knowledgeable preachers in our brotherhood.  I can listen to these lessons as I drive or walk or run or rest.  I can store all this information with the click of a mouse.  As I later discover new truths I can simply pull up the old information and easily add to or revise it.  I can email it to others for their consideration and discussion.  It is exponentially more efficient than the old ways.

Like the weather, the Bible has not changed.  God’s word is eternal.  His principals remain.  But like the understanding of the weather, due to the technology that is available today, the ease with which we can obtain an in-depth knowledge and understanding of God’s word has grown exponentially as well.  Now, instead of spending so much time looking for information and trying to find the verses and compiling the verses and their surrounding contexts and writing and re-writing, I can spend the bulk of my time reading, digesting and applying the information.

I have tremendous admiration for those dedicated brethren from the past who spent so much of their lives in the study of God’s word without the benefit of modern technology.  You can’t question their dedication and their love for God’s word.  And it would be wrong to ignore what they discovered and believed.  It would also be wrong to assume that just because you have technology that you have the correct understanding of God’s word.  If you approach God’s word with a preconceived agenda you can be just as tainted with or without technology.  You can be set in your ways with or without technology.  You can be a blind fool with or without technology.  But imagine how great it could be for someone if they have the dedication of the men of old combined with the advantages of modern technology combined with an open mind and an open heart which is truly seeking to understand what God’s will is for them.  Imagine how great it can be if we are willing to study with each other and be open to a point of view that is different than what we have been accustomed to.  Imagine how great it can be if we are willing to discuss these things with one another without passing judgment on one another.  Wasn’t it Jesus (through Paul) that said in Romans 14:12-13 (NIV)  “So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.  [13] Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother's way.”

(I opened my Bible software and found that verse, cut and pasted it into this post in about 30 seconds.  I could have also cut and pasted it in King James Version or other versions in another 10 seconds.)

Unfortunately there are still a few people out there who are more eager to condemn others than to listen or to teach or to consider another way.  There are some who are still locked into what they were taught as a child and they have been unwilling to even consider that there might be some legitimate need to take another look.  It is their loss.  A better way is to “test everything, hold on to that which is good.”  And now, with the advancement of technology and the wealth of information that has been made readily available by the internet, we can do so all the more efficiently and beneficially.  God bless us all as we seek to do his will.  Dennis

I received an email from one of my awesome neices, Lorisa, a couple of days ago.  It relates to an experience she had with my mom, her grandmother.  Immediately after reading it I replied to ask her if I could post it on my blog.  It is so informative and well written that I wanted to share it with you.  Thankfully she consented so I've posted it below.  I believe this post will enhance your life and to some degree will alter your life stategy.  By the way, Lorisa is a speech therapist who works with people who have lost their ability to speak properly due to tragedy or trauma of some kind (I think).  Enjoy. 

"Christmas of 2007 I heard Grandma say something that has stuck with me.  We were talking about soup, or something completely, benign when she said something to the effect of “It’s my job to take care of myself- for the sake of my family”.  She was referring to her health- her diet, exercise- physical things.  I thought that was a profoundly loving thing to say.

I learned something today that has made me all the more grateful for her attitude.  I have worked with several elderly people that have lost their memory, or their personality, their ability to communicate.  To me, these losses are often more painful than physical losses, and sometimes even death.  Today I learned more about what we call brain plasticity - think brain and plastic (moldable, stretchable, etc.).  It refers to our ability to learn, retain, and recall new information, new skills, etc.  When we are young, our brains have a high plasticity, and becomes slowly less “plastic” as we age.  This is why, for example, we can learn a foreign language much easier at 12 years old vs. 30 years old. 

The good news is that this process is not completely out of our control.  We can delay, slow-down, lessen the effect of this phenomenon.  We have the power to change our brain plasticity – it is much more malleable than we think.  How do we do this?  Like working out the physical body, we have to push our brains beyond what they are used to.  If we do what we always do, and what we have already mastered, we won’t get anywhere.  We have to constantly learn- we actually have to do things that are difficult for us (not boring and impossible, but difficult and interesting).  Grandma taking an Auto-cad (or whatever it is!) class, for example, is pushing her brain to do something it has never done before. (Note from Dennis:  Mom ("Grandma") is 78 years young.  Auto-cad is the name given to the Computer aided drafting  software that professional architects use in their work.  Though it is complex and complicated, much of what she knows has been self-taught over the past two years.  Presently she is taking a 13 week Auto-Cad class to advance her knowledge further.  To date, she has designed and produced several houseplans using Auto-Cad for her own use.  Now, back to Lorisa's post.) 

The point is not that she will learn Auto-Cad (which is a nice additive).  The point is that the stimulation to her brain is beneficial in a million other ways.  They have discovered that “working out our brains” stimulates chemicals in our brain which contribute to our energy levels, our “spark”, our happiness, our uniqueness, our vitality.  Think of kids and that spark they constantly have.  We all want to live long healthy lives, but I want to reach old age with vitality and joy. 

Remember the second greatest commandment:  Love your neighbor as yourself.  At the risk of sounding new-agey, I believe we can only love to the extent that we know how to take good care of ourselves.  If someone does not know how to love themselves (which includes all facets:  physically, emotionally, spiritually), they certainly won’t “love well”.  So, Grandma, thank you for loving God first, and then loving us as yourself.  You really do love us well. 

To the rest of you:  do something new!!!  Try learning something new – even if it’s intimidating.  We want you to live long and be full of life every moment you are here. 

Love,
Lorisa Marie"

Thank you Lorisa for this excellent post.  Personally, it has motivated me to take up multi-tasking.  It's not easy for me.  It's not easyfar mew, buth I tink im getin thy hang of it.  inlfact I've wrten the lalast three suntinses wile quatro studying agua spanisch si.  I can feel thee gracias plastik en mi brane growinge now.  frijoles. chirp beep chomp gulp.  Hasta la vista, baby. 

(By the way, as you can imagine, I'm very proud of my awesome mom who is a great role model for all of her children and grandchildren and great grandchildren.  I love you mom!!!) 

Book Writing Progress report:  I feel like I’m gaining ground but I might be getting further behind???  As you know, I have been doing a lot of research on my family, trying to get the facts straight, contacting relatives and asking them to contact others, pumping them for information, researching on the internet, researching census data, marriage and death records, etc. etc.  New information is coming in daily.  I’ve rewritten a few chapters several times as I get new information that modifies and/or expands the old information. 

Often times new information raises additional questions.  If he was born in 1902, how come he is listed in the 1900 census?  If the family moved from Missouri to Belton Texas to Lubbock Texas, how is it that my dad and at least one of his older brothers was born near Winters Texas, which is a long way from those other places?  It’s kind of like solving mysteries and putting puzzle pieces together.  You may dig and dig and then all of a sudden a piece fits and it brings satisfaction.    

I have also found that the more I dig, the more I figure out new ways to dig.  For example, quite by accident I figured out that I can often solve puzzles about my family by researching the maiden names of some of my great grandmothers (when researching the names of my great grandfathers didn’t yield much).  I find that someone has researched that family name and has left new information (new to me) about some of my ancestors because of our family lines crossing (or joining).  I’ve also become more acutely aware of the fact that my bloodline is really a combination of hundreds of bloodlines.  I had never really thought about how I’m related to the Hodges and the Uptons and the Wells.  I’m also related to the Sanders, Crims, Emmerts, Wrights, Smiths, Hannahs, Boyds, Lairds, Livingstons, Stewarts, Kelborns and even to Bertha De Blois.  In fact, you’ll be happy to know that I’m even related to you!!!  How ya doin’ cuz?

It’s been a great blessing to dig back into my past.  It’s probably going to be hard to know exactly when to cut it off and say, “that’s enough”.  I know that when my book comes out that more information will come pouring in---possibly because of the book.  So, I guess I’ll have to have a revised and extended version a little further down the line.  In the mean time, does anybody know the exact cause of death for my great uncle Laxative Bromo Quinine Crim?  I think he had a herniated disc that went awry---or was that Aunt Bertha?  No, she got cooked in the squat!  Later!  Dennis

Those of you who have been reading my blog know that I have been digging back into the past to try to find out as much information as I can about my ancestors.  I’ve found most of my information by digging into old prison records and insane asylum records (just kidding).  (Roses are red, violets are blue, I’m a schizophrenic and so am I).  Anyway. . . as I look back into the past I try to imagine what it must have been like to live when my ancestors did.  And the more details I find about them, the easier it is for me to imagine what it must have been like.  One particular situation that has really come to light for me in the past day or two has to do with my grandfather “Papa” when he first got married and started a family.  I found out some information that I had never known before.  I want to share a little bit of it with you. 

Papa was a young man of 19 when he married “Sally” Hodges in her parents home in Prairie Dell, Texas on Christmas Eve of 1891.  Sally was only 17 years old.  A little over two years later their first child was born.  He was a baby boy who came in February of 1894, but died the same day.  That’s rough.  About two and a half years later they had a daughter, Katie Elizabeth, who was born in November of 1896.  Shortly after this Sally got pregnant again when tragedy struck.  At the age of three months and 20 days Katie Elizabeth passed away.  That was in March of 1897.  Can you imagine how difficult that must have been for them---to lose this sweet baby they had grown to love for almost four months?  Unfortunately their troubles were not over with that loss because when their third child came in October of ‘97, a son, he too either died at birth or was stillborn.  So here we have this young couple who in a span of six years buried all three of their children.  What must that have done to their spirits. 

Fortunately, the story improved for awhile.  The following August, Nannie Mae was born.  Over the next eleven years a total of six healthy children came into this world through this young couple---four girls and two boys.  Except for the first son who died at twenty three, they all lived into their nineties or thereabouts and I got to meet them and hug them every year at the family reunions and at other times.  I never met Sally, however, because she died a little over two months after her last son, “uncle Jay” was born.    

Two years after Sally died, Papa married the lady who would ultimately become my Grandmother.  She had lost her young husband a year and a half before so she was alone with her two year old daughter.  After they married, She and Papa had four more children, one of which was my awesome dad.  And the rest is history. 

I know that I sometimes take it for granted how good things are today.  We have such great medical care and so much more knowledge about health issues.  I think these must have been really tough people to live in those tough times.  It just seems like they had to deal with death so much and to just keep on going somehow.  Life had to be so hard in some ways.  And yet, through it all, they persevered and were loving and caring role models to me and my cousins and friends.  I thank God for blessing me with such a heritage.  I hope I can do the same for the generations to follow. 
To be continued. . .

God Bless.  Dennis