The Hey You Lady

Autumn is here! I think that of the four seasons, autumn is my favorite. For starters, I was born during the month of October, and celebrate for the entire month. And secondly, the flavors of autumn are a treat to the senses of smell and taste. Pumpkin spiced latte, cappuccino, even lollipops from See's tell me that Thanksgiving is right around the corner. Sweet potatoes, pumpkin bread, pecan and fresh apple pies usher in the month of December. And December brings... COOKIES! Chocolate chip, peanut butter, and sugar cookies galore! Decorated and ready to share with friends and loved ones. I think the one holiday treat that has the most thoughtfulness is the Gingerbread Man Cookie. The one creating it starts with a blank naked expressionless wafer shaped like a human with its arms wide open. Then he takes special care to give cookie-person its own unique personality, whether smiling, embarrassed, flirty, or gushing-lovey-dovey. And the individual cookie's personality perfe...

Over the past couple of weeks I've written about the journey home to heaven. We've taken a winding, wandering path through life that, like Dorothy's yellow brick road, took us on many twists and turns through this world we don't quite fit in. During this long, seemingly endless journey, we have asked many questions and at times grown impatient along the way, all in anticipation of our life in heaven. And I got to thinking, Jesus is preparing a place for us in heaven. I wonder, what will my next door neighbors be like? I've lived in my share of rental property during my adult life, until about 11 years ago when my name was recorded with the County of This Big Urban Metropolis as a property owner. For the most part, I've lived in places where I had some decent neighbors. Occasionally there would be little uproars about something. I remember moving in to the townhouse we rented in T-ville. Our unit was next to the back corner of the complex. Four doors away in a...

Children are full of wonder. They love to explore the world around them, and often experience the world through their imaginations. I remember when I was younger I'd play make-believe games with my brother and sister. We had a swingset in our back yard with a treehouse attached to it. NASA's space program was in the news, with expeditions to the moon and back happening quite frequently, so our treehouse was our “rocketship”, the back yard was the moon or Mars or some planet to be conquered in the name of science, and our basset hound Mortimer was a space creature to be either befriended or avoided, depending on the scenario we were playing out at the time. Role-playing and make-believe games are just one way kids experience their world. Another way they learn is to ask questions. And they have a never-ending series of questions they seek answers for.  “Why is the sky blue?” “How come it's cold in winter?” “Why does the giraffe have a long neck, and snakes don't have...

ruby_slippers by 323scotty via flikr.com We're all familiar with the story of The Wizard of Oz, right? Dorothy gets sucked up into a twister, and finds herself in this strange colorful land of little people singing about lollipops, wicked witches, and yellow brick roads. She is in child-like wide-eyed amazement at this wonderful place where she is treated like the hero that conquered evil and saved their civilization to live in peace another day. Yet in the midst of the endless accolades bestowed upon her, as much as the Munchkins wanted her to be a part of their world, Dorothy finds herself in a spot of trouble. As you recall, her house landed on the Wicked Witch of the East, and the witch's sinister sibling vows revenge on Dorothy. Dorothy, in the midst of trouble, sees only one solution:  To go home to Kansas . She has three loyal friends, her ever-faithful Toto, and perfectly fitting Ruby Slippers (ever notice Dorothy never complained about her feet aching from skipping...