I love that the days are growing cooler. Autumn is beautiful where I live. The first snow is always exciting. I enjoy winter right up until the moment I notice again how painful the cold can be. In a perfect world the first snow would be followed a week later by the first day of spring.
My dashboard CHECK ENGINE light came on today. I hate when that happens. It means the auto repair shop will have my Jeep all day and then probably will call me at 4:00 to say they need it all the next day to complete a $300 repair. Whew! Now that I have vented frustration I can begin to feel gratitude; I have a nice car, I can afford the repair bill and to lose the vehicle for a day won’t present a hardship that will affect my income or safety. Most of us in America have no clue of how spoiled we are.
This part of Pennsylvania is filled with apple orchards. As I drive home in the evening I am enticed by hand-written signs offering Sweet Apples and Fresh Cider. There is something special about buying apples from a wooden stand at the edge of an orchard. I always end up eating one as I drive home thinking; “it doesn’t get any better than this!”
We bought our teenage daughter a digital camera for her birthday this year. When I sit down at the computer I am surprised to see such original and interesting screensavers. She has a good eye and a creative flair. I had always thought of myself as a talented amateur photographer. She surpasses me. That makes me proud and happy.
A friend and I rode up into the mountains last weekend and I guided him down a hidden trail to show him my favorite trout stream. It was a beautiful day, we spied fish hiding in the pools, and the forest leaves were just breaking out in color. I stuck me as we were returning to the car; it’s good to have a friend to share your favorite things with.
Every time I see a military person in uniform, at the bank or the grocery or the gas pump, I want to go over and say “thank you for serving our nation and risking your own safety to protect us.” But I don’t do it. I’m afraid I might only embarrass them or myself. So, instead I display an American flag on the back of my car and over it I placed a magnetic yellow ribbon with the inscription “Protect Our Troops.” It seems so inadequate.
I stopped eating meat a year ago. I don’t miss it. There is something about eating another animal that bothers me now that I am vegetarian. It isn’t bad or wrong to eat meat, but for me it has ceased to be necessary. I have found satisfying alternatives that supply all my nutritional needs. Now when I pass cows in a field or chickens in a pen I don’t lament their inevitable fate, but the hint of guilt that I used to feel is gone. I am no longer a component of their destiny. I am not an animal-rights advocate and I am comfortable wearing leather belts and shoes. I don’t think any cow would begrudge me for putting his skin to purposeful use after others have carved a meal from his shoulder.
I would find it difficult to live life as a woman. The hardest part would be feeling pressured to be attractive. The dictionary defines attractive as “pleasing to the eye” or “drawing attention.” Most men do not go through life feeling obliged to please the eye of another. I don’t search my closet in the morning for clothes I think you might enjoy looking at. I choose clothes that are unwrinkled and free of stains. I don’t want to look like a gigolo; I just want to avoid looking like a bum. And, drawing attention to myself was never one of my priorities. My life would go smoother if I could be anonymous and invisible. I have heard women say it would be easy to live as a man. Perhaps, but I am a man and some days I don’t find it all that easy myself.
I am eternally grateful to be, at the present moment, alive, healthy and relatively comfortable. If I am careful, fortunate and continue to receive God’s grace, I may be equally grateful in the next moment.
No comments:
Post a Comment