Let’s flip the coin. Last week, we began to explore God’s role in daily life with a story of how he overwhelmingly directed a major change in moving me to Taos. One repeated response by readers dealt with the rarity of such clear direction. Though seldom for many of us, it does happen. But my time in Taos ended in a radically opposite form. I’d spent a year in youth ministry a few years earlier, and upon getting fired, declared I’d rather…
Read MoreDeterminism?
We all face critical change points, events that significantly shape the rest of our lives. What puzzles me, though, is life determined for people of faith? Simplistically, some, like Calvinists, lean toward God choosing all. Arminians blend free will into the mix, and deists acknowledge that alt hough God created the world, he has little involvement in daily operations. For me, one of the three greatest change points came with my move to Taos NM in 1974. I’m absolutely clear that God
Read MoreGive a Little
Some of the best experiences of my life have come when I knew enough to compromise. A ride from four years back with Rich Klinsky, above at Michael’s Restaurant in Taos, provides an example. We go back a long time, growing up at the same church in Long Beach CA, and began riding together as soon as I got a bike 51 years ago. He usually rides a Harley, I usually ride a Honda, but we’re close. Honest. But…
Read MoreBrushy Stream Lessons
From his grandfather, Dad learned the art of catching trout on the Weber River in the Utah mountains, and passed it on to me in the Sierras, beginning on Shepherds Creek, just south of Independence in the Owens Valley. Featuring a narrow stream with a lot of brush and few trees, Shepherds doesn’t favor beginners, especially with the 9 ft. bamboo fly rod Dad wielded. Now, you can’t…
Read MorePatience Pays Off
Our Gray Hogs 2021 ride through the Sierras had an unusual end—Jerry realized he had to get home soon (he does this a lot) so he bailed early, and Brad damaged his Goldwing when he hit the back end of a minivan, and his son came over to drive him home in Long Beach. That left just Mick and me heading to see his daughter and son-in-law in Susanville for two nights before heading home ourselves. The first morning Mick suggested…
Read MoreYou Gave Us
Frankly, our natural world is degrading. Our biker group rode through the spine of California last June, the magnificent Sierra Nevada Mountains. I cried a lot. A natural and understandable reaction to seeing thousands of beautiful forests burned in just the last year. The pic above is just one example. And since our ride, two major holocausts, the Dixie and Caldor fires, and numerous smaller ones continued the devastation Much of that we humans have caused. But is it just…
Read MoreModeration in All?
I must admit that Freak Alley in Boise surprised me. Our grandson Josh and his girlfriend Kate led us to this L-shaped alley that featured dozens of paintings on the buildings’ walls. Frankly, some was incomprehensible, except for a pic and quote of Jimi Hendrix that impressed me. But then the one above captivated me: a half empty alcohol bottle laying down, the top half containing positive traits like love, happiness, peace, freedom, and joy. But
Read MoreBrick Walls and Weaknesses
My late paternal grandfather was a brick mason, and while I don’t remember too many of the brick walls he built, I know that he passed along that skill to my own father, who worked in brick and mortar just as easily as he worked with pencils and ink for his illustrations. And I’m sure that my grandfather taught my father the importance of…
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