Reveal...

I have often thought about the consequences of baring it all.  Not in the sense of the deep dark secrets of my life, but just the odd way I look at things.  The sarcasm, the irreverence, the skewed eye of reason that my mind tends to conjure up.  But then I wonder if anyone would read it.  If friends would suddenly think (to themselves or out loud): this is not the George I know.  Though a couple of friends would not be surprised at all.  The close friends.  But the rest?  Shocked.

What makes me wonder this is the level of my success to this point has been based on what I am willing to let other people see and the fear of judgment for the things that are out of sync with the “norm” of our world.  And I realize that by using the term norm offers up differing images to each individual that reads it.  So perhaps by being more true to myself and not to the opinions of others, I may make a Quantum Leap forward.

And while I have not completely come to terms with a decision I am, however, getting close to making that jump.  My reason is that the world has enough people that live within the boundaries of society because it is safe, or it is how they were raised, or they fear the backlash from society.  I HAVE to get over that.  I have to let my freak flag fly (so to speak).  The main reason?  Is that most people who know me, don’t.

Now, to be honest, there are not a lot of huge surprises in store for anyone.  I don’t secretly hurt or maim animals, I don’t worship alien beings, and the biggest shock (that I am prepared to share today), is that though I love beer I sometimes go weeks at a time without drinking one.  And on the weeks that I do I rarely go over 3…in a WEEK.  So, not a huge reveal, but those that hear me talk about my love of beer might have a different perception of my drinking habits.

I will call that particular reveal a fringe secret.  It isn’t in the deep, dark coffers, and really doesn’t change the overall perception of who is me (I know.  I said it that way on purpose).  It’s one of those “oh, I didn’t know that” moments.  A “no big deal” deal.

And I don’t wish to do this for the sensational aspects of it.  Not like the shock jocks, or the openly bellicose types (Miley Cyrus-Justin Bieber come to mind).  I just have a desire for people to understand “the who that I am” so that I can move on to the next level of success.  I mean at 54…it’s about time.  Wouldn’t you say?   Stay Tuned.  And feel free to provide feedback!

Politics...gotta love it.

Who in their right mind…

Who will serve?  The pool of honest, hardworking, moral people that are willing to submit themselves to the political microscope is dwindling.  And no wonder.

Now I cannot serve as judge or jury on the recent resignation of the Governor of Oregon because the only thing I know about him is what I have heard in the media.  And more so about the first Fiance’, Cylvia Hayes, than him.  Allegations and accusations that have been sensationalized for your pleasure.  News sources have found the way to sell their product at the expense of compassion and sometimes even truth.

So here’s some more truth for you:  The public will suffer the most for the way politicians are depicted in the media.  The process for vetting a potential candidate for office is so harsh and rigorous that instead of weeding out the riff raff, it weeds out the good honest people that may have a mistake or two in their past that they don’t want on public record.

But here is a thought for anyone who is considering running for an office and has a skeleton or two in the closet.  Own it.  Tell everyone outright.  Put on all of your colors for the world to see.  Because here is how I see that going down:  either you will be embraced for being forthright or your candle will be extinguished.  My sense is though you will be heralded.  We all want to know what we are getting ourselves in for and, if we know from the beginning, we get the sense that the surprises are over and we can talk about the job at hand.  But worst case scenario is that the public rejects you and your campaign is done.  But think of all the money and hard work you just saved yourself and the hundreds of people that were willing to volunteer their time.

That is what I would do if I decided to run for office.  I can imaging the looks of some people’s faces when they hear some of the stuff that I have done.  Oh but wait…You don’t get to know that yet…only if I run for office.  Although it would be completely freeing to relinquish some of those skeletons.  Even if it meant alienating some of my longtime friends and family.  Maybe in another blog!  Or maybe not!

I’m George Henry…and I am NOT running for office…Yet.

My Christian Heritage. (or how Obama 'killed' it)

My Christian Heritage.

I come from a long line of the church going masses.  I don’t know that I should use the word Christian here, because some of my protestant brethren still do not consider Catholicism to be “Christian” (but that’s their issue).  But after the uproar from the “Right” as a result of Obama’s comments at the National Prayer Breakfast I have to interject.

“Me Thinks thou doth protest too much!”

You can try to rewrite history all you want.  You can justify your heritage as ‘’fighting’ infidels or whatever excuse you want to use, but the ‘Church’ killed a lot of people.  And it wasn’t just the Spanish Inquisition.  The Protestants got involved too when they decided to burn “witches” or take on slaves (many which died at the hands of their Christian masters).

Who are we really kidding here?  Ourselves.  But I don’t write this as a condemnation of the Christian religions or as a “pass” for the Muslim faith.  I merely wish to point out that we get so bent out of shape over religion that it becomes a point of contention is someone believes differently…or not at all.  There are Christians that want to mount up and go kill Muslims in retaliation for a few radical extremists.

This is what is infuriating.  God, Jesus, Muhammad, Buddha (granted he is a philosopher), etc, none of them taught violence as a means to an end.  Now, granted, the Jewish faith of old was pretty much based on that tenet, but even today I think you would be hard pressed to find someone to blanketly support the utter annihilation of non-believers as the old testament dictated.

What is really going on here is the denial of fact in order to push an agenda.  Obama did not lie, he did not alter the facts, he merely made a correlation between two extremes that are a matter of historical fact.  I am NOT a Muslim, and yet I know his comments to be fact-based and poignant.

If you don’t like the guy…don’t like him.  Fine.  I take issues with many of his decisions as I did with many other presidents.  But I will not impune him for making it real.

How about we start living our faith(s) based on the preachings of its founders and not its followers.  It just might make for a better world.  It says something when non-believers live more Christ-like than the Christians that profess.

Why?

If you have children that are at least 8 years old or older, then you remember the time when everything ended with the question: Why?

It is our nature to be curious and our desire to have knowledge that make children ask that question, but as an adult I realize that I still ask the same question.  Why?

Now the reasons may be different.  As a child I did not know why the oven got hot or why birds flew or why the sun was hot in the summer but not in the winter.  And the list goes on.  But today the question has a different slant to it.  Why was I born?  Why do things happen to me, or for me?  Why is he rich?  Why is she poor?   Why do people hurt and kill each other?  Why? Why? Why?

The difference is that some questions have a specific answer that fulfils the desire we seek.  Laws of physics are a lot easier to explain than questions about human behavior.  In fact, there may never be good answers for some human issues, and the search will always be futile.  We search for all the reasons why, and in my opinion, we miss the important piece of the puzzle that lies within our reach.

Is it easier to roll a ball or a boulder?  Is it easier to stop the rain or to wear a raincoat?  The answers all make sense to me.  If you can affect something small, then do it.  Not because it is easier, but in making small accomplishments they inevitably make larger changes.  When the reverse is not necessarily true. 

So we do our best to embrace a world and spread love throughout, which is good, but if we have not first done all we can to love ourselves, then our efforts are for naught.  You know “save the world-Lose your soul” philosophy.  When the answer lies with loving ourselves.  Because at that point we have the knowledge and power to love others.

It is a large task, loving ourselves.  For some it is too large and they simply quit.  Surrender.  Give up.  But the ones that seek answers from within make a more powerful force throughout.  Jesus did say ‘love one another even as I have loved you,” but I think it’s important not to forget that you first must love yourself.  Never forget the power that lies within you.  It must well and spring from you.  And then, and only then, will you see the change in the world that you wish to see.

"War...huh...good God Y'all"

I have never really taken a look at what starts wars, but I have the sneaking suspicion that it comes down to two basic premises. 

1.       Someone says something that is offensive to another

2.       Someone says something that is construed by another to be offensive

Silence rarely plays into the realm of war.  Now you can wonder what someone is thinking and make up all sorts of issues in your mind as to what is really going on inside of them, but rarely is it used as an opportunity to launch a full out assault on someone.

Now let’s take it down to the basics of a relationship rather than two countries at odds.  I often find myself at the wrong end of a conversation because of the aforementioned premises.  But of course it is 4-pronged.  I either say something that is offensive or say something that is construed as offensive…or something is said to me that is offensive or I believe to be offensive.

Recently there was a conversation about Cracker Jacks.  There was a package of 24 of them in our kitchen.  They had been there since October 1^st, 2014.  128 days.  There were three of them left in the original box so I broke them down and put them in the cabinet and threw away the box.  Upon noticing the box in the recycling my wife says to me, “So you’ve been eating the Cracker Jack!”  To which I immediately snapped back with all my gruffness “No, I haven’t!”

Now I realize that I was super sensitive because I took the question to be a negative rebuke towards me because ‘I was eating sugar’ or something like that.  When my wife told me that it was merely an observation.

So here’s the funny thing about wars.  The statement may have been innocuous and I merely overreacted, but in dissecting the understanding of it in my mind I could not reconcile it.  What was the purpose of the comment?  If I had been eating them, then I would have been aware that I was eating them and therefore no need to point it out.  If I had not been eating them then the statement is one of misplaced culpability and therefore, intended or not, would have been the basis of defense.

My best reaction in that particular instance (remember this is in hindsight), would have been to smile and say nothing.  Instead I tried to remember each bag that had been eaten over the last 128 days.  That’s accounting for an average of about 1 bag a week and my memory is just not that good.  And besides, the bulk of them had been eaten in the first 4 weeks.  And the last two bags eaten were sometime in early January.  Other than that….Who knows.

My point is that I acted in a knee jerk fashion because of some personal sensitivities.  And while I would like to correct that in myself, I would also like more substantive conversations that are not about who ate what and why.  I think that my wife, whom I love, and myself can find better, more edifying things to banter about.  Just saying.

Building.

Have you ever built something?  You had this great idea in your head and you map it out.  First you check to see if you have the proper tools.  Hammer, saw, tape measure, square, chisel, it all seems to be there.  Then you think: a table saw would be better than a circular saw, but what the heck, you can do it.   Then you put the list of things you need to buy.  Wood, nails, screws, wood glue, dowels, whatever you need to complete your project.

Off you go to the local hardware store and purchase the raw products, strap them to the roof of your car and bring them home, where you amass everything together on your deck or in your garage and begin the task of building.

Now not everyone has the skill to build something, but one thing I learned about myself is that never stopped me.  I forged ahead with all the confidence of a master builder.  What I ultimately discovered is that no matter what I decided to build there was always a moment when I thought the “thing” I was building was too difficult.  There were moments of deconstruction, re-measuring, re-cutting, re-shopping for the piece I cut incorrectly or the “right” size nails.  I haven’t done this with every project, but enough of them to know at some point I might have to go to the store for something I forgot.  But if I was willing, and somewhat patient, when I was finished there would be something for which I could be proud.  It wasn’t always the most beautiful, but it was always functional for its intended use.

I cannot, in recent history, remember a project that I just left on the garage floor and walked away.  Perhaps there were times when it would have served me to just pile the wood in the corner and forget it, but I couldn’t.  Too much invested in time, materials, sweat, and sometimes a little blood, and besides, even with each one containing their own ‘Persian flaw’ I was proud of what I built.

Life is sort of like building something.  Hell, it’s a lot like it.  It’s not always easy.  You often don’t have the right tools to do it perfect.  You might have to go to the store to get the things you forgot or to replace something you really screwed up, but in the end, when you look at it, there is a moment of pride when you realized that you did a pretty good job.

The difference in life and building is that sometimes you are on the garage floor scratching your head trying to figure out how your plans are not exactly like the finished product, but still happy that you managed it all by yourself.  While in life, if you are smart enough and humble enough, you can turn to someone and say “hey!  How about a little help?”

“Hey! How about a little help?”

The Bucket List…

My wife said “let’s watch a movie that’s fun.”  So I went through the list of movies in our collection naming off the ones that were light-hearted, comedic, and even some silly ones.  As I leafed through the pages of DVD’s I passed the “B’s” and she chose the Bucket List.  Now we had seen this movie before and my recollection is that it was not any of the adjectives for which we were looking, but it struck a chord with her, so…why not.

I spend the next 97 minutes on the edge of tears.  It’s a great movie, don’t get me wrong, it just wasn't what I thought we were investing our time in, but that’s okay.

I don’t know at what age most people begin to contemplate life and consider the things that they wanted to accomplish, but a movie like this has to stir the inner workings of the conscious mind. 

It did for me.

Even as I sit here now pondering future and looking back upon my past I wonder if I have already done the things on my bucket list.  You see, I have never written one, but I can see that what I have lived has fulfilled many of my desires over the period that has been my life.  None of them were terribly earth-shaking events.  I haven’t climbed the Himalayas (nor do I have any desire), and I haven’t parachuted from a plane (I would, but not something that I have to do).

One thing that I really desire is to communicate with people with whom I would not normally have the chance to speak.  Coffee with a former President, a sitting Justice on the Supreme Court, the Dalai Lama.  Stuff like that.  Most people might say “so what,” but then they have their own list, right?

A couple of other things that come to mind is writing the novel that everyone wants to read, writing a song that is on everyone’s music player, and of course the thing that I would hope would be on everyone’s bucket list, do something that impacts the world for good.  Who knows, it may be within the writings that that one is accomplished.

I always thought that a bucket list would be a clear, concise set of sentences that can be crossed off one at a time as it was in the movie.  For me?  Not so much.  I don’t need to climb Everest, sail the ocean, or shoot a big game animal on the African plains.  I still have things I want to do, but they can only compliment the life I have already had.