THE WEEKEND

Just prior to the Friday night high school football game, it was Senior Night for the band. Eileen and I were down on the track to be with our youngest daughter as she and the other senior band members were recognized. We planned on staying for the entire football game but we only stayed to the end of the third quarter. It was just too cold and windy. Remember, for the first time in years I’m operating without any pain killers…well, let’s call them pain-easers. Anyway, we enjoyed seeing our daughter perform with the marching band for one of the few remaining times.

We got up early Saturday morning and headed to our oldest son and his family’s house. They met us in their driveway and Lindsay greeted us with a big smile. We had a great time visiting, making boiled peanuts, and later that night making smores over an outside fire. In-between, we went to the park and watched Lindsay play on the playground equipment. Lindsay was the center of attention as always; she is very social and gives each of us attention too. It’s fascinating to watch Lindsay’s personality and tendencies develop under the parental auspices of our son and daughter-in-law.

I had my share of arm trouble this weekend but it was nice to have a full weekend of activities as a distraction from my arm and as a blessing to our lives. I’ll get back to figuring out what I’m going to do with my arm and the medications this week. Meanwhile, Gleevec is still a hard medication to take because of its effects. Nevertheless, I have no choice with that one. For now though, I’m just going to rejoice in the wonderful weekend we had and look forward to a great week.  Some of this weekend’s pictures with Lindsay can be viewed at http://michaeleileendoss.shutterfly.com/pictures

DRUG INTERACTIONS

The neurologist printed off and handed me a drug interaction sheet which listed my drugs. He didn’t say anything about it other than to read it. The first drug interaction on the list of my drugs is categorized as “Serious Interactions – Use Alternative.” It appears that the combination of two of my medications causes addiction to opiates. Well, I could have guessed something like that since I can feel the withdrawal effects since I’ve stopped taking the old medicines. I’m not craving the medication, probably because I despise taking it so much, but my body is going through a tough time. No wonder people with chemical dependencies will often doctor shop and everything else to not go through this.

Listed under “Significant Interaction – Monitor closely” are four different combinations that each warn of “significant increased sedation – monitor closely.” I suppose that just one of these combinations could explain some of my fatigue, but with four of them doing it it’s a wonder that I’m ever awake!! However, three of those combinations are going away as they are the ones I’m advised to discontinue. The last sedation combination has to remain because it is caused by my Gleevec and anti-nausea medicine. I need those. The others were helping me deal with arm pain. It seems that unless the drug interactions are life threatening the doctors don’t worry so much about them. After all they have more drugs to counteract any side effects…and on and on. As long as the drug gives the desired effect, the side effects don’t mean so much. I think a little differently… as in risk and reward.

Well, it’s the weekend so I certainly won’t get a call back from my family doctor. As I’ve mentioned since I started this cancer trek, the management within doctor’s offices is terrible. The doctors might be great but it can be very frustrating getting through their atrocious office procedures. Dr. Tan’s office seems to have hired a practice manager; they’ve improved a lot. But there are so many doctors that seem to have major bureaucracies built between the doctor and the patient. Perhaps my question is one they’ve received a hundred times and it’s a low priority. Nevertheless, I’m only asking it once and a lot seems to be riding on the answer.

INDECISION

Well, I didn’t take the new medication. I decided to call the pharmacist and ask the likelihood of having side effects from the medicine. The pharmacist said that I was very likely to have some side effects but not to get discouraged. If the side effects get intolerable then I should call the neurologist.

Well, that wasn’t very comforting and so I decided to call my family practitioner who referred me to the neurologist. I left a message that the neurologist wants me to stop taking the medicines he (family doctor) gave me and to use this new medicine instead. I said that I read the side effects and I’m very concerned about them. I asked what they advised. I sat by the phone for four hours on Thursday waiting for a return call. Nothing. As I write this Friday afternoon I wonder if my doctor’s office will call. The practice management of so many of these doctors leaves a lot to be desired.

Meanwhile, I stopped taking the pain medication prescribed by my family doctor as the neurologist advised, in preparation of taking the new medicine. I’ve gotten the unfortunate opportunity to realize just how much that medication was helping. Right now I’m going without anything and feeling rather vulnerable to the level of arm pain I once knew. I dealt with it then and I can deal with it again but I’m likely to have to make a decision fairly soon as to what I’m going to do. It’s already making my days and nights very long.

When a person takes a medication, many of the listed side effects rarely occur. However, the literature for this new medicine indicates that there is a high incidence of side effects, which was confirmed by the pharmacist. As I mentioned previously, I’m not interested in a cure that is worse than the disease. In this case, I don’t think I’m interested in all of those side effects that I’m supposed to endure for a projected 20% reduction in pain. It’s a dusty road that people go down with side effects and all kinds of medications then added to fight the side effects. I don’t want to start down that path just because an arm problem that I’ve already been dealing with for over twenty years.

PHARMACY CALL

Perhaps it was hasty of me to suspect that the neurologist’s office called the wrong pharmacy. After all, with them knowing that I live in Cantonment, in fact a mile-and- a-half from my pharmacy, what’s the chance that they’d call a different pharmacy that’s twenty minutes from my house? When they asked me which pharmacy I use, what’s the chance that they’d confuse me saying the CVS on 29 and Kingsfield with CVS on Creighton and 9^th? Well, I wasn’t hasty in presuming they called the wrong pharmacy; they did.

So, I drove past my pharmacy for the twenty minute trek over to the pharmacy that called me to tell me that my prescription was ready. The transaction went fine and I got home with the prescription. The pharmacy even told how to transfer the prescription to my regular pharmacy. Even so, I still don’t like it when a doctor’s office messes up like that. There’s even a Bible concept that says if you can’t be trusted in the little things, you can’t be trusted in the big things. Well, I’m not holding the doctor’s office to that exact standard but paying attention to details in medicine is very important.

I have my new medicine sitting next to me which I’m supposed to take three times a day. I looked up the side effects and they are daunting. I don’t want the cure to be worse than the disease. I suppose the warning that caused me the most pause was: “You should know that your mental health may change in unexpected ways and you may become suicidal (thinking about harming or killing yourself or planning or trying to do so.” Otherwise, the potential side effects are only: “Drowsiness, tiredness or weakness, dizziness, headache, uncontrollable shaking of a part of your body, double or blurred vision, unsteadiness, anxiety, memory problems, strange or unusual thoughts, unwanted eye movements, nausea, vomiting, heartburn, diarrhea, dry mouth, constipation, increased appetite, weight gain, swelling of the hands, feet, ankles, or lower legs, back or joint pain, fever, runny nose, sneezing, cough, sore throat, or flu-like symptoms, ear pain, red, itchy eyes (sometimes with swelling or discharge).”

This is one of the things I despise about going to the doctor. These potential side effects are worth the risks to them but they aren’t really to me. I realize that the potential for these side effects might be low but, jeepers, I still don’t like it!! I suppose that I’ll start on the new medication but at the first sign of anything going wrong it will be the end of them. I’ve learned to handle arm pain; I don’t need additional craziness added to my life just so I can hopefully have 20% less pain. Now I wish that the doctor’s office would have called a CVS in Afghanistan instead of just across town!!

NEUROLOGIST

I went to see the neurologist, Dr. Porter, yesterday. My family doctor referred me to him to get an updated evaluation on the Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD) of my right arm. For those who don’t know, I have a neurological condition in which the nerves in my right hand/arm are very sensitive. When my arm is exposed to a noxious stimulus like cold air, drafts, or vibration the nerves reflex back and tell my blood vessels to shut the blood down to my arm. So, then my arm tissues go without sufficient oxygen which is a rather painful predicament.

I’ve been battling this condition for over twenty years now. I’ve had some marked improvement from a specialized surgery to cut some of these nerves to my arm and nerve blocks. Although I am immensely grateful for the improvements, the residual pain has been a very stubborn entity to deal with. It seems that I’ve been on enough different medications to have my own pharmacy.

My family doctor wanted me to get a neurologist’s opinion since it had been many years since a neurologist opined on my condition. I wasn’t too thrilled about it because I don’t like to go to doctors and I don’t like trying new pharmaceutical concoctions. Nevertheless, I consented to go.

Dr. Porter seemed intrigued by all the surgeries that had been done on my arm and the atrophic shape it is in. After conducting a neurological exam, he explained his strategy in treating RSD. He said that it takes an aggressive approach. I thought, “Oh, here we go again.” But he said that I was too old and my arm too compromised for his normal approach!! I know I’m getting older but it was quite a shock to have a doctor refer to me as old!! However, he said that he had some advanced medicines that he thinks will decrease my arm pain by at least twenty percent without using narcotics. That sounded good to me. Dr. Porter wants me off my current pain killers and narcotic so that he can better regulate my dosage.

With the winter months (cold) approaching, I’m ready to give this medicine a full chance. There’s been one glitch already though. Dr. Porter’s office called me to tell me that my prescription had been called in. I went to my pharmacy and they have no record of it. It’s too late in the afternoon (Wednesday) to get in touch with the doctor’s office so I’ll be getting that sorted out today. I suspect they called the wrong pharmacy.

So, once again I begin a new protocol with ample but cautious hope.

GOD IN WAR

Although I read the Bible daily, I’m not a Bible scholar by any stretch of the imagination. The most I can claim is that I’ve completely read the Bible a handful of times and perhaps some of it has stuck to me. Nevertheless, I’m a neophyte when it comes to scholarly exegesis. Having established that, reading the Bible has made an impression on me.

As I read through the Bible, I’m struck that God had His people fight wars much differently than we do. God has His people defeat and destroy the enemy. That’s how America used to fight too. Now we are all about nation-building and preserving various indigenous landmarks. For example, terrorists know they can hide in mosques and launch attacks from there because we won’t attack a mosque. In my way of thinking, we shouldn’t go to war with anyone that we aren’t willing to defeat as quickly and decisively as possible, regardless of such things as mosques. If we are concerned about mosques, then we weren’t provoked enough to go to war.

Part of winning a war is making the enemy and those with similar aggressive aspirations think twice about provoking us. It’s good for others to wonder if they want their infrastructure and people in ruination for whatever cause they are propelling. It should be known that if a nation provokes America into war that they will pay a very heavy price. The price should be so high that it truly deters others from aggression. We would have a lot less wars and armed conflicts that way.

Fear can be a great thing. No, fear is not politically correct but fear is what keeps people from picking fights with a stronger power. Fear can make peace. We seem to think that we can win the hearts and minds of people we’re at war with. This is not only viewed as a sign of weakness by the enemy but it provokes them to push us farther and harder. Rather than America clearly defeating our enemies, we want our enemies to be able to save face; we want to win without calling it victory. We think that does us good in the minds of people who hate us. The result is that we have inadvertently enabled the dramatic spread and sophistication of radical Islam. Where are all the friends our political correctness has bought us? Just recently the president of Afghanistan said that they would side with Pakistan if we got into conflict with Pakistan. Iraq has essentially kicked us out. President Obama wanted to stay longer but we couldn’t reach a deal to protect our military. Furthermore, Egypt and Libya are beginning a turn against us and Tunisia, known as the most European country of North Africa, has just elected to go Islamic.

Compromising with evil is not just a bad political strategy; it’s spiritual heresy. It’s ordained that one can never win in the long run compromising with evil. As far as that goes, we don’t seem to understand radical Islam. Regardless of what we do to appease them, they will still hate us; we are the “Infidels” - - - the “ones without faith.” While we are fighting a political battle, they are fighting a spiritual battle.

As I read the Bible, God’s people didn’t primarily fight political wars; they fought spiritual wars. In that regard, God’s enemies were to be wholly defeated. God didn’t want His holy people compromising with or adopting any of the enemy’s traditions, values, or gods. As America slides farther and farther away from the Judeo-Christian values which founded us, we become less grounded to God and more vulnerable to those who fervently fight for a different god.

IN DECLINE?

A recent national poll conducted by The Hill revealed that more than two-thirds of voters say the United States is in decline. Furthermore, a clear majority think the next generation will be worse off than the current one. To me, it’s not just United States that appears to be in decline; it’s the whole world.

It seems that every direction we turn that man is relying on his own ways, and we are reaping the consequences of those ways. While it is getting easier to dismiss the impact that Judeo-Christian values have had not only on America but the world, we ignore our founding principles at our own peril. There is often a major difference between what seems good and what is right. Those who govern or live by what predominately feels good will often find themselves doing wrong. Those who govern by what is right will predominately find themselves doing right.

As we look around this world, we are having a hard time doing the right thing. In the places we actively seek to promote democracy we are liberating radical Islam instead. Likewise, in the places we hope democracy will rein radical Sharia law is being planned instead. In the effort to fight our enemies by nation-building rather than defeating our enemies, we have enabled radical Islam. In effect, at the expense of many American lives and treasury, we have made the world less safe for us. Despite our “good” intentions, radical Islam is on the march. That in itself makes the world in decline. That ought to scare all Americans.

I don’t know what the next years will bring for this nation but we need to reawaken to the American principles that yielded this great nation. Otherwise, we’ll continue to shove God and His word aside and rely on our own devices. Two-thirds of American voters say we are in decline. Starting within our shores, it’s time to find out what we hold sacred and dear, grasp it with both hands, and politically defeat those who seek to take it from us.

ON THE RUN

As you may recall, Eileen had a total hysterectomy about sixteen months ago. She also had to have an internal sling constructed to keep other structures in their place and position. Eileen did real well. In fact, she surprised everyone with how fast she was back on her feet and resuming her activities. The only problem was keeping Eileen from doing too much, more than she was allowed to do.

Meanwhile, Eileen has been running and recently participated in a 5K. However, while recently running she felt “something give.” We made an appointment with her surgeon; that appointment was last Friday. The surgeon determined that there was a little weakening but everything else was fine. The surgeon even said that Eileen could keep running and would prefer that she keeps running as opposed to becoming inactive. That struck me as a little odd but I just kept listening.

We have had a great experience with the surgeon and we also appreciate the time she takes to answer our questions. However, if the jarring of running caused a weakening, it doesn’t seem advisable to continue the activity. I understand the inactivity aspect but there is another option: Eileen can do fast walking. In fact, at some of the 5K events, some of the walkers finish before some of the runners. That way Eileen can still get her cardio work without jarring her insides so much. I know the surgeon could fix whatever Eileen jarred apart in running, but it’s not like Eileen is smitten with having to run. We’d rather play it cautiously and avoid further problems or surgeries.

ACTIVITIES

Eileen and I have been going to youth baseball and football games (band) that our kids have been involved with for twenty consecutive years. Now there are only two more games and one band competition until that streak will end. For sure, this isn’t the era of your momma’s baseball teams and band. While it has been enjoyable to watch our kids compete and participate, it has also been a consuming endeavor.

Youth programs today tend to dominate a family’s life. With four active kids, it’s been a balancing act to make it all work. It seems that each program wants a full commitment of not only the participating child but the family too. Furthermore, the cost associated with these activities is becoming prohibitive. While participation in these activities has been fruitful and fun, it seems that the overshadowing devotion required to participate will be a self-limiting hurdle at some point.

As we close out our run of twenty consecutive years of attending our kids’ extra-curricular activities, we’ve had a great time following them all over the nation. Nevertheless, the busyness of our children has never been an excuse for Eileen and I to falter in our responsibilities to them as parents. While we’ve always given these activities their due, we’ve fought hard to make sure that our values were instilled in our children. While we’ve watched our children hoist championship trophies, honors, scholarships, and various awards in their activities, we’ve always been mindful that these activities would one day end… but their values must endure.

It’s good to remember that regardless of how wonderful our kids’ teachers, coaches, and supervisors might be, these good people are not our kids’ parents. That responsibility falls to us and there is never a good reason to think these good people will or should raise our kids for us. In fact, the best coaching our kids will ever receive is from us.

CHRISTIAN SURVEY

A recent survey reported that one in four believers are Christians in name only. The survey respondents were asked a series of questions that was designed to measure faith. The author reported, "When posed with a real world situation which tests their faith, they (25%) tend to do what the rest of the world does, instead of living as Jesus instructs." Frankly though, I’m surprised at the 25% number; I thought it would be higher!!

When we look at how God is being systematically eradicated from our society we also have to look at how the morals and ethics are being subjugated also. This nation through all its diversity used to rally around its Judeo-Christian values. Now those values have been surrendered to multiculturalism, political correctness, and secular humanism. The central fundamentals that Americans looked to and rallied behind in our churches and courts are being eliminated. Either the number of “Christians in name only” is higher than reported or the 25% is who we elect and who sits on the courts!!

ANTIDEPRESSANTS

In a recently released study that was conducted between 1996 and 2005, it was found that antidepressant drug use among Americans has nearly doubled. The study’s author, Dr. Mark Olfson, a professor of clinical psychiatry at Columbia University/New York State Psychiatric Institute in New York City said, “Over 10 percent of people over the age of 6 were receiving anti-depression medication.”

Life presents us with all kinds of opportunities to become sad or depressed about things. There’s the stress of work, home, marriage, children, family, bills, sickness, and daily interactions with people. Depression is not a state of mind that people generally make a decision to enter. Adult depression is often a natural result of having profound challenges which are accompanied by a lack of hope in one’s ability to cope or overcome. As a result, self-pity and a desire to escape the burdens foster a detached or depressed state of mind.

There are many theories as to why there has been an explosion in antidepressant use. Many feel that the American lifestyle is chiefly to blame. No longer do most people toil from sunup to sunset with little time to be depressed. Today, despite having more free time than Americans have had at almost any time in our history, we long to escape the responsibilities that we do have. For many, the depressed state of mind is an escape from the realities of life. Man’s constant cry for more time off is often the precursor to depression because the mind generally does not do well when left to itself for long periods of time. It’s why solitary confinement is regarded as a harsh punishment. Anyway, while we are always clamoring for more vacations, breaks, and early retirement, the mind actually needs constant fruitful purpose. Life insurance companies know that a significant number of people die within five years of retirement. It seems that while we cry to stop working, the mind cries to stay engaged and needed.

Perhaps the most staggering aspect of the study may have caught your attention in the first paragraph. There’s a significant population of depressed six-year-olds to be included in the study. I would suggest that instead of seeking to make everything better and easier for our children than what we had it, understand that a certain amount of struggle is good and necessary for the human spirit and mind. While our kids are spending endless hours in front of the computer, TV, and video games, their minds are being sabotaged. Being responsible and accountable in real life are necessary for proper maturity. It’s time for people of all ages to engage life’s challenges rather than always seek refuge and escape from them.

Apart from the pathologically depressed, it’s a shame to live in the most blessed and prosperous nation yet have the numbers of people on antidepressants that we do. It’s good to remember that it’s hard to be depressed when are a thankful, giving, hopeful, and faithful people.

FAN REPAIR

The fan in the master bathroom went out and I pondered whether I should hire someone to replace it or do it myself/ourselves. After doing a little research, I found out that our old fan is not rated (CFM’s) nearly as high as it should be. Getting the correct fan would mean getting a bigger one which would mean cutting a bigger hole in the ceiling, bracing it in, and all of that. Finally, I decided we could do it. While I was at it, I measured the CFM requirement of our other bathroom and ordered one for it too since it hasn’t worked right in a long time.

When the large box arrived with the two fans, I again thought about contacting someone to install them. They looked a bit too much. Yet, looking at them on Tuesday, I was motivated to open them up and see what it looked like. I could see a couple of problems right away so off to Lowe’s I went. There is a guy who works in the plumbing section who has saved me many times. I talked to him; he set me up with a few items and back home I went. I got everything laid out just like I thought it needed to go but I decided to wait until Eileen got home before cutting holes, etc.

My plan was good but Eileen spotted some technical flaws…okay, thank God I waited until she got home. We would have had a mess. So Eileen and I with the help of our son and daughter proceeded to install the first fan. After we had the hole cut, we noticed that the fan was designed for new construction, not replacement. Therefore, we had to make some construction modifications and design modifications in the fan housing!! After several hours of toil, we finally got it finished. It looks and works great.

Having been successful with the first fan and having learned a few tricks, my son and I installed the smaller fan without much problem. Well, I did run into a couple of problems but my son got me out of them. One problem was that after wiring up the fan, it wouldn’t work when the switched was flipped. I checked and rechecked my wiring but it still wouldn’t work. I asked my son if he had any ideas. He looked at the scene and noticed the fan was unplugged from the housing. He was gentle in suggesting that plugging it in might make it work. It did!!

NO GREATER LOVE

I hope you heard the story of Stacie Crimm who at age 41 was diagnosed with head, neck, and eventually brain cancer. To make matters worse, the single mom was pregnant. Enduring severe headaches that one can only imagine, double vision, and a host of other problems, Stacie refused cancer treatment that might save her because the treatment would definitely kill her baby.

When either the mom or baby is going to die, I’m not sure any of us know what we’d choose unless we were in that dreadful situation. Stacie’s love for her unborn child caused her to lay down her life for her baby. Even so, things didn’t go well.

In mid-August, Stacie collapsed and her baby’s heart rate plummeted. Stacie’s heart stopped beating 90 minutes later. After being resuscitated, doctors chose to deliver the two- pound, once-ounce baby by Caesarean. For most of the next several weeks Stacie was unconscious. On September 8^th, she was again resuscitated and was able to hold her baby for the first time, which was now five pounds. Stacie died three days later.

According to the article, these scenarios aren’t that uncommon. Many moms and couples face the decision as to whether to lose the baby and treat the mom. I suppose that many of the decisions come down to what the prognosis is of the mother. In Stacie’s case, she had a very aggressive cancer that she wasn’t likely to survive whether she had treatment or not. Yet, it didn’t matter to Stacie. Her love caused her to choose to endure the terrible ravages of her cancer while hoping to save the life of her baby. The baby, Dottie Mae, will grow up knowing that her mother laid down her life for her: There is no greater love. (Picture from DudleyFuneralHomes.com)

WRONG DIRECTION

The direction of the country is very disconcerting. As much as jobs and the economy are on our minds, our nationalism and values are under attack too. It seems that one company after another is disallowing the flag at its place of business; patriotism is substituted for multicultural awareness; values are displaced for tolerance, and God is being systematically driven out of America. What makes this decline so insidious and lethal is that it is hard to measure. Meanwhile, it slowly erodes this nation like age slowly erodes our bodies.

While some aspects of Americana are hard to measure, we can measure many aspects of the economy. While a trip to the grocery store will tell you that things are going crazy, here are some numbers a friend emailed me that make the point even more: The country is headed in the wrong direction.

	January 2009	January 2011	% chg	Source
Avg. Retail price/gallon gas in U.S.	$1.83	$3.44	84%	1
Crude oil, European Brent (barrel)	$43.48	$99.02	127.7%	2
Crude oil, West TX Inter. (barrel)	$38.74	$91.38	135.9%	2
Gold: London (per troy oz.)	$853.25	$1,369.50	60.5%	2
Corn, No.2 yellow, Central IL	$3.56	$6.33	78.1%	2
Soybeans, No. 1 yellow, IL	$9.66	$13.75	42.3%	2
Sugar, cane, raw, world, lb. Fob	$13.37	$35.39	164.7%	2
Unemployment rate, non-farm, overall	7.6%	9.4%	23.7%	3
Unemployment rate, blacks	12.6%	15.8%	25.4%	3
Number of unemployed	11,616,000	14,485,000	24.7%	3
Number of fed. Employees	2,779,000	2,840,000	2.2%	3
Real median household income	$50,112	$49,777	-0.7%	4</ div>
Number of food stamp recipients	31,983,716	43,200,878	35.1%	5
Number of</ span> unemployment benefit recipients	7,526,598	9,193,838	22.2%	6
Number of long-term unemployed	2,600,000	6,400,000	146. 2%	3
Poverty rate, individuals	13.2%	14.3%	8.3%	4
People in poverty in U.S.	39,800,000	43,600,000	9.5%	4
U.S.. Rank in Economic Freedom World Rankings	5	9	n/a	10
Present Situation Index	29.9	23.5	-21.4%	11
Failed banks	140	164	17.1%	12
U.S.. Dollar versus Japanese yen exchange rate	89.76	82.03	-8.6%	2
U.S.. Money supply, M1, in billions	1,575.1	1,865.7	18.4%	13
U.S.. Money supply, M2, in billions	8,310.9	8,852. 3	6.5%	13
National debt, in trillions	$10..627	$14..052	32.2%	14

Sources:
(1) U.S. Energy Information administration;(2) Wall Street Journal; (3) Bureau of Labor Statistics; (4) Census Bureau; (5) USDA; (6) U.S. Dept. Of Labor; (7) FHFA; (8) Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller;(9) RealtyTrac; (10) Heritage Foundation and WSJ; (11) The Conference Board; (12) FDIC; (13) Federal Reserve; (14) U.S. Treasury

BAND CONCESSION STAND

The high school band of which our daughter is a member hosted the Florida Bandmaster Association (FBA) competition on Saturday. There were around fourteen high school bands along with their family members, guests, and fans. I don’t know the numbers but there were a lot of band students and others who were not only on the field and in the stands, but visiting the concession stand where I was.

I volunteered to work in the concession stand because they are usually short-handed in large events like this. I’ve helped in the years past, especially with our other two kids who played in the band, but I haven’t helped at a FBA since my cancer diagnosis. There are a couple of reasons why I haven’t and I’ve been vividly reliving them ever since Saturday night.

The first problem is that the concession crowds are enormous. That means that concession workers are in a constant hurry mode to get things done. There’s really no room for a one handed person. So, I try to do something that I can primarily do one handed without causing a massive backup. Saturday, I was on the drink machine. I filled cups with ice and dispensed soft drinks by the hundreds if not into the thousands. Even the simplest of jobs like that can’t be done with one hand without gumming up the works. It was a frantic pace for a solid five hours. Eileen came and helped me later in my shift. She basically took over and I handed out the drinks. I could do that one handed. I was a long day and my right arm was in for an even longer night.

Secondly, my stamina is not real good. I can push through about anything but weariness and mild leg cramps had long set in. When Eileen and I were offered a relief worker, I spoke right up and took it. Eileen and I got to the stands in time to watch representatives from the various bands march onto the field for awards. I don’t like to use extreme words but I was exhausted.

Over the years, I have been very involved in our children’s activities, even to the extent of coaching, cooking, working fields, concession stands, and being president of a booster club for a couple of years. However, although the band is hosting another very large band event in a few weeks, I think I’m going to leave it to the more able-bodied parents. I’ll be recovering from Saturday’s event for a few days.

NATIONAL LANGUAGE

There have been attempts by some in Congress to make English our national language. Nevertheless, its chances of ever happening seem less likely as time passes on.

As this country was being formed, I’m sure that it was impractical to have a national language. Now, however, I think we may be on the other side of the curve. Today, not having a national language is hurting us. We seem to have too many well demarcated lines of individual tribes refusing to all come under the national banner. More and more, tolerance of other languages, customs, and traditions are being used to isolate people rather than integrate a diverse people into this nation.

It reminds me of Babel in the Bible where God gave them all various languages so as to diffuse their perception of their power towards God. We’ve swung the pendulum all the way to the other end that we are diminishing our righteous power as a nation because we stand for so many things that we really have a hard time standing for anything.

America is very diverse, but it always has been. The difference is that we are using diversity to divide people rather than unite them. People have too many personal agendas amidst their diversity. In doing so, it is bringing this country to its knees in the pursuit of many individual peoples rather than one nation under God. If we can’t rally behind a national language to talk to each other with, I wonder what we can rally behind.

SUICIDE OF SUPERPOWER

I’ve not read or listened to anything by Patrick Buchanan for a long time. However, when his new book, “Suicide of a Superpower,” had excerpts on a website I read them. I found them interesting so I decided that for today’s blog that I would list a few of the quotes from his book which comes out next week. For those who don’t know of Pat Buchanan, he is a Republican commentator who has run for President. For purposes of one of his quotes, he is Catholic. Here are a few of his excerpts:

“We have accepted today the existence in perpetuity of a permanent underclass of scores of millions who cannot cope and must be carried by society -- fed, clothed, housed, tutored, medicated at taxpayer’s expense their entire lives. We have a dependent nation the size of Spain in our independent America. We have a new division in our country, those who pay a double or triple fare, and those who ride forever free.”

“If [Christopher] Dawson is correct, the drive to de-Christianize America, to purge Christianity from the public square, public schools and public life, will prove culturally and socially suicidal for the nation. “The last consequence of a dying Christianity is a dying people. Not one post-Christian nation has a birth rate sufficient to keep it alive....The death of European Christianity means the disappearance of the European tribe, a prospect visible in the demographic statistics of every Western nation.”

“Half a century on, the disaster is manifest. The robust and confident Church of 1958 no longer exists. Catholic colleges and universities remain Catholic in name only. Parochial schools and high schools are closing as rapidly as they opened in the 1950s. The numbers of nuns, priests and seminarians have fallen dramatically. Mass attendance is a third of what it was. From the former Speaker of the House to the Vice President, Catholic politicians openly support abortion on demand.” “How can Notre Dame credibly teach that all innocent life is sacred, and then honor a president committed to ensuring that a woman’s right to end the life of her innocent child remains sacrosanct?”

I don’t know the full context of Mr. Buchanan’s excerpts but the comments are very interesting and thought provoking.

BAD MEDICINE

During the uprising in Egypt, I suggested to my blog readers in my February 4^th post titled, “Let My People Go” that we should be careful about meddling in the overthrow of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. In that blog post I wrote: “Anyway, right now, our country is supporting the overthrow of Egypt’s Mubarak. Especially if we are going to end up with the Muslim Brotherhood in his stead, we might want to be a bit more careful about whom we are throwing our support behind. Mubarak is no saint but we are likely to end up with someone much more sinister in his place. Do we ever learn?”

Evidently we don’t learn. Now the Coptic (Egyptian) Christians who used to live in peace in Egypt are being persecuted, killed, and eradicated. Even so, the voices that decried the resistance of the government from takeover are strangely quiet at the systematic expunging of Christians. Furthermore, Egypt was at peace with Israel but now anti-Israeli voices and actions are growing.

In the above mentioned blog, I also wrote, “How many times have we encouraged the deposing of one ruler to only be saddled with one who is a zillion times worse?” It’s good to help people in need but we need to be sure the cure isn’t worse than the disease.

MIDDLE EAST POLICY

I’m not a politician and I don’t ever plan on being one. To give myself the benefit of the doubt, I think that I am too politically incorrect to ever consider it. Nevertheless, that doesn’t stop me from expressing my views on political issues. The one I want to address today is the Middle East.

To cut right to it, the Middle Eastern people consist of many tribes who have been fighting each other since the beginning of their time. I see no reason why they won’t continue to fight each other until the end of time. Regardless of our best efforts and intentions, there is nothing we can do to change that. For all our efforts, have Iraq, Afghanistan, Egypt, and others become more tolerant of each other or of this Judeo-Christian nation which is spilling its blood and treasure for them? A quick glance around the world yields a resounding “No.”

Many in the Middle East and elsewhere have sworn to bring down Israel and the United States. All our “nation building” seems to do is make their countries stronger from which to oppose Israel and us. Despite our best efforts, we are not transforming them into places with our type of values. Instead, they reject our values and resent our continued presence.

The Middle East and vicinity is a dangerous place. While those countries are an immediate threat to Israel, they are also becoming imminent threats to the United States. Just look at 9/11 and the recent Iranian plot in the U.S. It seems that there are more humane and cost effective ways to deal with radical nations than trying defeat them and attempt to build them into a friend. We’ve been in Iraq and Afghanistan for ten years and their tolerance of us is getting worse.

It’s my idea that when these rogue nations become quintessential threats to us that we deal with them swiftly and strongly in such a manner that it takes years for them to rebuild, and our strong action causes them to have second thoughts about ever provoking us again. Compromising with evil never works; it just allows evil to prosper in ways it wouldn’t have otherwise. These peoples and tribes are going to continue to fight each other until the end of the world. We should realize that there is nothing we can do about that. Our concern should end at the point that we have ensured the safety of American interests. As soon as America leaves Iraq and Afghanistan, those countries will be right back to the tribal fighting. It’s time boldly finish the job of terminating the threat to America and then get out of there.

WAR WITHIN THE WAR

According to the U.S. State Department, there isn’t even one Christian Church left in Afghanistan. The last public Christian Church was destroyed in March 2010. It seems that in our conscious effort to not offend Muslims we have eradicated Christianity in that country.

1,700 military personnel have lost their lives and thousands more have been wounded in the fight in Afghanistan at a treasury cost of $440 billion. General McChrystal recently said that we are half way to our Afghan goals after ten years of fighting. There is no doubt that there is more to the war agenda than fighting terrorists. We have spent a lot of money and lives training Afghans to run their country in a way that doesn’t rely on the Taliban. Yet, I’m not sure that leaving Christian values out of such formulas is ever effective for peace in the long term, especially amongst a warring culture.

Muslim values and Christian values have been at odds since they first interacted. It seems odd that Christian soldiers are dying and being maimed in an effort to build a country that will likely become even more hostile to us. Already, Christianity has been all but expunged from that country even while we are there trying to build it up…into a stronger Muslim country. Of course, we hope that this Muslim country will be friendly to this Christian country. Yet, meanwhile, Christians are being erased from the Afghanistan landscape in the war that is within the war.

PARENTS AND GRANDPARENTS

I’ve always believed and advocated that parents have something more than the temporary happiness of their children to consider in raising them. Chiefly, they need to consider how their kids will turn out. Equipping our kids for their adult life is a major role of parents. Leading the household in righteousness and order is the mode the parents should operate under. True love for the children demands that parents excel at these roles. But, what is the role of grandparents?

Being a grandparent for over a year has affirmed what I always thought grandparents’ role is. Especially after being with our grand-daughter (Lindsay) since last Thursday evening, I am convinced more than ever of our role. First, it is the grandparents’ prerogative to do whatever Lindsay likes!! Within reason, Eileen and I are not so concerned about whether Lindsay gets to bed on time, takes her naps, eats on time etc., especially if we’re playing with her or occupied with her. Her parents can reset all that when they get home!!

It was great having the house filled with the kids these past four days. We had a busy and fun time filled with a bunch of activities and with Lindsay at the center of much of the attention. Lindsay again attached herself to me but at least she would regularly reach for and go to the other family members too. It was very heart-warming to have Lindsay reach for and want to be held by me. It was just as heart-warming to see her do it with the other family members too.

So, our oldest daughter left for home yesterday morning and then our son’s family left later in the morning. We had a great time and I’m sure Lindsay’s parents will have to make some adjustments with Lindsay getting her back on her routine. However, we had a great time being parents and grand-parents this weekend with the whole family.

BIRTHDAY PARTY

Yesterday we went to Lindsay’s birthday party at the Perdido Kid’s Park here in Pensacola. The party is a week early, but we wanted to be able to celebrate her birthday while the whole family was here. I had a great time watching my grand-daughter running around the playground, which was fantastic with a number of things to do for kids of all ages.

Lindsay particularly liked the water mister-spray in the tots’ area. She laughed each time her aunt and uncle took her through the water spray, and she pointed each time she wanted to go again. It’s obvious that Lindsay is learning how to communicate what she likes and what she wants to do. Later, she fell asleep while we walked through the nature trail. She had played so hard that she was worn out! She woke up again, though, when it was time to open presents. She was a natural at ripping open the paper; it’s obvious that she has a bright future ahead of her! The Shutterfly pictures are at http://michaeleileendoss.shutterfly.com/pictures

PACK LEADER

I got a lot of my dog training techniques from Caesar Millan, “The Dog Whisperer.” He has been made famous by retraining dogs and their owners. He says that he often has to work more with the owners more than he does the dogs!! His techniques are all about restoring the natural pack structure for the dog.

Caesar Millan stresses that dogs are pack animals and thus they need a strong pack leader to set rules, boundaries, and limitations. If the pack leader is weak or inconsistent, then it is natural for the dog to set its own rules, as it vies to be pack leader. There always has to be a pack leader. So, if the owner is not a strong pack leader, the dog will seek to take over. It will behave as it wants and do what it wants. The pack leader sets the rules. Dogs are very black and white about this. Someone is not only the pack leader but someone is a strong pack leader.

Dogs only feel safe and calm when there is order in the pack which is provided by the pack leader. If the pack leader fails to keep order, there is a challenge for it leadership spot. Chaos erupts in the dogs mind if the owner is not a strong leader but tries to set the rules anyway. By the way, all the humans in the household are the pack leader. If the dog senses that he (the dog) is the pack leader then he is confused by the commands of the owner. Again, it’s the pack leader who makes the rules. Caesar Millan says that this confusion of roles displays itself in dogs in all kinds of mal behaviors and psychosis. So, although Caesar spends time reorienting dogs to be pack followers, he often spends more time teaching the owner to be a leader.

This is not that much different than raising children. If the parents are not strong leaders and thus setting the rules, boundaries, and limitations, then the child will seek to do its own thing. In an attempt to constantly please the child, we often essentially give the child the role he’s not equipped to handle: Pack leader. Remember, the pack leader gets his way. If you want to see chaos in a household look at a household in which the child usually gets his way.

It’s amazing that you can often tell how dysfunctional pets are in a household by looking at the kids, and vice versa. It’s also interesting that many family coaches focus on the leadership traits and techniques of the parents, not just the behavior of the kids. I suppose there is ample leadership in the house or there is not.

It’s hard to be a leader in the household but the price for failing is steep. If we have unruly pets or children, we should look in the mirror as the first place to start to remedy the situation.

LINDSAY WITH ELLIE

Our oldest daughter got to town several hours before our oldest son’s family. While Eileen continued her frenzied pace to get her paper completed and our other two kids were at school, our daughter and I went for a walk. We took our dog, Ellie. I told our daughter that I always like to have Ellie on the leash regularly before Lindsay visits. Lindsay likes dogs very much. As well behaved as our dog is, she is still an animal to me. Therefore, I don’t trust her with my granddaughter’s life, and so I make sure that all of Ellie’s leash training is on cue before Lindsay visits.

When Eileen runs with Ellie (Ellie is on the leash), Ellie is allowed to run ahead or behind Eileen, but on the left side. When Ellie is on the leash walking, Ellie walks on the left side without walking ahead or behind. The leash is kept rather short and relaxed. However, if Ellie isn’t paying attention to the person with the leash then she’ll start to wander with her head. At the point we feel the leash tighten, we make a short small correction to put Ellie’s head to where the leash is relaxed and Ellie paying attention. Although Ellie rarely needs correction at this point in time, she periodically gets distracted by other sights and sounds along the way. While Ellie is on the leash, it is her job to pay more attention to the leash handler than anything else. Ellie’s leash time is a time for Ellie to be in an obedience mode while enjoying her walk.

This training has created a dog that loves to go on walks and runs, and is very well behaved. She trusts us and knows that we will keep order and safety in her world. Although Ellie is part of the family, we are unambiguous that we are human beings and she is an animal. We don’t confuse or blur those lines. We are her pack leader and she is a follower. As in a pack in the wild, Ellie is at peace with her role as a follower and we look out for her as part of our pack leader duties. Therefore, there is no question that the humans in our family are in charge and she is part of the pack.

This is very important when one-year-old Lindsay is around. We let Lindsay have free rein with Ellie but we make sure Lindsay doesn’t do anything to make Ellie feel threatened. When Lindsay is around Ellie, Ellie is told to sit and stay. Then Lindsay interacts with Ellie at her own pace. Sometimes she pokes Ellie with her little finger and such. For the most part though, Lindsay likes being around the dog and doesn’t touch her much. Either way, Ellie just sits there often times looking at me in the eyes.

We love Ellie as our dog and I think she knows we’ll always look out for her. It’s in her bloodline to watch out for us too. Ellie is an excellent dog who likes to please us and seems to really enjoy her life. As I said earlier though, although I trust Ellie as much as I have ever trusted an animal, I take precaution so that we don’t endure one of those horrific accidents from the family pet. First, Ellie’s place in the family structure (pack) is consistently reinforced. As in a pack, Ellie is not allowed to act however she wants. She operates within the rules, boundaries, freedoms, and limitations, set by the pack leader. Again, we are her pack leader. As her pack leader, we make sure she doesn’t have anxiety associated with inconsistent leadership and expectations. Therefore, we keep chaos out of her life. Secondly, we keep a constant eye on the interaction between Lindsay and Ellie while keeping Ellie in the obedience mode, paying attention to the handler. It helps keep Ellie from acting out of her instinctual nature even if Lindsay puts her finger in Ellie’s nose. Finally, I keep in mind that Ellie is a dog and not a human. Even humans hurt little children sometimes and I’m not inclined to trust an animal more than I would another human.

THE WEEKEND

This is the beginning of a full weekend for us. The house is full with our family back together as both our daughter and our son with his family got in last night. This evening is the wedding of my older brother’s oldest son. Our prayers and best wishes are with him and his bride. They are very delightful people.

The timing of this weekend is a little awkward for Eileen because she has been racing to get a 12 page paper written for one of her master’s classes. Plus she has two other master’s classes she has work to get done in, and she teaches. She’s been putting in long hours and our younger daughter has been working hard to help get things ready for the weekend. As a little bit of craziness and convenience, our daughter and I went grocery shopping at 10:15 last night. It lightened the load for me yesterday. I had a list of eight projects I was going to do on Thursday. Our daughter did six of them for me before I even knew it.

Then on Saturday evening, our younger daughter has a band competition in a nearby town. For the locals, it’s at Pace High School. Our daughter is a drum major and her band is the defending champion of this competition. However, their band has had some glitches too as it just got the choreography of one of it musical pieces this past week. The band works hard so I’m sure they’ll pull it together.

On Sunday, Lindsay has a birthday party. Hopefully, after the preceding few days with Lindsay, she will be calling me “Grandpa” and we’ll pull up chairs and talk about life as a one year old!!

NATIONAL INTEREST

A United Nations resolution to punish Syria if it doesn’t stop its military crackdown on civilians was vetoed in the U.N. by China and Russia. The United States supported the resolution. The selectivity of who can commit atrocities and who can’t shows the politics of the world body. It may seem that the U.N. should have a policy of opposing violent civilian oppression by governments or it shouldn’t. But then, where would we start and where would we stop. It seems that much of the world is ruled by ruthless leaders.

Violent civilian oppression presents a moral dilemma for countries like ours. Do we stand by while legions of innocents get slaughtered or violently oppressed? Or, do we step in? But again, where would we start and where would we stop? We’d have to invade and essentially colonize much of the world. Is that the righteous role for nations like ours or do we let these oppressed people live and die under conditions they have lived under for hundreds and thousands of years, because no matter what we do they will keep at it? Further, the government we replace has often been better than the new one that comes into power.

It’s hard to be consistent in the way that we interject ourselves into another country’s affairs. I suppose we’ll continue to meddle in the ones that we deem to be of national interest and leave the rest to themselves. China and Russia have invested a lot of money into Syria, ever increasing the threat against Israel. Although we found it in our national interest to attack Libya, I doubt we’ll ever find it in our national interest to attack Syria while it has the backing of China and Russia.

The White House has just announced that it is once again granting waivers to some countries who use child soldiers so we can give them U.S. military assistance. The waivers are for Yemen, South Sudan, Chad, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Why do we grant waivers to them although they recruit soldiers under the age of 15 while we punish other countries for doing the same? We’re seemingly as political as anyone else. Rather than policies based on defining principles, we do what we deem to be in our national interest…just like everyone else.

NATIONAL INTEREST

A United Nations resolution to punish Syria if it doesn’t stop its military crackdown on civilians was vetoed in the U.N. by China and Russia. The United States supported the resolution. The selectivity of who can commit atrocities and who can’t shows the politics of the world body. It may seem that the U.N. should have a policy of opposing violent civilian oppression by governments or it shouldn’t. But then, where would we start and where would we stop. It seems that much of the world is ruled by ruthless leaders.

Violent civilian oppression presents a moral dilemma for countries like ours. Do we stand by while legions of innocents get slaughtered or oppressed? Or, do we step in? But again, where would we start and where would we stop? We’d have to invade and essentially colonize much of the world. Is that the righteous role for nations like ours or do we let these oppressed people live and die under conditions they have lived under for hundreds and thousands of years, because no matter what we do they will keep at it? Further, the government we replace has often been better than the new one that comes into power.

It’s hard to be consistent in the way that we interject ourselves into another country’s affairs. I suppose we’ll continue to meddle in the ones that we deem to be of national interest and leave the rest to themselves. China and Russia have invested a lot of money into Syria, ever increasing the threat against Israel. Although we found it in our national interest to attack Libya, I doubt we’ll ever find it in our national interest to attack Syria while it has the backing of China and Russia.

The White House has just announced that it is once again granting waivers to some countries who use child soldiers so we can give them U.S. military assistance. The waivers are for Yemen, South Sudan, Chad, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Why do we grant waivers to them although they recruit soldiers under the age of 15 while we punish other countries for doing the same? We’re seemingly as political as anyone else. Rather than policies based on defining principles, we do what we deem to be in our national interest…just like everyone else.

BEING THANKFUL

We’ve been told all our lives to be thankful for our blessings…but why should we be?! Does being thankful change anything in our lives? Well, yes, it does. It changes us. We are the accumulation of our thoughts, beliefs, and thus attitudes. The life we live is based on these and, whether we understand it or not, many things that happen to us in life also depend upon our thoughts, beliefs, and attitudes.

If we stop and think about it, we can readily see that there is a vast difference between someone who has a thankful heart and someone who doesn’t. The attitude is different as is the level of joy and spiritualism. A thankful heart changes us from the inside out and makes us into a beautiful creation.

It’s good for us to constantly be aware of all the big and little blessings around us. It’s a different life we’ll live if we can see God’s blessings for us all around us. It puts new life into our step knowing that we are personally blessed by God. When we can feel that personal blessing, then we truly have a happy, wholesome, and thankful heart.

THE UNEMPLOYED

The unemployment numbers are constantly in the news. In fact, they have such a constant presence that it’s easy for those numbers to get lost in our psyche. Yet, for the unemployed, they are not just numbers; they are a scary reality of life.

I fully realize that there are people who play the system and collect unemployment checks when they could be working. I also fully realize that if benefits weren’t so adequate, it would put more pressure on people to take whatever job they can. Even so, I’m not talking about those people. I’m talking about the ones who are desperately fighting to find a job, pay their mortgages, utility bills, and other household obligations. These are the ones who kids aren’t participating in sports and band because the cost is financially prohibitive. They spend their nights worrying and wondering what’s going to happen the next day.

It’s these people that I hope the constant drumbeat of unemployment news doesn’t cause us to forget about. The unemployment situation in America is a serious plague upon our society. I hope we all have a heart for the unemployed and keep them in our prayers.

JAIL OR CHURCH

A recent news story told of a plan by Bay Minette, AL., in which first-time, nonviolent offenders may choose between jail or going to church every Sunday for a year. Offenders select a participating church but must check in weekly with the pastor and police.

The Alabama Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is opposed to church being a choice. They say, "It is a fundamental principle of the Establishment Clause that the government cannot force someone to attend church. When the alternative to going to church is going to jail, the so-called `choice' available to offenders is no choice at all."

Some less-serious detractors have chided that the choice between church and jail makes it sound like church is a punishment that is equal to jail time. For some church services that may be true!! However, there is another way to look at it. There are some prisoners who find redemption in jail. While a vast majority of long-term prisoners become hardened or institutionalized, some find prison a place to get one’s life back in order. If some find redemption in jail, surely more would find it in church. For first-time, nonviolent offenders, it may be a great option. Going to church would be a whole less of a burden on society and the offender may get more out of going to church than he ever bargained for. Fifty-six local churches are participating in the program.

POINT OF ORDER

When Lindsay was so attached to me the last weekend we were together, there were many interesting aspects to her clinging. Every time I took her to see a new dog, she pointed at it. She was eleven months old. Even though she was pointing at the dog, she wasn’t satisfied until I was pointing too. She’d grab my hand and push it forward. She was satisfied when I pointed at the dog. Even away from dogs, like walking around in a store, Lindsay would want me to hold her and then she’d want me to point.

In talking it over, we concluded that Lindsay liked the way that I handled her first extensive experience with a dog. It was with our dog, Ellie. Whenever I wanted Ellie to sit or stay, I would point my finger at her, often times after snapping my finger to get her attention. Each time Lindsay came over to Ellie I would hold my finger up because Ellie would naturally want to wonder off from a kid who is sticking her finger in Ellie’s nose, grabbing Ellie’s lips, poking Ellie in the side, and flipping Ellie’s ears!! Ellie would often look into my eyes as if to ask if I had control of this kid.

Ironically, I think that is what the pointing represents to Lindsay. She wants to make sure there is control of the dogs she is going to be around. When we were at the race in Beaufort, SC., Lindsay walked up to a dog with her finger pointing. I don’t think she was just pointing at the cute little doggie; I think she wanted the dog to be under control. The same is true with pointing in the store. She didn’t want me to just point at all the stuff. I think she just liked me keeping order in the world around her. I think pointing gave her a sense of order.

Each week we interact with Lindsay and her parents via the computer video program called Skype. It’s amazing how Lindsay reacts to us on the computer screen. She waves to us and claps in response to our clapping, etc. She also often points when she talks to me or if I point first. Yet, during the hour or so that we talk on Skype at a time, we inevitably see Lindsay try to get in a drawer she’s not supposed to get in or grab something that is supposed to be left alone. Sometimes we see her look back at her parents to see if they are watching before she does a forbidden act. From a grandparent’s perspective, it is very cute!! The point is though that for as much as Lindsay likes order in parts of her world she’s not totally comfortable in, she doesn’t mind seeking a little chaos (doing something wrong) in the world she is very familiar with. Parental correction brings order back to her world. It’s fascinating to see Lindsay sometimes point after being told “no.”

The interesting thing to me is the display of the human condition: We all need and yearn for order in our lives but we naturally tempt chaos. We like to live on the edge. Just like if the speed limit is 70, most of us drive at least 73 or 74. Whatever the limit is in life, we push it a little. Yet, if someone zooms by us at 85 miles per hour, we feel uncomfortable. There is a “point” at which we want order.

Even though we earnestly desire order, we are never far away from creating chaos. While there is a point at which we all want order, Lindsay likes to point to get order. It kind of reminds me of how God points the way for man to have peace and order with him in our lives. Too often though, we just don’t get the “point.” Instead, we live in the chaos of our own ways.

EKG RESULTS

I returned from running some errands and noticed a message on our answering machine. The message was from Dr. Tan’s office regarding my EKG test results. I was asked to return their call regarding my “heart report.” That put a surge in my system. At my last visit, Dr. Tan left it with me that I’d call his “Patient Navigator” a week after the test was performed to get the results. Instead, his office was calling me just a couple of days after the test. On the message, “Dawn” left her phone number and extension. That seemed odd because my Patient Navigator’s name is Tiffany, not Dawn.

Ever since the EKG I’ve been confident about my results but concerned about what a bad test result would mean. After all, during the test, they were only going to do the heart CT scan if it was indicated. The technician must have seen enough to warrant the CT. Remembrances of my father’s heart disease, and his father’s heart disease, and others came rushing to me. What if the doctor said that I needed to have my chest opened so they could perform bypass surgery like they said to my father when he was still in his forties? How many second opinions would I get? Would I take my chances or would I jump on that ever revolving merry-go-round of heart medications and surgeries? I tried not to think about it.

Before I called Dr. Tan’s office, all this flashed before me again. In addition, my blog readers know that Dr. Tan’s office has had their share of communication problems in the past. Are they turning over a new leaf by calling me? Or, is there something urgent in my EKG report that Dr. Tan wants to talk to me about? I hesitated no longer. I picked up the phone and called Dr. Tan’s office.

I asked for Dawn’s extension. She answered immediately. I told her who I was and that I was calling about my EKG results. She thanked me for calling and said, “Dr. Tan asked me to call you and tell you that your heart tests came back normal.” I about melted with gladness. I told her thank you and asked her for a copy of the report. She said she’d have it waiting at the front desk. I hung up and said, “Thank you, God.”