Thoughts Before The Alarm Sounds

     In his column this morning, Andy Rooney asked the question, “What is the best Christmas present you ever got?” In thinking about it, I don't know the answer. I do know that I have had many very good Christmases, but I also realize that the good/bad rating of Christmas had nothing to do with what gifts were received.      When I was three years old, I went to live with my grandparents on the farm because of the Great Depression. I don't know where my grandparents got the tree, but I do remember filling the bucket from the coal bin to hold the tree. Next the bucket had to be wrapped in tissue paper, usually red, and filled with water. That was supposed to keep the needles from falling off, but it didn't work very well - there were needles all over the place when the tree was taken down.      Then the lights had to be strung. It was necessary to test the lights first, because if one bulb was burned out, the whole string wen...

     Apparently Santa Claus has decided not to wait until Christmas Eve to start making his annual deliveries. President Obama, in particular, has received an early visit from the Christmas Eve flier, raising the conjecture among Washington's “in” crowd that the sprightly old elf is a Democrat. Be very careful, Mitch McConnell, you may wind up on the naughty list.      As evidence of St. Nick's presidential visit, observe what has happened since the “shellacking” the Democrats received in the mid-term election. Along with almost everyone else, I expected that the remaining two months of the lame-duck Congress would exhibit a gridlock that would make Los Angeles freeways look like kids playing with toy cars in a sandbox. But lo and behold, the Congress came up with a bipartisan output that must have had Mitch wondering whether the “party of no” members had all gone home for the holidays. Observe:      Congress passed a two yea...

I have just read an interesting book, My Stroke of Insight , written by Jill Bolte Taylor, Ph.D. Dr. Taylor is a neuroanatomist who specializes in the postmortem investigation of the human brain. (Some people are turned on by the strangest things.) On December 10, 1996, Dr. Taylor suffered a stroke caused by sudden bleeding from a birth defect in the left hemisphere of her brain.. As soon as she realized what was happening, she concentrated on trying to remember her thoughts and feelings. The book is a record of her impressions, beginning with the incidence of the stroke, and ending with the return of all her faculties eight years later. As a result of her experiences, Dr. Taylor also presents recommendations for stroke victims and their care givers. The human brain has two hemispheres – it is as if we have two brains, each with different functions and personalities. Normally they work together in processing incoming data, creating a seamless view of the world. But each hem...

It has been over 150 years since Biblical scholars have begun examining certain writings in the New Testament. The basis of this activity has been the way the gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke overlap. Most scholars agree that Mark was written first, and that Matthew and Luke used his writings as a common reference. About 45% of the writings of both Gospels repeat stories from Mark, using the same order and even the same words in many cases. But in addition, approximately 25% of Matthew’s and Luke’s Gospels contain writings that agree with each other, but are not found in Mark. The implication is that there is some other document to which they referred. That document is simply called Q after the German word Quelle , or “source.” First things first – why is it assumed that Mark’s Gospel precedes the other two? There are several reasons: 1.)                        ...

This morning the grass was covered in white – the first snowfall of the season. Actually it started as a rain/snow mixture late yesterday afternoon, and accumulated only an inch or two on the non-paved areas. Not too bad – it eases us gradually into winter. You may have guessed that I am not a big fan of cold weather. It may seem strange, but the first thing I think of when I see new-fallen snow is the Claude Thornhill recording of his theme , "Snowfall."Although I like his version, the Manhattan Transfer version is my favorite. I don’t know why, but for some reason, perhaps it’s the harmony, I tend to puddle up when I hear it. Somehow it brings back, not particular memories, but emotions of days long, long, lonnnggg ago. After the emotions, the memories flood in: sledding on the hill northwest of the farm where I lived with my grandparents, followed by putting my cold feet up on the warm part of the old coal stove; my first and only venture onto skis; the Christmas ev...