A Message to Old Man Winter

Hello, Old Man Winter

You have been hard at work this year.

You are estimated to have cost us $10,000,000,000.

Yet you won't give up.

True, you have not been so hard at work in some areas,

Like my home state in Missouri.

You may have passed over some areas

and I wonder if you were even missed!

Yet many of us have seen your handiwork.

The many inches of snow

that have made any form of travel a nightmare.

Thanks to your hard work,

Many people have been dealing with power outages

and much inconvenience.

Your other handiwork, ice, has visited many areas

and causing even more damage!

Thanks to your handiwork of snow,

many people have had many shoveling opportunities!

Your hard work has made one people group very happy!

Thanks to you, many school children

have enjoyed days off school,

and have days to make up.

Your handiwork has given my own daughter

more snow days than she has ever enjoyed any year.

I know this is true for many other students.

However, Old Man Winter,

as convenience doesn't build character

many people have had character-building opportunities!

Thanks to your hard work,

Many families have had to spend more time

actually getting to know each other!

Many credit your hard work to

something known as global warming.

Old Man Winter, many of us

have a suggestion for you!

We courteously request that you

Take a break from your hard work!

You need a LONG break!

Signed,

Lisa DeSherlia

and many other people.

The above photo is courtesy of MorgueFile, is by "jade," and can be found here.

Attention: Teens and All Who Love Them

There is a silent but huge epidemic taking place in the Western world. It should unsettle parents of teenagers, teachers and others who serve teens, including educators, teachers, counselors, pediatricians, child psychologist, and others. Daily, when I log into my Facebook account, I see posters and cases of missing teenagers. I see one case after another. It seems like there is no end! Many of them are classified as "endangered runaways," and many of these teens are found safe. But many are not! High-profile cases should alarm us, such as Natalee Halloway, Brittanee Drexel, Alexis Murphy, Tabatha Tuders, and Alexandria Joy Lowlitzer, just to name a few. They are all still missing, though Murphy and Halloway are presumed dead. Elizabeth Smart was found safe but Smart is unusual for a teen who is kidnapped. In my home state of Missouri, Kara Kopetsky and Bianca Piper have been missing for years. Sadly, I can go on and on.

Why Do Teens Vanish?

1). Running away, due to poor parenting or rebellion against adult authority. 2) Human trafficking. Many teens (and pre-teens) within 24 hours of running away, will be approached by pimps who will offer them a "better life" and those who accept will find themselves trapped in a hell of sex slavery and degradation. However, not all human trafficking victims are runaways.

3). Meeting up with someone they encountered online. Like pimps who lure children, these strangers will lure teens away from home in favor of a "better life." That "better life" may end up in brutal rape, human trafficking (mentioned above) and worse, murder.

4). Family kidnapping, usually with siblings.

5). Stranger kidnapping (least common reason).

This poster is courtesy of LostNMissing, Inc. I'm not a partner of or affiliated with this nonprofit.

Thanksgiving, What It Means to Me & What It Can Mean

It's that time of the year where we are "supposed to" focus on being thankful and giving, on peace and reconciliation. I see countless posts and hear countless lectures of the subject of gratitude that seem to scold hearers about "not being thankful." Yes, God has been good to each one of us. He loves us and, in Christ His Son, has sacrificed all things to rescue us from the power and penalty of sin. He has good plans for our lives. I can fully understand why we are so often shamed and scolded into "being grateful." It's forever trite but true that no matter what we may face in life, others are facing what they, at least, consider to be worse and more traumatic events and struggles. I agree that we all need to be reminded that life does not revolve around any of us and that everyone faces suffering and struggles in life. These are undisputed facts. When I was growing up, in St. Louis, Missouri, I was always being told that I was a "chronic complainer" and I'm sure that there was a lot of truth in this. Complaining is defined as "expressing dissatisfaction with something." There is nothing wrong with expressing such dissatisfaction; it's where our focus lies, on what we have or what we don't have. No matter who we are or what we face, we all lack many things we wish we could have. All of us also have many good things in our lives. As my late stepdad would say, "Whatever the good Lord gives you to face, He always balances it with something good."

I'm the first to admit that thankfulness does come hard when I deal with depression spells that I believe to be induced, at least in part, by the long-term use of anti-convulsants. Thankfulness does come hard when I see how many people, who seem to not give God a passing thought and who don't help others, seem to skate through life and enjoy health and wealth. And "preachers" give off the false impression, in their "teachings," that if we serve God and love him, that we will be "blessed in life and enjoy health and wealth." The Bible says that those who obey God are "blessed in all they do," but this does not reference good, easy, fun circumstances. The Son of God, when He lived a perfect life as the God-Man, suffered more than all of us put together, especially in right before and as He was dying a horrific death on a cross. Thankfulness comes hard when I think of the people whom I have helped and shown support to, who have often "repaid" me by removing me from their lives because I had shown them my fallibility. But I am learning that it is by focusing on Jesus, NOT on people, that makes it easier to give thanks 27/7 and 365 days a year. For as long as we look at people and compare our life's journeys, whether they are better or worse, we fall into the old comparison trap that is a waste of time.

Thanksgiving is that time of the year when we look forward to "taking a break" from watching our weight and our typical diets, and "splurging." I'm not saying that's wrong! I'm looking forward to eating a bit more this upcoming Thursday than I usually do. Not much. I would not okay using the holidays as a license to drink, because that contributes to drunken behavior and drunk driving, which kills people. It is also the day before what we call "Black Friday," which can be another topic altogether. We all are aware of the hype about that day, with all the commercials. This is a "tribute" to the greed and the materialism of so many of us who insist on shopping as early as possible to save a few bucks. We give lip service to the need to focus on our blessings and to spend time with family, but Thanksgiving, like any holiday, is a time of unrealistic expectations. We confuse "the holiday spirit" with "being happy," whether we mean "the Thanksgiving spirit" or "the Christmas spirit," with "being happy." We forget that "giving thanks" is not an emotion but is an action, and can be done even when we don't "feel happy" or our dreams don't come true.

During these holidays, I'm thinking especially of all of those who are estranged from family members or other once-important people in their lives, often because of greed or disputes. I'm thinking of all those who have lost loved ones in the past 12 months. I'm thinking of all those who will spend their holidays behind bars, because of wrongful or overly-harsh convictions. I'm thinking of the victims of recent weather disasters like the people in the Philippines. I'm thinking of those who are fighting terminal illnesses. I'm thinking of those who are spending more holidays missing a loved one or who have not found justice for them. I'm thinking of those who are being put down as "extremist" because they choose not to participate in the holiday traditions or in "black Friday." I'm thinking of all those who dread, rather than look forward to, these holidays because their disabilities keep them from liking the rich holiday foods or social gatherings. For many these holidays are a hard time.

What do the holidays, including Thanksgiving, mean to me? Frankly, because of my life circumstances, I have often not looked forward to them. Yes, I'm thankful for God, for His love, for my family and my life. For starters. I'm also thankful for you who visit this blog and who read it. I'm thankful for those of you who have signed my autism petition. I'm thankful for each of you who have signed up to follow this blog. And I'm thankful to those of you who have "liked" any of my Facebook pages, found on the main page and on a static page, of this blog.

Warm Thanksgiving wishes to each and every one of you who read this, and to all the important people in your lives!

The first photo is courtesy of MorgueFile, is by Seemann, and is found here.

The second photo is courtesy of MorgueFile, is by JessaIrene, and can be found here.

Social Networks and the Re-definition of Friendship

Friends. Facebook friends. Twitter friends. Friends in any other social network. Friendship has been re-defined. It used to be that we reserved the title "friend" only for those whom we knew personally, trusted and shared many values with, did things with and for. We knew the difference between the friends and acquaintances. Today, a person becomes a friend in cyberspace and that with only a few clicks of a mouse. Depending on how many networks we use, we can claim to have Facebook friends, Twitter friends and other kinds of friends. We may call them followers, as in the case of Twitter and Pinterest and other networks, as well as in the blogosphere. Very often, we often do not talk to most in our networks, though we may call them friends or followers or "circlers" as in the case of Google. We often do not know them, and may not even know about them. Friend used to be a noun but now it has become a verb, as in "friending" people on Facebook. We typically will communicate briefly with so-called friends on networks when we "add" or "friend" them, or visa versa, to thank them for "the connection" and maybe, to share a link on their Timelines. Then we often lose touch with them and never talk with them.

It used to be that we viewed friendship as a commitment of two people who care about each other, work things out, stand by one another and love one another because they are human beings. Today, so often we see the people we call friends on Facebook as disposable commodities, which we keep as long as they perform to suit our expectations, and throw out if they falter or fail to do so. We call it "deleting," "unfriending," "unfollowing," and "blocking" these disposable commodities. It also used to be that we saw friends in term of quality more than quantity. We were grateful for only a handful of real friends. Nowadays, in cyberspace, we tend to "collect friends" as we would collect stamps. This indicates that the purpose of online friendships is not the same as that of offline, in-person friendships. We do not think in terms of commitment, sharing, caring, and trusting, when it comes to our Facebook friends. We often have way too many of them to even correspond with more than a few. We may not even like some of the friends or followers in our networks. Many of us hear from those in our networks only on our birthdays, if then. Maybe this is why we online users tend to look forward to birthdays? It is fun to see dozens, even hundreds of birthday greetings be posted on our Timelines by online well-wishers.

As far as commitments go, cyberspace also has affected the way we communicate and handle interpersonal conflicts. Of course, divorce and broken relationships and friendships have, sadly, always been with us. Today, though, the easy online availability of the "Unfriend," "Unfollow" and "Block" buttons on social networks, have made human relationships cheaper and much more disposable. These options are used frequently and, I daresay, the way we relate online now affects the way we relate to those offline. The divorce rate, which had hovered at 50 percent for many years, has climbed to 60 percent. Facebook has ruined many marriages or, at least, has spoiled the element of trust and respect that may have been there before the spouse (s) took to social networking. Yes, cyberbullying has gotten out of control and continues to drive victims to end their lives. Anyone who says that the woes of online relationships gone bad, as "just being online drama," does not know human nature. The same emotional and verbal abuse that goes on in-person, is just as scarring and devastating, as physical, in-person abuse. Online drama is "not just online nonsense." It is real life, because social networks are made up of real people. Us!

Let me share something of my own online experience. My online connections have been full of lessons. Over the four and a half years I have used social networks, I have lost what I estimate to be well over a thousand Facebook friends. An estimated 10 to 20 people have, to this day, blocked me totally and have never changed that. I have been banned from two or three fan pages; the administrator of one of the fan pages had ended her last email with, "I do not ever want to hear from you again." Three years ago, I had applied to volunteer for a child abuse nonprofit with a major online presence. After issues which I do not want to go into here, I was dismissed from the nonprofit. The members of this nonprofit went so far as to remove me from their networks, treating me like a dangerous character. When I first joined Facebook, a missing persons advocate, based in Missouri, the same state I'm in, was offended at my posts of two missing children on her page. At that time, I was new to Facebook and unfamiliar with how Facebook works. This person and I sent each other heated messages back and forth, with her blocking me the end of that day. To this day, I remain blocked by her. Most recently, I was unfriended this past Friday by a person whom I has given hours of my trust and my time to. I had shared with her sensitive information that I haven't even shared with my pastors or my doctors. I was blocked by a person that she has been assisting over this past month. I won't go into the series of misunderstandings that led to these actions. I remain saddened and riddled with a mix of self-doubt and anger about the misunderstandings that led to two more failed relationships.

Yes, I know that social networking may prove to be a positive experience for many people. I'm sure that many of you may be blessed enough to never have experienced its dark side. Praise God for protecting you from the dark side of the Internet! I see people who are able to connect with friends and family via Facebook, and share photos and lifelong experiences. Facebook is a haven or an outlet for you, not a source of stress. I see families of the missing and the members of the autism community, who share in common the diagnosis of their children or their own, find in cyberspace a place of friendship and support. This is wonderful, if God blesses you with people who reach out to you in cyberspace. Even if some of you have had a taste of the Internet's dark side, you also experience the ups of cyberspace. However, mine has been a sorry situation where I actually turned to the Internet, partly, as an escape but mostly to give back. Because very few in my family used social networks, I was forced to add strangers. When strangers add you, as I found out the hard way, it is not because they like you but usually because you are a means to some end they want fulfilled. Nonprofits added me to get me to support their causes; businesses added me in the hopes that I would buy their products and, to this day, I have no idea why many people ever added me in the first place. Yes, I have been blessed to find some supporters who let me know that I "had their back" and they have never hit any "unfriend" or "block" button on my profile page. Thank God for you! You know who you are. You make my experience on here worth it.

I have learned, the hard way, that quality is truly far superior to quantity. It is pointless to have thousands, or even hundreds, of friends or followers, if none of these people know you or care about you. It's better to have a handful of friends or followers who truly support you and "have your back," than it is to have hundreds or thousands of numbers on a profile page. Anyone with me? Can I get many loud "Amens"?

Photo courtesy of MorgueFile.com.

This photo is by wax115.

This photo can be found here.

Bullying, How to Stop It and My Experience

I'm sure that most of us who follow the news are aware of the tragic case of Rebecca Sedwick, the 12-year-old girl who ended her life after months of cyber-bullying, a few months ago. Many of us no doubt are aware of Phoebe Price, who, years ago, also ended her life after an extended period of bullying. The tragic story of Megan Meier, a young girl who killed herself over being bullied over the Internet, had first brought awareness to bullying as a social epidemic that puts children at risk. That was in the 1980s, I believe, when Ms. Meier's story brought bullying to the forefront of public awareness. Such tragic stories make news headlines occasionally, but one such story is one too many! It is sad that bullying is not taken seriously unless a death results. Before these girls and too many children like them, bullying was seen as a "rite of passage" and not a "big deal" and not something that scars children for life.

When I was growing up in St. Louis, Missouri and in the 1970's, bullying was not seen as a school problem. While I had experienced bullying in a local Lutheran school in the 7th and the 8th grades, the bullying I endured got more vicious at a local middle school the following year. I proved an easy target for bullies because I acted differently, which I believe to this day added up to undiagnosed autism that explained very poor social skills. Also, I was physically unco-ordinated and walked differently which were diagnosed as "mild cerebral palsy." My peers took note of all this. I was tormented and called names which aren't fit to be put in print. My lunch money would be stolen, I was tripped, hit, punched and chased home. That school year was a nightmare! I called the school the "nightmare school." Because of my differences and because I wasn't encouraged to enter into extracurricular activities, I had few outlets.

The bullying did not let up that year. One incident was particularly vicious. After school one day, two of my classmates grabbed the books I was walking out of school with and carrying. "We have you this time, ---------!" they taunted. "You are not getting away!" They pushed me and knocked me to the ground. My knees were badly skinned. They kept taunting me, calling me names. I hauled myself up, hoping to get away from them. I'm not sure what happened from there, but somehow I made it home, even with my badly skinned knees. My mom and late stepdad learned about this and took me to the local police station. The officer on duty took my parents' report. However, he said to them, "I discourage you from filing any charges in this case. These two girls have a mom who works as a prostitute for a living; if you only knew what the two of them go through." I was crushed; this was proof to me that bullying was "no big deal" and that my bullies, victims at home, would not be held accountable.

My bullying is just one example of how bullying should not be handled! The following year, I was dismayed to find that I was placed with behaviorally-disordered students in St. Louis County Special School District. I had been placed before in other "special" settings because school did not know what to do with me. But this particular time, when I asked my parents "Why did I get stuck in Special?", they always told me, "The school didn't know how to keep you safe. They didn't have the resources they needed. They tried. We had no other choice but Special School District." I was never satisfied with that explanation and I'm still don't buy it. Oh, my parents no doubt thought they had no options then. This was because bullying awareness didn't exist nor was there awareness of autism spectrum disorders. For the purpose of this article, though, bullying is the focus of the question to be answered: How is bullying to be stopped? How is it therefore to be handled? In my experience, I remained in "special" settings for the rest of my school year. The message sent? You were to blame for being bullied. It was your fault. You are damaged goods. See? You are with social rejects and you are a social reject yourself. Bullying is no big deal.

I entered adulthood still believing these things and, to this day, I struggle with these thoughts and feelings. Bullying is peer abuse, and being abuse, is just as scarring and damaging as any other form of abuse. Today we have much more bullying awareness but it took the suicide of a young girl to make that happen! Since her Megan Meier's tragic story of her "bullycide," more and more of such tragic stories would make the headlines on occasion. But they have happened enough to be a great cause of concern! Young people getting viciously bullied. Developing deep depression. We're believed or the bullying was mishandled. So, in hopelessness and seeing no better days ahead, they ended their lives. This continues to happen though bullying is a hot topic these days. It has taken bullying's migration to cyberspace to bring it awareness where we have several nonprofits formed to end bullying and many schools have instituted "zero tolerance" policies. Despite all this awareness, anti-bullying nonprofits and an unrated Bully movie now shown in many schools and other settings, bullying continues.

What will it to for us to prevent and end bullying? In my humble opinion, the answers are simple though far from easy. What can we parents do? First of all, we should raise our own children to be compassionate and kind. We should hold them accountable if they are found to be bullies. As for protecting children from bullying and from cyber-bullying, we should not let them have smartphones, a favorite hangout for bullies and predators. We should not let them have unlimited or unsupervised access to social networks. Teens love to hang out in cyberspace. So do bullies and predators. They should not walk alone, for children alone are easy targets for bullies and predators. Educators have been getting better about preventing and ending bullying in schools but can do better, as bullying has not stopped in schools. Educators should always believe students who report bullying and respond by protecting the victim, keeping them in their school setting and holding the bullies accountable. Way too often, children are made to feel that they are somehow to blame for "letting themselves get bullied." Other students should be encouraged to stand up for classmates whom to see being bullied and they should be rewarded. It's called peer pressure against bullying.

No, I don't want anyone reading this who has been touched by young people who have lost their lives to "bullycide," to punish themselves for what could have been. For we all make many mistakes. What matters is what we will do now, including about bullying. What will you do?

Photo Courtesy of MorgueFile.com.

Photo by Mensatic.

This photo can be found here.

Keeping Safe This Halloween

Yes it is that time of the year. Halloween costumes. Halloween candy. Halloween parties. It's that time of the year when even those of us who are on diets, will "splurge" and "cheat." Many of the holidays, like Memorial Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas, are more solemn and are not seen as mainly "fun" holidays. But holidays like Halloween are. Yet the potential and the pitfalls on "fun" days like this are many. It is not for nothing that Halloween has been called "the Devil's holiday." Many children and families come out at night to "trick or treat." So do predators and they are hard to identify. Many, for religious reasons, choose not to celebrate Halloween, and I don't blame them at all! For many, Halloween is a hard time, especially those who have lost children to having gone missing, or to death. Survivors of something called satanic ritual abuse also find this to be a hard time. Children with sensory issues due to autism or a related disorder, also find Halloween tough because they dislike the sounds, lights and smells of it all. Many single people may also struggle with especially acute feelings of loneliness at this time of the year.

Yes, I know that many adults also celebrate Halloween and there's nothing wrong with that, as long as it is good, clean, safe fun. I know of some who do. I, who am based in St. Louis, Missouri, consider "splurging" on pizza from Pizza Hut to be celebrating, as I enjoy Pizza Hut pizza. My mom and her boyfriend went to a Halloween party the other night and were asked to wear costumes. I know of others who have, too. I know that the bars will no doubt be packed with people tonight. Yet we know that at this time of year, many people, children included, turn up missing. Many may see all the witches, ghosts, goblins, vampires, and warlocks costumes to be just innocent fun, but can these open the door to evil? Can these put "trick or treaters" at risk of something called satanic oppression, even bodily harm due to being preyed on, even the unthinkable?

No, I'm not one of those who wants to take the fun out of anyone's Halloween. People who don't celebrate usually don't wish to take the fun out of that day and probably have other ways, if they have young children, of offering wholesome alternatives to their children. It is possible to keep your children and yourself safe and having fun, believe it or not, whether you celebrate Halloween or not. You may be one who has already participated in Halloween parties or events that have already been held, including through churches or through your places of employment.

So what are the best ways to keep your children and yourselves safe if you plan to go out tonight?

First, I know that many children are going out tonight to "trick or treat." I would assume that every child would be attended by a parent or another trusted adult. Children alone are easy prey for predators at any time or day during the year. On Halloween, they probably are even more vulnerable. Also, don't go in to the homes of people you don't know. I'm sure most of you know this. I don't want to insult anyone's intelligence. And when you get home safely with your children, you still need to ensure their safety. You need to check their candy. If it looks suspicious or if in doubt, throw it out! It is better to be safe than sorry. Also, people love to hand out lollipops and Tootsie Rolls. Aside from their total lack of any nutritional value, these hard or gummy candies are choking hazards. I recommend throwing them out. If you go out as adults, it is strongly recommended That you go out in groups and stay together. There is a campaign called "You Came Together? You Leave Together!" and at LostNMissing, Inc., you can learn more about how you can keep your friends and neighbors safe.

And please don't forget those who don't see this time of the year as "fun." Whether survivors of satanic ritual abuse, those with sensory processing issues, those with missing or deceased children, many lonely individuals, and those who don't believe in Halloween for religious reasons. Feel free to enjoy this day but don't "show it off" to those who would be offended by it. You need to do all those things that can keep yourself and your children safe.

Bottom line: Have a safe, clean and fun Halloween!

Photo courtesy of MorgueFile.com.
Photo by cohdra.

This photo can be found here.

Being Part of the Solution to World Poverty in a Simple Way

We in the developed world are living in a time where many items that did not even exist decades ago, are considered needs, not luxuries. We feel constrained to provide them to our growing children because "everyone else has them." We want our children to "fit in." We feel the need to "keep up with the Joneses" and to "run the rat race." Even those of us who may have low incomes often receive "entitlements" or other help that assists us in moving in or near to middle-class living. The things that I'm talking about that have become, in the eyes of many, needs, consist of technological gadgets. I'm talking about computers, cell phones, iPods, iPads, tablets, and other gadgets that were unheard-of decades ago. Computers? Many of us have laptops, even if just for basic Internet services. Most of us have cell phones. Even many low-income people use what are inaccurately called "Obamaphones." (This was a service started, I believe, under Former President Bill Clinton and funds come from extra billing to users). My own daughter said the other day, "All the other kids have iPhones!" To which Daddy and Mom said, "No they don't. There are many of your friends who don't have iPhones." Purchasing an iPhone is outside of the means of our family, anyway. But this is another story!

The pic above shows what is all-too typical of the pitiful living conditions of those families and individuals who live and suffer in developing countries. These many, many people have probably never seen a computer or a cell phone, let alone more "fancy" gadgets such as iPods , iPads, Tablets, or the link. That image is not pretty or comfortable but it represents what billions of impoverished people in the developing word suffer daily and contantly. You may have no doubt seen images of starving children with extremely thin limbs and unnaturally bloated bellies. I have seen them. The media ought to cover these kind of situations but doing so makes for poor entertainment, it's depressing and uncomfortable and their ratings would plummet. Plus, there is the cost of travel and many of these countries would put journalists at risk because they tend to be or have "hot spots" with harsh governments. But because we are closed off from what is going on in so many of these countries and areas of the world, it's easy to be uninformed as to what is going on and to the extent it all is going on.



When I was growing up in St. Louis, Missouri, in the 1960's and 1970's, starving children were often used by adults to get children to eat foods full of nutrition that we did not like. Since I always was (and am) a very picky eater, adults often admonished me, "Eat all the food on your plate; think of all the starving children who won't get any food to eat today" or "Eat your vegetables; starving kids would like to have broccoli or spinach." These kind of admonitions are well-intentioned, but starving children are not helped by what we eat or by our not wasting our food. Cleaning one's plate has been proved to be counterproductive to appetite and weight management; we should not waste anything based on the sheer fact that these things are given to us to be used, NOT squandered. We are familiar with the concepts of relative poverty vs. absolute poverty, and that the poverty of those in developing countries on the continents of South America, Asia and Africa fall in the category of absolute poverty. No, I'm not minimizing the abject poverty, and numerous other sufferings that so many in the developed world are experiencing, and who need our help. Charity "begins at home," after all. The focus of this post is on our responsibility to those on the other side of the world. Yes, we need to take care of our families first and others "in our backyard" first. Yet we may not realize that it doesn't cost much to help fight poverty on the other side of the world.



You have no doubt seen numerous appeals and ads, whether on TV, internet or other media, about child sponsorship. Some fine child sponsorship nonprofits seek to fight world poverty through child sponsorship. You know how it works: They partner with sponsors who provide sponsored children with basic needs for food, clothing, shelter and education. Families and communities are often helped. You who are reading this may already sponsor a child or even more. If you do, I thank you! And I'm sure that the child and his/her family do, too! What is unigue about a child sponsorship nonprofit like Compassion International? I think you need to just check and see for yourself. Don't take my word for it! The monthly amount of $38 is not too pricy and means that you may have to give up a Diet Pepsi habit or a few trips to Burger King. It may mean cutting expenses in other ways. Something to think about. You can find out more by going right here.

All images are courtesy of Compassion International.

An Open Message To the US Government

To President Barack Obama and to each of the Members of the US House of Representatives and to the Senate:

I am sure that you are aware, if you care to see it, that so many of your citizens are not happy with your performance.  You know that a week ago, someone fired shots at the Capitol building. I think that you should not be surprised if this shooter's motive may have been rage at your actions that have caused the current government shutdown. That would not excuse this shooter's actions, but it certainly would explain them. Also, I know many of you pay attention to public opinion polls. Would it shock you to know that your approval ratings currently stand at only 5 percent, according to at least one poll?

We have a piece of legislation that so many people apparently oppose, as do many of you. Because of the opposition of many political leaders to this legislation, we now have another government shutdown. No legislation is perfect, and it will take time for it to be well-implemented and to run smoothly. Can't things be worked out here? In just a matter of days, you know that we have the even more serious issue of what to do to keep the US from going into default. Eight days now, as I write. We understand that the bills incurred by Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid have to be paid. We know that all the bills incurred by other government services have to be paid.

Yet we understand that you seem to have no plan to address this. The President wants to raise the debt ceiling, yet there are some who are agreeing to his proposal. But they are demanding that if he is to raise the debt ceiling, he is to make spending cuts to Medicaid and to all other government programs in proportion to how much he would do that. So what is it? Do most of us have to suffer from deep and painful cuts to programs and services that we need just to survive? Why should we have to make even more deep and painful sacrifices than what so many of us are already making? While all of you keep collecting your own paychecks because of your Constitutional protection from doing anything to your own salaries and very comfortable benefits?

Mr. President, all Members of the Senate and the House, so many of us are counting on you to set aside your egos and to put your country before your party loyalty. So many of us are fed up. You have to be aware that this Congress is considered by many to be the worst Congress in all of US history. You say that you want to do this and that. You pepper your speeches with your political rhetoric. Yet you so often do not back up your claims with actions. Talk is cheap. We know that your differences are based of sharply different visions on what is right and best for the US. But aren't there ways that you all can get together, iron out your differences, and find common ground?

We are not asking much from any of you. Even if each of you were to collect no pay at all during the government shutdown, I don't think you would really "feel it," now would you? We understand that there are some of you who agree that there is much government corruption. But you obviously are too afraid of your wealthy buddies on Wall Street to stand up to them and to truly work for us, the people who put you in office and who pay taxes. I wonder, how many of you are bought and paid off and so "beholden" to these wealthy benefactors, that you dare not run afoul of them? Do you blame us for feeling that many of you have accepted payoffs to get and stay elected, and that being elected is all you care about? Most of us are frustrated, disillusioned, and disgusted with all the rot in Washington. Many of us are worried and scared because of the profound effects of this shutdown on our real lives. Things will be far worse if you allow the US to go into default and do not raise the debt ceiling!

Some of us actually wonder: Who IS running this country? Your reluctance, yes, fear of standing up to these wealthy donors of yours and to be strong voices on behalf of us your citizens, makes us believe that your wealthy donors who obviously have bought and paid so many of you off, seem to be running this country. We have nothing against wealth. We just have major problems with it when it causes abuse and corruption. We see so much of that especially in Washington. Deep down, you no doubt are aware of it too. I'm sure that there are good people among you and that most of you started out with good hearts, sincerely wanting to serve your country. But then, along the way, the temptations of power and wealth apparently are too much.

As a Christian, I pray for all of you, as God tells us too. We as Christians are told to honor you because of the offices you hold. But the actions of so many of you make honoring you seem downright unattractive, even impossible. You can make it easier to respect you by acting in ways that make you worthy of that respect. I write to you as a citizen in St. Louis, Missouri but my fellow citizens in all 50 states share these concerns. So, when will you start working for us?

Photo Courtesy of PicDrome.org "blue-ink-ballpoint-pen" This photo can be found here.