The concept of Yin/Yang originated in China thousands of years ago but the thoughts behind it are common to many other traditions. The concept is all about balance. Here are some examples: Black/White — There is very little in life that is black or white; everything is a shade of grey which of course is a combination of the two. Hot/Cold — Who wants to take a shower in either totally hot or totally cold water?  Maybe some teenagers need some cold showers once in a while but most of us prefer a combination of the two Everything/Nothing — It … Continue reading Yin, Yang And The USA…

I am kind of in a nostalgic mood lately. My wife has pulled out of storage several of my old record albums from the 1960s. The one on the top of the heap right now is Bob Dylan’s first, and I kind of think best, albums entitled “The Freewheeling Bob Dylan”.  About the only thing I spent much money on besides tuition payments during those years was record albums.  As I was looking over the song lists in the album one stuck to me and that is the title of this post. Here are some of the lyrics. I’m walkin’ … Continue reading Don’t Think Twice, Its All Right…

The governor still spoke to the group, and was asked publicly how he reconciles the death penalty with his faith, especially given the fact that less than 5% of Americans think Jesus would support execution. It was refreshing that he didn’t have a good answer. It made you think he might not sign the warrants, that he might come to the conclusion of other governors have — that no human being should have that much power over life and death. SOURCE:  Shane Claiborne: TN Death Row Invites Governor to Pray with Them | Red Letter Christians. I have always been … Continue reading Would Jesus Support Execution???

Lets continue with our study of Yin/Yang as it relates to the male/female balance within each of us. Here is a lengthy quote to start us off. I have underlined some of this quote to give it a personal emphasis. This balance of male and female is also very evident in Native American Indian culture where the earth is called ‘Mother earth’ and the sky ‘Father Sky’. The Indians were not alone. The ancient Greeks also believed in father sky, who they called Zeus, and mother earth who they called Demeter. The Celts, the Aztecs, the Mayans, the Egyptians and … Continue reading Yin/Yang The Balance….

“We are living in an age of ‘urge.’ We do nothing till somebody shoves us.” – Will Rogers, 25 February 1931 Some things never change. We still do practically nothing until someone shoves us. Lets face it, there are just too many of us who are so stricken with fear of change and isn’t change the name of the game lately? We let a few very vocal others do our talking for us so that all we need to say is “ditto”.  It takes someone or something to shove us to get us out of our static positions. One of … Continue reading Till Somebody Shoves Us….

At a special housing development in Oregon, families who adopt foster children live side by side with seniors who volunteer their time in exchange for affordable rent. The NewsHour’s Cat Wise reports how members of the intergenerational community find support and connection together. “We’re flourishing and evolving in this environment, and we’re growing big time. If you go to live in an apartment complex with a bunch of older people, for instance, people kind of wither away, and it’s really not right. Connections across the generations is critical, absolutely critical for aging well.” Demand for housing at Bridge Meadows remains … Continue reading Foster families share support with elders at Oregon housing community

As we all get older we sometimes yearn for the good old days. Those were the times when things were slower and life was less complicated.  Or were they??? Here is a quote from a book entitled “Mistakes Were Made (But Not By Me)” that tells us a little about our memories Memories are not buried somewhere in the brain, as if they were bones at an archeological site; nor can we uproot them, as if they were radishes; nor, when they are dug up, are they perfectly preserved. We do not remember everything that happens to us; we select … Continue reading Remembering The Good Old Days….

With this post I am starting a new Saturday thing called “In Search of America”. I actually intended to make this a separate blog but just got too lazy to keep that up. So I will be doing it here on a weekly basis. It will primarily be about places I have visited and my search to understand what made this country what is it today. Let me know how you like it. A mustard museum? Who would have guessed?  We recently spend a long weekend touring Madison Wisconsin and came across this oddity. It was fun to tour the … Continue reading National Mustard Museum…

As I promised in an earlier post I want to start a discussion about the concept of Yin and Yang.  I don’t want to bore you totally to death so I thought I would cover this topic only on Fridays for as long as it stays interesting. Yin/yang and Taoism started in the fourth century BC China. The symbol for this concept is shown to the right. Here is a little about it from Wikipedia. In Chinese philosophy, the concept of yin-yang (simplified Chinese: 阴阳; traditional Chinese: 陰陽; pinyin: yīnyáng), which is often called “yin and yang”, is used to … Continue reading Yin and yang -The Basics

An interesting post from my Facebook feeds.  Click on the picture to learn more about it. Continue reading Seneca Village…

Most of you have probably heard of the “Seven Deadly Sins”. Lust Gluttony Greed Sloth Wrath Envy Pride Here is a little about their origins from Wikipedia: The seven deadly sins, also known as the capital vices or cardinal sins, is a classification of vices (part of Christian ethics) that has been used since early Christian times to educate and instruct Christians concerning fallen humanity’s tendency to sin. In the currently recognized version, the sins are usually given as wrath, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy, and gluttony. Each are a form of Idolatry-of-Self wherein the subjective reigns over the objective. … Continue reading Pride, Best Taken In Small Doses….

While I am in a political bent here at RJ’s Corner I thought I would tackle one final issue about my home State before I put this putrid topic back on the shelf! I am a Hoosier and in some regards proud of that fact. But when it comes to our politics I am embarrassed to proclaim my birthplace.  I am even more embarrassed when it comes to the politics involved with the health and wellness of many of my fellow Hoosiers. As shown by the image below Indiana of the last couple of decades at least is a very … Continue reading Indiana – The Sore Thumb Of The Midwest…

From my Facebook page… Continue reading Happy Birthday Soren …

The masculine side of God is something to be admired. But it is the feminine side that draws love out of me. It is this feminine side of God I find in Jesus that makes me want to sing duets with Him. When I think about the feminine in Him, I want to throw out my arms and be loved…. Society has brought me up to suppress the so-called feminine dimensions of my humanness. But when Jesus makes me whole, both sides of who I am meant to be will be fully realized. Then, and only then, will I be … Continue reading Embracing the ‘Feminine Side’ of God…