The truth is getting more and more elusive. How disheartening it is to hear people claim that there is no such thing as absolute truth, that all truth is relative. As Paul the apostle said, if it isn’t absolutely true that Jesus died and rose again, then Christians are to be pitied above all men. But it is true, Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life. (John 14:6) Our God is a God of truth. (Deuteronomy 32:4) He not only despises deceit, He despises anything that dilutes or manipulates the truth.

The Bible tells us to put on the whole armor of God. (Ephesians 6) The very first piece of armor Paul asks us to put on is the belt of truth. Tucked into that belt of truth is the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God. 

Today we have at our finger tips the answers to just about any question we might have—there’s no need to wrack our brains trying to remember names, places or stats. We simply Google it.

Johnny Carson used to have a segment asking a guest if a certain individual was dead or alive. Bob and I play it now.

 

“Do you think Bob Newhart is still alive?” “Do you think Bob Dole is still alive?’

We place bets and then ask our phones for the answer. Mostly we’re stunned at how long people are living. Turns out, both Bobs are alive and kicking. 

I watched an interview with the co-founder of Wikipedia. He has either retired or will be shortly ushered out because he admitted how often Wikipedia scrubs facts they don’t want remembered. Think of the ramifications! They're literally able to change history! I’ve seen this first hand. I read a rather interesting story about a well known person, but when I went to share it with Bob, it was gone. If they can eliminate the truth, they could just as easily make up their own "facts." The days of going to the library and actually looking up something in a real encyclopedia are gone forever. Now we rely on a source that we now know can't be trusted to give us the truth. How many of us trust our phones for answers—yet they’re increasingly untrustworthy. We can’t lazily ask our phones and trust them to give us the facts. We certainly can’t trust the media. We have to do our own research, and even then, things we know are true or things we know happened are taken down. We are told it’s disinformation, it’s been debunked, or it’s settled science (actual data is no longer necessary). 

But there is one book that can never be “taken down.” Every year the Bible is far and away the best selling book in the world. Despite it being banned and burned, Jesus assured us that though heaven and earth will pass away, His Word will never pass away. (Matthew 24:35)

I looked up some quotes on truth. Some were downright depressing, especially ones claiming we are all entitled to our own truth, or that truth is constantly changing, or that if a lie is told often enough it becomes the truth. 

But I also found quotes that were inspiring, words spoken from people long gone, yet their words today are surprisingly prescient. To quote just a few— 

“In a time of deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.” —George Orwell

“…in general, it is the object of our newspapers to create a sensation—to make a point—rather than further the cause of truth.” —Edgar Allen Poe

“The man who fears no truth has nothing to fear from lies.” —Thomas Jefferson

Ultimately, the only truth that matters is that Jesus lived, died and rose again. God sent Him to save the world, not condemn it. (John 3:17) What comfort it is to know that in spite of living in a time of ever changing “truth,” Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever.

Glory, Glory hallelujah

His truth keeps marching on

I miss seeing smiles. Unlike languages, smiles are universal. A simple smile can convey so much —empathy, encouragement, goodwill, friendliness. On top of all this, it softens everything you say, especially when you're saying something people may not want to hear. 

As the whole world knows, flying is getting unfriendlier by the day. Working my beverage cart, I stopped at a row and asked the woman at the window seat what she’d like to drink. She gave me a questioning look. Per my usual, I think to myself—for crying out loud. What do you think I’m asking? I’m standing in front of you with my beverage cart— do you think I’m asking you what your favorite movie is? When it struck her that I was asking her if she’d like a beverage, she asked what we had. Errrrr. Because it’s hard to hear through my mask, I basically scream out the options. Because she didn’t have the courtesy to remove her headphones, she asked a second time. Preferring not to scream out the list again, I asked her if she wouldn't mind removing her headphones. She didn’t hear that either, so I did a charade-like act of removing headphones. My request irritated her. But I said it with a smile, and maybe if she could've seen my smile she may have taken it better.

Every time I have to remind people to put their mask over their nose and mouth, I say it with a smile that can’t be seen. Complying and enforcing federal mask mandates is unpleasant enough, a smile would at least soften the “gentle reminder.”

I liken the softening effect of a smile to the softening effect of an emoji. I may text, “Please don’t dillydally!” But, and this is huge, I tack on the blowing a kiss emoji—or maybe even the laughing until I’m crying emoji. It changes the whole tone of the text.

It doesn’t look like we’ll be uncovering our smiles any time soon in the travel industry, but I know when we do, it’ll make a world of difference.

Every time you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.

Mother Teresa

 For well over a year, my daughter and her family have lived in almost total isolation. They’ve had their food delivered, they haven’t visited people or had people visit them—they have simply stayed home. Caitlin used this time of being cut off from society to teach Brooks about God’s love and the wonderful world He has created for us. He’s learned hymns and Bible verses. He knows God loves him and he knows how much he needs to love God and others. This is the only life Brooks remembers. As more and more people get vaccinated or develop natural immunities, Caitlin is slowly starting to venture out. And every new thing Brooks sees fills him with wonder and excitement.

Before the pandemic, Brooks would say, “Hi!” to everyone they passed as Caitlin strolled around their neighborhood. He was mostly ignored because most were in their own little world—looking at their phones or talking on them. But it didn’t deter Brooks in the least, he’d turn around in his stroller and say to their retreating back, “Bye!”

He can’t remember interacting with people outside of his family, so the first time Caitlin took him to a park with lots of children he in was awe. Pondering the whole experience on the way home he told Caitlin, “Mama? I don’t know those kids, but I love them.” 

When I was there, we visited the same park and Brooks approached every child he came upon with an enthusiastic wave,“Hi! My name is Brooks.”

Not one child acted like they even heard him. But Brooks wasn’t put off by it, he even smiled big as they ran away from him. He loves these rude little brats? Are you kidding me?

It breaks my heart knowing that Caitlin and Cam won't always be able to keep Brooks and Maisie under their wings, controlling everything they see and hear. To know that one day they will be forced to be in this fallen world, and experience the sadness of it along with with joy. But for now, I'll cherish every minute of their sweet innocence, soaking up as much of them as I can.

I thought Brooks first exposure to Target was so funny. Can you imagine not seeing anything but the walls of your own home for over a year and then going to Target? 

Apparently, he didn’t say too much about it until Cam took him there, “Dada, you’re going to LOVE the inside of Target!” 

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we’d all emerged from this pandemic with gratitude for all the things we’d taken for granted? The simple freedom to go anywhere we want and be with anyone we want? To be able to rejoice with those who rejoice and mourn with those who mourn? 

I wonder what people living in third world countries thought of us when utter panic set in at the very idea that we might run out of enough soft paper to wipe our bottoms.  I remember jokes being shared about using the yards of paper coupons that get spit out of the cash registers at CVS in place of toilet paper.

When did we stray so far from God’s commands to love each other and carry one another’s burdens? To “be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave us?” (Ephesians 4:32) In some ways it’s been a slow fade, in other ways it’s been a terrifying plunge. 

I pray for a spiritual revival, but our world is becoming more and more like the world Paul told Timothy it would look like in the last days: “People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money…abusive, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, brutal…lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.” 2 Timothy 3:2-3

Thinking about Caitlin's little family getting this window of time isolated from the world reminded me of how much I loved the "Little House in the Big Woods" books when I was little. I devoured them. Such an innocent time--Pa hunting for their food, Ma at home teaching reading and writing. Ending each night with Bible reading and prayer. I remember wanting to be Laura and live in the "Big Woods." I loved Ma and Pa.

It's hard to fathom it's been less than seventy-five years since children were taught to read using the Bible, that their day started out reciting The Lord's Prayer. 

There are so many aspects of Caitlin and Cam's isolation from the world I wish they could freeze in time. A child's loss of innocence is so sad and today's world snatches it from them way too soon. 

I believe one upshot of this pandemic was the forced homeschooling, allowing parents to oversee everything their child is being taught...could it be one step closer to reversing the plunge? I can only hope and pray it is, because no one wants to live in an unloving, brutal, lawless and ungrateful world and I believe only a new "Great Awakening" can change it.

Fully vaccinated, I was finally able to see my sweet grandbabies, three year-old Brooks and one-year old Maisie. It was pure heaven. 

I flew in late Thursday night, and perhaps one of the moments I’ll cherish the most, was Caitlin jumping out of her car, clutching me close, and sobbing. It felt a bit like I’d risen from the dead. Of course, I cried right along with her, holding her just as close.

When I came up from the basement the next morning, Maisie took one look at me and ran to Caitlin, burying her head between Caitlin's legs, clutching her tightly, taking shy peeks at me. After all, she’d only seen her Nana on FaceTime. But Brooks was clearly happy see me, he came and took my hand in his, eager to take me on a tour of “Louisville”— he refers to their house as “Louisville” and everything outside of it as Kentucky.

He asked when Papa was coming. I told him he’d come after he got his shot. He is a little obsessed about the shots, knowing several people had needed them before they came to visit. 

“If I went far away from Louisville, would I need a shot to come back to Louisville?” he asked. So funny how his little mind processes everything. 

Caitlin wasn’t feeling well, so after the tour of “Louisville,” she went to lie down and left me in charge. I had brought hundreds of stickers with me and got Maisie so interested she didn’t even cry when Caitlin left the room. Her surprisingly adept little fingers had no problem peeling off the stickers and pressing them firmly on to a piece of paper. She even starting saying, “tickers.”

Brooks quickly grew bored with the "tickers,” so I read him a book. I dare say, no one reads children’s book’s with as much exuberance and drama as I do. But Brooks likes to study the illustrations, especially the expressions on the character’s faces, trying to decipher their emotions. “Why does he look mad?” Why does she look scared?” “Why is she laughing?” 

After Maisie grew tired of the tickers and Brooks the books, I came up with a new game. I found a big box and a bed sheet. I put the box on the bed sheet and had Brooks climb into the box. I grabbed a handful of the sheet and ran to and fro across the wood floor, spinning Brooks on each turn. Since Maisie had transitioned from crawling to outright running, she held a piece of the sheet and ran along with me. Oh the laughs and giggles this “game” evoked. Is there anything more gratifying than listening to children laughing? They wanted to do it again and again and again. Just as I was about to tell them Nana needed a break, Caitlin came down and announced it was time for their naps.

Putting down Maisie was simple enough: say it’s time to go night-night, take the now crying Maisie upstairs and put her in her crib.

Brooks nap-time routine is a much lengthier process. First, I rock him as I read a book. I think that’s it. But no, now we do a Bible "study"and read a story from his Children’s Bible Story Book.

“You’re so tired, maybe we should skip the Bible story,” I suggest.

“No.”

“Why not?”

“Because that’s just not how it’s done.” Too funny!

I take the giant Children’s Bible Story Book and scan the chapters, looking for the shortest story. “Elijah and the Widow.” Easy-peasy. Nana will break down each paragraph into one sentence.

It’s poorly illustrated (to say the least) and with Brooks penchant for determining emotions, I know there will be questions.

The story begins with God instructing Elijah to tell King Ahab that there would be a great drought and famine in the land and many people would die. Nana’s version: “God told Elijah to tell the king there wasn’t going to be enough food for everyone for a long time.” 

Next page. Not so fast, Brooks turns it back. “Why does the king look like that?” Honestly, the drawing depicts such an angry, red face it’s downright scary.

“Because the king didn’t love God,” I answer before turning the page. 

Nana’s version continues, “Elijah found a woman and her little boy and asked if he could have some of their food. Even though they barely had any food they still shared it with Elijah. And because she was so nice to Elijah, God gave her free food for the rest of her life."

I try to close the book. Not so fast. “Why does that little boy look like that?”

I study the freaky illustration and try to come up with an answer. The little boy is looking at the food with eyes that are literally bulging out of their sockets. I try not to laugh. I tell Brooks that he’s just very, very excited to eat the food and quickly close the book before he can ask any more questions.

“Now, you lay down with me and we sing songs.” Really? Will there even be time for a nap?

Sadly, Brooks knows the words to more hymns than I do. I suggest “Jesus Loves Me,” thinking at least I know that one. We sing it together and I stand up to leave.

“That’s not all there is!” he says indignantly. 

I’m pretty sure “second verse, same as the first” isn’t part of his lexicon so I lie back down beside him.

He sings the precious words of the second verse. He hits every note perfectly. Honestly, he has such a gift, I could listen to that sweet little voice sing all day long.

I kiss him goodnight. “Nana? Do you want me to help you with the last part?” 

A third verse? Who knew? Of course I do. He sings the last verse in a whispery voice and my eyes well up hearing him hit each note, each syllable so clearly. The fact that Caitlin taught him these words that will be imprinted on his heart forever makes my heart surge with pride and joy.

I'm so enthralled with them, I could just sit, watch and listen to them all day long. There’s so much more I could share, so many more funny Brooks’ stories, so much more about adorable, happy Maisie, how much it meant to me that she was reaching for me within hours—letting me kiss her sweet neck and cheeks until she couldn’t stand it any longer, but I’ll end with the last verse Brooks sang for me--words I never learned but hold so much truth and comfort.

Jesus loves me, this I know,

as he loved so long ago,

taking children on his knee,

saying, “Let them come to me.”

(I discovered this song was penned in 1859--- more than a 150 years ago!)

(I learned these sweet words were written in 1859, more than a 150 years ago!) 

On this day over two thousand and twenty years ago, Jesus faced the agony of His crucifixion. He pleaded with the Father, asking Him if there was any other way to fulfill God's promise of eternal life for those who believed in Him. But there wasn't. Jesus was and is the only Way. Though reviled and rejected, He redeemed and reconciled.   

My mom was not afraid to die, but she was afraid of dying alone. It struck me today that even Jesus did not want to be alone in His last hours--He wanted His beloved disciples by His side. Deeply distressed and troubled, He told Peter, James and John that His soul was overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death and asked them to stay with Him (Mark 14:33-34). 

The Friday night before the Wednesday God took my mom home, I went to a wedding shower, a party. During that party she called and left me a voicemail. Her sweet, weak voice left this message: "Hi sweetheart, I really hate to ask you, but can you come be with me?"

It was loud and my phone was deep in the cavern of my purse. I never heard it ringing. I never looked at it to see if anyone had called. When I got home, I left my phone in my purse. Caitlin and Cam flew in late for Caitlin's baby shower. I finished some last minute things that needed to be done for the baby shower the following morning and went to bed.

While at the shower, I heard my phone ringing and dug it out of my purse to answer it. It was my mom's friend Glady, she needed me to come over right away, my mom was too weak to get up to use the bathroom and Glady wasn't strong enough to help her. I got there in time to help her, but my mom never regained enough strength to walk on her own again.

It wasn't until the day after we buried my mom in her plot next to my dad and brother, that someone called and left me a voicemail. That's when I saw I had an unread voicemail from my mom. What?? Imagine the heartache I felt, hearing those sweet, pitiful words--that dear voice I've longed to hear every single day since she died. How it hurts to know she left this world feeling disillusioned about me. Thinking I cared more about having a good time at a party than soaking up every precious minute I had left with her (although I really didn't believe she'd be gone so soon). She died believing I'd coldly brushed off her plea for my company. I failed her when she needed me most. I was selfish, it was always more about me needing her than her needing me. She was always better at consoling than being consoled. Why didn't she tell me she'd called and left a message? How I wish she'd given me the chance to tell her I never got that call. Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night, missing my mom, my chest tightening at the remembrance of how inattentive I'd been in those last days, aching for a do-over, for just those few days back to love on her like she deserved. 

Today, I think about how Peter must have felt when he let Jesus down. Not only did he not stay awake with Him, a few hours later he claimed he didn't even know who Jesus was.

I know my mom would hate to see me holding on to these painful regrets. She never wanted to see me sad, she always put all of us first, never asked anything of us, just loved us unconditionally. 

Today is Good Friday, the day Jesus died to take away all my shame, so why do I still let shame haunt me? It's not how my Lord wants me or any other Christian to feel or act. It's callously tossing away the freedom Jesus paid such a high cost to give me. It's self-centeredness, and being God-centered is the only way to be set free from shame and regrets. "Praise be to God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead." (1 Peter 1:3)

    God sent His son, they called Him Jesus

He came to love, heal and forgive 

He lived and died to buy my pardon 

An empty grave is there to prove my Savior lives

Because He lives I can face tomorrow 

Because He lives all fear is gone

because I know He holds the future 

And life is worth the living, just because He lives

                                                      

What a bizarre world we’re living in, with all this silly canceling. Goodness! Dr. Suess, Peter Pan, Winnie the Pooh? And the list keeps growing. Cartoons are meant to be innocent, nonsensical humor, not analyzed for their depth and symbolism. Personally, I’ve never liked watching cartoons. Never even cracked a smile. But my brothers loved them, they couldn’t wait to watch Saturday morning cartoons. I found them aggravating. Would it really be so bad if Wile E. Coyote caught the Road Runner just once? But what does that say about me? That I want evil to triumph over good once in a while? Of course not, because they’re not real. That’s the whole point. Do you think children would be laughing if a real coyote was being blown up every whipstitch? Of course not.

Cartoons may have not been not my thing, but Dr. Suess books were, and still are. All of them. Mostly because I love reading things that rhyme. I’m either too uncultured or too stupid to appreciate the beauty and symbolism of classic poetry. “Ode to a Grecian Urn?" Does it rhyme? No. Canceled.

Remember the Sunday School lyrics, “Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world. Red and yellow, black and white, they are precious in his sight. Jesus loves the little children of the world?"

You may have thought your child was learning that every child is precious to Jesus. But no, just the opposite, in today's world this song would have to be canceled, lest it be construed as racist.

I despise racism. I hate the thought of any race being judged by the color of their skin. I’m not naive enough to think we will ever eradicate racism completely, but I did think our country had grown leaps and bounds in achieving Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream of being judged “not by the color or our skin, but rather by the content of our character.” Rather than embracing this Biblical principle, our society appears to be going in the opposite direction. In fact, the color of our skin is beginning to trump the content of our character.

We are all made in God’s image. Period. God shows no partiality (Acts 10:34). He is the only One equipped to judge one’s hearts and motives.

I pray all this absurdity ends soon, that instead of kowtowing and making apologies (that are never accepted anyway) people will start pointing it out for the nonsense it is. 

People are hurting in these unprecedented times. They’ve lost jobs, homes and loved ones. They’re living in isolation and fear. We are still a compassionate nation. I’ve read many inspiring stories about people reaching out, meeting needs and raising money to help small businesses stay afloat. Yet these aren’t our headlines, no, apparently it's more important to report why libraries need to be purged of Dr. Suess.

There is real evil all around us. All this digging into old cartoons and childrens' books are just a sleight of hand to make us look away from what's really happening. The Bible warns us about calling good evil and evil good (Isaiah 5:20). Jesus didn't leave us without telling us what the last days would look like. He said there will be an increase in natural disasters, earthquakes and famines. Even if everyone on the planet drove an electric car and nary an airplane could be found in the sky, the climate would still change because "God has the whole world in His hands...the wind and the rain...the little bitty baby....you and me sister..." 

God has blessed this country beyond measure, but we are moving further and further from Him. Can you imagine how much it would hurt us to see our own children engaged in such divisiveness and rage? How much more it must hurt our Heavenly Father to see His children acting like this. I pray in the coming days we will take to heart Paul’s admonishment to, “make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” (Ephesians 4:3). Our country needs unity and love like never before.

          God bless America, land that I love

           Stand beside her and guide her

                  Through the night with the light from above.