“Want to keep Christ in Christmas? Feed the hungry, clothe the naked, forgive the guilty, welcome the unwanted, care for the ill, love your enemies, and do unto others as you would have done unto you.” ― Steve Maraboli

Well, here we go, I think someone oiled the treadmill, (of life), therefore, I should at least be able to give the impression of movement on this Tuesday, December 5, 2017. I did not use the word progress. Hopefully, that will be a by-product of my busy endeavors. Thanks so much to so many who have prayed for our Jimmy Sr. He made it through the surgery and now comes the even harder part. His brand new knee is going through an adjustment phase at the moment. This is not a short-term investment. It will require a tremendous amount of rehabilitation but the outcome promises significant improvement in functionality. His mother tells him to always focus on the potential outcome. I suppose moms have their own form of motivational encouragement. Maybe it was one of those Dale Carnegie books she was reading the other day. Although I never saw one of his books labeled Christian romance. She has now read enough of those Amish novels that soon she should be able to build furniture from a stump. Someone tell me if she is laughing when she read this. Finally, we give God the glory for His provision. He alone is worthy of praise. Amen.

Yours truly reading a book about himself. (photo credit: by Alton Holmes)

One little girl told me she would like a pet shark for Christmas. I asked her if she knew what pet sharks ate. She wasn't sure. I told her they typically eat little fish. Her eyes lit up and she got all excited and said that would be so cool. Her little sister asked for a pet pig. Kids today. Two little girls approached me and they were absolutely beautiful. They wore gorgeous outfits. I couldn't tell if they were twins but they were very close in age, maybe 5 or 6 years old. One very politely said she would like a particular type of baby doll. That sounded very appropriate. The other looked me straight in the eye and in a very serious tone said, "I really need a .223 so I can hunt with my dad." You know that Santa works a fairly affluent area when the kids not only specify they want a new phone for Christmas but, they want an I-phone 10. One little girl couldn't get anything else out except the drivable Cinderella carriage. Her dad was in the background telling the workers that she was fanatical about getting one and they cost around $500. He seemed to be distressed about it. Looking at the big book of The Night Before Christmas almost always brings up the question about why Rudolph is not a part of the story or the illustrations. Santa really doesn't typically have time to explain how the original poem for The Night Before Christmas was written in 1823 and Rudolph didn't make his appearance until 1939. I usually say, "Now that's a very good question." while turning the page.

I had to drive through some dense patchy fog this morning, but, I may have met a new friend. You will remember the cream-colored coyote that I used to often see on my way into work. He would be on his way back to his den, having finished his shift, while I was on my way to start mine. I used to allow him to cross at the intersection. We had somewhat of an unspoken respect for each other. Then one day he was gone. He may have mistaken my truck for one of those red necks in a jacked up model who actually dodge to hit whatever they can. At any rate, I'm driving along this morning and a large coyote ran across in front of me. He had a brownish coat and actually almost looked like a wolf. He or she, (I have to include that because of the animal equality laws), ran up a slope, stopped, wheeled around and stared directly at me. I couldn't help but wonder what was going through his mind. "Is that the white beard in the white truck that Uncle Wiley told me about?" Oh well, I'll know for sure if I see him again. He did seem very well fed, therefore, I would advise people in his territory to keep their pets protected. After that, I came around a curve and a huge deer bounded in front of me. It ran across the road and stopped. I had my window down, so I just hollered out, "Hey, what do you think you are doing?" You believe what? There might be help for people like me? Thanks so much. I'll keep that in mind. Meanwhile, have yourself a good day and remember to thank God for all His provisions. Amen. ....More later.