Sometime back, I asked God for a fresh thought every morning. I do not attribute every thought I have to be that one I feel I must think through. Why? Our minds are constantly zinging back and forth with thoughts of all kinds. Remnants of a nightmare, or a recent conversation that has not been put to bed just yet, anything can cause us to think like a bouncing ball from here to there.
Still, sometimes a thought sticks with you, and you must recognize it’s something different. Special. Unique. Even God-given.
This morning was no different. Awake early, but the fear of waking the pups too soon and deal with nine clamoring future 100lb dogs seeking your attention, well, I hung out behind closed doors until I canna’ take it anymore. But a thought lingering through the night from yesterday hung on tenaciously. Waiting gave me time to think.
We have been waiting for “justice” for my sister’s death. Two years, in just a few weeks, and we will have faced the tragedy of 9/23/19. In general, some (not us) want vigilante justice; others want to forgive and forget. We see this on the news all day long. Even close to home, we want justice for every facet of life, including a trial or tragedy. Whether it’s the fight between siblings or a parking lot clash, we struggle with a clear path of justice.
Me? I want to ensure this doesn’t happen to anyone else by the same person. You know, fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me. Let’s take action now, so it doesn’t get worse.
In The Meantime
In the meantime? Life goes on. We have faced life on a larger scale of actions and reactions. Boy howdy! The pandemic nightmare is not over, and there’s no one to blame. Right? Afghanistan debacle? Well, there’s someone we can point the finger at, but there’s not much we can do about it. Curriculum. Racial disparity. Immigration. Forest fires. Storms Floods. All around us, people are losing their lives, income, and sense of well-being. Maybe I should have called this blog “Sanity Lost.”
I am no different.
No matter how hard I try to keep a stiff upper lip, there are times I want to let loose with my emotions! Slash and burn everything that hurts me and us. Duke it out. The last man standing wins the war even if no one else is left with you.
I find no one I can talk to about this – we each have our own struggles, and it’s hard to commiserate with others when facing struggles and tragedy ourselves. It’s often easier to keep it bottled up and handle it internally. That often works for me, but not always. Sometimes I need to take a long drive. Wait! My recent car accident has muddied up that relief mechanism! My sciatica is roaring after about 30 minutes behind the wheel. We’re trying to live on a single vehicle, so it’s difficult to take the only thing road-worthy and hog it for myself.
Way back when, someone thought it would be a good idea to have a therapist listen, so a whole new crop of jobs sprouted to hear the problems of anyone who finds it necessary to seek advice. Maybe that works for some, but I worry about everything that therapist hears and wonder if they are sane enough to give advice or direction!
Guess I’ll blog for a while.
Back in the Day Till Now
I wonder how they handled these issues decades or centuries ago? Could this be why Columbus sailed away? Or the frontiersman vanished over the horizon with a horse and pack mule? Sometimes it is easier to leave it all behind. But, Columbus reported back, and many a frontiersman returned with wild tales of open territory, wide-open spaces as ‘far as the eye can see!
Today, there are no new territories to discover. At least none that have landmass on the other side of an ocean. You can go to space, but that’s a limited few that can head out there. Dive deep in the ocean? Same problem as going to space.
So. I blog.
Someone once commented on journaling as a way to make it through life, remembering the past, writing it down, talking about the present, writing it down, dreaming about the future, and, you guessed it… They write it down! Then, they leave it all behind someday and let others digest it all when they are gone. There’s no conversation about their words. They’re gone. It feels like a waste of time. Except, I know what it’s like to take time and “sketch out” a thought about life.
That’s What I do! I blog.
My theme is often about “making sense of life one blog at a time.” That works well enough for me, even if no one reads. When I’m gone, the blog will disappear unless someone pays the hosting and domain fees. It’s like writing with disappearing ink!
I’m not alone in this quest. We all want to make sense of the struggles faced day in and day out. Some find creative trails that alleviate the storms we are facing. Others curl up in their shell and hide.
Me? I blog. It’s public, but it represents many of my challenges and struggles and how I attempt to understand the challenges we all face. Most will never read, but a few will find answers. Others may laugh it to scorn or challenge me with comments. Still, It’s my blog, and I’ll blog if I want to. Blog If I want…Well, you get the picture.
I Started To Say
I started to write about the struggle we have for justice. We hear of those who cry out for blood, death, destruction, and mayhem in the social space. They are challenged, in the same space, called out, lied about, battered, and finally cave. Or the systems do it for us by banning them from Social Media! Hate speech. Delerium. Off their meds. PTSD, or some other criteria to excuse their rants. Maybe even an ol’ fashioned “bad hair” day.
What we find is that the social space has created so many sides to every situation. Those sides are varied and loud. You can find anything, no, everything you want to be upset about. Cheating scandals. Whether to vaccinate, or not, put your kids in school, or not… You know. Everything we struggle with is fair game to have a say about.
Justice must prevail? Or is there no justice for every situation?
When it comes to finding justice, it’s hard to choose right and wrong. New rules are being created to handle the flux of challenges. Mask here, but not there. It’s now a law. Fines. Jail. Lose your livelihood if you don’t do it! Vaccinate or lose your job, and you will not be allowed to have unemployment benefits, so there goes our homeless problem! Through the roof! But, let’s let you use illegal drugs, and we’ll even give you fresh needles, a tiny village to live in, and plenty of food lines to stand it.
There is a long laundry list to finding justice for every cause. Yes. Even from me. I want “justice” for my sister’s death. Not outlandish eye for an eye kind of justice. Recognizing that there is a law to handle these problems, let’s allow Lady Justice to work this case through the system.
Give Us Barrabas!
Sometimes our emotions, or someone’s swaying power, takes us down the wrong path of justice.
It happened to Jesus. It will happen to us.
Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to releasing to the multitude one prisoner whom they wished.
And at that time they had a notorious prisoner called Barabbas.
Therefore, when they had gathered together, Pilate said to them,
“Whom do you want me to release to you? Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?”
For he knew that they had handed Him over because of envy.
While he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent to him, saying, “Have nothing to do with that just Man, for I have suffered many things today in a dream because of Him.”
But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitudes that they should ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus.
The governor answered and said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release to you?”
They said, “Barabbas!”
Pilate said to them, “What then shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?”
They all said to him, “Let Him be crucified!”
Then the governor said, “Why, what evil has He done?” B
ut they cried out all the more, saying, “Let Him be crucified!”
(Matthew 27:15-23 NKJV)
Falsely accused. Envy at work, perhaps even fear. Definitely a feeling to handling someone who goes against their grain of authority! Let the people decide. Free Barabbas! Crucify Jesus!
How quickly did all of this go down? Though it had been building up for a few years, the head of the crisis erupted in just a few hours. Overnight. Next Morning. Done.
But God had the last judgment of the situation. An empty tomb.
That’s God’s justice!
And, there will be a last-day tally of our lives. We will answer for our own crimes and not those of others. Individually we will answer about our own choices.
How about you? Do you believe in Justice? Then you better make things right while you can!
I read your blogs. Love ‘em!