What's Up?

Our Democracy hangs or falls on the premise of coming to a consensus on any number of issues.

Consensus is not always agreement.  Consensus demands negotiation.  Sometimes the media guides us through the minefields of the development of consensus, using inflammatory language such as attack, when disagreements become escalated.  That is not attack.  That is spirited discussions.  We would be remiss to allow the loudest voices and the most masterful articulations be the only voices involved in developing consensus.

Not unlike the difference between the pressure that we must put on a pencil or a crayon and the pressure that you must put on a stylus to create an impression on a page; is the difference between the generations in negotiating tactics.  We are completely wrong if we discount the strong and loud measure of a voice like VAVOOM, just because he is loud.  Conversely the measured and thought out response of, lets say a Beto ORourke mustn’t be discounted because he is not yelling at his audience and uses the communication style of a Millenial.

I see his popularity, although sometimes the site sourcing eludes me.

I totally understand the stammering of an elder statesman like Biden and the rantings of a man like Trump.

They are clearly the attempts to test the sand that their feet are on.  Who is hearing me?  They are saying.  We would be lessened to discount their leadership styles, because we can’t relate to their communication styles.  Language has changed from a time where slurs of speech were accepted to a time where no critique of a person is allowed if you are different from that person in anyway.

Carrying the consciences of people is complicated!

Almost Twenty-Chapter One-Of Ethan's Travels to New York

Almost Twenty!

Strong and Wise?

Ethan the Ezrahite,  I will sing of the mercies of the Lord FOREVER.

I went home from carrying the sweet middle boy into the gate of manhood for our family.  Some gates of manhood are right in our own community and in the close proximity.  It is just like my wise boy to chart his own path into manhood.  Work and travel and paying his own way and paying bills and caring for others is a wonderful school for a young boy.  

So many times God has awakened me to pray for the manhood of this one as the others.  This is a hard trip for this one.

The only mention of nerves was, “I have got butterflies in my tummy now!” Even strong men will mention that they have butterflies. 

My father would have been proud of the quiet determination of the Ethan man.  He loved to think that he had raised us all to be “Men’s Men!”  Fierce and Fearless in the face of danger and able to fight the fiercest foe with no backing down.  

The only thing Bodden girls fear is their shadow.  You don’t fear your shadow and I am glad to know that.  I simply can’t wait to hear your journey’s story and how it will grow you and make you the man of God that He intends to use in this generation.

“Late in the midnight hour…” was the chant in your heart as you launched last night.  Be the light of that city as you are to this city!  Strong and Wise!  Lights don’t make a lot of noise!

Almost Twenty!

Pay attention to the details of your voting, you are going to have that privilege soon.

Obamas admin.  Changed the law about tax status of churches making them change their names to ministries.  The bathroom injunction about transvestites was successful in identifying which states still embrace their Bible Belt identification after the tremendous attack on education.  NC came out as one, so we were on the economic attack list next...they crippled us, by making sports investments contingent on throwing away our principles...

Like Isaac, as we grieved Billy Graham's passing the water wells were stuffed up By the enemies of our convictions...  We couldn't see the enemy and still the haze is with us!

Fight for our convictions or see them demolished as with a wrecking ball...

Pro lifers look simplistic in our focus as they throw anti conviction rhetoric on us.

What issue is worth dividing with our peers about?  Life of the unborn is one of the most important today...

We are angry women blinded by our importunity  and inequality... We need level headed people to guide us through the fog of confusion that has engulfed us.  We need to defend teaching conviction in our schools.  We need to defend women's right to choose the life of her baby!  We need to defend the right to care and live for Jesus.  We ought not attack the bulk of our country, which is convicted to live for Jesus and take for granted the protections that Christianity has blessed us with.  

Jesus is wedded to His church and her defender and guide.  Don't mistake that affection Christ has for His church for weakness.   They have marginalized us and taken advantage of mercy and humility.  

We need Gods protection and assistance to live for him through the reconstruction of our nation from the civil war we've been in.

The Man who bails us out of many financial squirmishes!

?Quiere vegetales?

You went to the store and bought your weekly bunch of carrots, like a rabbit. Are you a rabbit. Where are the meats? What else are you going to eat? Vegetables are good, but that woman Occasio-Cortez has the lot of you millenials hypnotized that all meats are bad and wicked and poison. Are they? really. Won't a nice and juicy cheeseburger heal all the things that ail you on a rainy day? I have seen you enjoy it. Now we are becoming like the East Indians, letting the cows die and live a fat long life, while our children starve to death.

God is in control of all and I promise that when you are starving I will feed you meat, intravenously! No joke!

Political Correctness? or educated for the causes of Hell?

Have we the right lasso on our tongues? It seems that we send our children to school to put a worldly lasso on their tongues. They come home sensitive to worldly accepted bad speech. Socially accepted talk is socially acceptedly accused. but God’s standard is put aside for this wrong lasso. Gossip and lying and tattling and angry speech is not the target of the worldly lasso. Prejudices soundings, Authoritarian, Bullying, Homophobic speech, Racial and Gender partiality replace the fruit of the Spirit as more and educationally acceptable speech for the cause of the unity of the educated “ish”. God give us grace to walk between the lassos that we have attached to our tongues, as we prepare to gather with family on the holidays. Make us sure in our knowledge that our tongues are gripped with the lasso and conviction of God’s Heart and not the pretentiousness of socially acceptable speech.

Slipping through the cracks or forging your own path?

We are grateful and proud of your chosen path of hard-working accumulation of wealth. It is hard to accumulate, when the needs are so great as our family's is. There is no individual anything and your work is manifesting itself as a roof and a large stake in the equity of that roof that is over our head. We are happy to have you doing this.

Your academic mind is at rest, while your body takes up the slack and makes the money to put food into your mouth. I don't want your mind to go into a long range hiatus. I want you to continue to pursue your mental exercises as you are reading and sketching, etc., etc. I know that you are a man of action and not many words. I am grateful for your contributions and your initiative on all of the family axises. You are an amazing man and your pursuits are seen and appreciated.

Love you!

It isn't your birthday...It is Ezra's

But it is so wonderful how carefully that you remember your brother's birthday! I love the care that it took to make the great card and search for the perfect Pokemon game that delights your baby brother. I am so much in admiration of your big brother attitude and care. Thanks so much!