POOF!!! Your Medical Woes Have Disappeared

A relative of mine recently went to the OB doctor.

She was informed that Medicare no longer pays for annual visits.

Poof! She does not need those anymore I guess. Oh, they take regular insurance, so....

She's been taking a prescription for more than ten years. This particular doctor has been prescribing it to her for about 8 years. It seems she no longer needs the medication. The doctor questioned out loud whether the medicine ever proved to work.

POOF!

Random thoughts after being out of town

Much of my family moved from South Louisiana to North Texas almost 8 years ago after Hurricane Katrina. I was in a small Central Louisiana town nearly all of last week, and that's the most time I've spent there since we moved.

My wife's stepfather passed away Monday, and we went there to help my mother-in-law.

Here's some random thoughts from the week.

I used to work for a bread company. There is NO bread that can compete with the freshness or soft texture of Bunny Bread. (I did not work for Bunny Bread.)

It really is true: Louisiana roads are crummy.

People in Louisiana move at a different pace than the rest of the country. 

People in Central Louisiana move at a more laid back and slower pace than even those in South Louisiana. This can have its benefits at times.

Some people have to be asked to do every little thing. Some do not have to be asked to do anything.

Good people are there for others even at difficult times.

Younger people do not make good "neighbors" at hotels.

No matter how prepared someone is for the death of a friend or loved one, they can never be fully prepared.

Not all funeral homes are created equal.

If you say you are going to call someone back, you should.

Supervisors often do not know the job of their employees as well as they should.

Some people are willing to go an extra mile or two or more. Some do the minimum only because they have to. Many try to get away with doing less than the minimum.

It's good to have a routine.

It's good to have a few interests and things you like - and to enjoy those to the fullest.

Old country music is better than new country music.

It's better to learn late how much you are loved than never to have learned at all.

Good food does not trump crummy service or attitudes.

I was taught to be a considerate and courteous driver. Most others were not - or they don't practice such anyway.

When you're used to Mass at a particular time, attending a different Mass can seem strange.

Some gave all. Some gave none.

Wal-Mart is Wal-Mart no matter where you are.

When making road trips, there's nothing like knowing where the clean restrooms are.

Entergy (the power company for most of Louisiana) is ripping people off to the point that I am sure the politicians are being paid off by them. People's bills are doubled between the extremely high "fuel adjustment" and the Hurricanes Katrina and Rita surcharges on the bills. (These will each be on the bills for ten years.)

Ok. That's all for now.

Still in a fog but back to the blog

There's been quite a bit going on the last couple of weeks, including the passing of my wife's stepfather. We were out of town all last week helping her mom as best we could.

My lap top computer bugged out to the point that I could not connect to the internet.

I appreciate those who stuck around despite my lack of activity.

Repent, and keep sinning

A break from the norm to look at a few things Jesus did NOT say, but I believe some people want to believe he said.
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"I am a way, what you want to believe, and life for those already born."

"Seek first the things that will make your life more comfortable, and then the Kingdom."

"Render unto Caesar what belongs to God."

"Remove the plank from your eye, but leave the speck in your brother's eye."

"Let your light shine, but only in your own house or church, otherwise someone may be offended."

"Repent, and keep sinning."

"You have heard it said, 'You shall not kill', but I say to you 'You shall not kill unless it is a baby who is unplanned for."

Can We Break Through the Ice?

It's been ten days since my last blog post on Holy Saturday. During Holy Week, I blogged each day about the Passion of Jesus through the eyes of multiple witnesses.

We have experienced the Resurrection of Jesus and are now in the Easter season. But the reality of the world and its condition remains.

After the Resurrection, Jesus appeared repeatedly to His disciples. In some instances, they did not recognize Him. At first, this seems strange that those who spent years with Jesus did not recognize Him. But Mark tells us that He appeared "in another form".

There were the disciples who did not recognize Him, even as He laid out the prophesies before them, but they recognized Him in the breaking of the bread.

And Peter recognized Him when, as He commanded, they dropped their nets after a day of catching nothing and were unable to pull the fish (153, the number categorized by Greek zoologists, thought to symbolize the universal <catholic> mission) into the boat. Perhaps he remembered the first time he encountered Jesus, and the words, "I will make you fishers of men."

And the encounter with Thomas......

Yet, even after these encounters, and even after seeing Him  "lifted up, and a cloud took Him from their sight", it wasn't until Pentecost, and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit that they truly embraced the mission of Christ's Church.

During the fifty days between the celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus until Pentecost, we should be reflecting upon our baptismal call and what it means to be Christians.

Easter Sunday has passed, but as I stated earlier, the reality of a broken world remains. There is no shortage of bad news and mind-blowing accounts of atrocities, along with threats and fears and all sorts of disease and ailments.

If we cannot see beyond these things, it will be difficult to recognize the risen Jesus, and we can lose hope.

Jesus is with us in the Eucharist, the Bread of Life. Do we recognize Him in the breaking of the Bread?

At the end of Mass, we are sent out to continue the mission of the Church. Do we leave worried about what  we "got out of" or did not "get out of" Mass? Can we possibly be so bold as to not recognize Jesus, brush him aside and wonder "What's in it for me?"

We should leave asking "What is it that God is calling me to today? Who is God calling me to today?"

I can certainly be guilty of focusing too much on the icy world around me. Perhaps you can say the same. These things are distractions from the Truth and the eternal reality.

The great news is that we don't have to rely on ourselves. We have the Holy Spirit to help us to fulfill our calling, to accomplish the mission of God, and to help us to see beyond our doubts to the Hope of the Resurrection.

Let's help the world to break through this temporal ice; to rise up and live in the Life of Christ!