Tristadecaphobia

Today is Friday the 13th.

Some thoughts on Tristadecaphobia.

The fear of the number thirteen.

The superstitution is ancient, it may have been enhanced during the time of Christ.  There were 13 people at  the last supper before Christ was betrayed.  Also, it is believed the crucifixion took place on a Friday, so the combination of the number and the day became a bad omen.

In American history, however, the number thirteen is esoterically prominent.

Take out a dollar bill.  Look at the back side.  In the two circles you will find both the front and reverse sides of the great seal of the United States.

Look at the eagle. In the left tallon he holds 13 arrows.  In the right tallon, an olive branch.  On it, 13 leaves and 13 berries.  The ribbon in the eagles beak contains the latin phrase " E Pluribus Enum".  Count the letters.  Thirteen.

The other side of the seal shows an unfinished pyramid.  Count the steps.  Thirteen.  The inscription "Annuit Coeptis" also contains thirteen letters.

Perhaps thirteen is not unlucky by it's nature.  Perhaps it responds to the energy we give it.  Like so many things, our response to something or someone, is directly related to the quality of our input.

Being positive or negative is a choice.

PTSD

This morning I am offering a small consideration of thought to a very large serious subject. I have no expertise in this condition nor do I want to diminish the legitimacy and trauma of those who are going through it.

I just watched a magnificent program on PBS on PTSD, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. I won’t go into the technological or even medical symptoms of this disorder that affects so many of the young soldiers returning from the war zones of Iraq and Afghanistan. I leave that to qualified medical personnel.

What I’d like to offer for thought is the legitimacy and efficacy of “spirit.” Not a single medical doctor or trained psychologist in the program mentioned, “spirit.” It is an understandable omission for science has yet to embrace the power of this unseen and unknowing force. Deep within each of us there is a gnosis of that power and its effect as a prime motivator within our being. We feel it even though we can't see it.

I believe our minds and bodies are motivated, controlled, influenced and even directed by our spirits, the divine essence of our being. That thought works for me. I think spirit is the only thing to survive our physical demise and therefore is the catylist of action, now and forever. The mind ends, as does the body; the spirit goes on forever.


What if...what if our spirits have evolved to a level where violence, killing, war, conflict, anything inimical to our natural spiritual condition of divine love is no longer a valid action or even a desired skill as a personal accoutrement of our “Being?”

What if?

Where does that leave us in the conflict between training for war, service to country or faith and the innate knowing within our hearts?

Having said that I do understand the difference between the necessity of stopping a bully and offering compassion and tough love. It is a very hard choice, both for individuals and for countries.

Veterans Day

It is right to honor those who serve this country. It is right to have this day of public appreciation. It is right to acknowledge in ceremony, and song, in words and prayer, the special gifts each veteran contributes to freedom, and liberty, democracy.

To each veteran today, America says thank you for your gift of time, thank you for your gifts of life, thank you for your gift of limb and thank you for your gift of talent, courage and bravery.

Veteran means people not gender. It means men and women. It means combatants and non-combatants alike, for a veteran's strength and a nation’s strength are one. It is both assertive and nurturing.

In the past, men and women have served separately, but equally for an ideal. Today they serve together and today they are honored together. It is right.

Having said that with humility and due honor to all vets, I would like to add a thought that not only honors our veterans, but exalts them as well.  If we never had to fight again and no one ever died in the anger and rage of war, they would have been the last to do so. What a world that would be.

November 11^th, 1911, at the eleventh hours an armistice was signed to end the First World War and supposedly all wars. The First World War was the war to end all wars.

Yeah right!

Humanity did not learn it then and it did not learn it in previous or subsequent wars and conflicts.

I wonder why?

Is not the phenomenal number of dead, both civilian and combatants, on both sides enough to let us collectively see the insanity of war?

We fought the British and today they are our fast and loyal friends.

We fought the French and today they are our friends.

We fought among ourselves and today we are one united nation.

We fought the Kaiser Germans and today Germany is our friend.

We fought the Germans again and the Italians and today we are friends.

We fought the Japanese and today we are allies and fierce competitors.

We are still working on friendships with the North Korea and the Vietnamese and with the Iraqis and Afghans, but given the path of history, I suspect friendship will evolve in time.

Since we seem to eventually become allies and friends and trading partners with most of those we have killed or tried to kill and who killed us, isn’t there some way we can see beyond bombs and bloodshed to accomplish a camaraderie in global living?

 

Fort Hood

How do we begin to understand the deep desperation, the consuming hatred of Dr. Hasan who viewed life with such little value and with so much darkness, that he could not see a future beyond the deaths and injury of his fellow soldiers.

What lesson did he hope to teach? It certainly is not one from the Koran. The true Islamic faith does not teach or preach terrorism or murder. Extremists do teach terrorism and murder. Extremists in all venues encourage and practice violence and indiscriminate terror.

         There are no clean or clear answers to the question "why". There is only speculation with charges and accusations. Discernment is always difficult when tragedy is the precursor to reason. We must not forget that judgments grow from many seeds and if we plant the wrong seed, vengeance usurps justice and drags us to the level of the killer or the fanatic.

         Some will find comfort in God. Some will look elsewhere. Some will need to forgive, some will need to blame and some will need to hate. All need to heal and to rebuild from the empty holes in our hearts and at Fort Hood. And we still ask why and expect no answer we can understand.

Hurricane Ida and Gasoline

Here are some Sunday headlines out of the Gulf of Mexico regarding hurricane Ida and oil platforms in the Gulf.

“* BP, Marathon shut production in Gulf of Mexico
* Louisiana Offshore Oil Port stops tanker offloading
* Chevron, Anadarko evacuating workers, no output shut
* Exxon preparing for possible shutdowns (Adds BP, Marathon output shut, Exxon preparing for possible shutdowns, helicopter company comments, double byline)”

In the interest of full disclosure, I have nothing against the oil companies accept for their penchant for greed.

There is a hurricane heading to the oil patch in the Gulf of Mexico. It is described and predicted by the Weather Service to be a category two hurricane. UPDATE: As of this morning - Monday - Ida is a category ONE hurricane

One and Two's are elatively small compared to the maximum force of five. The winds will probably be around 100-miles per hour. Strong? Yes, but generally not destructive enough to harm or destroy oil platforms. Wave height is another factor in the design of these deep-sea rigs.

Most of the rigs have been through stronger hurricanes in the past and survived.

What I am suggesting is that by shutting down the oil production, even though Ida is not a strong hurricane, is a ploy to raise gasoline prices.

I’ll bet we see a four to six cents a gallon increase in gasoline in the next two to three weeks. The oil companies will blame hurricane Ida even though the shutting down those platforms for a few days may not really affect their cost per barrel of oil.

It happens over and over and we take it.

Are We More Polite Now?

I met a friend of mine at a mall the other day. I was supposed to counsel his purchase of a new computer and printer. It turned out I was not the expert he thought I was, but it was an enjoyable time with a good friend, and besides he bought lunch.

My friend commented after visits to several stores that he thought the courtesy level of sales people was nicer, kinder, and more polite since the economic downturn began. He said it made many people a little more appreciative of their jobs.

I can’t say I agree with my friend, but I’ve been thinking about what he said for the past couple of days.

There have been a number of changes in our social and cultural and even mercantile demeanor since money became tight in the households of America and even throughout the world.

Church collections are taking in a lot less at Sunday services.

Sales are far more prominent and the percentages off as bargains are bigger than they used to be. One-day sales are now longer.

Restaurant gratuities are down to 15% or less. It used to be 18% and even 20% for the better healed of out-eaters.

Gasoline prices are way down from the high two years ago, but they are heading back up. Mark my words, you will see four dollars a gallon gas again and sooner than you think.

The walk-in traffic on most department stores is down except for the discount chains like Wal-Mart and Target.

The evaluation of my house went down for the first time in ten years and so did my tax base.

As for people being kinder, more gentle and polite, maybe, but I think gentleness, courtesy and kindness is endemic of our being. I don’t think it was not there, it was just forgotten, like a lot of things of life and living. My experience is that most sales people, service folks and the like are basically polite. The first rule of sales and service is smile. The second is the customer is always right and so on. ( I have a little problem with that one. )

I am not Pollyannic, but I am positive and optimistic. I believe all people are inherently nice, but it is often a surly attitude or an unreasonable persona on the part of the customer that conditions an adverse reaction.

It is amazing what a “please” and a “thank you” and a smile will do for anybody’s attitude and disposition. :-)

Parental Counsel

There never was or ever will be a book or treatise on how to be a parent that fits all situations especially in an parent and adult child relationship.

How do you advise an adult child on the possible and even probable consequences of a choice when bravado or machismo or stubbornness or even desire is obscuring parental logic? It’s not easy and sometimes impossible to do so. The young need to experience the prideful glow of right choice and the disappointment via consequence of wrong choice. It’s the way they grow intellectually and the way they grow up and mature emotionally.

The difficulty for parents is when an adult child makes a decision that is inimical to the values of family, illegal, or the choice will put the adult child in harm's way that he or she cannot imagine because of their youthful enthusiasm and limited life experience.

A case in point and question comes from a Mother, a reader, of this blog.

Her son in his early twenties decides to join the army. He’s young and strong and with youthful strength there often comes the illusion of being invulnerable.

The parents believe that once committed and trained the young soldier will probably be sent to a war zone. A place no parent wants a child to go, no matter how old and mature or trained a young man or woman is. It’s a parent protection thing that often usurps the zeal of patriotism or even an altruistic desire for humanitarian service if the action puts the child in harms way.

There is no one answer to the Mother’s question on this issue. Do you encourage or discourage with reason the son’s choice?

Parents must answer that question as they see fit and handle it uniquely for their given situation. The only commonality between all parents of all cultures is the love of their children.

All parents can do is unconditionally love the child, offer good counsel and make sure their suggestions are not interpreted as demands and then let life take its course. It will anyway.