Life's Rich Pageant

Living near the ocean teaches a person quite a bit about "horizons". Looking out at the furthest point where sky and water meet is a beautiful, changing, and sometimes confusing sight. As the sun is rising and reflections exist in the water along with a thousand colors in the clouds, it is right to feel a sense of awe. The horizon is a hopeful place.

Today we embark on a new journey with that same hopeful horizon. I do not mean to put so much pressure on Obama as to compare him to the sun but it is clearly a new day for the people of this nation and, potentially, our worldwide brothers and sisters. Not every day will be sunny, we will continue to go through storms and rough waters but let us enjoy today and look forward to tomorrow.

Peace, in its many and wonderful forms, unto our nation and our world.

Scars from our past

Have you ever noticed that wounds don't heal very quickly as we get older? It is as if our youthful bodies are designed for the many cuts and bruises that happen as a result of playing and learning. Throw some antibiotic ointment on the wound and cover it with a band-aid, voila -- its gone in a week. Only the worst bicycle accident/tree fall/world record attempt resulted in scars and they were normally much smaller than the original wound.

This can not be said for the adult body. Last weekend my ring finger became friends with a century old nail as I was putting up insulation. It seemed like a rather innocent meeting at the time. The only reason I noticed it was the blood flowing down my hand. Yet, this tiny mistake is destined to leave a lasting mark as a reminder of my late start in learning carpentry. The lesson to be learned is to make each scar a meaningful one. The scars of our life show a significant portion of the journey we have gone through, make sure it is a journey that you will view with fondness.