Writing – Page 11 – gregoryjoel.com

Bad Weather, Community, Connection, Emotional Health, Gratitude, Role Models, Thoughts From the Porch, Writing

I Like My Village…

April 29, 2019 gregoryjoel

I haven’t had time to write the last couple of weeks. Opal’s Farm takes up most of my time. Things are moving full steam ahead. Spring is in full bloom in North Texas and I maximize the warm sunny days because rain is inevitable and unpredictable this time of year. Wednesday’s 2 inches of rain and the subsequent mud may have allowed me to play catch-up on tasks best suited to office work, but the lingering wetness is getting old.

A farm volunteer work day was scheduled for Saturday but was rescheduled to Sunday afternoon because it was still too wet to work. Now it’s Sunday and another storm came last night. It wasn’t bad, but it was enough to cancel today’s events. I’m going to take it as a message from the universe to stay home today. It’s the perfect opportunity to catch up on “me time” and write about something other than work.

Reading is an essential part of what I do, but I read more than I should. Sometimes I read well into time that should be given to other things, but the WordPress community is often too engaging to shift gears. One more story. Just one more article. My morning news feed is filled with your thoughts and stories. You inspire my own thoughts. You challenge me to become a better writer (although the jury is still out on that one…) and all-around decent person. I’m thankful for each one of you. WordPress is a great village!

Choices, Community, Connection, Courage, Creation, Easter, Faith, Grace, Gratitude, Hope, Monday Mornings, Opal's Farm, Quotes, Regeneration, Seasons, Spirituality, Spring, Thoughts From the Porch, Unity Unlimited, Inc., Urban Farming, Writing

Easter People…

April 22, 2019 gregoryjoel

Thoughts From the Porch: Another beautiful Spring Day here in Fort Worth so it’s off to the farm. No time to write this morning. Before I go, I just wanted to say I hope you all had a wonderful Easter. We did here at the Joel household! Any time you spend you get to spend a whole weekend with close friends it’s a great weekend!

“Our prayers are answered not when we are given what we ask but when we are challenged to be what we can be.” — Morris Alder

“Easter says to us that despite everything to the contrary, his will for us will prevail, love will prevail over hate, justice over injustice and oppression, peace over exploitation and bitterness.” — Desmond Tutu

Easter symbolizes resurrection and rebirth. May we all live as Easter people today.

Belief, Bible, Christian Mysticism, Christianity, Easter, Faith, Good Friday, Grace, Gratitude, Hope, Jesus, Peace, Prayer, Quotes, Revival, Serenity, Spirituality, The Future, Thoughts From the Porch, Uncategorized, Writing

Good Friday

April 19, 2019 gregoryjoel

Thoughts From the Porch: The wind is a bit frisk this morning, but all is well on the porch. It’s still too wet to work on the farm so I’m enjoying the quiet solitude of our little cul-de-sac and my second pot of coffee.

Today is Good Friday. I’ve always been curious how it came to be called “Good” Friday. I get the idea that Jesus’ crucifixion led to a Good Sunday (Easter), but there’s really nothing good about hanging someone on a cross. Maybe Christians would do well to change their iconography for the cross to a stone. I’d rather constantly remember the resurrection than a barbaric and humiliating form of capital punishment. I want to be a resurrection disciple.

Those who have experienced God’s grace on a deep level tend to be aware of the price paid for their redemption. They know spiritual death. They know what the proverbial “end of the rope” is. They know what it’s like to have nowhere and no human being to turn to. They know that accepting God’s grace is the only thing that will bring us back to life and there’s no doubt how costly that grace was and is. They eagerly cling to Easter and resurrection.

Unfortunately, it’s easy to stay stuck on the crucifixion, to live in the past, and forget that the real joy in life comes from the resurrection. God did, and does, the impossible. He often does for us what we cannot, and sometimes will not, do for ourselves. That’s where the real power lies. Not in the cross, but in the rolled-away stone…

“I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of”. John 10.10 (The Message)

Today, I’m living in the present, enjoying the resurrected life I’ve been given…

“Yes, all the things I thought were so important are gone from my life. Compared to the high privilege of knowing Christ Jesus as my Master, firsthand, everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant”. Phillipians 3.8 (The Message)

Aging, Awe, Choices, Classic Rock, Connection, Culture, Emotional Health, Gratitude, Music, Peace, Recovery, Self-Acceptance, Simplicity, Stories, Thoughts From the Porch, Writing

Music to Soothe the Savage Beast?

April 18, 2019 gregoryjoel

I was at the desk for a long time last night catching up on paperwork and phone calls. I had a great head of steam and was crossing items off the “to-do list” right and left when my internet radio station hit a string of songs that stopped me dead in my tracks. I had no choice but to push the papers aside, crank the volume, and sing along to Van Morrison, Jimmy Buffet (anything before “Margaritaville”), the Eagles, and a host of other tunes that reminded me that growing up wasn’t all bad; even if it felt that way…

It felt that way a lot. Years later I’d ask my friend and mentor, Jim, why I felt so different from everyone else growing up. What was wrong with me and how did I get here? Why was I so uncomfortable being me? He’d smile and reply with one of those West Texas sayings that used to drive me batshit crazy like, “Son, it ain’t important how the mule got in the ditch, it’s how are you gonna get him out”. I’d like to believe I’m a reasonably intelligent individual, but it took a long time to understand what he was saying.

You see, the why didn’t matter. It wasn’t important. “Why” could never change the outcome. I was always asking the wrong question. When the question became “how” as opposed to “why” I began to crawl out of the proverbial ditch I found myself stuck in. I may not have been responsible for falling in the ditch, but I was responsible for getting out. As a result, the climb has been faster than I imagined and slower than I’d like, but the view from the top is well worth it…

Every now and then I’m reminded I’m on this amazing journey called life, replete with mountains, valleys, obstacles, and wide-open meadows. I wouldn’t be where I am if I hadn’t been where I’ve been. Duh, right? Music, like what I heard last night, transports me to the mountaintop where I have a 360-degree view. I can see the past and present and am delighted to revel in the present.

Is there a song (or songs) that take you to your “happy place”?

What makes you stop, crank up the tunes, and relish the moment?

Awe, Bad Weather, Community, Creation, Environment, Gratitude, Regeneration, Seasons, Spring, Springtime, Storms, Texas, Thoughts From the Porch, Transformation, Writing

After the Deluge…

April 17, 2019 gregoryjoel

Porch time has been nonexistent for the last week. I knew rain was coming over the past weekend (after all, it is the Main Street Arts Festival weekend here and it always rains), so I took advantage of the sunny, dry days to work on Opal’s Farm. We had a ninety-degree day, which is fifteen degrees above average for this time of year. I’m sweating (no pun intended) the heat coming early and fast like it did last year. More severe thunderstorms are predicted for this evening. It looks like desk duty is on for the rest of the day…

I was driving home Monday evening and noticed that Saturday’s rain brought an explosion of color to the landscape. The Bluebonnets have been up for a couple of weeks, but the other flowers seemed unsure as to whether they should make their appearance as well. I guess the weekend storms were the signal. Primrose, One-Eyed Susan’s, Buttercups, and Indian Paintbrush: the list goes on. It amazes me how one day they’re absent and the next they’re in their full splendor. Poof! It’s magical…