When Memorial Services Are Bittersweet

Today we celebrated the life of a dear friend. After her fourth battle with cancer, G was taken home to be with Jesus on Valentine's Day.

Personally I enjoy funerals and memorial services. It's not a morbid fascination, but it is fascinating nonetheless. On earth we live in a plane of existance that is different than that of heaven. When someone I know moves from this life on earth and goes to the next, I can sense that these two planes of existance are intersecting; I feel very close to God at these moments.

Our lives on earth can be so intermingled with those of others, and in the case of G, this was very much so. G and her mother were once members of our church choir. G's sister, by the way, is married to one of my closest childhood friends.

My friend, A, lived down the street from me. We were in the same grade in school, and we had been classmates from first through eighth grade. A's family was a strong Christian family - every single one of them. They were active in their Baptist church and took me along once in a while. At home, they walked the walk as much (if not more) as they talked unashamedly the talk.

I call this blog the Signpost Chronicles as there have been many signposts along the path of my life. These people were the ones at Milepost One. These are the people that planted the seed of the Holy Spirit in me.

I was a tough nut to crack. It took a long time for me to truly accept Christ in my heart; when I was a mere lad of 14 years of age, I really wasn't ready. A and I went to different high schools - he went to a Christian high school, and I continued in the public school system. I admit that I was somewhat relieved.

But God never left me and kept throwing signposts along the way. Eventually I did embrace Christ as my Lord and Savior, and I continue to grow.

A and I have run into each other occassionally over the years. But today was different. They were all there - A and his entire family. I hadn't seen most of them in over 30 years. It goes without saying that we were overjoyed to see each other.

I heard it said one time that God sometimes calls us to plant seeds for shade trees that we will never sit under. Well, today was an exception for my friends. They had planted a seed, and today they got to sit in it's shade.

Today was like one of the best days ever.

Election 2008: So Many Issues, So Many Compromises

"We have serious problems to solve, and we need serious people to solve them."
- Michael Douglas (as President Andrew Shepherd in The American President)

Boy, what an election year this seems to be turning out to be! Will a real presidential candidate please stand up!

On Tuesday, I went to cast my vote in Arizona's presidential primary. After standing in line for over an hour-and-a-half to draw a line on a piece of paper (which took less than a second), I found myself rather frustrated. Not because I had stood in line so long. It was because I thought I had my mind made up. Upon seeing the long list of names I could not in good conscience vote for the one I had settled on. So I did what I've done in the past - I cast my "rebel" vote for one of the many who already dropped out of the race.

This past week I've heard many others - those around me, and those in the media - voice their frustration as well. While I heard the term "Obama Republicans" for the first time, I also was told by a friend of mine - a Democrat - say he would probably vote for McCain. In terms of the populace, the divsion between Republican and Democrat is clearly blurred (no pun intended).

Conservatives are especially frustrated as it appears that a not-so-conservative John McCain will be "coronated" as the Republican nominee for President. This was voiced most loudly by Focus on the Family's Dr. James Dobson who stated he couldn't possibly vote for McCain. I wonder, though, that Dobson couldn't possibly vote for Mitt Romney because he's a Mormon - something else that rubs fundamental Christians the wrong way. Although I consider myself a pretty strong Christian myself, I resolved in my own mind that a Mormon was acceptable as president - although I don't agree with their form of religion, I at least know where they're coming from. Their stand on family values is a lot stronger than some fundamental Christians I know (sorry, but it's true). But that's moot point now. Anyway, Dobson has now given his support to Mike Huckabee, who is really the conservatives' last best hope - and it's slim at best.

While technically it's a two-man race for the Republicans, it looks like it's all over except for McCain.

Hillary Rodham Clinton promises change, but frankly I shudder at the prospect of adding four more years to what will have already been a 20-year reign under the Bush and Clinton administrations. Considering the mess we're in now, I can't possibly see how she's going to change things. What sticks out in my mind is how she's going to reform health care. She already tried that when she was First Lady (which accounts for eight of her "35 years of experience") and failed miserably. If she is serious about health care, she should be doing it now while she's a Senator.

And then there's the wonderkid, Barak Hussein Obama. He is often compared to John F. Kennedy, even by JFK's own family. Whereas JFK challenged us to go to the moon, Barak Obama promises to bring the moon to us. I admire Obama for that, but the price is too high. Personally, I find Obama quite likable - I just don't like his politics.

John McCain is an interesting character. When he first ran for the U.S. House in Arizona, McCain was accused of being a carpetbagger (since he really had no ties to Arizona except for his new wife). He answered those charges stating that he was brought up in a military family, was in the Navy himself, and as a result lived in many places. Referring to his experience as a POW in Vietnam, he then went on to say, "As a matter of fact...the place I lived longest in my life was Hanoi." This public rebuke helped him win the primary against two experienced opponents and an easy victory in the general election. That statement pretty much describes how John McCain rolls, like it or not.

Is this country ready for a woman for president? Absolutely. Is this country ready for a black president? You bet. It is very exciting to realize that we've finally come to a point in our country's history where that may actually happen. But I would caution my fellow Americans that they should or should not vote for a candidate just because of their race, color, or creed.

This is a very strange election year indeed. There are a hodgepodge of issues, as well as a hodgepodge of values that each candidate possesses and represents. Often, the values don't seem to coincide with the issues. That is unfortunate because I think this year - more than ever - this election has become personal for many of us. Yet in order to support one candidate, we have to make compromises within ourselves that we might not otherwise (hence the Obama Republicans and McCain Democrats).

Meanwhile, as each candidate strives to win the nomination of their respective parties, we have the luxury of coming up with the tough questions that each nominee needs to address. We as citizens need to air out our concerns with each other so we can make an informed decision next November.

These are serious times. We have serious issues, and we need serious people to address them. Now that would be a refresshing change!

Finally A Super Bowl Worth Watching

If terrorists had struck this year's Super Bowl, I would only be four miles away from Ground Zero. Fortunately, that didn't happen, and we're still standing here.

I drove past the stadium after church just a couple of hours before the game (just so I can say that I drove past the host stadium on Super Bowl Sunday).

I typically don't watch NFL football except for the Super Bowl - and I typically only watch that for the commercials. This year was no exception. I thought it interesting that insects didn't fare well this year (a firefly caught by a spider, a grasshopper eaten by a lizard, and another grasshopper sucked into, then blown out of a Shopvac, then run over by a robot. Yet another grasshopper was found screaming in terror but was otherwise okay).

But tonight's game itself was worth watching. A close game with the underdog eeking out a victory is always exciting.

I didn't really care at first who to root for, although New York was my slim favorite just because they were the underdog. Then Randy Moss of the Patriots shot his mouth off saying that Arizona wasn't that great of a place to be for the Super Bowl and that he'd rather be in Miami. Then I became a Giants fan.

Great game. Great result: Giants win 17-14. Be sure the door hits you on the way out, Randy.