Encouraging Words

Encouragement. Everyone benefits from it. Encouragement opens the portals of possibility. Kindles hope. Inspires potential. Boosts confidence. Unleashes undiscovered talents. Emboldens persistence.

The Bible is filled with encouraging words. As the book of Joshua opens, the Israelites' leader for forty years, Moses, has just died. As Joshua their newly appointed leader prepares to lead the Israelites into the promised land filled with hostile Canaanites, God gave him these encouraging words:  

Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law that my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you might be successful where ever you go. Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not command you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord you God will be with 
you were ever you go.

Whenever you need encouragement, remember that the word of God inspires strength and courage.

Who Am I?

I don't know the source.  A book? An article? A personal encounter? The Internet? Was it a sermon? I found it scribbled on a scrap of paper underneath a pile of notes and articles on my desk. I apologize to the original writer for plagiarizing the material. Nonetheless, this truth merits sharing.

False Statements

• I am what I do.
• I am what people say about me.
• I am what I possess.

True Statement:

• I am the beloved child of God.

Refreshing Old Words

As an aging person I suggest: Don't use the word older. Or senior. 
Experienced would be better. Wise would be even better. Fermented wouldn't work, but elegant, refined, or opulent would be better wine analogies. How about Falernian or Surrentine, if you are inclined toward pedanticism. Over-the-hill is insensitive while venerable adds some sophistication to the aging process.  Old-bat is a no-no, but mature might be a hit for some. Ripe, no. Cultured, yes. Seasoned is OK, but graceful is better.   How about resolute or durable instead of old boot?

The Prognosis of Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia usually begins just as young adults are learning to become independent and productive. Because the illness typically strikes people when they are between the ages of 17-28, relatively few celebrated people have been diagnosed with schizophrenia. There are a handful of well-known exceptions. Nijinsky, the Russian dancer, made his mark as a genius before the disease struck. Meera Popkin, known for her entrancing performances in Andrew Lloyd Weber’s Cats, Starlight Express, and Miss Saigon, went from a show-stopping star to a Wendy’s french-fry flipper until small doses of Haldol and supportive psychotherapy returned her to the stage (Schizophrenia.com).

            For a significant group, medications, compassion, and receptivity allow the schizophrenic to become independent again. Some return to work, cultivate friendships, and marry. Occasionally a remarkable remission occurs. Often, though, treatment is ineffective. Even with the best of medications, most schizophrenics almost never return to their previous level of function.

Mindless Behavior

Last summer my wife gave me a dozen handkerchiefs. Now they are gone. Disappeared. Not in the handkerchief drawer or the sock drawer. Not in the clothes hamper. 

I began to wonder—“Do I have Alzheimer’s disease?” Probably not. The better explanation for the disappearance of my handkerchiefs—THE HIDERS. The hiders are sneaky. They put pencils behind my ear. They hide my car keys in the refrigerator. They have the audacity to slip my eyeglasses on my face at the very time I’m looking for them. The Hiders are ubiquitous. In every household they do their dastardly deeds. They are responsible for everything, from lost airplane tickets to the Bermuda Triangle disappearances.

Rather than resulting from The Hiders or from Alzheimer's disease our tendency to lose things is more likely due to mindless behavior. Forgetting why we entered a room, saying hello to mannequins, misplacing items—these activities reflect a brain on automatic pilot, a brain that acts without thinking. Almost all of us have seen this mindless behavior in others. A department store clerk will ask you to sign the back of your credit card. After you have signed the card and then the receipt, the clerk holds the receipt next to your credit card to see if the signatures match. Mindless behavior? Did the Hiders climb into the clerk’s skull and conceal her brains? Or does she have Alzheimer’s disease? Doubtful, but these little memory gaps and mindless actions make us wonder, especially as we reach the “senior moments” stage.