Just saying . . .

No doubt you are familiar with the "Cat and Mouse Game," but have you ever had occasion to witness one?  Saturday afternoon I was reclined in my chair with my feet a good fifteen or so inches off the floor when here came Smokey galloping through the house.  I was a bit suspicious because she had just spent the past ten or so minutes staring under the stove.  Sure enough, there was a mouse running for its life right in front of her.  I said to Tommy, "Smokey is after a mouse."  She chased that mouse back and forth a couple of times, then took it under the bed in the guest room where no one could get to them.  When the mouse managed to get away, she caught it again and took it to my room under the bed.  All this time, my feet are still safely off the floor and Tommy has begun to try to get the mouse from the cat.  Finally, he grabbed it with a paper towel, finished off the kill and threw it away.  How like the cat we are at times--chasing after something that has caught our attention and then not know what to do with it when we catch it.  Or, we're like the mouse, running for dear life, looking over our shoulder, hoping not to get caught.

Saturday night I had the wonderful opportunity to visit with friends not seen in over twelve years.  Mary Sue and I roomed together the first year we were out of college and made every day an adventure.  We knew we would be fast friends when we discovered that we were born on the very same day.  She left after that year to return to graduate school, got married and settled down in North Carolina.  Later, we renewed our friendship when our husbands were in law school at Ole Miss together.  On our night out, we talked until we were hoarse and had a wonderful time! 

I have been saddened by news of Bob Stone's death.  He and Jan, Nan and Bob Bohn and Tom and I had such fun times together.  Bob and Jan provided all kinds of support for us when I went through treatment after surgery and helped me in countless ways as I cared for Tom.  What great friends they both were and I miss them. 

Do you ever get tired of words or feel as if you are drowning in a sea of words?  Actually, I love words and love to study them.  Word study was so much a part of Greek and Hebrew translation and that same study impacts what comes from Scripture to the heart and to the mouth.  But, lately I have been sick to death of so much of what I hear and read.  Freedom of speech allows us to say "whatever," no matter who it hurts or whether or not the words are accurate.  My mother's admonition keeps ringing in my ears: "If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all."  I wonder how such advice would affect our political campaigns.  Also, I remember being taught good manners and respect for my elders and those in authority.  Those seem to be extinct values.  People have a right to their opinions, as do I, but just because we differ doesn't mean we need to attack each other.  It seems that we need to pay extreme attention to The Word, abide in the Living Word and pay less attention to the war of words coming over the internet and in the media.