Not A Lost Soul

There are many out there who interpret the recent events in my life as a turning point; a rebirth if you will.  Most of the religious people who I have come in contact with during my lifetime have tried to “save” me, which means they thought I was a lost soul; they could not have been more wrong.  Even though I did not understand the significance of many biblical events or Jesus’ place in the whole biblical picture, there was never a time when I was not searching for “truth.”  For sure, a lot of things in my life have caused me to veer off the path to salvation, and I am far from being “without sin,” but I was always “seeking.” I think many folks are, silently, the same way.

Essentially, my recent “enlightenment” was nothing more than a better understanding of biblical events and a confirmation of the beliefs I already had.  What truly amazes me is the sequence of events that took place leading up to the day when my life changed.  Like I said in my previous writing, I had not attended more than a very few church services since I was a child and I am still perplexed about my sudden attendance at Lane Baptist Church, and my attachment to Pastor John Howard.  This relationship was all in place before the event that caused my enlightenment.

I think, most folks, finding themselves in a situation like the one in which I found myself on the morning of March 10, 2013 would have given a different response to the question that was posed to me.  “Do you want to go to the hospital”? I was asked.  “No,” I replied, I want to go to church.  Does that sound like the response of a lost soul?  The really amazing part is that at any other time in my entire life I was not affiliated with a church and would not have had a place to go!  Could my attachment to Lane Baptist Church and John Howard have been divine intervention?  I think so.  My guardian angels were watching over me during a major event in my life.

To all of those who thought I was a lost soul, I respond with the words of our true guiding light, “I came and ye knew me not.”

Mercy Hospital, Ada Oklahoma

MERCY HOSPITAL - ADA

Once again, I have nothing but good things to say about the staff at Mercy Hospital.  I have been going to Mercy in Ada five days a week (45 miles each way) for treatments over the past 6 weeks and I am happy to report that the Mercy culture that I experienced in Oklahoma City is alive and well in Ada.  In the care of Mike, Larry, and Janet, Gail and I almost began to look forward to our daily visits!  Mike and Larry are both “music junkies” and they always had something ready on the I-Pod to help pass the time.

 They probably little realize how much their upbeat attitudes help the people they care for every day as they go about their assigned tasks manipulating a gargantuan radiation machine that looks like it belongs on the starship Enterprise.  I will have my last treatment on Monday, Aug. 26, and I actually think I’m going to miss our daily visits!  Thank you Janet, Mike, and Larry for making life easier.

A day in Houston

Gail and I drove to Houston Texas last Saturday morning to visit with some friends we had not seen for a year or so; Anna and Rene.  They are the folks I wrote about in my Nov, 2011 posting titled “Birthday Extravaganza,” which you can read about in my blog archives if you are interested.  As usual, a day with these two people is anything but ordinary.  They both looked the same and Rene, although he speaks perfect English, was still vexed by the inability of his I-Phone to respond properly to his Puerto Rican accent!

The day started out with an introduction to the City of Houston and its amazing population of Doctors and nurses.  It seems that Houston is built around a core of health care professionals that has caused it to become the most populous city in Texas, and the fifth-largest metropolitan area in the U.S. with over 6 million people.  Houston’s crime rate is amongst the lowest in the U.S. and only New York City is home to more “Fortune 500” companies.  Houston is also home to NASA’s “Mission Control Center.”

The introduction to Houston was followed by dinner at Maggiano’s where Anna worked her magic to get us seated ahead of a “standing room only” crowd that had arrived well ahead of us.  We were delivered to Maggiano’s by a South African taxi driver who, I am sure, was specifically selected by Rene to provide our pre-dinner entertainment.  The short trip to the restaurant was an “E-ticket” ride that I will never forget.  Our driver raced through the crowded, narrow streets of Houston at speeds that would have caused heads to turn at any motor speedway.  He jockeyed for position with the agility of the gazelle’s of his home country of Africa where, I’m sure, he learned this talent.  We had not traveled far before we were all tightening up our seat belts and looking at each other as if it was going to be our last visit together.