Come Another Morning...

 

“Another morning comes. It always does. Time always moves at the same rate, only feelings have different speeds. Every day can mark a whole lifetime or a single heartbeat, depending on who you spend it with.”

-- Fredrik Backman

Come another morning, the body feels every moment of the questionable decision-making that was my youth. I stretch, waiting for my body to cramp up. Nothing. I manage to find my way to the shower. Feeling more awake, I take a razor in hand and consider the aged landscape staring back at me from the mirror. I yawn. I put the razor down. I decide to brush my balding pate instead. Better. I look relatively civilized.  

I smile and retrieve the razor. I manage to shave without cutting my throat.  When done, I step onto the scale that tells me I’m still fighting the mid-drift that surrounds me.  I convinced myself the fat "tire" would be turning to muscle due to the treadmill and weight machines at the gym three times a week. Unfortunately, I gave up the gym membership at the onset of COVID-19.  I slip into a white tee shirt, blue jeans, and tennis shoes.  The mirror tells me I’m acceptable, if only to myself.

The fact that people still find me interesting is probably due to my magnetic personality that registers on nobody's magnetometer.  Maybe, I'm just humble... and a nice guy. Maybe, I don't go looking for trouble. Maybe, I'm aware of my capabilities.  If you're looking for trouble, I'm too old to run... I'd much rather shoot you and be done with it.

Lately, I've lost almost 20 pounds utilizing a new "fad diet" that seems to work.  It's taken me two months... because I get jammed up every ten pounds. Then, I manage to move past the barrier.  Bourbon might have something to do with it...  the barrier, that is, not moving past it.

Come another morning, 3:30 a.m., and I find myself, as usual, at the computer, writing another post, hoping it will be interesting to my readers. If it isn't, I'll be writing it, anyway.  It is what I do.  I've been rightly accused of having no filter.  I speak my mind and write what I think. It is a curse, a mantle I wear like an unforgiving title of royalty. More "Bathroom Quasi-Wisdom From the Always Humble Semi-Ancient Pie Hole Philosopher" that my slowly growing readership might enjoy.

Most of my posts, through COVID, were drawn from people wanting my answers to "burning" questions, and the bulk of which was only smoldering, if at that. I answered as many as I could each morning, then I published the results. During July of 2023, I had over 21,000 views of my answers.  I am still humbled by the worldwide viewership.

I thought I was done writing this offering when I reached for my coffee, took a sip, and the brown liquid slipped through the hole in my lip and dribbled down the front of the white tee shirt.  I cursed, then I laughed. 

Come another morning.  One morning much the same as the last.  It is a good thing I have an undying sense of humor.  This morning might indicate how the rest of my day will go.  I strive to be truly happy, always and in all things, regardless of my circumstances.  Shit happens, so I embrace it, work through it, and hope I come out on the other side better for the effort. If you don't choose to embrace the "shit" of life, then you have ignored something that life thought you needed to learn.  And, if you don't think you've learned anything, then you aren't a very good student.

“When you arise in the morning, think of what a privilege it is to be alive, to think, to enjoy, to love ...”

-- Marcus Aurelius

Editor's Note

(Re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card)

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch - it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either view any more right or wrong than the other. Opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form their own opinions, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider an alternate viewpoint.

I fervently hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions, and while engaging in peaceful and constructive discussion, in an arena of mutual respect, concerning those opinions offered. After twenty-three years of military intelligence, I have come to believe that engaging each other in this manner, and in this arena, is a way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we learn from the experience... and what we do afterward.

Pastor Tony spent 22 years with United States Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, instructor, and senior manager. Following his service career, he spent 17 years working with the premier and world-renowned Western Institutional Review Board, helping to protect the rights of human subjects involved in pharmaceutical research. He also served 8 years on the Board of Directors for the Angela J. Bowen Foundation.

Ordained 1n 2013 as an "interfaith" minister, he founded the Congregation for Religious Tolerance in response to intolerance shown by Christians toward peaceful Islam. As a weapon for his war on intolerance... he chose the pen. He wages his "battle" in the guise of the Congregation's official online blog, The Path, of which he is both author and editor. "The Path" offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's personal, spiritual path toward peace and the final destination for us all. He resides in Pass Christian, Mississippi, where he volunteered as the lead chaplain at a regional medical center.

Feel free to contact Pastor Tony at: tolerantpastor@gmail.com