Grandma

I could start off with some sort of cliche like "I thought of you today".  But somehow it doesn't seem to fit.  I was thinking of when I first learned to french braid hair, sitting in my grandmother's living room, with my cousin as the training ground for which I would practice.  I was thinking of the smell of her house, the dust from the red clay dirt settling on the furniture, picking blackberries in the summer and bread and butter pickles sitting on the table.  I remember all the "gifts" of food I was given that would come out of a freezer in the garage or the well house out back, or the back of the cabinets in the kitchen.  Most of the time you didn't know how old it was, or how long it had been there, but Grandma always said it was fine.  I remember her giving me a can of shortening one time, with an obviously dated label on it, and telling me about how it was the only kind of shortening my Grandpa liked.  At that time I was around 27 or 28 years old, and my grandfather passed away before I was one.  But mostly I was thinking about my birthday.  I can remember Grandma telling me after I had moved out on my own, that I really needed to make it home for my birthday.  She would tell me almost every year, or write it in a card she sent me.  She would tell me that the changing leaves in the mountains were the prettiest around my birthday and that I really needed to make a trip "home".  Isn't it odd how we use the word "home"?  How is that word really defined.  Isn't home where you spent all your time growing up?  Its where your parents are, your siblings, your friends, right?  But somehow, my "home" no matter how many years have gone by, has remained the mountains in which the Locke Community of Arkansas reside.  The red clay roads that twist and turn through mountain (although many now have been paved), seeing the house my father and his father built as you come around the bend, and then my Grandmother's house lay below, a home that my grandfather built on land he bought an paid for himself.  So, I have been sitting here thinking about fall.  About the leaves changing, the wind that whistles through the trees.  I can remember go home for visits and walking from my Grandmother's house, to her mother's house, winding down the road, skipping and laughing.  I would carry my camera with me and I have photo album after photo album of pictures.  None of which are very exciting, pictures of the road, a cat walking by, my cousins playing.  But it was a world that I loved.  As a child, before we left, my mind is full of joyful memories of playing on the side of the mountain that our house was built into.  Looking down to see grandma's house below us.  Christmas Eve celebrations in her living room and going to my great grandmother's house to play.  I remember that when we moved, I felt Kansas was evil.  I was devastated, heartbroken and scared.  I didn't want to leave my home, my family, my life.  I was 7 years old at the time.  Now, today, I turn 38 and I still call that home.  Home is what seeds have been planted in us and how those roots grow.  I have lived in Kansas, albeit throughout the entire state, for 31 years of my life.  There is such a small portion of my memories that come from that place, yet I remember them the most.  But somehow, I never made it.  So, back to the changing of the leaves in the fall.  Life got busy, children and work took over, and I just didn't have the time to watch the changing of the leaves with my grandma.  The older you get, the more you realize what you have missed because you were too busy.  All the things that happen and you think, there's plenty more time.  I didn't go see my grandma nearly enough towards the end of her life.  I was pregnant, I had babies, I was tired, I was busy.  My love for her had never changed, but somehow, I suppose, I thought there would be more time.  Last fall, at the age of 93 years old, my grandmother passed away.  I realized, "How much more time did I think there was".  She had lived a very long life and somehow, I guess, I thought it would just keep going, giving me the time I needed to go see the leaves change with her.  That time is now passed, and although I will never be able to watch the leaves pass with her by my side again, I will still be able to go "home".  Yes grandma, the leaves are changing.  I can only imagine how beautiful they are.

Good Friday and Easter Weekend

On this Good Friday morning, as we prepare for Easter weekend and the guarentee of the Easter bunny arriving and Easter egg hunts to attend, I would like to take just a moment to reflect on what this really means.  I believe most Christians spend time during this season to reflect of the meaning of Easter.  I know for my family, we typically try on Good Friday to sit and watch a movie about Jesus, his life and the crucifixion.  My go to movie for the last several years has been "Passion of the Christ" but there are many that depict the story very well.  I try to discuss with my family what this all means and talk about the Bible passages that tell the story.  For me, as many others, Good Friday is a day of sorrow and heart break.  A time to reflect on what our Lord went through in order to give us the promise of Heaven and eternal life.  But then when Sunday comes, it is a time for rejoicing.  A time to lift our hearts and voices in song, because we know that, although it was a path filled with pain and strife, our Lord Jesus Christ paved our way to enter Heaven!  All we have to do is ask for forgiveness!  He has taken care of the rest!  Praise be to Jesus!  The least I can do for all that he gave and gave up for us, is have no fear in helping proclaim his name. 

With that being said, I would like to share a few of my favorite passages about Good Friday and Easter. 

Matthew 12:40
For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

Mark 15:17-39

They dressed him up in purple, twisted some thorns into a crown and put it on him.  And they began saluting him, "Hail, king of the Jews!"  They struck his head with a reed and spat on him; and they went down on their knees to do him homage.  and when they had finished making fun of him, they took off the purple and dressed him in his own clothes.  They led him out to crucify him.  They enlisted a passer-by, Simon of Cyrene, father of Alexander and Rufus, who was coming in from the country, to carry his cross.  They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha, which means the place of the skull.  They offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he refused it.  Then they crucified him, and shared out his clothing, casting lots to decide what each should get.  It was the third hour when they crucified him.  The inscription giving the charge against him read, "The King of the Jews".  And they cricifed two bandits with him, one on his right and one on his left.  The passers-by jeered at him; they shook their heads and said, "Aha! So you would destroy the Temple and rebuild it in three days!  Then save yourself; come down from the cross!"  The chief priest and the scribes mocked him amoung themselves in the same way with the words, "He saved others, he cannot save himself.  Let the Christ, the king of Israel, come down from the cross now, for us to see it and believe."  Even those who were crucified with him taunted him.  When the sixth hour came there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.  And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, eloi, lama sabachthani?" which means, "My god, my God, why have you forsaken me?"  When some of those who stood by heard this, they said, "Listen, he is calling on Elijah."  Someone ran and soaked a sponge in vinegar and, putting it on a reed, gave it to him to drink saying, "Wait! And see if Elijah will come take him down."  But Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last.  And the veil of the Sanctuary was torn in two from top to bottom.  The centurion, who was standing in front of him, had seen how he had died, and he said, "In truth this man was Son of God"



John 19:31-36

Now since it was preperation day, in order that the bodies might not remain on the cross on the sabbath, for the sabbath day of that week was a solemn one, the Jews asked Pilate that their legs be broken and they be taken down.  so the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and then of the other one who was crucified with Jesus.  But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did no break his legs, but one soldier thrust his lance into his side, and immediately blood and water flowed out.  An eyewitness has testified, and his testimony is true; he knows that he is speaking the truth, so that yo also may believe.  For this happened so that the scripture passage might be fullfilled.

Mark 16:9-18

Having risen in the morning on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary of Magdala from whom he had cast out seven devils.  She then went to those who had been his companionsk and who were mouning and in tears, and told them.  But they did not believe her when they heard her say that he was alive and that she had seen him.  After this, he showed himself under another form to two of them as they were on their way into the country.  These went back and told the others, who did not beleive them either.  Lastly, he showed himself to the Eleven themselves while they were at table.  He reporached them for their incrdulity and obstinacy, because they had refused to believe those who had seen him after he had risen.  And he said to them, "Go out to the whole world; proclaim the gospel to all creation.  Whoever believes and is batpised will be saved; whoever does not believe wil be condemned.  These are the signs that will be associated with believers: in my name they will cast out the devils; they will have the gift of tongues; they will pick up snakes in their hands and be unharmed should they drink deadly poison; they will lay their hands on the sick, who will recover." 

Acts 1:9-12

Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their site.  And while they looked steadfastly towrd heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven:  This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven."  Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day's journey.

With that may you all have a happy and wondrous Easter!  Good luck to all of those who will be having Easter egg hunts and family dinners.  May the Lord bless each of you and hold you close to his heart.

For Uncle Steve. . . .

A carpenter by trade,
With calloused hands, weary feet.
The journey so long
Making a man’s life complete.

Brought into the world
In sickness and strife,
Too small to be born,
Yet the fighter found life.

Hard labor through life,
Make a strong man’s back bow.
But to hear a complaint,
No one ever would know.

To raise a family
Through the years, a reward.
With a wife and six children,
Who were truly adored.

The faith that held strong,
Would carry them through.
Though hard times were many,
The word of the Lord would ring true.

A smile for all,
And a story to tell.
Twinkling eyes to the soul,
All knew of him well.

The hand of the Lord,
Reaches down from above.
And touches the face
Of the man we all love.

His journey complete,
Angel wings he did gain.
To sit with his Lord
Never hurting again.

On December 20th, 2012 the world lost another angel.  My uncle, Steve VanLeeuwen, escaped his pain from the monster we call cancer.   He will be greatly missed and remembered always.  All my love Uncle Stevie, may you sing and dance with the angels and sit with our Lord.

How do we make sense of this?

I have been watching all the news, posts, and comments that flow through the Facebook feed, as I am sure many others have been doing as well.  I see the multitude of opinions regarding who's fault this is and why it happened.  There are those who feel that if gun control was more strict it wouldn't have happened, or if gun control was more lenient it wouldn't have happened.  Maybe it is the media's fault for making the shooters into a famous person for others with intentions to kill to idolize.  Maybe the fault lies in that the school did not have a police officer on staff, or even a security guard.  Maybe they didn't have a good enough policy put into place to handle this kind of situation.  It could be the fault of the politicians, or the schools or the people around this person for not doing more to stop him.  Maybe it happened because people didn't pay enough attention to the warning signs.  Because, you know, someone should have been able to see this coming.  Maybe he was pure evil, full of the devil himself.   Somehow he could have been stopped.  Right?  The question on everyone's mind is this, how do we make sense of this.  Seems like a simple question that someone should be able to answer for our human minds that need to have a solution to a problem  Our human minds that want to find a logical explanation, and possibly even another person or outlet to blame.

Here is the fact of the matter.  You can not make sense out of something that is senseless.  You cannot find reason in something that is unreasonable.  You can not comprehend something that is incomprehensible.  Murder, mass killings and violence have been around since the beginning of man.  Starting with Cain and Able and continuing through every mass murderer, serial killer and massicast  through our tormented history of life.  We will never be able to wrap our minds around what these individuals might have thought, or what lead them to their actions.  And the devastating fact of the matter is, we will probably never be able to stop them, no matter what we do.  Because you cannot be prepared for this, no matter how much you want to be.   I do not know what this young man's life was like, what his thoughts were, what his afflictions were, what pain he himself may have suffered, if there were outside influences such as drugs or alcohol involved, if someone had tormented him, if he had always tormented others.  The only thing I do know is that for whatever reason, this young man woke up Friday morning and ended up at this school shooting young children and adults.  The only other thing I know is that Christ forgave a sinner who had been sentenced to death as he hung on the cross next to him and told him he would see him in paradise.  I feel fairly certain, that had the people who this man sinned against been asked, they would have raised their voices in anger and rage at the thought.  They would have probably yelled from the streets that he did not deserve forgiveness and absolutely did not deserve to be raised to heaven with the Lord. But, that is what the Lord Christ did.  This statement may outrage many, and may cause some to have less then kind feelings toward me, but I will be praying for the soul of the young man who committed this horrendous act as I continue to pray for those who lost their lives and the families that are left behind to grieve.   The Lord has told us not to judge.  To leave that to him.  I will obey those commands.  This by no means is to say that I don't find this one of the most horrendous acts I have heard of, at least in my life time.  It is unfathomable to me how any individual can do this.  Which is exactly my point, we are human, and not able to fathom what is in another human mind when an act like this occurs.

I end with this, I will pray every moment of every day for the those who lost their lives and the families left behind.  I will mourn for them as my heart aches so badly it feels as though it will come out of my chest.   I am no different that anyone else, as we are all human.  There is a part of myself that would love nothing more than to condemn this man.  There is a part of me that longs for answers.  But we are not granted access to those answers in this world.  We may come close, and may even think we have found some, but we will never truly know until we meet the Lord our self, and then, if he decides to open our eyes to what he knows, we may have a hint at the answers to some of these questions.  I will also pray for the soul of this young man that the Lord meets him with a just punishment and judgement.  But I will not try to figure out who else might be to blame. I will hold my children tighter, hug and kiss them often, and pray that I do not ever have to encounter such a thing.  I will try to remember, that someone loved this young man, that he at one time was a child himself and someone worried for his safety.  I will not try to find an answer to an unanswerable question.  How do we make sense of this?  We do not, for we are only human and unable to see into the mind of another.

Life,Liberty, and The Pursuit of Happiness . . . .and the bible? "Good" vs. "Evil"

I have been giving a lot of thought of late to the issues of political alignments.  In reading an article that stated there are not two, but three very defined parties which are Democrats, Republicans and Conservatives, I found myself pondering what all of those names mean. I have no desire, nor need, to get into whether one party right or wrong party to be affiliated with or whether Democrats or Republicans are good or evil.  Actually that is what my point to this particular rant is, the total absence of a need to classify political parties as good vs. evil or right vs. wrong.
I am a firm believer in the thought that there is no pure “good” and “evil”. (I have had various conversations regarding this topic, and it kinda stuck).  No person I have ever met is purely good, without a single bad trait to be seen.  Even those individuals described as “Saints” have their faults.  Also, I do not know that a person can be utterly and indecisively evil.  Although there are a multitude of criminals either in the prison system or in the legal system who seem to be 100% evil, I believe they must have some shred of “good” in them.  Maybe as a child they were joyful and happy, or maybe at one time, even if only once, they gave a piece of food to a hungry person.  Maybe they are 99.9% evil, but there was that one second in their life that they helped an elderly lady across the street.  Now that doesn’t mean that I do not believe they deserve to be punished for their crimes.  There are stories out there of indescribably horrible acts of evil that can absolutely make a person cringe and be sick to their stomach.  Those behaviors must, and should, be punished.  Many of those individuals are not capable of, and should not be allowed to be, a meaningful part of society.  So, basically, I believe that the majority of society lies somewhere in the middle of the range between good and evil.  We all have our moments when we can accomplish or carry out an extreme act of kindness or good doing.  We all also have those moments we will regret for the rest of our days as one of our lowest moments.  What is the point of this, you might ask.  I have heard and debated issues of political nature many times, and of course with the upcoming election it has been a more frequent occurrence.  Inevitably during an election period you begin to hear a lot of the debates regarding who is right and who is wrong, who is good and who is evil.  With this particular election, there have been many discussions of what is Christian and what is not.  Is one party following the teachings of Christ over another and who is looking out for the best interest of the country?  I honestly do not believe that Barrack Obama, Joe Biden, Mitt Romney or Paul Ryan are “evil”.  Nor do I believe that anyone, affiliated with either party, who sits in the house or senate at either the federal or state levels are “evil”.  Nor do I believe any of them are purely “good”.  What I do believe is that each of them are doing what they personally feel is in the best interest of our country.  I do not believe entirely with any of these men, and align very little with two in particular.  I still do not wish to condemn them.  I do not believe they, or anyone else in political power, are “out to destroy” our nation.  I do not believe that, as I have heard in the months before an election of every presidential race I can remember, that "the world as we know it will end and nothing will be the same" based on who wins.  It may take a different track than I would like or that someone else would like, but end . . . . Nah, thats the stuff of movies. The bottom line is this is a country based on freedom, a country based on democracy and the rights of the people.  We were given certain “inalienable” rights, among which are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.  What does that mean?  Amongst the huge multitude of definitions of what that means is the fact that we all have the right and the ability to think for ourselves, to choose to follow a candidate that we feel our value system is aligned with.  So, are any of these men more Christian than another?  Are any of these men more devote to their country than another?  How should I know!  I do not know their soul, I do not know their heart and I do not speak to them on a day to day basis to be able to see what “good” or “evil” things they may do in their lives.  The best decision I can make on what to believe is which person my own belief systems aligns the best with.
Any person, who claims to be a Christian, can also find validation for the thoughts and actions they rely on as a Christian in the text of the bible.  In an intriguing conversation with a wise individual it was pointed out to me what a paradox the bible can truly be.  (As can be applied to any other form of religion and their documented teachings.)  Keeping in mind that both this individual and myself consider ourselves to be Christian and both accept the bible as the teachings of Christ, we were also able to agree on how differently the information in the bible can be perceived.  This has nothing to do with how devoutly one studies the bible, or how much of a “bible scholar” they may be, nor does it necessarily matter which particular form of Christianity you consider yourself to be.  The intriguing part of this to me, the part that has sent my brain into overdrive thinking over this realization, is that whether a person is democrat or republican, conservative or liberal, however one views social welfare programs and how they should be carried out, or are in favor of or against gay marriage (or any other host of controversial topics), there can be found scripture to support their viewpoint.  So, how does one determine which is right and which is wrong?  What is “good” and what is “evil”?  Who is out to save our nation and who is out to destroy it?  The bottom line is, we are.  We, the people of the United States of America are both right and wrong, we are both “good” and “evil” and we are both out to save and destroy our nation.  There is no black and white.  We are all made up of a variety of opinions and beliefs that we hold dear and feel are “right”.  So, you are now thinking, “What the heck is this crazy lady saying?”  I promise, I am almost to my point in this rant.
The bottom line is we all have political issues and agendas that mean more to us than others.  The reason certain things mean more to us than others is because of our belief system.  This country was built on the bases of faith, freedom and a new start from the dictatorship of England.  We are a country that holds separation of church and state in high regards, as we should.  But we are also a country that holds freedom of religion in just as high standards.  We do not want to cross the lines of church and state, however it is imperative to our survival as human beings that we make our decisions about what is “right” and “wrong” based on our belief system, our faith, whatever it might be.  If a person casts their vote based on their faith and/or their beliefs, their obligation to uphold their belief system or faith has been fulfilled.  I have heard comments throughout life such as “that person will lead us all to hell” or “that person is our salvation”.  This, in my opinion is simple untrue.  It is a personal journey we all take to salvation.  We have our own choices and decisions to make and our path will be determined by that.  The bottom line is, at the end of the day, when you lay your head upon your pillow, you should be able to say “I am happy with the decisions I made today.  I am happy with the choices I made.”  Past that, there is really nothing we can do.  No one will find out if they were right or wrong until we die.  Search your soul and choose the path you feel will lead you where you need to go.   With that being said, I would strongly urge anyone who is planning on voting in the upcoming national election for president to use this basic principal when determining which name to put their mark next to.  This is NOT a democrat vs. republican statement, nor is it a liberal vs. conservative statement.  It is a statement made by a member of these United States who truly believes in our system of government, our rights and our freedoms.  Do not look at party affiliations when it comes time to vote this year.  Do not vote based on “the party my parents voted for” or “the party with the good looking candidate”.  Take a moment to find out exactly what each candidate stands for.  What are their beliefs?  What do they hold as important issues and where do they stand on them?  How do I believe in regards to those issues?  Make a list of pros and cons and figure out who you are most comparable to.  Remember, neither of these men are “good” or “evil”.  They are both.  They are not out to ruin our country, merely lead it in the way THEY feel is the best direction.  Research, read, and truly care about where your vote will land before you cast it.

Our rights, religion, donating for breast cancer and so much more

Here I go again.  Breaking my sacred vow of not discussing issues publicly.  But I feel that I just can't contain mayself.  Now I am going to go even further with my abondenment of this personal policy of mine, and not only discuss politics, but religion as well.  Oh my, this could get interesting.
Over the course of about the last week or so, I have listened to many news stories discussing the issue of insurance being provided that covers a wide arae of services that not everyone believes in, in particularly specific organizations.  I have listened to the bashing of a prominent organization, private organization that is, over who they determine is the place their donations should be sent and how their money is best spent to further their particular cause.  The rise and fall of various political candidates and the reasons those individuals may rise and fall.  And the list of issues in the news currently goes on and on and on.   During these discussions, terms like "constitutional rights" and "freedom of speech" and "freedom of religion" come into play over and over.  The only difference you find is how the different sides use those terms.  You also hear terms such as "women's rights".  I have no desire to get into a discussion with anyone on "women's rights" and the "right to choose" or any other moral choices we all make on a daily basis.  I have my beliefs and appreciate others not trampling all over them, and so I will not trample any one elses belief.  However, where the discussion should be in today's society should absolutely be more focused on the constitutional rights we are given, not the rights of women.  There are issues at stake at this time in American history that are being confused as an attack on women's health and women's rights, when the bottom line is, that has nothing to do with the core of the issue.
Let's start with Susan B. Komen for the Cure foundation.  This foundation, who as we see widely across the United States, is dealing with budgeting issues due to a slowed economy.  They studied where they distribute their money too and determined that the money they were giving to Planned Parent hood, which was not being used for mamograms in the majority of clinics as it was supposed to be used for although they did offer referrals for this service, and the money could be better used by organizations who were providing services that actually help prevent breast cancer.  Now, mule that over for a moment.   An private organization who's sole goal in exsistance is to fight breast cancer, determines that they would rather send their money to an organization who provides services to fight breast cancer.  That simple.  Not a complicated desicision.  A fiscal decision based on where the money is going to has been made.  Very responsible?  Well, according to all of the contreversay on the news, not so much.  If a person strictly listened to media views and initial reactions of individuals with out knowing the facts, one would assume it is completely irrisponsible and against women's rights.  Strange, this is an organization who's sole purpose of exsistance is to aid women in one of the most serious issues there is for women.  And they are against women?  What?  The battle irrupted into a roar of discrimination that spanned from a war against birth control to flat out ambush on women as a whole.  Then the informaiton that the VP was prolife became relevant some how and it became a "Pro-Life vs. Pro-Choice" discussion, and in the end, Susan B Komen foundation caved to the mass hysteria created by mis-informed individuals.  The decision the foundation made in the begining, was based on finacially sound investments.  Through the course of the frenzy, it became much, much more than that.  Is anyone really going to argue that the majority of Planned Parenthood facilities do not offer mamograms?  Why is an organization who's sole purpose is to prevent breast cancer, dispursing funds to an organization that does not provide services to prevent breast cancer.  This in not a "slam" to Planned Parent hood.  It sounds rather fiscally responisble to me, from a strictly business perspective.  When the grass is green and the cow is fat, feel free to share the meat with all your neighbors.  When the grass dies and the cow is thin, you better reconsider how far you can spread your tidings.  Look at the core information.  No one was trying to trample anyone's rights.  Susan B. Komen for the cure never said "Don't go get birth control."  I don't remember them saying, "For gosh sakes, don't go to Planned Parenthood."
On to a similar, but yet different topic.  They sort of fit hand in hand, but go much further into trampling all over our "constiutional rights" and our "religious freedoms".  It is very discerning to me that the basis of the quarel regarding the health care mandetes, that have been heavily discussed in the news of late, has turned into a debate about whether or not the Catholic Church is for or against women's rights.  What ever the church's beliefs are, which I'm pretty sure everyone in the country knows what they are, the issue here is whether or not this goes against the freedom of religion.  Forget about birth control, forget about the day after pill, forget about abortion.   The sole issue here is whether or not the government has the right to tell a religious institution they have do something that is against their belief system.  This isn't about how many Catholic women are currently on birth control.  It's not about Catholics not caring about women or their employees at these various organizations or businesses.  Believe me, anyone who works at or goes to school at a Catholic institution, is going to be able to find birth control and resources to get that birth control, somewhere else.  I mean, come on, they can go to Planned Parenthood, right?  Anyway, the issue every citizen in America needs to be paying attention to is that the government is trying to force a religious instituition to provide coverage for something that they do not agree with.  We have seen this in the news lately with several issues involving the Catholic Church.  There is really no point in discussing what all of the various issues are and where the beliefs lie, because as I said, the bottom line is the govenment is trying to tell a religious organization to go against its beliefs, whether that is with covering birth control or any other issue.  When there were groups who rose up against "religious" celebrations in schools, such as Christmas Parties, etc.  Most schools put a stop to them.  Why, because it infringed on the religious beliefs of those individuals (or their choice to not have religious beliefs, how ever you want to look at it).  I have heard the statement regarding this not being an infringement of religious beliefs because it can be shown to be a sound medical practice.  There are many religions that do not believe in the use of medicine or major medical procedures.  Although I have heard many debates through out the years over it, as far as I know, no one has told those indviduals that they MUST use medicine.  If I am of one of those religious organizations, when it comes time to vaccitnate my children for school, I can contest the notion of having to have them vacinated based on religious freedom.  Does that mean that every member of that religious organization adhere's to those beliefs of the organization?  Of course not.  But the core organization, not the followers, can not be told to change its beliefs, or to enforce practices upon its followers that do not align with its beliefs.  If we begin to destroy the freedom of a religious establishment to adhere to a belief system they hold sacred, than what happens to our constitutional rights as a whole.  I may not agree with what other religions believe or what they teach, but it does not give me the right to tell them they no longer have the power to practice what they believe in.
In the end, I am not going to go into an "I am of the. . . political party", or "I am of the . . .religious beliefs".  It really isn't the point here.  Not every decsion to donate is based on religious or political motivation in its orginal form.  Not every rights violation is based around a notion to destroy the rights of women.  Some times (amazingly enough) its not about women's rights at all.  But in stead, the rights of some other group to do what they see is in their best intrest.  I know, its shocking that there may be other groups or organizations that have the right to have rights besides the women's groups.  However, as far as I know, I live in the United States, I am an American, and I do have the right to have a voice and an opinion on topics, whether those topics are religion, women's rights or many other things.
Finally, although I do not agree with the fact that Susan B. Komen Foundation has decided to go ahead and fund Planned Parenthood (an this has NOTHING to do with BIRTH CONTROL, it is simple based on a fiscal fact that why would you send donations to an organization that is not providing services that help your cause), I will continue to donate for Breast Cancer.  I will continue to where a pink ribbon from time to time.  Why, because we have rights in this country.  This foundation has the right to donate their money where they feel it is most useful (although I don't believe this to be a wise fiscal choice, it wasn't mine to make), Planned Parenthood has the right to use its funds how it sees fit, and I have the right to send my money where ever I so choose.  I also maintain that regardless of how many Catholic women are on birth control, or how many Catholics in general feel that these services are ok, it is the right of the Catholic church as a religious organization to say that it is against their belief system and they cannot abandon their beliefs.  Take all of this for what it is worth, because, as with any opinion, it is just the thoughts running around in my head.  I will never tell anyone they have to believe in my way of thinking, after all, wouldn't that be a violation of another persons rights?

An Early Morning Rant

OK, to start with, I'm breaking my rule about discussing my political views.  However, I'm so frustrated right now with politics, I just needed to vent.  For the republican primaries this year, there was never a candidate who showed up that was a knight on a white shining horse.  No gallant hero to come miraculously save the day.  BUT, there still has to be one person come out victorious.  Whether they proved to be the knight who kisses the sleeping princess and wakes her up or not, eh, probably not, but we can hope.  That being said, through this campaign, there seems to be this decision already made for us by the old guard wealthy republicans that our candidate to go toe to toe with Obama will undeniable be Mitt Romney.  Ummmm, why is that. I'm not a brainless twit, I believe I can listen to the information and form a rational decision and make up my own mind.  Isn't that what we are supposed to do?   I heard a remark the other day that fit well.  If you look at this like a marriage, than, if given no other choice, yes republicans will marry in, but it will be an arranged marriage, not a fall in love and live the fairytale marriage.  It seems to be so decided that he will be the "chosen one" that there isn't one news reporter or political activist that is willing to see anything differently.  When there has been others in the lead as the front runner, I don't remember hearing anyone talk about negative ads towards them as "giving the democrats fuel for the fire" or "seeming to work with the democrats on making sure this person doesn't win".  There was a massive amount of money in Iowa spent on negative commercials by a PAC against Newt Gingrich, who at that time was in the lead.  No one said "you can't do this to our front runner."  Before that, people were coming out of the woodwork to damn Cain when he was in the lead.  No one said "hey that's our next candidate, you have to leave him alone."  But for some reason, if anything is said about Mitt Romney that isn't a positive statement, than the person saying it is an evil, negative troll that should switch parties and hide under a rock.  The democratic party has been saying for months that they believe Mitt Romney is the weakest of all the candidates.  That they are fully prepared to tear him to shreds (my words, not theirs). That was before, and without any help from, any republican nominee.  What I hear on the news over and over is that republican candidates should not have brought up Bain Capitol, that should have been left to the democrats in the national debate.  First, once again, why is this automatic assumption been from the beginning of the process that Romney would have this hands down.  No one lets you touch him!  Second, if there is even the possibility that there is something about Bain Capitol that would need explained, and he does get the nomination, lets get it out now, during the primaries and make it old news so that it doesn't kill our chances of winning the presidency later.  Anyone who thinks the democrats haven't already been planning on using this, before Newt Gingrich brought it up, is living in the stone age.  Personally, I think old Newt is doing the republican's a favor.  For one, if Romney gets the nomination, this will be old news and it takes the fuel out of the democrats fire.  Two, if there is something there that needs explained and he can't do it, and we know it will hurt us in the long run, its not too late to get someone else as our front runner.  Come on America, get a grip!!!!  I'm sure if Romney wins, I'll reluctantly be a part of the arranged marriage.  But I would sure rather be happy about taking that plunge.