A dear friend of mine called me early this week … by “early” I mean past midnight. He was feeling terrible and needed someone to talk to. He kept me up past 3 am.  I’m a very light sleeper and when someone messes my sleep, it’s hard to get back to my regular rhythm (which is already bad to begin with). So these past days I’ve been feeling jet lagged but without the jet.

Sometimes I would just stare at the screen while my mind went to dreamland. Sometimes I would wake up with my neck craned all the way to the back of my chair mouth open wide. It couldn’t have come at a worse time because I needed to resolve a programming issue. So I took a drug that wasn’t healthy. Yes, I admit it. I gave in to the “feeling” … I took a cup of coffee.

I know what you’re thinking. “What’s wrong with coffee?” I’ve been an insomniac most of my life. But it wasn’t until recently that I realized it was because I was sensitive to caffeine. I shouldn’t even drink Coke after 6 or I wouldn’t be able to sleep. Weird, huh? Coffee in the morning is usually fine but I shouldn’t indulge in it because coffee also raises my blood pressure.

I guess I’m just gettin’ old. But you know what? It’s all good. Better to have jet lag and be sleepy and knowing that you were able to help a fellow human being in his moment of despair.

Be safe, be healthy, and remember to count your blessings if you can sleep soundly because that’s a luxury for me.  TGIF people!

Raoul

Over the weekend an old HS classmate called right out of the blue.  He lost his job (in retail) at the start of the lock down. He had not eaten for days and was embarrassed to call but he was desperate.  He has no family. No church. No real friends. We used to hang around a lot back in high school but those days are ancient history.  He used to be a prankster so I wondered if he was up to his old tricks. But knowing how difficult it must have been to even muster the courage to ask for help, convinced me this was no trick.

Someone very close to me was laid off on Monday. The company he worked for 12 years (doing business in Hollywood) was hard hit by the pandemic. He was shocked. How was he to feed his young family? The insurance benefits are gone too. He and his wife didn’t want to show it but I knew they were in panic mode.

A long time business owner (in the car industry) who was planning to retire next year told me revenues have dropped more than 50%. He will have to let his employees go.  He’s too old to start a new business.

With countless named brands and over 100,000 small businesses declaring bankruptcy because of the pandemic, the dominoes are toppling ever so close. It is inevitable that a domino will hit you. The reality really sinks in when it happens to someone close to you. When some desperate soul comes knocking at your door, how should you respond?

In the book of Genesis, God told Joseph there was going to be 7 years of plenty and then 7 years of famine. The first seven years, Joseph was a good steward and stored as much grain as he could. On the 8th year the famine came. Joseph had stored enough grain to feed the desperate people from all over. Countless people would have died if not for Joseph.

Are you a Joseph? Is God blessing you now so you can bless someone later?

Be safe, be healthy, and remember: it’s easy to judge people until you find yourself knocking at their doors.  TGIF people!

Raoul

It’s late and here I go again finishing up this email late in the night.

I worked all night on a huge project and finished when the sun was already bright and shiny. I hit the sack and slept for hours. My head’s still adjusting.

Very quickly, I skimmed the news and noticed that people are talking about flag burning and statue trampling. Do you agree with the demonstrators?

I can I see why there’s a lot anger: To uplift people you do not agree with doesn’t seem right. But who is to declare someone as hero or foe? In this politically charged atmosphere you will never get a unanimous decision.

Lincoln was hated by his enemies but today he is regarded as a great emancipator. Custer, Davy Crocket, Annie Oakley were fearless … but not in the eyes of the native Indians. OJ SImpson was … nah … let’s not even go there.

So is the game “majority wins?”  And who are the supposed “majority”? The louder, more impatient, ones? And does the majority have the right to destroy? And when political moods swing (as they are prone to) in the other direction, does the new majority have the right to take down the statues they do not like? Where does it end?

I don’t have answers. But I do see beautiful art and traditions being trampled on. And I see people pushing agendas. And that’s not nice.

Share your thoughts and lead me to your path of enlightenment! And everybody said — “Aummmm …”

Be safe, be healthy, and remember “without our traditions, our lives will be as shaky as a fiddler on the roof!” TGIF people!

Raoul