On December 14th, I joined in the madness called Christmas shopping at the local WalMart. The store was fairly crowded, as one can expect for this time of year. Everyone was hurrying to locate that special gift. In all the scurrying about, I could not help but ask “Am I remembering the reason that I celebrate Christmas?” Is not Christmas more than having a shopping cart full of toys and other items?
A couple of years ago, John had found himself with a daunting task. He had a small house located in a quiet community. It was a chilly autumn morning and much of the leaves have fallen from the surrounding trees. The entire yard was filled with red and gold leaves. To add to his work, the leaves from his neighbor’s yard had blown into his yard. Thankfully, the leaves have stopped falling from the trees and it was time to clean up the yard.
Yesterday, I was reading R.G. Maines’s Medicare “Shut-In” The story can be found at her blog site: Chirpings From The Nest. I have to sympathize with the author’s struggle with getting a power wheelchair. It seems Medicare has a preconceived notion that a quality of life equals getting around in one’s own home. It seems to have escaped their notice that one’s life is more than just their house or apartment. It is also important that one is able to be interact in a community. As I read of her struggles, I am quietly thankful for my own community of friends and family. As it happens, the author seems to share a similar view.
“A faith healer is coming to Toms River, NJ!” declared a local newspaper. It was a chilly autumn evening, in 1976, when Mom and I went to see this guy. I was 10 years old and I wanted God to heal my eyes and ears. My mom believed that if I was healed, then I would not have to suffer.
Upon arrival, we saw a large crowd packing church. There may well have been over 200 people on that day. To handle the overflow, the church set up seats in a side room. A sound system was set up so they could hear what was going on.
“I never thought of you, as disabled…just different” says one friend. I’ve actually been told this, by quite a few old and new friends. It seems I was the only person seeing my limitations. Did something happen here? Did my old friends become blind and I sighted? I think NOT! The same can be said of many at my church, Shore Vineyard. To add to the fun, I had a strange encounter when talking with God, once.
I’m going to take a stab at generating a conversation. What does the phrase, “Disability does not equal inability” mean to you? What picture come to mind when you hear that phrase? Are you thinking of an old guy with bulging eyes? The fellow I am referring to is a cartoon character, Mr. Magoo. I loved the show, as a kid.
Never let it be said that God doesn’t have a sense of humor or a curious way of teaching you something. This is precisely what happened when Ted and I went for a walk in the woods of Pine Beach on a chilly autumn afternoon.
Ted and I had taken a trail that lead to a lake with a small creek. We could see that the heavy rain had washed away a makeshift bridge. There was only the long beam of wood and some small pieces left. The bridge was made by Ted’s son and his friend Kevin.
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Why Inspiration Point?
Did you know there is an actual park called with this name? There are a couple I’ve found when searching for a free stock photo. The first photo depicted a beautiful scene of a park in Canada. The photo above is of a scene taken in a park located in the USA. I was seeking something inspirational.
I was seeking a name that says “inspiration” and “majestic” Something that says “Take your eyes off yourselves and look up.” Hence the name and the photo.
If you’ve seen this entry, earlier; you’ll notice that I changed it. For one thing, the earlier entry was quite dated and didn’t even fit the title of the post. Yes, I am learning the art of blogging and improving in the art of communication. 
If everything went well, Inspiration Point should be in a lot better shape now. I did add a few stories that I’ve don on my Facebook account. Now, I have to determine how best to use the stuff on the right. In particular, the box containing the stories and poems.
I’d welcome comments and feedback that would go to improving this site and its contents.
