Just Wondering

I never have understood why some people like winter...

Sword of Damocles

If you don't know it, the story is:

Dionysius (II) was a fourth century B.C. tyrant of Syracuse, a city in Magna Graecia, the Greek area of southern Italy. To all appearances Dionysius was very rich and comfortable, with all the luxuries money could buy, tasteful clothing and jewelry, and delectable food. He even had court flatterers (adsentatores) to inflate his ego. One of these ingratiators was the court sycophant, Damocles. Damocles used to make comments to the king about his wealth and luxurious life. One day when Damocles complimented the tyrant on his abundance and power, Dionysius turned to Damocles and said, "If you think I'm so lucky, how would you like to try out my life?"

Damocles readily agreed, and so Dionysius ordered everything to be prepared for Damocles to experience what life as Dionysius was like. Damocles was enjoying himself immensely... until he noticed a sharp sword hovering over his head, that was suspended from the ceiling by a horse hair. This, the tyrant explained to Damocles, was what life as ruler was really like.

Damocles, alarmed, quickly revised his idea of what made up a good life, and asked to be excused. He then eagerly returned to his poorer, but safer life.

                         ~ synopsis from ancient history at about.com 

And I don't know why, but this story keeps playing through my head. Do you think there is an unseen sword hanging over every head? 

Fog and Glory

It is bad writing but I often start here having no idea what I want to say. I guess that makes us even since you have no idea what you are about to read. Life is a crazy adventure like that.  :-P

Last week we had two crazy warm days and amazing fog just above the ground ~ life looked like you were stuck in some sort of special effects. I tried to take pictures. I am not good with my camera, and that only magnified my woes because even a good photo looked like a blur in a terrible photo ~ everywhere you looked, parts of the landscape were out of focus. So the part to the right of the electric pole that looks out of focus ~ that actually is how the little whiffs of fog were: some places they were just little hints, and some places the fog was pervasive, filling every bit of space between houses and trees and blades of grass.

For awhile I felt like we were in Brigadoon and then it started reminding me more of how God's glory filled the temple when we came to places where it was thick and unmistakable and pretty much filled all the earth.

The weather also left these amazing droplets in the woods, which I found beautiful.

from Job 36 ~  God is great, and we know him not;
                   the number of his years is unsearchable.
²⁷                        For he draws up the drops of water;
                   they distill his mist in rain,
²⁸                        which the skies pour down
                   and drop on mankind abundantly.