No my friends, it's not 1940's Germany. It's 2026 America. It's not Gestapo or SS but the National Parks System.
As of January 1st, you must now show proof that you are an American citizen or you will have to pay a $100 surcharge per person to enter a National Park. So the over 14 million international visitors to our park system, those who also stay in hotels, fly in airplanes, eat at restaurants, buy souvenirs, ride in taxis, trains or rental cars, are now being told to stay home. We don't need you here.
I have to wonder, what's next America? Maybe numbers branded on our hands. Or perhaps a nice little swastika tattooed right in the middle of our foreheads.
Wake up people.
Category: Short Stories
Nature’s Harmony
As I sit here at the dining room table and look out over the bird feeder while sipping my coffee ( really just sugar, creamer and a little caffeine) I watch a Downy woodpecker as it hops backwards down the tree to grab a seed. The Red Bellied woodpecker hangs upside down from the limb to take his share. The Black eyed Juncos scratch around at the base of the tree while the Nuthatches, Titmice and Chickadees dart in and out. The Cardinals form a line to patiently wait for their turn. Sure, an occasional Blue Jay bullies his way onto the feeder but generally there is a calm and orderly procedure that nature follows. So many varieties of birds all working together in natures harmony. They don’t care if Phil saw his shadow or not. They don’t care which party is in charge of the White House. All they care about is the free food.
The difference between a husband and a wife…
A wife drops a sock on the floor…she bends down to pick it up and sees another sock under the bed and crawls under to retrieve it. She notices some dust has accumulated so she goes and gets the vacuum and broom to clean it up. While she has those out she cleans the rest of the floors.
A husband drops a sock on the floor and kicks it under the bed.
“He went out, not knowing where he was going.” Hebrews 11:8
If there’s one thing that I’ve learned from my many years on earth, it is that no one is really sure what awaits us around the bend. But that doesn’t mean we have to stop walking along the path. I see and read about all the world’s problems every day. Most of us are so worried about the million little ‘what-if’s that it has us so full of fear we can’t enjoy the things that are. Worrying about what the future will give us though, is a waste of time and a disrespect for the life God has given us. Because no matter what obstacles might be hiding around the corner, all the roads in life are going to lead each of us to the same gate.
Each morning we wake up, we get another chance to face the unknown. I know, that with the challenges of the past year littered across the path, it makes us a little leery of what lies ahead. But now, more than any time I can recall, it is important that we ‘go out’ though we don’t know where the path will lead us or what hurdles will face us. We must get up, put on our shoes, and go out to meet the day and not worry about where we’re going… just enjoy the adventure.
That in nothing I shall be ashamed…Philippians 1:20
I keep seeing all these posts that talk about us needing to act like humans again. I have to ask, when it was that we stopped acting like humans. Throughout our history, we have always been oppressors of the weak, war mongers, propagandist, liars, cheaters, and thieves. Even God, who created us in his own image, covered the Earth with water in an attempt to rid the world of us. So I say to you, let’s attempt to not be human at all… but to be something better. To be what God had intended for us all along. To live our lives in harmony and at the end of our time we can look back and not be ashamed of our actions.
Jerry Brotherton 