Thursday Tidbits

Posted on September 14, 2017 under Thursday Tidbits with 2 comments

Universite Sainte Anne – Church Point

 

Simplicity.

Noun . “ A thing that is plain, natural or easy to understand.”

I think most of us have a habit of making life more complicated than it really is. Over the past several days, I noticed several things that made me realize that keeping things simple is indeed a worthy goal.

It all started with a harmless report from a radiologist. Like so many of us seniors, I have some pain issues. I had coffee with a friend last week who has had serious pain issues most of her life. Understanding anyone else’s pain is impossible just as it is for them to understand ours. I digress. I have chronic pain in my back and my neck. My wife says that she has a constant pain in her arse that started about 35 years ago!

I had some x-rays done last week. I’m not much on medical jargon but it didn’t take me long to understand the overall conclusion. The radiologist could have written one line instead of an gospel by simply stating, “ You’re getting old and your body is wearing out.”

And then there was Hurricane Irma. Confession. I got sucked into the vortex of CNN. I have watched maybe 2 hours of television since my return from India in early May. When I heard that the hurricane was barrelling down on the west coast of Florida and would likely hit our former time share, I couldn’t resist and turned on the television. I sat there for hours and hours listening to the same thing over and over again, watching reporters lashed by rain and buffeted by the winds. Oh my , how they like to create drama.

Yes. It’s important to get the message out but the ten million people who really needed this information were in the dark. The rest of us were just paying for the advertisers. In my mind, all of this sound and fury could have been captured succinctly in one press release: “ A big hurricane is coming. There will be high winds, heavy rain, storm surges, power outages and flooding. Be safe. “

If you are a Catholic, I am certain that you have sat through one too many long winded homilies. Yes, learning about scripture is helpful to give us context. But some priests get carried away. I remember going to a midnight mass in Cape Breton a long time ago. The priest preached for 35 minutes. A few guys left before he finished. The Three Wise Men?!

I attended a mass the other day. The priest spoke for approximately three minutes. His message was very simple. “Be kind to your neighbor. “ At the end of the day, you have to believe that this is what the journey is all about.

Lentil soup. Lentils, carrots, onions, broth and some spices. Throw them in a pot and simmer for 25 minutes. A simple yet nutritious and tasty meal. I made some the other day. These cool days are definitely “ soup days.”

I hadn’t seen Barb Stegemann in several years. Barb is a local girl who has taken her entrepreneurial skills and turned them into a highly successful business, “ The 7 Virtues.”  Her company “ source (s) fair market natural essential oils from nations rebuilding after war or strife. “ Barb was invited by the Hadhad family to speak at the grand opening of their new chocolate factory last weekend. She only spoke for a few minutes. Her message was simple yet profound. “ The provinces with the most cultural diversity are the strongest economically.”

I should take my own advice. I realize that this was a long winded piece… with a simple message!

I could just as easily have embraced the KISS principle: Keep It Simple Stupid.

Have a great weekend.