A blast from the past

Wow..Paul and I have recently come home from diocesan council and what a time we had. It began right away when we arrived in San Marcos for the council meetings. We had left home at 4:30 am and were trying to make a 10:00 meting for the world mission council representatives . I checked in with the World Mission booth to see where the meeting was while Paul  stood and looked around and some pictures and posters they had there. He came upon a picture of our good friend Lloyd Allen who is now the Episcopal Bishop of Honduras. Paul , in his usual exuberant self said "Its Lloyd, it's Lloyd".  That's when the real fun began.
  Our new found friend said Lloyd was coming to council and would be there shortly The Rt. Rev. Lloyd Allen , Bishop of Honduras , is his official title. Well, Paul became a whirling dervish. He changed his name tag to read looking for Bishop Lloyd and he could barely contain his excitement.  You see, we go way back..back to when we were all teachers at St. Johns School in Puerto Cortes, Honduras. Lloyd was one of us, he was a Honduran native who spoke fluent Spanish and English. Later he went to seminary and we saw him here in Brownsville in 1988 or so. So many years ago, and yet we have talked on the phone many times since then so it doesn't seem so long ago.
 Finally council started and there he was, sitting at the Bishops table. Paul couldn't wait , he couldn't contain himself so minutes later, I see him sitting at the Bishops table talking to Lloyd. Of course I was a little jealous because he had gotten there first. But I found my moment and went and gave Lloyd a hug. And so it went throughout Council. Of course it felt different for us because we couldn't have him to ourselves, because everyone wanted to shake his hand and tell him what a good speech he had made and most importantly because he had come to council to present and receive from everyone. He did a great job and we were so proud of him and felt proud that we had been part of his journey. We knew him then as our friend, as Paul's best man , as Sarah's godfather and we know him now as a great spiritual leader and someone who is moving his country out of the darkness and into its own light.
  We were finally able to take him out to lunch, to one of my favorites-Cracker Barrel- and really talk about whats happening with him, where he's been and where he's going. It was so good to see him, talk with him, make future plans with him and honestly start revisiting our journey to Honduras and how we can go back. We know we're going back for a few weeks to see the country and how its progressed and to see what we are called to do, as a couple. No decisions yet, but lots of thoughts , prayers and dreams floating around. And so the story continues....

Perspective and bias

  How much are the decisions that we make influenced by our past? When others are making decisions about us, how much of the decision making process is truly looking at the facts and how much is influenced by bias due to allegiances, money or in the worst case scenario, pure bigotry?
  Over the past two years, I have been struggling with the effects of an automobile accident that I was involved in while working. Initially when I went to the doctor , the diagnosis was a back strain/sprain. I had neurological symptoms of something else, but that was the doctors starting place. When I returned to the doctor, he sent me for an MRI to see if I had a lumbar disk herniation. At that point I was referred to the neurosurgeon because of the symptoms I was having.
  I lingered with the assigned neurosurgeon although he was not about to recommend anything that workmen's comp wouldn't pay for. In fact, I got to hate going to see him because he really didnt do or say anything other than how are you. Basically I had a recurring L5-S1 disk herniation which I could take pain medication for, have physical therapy for or eventually have surgery if the pain was too bad.  Workmen's compensation left me high and dry. They brought in their big wig lawyer in the end, who said that all my symptoms were from the  previous disk herniation/surgery I had. It didn't matter if other doctors disagreed or said that I certainly had additional injuries.  All that mattered was that their slick Houston lawyer had ways to make me look bad by twisting what I said for his advantage.
  Anyway, I'm free! Free to go to whatever doctor I choose and have whatever treatment is best for me. Its not being paid for by Workmens Comp, but maybe it doesn't matter.