Out of the Basement

I am taking my mother in law back to South Carolina this morning. She has been with us since just before Thanksgiving. Its been a great visit, but she is ready to get back home. I understand that; nothing like the land of familiar. I've seen the homesickness falling on her. It comes to us all  in small subtle nuance as we stare out a window at a different landscape causing us to acknowledge the difference from something long remembered... our normal. So she longs for home. But these have been good  days with her. Here at the holidays many are oft to think about home.  Not where they actually dwell,  but that sweetly remembered innocence of some past perfection that we can't quite seem to recapture.  I have my own Sweet Georgia Christmases I recall, but that's for another telling. The problem with the idyllic past perfected is it is unattainable... or at least misremembered. I think it was Voltaire that is credited with saying "perfect is the enemy of good." I...

It never fails. Every year about this time we are bombarded at every sensory level with Christmas cheer! We all decorate, cook, sing, and celebrate as the holidays unfold all around us! It's  like the old black & white movies that end in some town square with crowds of people singing joy, resolution and Silent Night. And that does happen... even now... but not always! Some don't have that picture perfect finale to every Christmas. Some don't even come close. Today, as many of us start unpacking decorations and chasing our favorite recipes, others within arms reach of us are packing up any hope they have as they fight the anguish of a less than celebratory circumstance. Today we see cities in ashes, lives are being taken by others, and hope... yes hope hangs by a thread for many! It would do us all well to look around and see... many who live these challenged lives are much closer than we can imagine! Also, I am certain that the first Christmas happened because so ma...

To just say the words seems somewhat cliche in my opinion.  Saying it with the full weight of a heart forcing out every emotion it can summon is more appropriate! Uttering Happy Thanksgiving alone is like any myriad salutations if not provoke by a deeper sense of gratefulness. To render the result of Thanksgiving, we need first to engage the cause of it. My priorities align my motivation to be thankful... A loving and faithful God and Savior. A caring and devoted extended family. A fruitful and exciting work life. A committed and productive service to others. ...simple rules for a simple person. In some way, these four corner posts of my world have somehow drawn you into my circle. And, in so doing, enriched and blessed my life. Now that is truly something to be thankful for! I am deeply moved, honored and grateful for my days here and to have been so favored to share them with you!  Happy Thanksgiving

Never miss the opportunity to say what needs to be said.  A very dear friend of mine shared with me a thought;  the essence of which is TO LIVE!  I wont quote them as I did not seek permission but it was truly profound and insightful, especially in the times we find ourselves living in... That thought has stayed with me. I saw something horrendous play out in front of me recently and it caused me to take stock; of life, of people, of living.  Probably doesn't make sense to you, but it doesn't require disclosure in order to understand the real message. The simplest way to put it, as my friend did so succintly, is to just live! And, as we do, remember what makes living matter! God, family, frends, purpose, duty, our vocation, our dreams and aspirations! It is the fuel that fires our hearts! Tell someone what they mean to you... listen to someone you have tuned out... share something that will bless someone... be willing to receive from someone a gift that they want t...

There are moments of change... actually even seconds, that take place in and around us constantly. Maybe not so much change but the opportunity to make decisions that create those changes. Some may be pedestrian; others seismic! They come at us with blinding pace and whirling like a top spinning us into, and out of balance... or our comfort zone. They force us to choose in all matters from do I get up and exercise to which candidate will I cast my ballot for in the coming elections. So, the opportunities to be an agent of change in our world... in our time exists. The more critical concern is are we equipped to make the choices? In most cases, we are not. So how do we avoid making bad choices? How do prepare ourselves for our moment? For me, its been a hodge podge of observation and application. Watching others make choices then,  seeing the outcome, choose to act or decide in a way that merits success and honors right. Or, sometimes in making bad choices, do the work to correct...

They are paving one of the side streets that we walk on every morning. At 5:30 am, it looks a lot like a movie set of a battle taking place on the moon! My first thought was why they left it in such a mess. Then, I thought I am sure all my neighbors dont mind the mess for a few days to get a smoother road! Its about perception. Sort of like the old saying, "one man's trash is another man's treasure." Or maybe in today's vernacular... "you say hoarder, I say collector." It really boils down to how we look at it. We live in a time when there is no moderation. There is no place to meet in the middle. The views of people today have gone from dissenting but malleable to polar and rigid. There's just no room for common ground anywhere anymore... But that's really not so new either.  Its really as old as time. People have always had to be ready to make choices... choices are driven by perception... perception is fed from one's reality.  Thats the...

I had a visit from an old friend last night. Its been a minute since we just sat an talked and laughed... mostly laughed... as was usual for us back in the past! We talked about gifts and sharing them. See,  we are all wired in very unique ways. Each of us brings something purposefully different to the collective experience. Purposeful means it was intended to be so. In the current hour and climate, differences are used as tools to pry us apart or its  leverage that individuals can use to rile others. God tells us that there are many parts but only one body... each can serve a common good... His common good for us all. In His economy,  He knew that one's strength would support another's weakness; that the individual lessers would create a strong whole. Each of us has a talent, a strength, a gift that none of the rest us of has... we need each other! The right answer is not derision, detachment or divisiveness... the right answer is community, care and concern for each...

I picked up my emotional commitment at the station this morning at about 5:15 am. It decided to take an extended vacation in July. The rest of me returned as ordered after what seems now like a brief respite around the 4th of July! Its funny how we can just go through the motions with only modicum regard for the why. I have heard that "where there is no vision,  the people perish."  Its so true. It may not be in a physical sense, but in a very tangible way our hopes, dreams and aspirations die in a slow and sensory numbing manner with little alert or alarm. We just look back one day and... But, when we commit to the journey and we chase the exileration of accomplishment all of our senses turn to high alert! What's next? Where now? When can we go back? Who can we tell? Its as if we become driven to be driven! The emotional, spritual, intellectual and physical columns that hold up these temples are built on continued growth. The house unlived in soon meets its end...

I just had one of my hyper nerd moments! I just left this house. It was the childhood home of John Steinbeck in Salinas California. He grew up here. He wrote short stories before going to college at this house. In my mind's eye, I can see him coming home to visit his parents with copies of some manuscript like Grapes of Wrath, Cannery Row, or Of Mice and Men in his worn out leather valise. In his stories I found that crazy didnt just live at my house... its all of us. And, that when times are not good, everyone's experience is similar.  I found hope in the commonality of situation from him. He was one of the many reasons I wanted to be a writer myself when I left for college. As I walked down this front path, I felt that emotional tug that tells my racing heart that I was standing in a very special place... at least for me...

I recalled last night a quote attributed to Mark Twain... "the coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco." He probably didn't say it; some guy living off Lombard Street walking from work most likely said it as he was brushing off the cold on a windy July afternoon headed home to light a fire to break the chill! The sea fog that can be experienced there in the bay area can turn a sweltering 90 degrees in Oakland to a bone chilling 65 degrees and windy just by crossing one of those long bridges. It also renders a landscape that can be wonderfully panoramic to densely opaque no sooner than you can drive from Nob Hill to Telegraph Hill. At dinner last night I was thinking how we adapt to such changing conditions.  Leaving Atlanta very early in typical summer clothes, even early in the morning, did not prepare me for the driving winds and biting cold! I knew the temperature was moderate compared to home... but still! Growing up in the south in the middle of J...

Its really funny watching people... watching people.  No one really sees each other. That would be entirely too intimate; heaven help us if we were forced to engage one another. What stories would we have to share with each other anyway? A too fast paced life... kids driving us crazy... work is such a stress... we just dont have enough time! It strikes me that the message shared would probably be very similar to the one being received. We are all in this together doing the same things but sharing our road (and burden) with no one. A singular journey... a common experience. How much easier if we just honored an age old message to help each other along. Its the threads  of common experience that leads to the community of security and comfort we weave. Just for today... say hello to a stranger.  Reintroduce yourself to an old friend. Share someone else's something. Be somebody's somebody for just a moment. Our opportunity is now to be more than just a life... be a life ...

"...We don't feel much support most days. Let's not make today most days."                          Dallas Police Chief Brown This is probably the same sentiment shared by the groups of families and communities who are shouldering the loss of family members to police shootings. Its ironic that all sides of these issues share much more than realized: fear, anxiety, uncertainty, loss, grief, etc... nothing good can come from any part of these tragedies unless we come together to help each other through this. In reality, the answers are way too complicated to resolve within minutes, hours even days of such events. The answers lie in a deeper understanding of real truth and an acceptance of our role in improving our concerted effort to be a better us. Just as unfortunate is the reality that for us to find the answers, we must all go to a place thats uncomfortable; a m...

I couldnt sleep for some reason this morning. Lying in the bed wide awake at 3:30 am is usually never a good thing.  I woke from a dream where was walking down a staircase through the heart of a city familiar to me... at least in my dream. There was of course the dreadful forebodance of being on a quest or drawn into some spontaneous circumstance that set me to running forward. Dreams can be crazy... or at least it seems so! But dreams do reflect life in many ways. We go from one rather normal and calm lull headlong into an outbreak of calamity,  disaster or... or at least it seems so! I think that the awake life, if were are not more observant and vigilant, is a lot like that sleep just before 3:30 in the morning. We find we have drifted into an acquiescent acceptability that tends to numb us to the reality that life is an ebb and flow of events. Good times will come; so will the bad ones. Victory can easily follow defeat, or also be chased by it. Grief and joy are accus...

"The law of unintended consequences, often cited but rarely defined, is that actions of people—and especially of government—always have effects that are unanticipated or unintended."   (Google) I started pondering this yesterday morning. By this,  I mean The Law of Unintended Consequences.  A few things started developing early in my day that brought me to it.  Things we do have consequences. Things we do create results that we expect but at times are also unexpected. Some of these are good...  some not so much. Many of mankind's greatest accomplishments come from failed attempts at an endeavor that brought about an unintended but remarkabke result.  On the other hand, many of our most valiant and well- intended efforts have brought sadness, tragedy, and horror to light where many suffered or suffer still. Closer to home we find this peculiar concept also still at work in our daily lives. I personally think that is what is meant by the p...

90 days is closing in quickly. As I prepare for the next leg of my journey, I recall the triumphs and defeats of the last piece of the road travelled.  I am in awe of what can be accomplished in the heart, soul, mind and  body when we shoulder the wheel and move on. What started as revelation turned to a galvanizing determination that became a quest... and so every journey begins. Many have asked and none truly know yet but maybe one day... one day. As for now, I wait and am thankful for the changes I have seen in how I regard life as it approaches me. I am also excited to see what comes of the new path!

I have 3 American veterans within arms reach of me most days. All have seved honorably and would answer this question instantly. This morning walking my dogs I found a tattered and torn American flag that hand been thrown on the ground by some passerby. My community hangs flags during patriotic holidays, so I have to assume someone pulled one down and left in on the ground. I picked it up and brought it home to properly dispose of it. My question then is... who among us knows how to "properly" dispose of the American flag? When I see a worn or torn flag I always think of my brothers standing in harms way but standing beneath the flag. I think of my dad on the deck of a troop carrier headed through the English Channel headed eventually to walk the wall during the Berlin crisis with the flag leading the way. And all service personnel over the many generations carrying it into and out of every conflict they faced... Yes, I want to make sure to dispose of it properly. It symb...

Somewhere along this journey I have determined that I still am working through that second greatest commandment. I totally get the first one; love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. I see the metaphors, illustratives and imperatives. But that second one is complicated. Its seems much easier, at least in practice, to love the one who made you. There is a desire to please and prove. But when it comes to a neighbor, it seems harder to grasp the requirement to share, engage and commit to those with whom you have no direct connection. I overheard someone say  over the weekend, "David and Angie Stewart Callahan have been reaching out to young people for nearly 30 years!" I was humbled by even the thought of that. Strangely, it made me stop and think again about "love your neighbor." It would seem the first way to love them is to reach to them. You have to go where they are... spatially,  physically, emotionally,  etc. Contact is required to love ou...

I pulled out of the driveway and headed off for another busy day. I made the right onto Lakeview and was gearing up directly into GO mode! Then it hit me...  did I say goodbye? Not just did I say it... but did I leave the impression that it was heartfelt and sincere? I took another left and circled back around right into my driveway and back into the house. I restated my goodbyes with certainty and affirmation. I felt much better as I departed into my day... that little agitating uneasiness gone. The point is to never leave something unsaid that will cause regret when it cant be spoken. Seems obvious until challenged by the deafening shrill of busy living. It reminds me of something I wrote a few years ago... "Words are just words and what you think are  just thoughts left to themselves, To make love you need something else, It takes more to own another's heart than sentimental words on a page, It takes love and a little bit of grace... and for good measure some hugs a...

I took my guitar and my song bag with me on our Memorial Day camping trip. One of my favorite things to do is to open up the back of the camper that turns into our little dining room/office/ board game area and play my songs. I spent some time going through some of my oldest songs. Songs I wrote in my 20's & 30's... must have been some tougher days... I cant recall most of the events, but I remember the songs; lyrics and melodies.  They are some of my oldest friends. Writing was never a vent for me, it was just a part of me. As I looked at all those songs from then and now I realized they are like threads that help highlight and hold together the times of my life. Just like friends! Our friends help us long recall our best and worst moments... funniest and saddest. They weave through the fabric of our lives and add color, enhancement and life to it. It never fails that a friend can set a story straight when you can't  remember it even happened. And, just as  impor...

What will they say when you're gone? Will there been anything left of you to carry on? In their sad little circles what will they recall? Will they remember you at all? (C) dsc 2012

I spent the weekend at a little campsite just west of our home. We set up our camper along with the other camping Callahans and turned the campground into a gathering place for a couple  days with friends and family! Great time had by all! It's always intriguing to me to watch all these different groups come together and interact. I am amazed how strangers become friends who then become family. It's a simple recipe of time, space, desire and commitment.  Wonderful things happen when you want them to and are willing to work in earnest to make it so. Within the construct of this group I spent the weekend with are friends I made over 30 years ago... people who I have been blessed to mentor through their lives... others who I have worked with for nearly 20 years... and of course some of my family! We even had a little new baby member of the 1302 Club join us this trip! I am humbled by the blessing of love and friendship... family and fellowship that I find celebrating with thes...

I woke this morning thinking about something my mother in law said to me many years ago. We were working in her garden just talking about life and she made a statement that has traveled with me as well as anything I've heard. She said, "the problem with young people is that they want now for themselves what I've worked my whole life to have!" Having thought about that many times over the years, I still find it to be true, but in a more general sense. We have to work for it... what ever It is! If it's a career or a relationship or a lifestyle or just a life; we have to work at it! In our smart phone, Internet, and information driven culture, we can become instant experts on virtually everything. But, all that we learn can't replace practical application and committed engagement to our cause and desire. You can build a house on paper, but somebody has to nail the boards together. You can create a spreadsheet of prospects, but you still have to sell something....

We had a moment last night. Well, Angie did and I got to be a watcher from the sideline of one of those situations where we see God move... and awestruck... we just watch! But don't let me get ahead of myself. My dad received his CT scan results Tuesday. The doctor told him he didn't see any cancer! So last night we were going out to dinner to celebrate. As the time approached, family members were falling off our list due to circumstance, so we postponed to another night. Still needing to eat, Angie and I took my dad to one of his favorite places, Waffle House! The staff there was incredible. Helpful, friendly, fun, and very accomodating.  My dad looked at his hash browns and decided he couldn't eat them and asked could he have some more instead. Amanda, our server, was so awesome, she said "of course, we want you to be happy!" She separated the food so he could keep eating and had more hash browns made. A couple minutes later Josh, the cook, brought the new one...

I was reading this morning about how we are to work on our body and our soul to achieve growth. It's pretty evident when someone is pushing themselves physically,  but how can we tell when someone is exerting on a spiritual level? If our goal is to meet people at the point of their need, we have to know what to look for. Not everyone emotes the same way. People are the most unique and individual creatures God made. Along with that comes the need to read and discern each one's needs and motivations differently. How is that to be done? The answer is one line back... read (observe) and discern (open your heart's eyes and ears  to see and hear  beyond the visual and audible) and then act on your motivations as you  are lead. We live in a world that is more fearful,  frightening, and pain ridden than most can recall. It's our responsibility to see and respond. The second greatest commandment is to love our neighbor as ourself. That's a lot! Keep your eyes open and...

It seems to me that my brightest and most creative moments occur when I am least prepared to chronicle them! As a writer/songwriter you are taught to keep the tools close as you wait on inspiration. But how many lines or ponderings have been lost to heavy eyelids or clamouring distraction? A lot! Along with inspiration,  it's sometimes necessary to follow your heart... be a little impulsive. You have to go for it. As they say, "nothing ventured nothing gained!" Being impulsive is not always a bad thing. Some of our best moments have been preceded by uncertainty and doubt left abandoned by our sense of curiosity and our need for the experiential. However, wandering inspiration and unbridled impulse is likened to a  crazed captain steering a rudderless ship. It either goes nowhere or everywhere with no regard for direction. Which brings me to my point... disciplined determination.  How many thoughts or deeds are left unrealized or never acted upon because we just don...

The funny thing about a journey is that it's never insular nor singular. People inhabit every footfall along the way and one turn leads to a myriad of choices and opportunities. Depending on the motive, we are afforded the chance to see and meet many and share experiences otherwise unknown. The longer and farther you go, the more you come to see and know. But, it's always best to be heading towards somewhere because just heading anywhere often leads us nowhere. To use a couple old  anachronisms, It's okay to "stop and smell the roses" but, "Don't miss the forest for the trees." It's always paramount to know where we are going. Put another way, "where there is no vision, the people perish. " So, with a definite and desired destination,  we can rejoin our journey with anticipation for the people we meet, the places we see and the changes they bring in us as we go and grow.

There is that point in every journey when you  can see ahead to the course you so carefully laid out, and for a brief respite,  look back over your shoulder to see your reward on a path trod through what was uncertainty and hopeful anticipation... It is then that the buckling down need begin. I went out to celebrate last night with some folks who all has good reasons to do so. One with great results from a serious illness, another with a baby about to be born, others with new dwellings and new opportunities to rejoice over. It struck me on my way home that every journey is the same. A beginning where vision paints a picture of what we hope for in the future. A desire then kindles a determined will to live the future we are creating. Finally,  as we see growth and strength from the journey, we set our eyes towards vigilance and diligence as we assure nothing pulls our attention from what's ahead of us! There'll be potholes... detours... sometimes we just make unnecessa...

I posted a song by a friend of mine yesterday. The song is titled, "Don't Call" and the singer and writer is Leon Timbo. I remember the first time I heard him sing it was in my basement studio. He shared it's meaning to another friend, Charles Harris and I, and I recall being blown away by all that resides in the lyrics! To me it's a song that screams desperation and need while at the same time offering hope and sanctuary! It's loaded with conflict and resolution. But the line "write it out with me, fight it out with me" sings a song of friendship that reaches to the very heart of the matter. Relationship is a complex organism all of its own. It takes certain portions of good times,  bad times, understanding, love, hope and truth to make it work. As it evolves and life tests it's measure, the relationship solidifies and flourishes, or breaks apart. In the song, as that resolve is challenged the singer is telling us, don't stand on the side...

I was talking to a friend of mine yesterday and the phrase quid pro quo became the focus of the conversation. It really just means, something for something, and most would recall it from the Silence of the Lambs movie. I recall it always because in working with people I find it works best to give them something for something. When dealing with matters of the heart, soul, and mind it is necessary from time to time to share where you are so others can find a comfortable place to explore their space! I find it builds trust because people see me as human with the same frailties and faults as others. It's in that space where a common cause develops and traction builds growth. But at the same time, I think quid pro quo takes a twist for me. In years back, I wrote a song called Reach the Lost.  In it resides one of my favorite phrases I have penned. "Each one should reach one and teach one the way, there's strength in the numbers we find." It's in that phrase where I s...

I am one of those people who clean out my closet at the first hint of Spring and as the first leaves fall in Autumn. It's a part of my ritual... just me. I spent part of this weekend completing the task. It was very different this time. Good in some ways, not so much in others.  I have always thought of it as the seasonal swap... this go-round it felt more like a purge. It's probably the journey, maybe my state of mind, but I felt the need to let go. I kept asking myself, why did you buy that... or will you ever really wear them? Was it want or need that dictated purchase? Before I was done I had two large bags full of things. Our lives are much like that; a lot went into collecting all those things... a lifetime of want, desire, pursuit, remorse,  anxiety, and on it goes. Yet, if we are not cautious,  we pack and pile until we cannot put our hands on the things we need most; their lost in the minutiae or purposely hidden. I waited too long to purge. It's been needed ...

Today is day 40... it's the presumed center of the journey. I have as many questions now as answers. Not sure what to be looking for but I am still waiting. Strangely, habits have been changing... new behaviors have developed; some unexpected... some just down right puzzling! But I still wait. Not in some obsequious manner, waiting on my next task, but just listening. It's peculiar what you hear when you don't attempt to modulate the frequency. For instance, I dropped my phone today and cracked the screen. I cracked the screen because I didn't have the glass shield on it. I didn't have the glass shield on it because my office is in a total shambles from the remodel and I am not quite sure where it resides presently.  That is a total of three steps removed for an incident that normally would have sent me straight to DEFCON ONE!!! But this morning, on Day 40... I am just trying to find someone to replace my screen. No heavy punctuation, no stressed-faced emojis... ...

I made carnitas and chicken tacos for Cinco de Mayo. One of my branches had a customer appreciation lunch and I usually cook for the events. The warehouse manager and his wife used my cooking trailer to make homemade nachos and she has stayed up most of the night prior making tamales! Amazing! I had all my food cooked and ready to go, so I was just talking to them and watching them hurriedly prepare their offerings. They are both such gracious and wholesome people so anyone would be easily drawn to them. Great folks! Later, as we were serving our customers, while still in "observation mode" I watched the very sincere appreciation from our customers that we took the time to thank them. It wasn't just transactional... it was relational. It was personal. I am still moved by it even now. Despite the fact that we struggled with communicating at times, there was no language barrier... we spoke a common word; thanksgiving and appreciation. Ironically, I left our Cinco de Mayo...

I have been thinking about the difference between being conscientious and contentious. One means to be thoughtful about doing something the right way, while the other means to be argumentative. They are not opposites directly, but in a more figurative way they can be. I have long considered myself to be conscientious; seeking to think, speak, and act rightly. My thought has been that it is just as easy to get along as it is to create trouble or to engage in exacerbating it! While at the same time, I tend to be head strong and resolute about things of consequence to me, and often labor arduously over my position. In other words, I can be argumentative... contentious. Ironic as it is, I have the propensity to be both. I am both! Now comes the hard part; finding the balance. We should always be considerate and thoughtful, working to live out a higher purpose in our lives. And, it's okay to be passionate about what we feel and think. However,  we have to be cautious to not be comba...

We took Myrtle on the long portion of our walk this morning. We knew we would have to carry her at some point,  she's just not up to it anymore. At 13 years with serious heart issues, we know we are on borrowed time. The vets at the Auburn Vet school told us that almost three years ago. She would get a little worse, then we could give her meds, but then we might have 18 months with her. The meds started nearly two years ago.  We know that the time is a gift. So, we walk her as much as she can, then we carry her. She is used to it, I carried her in my shirt pocket all the way from Myrtle Beach SC to our home 8 weeks after she was born. Ironically, in many ways she has carried us much farther with the love and comfort she has brought to us over the years. Through all the trials along the path of our lives she has snuggled for, chased after, and yes even demanded our attention! And it has been a blessed and wonderful distraction as life beat down on us to have that little five p...

Courage  to start... mission accomplished. Strength to endure... it's three steps forward and two steps back but, long term, the math is on my way! Resolve to finish... unequivocally unquestionable! (It's a Roman's 12 kinda day!)

I have always been intrigued by polarities. More specifically, in figurative terms, opposites. I have read, studied and talked about them for a long time.  The purpose of my personal quest has been less to understand the opposites themselves than the space that exists between them. People think and say things like, "There's only right or wrong" or "It's black or white" or even "It's my way or the highway!" Such sentiments,  in most cases are farthest from the truth. In God's economy, there are absolute absolutes! In our human experience... and perspective,  nearly everything can be seen as fine shades of grey.  In other words, there are usually three not two answers. For instance... My opinion... your opinion... reality of the situation Right...  wrong... truth Your way... my way... compromise Honestly, even that is oversimplified! As long as we are human, polarities will exist. "Your yes" and "my no" will rarel...

When I heard that Merle Haggard had passed, I was saddened.  I listened to and played old Hag songs that week just to try and remember. When I heard that Prince had died, I was shocked... and saddened.  I listened to and played a few songs just to try and remember. Why? Both were gifted singers, writers, and musicians. Both in some way impacted my childhood. I did not know either of them personally. Why did I feel the need to pause? To grieve? I think it is not so much about them as it is about me. They were on their journeys; going their way. Our paths intersected when I heard them and made the commitment to emotionally invest!! I chose them... and now they are gone. And, now I mourn their passing. Our lives are filled with such moments. For everything that we put our hearts to, we will at some point experience loss. It is the way and nature of our human experience. That can be to death, divorce, distance, disillusionment, disinterest... and so many other things... How...

"There's a light,  shining bright, somewhere up ahead of me, There's a path, a well worn path, to a place I know I'm meant to be, Someone went before, looks like they cleared the way, A direction almost certain, a road paved yesterday,  it was you,                     Legacy   David Callahan (c) 2011 (First verse to a song titled Legacy that I wrote in 2011  to celebrate my company's 75th anniversary and to honor two of my mentors.)  Rarely do we find our success to be individual. Almost always someone has offered a hand or a shoulder that moved you a little farther along the path. If someone has inspired you or your journey today, tell them thank you! 

Getting ready to head back home! I have enjoyed being in Chicago, though most of it was from inside a convention center. It is one of my favorite places "for sure" and we will have to come back again soon! But, now that it is time, I am ready to go home. I miss home, I miss my dogs, I miss friends and family. I miss Angie! So I go home with a renewed appreciation for the familiar. It always happens, no matter where we travel. Angie and I have been so blessed to see so much of the world and we intend to see more, but the greatest place on earth is 1302... its home! I need to get back to working on my office remodel, catching up on work stuff, getting all my books and shelves out of the dining room! The list is long, but I am excited because its comfortable and its home. "Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home."

I saw a couple of old friends last night. In my business you meet people and then over the years you get to see them from time to time at different events  and you catch up as life moves along.  One of them I worked with twenty years ago and every time we see each other we just pick right up talking and laughing about the same things. He is just  one of those people who the instant I see him we start laughing and recalling old stories and making new ones. The other friend is someone I hired years back who never quite got comfortable in his role and eventually moved on to other opportunities. I usually see him around once a year and its always pleasant and cordial. We used to be closer but I just always thought he just grew away. Finally, last night as I was walking into the dinner I was attending (extremely late),  someone said John is here and wanted to see you. I thought to myself it would be good to see him. Upon greeting him, he said to me, "I always thought y...

I woke up this morning to an interesting view of both the skyline of Chicago that stretches on seemingly forever, but also at the same time, all of its tentacled streets as they twist and turn through all the little neighborhoods and communities that make up Chicagoland! It's intriguing to me to see both the big and the small... the wide and the narrow all at once. It reminds me to see life as such. There is a grand plan that is playing out for us on a larger scale, but we have to  traverse and meandering those sections  daily that occupy that more immediate space in our lives. We cannot afford to live our lives only  looking and wondering for whats ahead. At the same time, we cannot get too busy focusing on the immediate and the now only to forsake the eventual and then. Attention is required for both. Good morning Facebook

It's Day 21 of the journey. It just happened up on me actually. I think that any such endeavor should be such; almost organic as you grow away from what was an initial uncertainty into a determined transition to committed persistence. Strangely tied to that,  I was thinking this morning about perspective and how far Angie and I have come in the last year. Working on my new home office over the weekend set my mind to thinking about why I was in a new home office to start with... which led me to perspective. This time last year we were still mourning the passing of Angie's father. Just a short three months later on July 4th we would get the news that my dad had stage 3 lung cancer (Which was the reason I moved my office; to give him more space for home health care.) It would be a few months beyond all of this that we would lose our beloved Spencer, the craziest and most wonderful Pug ever! We were both very happy and changed when  2015 came to an end.... But the point is not...

As we were walking this morning I said to Angie, "well there's Halfway Rock!" By the very moniker it's given its obvious that it sits at the midpoint of our daily walk. I told her that when I see it I know I have only as much in front of me as I put behind me! It's like my way of cheering myself onward. In life though we don't usually have a rock to measure our journey. In life we have to keep moving forward... hoping and trusting. Reminds me of an old saying... "Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift!" It's so true.  You can't change what has happened, nor control what is to come. But, today is your gift from God to open up and live out to your purpose and His glory!

I was telling some folks at dinner last night that I really don't sleep well when I am out of town... especially in other time zones! Maybe its a different bed. Maybe its a different normal. But it definitely changes how I sleep, eat and think. Its the thinking part that has me... thinking (sorry I can't help myself) this morning. So many battles, adventures, and journeys are waged in our minds long before we take the first step! Often times, we have all the acts and interlude completely worked out in our head long before the curtain opens on anything that transpires in our lives! But we really only control a few aspects of any future situation, incident or circumstance. We can control our state of mind as we approach each new thing and we can continually rely on God. Philippians teaches us to continually think about the things that are good, honorable, just, pure, commendable, and excellent.  Just focusing on those things makes little room for fear, anxiety and all other ne...

A journey can be to somewhere or from somewhere.  It can even take place in the heart or mind with little exertion otherwise. I posted a couple pics last night of our journeys... more to come! Speaking from personal experience, often times a journey from something is usually not nearly as fun as the journey to something. But again, you have to take into account the motivation for the journey. Jonah journey to Nineveh and did everything he could to change his direction. He objected with the motivation of the trip so he fought it all the way. On the other hand, history records Jesus' journey to the Cross as steadfast, purposeful and committed. I have read the account a few times and I can't recall His ever questioning the journey, despite His knowing the outcome. It makes you stop and think about our purpose and perspective as we launch into new directions with agendas to be met and circumstances to engage. Just going is really, well, just going. But to go with purpose and pe...

Where have I been? I seem to have come back around. This place is so recognizable, so familiar... so me. Where did I go? Why did I wander from this incredible wonder when it's so perfectly me? Thank you for staying here... awaiting my return. You knew I'd come back, didn't you ? How could I not? Whatever silly thoughts or regards I had were by no means compelling enough to keep me from coming back here... into your presence.

21 Days to break a bad habit... 40 days to create a new behavior... 90 days to  change a lifestyle... Give me the courage to start, the strength to endure, and the resolve to finish!

"Love the Lord your God with all you heart, soul, strength, and mind." We are called to love Him from the emotional, spiritual, physical, and intellectual seats within us.  It is to be an all encompassing love that reaches into the essence of who He has made us to be. I am convinced and committed that's where the journey is; it's where the full expression of who we are in Him resides... I have a lot to do, so for me, the journey this morning begins anew... After all, Jesus did say it was "the" greatest commandment!

Journey is defined as something suggesting travel or passage from one place to another. This can be literally leaving one place to arrive at another. It can also be figurative as in a journey from childhood to adulthood. It is also spiritual; as "we now see through the glass dimly"... But as the Holy Spirit teaches our rejuvenated hearts, we start to see from a different perspective where we've been and where we are going. That wonderful journey from darkness into brilliant light. Enjoy today's journey. We have a wonderful traveling companion!

The scribe asked Jesus, "what is the greatest commandment?" In His response we are given this incredible gift to see God's heart!We are told to love Him with all our heart, soul, strength, and mind. And, in so hearing, we determine by these words to  have evidence of a God who wants to have a relationship with us! How awesome to know that in a day when it seems the world has lost its bearings, that the family hangs in the balance, and the individual person has low/no self worth and feels helpless and alone... God still want to be our friend! His relationship is not free... it requires something from us; if it didn't we wouldn't value it! How great to know, that he loves us enough to call us friend! Good morning Facebook!

After He had spoken to the question from the scribe, Jesus chose to amplify his answer with a truth that is often talked about but sorely goes unpracticed. He said, "and love your neighbor as yourself." What would our world, our country, our homes, and our relationships look like if we spent a little time just doing that? The difficulty is that in our "me-centered" culture where on one hand it's all about "getting mine or on the other hand political correctness and moral relativism squelches individuality,  we are seemingly incapable of loving our neighbor as ourself. That would require surrender or sacrifice. It is, however, possible to give, sacrifice, and love others and it happens all the time. Open a door... reach down and pick up something dropped... offer a kind word... embrace someone longing for connectivity but unable to reach out themselves.  It is possible. And the beauty is, that love magnifies and returns itself ... like a moth to a flame...

Packing a suitcase is one of my least favorite things to do! Work or vacation, either way I just don't like to do it. It's stressful and I always worry about forgetting something I need. Something about it this time ties to a devotion I read that put me to thinking... Every day we pack our emotional/spiritual suitcase as we prepare for today's journey. We know what we should put in it: kindness, gentleness, long-suffering, faith, love, devotion, etc. But too often we tend to leave some of those things sitting back at our emotional/spiritual hearth and home. Ironically,  some of the things that find their way into our bags tend to make our trip more difficult like unbelief, anxiety, stress, regret, fear, disillusionment.  Those things make for a less than memorable travel experience. On this trip, I am double checking and repacking  (as needed) my travel bags! No reason to waste that precious space in my heart and head that should already be filled with the incredible ...

I have been thinking about Jordan Speith and his losing that five stroke lead on the back nine at the Masters yesterday. It is a lesson in overcoming adversity but not so much like a typical sports story, but a life story.  He had the lead... and he lost it. The weight of his success was holding all the other competitors back. But in a split second everything changed. One demoralizing set back at a time  the lead and the match crept away from him. We are much the same. If we don't persist... diligently and vigilantly,  we will lose ground. And, we often cannot slow the slip until we are long passed recovering from an eminent tumble. We have complete control over pursuing the journey, but at times the journey  takes us over the craggy and loose rocks of circumstance that afford us wonderful climbing lessons or bitter and sore reminders of the fall. It's not just that we take the journey, it's also about how we react/respond to what we find on the way.

I climbed in my truck this morning to the sound of Toby Keith singing "Cryin For Me" a tribute song to his friend Wyman Tisdale, an incredibly gifted athlete but also a brilliant musician who passed a few years back.  Kind of ironic after what I had read about Toby playing Merle's last show!  But things like that happen. Still it got me to thinking again about friendship how there is this amazing linkage between the tempests of trials and travail and the sanctuary of loving relationships.  If one looks back, for probably every trial you endured you could see a face (or more) that helped you bridge the heartache and uncertainty of that moment. And the greatest gift is that the relationship took on a different complexion as it was strengthen from the waging of the circumstance. We read that in God we have a friend that sticks with  us closer than a brother. So friendship is family. And we also read that no greater love has a man than to lay down his life for his brot...

It's amazing to me that even though waking this morning I quickly assessed that it might have potential to not be among the best of starts but then I stepped outside and wow! A light wind blowing. Birds chirping and fluttering from tree to tree.  The night giving way to morning. It's Spring; the season of renewal! It reminds me that He makes all things new. Every situation or circumstance. Every sorrow or crucible. Even a morning that seems less than bright is enlightened by the renewal He brings. I was just thinking of the old song lyric... "Joy comes in the morning!" That makes me smile. Good morning Facebook

I woke this morning to a text sent last night from someone I've had a close relationship with for nearly 15 years. He mentioned he had been reading my recent posts and was concerned that I might be going through some challenges and offered to walk/talk with me through it. It was ironic to me because I had a recent conversation with someone whom I shared the following statement, "I don't want to be your friend, I want to have a relationship with you." Much like it did to to them, it probably raises eyebrows and requires a better explanation. See when God said you were His friend, it was/is a really big deal... on a gigantic universal eternal scale. No greater label can/could be bestowed than be called a friend of God.  My wife, Angie Stewart Callahan still loves to hear Israel and New Breed singing, "I am a friend of God!" But in today's vernacular the word friend has lost its power. Honestly, for all the Facebook "friends" you have, how many...