Maslow's hierarchy?

Dearest Blog Reader

I hope that this finds you doing well. It leaves my hand today as I have clawed my way up two gigantenormous hills and a series of roller coaster hills from Bedford to Elletsville just north west of Bloomington. I don't know about you but all of the previous roller coasters that I have had the privilege to ride had a chain to pull me up the hill. I am going to speak with the management of this amusement park about a refund. All of the road work that I put in before Cover Indiana is completely gone. These fifty year old legs are completely gone. It is hard to watch twenty-one year olds circle back down and up a big hill for the challenge. Thankfully, there is sunburn so the young can suffer also.

I am very thankful for Ben, my son. I stopped in Bloomington to eat lunch with him. He looked a little shocked when he saw his scruffy father. He was able to give me a great sense of perspective. He told me that I would look back on this with great fondness. It happened to him with all of the skateboarding trips that he has taken. Fun fact, the route went right outside of the school where he did his student teaching. That's right. There was a route mark right outside the front doors of his school.  He could have altered to course of my history with a can of fluorescent green spray paint.

I do want to take a few moments to publicly say how proud I am of Ben. He has grown into a man of great compassion and insight. He is strong minded, and while still full of questions about his abilities and life path, he has the wisdom to figure it out.  More importantly he has found a community of friends who love and support him. It wasn't a just add water community like many find when they go off to college. He had to work at it, reach out to those fellow travelers and stitch them into his life. He is and will continue to be a great man.

I lift a neapolitan covered spoon in salute to Cyndy Clauss. It is imaginary Neapolitan mostly because I am slipping down Maslow's hierarchy of self actualization. I am no longer a self actualized Neapolitan eating human being. I have regressed several rungs to a eating, burping, mess of protoplasm.

Cyndy has also provided today's topic; "Jesus, not the words, the who."  That is a mouthful for someone who is in the state that I am. I have thought about it all day. In fact, I have thought about it religiously, when I wasn't thinking about how bad my butt hurts. This may come as a surprise to some of you, but I am a touch more conservative than some of my fellow riders. The other night while discussing this and that, I was surprised to find out that I would burn in hell when I stood before the judgement throne holding a certain political view that I hold. It was disconcerting on the one hand, but on the other it was a relief to find out that I wasn't going to burn in hell for cussing like a sailor going up and down this hills. However, toast is toast.

All joking aside, I have no idea who Jesus is. To label Him, to claim His this or that is to limit Him. Even more to label and claim is to remove Him from other's understanding. I think that removal is why He is so small for many; so small that he has no pertinence in people's lives. If they want to have Him in their lives, they have to go out and fight others who have claimed parts for themselves. How can that be a worthy claim for followers?

I have no intent to take the humanistic road; that there in no right or wrong Jesus. I am saying that I don't know.  His Father defined Himself as the I am that I am. It strikes me that his Son would be no less. It is pretty much up to us to come to terms with what that makes you no matter where the road takes you.

Take care

Roger