The Bright Side

On a Recent 60 Minutes Special entitled "The Race to Save the Tortoise", reporters searched for the world's most endangered tortoise, the Ploughshare.  After a gruelingly long hike on the deserted beach of  Madagascar , they finally came upon one peacefully basking in the scorching sun.  Asian countries love gold, and this is a gold tortoise with a high price on it's head. It is poached and sold for upwards of $60,000.00 on the black market.  I n a desperate effort to save the rare beauty's life , one man gently lifted it from it's comfortable position and began feverishly carving into it's beautiful shell, scarring it forever . T he poachers would now pass over it because it was completely devalued. The story reminded me of the very first murder ever committed. Fueled with jealousy, Cain coaxed his brother Abel into a field where he brutally murdered him. According to the Biblical record, God punished Cain by casting him from His presence, sente...

Do you remember a great old song by Kansas called Point of No Return? The lyrics have some profound meaning when you think about it: They say the sea turns so dark that You know it's time, you see the sign They say the point demons guard is An ocean grave, for all the brave, Was it you that said, "How long, how long, How long to the point of no return?" I will confess right now that I've never sailed. Yet I've always been very intrigued by the mysteries hidden in ocean depths. I imagine the stories of captains who have seen the unexplainable and felt the darkness with the eerie sound of the whales splashing nearby and the brilliant stars blinking against the black sky during the night watches. We all have ships that sail, figuratively speaking. We all experience the waves of doubt, fear, anger, confusion, and at times the solitude of contentment when our ocean is calm like blue glass. Then we rest. For me, the irony is that the same One Who controls...

If you’ve ever been to Disney’s California Adventure or Epcot in Orlando, you may be familiar with a virtual hang gliding attraction called “Soarin’”.   If you haven’t, let me tell you it is completely captivating. Surrounded by legendary sights in 3D, it literally engages all senses. While flying over the Golden Gate Bridge, Redwood Forest, Sierras, acres of orange groves and then sharing air space with fighter jets, one is placed in the center of  sounds, smells, and vivid photographic images. The illusion is so stunning it’s difficult to describe. In addition to the sensation of being airborne, what I found so exhilarating was the feeling of freedom. Which begs the question: what exactly is “freedom”? Is it a feeling or state of mind? Or is it a feeling resulting from a state of mind? Can we feel free when in actuality we are not? If the opposite of freedom is bondage, then whatever holds us in bondage prevents us from being free. What about individuals who deny the exi...