It's Hail to the Chief's Tempered and Measured Response Thing

Dear America,

.. I asked, how many will die. 150 people, sir, was the answer from a General. 10 minutes before the strike I stopped it, not ... proportionate to shooting down an unmanned drone. I am in no hurry, our Military is rebuilt, new, and ready to go, by far the best in the world," Trump said. "Sanctions are biting & more added last night. Iran can NEVER have Nuclear Weapons, not against the USA, and not against the WORLD!"

tempered and measured, who'd a thunk?

and people are saying that Iran struck the drone in retaliation to the US pulling out of the Iran Nuclear fraud... to which former NSC Chief of Staff, Fred Frietz, said this:

"That is a fraudulent argument. We don't stay in an agreement because the other party threatens to respond with violence. The president has responded with restraint. He has given [Iran] an opportunity to deescalate the situation, and I think he handled it right today."

and only last week, Tehran is allegedly responsible for the attack on the two oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman.

but just look at this president -- yet again -- respond in tempered and measured ways.

and I like how he phrased it -- softening any assumptions of intentions -- “I would imagine it was a general or somebody who made a mistake by shooting that drone down,” Trump said during an Oval Office meeting Thursday with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. “I find it hard to believe it was intentional. It could have been somebody who was loose and stupid.”

This president is on America's side.

This president continues to act accordingly, and yet, will the media ever rise to the level of respect this president deserves?

Now -- this girl knows full well, this president is not perfect.  But make no mistake, this president's heart is always in the right place.  He loves his country -- our country -- America.

Obama hated America while president, he spent eight years transforming her from foundation to cupola.

Need a few facts--

Although not covering his entire two terms, THIS is a really good review -- going back to 2013 (five years into the Obama Administration) and written by Victor Davis Hanson for National Review.

Like many things that happened under the care of the Obama Administration, Obama was in a position to control the narrative, and that has made all the difference.  And maybe, he didn't need to control a thing -- you know, given his situation that lends itself to being given a pass; you know, when in reality you have an entire media who's got your back.

Although his reflections on race relations during the first five of Obama's years are sound, Victor Davis Hanson neglected to call out the Black Lives Matter protests by name.

Like immigration, the media supports a certain viewpoint.  It leans left.

But the truth is, the facts don't line up all neat and tidy so much...And surprise, surprise, even the Washington comPost couldn't do much about it:

The Post’s reporting shows that both the annual number and circumstances of fatal shootings and the overall demographics of the victims have remained constant over the past four years. 

The dead: 45 percent white men; 23 percent black men; and 16 percent Hispanic men. 

Women have accounted for about 5 percent of those killed, and people in mental distress about 25 percent of all shootings. 

About 54 percent of those killed have been armed with guns and 4 percent unarmed.

To be clear, the Post only began tracking after the Michael Brown shooting, in 2014.  And yet, for the last four years, the numbers have been consistent -- roughly 1000 people are shot by police each year.  And based on those numbers, the Post came to these startling conclusions and stats.

Now, I've never been in a police altercation -- I've been pulled over for rolling through a stop sign, but that's about the height of it.  Even then, I was nervous reaching to get my proof of insurance.  It is an intimidating situation...and during the whole ten minutes at the curb, awaiting his check for outstanding warrants and what not, I tried to politely speak my case.  But he would have none of it.  I went to court to fight it, and he didn't even bother to show up. Ticket ripped up, boom.

But the point is, police are confronted with all kinds of humanity all the live long day.

It is interesting to note that women account for only 5 percent of those killed by police.  Is that because we are generally more polite to authority?  Or could it be that women are less likely to be bad actors in the first place?  Who knows.

But I digress.

Instead of Barack Obama making any improvements in race relations, he took America backwards, and made us all the more divided -- as he emphasized our differences, not our commonality.  He also made no attempt to talk to all citizens in the art of being good citizens, no matter from kindergarten to our death.

He lost such an opportunity for a few civic lessons along the way.

It's simple stuff really -- things like 'go to school'  'do your homework'  'respect your parents'  'respect your children'  'don't do drugs'  'get a job'  'dress appropriately'  'open doors for people'  'read books'  'pick up trash'  'don't litter in the first place'   'salute the flag'  'follow the rules'  'follow the law'  'don't break the law in the first place'  'immigrate to America by standing in line with everyone else'  'don't attempt to illegally cross America's border in the first place'   and on and on we could go.

let's get back to policy undomestic, shall we?

Victor Davis Hanson said this back in 2013, regarding Obama's transformation of America's foreign policy --

Foreign policy. What is the common theme to the euphemisms about terrorism and radical Islam, the failed reset with Russia, withdrawal from Iraq, confusion in Afghanistan, lead-from-behind in Libya, pink lines and pseudo–“game changers” in Syria, the faux deadlines with Iran, mesmerization with Turkey, peace feelers to Nicaragua, Cuba, and Venezuela, as well as the rhetorical tropes found in the Cairo speech, the U.N. addresses, and the Al-Arabiya interview?

Just as, in Obama’s worldview, the 1 percent exercise undue influence in the United States, so too abroad America has exercised exceptional power and influence that either are not warranted by its traditions and history, or do not contribute to stability and social justice in the world at large. Fundamentally transforming the role of the U.S. means tilting toward countries that are suspicious of the Western tradition, and favoring groups and countries like Turkey, the Muslim Brotherhood, and the Palestinians that have supposedly legitimate grievances against the United States. The goal? Probably, the transformation of the U.S. into something like the EU, whose democratic socialism is manifested abroad with soft-power lectures.

The truth is -- the Obama Administration is more to blame for the current climate around the globe.  His entire foreign policy was based upon capitulation, from making blanket apologies in the Middle East, to bowing to Iran's calculated negotiations, allowing for the nonsense we bear witness to today.

and just look how tempered and measured this girl can be, taking in this long look in the rear-view mirror without incident of the f-bomb kind.   oh me oh my, detecting a wee bit of growth, eh?

welcome to the end of this day,
but before I go, I wish to recite a verse from Numbers -- since the truth is, our days are always numbered, according to the Big picture, somehow, someway...so may....

"The Lord bless you 

and keep you; 

the Lord make his face 

shine upon you 

and be gracious to you;

 the Lord turn his face 

toward you and give you peace."

Make it a Good Day, G

It's a Giving Good Twitter Day Thing

Dear America,

"we are all worms, but I do believe I am a glow-worm."

@AOC
This administration has established concentration camps on the southern border of the United States for immigrants, where they are being brutalized with dehumanizing conditions and dying. This is not hyperbole. It is the conclusion of expert analysis

And for the shrieking Republicans who don’t know the difference: concentration camps are not the same as death camps.

to more twitter

Concentration camps are considered by experts as “the mass detention of civilians without trial.”

and the AOC went all in, and to Instagram...

”​I want to talk to the people that are concerned enough with humanity to say that we should not — that ‘Never Again’ means something,” ​the New York Democrat said in a Q&A posted on politicsnowadays’ Instagram page.

to more via the New York Post:

“I don’t use those words lightly. I don’t use those words to just throw bombs,” ​she continued. “I use the word because that’s what an administration that creates concentration camps is.​ A presidency that creates concentration camps is fascist and it’s very difficult to say that.”

That's probably one of her best lines,   "I don’t use those words to just throw bombs...A presidency that creates concentration camps is fascist."  Seriously?

FIRST, @ AOC, just to get it out of the way:  Just where was this outrage when the OBAMA Administration did it?  Were you just too busy bar-tending to rise up against the atrocities way back when and then?

But also, as a matter of record -- it was YOU who invoked the Nazi into the conversation with simply using the phrase, never again.  Even YOU said it means something.  Yes.  It does.  It means something in relationship with the Jews, and more specifically, Jews being held in Nazi Concentration Camps.  It was YOU who made the dots connect.

And in the second, just who is making these decisions to come to our country illegally --  risking life and limb, risking the separation of minors from parents, risking one's own welfare by having to live in a detention center for however length of time...just who is making these people decide to do this?


@AOC continued:

This is a crisis on if America will remain America – its actual principles and values – or if we are losing to an authoritarian and fascist presidency.”

You mean, like, in an effort to Keep America Great?


Is it authoritarian to know who is coming into our country?  Is it authoritarian to have a system of entering and immigrating into a country legally, like, anywhere?

Because, if you consider it fascist to ask all those interested in immigrating to America to follow the rules already in place, then you must think it absolutely barbarian for what other countries may require --

India
There is no path to legal permanent residency for foreigners who are not of Indian ancestry, except through marriage or by giving up their original citizenship to become naturalised. A person must leave India every five years to re-apply for their long-term visa. Even if you own a business in India and invested heavily in the economy India will never grant you residency.

Gulf States
Gulf states are keen to protect their country's status quo and don’t want to compromise their cultural values or standard of living by allowing foreigners to become permanent members of society. Your only route to becoming a naturalised citizen is by marriage to a national; even this, however, doesn’t guarantee citizenship, particularly for non-Muslims.

China
Chinese citizenship is legally authorised, but in practice is near impossible. According to the Law of Citizenship, if you're a foreigner seeking Chinese citizenship, you must be either: a relative of Chinese citizens, or permanently living in China, making Immigration to China one of the hardest in the world. Despite a population approaching 1.4 billion, during the Fifth National Population Census (2000) there were only 941 naturalized citizens who did not belong to a recognised Communist Party.

Switzerland
To be considered for permanent residency you must live in Switzerland for 10 years. To be eligible to do that, you must either be a high-net-worth investor, married to a Swiss partner or be employed by a Swiss company in a highly skilled and well-paid roll. In short, those who want to emigrate to Switzerland have a mountain to climb.

gotta love those Swiss, right?  talk about strong...teehee "high-net-worth."

OH and if any you happen to have any interest in Mexico -- you may want to start HERE.

But I digress.

The thing is -- we all know what is happening at AMERICA's southern border.  It is part of the Democratic coup, undermining this administration.  It is about breaking America, by way of a humanitarian crisis at the border, allowing an army of unskilled workers to enter our country, receive benefits, and vote on behalf of the democratic party.  This is about control.  This is about the absence of Rule of Law.  This is about bringing America -- and everything for which she stands -- to a screeching halt.

What's fascist, Little Miss AOC  --  [Which by definition, @google -- "A fascist is a follower of a political philosophy characterized by authoritarian views and a strong central government — and no tolerance for opposing opinions"] is how YOUR PARTY -- an army of democrats, progressives, and socialists --  continually band together to attack conservatives --  those otherwise recognized with opposing views.   Generally speaking -- and you should know this -- conservatives abhor any version of strong central government control, governments that micro-manage every facet of our lives.  We conservatives dig freedom and independence in every way, ya dig?

What's fascist, is the constant pull towards the progressive agenda that your party continually inflicts upon the American people -- without a choice, down our throats and against our will.   It's as if there is absolutely no tolerance for opposing opinions,  no room for even so much as a conversation of our differences, let alone ways to improve our immigration system, let alone ways to manage the abomination happening at the border.

Elections have consequences, right?  The American people spoke (and Russia had nothing to do with it).  The American people voted for Trump primarily due to the immigration/humanitarian problem that continues to swell. 

Here's a good piece from Nate Jackson, @The Patriot Post,  "Everyone I Don't Like is Hitler" for just a little more on what this girl just said.  

exactly

"A presidency that creates concentration camps is fascist."

1.  They are being held in what's called a detention center; additionally, no one is performing hard labor as they occupy the shelter (paid for by the American taxpayer), nor are they awaiting execution (see below).

2.  Detention centers are NOT this:   concentration camps -- a place where large numbers of people, especially political prisoners or members of persecuted minorities, are deliberately imprisoned in a relatively small area with inadequate facilities, sometimes to provide forced labor or to await mass execution. The term is most strongly associated with the several hundred camps established by the Nazis in Germany and occupied Europe in 1933–45, among the most infamous being Dachau, Belsen, and Auschwitz. (thank you Google)

3.  The illegal person(s) are entering on their own volition, knowing they are breaking the law, knowing there is no place to live other than in one of our detention centers, with families separated.  They don't have to do this, these people.

4.  and besides, just like Chris Cuomo  to Don Lemon:  "A guy who says things that I don't like, whose abusive of the truth, who can be obnoxious for effect, and pander to a group of people in this country is not necessarily a step away from a genocidal maniac."

second that, Cuomo -- but different; it's a sentiment similar to how I felt about Barack Obama.

By the way -- guess who said the quote of the day, "we are all worms, but I do believe I am a glow-worm?"

you'll never guess, unless you know already. teehee

WINSTON CHURCHILL!
he apparently said such a thing, after being a real prisoner --  a prisoner of war during the Boer War -- and escaping.  He was looked upon as an overnight hero (much like that of a certain John McCain...just sayin').  For Quick context, go to Quora.


anyway, that's the day in the life for today.
But @the end of the day, all this girl has to say is, keep it up @AOC -- you give good twitter, girl, real good twitter.

Make it a Good Day, G

It's just a kick in the derriere Thing

Dear America,

Not to point fingers at California, 

but why would you give free healthcare 

to illegal immigrants

 when your streets are littered

 with homeless legal residents, 

trash, and tents. 

California is a beautiful place, 

so let’s keep it that way. 

@CNN @FOX4 @NBCNews @DonaldJTrumpJr

exactly @HerschelWalker  (although, took the liberty to correct a spelling error there, but, other than that, it's all you) so thank you; and a thank you also goes to @ fox news for where I found it.

this is my state, precisely -- be it of the physical or in the shadows of my mind.

But, speaking of football, here's the kicker...

California officials have estimated the benefits would be available to about 90,000 low-income illegal immigrants at a cost of $98 million per year. 

To pay for part of it, the state agreed to start taxing people who don’t have health insurance. It’s a revival of the individual-mandate penalty that had been on the books nationwide under former President Barack Obama’s health-care law until Republicans in Congress eliminated it as part of the 2017 overhaul to the tax code.

yup, you heard that right.

California lawmakers not only wish to cover the healthcare for poor illegal immigrants, they wish to pay for it, in part, on the backs of poor American citizens with no health insurance -- issuing them a penalty tax!  Here's more from Arnold Ahlert, @The Patriot Post.


someone please explain what universe this makes any sense?

explaining the twisted nature of all of this --- let's go to Town Crier Tucker....last night...

"No one is above the law," they thunder. Except, of course, the more than 20 million foreign nationals currently living in our country illegally, all under the care and the protection of the Democratic Party. They are, by definition, above the law. We can't punish them, Democrats tell us; that would be racist. 

...All crimes are no longer allowed to be acknowledged as crimes. There are huge new classes of people who are literally above the law.

for more, go here.

California's illegals are being treated as if they are above the law...and yet, the average poor American living in California...the same Californian who can't afford health insurance... not so fast, suddenly there is a law for you to follow; YOU, my dear Californian, you get punished. 

For more on the lawlessness at the border, go here.

and for more kicks up the wazoo, here's how Tucker finishes --

What you're watching from the left is really an attack on society itself. The basic bargain in any society is straightforward: People who follow the rules get rewarded, people who don't get punished. If you get rid of that standard, then everything inverts. Suddenly, power flows to the worst people in your society, the most ruthless and aggressive. Decent law-abiding people, meanwhile, are mocked. They're just suckers who can be exploited by everyone else. 

That's where we're heading, by the way and fast. It's pretty obvious when you look around. The threads are frayed. It's coming apart - hundreds of years of hard work and self-discipline designed to create what we used to call "civilization" before the term civilization was deemed racist.

hmmm let's talk civilization, shall we?

CIVILIZATION

• an advanced state of human society, in which a high level of culture, science, industry, and government has been reached.
• those people or nations that have reached such a state.
• any type of culture, society, etc., of a specific place, time, or group: Greek civilization.
• the act or process of civilizing, as by bringing out of a savage, uneducated, or unrefined state, or of being civilized: Rome's civilization of barbaric tribes was admirable.
• cultural refinement; refinement of thought and cultural appreciation: The letters of Madame de Sévigné reveal her wit and civilization.
• cities or populated areas in general, as opposed to unpopulated or wilderness areas: The plane crashed in the jungle, hundreds of miles from civilization.

thank you, @ dictionary.com

what makes America attractive to people from other countries, other cultures, IS our level of sophistication of civilization; our high level of advancement in most areas of importance to a life well lived is here -- from the culture, itself, to the sciences, to the extent of individual and collective industry, to the standard of living, to the very ability to advance in society as an individual, to the highest level of health care in the world and fully available from sea to shining sea. We got it all going on, in America.

The illegal immigrants are leaving a less-civilized society and coming to America to reap her benefits, like a parasite (just keepin' it real, as always, here on the old g thang).  

SO here's a refresher -- as I know this girl has said just so many times before -- 

By definition, a parasite is "an organism that lives in or on an organism of another species (its host) and benefits by deriving nutrients at the other's expense." 

Yes, organism -- as in something best defined as "an individual animal, plant, or single-celled life form; it's synonyms include: living thing, being, creature, animal, plant, structure, life form, entity, body; it's also recognized as the material structure of an individual life form.

thank you @ Google search

There used to be a requirement for ALL immigrants coming to America to have, in place, a host -- someone who would take full responsibility for all costs, all needs, including shelter, healthcare, and welfare in every way, until such time the immigrant could fully assimilate into civilization, the American culture, on their own.

Now -- however -- the individual host mandate has been foolishly replaced by government, like that in California.   And democrats are leading this charge.

Now, illegal immigrants who illegally break the law and cross our border, human traffic, leech government resources, assault border patrol, run roughshod over every law, rule, stipulation to comply, let alone be responsible enough to show up for your very own asylum hearing,  get a pass?!  Are you serious?  All the while, American taxpayers, who can't afford a damn thing anymore being trillions of dollars in debt --not counting personal debt -- have to foot the bill?  Are you serious?  

As the world turns, in America --  as we keep kicking the can down the road, as we keep kicking ourselves up the politically correct butt, as we keep kicking it via the social media mayhem of the world we have created, as we keep kicking it towards the total absence of individual liberty through wanton socialist dreams --  there will come a day when we will all wake up and America will be a civilization that once was.  We will be kicked to smithereens and six feet under; the only trace will live inside the  history books, and right alongside Greece and Rome, under the heading of fallen civilizations we have known and loved. 

what a kick in the derriere...

just a euphemistic term for a person's buttocks :)   

just can't stop google searching definitions...

somebody, make it stop.

anywho...

so this is where we all must take a knee on the sidelines, letting it all just happen right before our very eyes?  Are you serious?

NO.  Not on my watch.

Oh @HerschelWalker !  -- thank you for lighting a fire under this girl this morning!   I love you, man!

To all my muses of the morning -- Herschel, Tucker, The Patriot Post, Dictionary dot com, Google...put it all together and it's just another day the old G thing kicks it out of the park (and apparently, it's also the same day she lost her humility somewhere along the way, not sorry...teehee)

Make it a Good Day, G

It's a D Day all about the WE Thing

Dear America,

THE PRESIDENT:  President Macron, Mrs. Macron, and the people of France; to the First Lady of the United States and members of the United States Congress; to distinguished guests, veterans, and my fellow Americans:

We are gathered here on Freedom’s Altar.  On these shores, on these bluffs, on this day 75 years ago, 10,000 men shed their blood, and thousands sacrificed their lives, for their brothers, for their countries, and for the survival of liberty.

Today, we remember those who fell, and we honor all who fought right here in Normandy.  They won back this ground for civilization.

To more than 170 veterans of the Second World War who join us today: You are among the very greatest Americans who will ever live.  You’re the pride of our nation.  You are the glory of our republic.  And we thank 

you from the bottom of our hearts.  (Applause.)

Here with you are over 60 veterans who landed on D-Day.  Our debt to you is everlasting.  Today, we express our undying gratitude.

[we interrupt this fine address, to offer you a link to the full transcript, go here]

Now continuing with one of my personal favorite excerpts:

Down on the beach, Captain Joe Dawson, the son of a Texas preacher, led Company G through a minefield to a natural fold in the hillside, still here.  Just beyond this path to my right, Captain Dawson snuck beneath an enemy machine gun perch and tossed his grenades.  Soon, American troops were charging up “Dawson’s Draw.”  What a job he did.  What bravery he showed.

teehee...only those close to me will ever know how funny this truly is.

Continuing... really like this part, too:

9,388 young Americans rest beneath the white crosses and Stars of David arrayed on these beautiful grounds.  Each one has been adopted by a French family that thinks of him as their own.  They come from all over France to look after our boys.  They kneel.  They cry.  They pray.  They place flowers.  And they never forget.  Today, America embraces the French people and thanks you for honoring our beloved dead.  Thank you.  (Applause.)  Thank you.  Thank you

And of course, there is the make the world great again perfect ending:

Seven decades ago, the warriors of D-Day fought a sinister enemy who spoke of a thousand-year empire.  In defeating that evil, they left a legacy that will last not only for a thousand years, but for all time — for as long as the soul knows of duty and honor; for as long as freedom keeps its hold on the human heart.

To the men who sit behind me, and to the boys who rest in the field before me, your example will never, ever grow old.  (Applause.)  Your legend will never tire.  Your spirit — brave, unyielding, and true — will never die.

The blood that they spilled, the tears that they shed, the lives that they gave, the sacrifice that they made, did not just win a battle.  It did not just win a war.  Those who fought here won a future for our nation.  They won the survival of our civilization.  And they showed us the way to love, cherish, and defend our way of life for many centuries to come.

Today, as we stand together upon this sacred Earth, we pledge that our nations will forever be strong and united.  We will forever be together.  Our people will forever be bold.  Our hearts will forever be loyal.  And our children, and their children, will forever and always be free.

May God bless our great veterans.  May God bless our Allies.  May God bless the heroes of D-Day.  And may God bless America.  Thank you.  (Applause.)  Thank you very much.

Well done, Mr. President, well done.

Not one "I" .... As opposed to President Obama's address, given on D- Day's 70th anniversary, when he invokes the great spirit of I, I, I, at least a dozen times.  See for your own eyes, here.  

The thing is -- indulge me --  as this girl is just making a good point, considering the mainstream American media insists that this president of ours is the most narcissistic we've ever had...like, really?  really? 

I'm honored, 

I received, 

although I know, 

I want each of you, 

I want you to know, 

where I first met, 

as I was landing, 

I told my staff, 

I don't think,

 I, I, I....

sure don't miss the I-guy, just sayin'

Do you think there is any possibility that the mainstream left-winged media will ever entertain this kind of comparison?  I think not.

Trump is all about the we, because, as an American, himself, he aims to proudly represent WE the people, as a whole and united.  And his address speaks for itself, for he spoke respective of his small place in history, and left himself out of it, entirely.  well done, Mr. President, well done.

and now, my work is done.

Make it a Good Day, G

It's a B to the G fit to a T Thing

Dear America,

"God, Home and Country"

NSDAR Motto

indeed

so yesterday, my DAR chapter celebrated its final meeting until the fall; for all intents and purposes, we go dark just when the sun is shining its brightest.  

to honor the last meeting, the intention was to invite someone who would simply inspire us to keep up the good fight, to remind us of who we are and what we do, and send us on our way --  as we all go our separate ways -- with the same kind of spirit and enthusiasm as the year began.   Our speaker was lined up months in advance -- because she is just that special.

Who knew, that from the time we booked her in early January,  that it would cap off such an emotional year, a springtime entrenched in melancholy and loss of one of our own, one of our very best, one of our very brightest.  It was as if the sun, itself, went down, and out, for good.

The chapter was awfully thirsty by the time Chaplain LaToya Zavala LT. USN, made her appearance.

....we didn't even realize how parched.

and what comes to mind when we hear the word parched...
perhaps arid, scorched, withered, and dry -- yes, dry as dust --  a desert comes to mind...yes, yes, lost in the desert.  Thirsty, so so thirsty.

About a month out, she asked of what kind of presentation we were looking for, and we exchanged emails to that end and I forgot all about it.  But lo and behold, just how did she open her remarks on the day?  Poking a little fun at the tall order -- and hearing her tell it, continues to make me giggle still twenty four hours later. For I had asked her to speak of the DAR motto, to motivate the troops after such a blistering spring, and springboard us into summer with enough fire in our bellies to come back in October with bells on and ringing mightily...all in fifteen minutes, LaToya would add.   yeah, yeah, that was the funny part.

And, have to admit, it was all true.  I asked her to move mountains, to bring us out of the desert -- to bring a presentation like no other presentation that's come before, and complete the mission in fifteen minutes.  

And guess what?

SHE DID!

In real life, LaToya personifies the NSDAR motto to a T.

GOD:  By trade, she is a chaplain -- BA in Pastoral Theology, with a minor in Biblical Languages, and Master of Divinity, with post-graduate work in Clinical Pastoral Education...and, after joining the Navy, with tours of duty around the world, she is currently stationed at Camp Pendleton, serving the pastoral needs of our fine marines.   They are so lucky to have her loving council everyday.

HOME:  Per her bio, Chaplain LaToya is happily married and mother of two, while on the cusp of receiving an adoption, thereby expanding her home and family to the power of five, or maybe six (considering they are open to receiving siblings).  And what a joy it must be to have LaToya as a mother, that's all I have to say.  Scratch that.  It's not all -- for this woman radiates pure divinity and grace, all the while keeping at the ready a certain boldness, strength, and command; and this is precisely what it takes to do the good works of motherhood, if you intend to do it well.

COUNTRY:  This speaks for itself; there is a clear love of country when you are willing to give your  own life in its security and protection.  She is so bold in this arena of defending our nation, this country, she swore to the following oath: 

"I, _____ (SSAN), having been appointed an officer in the _____ (Military Branch) of the United States, as indicated above in the grade of _____ do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign or domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservations or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office upon which I am about to enter; So help me God."

so help me GOD. indeed indeed.

LaToya IS  God, IS Home, IS Country, all wrapped up in a beautiful, joyful, compassionate and passionate, package.

Our chapter was so blessed to have her for a day.

LaToya moved us from the start, declaring just how much our culture has marginalized our relationship with God, placing this relationship with our Creator, generally speaking, firmly into something less-than, parched by the ever-increasing secular dominance of toning down our faith as a way of co-existing.   It's as if we carelessly say, oh It's around, this God, but essentially, we can't abide by the commandments of our faith when it comes to the day to day.  And above all, we have to be quiet about It.

It's as if, culturally, we are allowed to recognize God, but not really; God is just up there, in the heavens somewhere away from here.  But maybe we shouldn't even be so bold as to say that.  Perhaps, we must tone it down even a wee bit more, and refer to this thing, this so-called feeling of  God, as merely something divine that may, or may not be, high above, that may, or may not, lead us; and just maybe we give this something the glory only when we feel like it.

OH and she is so right.

From my Jesus Calling, just this morning:  

"Relax in My Healing, holy Presence.  Be still while I transform your heart and mind... Do not be like the Pharisees who multiplied regulations, creating their own form of  'godliness.'  They got so wrapped up in their own rules that they lost sight of Me.  Even today, man-made rules about how to live the Christian life enslave many people.  Their focus is on their performance, rather than on Me.  It is through knowing Me intimately that you become like Me.  This requires spending time alone with Me.  Let go, relax, be still, and know that I am God."

LaToya -- the one who fits the DAR motto to a T -- hit this very reality of a certain cultural conformity to a watered down version of our faith in God, with a capital G, to a capital T, and then some.

Within the first five -- of the paltry fifteen minutes I gave her -- we found ourselves screaming shouts of joy and thanksgiving to our faith, to our God.  And it was good, so GOOD.

From one of my favorite books, Real Christianity, by William Wilberforce -- 

"To place the glory of anything over the glory of God is idolatry...Whatever draws our heart from Him, engrosses our minds or holds the number one spot in our affection is an idol.  Only God is to be the object of our supreme worship...

At the risk of repeating myself, let me point out the false thinking that exists about the nature of authentic faith.  True faith is something that so pervades our lives that it affects everything we do.  It is a matter of the heart, where its reality becomes our supreme influence.  It seeks to root out anything that is contrary to its truth and attempts to bring all the heart's desires and affections under control."

The Pharisees got so wrapped up in their own rules that they lost sight of Me...

True faith is something that so pervades our lives that it affects everything we do.

We were a thirsty bunch, indeed. 

The thing is:  It took someone completely outside our bubble to wake us, enliven our spirits once more, and remind us of the good we do and from where it all comes.  With a splash of  water here, and a splash of water there, suddenly a room once brimming with weary faces, came alive again simply by being within earshot of a gentle fountain of faith, trickling up with the fundamentals and the ideals back behind our motto, carrying on with nothing short of exuberance while flashing a smile a mile wide. 

And considering our group is more amenable to these ideals in the first place --  as in, she was preaching to the choir -- it just goes to show that even the best of us need fresh sustenance, a daily dose of manna for the road ahead.

If it's not us declaring to God be the Glory, then what gives us any hope for any kind of future?

Our nation's own history proves, without a shadow of a doubt, that we, as a people, were so full of faith, that we declared it everywhere!   We gave God the glory on buildings, like court houses and municipalities; we gave God the glory in schools, allowing time set aside for personal prayers; we gave God the glory, and printed, as such, on our money, ensuring that God received the credit for our abundance and every good thing, as we exchanged money for goods and services.

Just look at what is happening now -- freedom from religion has usurped the value and security of the greatest, fundamental freedom, the greatest ideal, for which America stands. This freedom from religion nonsense claims "to promote nontheism and defend the constitutional separation between religion and government...."   When what they really want to do is dismantle our very foundation of God, Home and Country, from which America was made...albeit naturally, organically, and with bold reverence!

So are we to believe, that for a country founded on religious freedom, a separation from the Church of England controlling our lives, by taxation and otherwise, we are to cease being mindful of, and exercising, our true faith in God?  That we can only be religious at night, behind closed doors, or better still, in the dark?

When, the fact remains -- if in reference to a people of authentic faith -- there is to be no separation from this God in our daily life; what becomes unconstitutional, then,  is the masking of our faith, the hiding in the shadows of our faith.   Just what do you think will happen, once this butchery of our history,  our beliefs, our founding principles, takes hold without regret?  [Just for the record, all self-righteousness set aside, we are seeing it with our own eyes as we speak.]

God!

Home!

Country!

Truth is, "[W]hen the cement that has held a nation together no longer exists, the state soon dissolves into anarchy."  just another little something from Real Christianity...

God MUST come first, for this relationship is not only the most important, it gives us the foundation, the strength, the stillness, the peace, the home and country -- fit to make our way in the every day, every moment of the day, whether called to the needs of home or country.  

God centers us, and fills us, overflowing,  with everything we need, fit to meet every hope, every dream, every need -- every everyday concern for goodness sake --  with bells on, and ringing mightily, madly, deeply.

For God so loved the world; for God IS the Creator of all the world, of all things, seen and unseen.

It is Sunday.  And it is a good. 

And my heart is full -- thanks to the reservoir of this clay jar -- me -- being filled to the brim through positive words of encouragement based in faith in God.  So, to LaToya, my muse, goes my gratitude. 

But even LaToya would surely agree, that it is To God -- Savior, King of Kings, Jehovah, Creator of ALL Things, fit to a T with a capital G --  Be the Glory, Forever and Forever.  amen.

this is just my blog to the G, fit to a T, Thing.  amen.

Make it a Good Day, G