Jul. 16, 2004 - 21:57 MDT

THE WONDERING JEW

Yet So Near

There are two men on the net who have journals who are well worth the reading I think. One is a man recently met Grouse whose Journal is called Grousin' In The Sage. An outdoorsman who is a gameskeeper (called himself that) who takes a census on animals in the Western Colorado/Wyoming area and does other things pertinent. He lives a life I would like to lead if I was younger. The whole nine yards. His entries bring the range right up close to be seen, smelled and heard -- a neat trick that is.

The other man I most recently met is a Front Ranger Coloradan who was raised out of doors up near Fort Collins I think, maybe Greeley somewhere in there.

Old Jake his journal is called JOTS FROM OLD JAKE. I have been catching up on his archives and reading about his life. Deeply interesting it is too. He is a bit younger than me, but we have common memories of how it was in the ago.

Today his entry fit right in with my mood of thinking these several days. I quote his entry in entirety.

THE SEVEN WONDERS OF THE WORLD

A group of students were asked to list what they thought were the present "Seven Wonders Of The World." Though there were some disagreements, the following received the most votes:

1. - Egypts Great Pyramids

2. - Taj Mahal

3. - Grand Canyon

4. - Panama Canal

5. - Empire State Building

6. - St. Peter's Basilica

7. - China's Great Wall

While gathering the votes, the teacher noted that one student had not finished her paper yet. So she asked the girl if she was having trouble with her list. The girl replied, "Yes, a little. I couldn't quite make up my mind because there were so many things. The teacher said, "Well, tell us what you have, and maybe we can help." The girl hesitated, then said, "I think the Seven Wonders Of The World are:

1. - To See

2. - To Hear

3. - To Touch

4. - To Taste

5. - To Feel

6. - To Laugh

7. - And To Love

The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. The things we overlook as simple, ordinary and that we take for granted are truly wondrous !

The fact is, The most precious things in life cannot be built by hand or bought by man.

That is Old Jake's entry. And a good one it is. Pertinent to me too.

As an 83 year old man, crooked and bent, with a heart problem and bad back - those seven things are like this with me.

TO SEE, well after cataract surgeries my eyes are better, but don't see as well as they did when I was younger.

TO HEAR, my right ear hears not, my left one a tad better. Wearing a high powered hearing aid amplifies the things I can normally hear, when I turn it up to hear the sounds I can't normally hear it is cacaphony.

TO TOUCH, the ability to touch, hug, caress, pat on the back and shake hands is hindered, I guess because people think that looking so decrepit that I might break. I do so live to touch and be touched. My grip is not as strong any more either.

TO TASTE, a fifty-fifty thing that is, my sense of taste has deteriorated. The good thing is that I can now eat distasteful things I used to refuse. The bad thing is that it would be difficult for me to tell when some food is "off."

TO FEEL, feel with the heart is okay with me, in fact better than ever. To feel with my fingers has gone down hill, as well as eye-hand coordination ain't so hot anymore either.

TO LAUGH, there are more things that strike me as funny than ever before. It is easy to laugh at myself, others, circumstances and cartoons. I am ahead on that one.

AND TO LOVE, the Lord gave me a double helping in the ability to love and to receive love. It gets better every year. My wife Heather and I grew closer through the years, and are so close that we are almost in the same body, I feel.

A great treasure are the things I still have left. So many good friends I have met on the net, yet. How gracious they are and so down to earth too. Many of them have been down the same paths as I have. It is easy for one to see why my life is quite a bit on the net.

Many of my friends are afar in distance, but in spirit and communication Yet So Near . . . . . . . . . .

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