How to Stay Young

HOW TO STAY YOUNG
1. Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctors worry about them. That is why you pay 'them'

2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.

3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain idle. 'An idle mind is the devil's workshop.'

4. Enjoy the simple things.

5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.

6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person, who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive.

7. Surround yourself with what you love , whether it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.

8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.

9. Don't take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county; to a foreign country but NOT to where the guilt is.

10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.

AND REMEMBER,
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

Share this with someone. We all need to live life to its fullest each day!
Worry about nothing, pray about everything, especially for our country!

* If you plant honesty, you will reap trust
* If you plant goodness, you will reap friends
* If you plant humility, you will reap greatness
* If you plant perseverance, you will reap contentment
* If you plant consideration, you will reap perspective
* If you plant hard work, you will reap success
* If you plant forgiveness, you will reap reconciliation
* If you plant faith in God, you will reap a harvest
--So, be careful what you plant now; it will determine what you will reap later.
God BlessDan Ritchie

"This is a good thought that was
sent to me by a friend." Dennis Ginoza December 26, 2010

Motivated to Walk

MOTIVATED TO WALK

It takes just a simple thing to get motivated to walk. In late June, 2009, our medical insurance made available to us a pedometer. It records every step that is taken. It is part of a walking program that records your daily steps, downloaded into a computer program.

The steps recorded then are converted into health miles. There is a reward. At the end of the year, we will be awarded a monetary bonus. I told my wife, we both should engage in the program. We did.

The pedometer now attached to my shoe or tied around my ankle is the seed of motivation. It caught the competitive spirit within me. I thought I had laid to rest that competitive spirit after I hung up my baseball glove in serious competition years ago. It’s still there.

Self-motivation has turned into collective motivation. In October last year, eight regions of our United Methodist Church competed in walking, church conferences in California, Delaware, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Arkansas, and Pennsylvania. We got a little more serious about walking.

When my wife and I were in Las Vegas, we decided to see the new hotels along the strip. We are not gamblers. We decided to walk from the Belagio to the Venetian. We also wanted to see the new City Center. When my wife took the esclator, I took the steps. That day my wife walked some 22,000 steps (almost 7 miles); I walked over 30,000 steps (about 10 miles).

Every day we download our steps until the challenge was over. Our California-Hawaii group ended up dead last out of eight conferences; I personally did well in the challenge, but more importantly, both my wife and I make it a point to walk every day.

This program with Virgin Health Miles provides a motivating factor, to set goals, to record bio- measurements, blood pressure, weight loss, and to create personal programs for physical activity. In my program which I was already doing, I use several equipments—rowing machine, trampoline, chin up bar in our garage, stationary bike, a basketball hoop, and two 25 pound dumb bells.

My wife Sylvia goes to the fitness center for her exercise. I also walk along Main Street. In our trips we have walked in interesting places, but that’s another story. I have become a kind of a marathon walker.

It doesn’t take much to be motivated. It can take just one thing like a pedometer. Motivation means, setting a goal, putting your mind to it, doing an inch at a time, a minute at a time, and staying with it.

It was the Apostle Paul who said that our body is a temple of God. It is a gift. It is like a machine, it is meant to work, it reaches higher efficiency when it is used, and the more you use your body, the better you feel and the more energized you become. You should try it!

Dennis Ginoza
December 26, 2010

Meeting Stan Williams, Dodger

EVENING AT LAKE ELSINORE
(Meeting Stan Williams Dodge Pitcher)
The Lake Elsinore Storms Versus the The Rancho Cucamonga Quakers
August 14, 2010 by Dennis Ginoza

Four of us were sitting in prime seats, about twelve rows up, right behind home plate. From here you can see every pitch, breaking balls, fast balls, and hear the crack of the bat.

My wife dropped a packet of relish for her hot dog and it fell to the next row. This made for an interesting evening. I tapped the shoulder of a man sitting directly in front of me and asked him if he’d help me pick up the packet. He said, “Well, I’ll just keep it,” jokingly, of course.

As the game started, I saw that man open up a score book. I asked him, “Are an official scorekeeper?” He said, “I’m a Scout.” “For whom?” “Washington,” he replied. “Oh, the Mariners?” I asked. “D.C.” he said.

That’s when I learned I was sitting behind Stan Williams. Who is Stan Williams? He played for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1958-62. Now, Wayne King and Rusty Rursch and I were fascinated by the conversation that followed; we had much to learn. Sylvia sat and observed all this: for us the fascination of walking into history.

Stan says, “I was the starting pitcher for the Dodgers with Johnny Podres, Don Drysdale, and Sandy Kouvax.” “I played with Duke Snider earlier in the minors.” He said, “When I was seven, I wanted to play baseball to beat the Yankees.” “I was not a Dodger fan, I was a Yankee hater.” The last time he visited with Duke Snider was two years ago.

He played in the World Series in 1959. In wanting to beat the Yankess, that didn’t happen because the Dodgers played Chicago White Sox in the World Series. In 1963 when the Dodgers beat the Yankees in the World Series, he was now a pitcher for the Yankees. He played under Steinbrenner. His sense of humor came through. Yes, Stan Williams is a nice friendly guy who gave us his time.

Wayne was a St. Louis Cardinals fan in the earlier years and asked about playing against them. He said, one batter who always gave him trouble was Joe Cunningham. Stan said, “He owned me.” With the Cardinals, this was the era of Stan Musial, Ken Boyer, Red Schoendist.

Stan says he is a scout for various teams including also the Padres and the Dodgers. He will be in Arkansas scouting for the Oakland A’s in a few weeks. He has lived around baseball for some 58 years. He takes notes on players in every aspect of the game-- which means he collects data on hitting, fielding, running, pitching, etc.

I had mentioned to him, in a book by George Will, Men at Work, only one out of four hundred players in the minor league make it to the majors. He said, at one time it was worse. There were only sixteen teams with some fifty two minor league teams. I asked him about the book, Money Ball, about how the Oakland A’s scouts began to look at players by collecting statistics. He said, “That’s what a lot of scouts do.” But then he added, “That doesn’t tell the whole story.”

He met Stephen Strausburg, pitcher for the Washington Nationals who was drafted from San Diego State University. Strausburg has thrown pitches above 100 miles per hour, made the major leagues in one season, at the age of 21, and won the first five games. He recorded fourteen strikeouts. His debut on June 9, 2010 filled the stadium in Washington, D.C. A crowd of 40,315 turned out. In the minor league, when he pitched in Syracuse, he also filled the stadium. Writers say, a phenomenon like Strausburg comes only once in a long time. Stan Williams told me, “I visited with Strausburg. He’s a really nice guy.” For a player who received a bonus of $15 million and is called a nice guy, that’s good news for the game.

Stan Williams impressed us as friendly and approachable. His win-loss record was 109-94, ERA 3.48, strikeouts 1305. His major league debut with the Los Angeles Dodgers was in 1959. The following are the teams he played for.

Los Angeles Dodgers (1958-1962)
New York Yankees (1963-1964)
Cleveland Indians (1965, 1967-1969)
Minnesota Twins (1970)
St. Louis Cardinals (1970)
Boston Red Sox (1972)

Williams was born in Enfield, New Hampshire on September 14, 1936. He batted right, threw right. He was nicknamed “Big Daddy,” and “The Big Hurt.” Many batters around the league feared him as he stood 6 foot 4 inches, weighed 225 pounds, had a blistering fast ball. In 1961 he finished second in strikeouts with 205, behind teammate Sandy Koufax (269) and Don Drysdale finished third that year (82). In 1970 he went 10-1 in relief.

After fourteen years in the major league, he retired. He became the pitching coach for the Red Sox, Yankees, Seattle Mariners, Chicago White Sox, and Cincinnati Reds. He was also an advance scout for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

From behind the diamond, life in the stands can bring out fascinating aspects of the game of baseball. From a dropped relish package, we walked in time, met a Dodger who had connected the bridge, a story earlier written about Duke Snider. The phrase, “Play ball,” is not only about a game, it’s about life in America.

Visit With Duke Snider

VISIT WITH DUKE SNIDER
August 3, 2010 Fallbrook, California

Duke Snider was at the dining table with his good friend, Cliff Dapper. Cliff played for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1941, as a catcher. Cliff soon after, like a number of major league ball players, joined the military during World War II. He was in that group who believed in defending this nation, such as Ted Williams of the Boston Red Sox. (I learned this in an earlier conversation I had when I met Cliff Dapper at the reception desk at the Fallbrook Regency.)

I greeted Duke at the table, also Cliff, and said to Duke,” I want to show you something.” Lunch was being served so I told Duke I’ll came back in a little bit; I also told him I wanted to take a picture of them. He said, “Fine.”

When I returned, they had finished their lunch, Cliff had returned to his room, but Duke was sitting in a comfortable chair, wearing his cap, relaxing by the window, soft sun rays beaming in.

I greeted him again. He smiled. I showed him the Aged Premium Lager, a drink to honor his entry into the Major League Hall of Game. On the can it noted: “Duke Snider was elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame 1980.”

I asked Duke if he recalled this tribute drink in his name. He looked at the can, shook his head, and he said, “No.” I said, “Duke, let me read to you what this says.”

DUKE SNIDER
Centerfield Brooklyn Dodgers

“My greatest thrill was of course, the 1955 World Series
against our cross town rival, the New York Yankees. In
game 5 at Yankee Stadium, I hit 2 of my 4 Series homeruns.
It was a tough Series with
many great plays. Johnny
Podres pitched a 2-0 shut-
out and Gil Hodges
knocked in 2 runs in the 7th
and final game as we won
our first ever World
Championship 4 games to 3.
It was fitting that the final
playoff the Series was made
by our team leader and
captain, Pee Wee Reese.”
Signed: Duke Snider

The drink is entitled: CASEY’S LAGER BEER (Aged Premium Lager)

Note

I came across this can when I was attending a block party on
Porter Way, at the home of Rob Haney and Carol Erickson. I had
lived at this cul de sac for 15 years.

I was having a conversation with Jason Gard, one of the neighbors.
I didn’t know until then, how much of a baseball fan he is. We spent
an hour talking about baseball. He played the game many years, as
a pitcher.

He keeps up with the players from all the teams. I, unlike him,
keep up with some favorite teams, had for years followed the Brooklyn
Dodgers and the LA Dodgers. I followed the Cincinnati Reds in their
great days. Now I follow the Padres who are leading the league by
2 ½ ahead of the San Francisco Giants at this writing.

As we were talking about the Dodgers, Jason said, “I gotta
show you something. “ He ran home, right next door, and showed me
this can. I had told him I was going to visit Duke Snider at the Regency,
who I had met a few years ago and got to know him.

Baseball fans, somehow, discover each other, and this being
true, these conversations enlighten us. Baseball, in so many ways,
is still America’s favorite pastime.

Signing off.
Dennis Ginoza
Fallbrook, California

When the Dodgers beat the Yankees in 1955,
I was in elementary school. Our teacher let
us listen to the game in the classroom. The
game from New York started at 7:00 a.m Hawaii
time. From us Dodgers fans, you heard a cheer:
“They did it!”

The Yankee fans in our classroom had their day,
the next year, 1956. We don’t need to talk about
that for that’s another story.

Once An Arafat Man

BOOK REVIEW: “Once An Arafat Man,” by Tass Saada with Dean Merrill
Review by Dr. Dennis Ginoza
August 7, 2010

Every so often, a book lands in my lap and as I turn the pages, it is hard to put down. This is one of those books. It is fascinating. It is adventurous. It is hopeful.

Our world is filled with conflict, hate, war, and killings. We wonder at times, how will things change, is there a way out of the mire of violence, is the human character so flawed, are we heading toward a collision course? Then, comes along a story such as this with a fresh wind blowing upon us.

In that small Palestinian enclave called the Gaza City, in a refugee tent, Tass Saada was born. Many of the young are so entrenched in hate and violence, the only pathway out seemed the same, more violence. Those were the early steps of Tass.

At age 17, Tass left home with his friend to join the cause, the movement of Yassar Arafat. He was a Palestinian who hated Jews, who was out to destroy the Israelis. He joined the Fatah, was trained to be a sniper. He was willing to die for the cause, his Palestinian people. His story in this writing begins with an ambush on the Israeli army. Tass had no difficulty killing; it became for him the greater cause.

His family moved from Gaza, to Saudi Arabia, and eventually to Qatar. HIs father was a mechanic and had business even from King Saud of Saudi Arabia. This unfolding story is about the human character, the shaping of a young man who became the chauffeur of Yassar Arafat, believing in his political views.

Tass Saada was given the name, Jazzar, which means “the butcher,” in Arabic. He quickly learned to use the Ak47, then the Simonov, a weapon used for assassinations. As a young recruit, he became the instructor of young Palestinian boys, ages 9-13, in a six month program. He taught karate, judo, and the use of weapons. He reflects later that he did not understand the psychological damage he was causing those young boys.

The political movement he was in was responsible for killing the eleven Israeli wrestlers at the Olympic Games in Munich, Germany. This day was known as Black September, the year 1972.

This is a story of a life journey. His circumstances took a turn when he was told his mother was very ill and his father wanted him to come home to Qatar. His father confiscated his passport so he couldn’t return to his post. His father wanted him to be educated and become an engineer. He was forced to stay home and study. His father got tired of him and told him, he either would have to study in Egypt or in Great Britain. He chose to come to the United States.

On February 12, 1974, he was on a plane to see his friend in Columbia, Missouri. It was winter and terribly cold. Everything was a shocking white. He had never seen anything like Missouri’s winter snow.

He found Americans friendly, no one was out to kill him, and he wasn’t dodging bullets. His friend told him, if he wanted to remain in America, he should marry an American citizen. He studied English and received his GED. While in Qatar, for six months he studied French, because he was attracted to a French teacher. What he didn’t realize then, his life was being re-shaped.

He went out to a club to find a wife. He didn’t have honest intentions at first. He met a Roman Catholic woman with whom he developed a relationship. It turned into romance and more. On October 4, 1974, before a justice of the peace in Kansas City, they were married.

His Arabic name was “Taysir” but people had trouble pronouncing it so he became known as Tass Saada. He told his family about the marriage and his father said, “No more money. I have cut you from my will.”

HIs friend told him about a job as a dishwasher at a French restaurant called, The Mediterranee. His work pleased the owners of the restaurant. They taught him to wait on tables. Eventually he was trained to be a chef. In 1977 his father came to visit him and was impressed. Tass lived in a nice duplex, owned two cars, and lived in a respectable suburb of Kansas City. His father came again in 1981 and told him, “I’m proud of you.”

His mother became ill so in 1983, he and his wife, with a son and daughter, decided to move to Qatar. With a friend they opened an import-export business. But something was missing. His family was miserable. Women were not allowed to speak out openly and the children stayed close to home. His mother realized how unhappy they were and gave them the blessing to return to America.

They returned to Kansas City and the owners of Le Mediterranee were happy to have him back. Later he was offered a job at a restaurant called, “The Brasserie,” at Kansas City’s Big Western Crown Center. He became the manager and not long after, the restaurant received the Silver Spoon Award. A series of business ventures followed.

Now Tass was in the restaurant business. One of the customers he met at the French restaurant was Charles Sharpe, an insurance man. They had developed a friendship for 19 years. Charles told Tass, he could help him in his business. He had connections.

This was another tipping point in his life. Charles invited him to his home one Sunday. Charles began talking to him about Jesus Christ. Tass was interested for the Muslims held Jesus in high regard as a prophet. When Charles brought out a Bible, Tass stepped back and said, “I must not touch that book!”

Charles began to read, “In the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God, the Word was God.” Tass began to shake. He fell on his knees. Then he began to cry. A light came into his vision and he heard the voice, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” He found he was forgiven of his sins, even all those he killed as a sniper. He felt a rush of peace and joy in his heart.

His life had made a complete change. He told his wife Karen he was now a Christian, and she laughed. She didn’t believe him. The next day he prayed, “Bless Israel. Lead them back to the Promised Land.” In 45 days he read through the entire Bible. He learned that Ishmael, the son of Abraham was blessed just as Abraham blessed Isaac. Ishmael was the father of the Arab people. He read about the beautiful creation at the hand of God in the book of Genesis. See Genesis 15-17 for the story of Abraham’s son Ishmael with Hagar.

One day Karen was in the kitchen cooking. Tass went up to her and said, “I really love you.” She saw such change, she now believed him. On April 18, 1993, they went to the New Life Community Church and together, they committed their lives to Christ.

This incredible story helps us to see the power of Christ’s spirit moving in the hearts even of those that have turned to stone. Tass began to move within the Christian, Jewish, and Arab communities to tell his story. He has traveled across this country and the Middle East to tell about his heart of change and the new way in which to live--not by hate, but love.

In 2006, Tass and Karen returned to the Gaza Strip. Gaza is a small territory, 34 miles long, 5 miles wide, with a population of 1.6 million Palestinians. They decided to teach young childlren about hope. They founded the Hope Kindergarten and the Seeds of Hope Cultural Center for young people. They teach the youth computer skills, English, a course on Democracy, Tolerance, and Peace. One August they baptized 5 new believers in the Mediterranean Sea. They offer Bible classes in their home. He and Karen began to work in Jericho to bring a new understanding of hope between Jews and Palestinians, and amongst all peoples.

In all this, Tass and Karen could feel the nudging of God’s spirit. The Gaza Strip became more and more difficult to move in and out. They decided to open a parallel kindergarten and cultural center in Jericho. This was not far from Al-Karameh where in March, 1968, Tass was involved in the ambush against the Israelis as a sniper. Now he was working to bring out the better life, not destruction.

Tass says, “The truth is, God loves both Arabs and Jews—and wants to bring us both to a higher perspective. He is not “anti” either one of us. He wants the peoples of the Middle East, all of us, to realize that Jesus is our Savior and Reconciler.” In our time, this is a powerful testimony.

This review captures just some of the fascinating episodes, events, and encounters of one who once was an Arafat man. It is worth your reading. It is a human story from the bleakest to the most violent, ending with such grace and hope—one can only have hope for the future. There is a Light that is leading us into our days ahead.

The Earth is Shaking

THE EARTH IS SHAKING
September 10, 2010

For over 25 years, living in California, I have become more and more aware that we live in a region affected by earthquakes. When we were living in Santee, we felt the earth movements from the Whittier Quake, October 1, 1987, 5.9 on the Richter scale. Then again, we were shaken by the Pasadena Quake on December 3, 1988, 4.9. On February 28, 1990, the earth moved again; the Upland Quake, measured at 5.2.

In 1978 Jeffrey Goodman, Ph.D., published his account of earth movements especially around the Pacific coastal regions in his book entitled, “We Are the Earthquake Generation.” In the early 1980’s I was keeping a close watch of the occurrences of earthquakes, but at the same time, we lived our normal lives. We were raising our family, our two boys, serving a local church, and very involved in community activities.

The other day, I decided I would look up, in a more composite way, the occurrence of earth movements in the world. It is, I believe, a time of re-awakening for all of us. The earthquakes are occurring in sequence, like a chain of events, in different parts of the world.

On October 17, 1989, the San Francisco Giants and the Oakland A’s were getting ready to play their third game of the World Series in San Francisco, when at 5:04 p.m., the Loma Prieta Quake occurred. It measured at 6.9 on the Richter scale. Sixty three people were killed, 3,757 were injured, 100,000 buildings were damaged. The epicenter was at the Forest of Nisene Marks State Park in Santa Cruz County. The double tiered Nimitz highway way collapsed and the Oakland Bay Bridge was damaged.

From 1988 to 1993, I had served the First United Methodist Church in Reseda and became very familiar with San Fernando Valley, from Sherman Oaks to Woodland Hills, from Granada Hills to Chatsworth and the cities in between. Our members lived throughout the Valley.

After we left in 1993, on January 17, 1994 at 4:31 a.m. I woke my wife and said, “We just had an earthquake.” I felt the bed shake. We were residing in Chula Vista. We had as our guests on that Martin Luther King holiday, the pastor of the Chatsworth United Methodist Church and his wife. As we listened to the radio, we became more and more aware of the devastating earthquake. The Northridge Quake, its epicenter located in Reseda, was measured at 6.7, there were 72 deaths, and it was the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history--$20 billion.

This quake was more personal than any of the quakes I had experienced. We had friends throughout San Fernando Valley. One father of three children said, “I couldn’t find my glasses and there was broken glass all over the floor.” He also said, “The need for water turned critical.” One family told us, the dishes in the dishwater were not damaged, luckily protected on the racks. A couple we knew well lost their condominium; it was totally damaged. For several nights, with the after shocks, people slept outside on their lawns or at parks close to home. The Reseda Church received major damage as did hundreds of commercial buildings.

The year 2010 has recorded major quakes in various regions of the world. On Tuesday, January 12, the eyes of the world turned to Haiti, a country on the island of Hispaniola. At 4:53 p.m. local time, the 7.0 quake rocked that region. Three million people were affected by the massive disaster, 230,000 were killed, 300,000 injured, 1,000,000 people were left homeless, and there were major damages throughout the area, especially in the capital city of Port-au-Prince. The earth movement was felt in neighboring Cuba, Jamaica, Venezuela, and Puerto Rico.

Chile is a region known for the frequency of quakes. In 1966, while traveling through Peru, I met a Peace Corps volunteer who was on her way home after serving in Chile. She said, “An earthquake occurred when she was in the bathroom and her door jammed.” From then on, she always kept her bathroom door ajar. On February 27, 2010 at 3:34 a.m. local time, an 8.8 quake lasted 90 seconds. A blackout affected 93% of the nation’s population. The quake caused a tsunami which damaged some areas of coastal San Diego and there were damages in the Tokoku region of Japan, reported at $66.7 million. This was the strongest quake since the 1960 Valdivia Earthquake that measured at 9.5.

For three years my church assignment included serving a church in Calexico, a border town of some 10,000 people next to Mexicali in Mexico with about half a million people. On April 5, 2010, at 3:40 p.m. a 7.2 quake rocked Mexico and the surrounding region. The damage was not as extensive as the Northridge Quake, fortunately. The town of Calexico was shut down from the damages, and the quake was felt in San Diego, causing a crack on the floor of the Sheraton Hotel and preventing the front doors from closing. The earth movements are no longer far way, not in time and not in geography or human relationship.

Indonesia is a nation of islands subject to quakes and tsunamis. On August 3, 2010, 26 miles beneath the ocean floor, a 6.3 quake rocked that region. On September 30, 2010 another quake was measured at 6.8, occurring at 8:52 a.m. and 236 people were killed. Many remember that on December 26, 2004, a giant quake caused a tsunami and 230,000 people lost their lives, half lived in the western province of Aceh.

This is just a partial list of quakes that have occurred this year, 2010. I googled earthquakes and found that this year, throughout the world, there have been multiple quakes. I have selected to list those quakes that were measured at 7.0 or higher. It begins from the most recent, September through January.

September 03 South Island of New Zealand 7.0
August 12 Ecuador 7.1
August 10 Vanuatu 7.3
August 4 New Britain Region, Papua New Guinea
July 23 Mindanao, Philippines 7.4
July 23 Moro Gulf, Mindanao, Phillipines 7.6
July 23 Moro Gulf, Mindanao, Phillipines 7.3
July 18 New Britain Region, Papua New Guineau 7.3
June 16 North Coast of Papua 7.0
June 12 Nicobar Islands, India Region 7.5
May 17 Vanuatu 7.1
May 9 Northern Sumatra 7.2
April 6 Northern Sumatra, Indonesia 7.8
April 4 Baja California, Mexico 7.2
February 26 Ryuku Islands, Japan 7.0
January 12 Haiti 7.0

In the 2010 listings, across the United States, there been movements of the earth. These regions include:

July 7 Southern California 5.4
June 15 Southern California 5.7
April 15 Utah 4.9
March 26 Greater Los Angeles Area 4.4
February 10 Illinois 3.8
February 4 Off shore Northern California 5.9
January 15 Oklahoma 4.0
January 10 Off shore Northern California 6.5


I have looked into earthquakes as part of my own edification and understanding. If it can help me to be prepared and aware in the event of major earth movements, then I and others can be helped. There is in this life, a spirit that moves us to awareness and consciousness of our surroundings. We are here to be helpful to others while we also learn to care for ourselves.

The world is a large world, its far reaches may not be known to us, but the field of technology and communication has brought us closer together. We feel the suffering and pain of our neighbors nearby and far away. In the depth of our spirit, God’s moving spirit constantly brings us guidance and stirs us with hunches, persuasions, and encounters.

We have come to see the world as a nexus where our spirituality, physiology, geology, and all forces are all connected. The poet John Dunn writes, “No man is an island.” And further, no one is apart from God. May we continue to awaken our spirits for each coming day.

Dennis Ginoza
Fallbrook, California

Five Minutes Longer

SERMON “Five Minutes Longer”
Romans 5:1-5
July 15, 2010 Dr. Dennis Ginoza

(I have here a baseball. I couldn’t let a sermon go without
mentioning baseball. As a kid, I loved playing baseball. In baseball,
the game isn’t over until the last out. Yogi Berra said, “It ain’t over
till it’s over.” Go Padres!)

Once at a mall, a little boy was standing and waiting
at the bottom of an elevator. The floor manager saw the
little boy and was curious. He walked over and asked, “May I help you?”
The little boy said, “I’m waiting for my gum to come back.”
Hello! Good morning! What are you waiting for?

When we lived in Santee, we had a 1977 Volkswagen camper
van. One day I decided to change the fuel filter. I was
under the van and as I loosened the filter, that’s when I
realized the filter is below the gas tank and gas was dripping
down my arm. Now, I’m in trouble. I thought, “What do I do?”
I called out, “Jeremy come here!” He was watching television,
mom was gone. He came and said, “What Dad?” I said
get on the phone and call Ed Buseck. Tell him to hurry!”
Ed came and he saw me under the van and he laughed.
He said, “Ha! you too, huh!” Ed is gone now, but Ed, I want
you to know, you saved my life!”

Remember, Jesus said, “Ask and it will be given you,
seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened
to you.” (Matthew 7:7)

I have entitled my sermon today, “Five Minutes Longer.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “A hero is no braver than
an ordinary man, but he is brave five minutes longer.”

I have here seven pennies. Some people just walk over pennies.
Our sons did. One son told me, “Dad, it’s just a penny.”
One time I found a $20.00 bill on the sidewalk. You know why?
Because I look for pennies. Look at what the penny has on it. It says,
“United States of America, one cent. And In God We Trust.” I am going to
pass out these pennies to seven people. Seven is the perfect number in
Greek. I want you seven to help me put our trust in God.
Without God, the world can really get messed up.
Do I hear an Amen?

In Romans 5, the passage that was read to you says,
suffering produces endurance,
endurance produces character,
character produces hope,
and hope does not disappoint us.

John Wooden who died recently was the greatest basketball coach in
NCAA competition. He knew how to win. UCLA won 10
national championships in twelve years (1964-1975).
His goal was to build character. One day Bill Walton who
was over 7 foot tall came to practice with a beard. He
thought he was too good for Wooden to say anything.
Wooden said, “Bill, if you want to play for this team, that
beard has to come off.” Walton left. The next day, Walton
came to practice and that beard was off.

One year Wooden just had some above average players. They
were good, but they weren’t the best. Wooden worked the
players hard, he got them in condition. He told them, “We’re
going to beat those guys in the last three minutes. We’re
going to be in better condition and we’re going to outrun them.
They won another national championship.


When Jesus was on hanging on the cross, one of the thieves said
to him, “Are you not the Messiah? Save yourself and us!
The other thief said, “We are getting what we deserve for
our deeds.” Then he turned to Jesus and said, “Jesus,
remember me when you come into your kingdom. Jesus
said, “Truly, I tell you today, you will be with me in Paradise.”
If you trust God five minutes longer—
your live can be changed forever. Do I hear a Hallelujah?

Some people win super bowls, some people hit jackpots,
some people earn a million dollars a year, some
people seem lucky, and some people … have to work for
every penny. How do you figure?

When September 11, 2010 happened, it was a bad time for
this country and thousands of people. But for
some, somehow, they took the right turn. Listen!


--One fellow survived, because it was his turn to bring donuts.
--One woman was late because her alarm clock didn’t go off.
--One was late because he missed his bus.
--One person, the car wouldn’t start.
--One couldn’t get a taxi.
--One turned back to answer the phone.
--One man had on a new pair of shoes but got blisters so he had change his pair.
--One stopped at the drug store to buy a band aid.

Everyone of these persons survived 911.

We are all children of circumstance. But, we are all
children of God. Every day Jesus
knew that his life was in the hands of God.

Tass Saada was born in the Gaza Strip. He was a Palestinian.
He grew up in violence and hate. When he was 17 he left his family
and joined the Fatah, the organization of Yassar Arafat. He was
trained to be a sniper and his job was to kill Jews. They nicknamed him
Jazaar which means, “The Butcher.” For several years, he
worked for the Palestinian cause until his circumstances changed,
thanks to his sick mother. His father told him, I want you to get your
education and be an engineer.

Tass he decided to come to America. He found Americans to be
friendly, nobody was out to kill him and he wasn’t dodging bullets.
He was told by his friend, the best way to stay in America was
to marry an American citizen. He met a pretty Catholic
woman named Karen, and his life began to change.

In Kansas City, Missouri, He found a job at a French restaurant,
La Mediterranee, as a dish washer. He was such a good worker,
he worked up to be a chef. Now Saada wanted to buy the
restaurant. A businessman named Charles Sharp told him, “I can help you.
I have connections.” Tass Saada wanted to know what this connection was.

They met one Sunday afternoon and Charles Sharpe opened up the
Bible and told him about the prophet Jesus, the one who is
the Messiah. Charles told him, “If you want peace, you have to
love a Jew.” Love a Jew, no way! Tass started to read, “In the beginning
was the Word and the Word was with God….” and he began to cry. Then he
began to shake and he fell on his knees. He saw a light and he
heard the voice, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes
to the Father but through me” He felt the rush of peace and a joy
in his heart. His heart was changed. His sins were forgiven.
After that experience, he read through the whole Bible in 45 days.
He is now a Christian and with his wife, started a kindergarten in
the Gaza Strip to teach children to love, not hate. He travels all over
the Middle East, holding conferences and teaching that Jesus is the
true prophet and the Messiah who came to change this world. In
Christ, he believes that the Jews and Palestinians can learn to live
in peace in the Holy Land.

As Paul said, “It is not I who lives, but Christ who lives in me.”

Let me ask you, are you happy where you are? Are you angry? Is life too difficult
for you? As a pastor, I learned in these years that one of the hardest thing
is to love difficult people. I met a bunch of them in the churches.
When I went to Reseda, the superintendent said, “Just love them.”
Jesus said, “And the greatest of these is love.” (Corinthians 13)

Elizabeth Kubler Ross who worked with death and dying was in Brawley
several years ago. There were 400 of there, doctors, nurses, pastors,
and teachers. She had worked with people who had near death
experiences (NDE) and everyone one of them, their lives had been changed.
She learned, before you cross over, there are two questions that are asked:
How much have you loved?
How much have you served?

Once there was a girl who was having a hard time in life. She wanted
to give up. Her father who was a chef took her into the kitchen
and filled three pots with water on the stove. He got the pots
to a boil and in one pot, he placed some carrots. In the other
he placed some eggs, and in the third, he dropped some
coffee beans. The daughter waited wondering what this was
all about. In 20 minutes, he took out the carrots and eggs and
put them in a bowl. Then with a ladel he put the coffee in a bowl.

He asked his daughter to feel the carrots. They were soft. He asked
her to shell an egg. It w as hard. Finally, he said to his daughter,
“Taste the coffee.” The coffee had a beautiful aroma and she
smiled as she tasted it. The daughter asked,
“Dad, what does this mean?”

He said to her, each of these faced adversity and each responded
differently. The carrots were hard and now they were soft.
The egg was fragile, now it was hard. The coffee beans were
different. After they were put in the boiling water, they
changed the water.

He looked at his daughter and said, “Which are you?’
When life is difficult, are you going
to give up and fade away? When life is difficult, are you going
turn bitter, angry, and stiffen your spirit?” Or when life is difficult,
when things get really hot, are you going to make things
better around you? Which are you?
A carrot? An egg? A coffee bean?

You and I are here to build our character.
Jesus said, “Forgive them for they
know not what they do.”
Paul said, “Without love we are nothing.” (I Cor. 13)

In Hawaii, what I learned is there is a beautiful spirit of Aloha.
Thank you for having me here with you. It is so
neat for me to come back after 22 years. I want you
to know that I know that Jesus is real. He came to
me in a dream with Moses and Elijah and that’s another
story. So I want to leave with you the spirit of Aloha.

CD – “Aloha Oe”

In the Beginning

IN THE BEGINNING
John 1:19 Dr. Dennis Ginoza
July 4, 2010

In the beginning when God created the heavens
and earth, the earth was a formless void and
darkness covered the face of the deep. …Then
God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.

Everything we have, everything that is good, is from God.
If you can remember that, say: “Yes!”

That was Genesis; now the gospel of John. In the beginning was
the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word
was God. He was in the beginning with God. Then John
says, not one thing was made without him.

And who is He? He is Jesus.
And this is the second lesson—Jesus is the
Light that enlightens every one of us. Christ is
our hope and our salvation.

If you can remember that, say, “Yes!”

When I came to Santee in 1979, where I am standing was just dirt. There
was nothing here. Actually there was a flower garden and
worship was in the fellowship hall. Our son Jeremy was
two years old and Aaron was not born yet. This was the
first home Jeremy remembers and this was the first
home for Aaron. This was a great home for us, for nine years
and over 30 years later, I can tell you, You were good to us…
so Thank you! Mahalo! Merci! You gave us a luau when we left.

When we came to Santee, by the third week,we had nine shovels
painted gold and we were breaking ground. Let me ask you,
how many of you were in 1979? This building was completed
in February, 1981. How many of you came after 1981?
I want you to know: This church was built on hard work, sweat,
generosity, and lots of goodwill. …Most important of all—
faith in God.

The apostle Paul reminds us, the
the cornerstone of the Church is Christ who we
know as Jesus of Nazareth.

Kennon Callalhan says, when people come to a church, they
are looking for two things: home and hope.

For me, this place is full of memories.
One day I was serving bread to the little children and when
I got to a boy named Richard. He shook his head and said,
“I already had breakfast.”
…When you receive the bread and the cup today—remember that
the sacrament of Holy Communion is a spiritual meal… receive
if even if you had breakfast.

Many of you probably heard of Gelene Harritt. Gelene used to live in a
red house down on Park Street. She had a guard dog named
Gilbert. One day she and I were talking about
a couple that stopped coming to church so I asked her, “What happened?”
She said that when the church had a potluck, the woman brought a
dish, but nobody touched it. She was hurt and she never came back.
From then on, at every potluck, we made sure that every dish was
eaten from. I went to visit the couple several times and they
eventually came back.

The apostle Paul teaches us that the Church is a body of Christ. When one
part of the body hurts, whole body hurts. For the church to be
healthy, it needs understanding. It also needs the spirit of
forgiveness. When Peter asked Jesus, “How many times must I forgive,
seven?” Jesus said, “Seventy times seven.”

In the beginning, Genesis teaches us, everything was good.
Then the world got messed up.

For thousands of years, the world was ruled by kings and emperors,
and dictators. In 1776, a group of men decided that they needed a
new kind of government. They wrote the Declaration of Independence
which said, “Alll men are created equal” (All people) and we all
share the same goal in life, “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of happiness.”
As a nation this is our beginning and as Lincoln said, It is a government
of the people, by the people, and for the people.”

Tom Brokaw, in his book talks about the Greatest Generation. The Greatest
Generation is made up of those who lived through the Great Depression
and those who helped us through World War II. They were leaderswho led with
courage and sacrifice. Some of those members include: John Kennedy,
Walter Cronkite, Joe DiMaggio, Jackie Robinson, Daniel Inouye, Charles Schultz, and
Billy Graham. Each one of them brought to us a value in living.

The trouble with most of us in this world is that,
we think we are self-sufficient and we can solve
all the problems ourselves. …Not so.
When we were growing up, in school, every day we
recited the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag. Then the phrase
“One nation under God” was added. Today there are
people who still believe we can live in this world
without God. If we continue the way we are going—
this is what I believe—there will a Great Collapse.

I have here a handful of marbles. I grew up playing with marbles. They
say, when you grow old, you’re going to lose some of your
marbles. I am going to scatter these marbles on the floor
and I want your help. We can’t solve our problems by
ourselves. In the Fourth Gospel, chapter 4, the woman
at the well was confused about life. Jesus said to her, “I am
the living water. “ Drink of it and you will never thirst again.
Then he said to her: “Worship God in spirit and in truth.”

Jesus taught us that the highest office we can
hold is to Serve Others. And when Jesus was breaking bread with
his twelve disciples, he said to them “A new commandment I give
to you, just I have loved you, you should love one another. “
(John 13:34)

I have in my hand, one, two, three, …..twelve marbles. I am going to
scatter these marbles on the floor and I need twelve people
to retrieve these marbles and bring them up to me.

Jesus began his ministry with only twelve disciples.
And here we are!
When you receive the bread and the cup this morning,
Jesus reminds us again and again:
Do this in remembrance of me.

Amen!

10,000 Hours

SERMON: “10,000 Hours”
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 July 18, 2010
Dr. Dennis Ginoza

To a graduating class at a university, Bill Gates said,
“Be kind to nerds, they might be your boss someday.”
I’ll came back to Gates later.

In 1979, when I came to this church, right away, we were in the building
project. The general contractor was Don Siegert. I really
enjoyed working with Don, but he didn’t mess around.
He said to me, “Dennis, time is money.” If I am correct,
the general contract was for $135,000. We had several
sub-contracts: plumbing $10,000, electrical $10,000,
finished carpentry $10,000. The street improvements and
parking $55,000. You know, that concrete alley cost $10,000..
But we saved a lot of money by doing the work ourselves,
the landscaping, painting the building; we even swept the sand
off the parking to save $60. My sermon this morning is: 10,000 Hours.

How many of you have your watches with you?
Will you raise them up, please?

The Greeks tell us that there are two kinds of time – chronos and
kairos. Chronos is based on the movement of
planets. It is called sidereal time. That’s where we get
our seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, and years.
Kairos is God’s time. The book of Ecclesiastes says, there is
time to be born and a time to die. The is a time to laugh and
a time to cry. There is a time for everything.

The trouble with most of us is,
first, we don’t try.
Second, we don’t listen.
Third, we are non-believers and we say, “No way!”

In the east there is a saying, “You can learn one thing from every
person you meet.” Today scientists and psychologists
believe that your brain will add neurons if you keep using
it. It’s like a muscle: work it and it gets stronger.

When Jesus was teaching his disciples, he
said, “But for God, all things are possible.”

In every church, I have learned something from the people.
When we were improving the landscaping, I was
helping Russ Stuhmer install the sprinkler system. He had
a pvc cutter, he would clean the tubes, then apply
the glue. I decided, Ah! I can do that. So at our house
I installed our irrigation system in the backyard of our
home at El Nopal.

We used to own a 1973 Toyota Corona. It was a good car, a work
horse. We were having trouble with the automatic choke.
I had trouble starting the car when the engine was cold.
Jack Roessler said to me, “Bring your car over.” I watched
him recondition the carburetor. I decided, “I can do that.”
I rebuilt that carburetor twice, all by myself. (I was proud!)

God has given to all of us,
the gift of the mind,
the gift of the heart,
the gift of the hands,
and the gift of soul.
Everything God gave us is to bring life.
Everything in us is for renewal, for health, and wholeness.
In each of us, God has placed properties for healing.

The prophet Ezekiel tells about God’s promise to us:
“A new heart I will give you, and a new spirit I will put within you.
I will remove from your body the heart of stone and give you
the heart of flesh.” (Ezekiel 36:26) Then Jesus gave us the heart of love.

In his book, “The Eagle’s Secret,” David McNally, says, a Harvard
professor Howard Gardner identified eight types of intelligences.
Every teacher and every parents should know this.
If you have children, listen!
If you are a teenager or a student, listen!
If you are twenty or over, listen!
If you think you’re over the hill, listen!

-- Linguistic intelligence, allows one to communicate
in languages. Examples: T.S. Elliot,
William Shakespeare. poets.

--Logical intelligence, enables a person to use and
appreciate abstract relationships. Examples
Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton, scientists.

--Musical Intelligence, allows a person to to create and
understand meanings in sounds. Johann Sebastian
Bach, Igor Stravinsky.

--Spatial Intelligence, to perceive images, transform them,
and recreate them from memory. Pablo Picasso,
Leonardo Da Vinci.

--Kinesthetic Intelligence, allows a person to use all or part
of the body in highly skilled ways. Martha Graham,
dancer, Kristi Yamaguchi skater and champ, Dancing
With the Stars.

--Intrapersonal Intelligence, helps people distinguish among
feelings, build accurate models for themselves.
Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung, psychoanalysts

--Interpersonal Intelligence, enables a person to recognize
and distinguish among other people’s feelings and
intentions. Mahatma Ghandi, leader.

--Naturalist Intelligence, provides for a person to classify
and map the environment. Charles Darwin

I would add a ninth type of intelligence, Religious Intelligence,
Martin Luther, John Wesley, reformers.

If you think you’re dumb, it means, you’re dumb just on some
things. But…if you work hard at some thing, you
will be amazed. If you apply yourself, if you work hard,
and if you believe you can do it, you can. Jesus teaches us that
the kingdom of God is at our finger tips. The kingdom
of God is in the midst of us. So he said, “Learn from me.”
Everything works according to God’s time.

Malcolm Gladwell wrote a book entitled, “Outliers.” He comes
the conclusion that just having a high IQ will not bring you
success. It requires opportunity; It takes hard work – 10,000 hours.

In Liverpool England, there were four guys that were struggling musicians:
John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Ringo Starr-- the
Beatles. But in 1960, they were invited to play in Hamburg, Germany
at a night club. Normally, they played only for two, maybe
three hours. They would play just their best music. In Hamburg,
they played for 8 hours a shot
seven nights a week. The first trip they played 106 nights.
The second trip, they played 92 nights. On the third trip they
played 42 nights. In 1962 they had another 90 nights. The
Beatles became successful because of their 10,000 hours.

Bill Gates. Remember the nerd. He was intelligent, but he was also
lucky. We call that opportunity. He went to a private school in Seattle and
his mother and the mother’s group spent $3,000 for a computer
center. When he was still in high school, he had access to the
computer center at the University of Washington. By his senior
year, he was consulting with a company, because he and his
friend, Paul Allen knew about software. Bill Gates says, I skipped
athletics.” Computers, “It was my obsession” By the time Gates
quit Harvard he had – 10,000 hours. PC, Windows, Microsoft,
digital, that’s Bill Gates.

And there was Mozart. Michael Howe says Mozart’s
early works are not outstanding. His work was not seen as
a masterpiece until he was 21. His greatest works appeared
after he had been composing for 20 years. –10,000 hours.
Mozart today is seen as one of our greatest composers.

For three years, the disciples walked with Jesus, they saw him feed
the five thousand with five loaves and two fish, they saw
him still the storm, they saw him heal the blind man Bartimaeus,
they saw him raise Lazarus from the dead. They thought
all their hopes came to an at the Crucifixion. Then on Easter,
their eyes were opened. Jesus was resurrected. After
the Resurrection every one of the disciples was willing
to die for Jesus. Three and 10,000 hours – they learned
Jesus is Lord!

Listen to the words of Paul. “Let love be genuine; hate what is
is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with
with mutual affection; out do one another in showing
honor. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the
Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere
in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend
hospitality to strangers.” ….And I say, work 10,000 hours!
(Romans 12:9-13 Marks of the True Christian)

By Plane and Horse

By Plane and Horse
A Peace Corps Adventure

My Peace Corps assignment was with an organization called, “La Associacion Regional Para El Desarrollo de la Peninsula de Nicoya” in the province of Guancaste. Our office was based in the town of Nicoya. Our areas of emphasis included building impact roads, developing self-help projects as water systems, 4-S agricultural loans, and community organization. In promoting community action in the villages and towns, I was introduced to many needs and people.

One day a young man named Francisco Acevedo Acosta from a community named Garza stopped in my office. He said to me, “We want you to help us build a landing strip.” He explained that their problem was during the raining season, all the roads were washed out and the only access they had was by boat, jeep, and airplane. The airplane would only land during low tide limiting access. I told him, I would help them.

I flew in on a small plane, landed on the beach, and planned a meeting with leaders from three communities. In the meeting of some thirty people, I was told, “We have the land. We will clear the brush with the machetes.” But they need help from the central government for equipment, dump trucks, graders, and materials. We selected a group of three representatives to meet with the Aeronautic Board of the government in San Jose, the nation’s capital.

Earlier, I had visited Garza during the dry season and met Francisco and that’s how we got acquainted. He was a young, determined, and motivated leader of that community. He had done some preparation for the planning and informed the people of the meeting.

I stayed overnight in a home and was scheduled to fly out at 10:30 that morning. A white flag was placed on a pole as a signal to the pilot, a passenger was waiting for a flight out. At 11:00 a.m., there was no airplane. I was told, the plane is coming. I waited until 12:00 noon. No airplane. A kindly woman brought me lunch, arroz con pollo (rice and chicken), and beans

I talked to Francisco and told him, I needed to fly out that day, because I was scheduled to take the bus the next day to San Jose for a Peace Corps meeting. He assured me that I would have transportation out. He arranged for a guide to lead me out by horseback. At 7:00 p.m. the guide told me, he wanted to attend a dance and asked if I could wait. I agreed, it was not a problem. I even attended the dance.

It wasn’t until 12:00 midnight, the scout was ready to hit the trail. Luckily the Peace Corps trained me in Texas to prepare a horse for a ride, putting on the bridle and placing the saddle on the horse.
It was a moonless night. The trail leading through the wooded areas was pitch black. My friend, the guide told me, “Don’t worry. You have only two legs. The horse has four legs.” “Thanks a lot!” was my reply.

As we rode through a stream, in total darkness, I could hear the hoofs splashing in the shallow water. Then we hit a muddy spot, the horse sinking in the mud, and in struggling to move through the mud, I was thrown off the horse. Fortunately, it was just soft mud.

Later, as we moved up a small hill, the horse pushing up the hill, the saddle strap got loose and I slipped off the horse, saddle and all. Again, good training came in handy to a young Peace Corps volunteer, me. I rode on. It seemed like an endless journey, along trails unknown, trusting a scout I had just met for the first time.

The horseback riding in San Marcos, Texas, the long treks (40 miles) in Puerto Rico, the rigorous swimming for survival, the rock climbing, the early morning calisthenics and running, the soccer competitions—all these prepared me for this moment. Here we were, two night riders determined to reach a destination without a rest stop, not even a Seven Eleven.

Seven and a half hours later, my hide battered, my arms and shoulders shaken loose, my spirit was still good. The sun had awakened, it was a fresh morning, and my guide said, “Here we are!” I said, “Muchas Gracias!” My guide headed back to Garza. He said he could do it in four hours. I got on the 8:00 a.m. bus and headed for Nicoya.

When I got home, I had enough time to shower, have a bite to each, and catch the next bus for San Jose. It was another long ride, eight more hours.

As we had planned at the meeting, we met with the government officials in San Jose. I drove the three representatives in the jeep belonging to the Association. They explained the need, how they had the land, that they would clear the overgrowth with their machetes, but needed government help for the completion of the project. The officials promised they would provide the gravel, the dump trucks, the grader. It was a cordial and successful meeting. Two months later, the landing strip was completed.

When I drove back to Garza, I stood at the landing strip, with a deep satisfaction in my soul. A group of small villages, with self-will and desire, once isolated, now had access to air flights out of their communities. In the Peace Corps, when one can tap the will of the people, to work together, to overcome a struggle, to seek the proper resource, life can be a lot better.

May 31, 2010

Listen to the Patient

Psychosocial Medicine: Thought-provoking essay
Jeremy A. Ginoza, R1 Spring 2010

Listen to the patient—he is telling you the diagnosis.
—Sir William Osler

I would sit and listen because I had to, really. I was simply an observer, along for the ride, literally. When I was a boy, I often accompanied my father, a well-loved Christian pastor, on his frequent visits to the sick and elderly in their homes. He was a minister in the United Methodist tradition, which I would come to learn as characterized by its openness and emphasis on living one’s faith in a practical way in the world.
My father, I remember, would warmly greet and reconnect with each person we visited, whether sick or well, with such ease and lightness of heart, as if we were all sitting on a porch on a Sunday afternoon together, sipping cool tea or lemonade. Then my father and I would both listen, as each person would tell us of their lives, physical or emotional struggles they had, and how they might be coping. We would listen, laugh, and empathize (my father with words, myself with respectful silence and perhaps some thoughtful facial expressions). My father would often offer a blessing of prayer, and we would wish the person well. I came away with a sense for how people could find everyday joys despite physical limitations and other tough obstacles, and how a simple visit like this could remarkably lift up and brighten someone’s day. At an early age, I also saw how much I could learn by following the advice found in an old proverb, keep your mouth shut and your ears open.
During my sophomore year in college, as my hopes and aspirations began to solidify, I settled on studying medicine. It was, I felt, the ideal career in which I could reach my fullest potential for both my skills in science and mathematics and my compassion for people. It was the final gesture of decision after years of shaking my head (at least privately) to queries of so many people as to whether I was going to follow in my father’s footsteps. I had inherited his personable demeanor and his rich, deep voice, after all.
I looked back on those experiences with my father and saw possibly the roots of my drive to study medicine. Hearing about someone’s ailments, and his or her daily struggle to cope, I wanted to do more than empathize and offer hope and prayer. I want very much to offer them the best opportunity for healing that today’s medicine can offer. What is more, though, as I reflect now on my early medical training, is that I don’t want to let go of what I learned early on from my father—a show of deep respect, humility, and care for the spiritual dimension of the person. Care in one dimension is not enough for me, and I believe this is why I find myself frustrated at times now in treating patients, much as I may have felt a bit helpless as a young boy, wondering what to say, even though I knew my place was to simply be, and to listen. Now that I am caring for patients as a resident, my foremost challenge is to develop skill at caring for the whole person, body, mind and spirit, within the time boundaries of a busy practice, and to have the wisdom to know when this is even possible.
An electronic health record offers many tools for supporting and guiding efficient patient care. One task I am pursuing now is to create an electronic template for interactions with patients that I am scheduled to see in our clinic, based on presenting complaints, including a checklist for a pertinent history and physical. I have found that the very process of doing this makes for some high-yield learning, and is helping to build the mental framework I will need to organize my thoughts and prioritize my time during the course of a busy clinic schedule.
Practice guidelines in the form of checklists and flowcharts are part of a growing trend which presents a lot to debate and consider. Sir William Osler said that the “practice of medicine is an art based on science,” and it’s worth asking if some of the art is lost in medicine when we apply standardized formulas and algorithms to a unique individual. The value of a tool is all in how it’s used, and if a chart tool could be utilized to be both thorough and time-efficient, creating space to address a patient’s multidimensional needs, then this supports a doctor’s and a patient’s bottom line.
Jazz musicians are well-recognized for their improvisational ability, to let the music flow through them with passion and freedom. A good jazz piece, though, begins with a structure, a formal composition, even, from which the improvisation emerges and then takes off. Otherwise, what you have is simply a jam session, and patient care is much more than a series of jam sessions in the pursuit of health. The art of the interaction is to have just enough structure, just enough spontaneity.
Music is great for bringing us back to listening. That, after all, is where the interaction must begin, to properly build the process of counseling and negotiating, all informed by the body of scientific evidence and reasonable standards. How to keep all this tapping to a brisk, yet unhurried, rhythm is my hopeful aspiration as I strive to be a physician worth his salt, and, when I start moving my lips, one worth listening to as well.

Little Threads

LITTLE THREADS

In a book on sermonettes for children, I found an illustration on little threads. Stretch out a single thread with both hands and break it. It is easy to do. Do it with two threads. It gets more difficult. By the fifth and sixth threads, it becomes even more difficult. This is the way it is with a lot of things.

This is true with our bad habits. Have you ever walked into a room where not a single piece of clothing has been hung? Have you been in a home where two days of dishes have been piled up on the sink? Have you gone shopping at a grocery store and found trash all over, wrappings and disposable articles of every kind dropped by uncaring, careless hands? Have you seen little children in moving cars unprotected and unbuckled? Have you wondered where the extra fifteen pounds came from? Have you heard foul words coming from the mouths of people and thought, how disgusting? Like little threads, each action, each neglect, each item, though miniscule, will build upon another. From little threads can come such bigger ones.

How often we say, “One more won’t hurt.” A puff of smoke. Another drink. A little white lie. Another mile with the gas gauge at empty. Cheating a customer, a friend, or the government. A burst of anger. Skipping an appointment. Procrastinating on paying a bill. Not admitting an error. Not locking the door. Not arriving on time. Breaking a promise. Failing to pray. Polluting the air, the water, the soil, the ocean. Not locking the gate to the swimming pool. Leaving a child unattended for three minutes. A day without exercise. A day without God.

Imagine what change can occur from so little if each builds toward one thing more, one simple correction, with one helping hand. A simple prayer. One act of kindness. Five minutes of daily exercise. Positive thoughts even for the most despised. Precaution at ATM machines, crossing a busy street, walking a dark parking, driving on high speed freeways, swimming in whirling oceans waves. Learning a lesson from every encounter. Reading one book a month rather than none. Honesty even in the smallest business transaction. Believing in oneself. Learning to trust the trustworthy, being cautious with the untrustworthy. Giving thanks for each good gift. Putting trust in God.

From so little can come so much. Life is full of little threads. In each of us, there are multitudes of threads: threads of thoughts, threads of emotions, threads of energy, threads of memories, threads of human will. Each is linked to a Center of a system, a network, and a spiritual dynamic. On these we build our habits, our character, and our lives. Imagine where we would be when we build on faith, hope, and love, all to make life better for self and for others. Everything starts with a single thread. May they be silver threads.

May 31, 2010

Why?

WHY?

A professor of philosophy had given his students an examination. The last question simply read, “Why?”

The professor passed only two of his students. One had written, “Why not?” and the other had answered, “Because.”

Some of life’s most profound questions are put in a single word, why. Why must people suffer? Why can’t I be like everyone else? Why do I have this disease? Why am I poor and unlucky? Why did mother have to die? Why am I a victim of the floods? The earthquake? The fire? Why is it that my son is missing in action? Why can’t we have a child? Why did I have to lose my job? Why was I raped? Why wasn’t I chosen? Why was I born in such dismal condition? Why can’t I choose my own death? Why?

Well, why not? We are all subject to the same. It rains on the just and the unjust. Life is not fair. There are as many circumstances as there are individuals. The law of probability just is: one out of so many will be affected no matter what it is. Nobody said life will be easy. Life is difficult. Everyone has a choice. Murphy has a point—when something can go wrong, it will. You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. You didn’t care for yourself. You were warned. You knew better, but you did nothing about it. It’s genetic. The devil lurks in dark places. It was an accident. It was mere coincidence.

Well, because. Because the world is not perfect, but the world is arriving at perfection. Because each experience has a lesson in it for us. Because God wills good for those who love God. Because when we break nature’s laws, the consequence is decay, illness, and death. Because genes hold in them blueprints of biological life, physiological tendencies, and more. Because circumstances carry in them dynamics, consequences, and results all their own. Because the human character is still being transformed from lower to higher understanding, from selfish to unselfish intentions, from human to godly perceptions. Because everything has its time, its course and its purpose.

Furthermore, there are some things we cannot know. There are some things we need not know. And there are some things we will not know. So just live life in the best way you know how. Trust in the higher power of God. Search the inner knowledge which is Spirit given. Put on the Christ Mind. And you won’t have to ask, “Why?”

May 31, 2010

Alms Giving

ALMS GIVING
By Dennis Ginoza April 17, 2010

From time to time, within us, there is an awakening, a new understanding. This occurred to me in Taxco, often known as the silver City, Mexico.

When my wife and I were on a trip through Mexico, we stopped to visit Taxco where a silver mine was discovered. The Roman Catholic Church built a cathedral over this site. Along the large square, there were many shops where souvenir items could be purchased. My wife was shopping and I was just walking along to people watch.

I came across a woman who reached out to me with her open hand, seeking alms. She was several feet away so I just by passed her and moved on. Then a man approached me, in my face, with his hand open for a handout. To satisfy the moment, I reached in my pocket and gave him a peso.

As I walked on, I happen to turn toward the woman, the one I bypassed. She had tears dripping from her eyes. I had helped the other, because he was straight forward, but not that woman. I felt inside of me the hurt I had caused by not reaching out to her in the same way. This was for me, a changing moment. Ever since then, I always carried pesos in my pocket for alms giving. I realized the point, alms giving helps the poor retain their dignity. Small as this gesture might seem, its deeper touch is sustaining the poorest in our society to retain their self-worth, their sense of dignity.

Years later, as I served the Calexico United Methodist Church located in a border town in southern California, I remembered that incident in Taxco. I was teaching a class in Spanish in Mexicali, Mexico across the border, a course entitled, “The Life and Teachings of Jesus,” to seven rehabilitated drug addicts now preparing for the Christian ministry. As I walked the streets of Mexicali to the class, I always had pesos in my pocket to give alms, especially women in the streets with their children, waiting and hoping for the smallest assistance. Little as this might seem, bothersome as it may appear, alms giving is God’s way of touching the heart of the poor.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5:1-4, Jesus teaches us to give alms, quietly, without sounding trumpets and calling attention to ourselves. He derided the hypocrites who did this in the synagogues and the streets. Jesus teaches: “But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”

This teaching goes beyond alms giving. It is intended to shed light on giving. A few years ago, as I was serving a church, I received a call from the bank president. He said, “Rev. Ginoza, I have a check here for your church, for the amount of $4,000. I asked him, “Who is it from?” He said, “I can’t tell you. It’s anonymous.” “Is it from a member or someone from the community”? “I can’t tell you,” he said. It was the week of Thanksgivng.

Before I went to the bank to receive that anonymous gift, I wrote a letter to thank that person for that generous gift and how much it was appreciated. I mentioned that this was true giving and quoted Jesus’ saying, in giving “do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing.” That gift was well needed at that time as the church had its financial needs. Till this day, I do not know the name of that anonymous giver, but God knows. A reward in heaven awaits that generous and kind giver.

What little good we share today, in the sight of God, it is long lasting and has an eternal measure. Our physical eyes cannot see the full nature of the Kingdom of God. Yet, while still living on this earth, I can tell you, I have witnessed the generosity of giving, the simple joy of having given, and the return of a greater joy that comes after giving. True giving comes from the heart. Giving without expecting anything in return has its own dynamic nature. Jesus teaches that those who have much, much more will be given them. This is a spiritual law of generosity.

To put this another way, whatever we plant will bear benefit when it is good. Whatever we give out will make a full circle. The good we share will be the good we receive. Generosity brings on generosity, kindness brings on kindness, and alms giving in God’s time brings out the true nature of God’s care for all children. The writer of Ecclesiastes also bears this out in this teaching: “Send out your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will get it back.” (Ecclesiastes 11:1)

We must remind ourselves, true giving, alms giving, anonymous giving, and simply giving in every way, must stem from the heart, its sincerity, its intention, and its expectation. The essence of this teaching is, to not seek for self, but for others. One theologian called Jesus, “a man for others.” Let us do like wise.

Changed Lives

Changed Lives
By Tim Kimmel

In 1921 Lewis Lawes became the warden of Sing Sing Prison. No prison was tougher than Sing Sing during that time. But when Warden Lawes retired some 20 years later, that prison had become a humanitarian institution. Those who studied the system said credit for the change belonged to Lawes. But when he was asked about the transformation, here’s what he said: “I owe it all to my wonderful wife, Cattherine, who is buried outside the prison walls.”

Catherine Lawes was a young mother with three small children when her husband became the warden. Everybody warned her from the beginning that she should never set foot inside the prison walls, but that didn’t stop Catherine! When the first prison basketball game was held, she went… walking into the gym with her three beautiful kids and she sat in the stands with the inmates.

Her attitude was: “My husband and I are going to take care of these men and I believe they will take care of me! I don’t have to worry!”

She insisted on getting acquainted with them and their record. She discovered one convicted murderer was blind so she paid him a visit. Holding his hand in hers she said, “Do you read Braille?”

“What’s Braille?” he asked. Then she taught him how to read. Years later he would weep in love for her.

Later, Catherine found a deaf-mute in prison. She went to school to learn how to use sign language. Many said that Catherine Lawes was the body of Jesus that came alive again in Sing Sing from 1921 to 1937.

Then, she was killed in a car accident. The next morning Lewis Lawes didn’t come to work, so the acting warden took his place. It seemed almost instantly that the prison knew something was wrong.

The following day, her body was resting in a casket in her home, three-quarters of a mile from prison. As the acting warden took his early morning walk he was shocked to see a large crowd of the toughest, hardest-looking criminals gathered like a herd of animals at the main gate. He came closer and noted tears of grief and sadness. He knew how much they loved Catherine. He turned and faced the men, “All right, men, you can go. Just be sure and check in tonight!” Then he opened the gate and a parade of criminals walked, without a guard, the three-quarters of a mile to stand in line to pay their final respects to Catherine Lawes. And every one of them checked back in.

Reference: Stories for the Heart, compiled by Alice Gray, pp. 54-55
Questar Publishers, Inc. 1996

Baseball Spring Training in Arizona

BASEBALL SPRING TRAINING IN ARIZONA

February 28, 2010, by Dennis Ginoza

When I first thought about coming to Arizona to watch the San Diego Padres in their spring training, my knowledge about it was very limited. My! Have I learned a lot.

I learned that the Padres share their Peoria Complex at 83rd Avenue with the Seattle Mariners. That was just the beginning of my learning. There are in total fifteen teams in eleven different sports complexes in Arizona. They are as follows:

Camelback Ranch-Glendale 16101 North 83rd Avenue, Peoria
Los Angeles Dodgers & Chicago White Sox

Goodyear Ball Park, 1933 South Ballpark Way, Goodyear
Cincinnatti Reds & Cleveland Indians

Corbett Field, 3400 East Camino Campestre, Tucson
Colorado Rockies

Hohokam Park 1235 North Center Street, Mesa
Chicago Cubs

Maryvale Baseball Park3600 North 51st Avenue, Phoenix
Milwaukee Brewers

Peoria Sports Complex 16101 North 83rd Avenue, Peoria
San Diego Padres & Seattle Mariners

Phoenix Municipal Stadium 5999 East Van Buren, Phoenix
Oakland Athletics

Scottsdale Stadium 7408 East Osborn Road, Scottsdale
San Francisco Giants

Surprise Stadium15960 North Bullard, Surprise
Kansas City Royals, Texas Rangers

Tempe Diablo Stadium 2200 West Alameda Drive, Tempe
California Angels

Tucson Electric Park 2500 East Ajo Way, Tucson
Arizona Diamond Backs

Each of these sports complexes have multiples fields for training with one stadium for games played in the Cactus League. They are beautiful fields with green grass, large parking areas, athletic sport shops, indoor batting cages, pitching areas, administrative offices, and other facilities.

In the first few days of visiting the Padres, I gained new information. The early players that arrive are pitchers and catchers and coaches. Several days later, the full staff arrive, numbering some 70 plus players, many minor leaguers here for tryouts, to be observed and having the opportunity to train and perform with hopes to move up in the Big League. When the Cactus League begins, the teams will carry a roster of 40 players and when the Major League season begins, the roster will be set at 25 players.

Every day, I encountered someone new, a sports fan who made it to Arizona to follow his or her favorite team. These interactions added to my excitement and to the dynamic of the pre-season preparation. When I walked over to the Mariners spring training, the parking lot was full of cars, fans who support their team in the most enthusiastic way. I asked several people why this is so. I got several answers. “We love our Mariners.” “We come from wet, snow country.” Also, I observed, one Mariner was followed due to his celebrity status. On Ichiro Suzuki, one fan told me, “I love watching him. He has the best work ethic.” There were ten cameras with multiple crews of Japanese media. Whenever Ichiro moved to another part of the complex, the cameras followed him. There were two others: Ken Griffey, Jr., known for his power, son of Cincinnati Reds Ken Griffey and Cliff Lee, a pitcher who helped Philadlphia win the World Series in 2008 and he had just joined the Mariners.

I caught the Mariner excitement. I got me a baseball for $10.00 with the markings, “Seattle Mariners.” I hurried to a gathered crowd waiting to get an autograph. I had kept my Padre baseball in my right pocket, now the Mariner ball in my left hand. It was pitcher Felix Hernandez who was runner up for the Cy Young Award in 2009. I told him, “I am a new Mariner fan from San Diego.” He smiled as he signed his autograph. This was my first day at Arizona Spring Training.

My experience began to move toward different and interesting interactions. People are friendly, they all love baseball, and I found a comfort zone. One lady from Washington state told me about her excitement over a young player who led the Oregon State baseball team to two NCAA championships, in the College World Series held in Omaha, Nebraska.

His name is Mitch Canham, a superb catcher and hitter. He just lost his mother. Mitch caught the fascination of this fan. “Besides,” she told me, “he is good looking.” I later found out, Mitch is with the Padres, not the Mariners. As he walked from the field toward the hitting cages, I got Mitch to sign my Padres Ball. I wished him well.

On the second day, I walked up to the fence where the Padres were batting. I met Luis Fernandez. He told me, “I played in the Little World Series in Williamsport for Venezuela in 1977.” Wow! That was exciting. “It was!” he said. I told him, I wanted to get to Williamsport, but I only got half way. I told him I played on the Pony League Team from Maui, that won the state championship in Hawaii and played in the regional tournament in La Mesa California. We lost there, but I got half way to Williamsport. The love of baseball stays in you for a long time.

Luis is in business where he transports equipment and personal belongings for major league players. One of his clients is Oscar Salazar, infielder from Venezuela now with the Padres. Luis said to me, “If you wait, I’ll introduce you to Oscar.” He did. He said, “Oscar, I want you to meet my friend Dennis.” Oscar shook my hand, signed my Padres baseball and I had my photo taken with him.” What a day! Luis told me, one of his good friends is Luis Aparicio who played for the Chicago Cubs and now resides in Venezuela. Again I was impressed. Luis Rodriguez lives with his family in Florida.

One day, at the Padres complex, I met John B., a staff member working at the gates to keep order and help move the fans. He told me how he used to visit Ebbets Field and watch the Brooklyn Dodgers. That was a conversation all its own as I was a Brooklyn fan as a young boy in Hawaii. I asked John, “How did you get this job?” “I applied for it,” he said. This year they hired thirteen new workers and they work for a month and a half. Sounds like a neat job.

By now, I caught the gist of how things work. I would visit the Mariners and watch them practice. Then I would watch the Padres work out, or vice versa. I found where I needed to be where the players would sign their autographs. I got autographs of manager Bud Black, San Diego Padres, Tony Gwynn Jr. son of Tony Gwynn, one of San Diego’s favorite sons; Jerry Hairston who just joined the Padres from the New York Yankees. He and his brother Scott are now two brothers on the Padres.

On Saturday, it was Fan Fest Day at Peoria Sports Complex. The Mariners took the field for the first two hours, 9:00 to 11:00 a.m., hitting, pitching, fielding as the fans watched from the stands. Hot dogs were not free, but for $5.00, you got the super deal, a hot dog, chips, and a drink. From 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. the Padres took the field and did their batting and routines as well. Ken Griffey and Ichiro Suzuki of the Mariners were knocking the ball out of the park. Then Padres Kyle Blanks was hitting homeruns as was Dusty Ryan, catcher and power hitter who came from Detroit.

At the fence behind home plate I met a young man named Darryl from Georgia. He was not a Braves fan. Surprised, I asked “Why?” When they traded power hitter Dale Murphy, he gave up on the Braves and became a Mets fan. I laughed because that’s what happened to me. I too gave up on the Dodgers when they traded Steve Garvey to the Padres. I became a Padres fan. Baseball can be a funny game. Loyalties change. Darryl told me where I can best be to catch the players for their autographs. I got more autographs including infielder, Chone Figgins, Mariners. From my right pocket I would get my Padres ball and got pitchers Luis Perdomo, Cesar Carillo; and outfielder Milton Bradley now with the Mariners.

If there is a baseball heaven, it’s in Arizona. There’s more baseball here than you have time for. And that’s the point. This is the place for those who love the game, who follow the players, who know what loyalty means. Of all the teams, Chicago draws more fans than any team; the Mariners stand a close second. They come in bus loads. Plus, Chicago's winter is a good reason to spend time in Arizona. At the Cubs field I saw that Greg Maddox is now on the coaching staff.

At the Fan Fest, Sylvia and learned that a college game was to follow at 2:00 p.m. The University of Kansas and Gonzaga were playing. I stuck around. I went over to the left field stands to watch the Kansas players warm up. This led to another interesting encounter.

A woman came by. I asked her, “Are you staff support or a mother?” “My son is in on the team,” she said. “He’s number 5, a first baseman, a sophomore.” Zach Elgie played for a high school in North Dakota. In his senior year, he hit 35 homeruns. The scouts came out to watch him. He was drafted by the Oakland A’s. The agent came to his home, offered him a bonus of $100,000. Zach thought about it. “How long does it take to make it to the majors?" He was told, “Nine years.” He decided to play college ball and enrolled at the University of Kansas, and get his degree first. His mother said, “That was a good decision.” There’s more to this story. In baseball, there is an excitement, but also a reality. It’s a tough business, and as Luis Rodriguez told me earlier, “It is a money business.” Not everyone makes it in this game.

In professional baseball, the beginning salary is $400,000. That is what I discovered with the Mariners and the Padres, in the year 2009. Ichiro Suzuki received $18 million. At the fence, as I talked to Luis from Argentina and Larry Rizzo who played in a traveling team in San Diego, all of us who, at one time shared a dream, and Larry said, “If I could play for two years and earn $400,000 each year, I could retire.” We all laughed as another day at the ball park came to a close.

When Kevin Costner’s Field of Dreams was released, it gave baseball in America a boost. For some, playing in the majors is a dream we all shared at one time, especially as little kids, and for others, it is a game that is still America’s past time.

Let me share another perspective. As I see the game of baseball in the larger perspective of life, especially in fielding faith, it makes me think of the day I was in the living room of Pam Chodola, at her daughter’s graduation lunch. Pam is the daughter of Duke Snider who played for the Dodgers in Brooklyn and in Los Angeles. I was having a conversation with Duke. It came to the topic about faith and serving God. Duke said to me, “Isn’t that what we are all about? Serving God.” Those words have left on me a lasting mark. So as one game ends, a New Game begins.

The Peace Corps Experience

Have you ever thought of joining the Peace? Why? You might ask. That's a good point to begin.

I did and it changed my life.

The Peace Corps today has served in 139 host countries. Some 200,000 have lived in far away countries ever since President John F. Kennedy laid before us a challenge and a vision. I caught that vision and optism. I wanted to change the world.

You are asked to give 27 months of your time to serve, to help, to learn another language, to assist in a number of areas: education, health and HIVAIDs, business development, environment, agriculture, youth development, etc.

The volunteers serve all over the world: Africa 37%, Latin America 24%, Asia 7%, North Africa/Middle East 4%, Pacific Islands 4%, Caribbean 4%.

Congress recently approved a budget of $400 million for the year 2010. An increase from $340 million in 2009.

The Peace Corps Director in Washington is Aaron S. Williams who had served in the Dominican Republic, 1967-1970.

For information, call the toll free number: 800-424-8580. March is Peace Corps month.

My Brief Story

Right after I graduated from college in Iowa, I joined the Peace Corps and with 47 others, trained at Southwest Texas State College in San Marcos, Texas. We studied Spanish for four hours every morning, were trained in history and culture of Costa Rica, a Central American nation. We were introduced to riding horses: first to prepare them, brush them, get them bridled and saddled, then rode them. We played soccer, a popular sport in Latin America.

Our training was in "Accion Comunal," Community Action. For two months we trained in Texas, and six weeks in Puerto Rico. It was a physical training, climbing rocks, learning a drown proof method in swimming, and two hours of Spanish. The best way to learn a language is by total immersion. Then we were in the field. I was assigned to a 4-S program (4-H in America).

I served in Costa Rica from 1965-1967. My assignment was the Nicoya Development Association. We helped communities develop leadership, plan self-help projects such as building a water system, a health center. A major project of the Association was to work with four municipalities and three American engineers helped train students to operate heavy machinery and build impact roads.

In Peace Corps training, we were told, "Don't do anything major until you have been in the country for six months." By then you'll have developed language proficiency. Also, until you have the trust of the people, nothing will happen. This was good advice.

What I found is that, people are people wherever you are. We share a common humanity. Until you walk in the shoes of another people, you will never understand them. Speaking the language is an essential bridge to understanding and relationship.

After a year, one of the high school teachers approached me and said, "Senor Ginoza, my wife and I want you to have dinner with us." At dinner, he explained, at first they were apprehensive to invite me to their home. They felt it was not good enough, not comparable to American homes. Now they felt comfortable with me. Then he said, "If you want to borrow my motorcycle to visit the towns, just let me know." This was heart warming and a new bridge. We had a delightful dinner. I did borrow his motorcycle.

I had some wonderful experiences, some adventurous, some productive, some interesting, some close calls. Later I will write more. I remain, Peace Corps Volunteer, Costa IV.

Easter: Like Ships at Sea

We are like ships that leave familiar harbors to explore new lands, new horizons, and new opportunities. But like ships we face dangers of getting lost in the storms at sea or simply losing touch with where we came from. Dangers lurk at the edge.

Each of us has had a beginning. As children we are kept close to home by parental direction. When raised with caution, stability, and security, we keep close to those who have given us life and a continuing support system. However, we each have in us Adam's wayward seed.

Until we come of age, we shall walk that precarious edge. Curiosity will put us into the danger zone. Bravery can drive us to the point of self-injury. Weakness will make us subject to destructive forces indiscriminately. Ignorance and innocence will cause us to be vulnerable to anything and everything that exists out there. Mental frenzy will keep us confused and unprotected in a self-aggrandizing world.

For each of us, ready or not, the world awaits us. It beckons us to come like the unexplored forest, the city on a hill, or a distant shore.

The time will come when each must move on. Today we move to the Easter experience and from the Easter experience, the most remarkable event in history. We make this our truth claim. We build upon it our faith. We open our eyes to the risen Christ who set in motion the Christian movement of which we are a part.

Can we now move on without losing sight of our faith? Secular forms lure us, disbelief runs rampant in the streets, habits grip us again like webs, and worldly needs preoccupy us once again. But I say, hold dear to the Resurrection. It is the tipping point of my faith, our faith, and our future. God's power remains with us and is there for our asking. Move on but never from this Truth. Jesus Christ I do proclaim.