...We would perish if change did not touch our lives in some way. But there are times when a little bit of change goes a long way. While change is a good thing, it is constancy and familiarity that feed our souls and nourish our spirits as well. What enables us to realize and grasp wisdom, awareness, humility and love is also that which we see, hear, taste, smell and do on a daily basis.

If we creatures of habit ever step beyond the familiar and into the unknown, there is comfort in knowing our routines await our return should we find the unfamiliar less than we wished for, hoped for or desired. All of God’s creatures have familiar holes along side the house where they can return to if necessary. Where they can “waller” in comfort...

Chapter 8
Greater Than, Less Than

...I never thought I would catch on to the "greater than" and "less than" arithmetic lessons Mrs. Ruby Smith taught in the second grade. I even had a hard time drawing the arrows. When I tried diagramming mathematical relationships, I simply lost all notion of numeric values as they related to one another. I have since mastered the sign language of arithmetic and understand perfectly the relationship between most sets of numbers. However, when it comes to people, it’s 1971 all over again and I’m sitting in the front seat of the second row in Mrs. Smith’s class, scratching , my head…

…it seems as though inequality is inherent in our society. Is it just human nature? Since the beginning of time, the world has witnessed both nations and neighbors wage war over differences in religion, differences in notions of sovereignty, differences in color, and just plain differences. One side is different than the other. One side is greater than. I’m just curious. Is it just me or has the concept of "greater than or equal to" never occurred to anyone else? I know the idea was taught in my third grade class. Just ask Mrs. Shirley Johnson. She ought to know. She was my third grade teacher. And she’s my mama...