Living Proof

Yesterday, I was speaking to an atheist and I asked her, "Respectfully, why do you focus and write so much about something you don't even believe in?" And she gave me an answer I didn't expect. She wasn't angry, she wasn't trying to question her 2% of "what if there's a god" -- she was simply fed up with religious people hurting anyone who fails to fall in line with their exact beliefs. The mere fact that most religious folks will say "my" religion and "my" god as well as "believe what I believe or you're going to hell" is all associated with their ego. The ego thrives on being superior above all those who don't think, act or believe as they do. The ego needs to be "right" and the ego needs to tell their "truth" -- even if there are no factual bases on their "truth". It's just a faith built system that people feel comfortable believing in. Even though I believe with all my

Years ago, I learned more about God through religion classes. They taught me about Jesus and all of the stories that were in the Bible. I learned about the Ten Commandments and of course, "right" from "wrong". I went through communion and confirmation, mostly robotically and merely doing it because I had to. But I already knew God, (so I thought) and from what my mom taught me. Back then, I only thought there was one God that was believed both by Christians and Jews. I didn't know about any other religion besides the rule of not worshipping any other gods other than my "own". So "my" religion became my "truth" and as hard as I tried to obey every command, I found out that I was only human...like everybody else. As I grew older, I didn't realize there were more "truths" within one religion. I didn't understand why some Christians believed "this" while others believed "that". There were division

With all of the wonderful clichés and platitudes that I can possibly throw at you like, "Life's too short," "Enjoy the moment," or even, "Now is the only time you have," -- it's become more of an empty mantra than it is an actual practice. We seem to plaster them up all over our Facebook walls and Twitter accounts, and most have yet to even use the advice that was given. I remember my wife had her parents over for dinner. I cooked a nice dinner and we were enjoying our conversation afterwards on the couch. I had placed all the dishes back into the kitchen and then headed back into the living area to chitchat over wine. Madelene decided to go back into the kitchen to wash the dishes and then come back out to talk with her parents, who she rarely sees. I took notice because her absence was felt, so I took it upon myself to walk inside the kitchen area and said, "The dishes can wait. Your parents are leaving soon. Talk to them." It was at

When I was little, I used to sit under this Japanese fir tree with a huge blanket and listen to my music. It was my favorite spot -- still is. Every single time I hear "The Logical Song", it reminds me of my favorite place in the world. For some reason, that song brings me comfort because it reminds me of a time when there wasn't any worry, fear, anxiety, stress or depression. I was genuinely happy. The words as I hear them today still resonate with me: "When I was young, it seemed that life was so wonderful, a miracle, oh it was beautiful, magical. And all the birds in the trees, well they'd be singing so happily, joyfully, playfully watching me." As a kid, I rarely listened to lyrics. It's the tune that brings back the nostalgic memories. As I grew older, I began to listen to the lyrics a bit more. It struck me that this song, these lyrics, were my life. And although I was never "sent away" -- the words still resonate with my being an adult

There are so many beliefs and non-beliefs out there in this world. Some pray to Jesus, some pray to Allah, some lean toward Buddhism while others simply have no one to pray to at all. Have you ever had the chance to speak to an atheist before -- I mean, an "active" atheist who pursues it like a religion? I've come across quite a few and had a less than desirable experience with them, only because they would say things like, I wasn't intelligent enough to realize that my God is just a big fairytale. I get it, but the insults just kept trickling in. One gentleman happened to be a former priest. To me, for someone to actively pursue a role in atheism tells me that there is still some small percentage of "what if" -- perhaps, "What if I'm wrong" type of questioning. To me, that's a very scary place to be in. But then, years later, I met (not in person) a writer named, Emily on Periscope who does these brilliant broadcasts all about atheism. I

I'll be the first one to admit I'm batshit crazy, but being a lesbian has nothing to do with that whatsoever. I have come across several Christian conservatives who were so homophobic, that they claimed that homosexuality is a psychological disorder. I have also heard the same with our transgender community being "psychologically deranged". Let me ask you this: the time and energy it takes to even hate on a particular group speaks volumes itself. Why would a Christian conservative be so intensely focused on homosexuality, that they feel the need to claim it's a mental disorder? I've even heard some Christians state that homophobia doesn't mean a "fear of homosexuals". You can read that again if you want. When Christians are faced with a threatening nature to their own very shortcoming, they get pushed into a corner and then lash out. I truly and sincerely believe with all my heart that homophobic behavior is a result of being a closet homosexua

Right off the bat, I just want to state that I'm a Christian. I believe in the trinity: God, the Son and the Holy Spirit. My relationship with God is personal and beautiful. No one can tell me otherwise. Many Christians have different interpretations of what "Jesus" is like -- of what "GOD" is like and of course, what the Scriptures mean in the Bible. Some people believe that if you are not reading the King James version of the Bible, then you are being misguided and getting a misinterpretation of God's words. Many people like myself prefer the New Living Testament (NLV) so that I'm not sifting through Old English texts, in hopes of reading it correctly. Between the thousands of translations, interpretations as well as misunderstandings and don't forget, the cherry picked passages to "set things in order" by conservatives -- it can get pretty frustrating when it comes to "religion". The Bible itself can appear as a scary book wi

As I sit here typing, I'm listening to the names being read off by loved ones of those who died on 9-11. They do this every year at the same time. They remember the day and time right down to the minutes and seconds. I remember it too. It was such a picture perfect day outside too. I didn't want to go to work. I sat at my desk trapped by my managers because we controlled the phone systems that went down on that day. All of our phone lines were owned by ATT&T which were located right under the World Trade Center. We couldn't call in or out -- and we were the local phone company. The entire place was silent with the occasional, "Oh my God," and the announcement of the second plane that hit. We were also advised that there were more planes that were unaccounted for. We were told to remain put. We were then told that New York was under attack. My wife had Tuesdays off. She was home unable to contact me. I remember wishing that I was with her. What if I never see