Brett's Discernment

I love my family, and I am lucky enough to have come up in an amazing, loving hilarious family. My dad has been on a vendetta against the groundhogs which live in the back pasture. Now my family is not a hunting family. My brother is interested in guns w/his military interests. But my family is never one to keep a "real" firearm or ever hunt. But my dad got his pellet gun back when there was some "varmint" back near the dam/former-creek area, and had never really shot anything. Until these groundhogs. They've apparently dug huge holes in the pasture, which could stall out the mower or hurt someone if they walked out there. So. . . he's done in four. And characteristically, he's giddy like a kid about it. At first I was kind of angry he was shooting them, especially because that part of the pasture isn't realy being used right now. So he's pretty proud of this. . . My parents are good people, I swear. This picture also makes me miss home, having a yard, etc. My mom is one of my best friends, though I still don't tell her everything. I have always been a Daddy's girl but our relationship has widened and deepened a lot over recent years. My favorite moment between the two of us was giving him a bible for Christmas one year recently, and then since having him really read it and starting to talk more about faith. It's a good thing. This section of a poem by Walter Benton is from This is My Beloved, which is a series of poetic journal entries to his lover. They are beautiful. This one though, struck a chord with me in reflecting my relationship with the Lord.

Because hate is legislated written into the primer and the testament shot into
our blood and brain like vaccine or vitamins because our day is of time, of
hours and the clock-hand turns, closes the circle upon us and black timeless
night sucks us in like quicksand, receives us totally without a raincheck or
a parachute, a key to heaven or the last long look
I need love more than ever now...I need your love.
I need love more than hope or money, wisdom or a drink.

Isn't that cool?

Amen.