Story: Raising Children

Whenever your children are out of control, you can take comfort from the thought that even God’s omnipotence did not extend to His own children.

After creating heaven and earth, God created Adam and Eve.  And the first thing he said was, “DON’T!”

—“Don’t what?” Adam replied.

—“Don’t eat the forbidden fruit.” God said.

—“Forbidden fruit?  We have forbidden fruit?  Hey Eve…we have forbidden fruit!”

—“No Way!”

—“Yes way!”

—“Do NOT eat the fruit! “ said God.

—“Why?”

—“Because I am your Father and I said so! “ God replied, wondering why He hadn’t stopped creation after making the elephants.

A few minutes later, God saw His children having an apple break and He was ticked!

—“Didn’t I tell you not to eat the fruit? “ God asked.

—“Uh huh,” Adam replied.

—“Then why did you? “ said the Father.

—“I don’t know,” said Eve.

—”She started it! “ Adam said.

—“Did not! “

—“Did too! “

—“DID NOT! “

Having had it with the two of them, God’s punishment was that Adam and Eve should have children of their own.

Thus the pattern was set and it has never changed.

But there is reassurance in the story!

If you have persistently and lovingly tried to give children wisdom and they haven’t taken it, don’t be hard on yourself. If God had trouble raising children, what makes you think it would be a piece of cake for you?

Good Day! 

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Mending the Nets

Fishermen have been a respected community for thousands of years for their honest and hard work.  When Jesus Christ decided to select his closest followers, he went to a fishing village to choose them.  The Holy Book includes several stories about Jesus and his apostles involved in fishing activities on the Sea of Gallilee.

The Synoptic gospels of Mark (1:14-20), Matthew (4:18-22), and Luke (5:1-11) describe how Jesus recruited four of his  apostles from the shores of Lake Galilee: the fishermen Simon and his brother Andrew and the brothers John and James.

One of Jesus famous teaching episodes, the Sermon on the Mount, was given on a hill overlooking the lake while many of his miracles also occurred here including his walking on water, calming a storm, and his feeding five thousand people at Tabgha.

The fish was a symbol of Christianity when the early Christians were forced to go underground to protect themselves from the constant attacks of the Romans.

During my recent visit to a humble fishing cooperative at the entrance of the Panama Canal, I observed an elder fisherman busy mending a dark net.  I asked for his permission to take a couple of pictures while he was doing his job.  He smiled faintly, mumbled a polite “yes”, and continued repairing his net.

These are the pictures which came out of my small Canon Birthday camera.  Here we go.

Photograph of an elder fisherman fixing his net at a small cooperative on the Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal. Take notice that the net has the shape of a cross. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

Photograph of Jaime, the fisherman, concentrated on his work sitting on top of a hard surface. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

I noticed that his cap had a legend that read, "Puente de las Americas" (Bridge of the Americas), and included a small Panama flag. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

While I observed this hard working man doing him job, I thought how little has changed since the early days of the fishermen at Lake Gaililee. For this man fishing is his life just like it was during biblical times. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

Yep, fishermen are hard working people involved in an honest profession.  It has been this way for thousands of years.  Good Day.

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Photograph of the Day: Clothes Drying in the Sun

Photograph of clothes drying in the sun at a modest fishing co-op on the eastern bank of the Panama Canal. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

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