On Gods, Goddesses, and Religion

Even when we were dwelling in caves, humans knew they weren't in control of the elements. A flash flood could wipe away their home and destroy their food supply. Since humans hate not being in control, they invented gods to thank when the weather was fine and the fish plentiful, and when conditions failed to meet expectations, a god to blame. There were river gods, and earth gods, and sun gods, and well, a god for everything that impacted daily life. Monoliths were built to honor these gods, and sacrifices made depending on the god. One horrible god named Molech, or Baal, or Ashtoreth demanded the sacrifice of the firstborn son of every woman. Every year these babies were brought to an altar, where they were rolled into a huge fire. Ever heard the story of a firstborn son demanded as a sacrifice? It originated here.

Thousands of years passed, until a desert people decided that there was only one god, and his name was El. And these people, so sure they were right, still managed to live peacefully for the most part amongst the worshippers of multiple deities. Another thousand years, and El morphed into El-Shaddai, then Shaddai, then Yahweh, then YHWH, or the god that shall not be named. Still, the Hebrews lived peacefully for the most part among followers of other gods. When the Greeks and Romans introduced yet another set of gods, the Hebrews for the most part accommodated whoever was in charge.

Then a new sect was born - followers of a Jewish rabbi who traveled around the area teaching the Jewish faith, but without all the strict laws in place at the time, like stoning a married woman to death if she was raped if she didn't cry out, since women are known to entice men. The followers of this new Jewish sect were hunted, killed, and exiled by folks like the Romans, who had their own gods. This new religion wouldn't have taken off except for one woman. Two hundred fifty years after Jesus died, a Turkish innkeeper named Flavia Julia Helena met a Roman soldier and had a son. That son became the new Caesar, the latest in a line of Roman emperors. Helena became a follower of Jesus, and converted her son. Constantine sent her to Palestine to figure out where the events of Jesus' life took place, because no one really remembered. So Helena traveled through the region, and when she figured this must be the place where Jesus was buried, a stake went in the ground and a basilica built around it. This piece of wood must be the cross that he was crucified on, so pooph!, it was named the true cross, and splinters of it sent to the new Christian basilicas. The sites Christian tourists worship at today in Israel were determined to be accurate based on the intuition of one woman.

This new religion, Christianity, believed in the same god as the Jews, but with the twist that Jesus died to save them from their sins, and was resurrected into heaven to sit alongside El/Shaddai/YHWH. Believing their religion to be superior, they often would force the Jews to either convert or die. Those who escaped, along with the town's pagans, would start over in a new place, only to be killed or exiled by the next religion that came through. But Christianity was rapidly splintering into different sects too, over one question. Was Jesus born a god who became man and then was resurrected to become a god again, or was he born a man, died a man, and was "adopted" by God as his favorite? Or was he both human and divine the entire time? One side became the Eastern Orthodox, another the Roman Orthodox. The Gnostics and Nestorians, Adamists, Thomasines, and Manichists among many other Christian sects were hounded out of existence.

And then there was Muhammed. 500 years after the birth of Jesus, he confirmed that there was one god, and it was the god of the Jews, and Jesus was his prophet. But there were still too many rules in either religion, so he rewrote them to make them even simpler to follow. A few years after his death, Islam too splintered into different sects depending which leader they believed was the true successor of Muhammed. His followers, again believing that they were the only correct faith left the desert to spread their religion, destroying whole cities in the process, and capturing the Jewish city of Jerusalem, which they declared theirs. Which led the Catholics to declare the Crusades to recapture Jerusalem, take back the land and drive out the infidels. 

Centuries of war over who was right. Hating anyone that didn't belong to the same religion, or at best thinking they were never as good. The Jews of Israel are still at war with the Muslims of Palestine. Roman Catholics look down on Protestants for their lack of ritual, and like to justify being better than the Jews based on the story that the Jews killed their messiah, Jesus. Baptists insist that, unless you proclaim Jesus as your savior and are baptized in their church, you are damned to everlasting torment in hell. Coincidently a fiery place, much like where the god Molech resides. 

A version of Christianity in the US is all white, straight, and male dominated, where women are subservient to men in all matters, including their healthcare. They want the Ten Commandments to be placed in all government buildings because we're a "Christian nation" (we're not, by the way.) At least they're honest about it. They want power. Many others who claim to be Christian will say that they love everyone as Jesus commanded, but condemn "the sin" of being born gay or transgender, and they certainly don't want THOSE people in their church. They'll love the undocumented immigrant, the drug addicted, the homeless, the mentally ill, the trans kids, but won't help pay for school lunches, better health care, or housing for the homeless. They'll support charities that feed the starving children in Ethiopia, but those starving children better not think they can come here and attend the same school as their children. 

I know too much about the history of gods to believe that any religion has it right. I've known really good people who have been Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, or Lutheran. I've also known some really nasty people in all religions, or no religion at all. In truth, no one really knows if there is a higher power or not, or what happens to us when we die. And this scares people to death. Ancient mariners were certain that the earth was flat and that there were sea monsters and sirens near the edge. Science proved that the earth was round, and continues to solve some of the biggest puzzles humans needed supreme beings to explain. But when science contradicts religion, trouble ensues. How can you reconcile the science that says that humans evolved over millions of years, and our most recent ancestors were apes, with the bible story of Adam and Eve? You can't. So you splinter off to form yet another religion or religious sect that insists you are right and science is wrong.

Perhaps some day scientists will discover not just how big the universe is, but who made it. But even then, believers in Allah, Jehovah, Jesus, Buddha, Isis, Baal, Zeus, Thor, or Chauntea (the druid's Mother Earth) will insist that their god is the only god, and go to war with anyone who says different.

I'm okay not knowing the mysteries of the universe, but if, after death, God introduces herself as Loretta, who used to be known as Larry, I'm good with that.

Instant Karma

Part of my treatment for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis is twice a week therapy called myofascial release.  During that hour-long session, I'm either flat on my back or stomach with the therapist manipulating my fascia in the areas that hurt that week.  I've gotten to know my therapist quite well the last 2 months, and we talk about a wide variety of subjects.  

Today, I told her I was going to Aldi after our session to do my weekly grocery shopping.  "Shoot", I said, "I don't have a quarter for the shopping cart".  I explained to her since she's never been to Aldi (!!) that you put a quarter in a cart to unlock the chain that holds it to the other carts, and when you're done shopping you put the chain back on in order to get your quarter back.  Last week as I was putting my cart back after shopping a lady asked if she could have my cart since she had no money, only food stamps.  Of course I gave it to her, and with it, my quarter!

When I got to Aldi, I found a quarter buried at the bottom of my purse and approached the cart rack.  "Here you go", said someone as they pushed their cart to me.  

"Don't you want your quarter?" I asked.  

"Nope, just passing it on."

Such a small kindness, and yet that stranger made my day.  I only hope that I did the same for the lady I gave my cart to last week.

Kindness - pass it on.

My Covid Story Part Deux

Fully vaccinated in March, in a county whose residents are 99% vaccinated, and I still got Covid in August.  Probably from the hospital phlebotomist with "allergies" during a routing blood draw 5 days prior, but could have been from anyone.  My area teems with out of town/state tourists during the summer, so it's the luck of the draw who you come in contact with.  Somewhere, someone who was unvaccinated started the chain that led to me.  Lucky me.

My case was mild thanks to the vaccine; no fever, just sinus infection like symptoms.

Last week I scheduled an appointment with my doc to talk about symptoms I was having with joint and muscle pain, sleep issues, and constant bone weary exhaustion.  I had read up on the symptoms, and asked her if I could have Fibromyalgia (now known as Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, or ME/CFS). 

"It's a diagnosis of exclusion and so we need to test you for other diseases to rule them out first.  But if those are ruled out, then yes, I think you have it based on your symptoms."

,Before I left that day, my doctor told me that providers in the area were seeing a large number of cases like mine after Covid, and there was even a group in Fargo working on support for those of us with Long Covid.  She frankly said, "we don't know how long this will last, or if it will ever go away".

Two days later, the other potential reasons for my symptoms were ruled out through blood tests and an x-ray.  My knee?  Osteoarthritis in all 3 compartments, which could be explained by my age I guess.  

So let's talk about the pain first.  ME is characterized by pain on both sides of the body, both upper and lower torso.  I have join pain in my jaw, neck, hips, hands, feet, and of course my left knee.  Muscle pain in my shoulders, sometimes my forearm, my calves, and sometimes in places I'd swear there's no muscle at all (especially at night).  ME is neurological, and my brain feels pain ordinary people don't.  Last week I had permanent dental crowns placed, and the dentist had to repeat the Novocain shots 4 times to get me numb enough to get the temporary crowns off.

Less talked about is the gastro-intestinal issues that often accompany ME.  Painful gassiness, diarrhea, bloating, and nausea out of the blue.  Low grade fever is another lovely companion to the illness.  Sunday I awoke from a nap shivering, and my temp was close to 101.  Tylenol took care of it, and no fever the next day.  

I learned that 5-HTP has helped others, so I started taking it, and with the blessing of my doctor, discontinued taking the statin another provider had prescribed.  My doctor offered standard treatment drugs like gabapentin, Cymbalta, or Lyrica, but I knew that I didn't want to depend on meds if I could help it, so 5-HTP, Tylenol, and Naproxen are my companions for now.  And my pain is better - not gone, but better.  My visits to physical therapy over the past couple of years must have flagged something, because I was invited to join a "pain study", where I'm learning techniques to partially close the pain gateway to my brain.  Progressive relaxation, pleasant imagery, scheduling activity to avoid pain, that sort of thing.  I'll have my first Myofascial Release treatment next week, which is like a probing massage where the therapist finds the tight muscles and works to "release them".  

The other side of the coin is CFS, or Chronic Fatigue.  That one has been harder for me.  I can sleep 12 or 13 hours, get out of bed, have coffee, and crawl right back in for another 2 hours.  No matter how much sleep I get I feel like I've been awake for 24 hours straight.  Alternate nights I can't seem to sleep at all, tossing and turning and feeling slightly anxious for no reason. And brain fog makes me feel like I'm only half there.  

I suspect that I've had ME/CFS for years.  I've had periods of my life with similar symptoms, which I'd deal with just by toughing it out, and eventually my symptoms would ease for awhile.  But I never had them to the degree I do since Covid.  It's suspected that viruses activate the disorder, and can cause flares.  So I'm not done with Covid yet apparently - it's a gift that keeps on giving.

On Fear

fear

/ˈfir/

Learn to pronounce

noun

1. an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat.

   "he is prey to irrational fears"

verb

1. be afraid of (someone or something) as likely to be dangerous, painful, or threatening.

   "farmers fear that they will lose business"

If, while walking in the woods, I encountered a bear, I'd be fearful, because facts indicate it's much bigger than me and has ginormous claws.  That's reasonable, even though it's extremely rare for a bear to attack a human.  If I were in an area where bears frequented I might even carry bear spray with me.

If I were about to jump out of a plane, I'd be afraid.  That fear would make me ensure that my parachute was packed correctly.  If there was a 1% chance that the parachute wasn't packed right, I wouldn't jump. 

Fear can be a good thing when it's rational.  If there's a possibility of what we fear happening, we can plan for it.  

Of course there are irrational fears too.  If my 'fight or flight' instinct kicks in when presented with a picture of a bear, that's irrational, even though my body feels a shadow of the fear.  Facts indicate that there is no possible way of being harmed by a picture of a bear (except a paper cut maybe). 

I think you know where I'm going with this.  If there's a 1% chance I'll die from something and there's an action or actions I can take to alleviate that risk, I'm gonna do it.  

Get vaccinated.

My Covid Story

 I was vaccinated in March of this year, and live in a county where almost 99% of its residents are vaccinated.  And I tested positive for Covid this week.  

Before you jump to the conclusion that the vaccine doesn't work, let me set you straight.  It works, and it worked for me.  

I live in a town fueled by summer tourism.  There were thousands of people from all over the US here a couple of weeks ago for an annual country music festival.  Just last weekend a street fair brought in vendors and visitors from all over the Minnesota/North Dakota areas.  Every weekend the town is full of visitors enjoying their lake cabins.  

Any one of them could have brought Covid to me.  I suspect that a routine blood draw for an annual physical may have been the source.  I have really hard veins to find, so the phlebotomist spent more time with me than normal.  She was sniffing up a storm and said her allergies were worse than normal.  I had just left my provider's office where she told me she'd quit rather than getting vaccinated.  Both of the local healthcare systems have given a deadline of November 1st to get the vaccine, and just like the mandatory flu shot of a few years ago, workers are up in arms.  I don't get it.  I made the decision right then and there that this provider wouldn't have the pleasure of treating me again.

I had the blood draw on Tuesday, and worked a retail job both Friday and Saturday.  After work I walked through the street fair and spent some time with 2 of my favorite vendors.

Sunday I mowed part of my lawn in preparation for putting up an electric fence.  A lot of dirt was kicked up, and I had a scratchy throat that afternoon and evening.

Monday the scratchy throat continued, and by Monday evening it felt like I had a cold coming on, with just a dry cough and scratchy throat.  

Tuesday I woke up with a headache, jaw pain, sneezing and congestion.  No fever, but I knew I'd need to confirm Covid since I was working again that weekend.  Test was done and I settled in at home to wait for the results - rapid tests are in short supply here, the nurse said, and were being used for patients in the hospital for other reasons.

Wednesday I was pretty miserable - felt like a bad sinus infection, but still no fever.  I have a pulse oximeter, and my O2 levels were at 91% (normal for me is 99-100).  I knew that if it went below 90 I needed to go to the ER, so I kept an eye on it.  Other than being slightly out of breath doing my normal chores, I wouldn't tell the difference.  That afternoon I got the positive test results and notified everyone I knew I'd come in contact with.  Dayquil kept most of the symptoms at bay, but I went through a whole box of Kleenex!

Another restless night of sniffling and congestion, and Thursday brought me O2 levels back up to 95%, but I suddenly lost my sense of taste and smell.  Still no fever.

Friday I still couldn't taste or smell, and my headache seemed like the worst symptom.  I felt a little better though, and the headache soon went away.

Saturday - woke up feeling rested and much better.  I was beginning to taste some salt and sweet tastes, but no sense of smell. My sinuses were clear, and my O2 was up to 97%.  

Sunday (today) I woke up again rested after sleeping soundly all night.  I feel almost normal except for a dry cough still no sense of smell.  Two more days and I'll be done with Covid isolation and can rejoin the world!

So the vaccine worked the way it's supposed to.  The actual vaccine itself was out of my system within 72 hours, but it set up the antibodies to recognize the infection and overcome the infection, quickly and efficiently.  Because a vaccine doesn't guarantee you'll never get sick.  No vaccine guarantees that.  I didn't end up in the hospital taking up a bed that was needed for a stroke patient.  THAT is the purpose of the vaccine.  

Why Aren't You Vaccinated?

Why aren't you vaccinated?

"It was developed too quickly to be safe"

   Actually, the technology that made that possible has been in development for decades.  Some day it could be used to cure diseases like Sickle Cell Anemia.

"It changes my DNA"

   No, it takes the virus and changes IT, so your body recognizes the virus and goes to work making antibodies without it possibly killing you."

"People with the vaccine can still get Covid."

   Yes, they can.  I won't get sick enough to be hospitalized, but I can still carry the full viral load and transmit it to you, and it could kill you or people you love.  Get the vaccine - even if I don't know you, I still don't want you to die.  Even if your political views are opposite mine, I still don't want you to die.  Unless you're a Canadian Thistle in my yard, I don't want you to die.

"The government can't control me."

      I guess you'll be wanting to mail back those relief checks then.  The government isn't making you do anything, yet.  The government's role in this is to protect its citizens from harm, including you.  Public health isn't political.  By the way, wear your seatbelts and don't drink and drive.

"I'm young and healthy.  I won't get sick."

   How about that 11 year old daughter of yours?  She can't get the vaccine, and even if you have no symptoms, you can pass it on to her.  The Delta variant is affecting children differently than the original virus - kids are on respirators in hospitals in the south where vaccination rates are low.

"I've heard the side effects from the shot are bad."

   My personal experience was about 10-12 hours of a temp of 99.8 and body aches after the second shot.  I woke up the next day feeling perfectly normal.  I'm glad I had those symptoms - it tells me my body was making antibodies against Covid-19.  Some folks only get a sore arm, others no symptoms at all.  

"First they said we shouldn't wear masks, and then said we should.  I don't trust the science."

    When Covid-19 first hit the US, I worked in a small walk-in clinic, where folks would grab a whole    box of masks from my desk and walk out with them.  That happened on a bigger scale across the country, and mask manufacturers couldn't keep up with the demand, leaving the very people who take care of you when you're sick vulnerable.  Now there's a good supply, and the science shows they work.  This is a brand new disease, and people just like you and me are studying it and letting you know what they know as soon as they know.  Expect that info to change as they learn more - the theory of gravity wasn't developed overnight either.

"They're implanting microchips."

       I can turn the lights on and off now with my mind.  <eye roll>

"It's a hoax."

   Tell that to my friend who was on a respirator for 6 weeks before dying.  Come on, you're smarter than that - don't be a chump.  Sources of disinformation know you want to believe that, so they're feeding it to you.  Call your family doctor and ask your questions.  Don't do your research on Facebook or Dr. Google; you'll only end up confused and angry.

"I just don't want to."

   If this was Ebola, and there was a readily available vaccine, would you want to stand by and watch your family, friends and neighbors bleed out of every bodily opening, or would you ask them to get the vaccine?  What if you were the source of the infection?  Covid-19 is more transmissible than Ebola.  There are plenty of people who would miss you if you were gone.  Get the vaccine.

"You haven't convinced me.  Just not gonna do it."

   Okay then.  That's your right.  Just like anything else, your actions have consequences.  You might not be able to get on an airplane for that dream trip to Europe - some nations are already doing vaccine passports.  If you want to eat out at the fabulous restaurant in NYC, sorry, only vaccinated people are admitted.  Your employer has the right to enforce vaccinations, so welcome to unemployment!  Just as you have the right, so do the people impacted by your actions.  

Both Things Can Be True

 In the past week, there were two trips to the very edges of space, not by NASA astronauts, but by non-government employees.  Two of the passengers were billionaires.

Twitter has been flooded with criticism aimed at both of these men.  Their money could be spent saving our planet, feeding children, etc.  Or 90% of the money in the US belongs to 1% of the population.  Or just "Jeff Bezos is evil" (I guess Richard Branson is slightly more likeable).

On the other hand, these trips are paving the way for future commercial space travel, with rockets that can be used more than once.  Industries like mining that are hurting our planet can be moved to space.  It's no longer science fiction that an asteroid, hollowed out, can safely and comfortably hold tens of thousands of people.  And Jeff Bezos gave away $200 million dollars today to two do-gooders to do with what they please.

Both things can be true.  

In today's uber-polarized world, EVERYTHING has to fall on one side or the other; my side or your side.  It's nothing new - the Wright brothers were laughed at when they attempted to fly.  And today, the founder of several airlines is paving the way for commercial space travel.

Billionaires and millionaires have helped to build this country, for better and sometimes worse.  Railroad tycoons of the 19th and 20th century invested in railroads because they recognized the profit that could be made by transporting wares quickly to their destination.  Many of these men were ruthless and would do anything to enrich themselves.  And ordinary people now had the means and ability to travel.  Oranges from California could be experienced for the first time by settlers in North Dakota.

Thomas Edison was ridiculed when he introduced a machine called a kinetoscope.  It took photographs and moved them through a reel so it appeared that the pictures moved.  Only one person at a time could watch the film, but Edison and others recognized the potential of the idea.  So then the projector was invented, so that the moving pictures could be shown to many people at a time.  Today, high-def images are streamed into our living rooms instantly.  

Yes, there is great inequity in our country.  But the people who played by the rules and became billionaires aren't to blame - the rules are.  It's easy to point the finger at Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson as being responsible for the woes of our world.  It's much harder to do the work to change the rules so that the rest of us get a piece of the pie.  

We don't have to be angry about everything.  We were told as children to "reach for the stars".  Today, we're closer than ever.