Summer Palace Journey

I left Fort Worth about 6:30 this morning, in the rain. By the time I hit Oklahoma, the weather cleared up for awhile. Here's a sunny scenic turnoff where yellow wildflowers were in bloom. Other than the flowers, I couldn't really figure out why it was a scenic turnout, although there were trash cans for my garbage!

Then I hit northern Oklahoma and Kansas, and the rain started again. The Kansas Turnpike in a thunderstorm is a glorious thing. If you're hearing sarcasm, you would be right.

The Kansas Turnpike is a long stretch of toll road where the only food is McDonalds. Yum.

But soon enough, the weather improved again, and I drove, and drove, and drove until I hit Sioux City, IA, where I decided to rest my feet for the night.

Gossip

So what is gossip?

"If people aren't talking about other people, it's a signal that something is wrong -- that we feel socially alienated or indifferent," says Ralph Rosnow, Ph.D., a professor of psychology at Temple University.

But sometimes it crosses the line. In the following circumstances, the gossip has crossed the “acceptable” line and has morphed into something that can really hurt someone emotionally or practically (such as putting their job or marriage in jeopardy):

1. Exposing something that is supposed to be a secret
2. Lying about something
3. Saying something hurtful
4. Spreading a negative rumor
5. Saying something to be malicious, spiteful or vengeful

So what is it that makes ordinary people cross that line when they must know what the potential consequences are to the other person? Do they really think that the victim of their lies won't ever find out about it? Do they have that much hate in their heart, or is jealousy eating them alive?

Over the years I've been the target of malicious gossip several times. I've often wondered - is it karma for the times I've said something mean about someone else? Or is it meant to teach me how badly it can hurt the victim so that I don't ever again inflict that kind of pain on someone else?

In the words of Rodney King, "why can't we all just get along?"

Forgotten Seeds

Have you ever forgotten that you planted something until it came up in the Spring?

I picked up a cheap clematis at Walmart last year and planted the bulb next to the southern wall of my house. This morning, when I went out to look at my plants, listen to the trickling water of my pond, and collect my thoughts for the day, I noticed a big star-shaped flower on the ground that hadn't been there yesterday.

It was the clematis! I didn't put up a trellis for it, so it was trying to behave like groundcover and spread on the ground.

Much like my clematis, we do or say things every day that plant seeds. A kind word in an elevator can turn into someone rearranging priorities later on so you can deliver your project on time. Or gossip - it can spread just like Bermuda grass in the flower beds - its roots are so deep and they spread so far you can never really repair the damage it does.

Happy Easter and Joyous Passover