Not Everyone Likes Getting a Good Tip

I’m tired of chewing….I want to sleep.  The moon is high and almost full, but a platoon of clouds keeps the night more dim than bright.  The chill in the air is a welcome escape from the day’s heat.  A symphony of nighttime sounds from thousands of critters I have never seen are another reminder that it is time to sleep.  I close my eyes and wait for a new sun.   I hope I’m not last to the hay tomorrow.

It’s quiet….a lovely quiet. 

What was that?  A noise?  Now?  At night?  What is that commotion I hear over by Jackie?  I hear a loud thud.  Why is she yelling?  None of us yell at night…more yelling.  She sounds so scared!  I’m scared!  What is happening?  I can’t quite see, but it looks like she is on the ground.  Why would she be laying on the ground?  Did she fall?  We never fall.  I think I hear humans.  Oh thank goodness….humans are good.  They must be here to help Jackie.  Wait, why are they laughing?  I don’t understand!  Why are they laughing when Jackie needs help?

Jackie is my friend and we always sleep close to each other.  She never pushes me or cuts in front of me when we are moving as a group.

Now some of the others are yelling.  I hear something else.  It sounds like something running from the other direction.  It’s close and getting closer fast!  I turn to see where the sound is coming from.  Ah!  It’s another human and she’s running right at me!  She has a crazed look in her face!  Stop!  Stop!  I try to run, but it’s too late.  OUCH!  AAAHHH!  I’M FALLING!  WHAT IS HAPPENING?  I hit the ground hard.  I have never felt this kind of pain before.  I yell as loud as I can.  Why are they doing this to us?

I’m on the ground and too scared to get up.  The human is laughing and pointing at me.  Everyone is yelling now.  Am I going to die?  I thought humans were good, but these must hate us.  Did I do something wrong and they are punishing me?  I just want this nightmare to end. 

Why couldn’t I have been born a pig?

What you have just read is a dramatization.  It’s not real, but the trauma experienced is.  This is the horror that countless cows face every single night.  Cow Tipping; it’s not a game.  It’s real and it hurts.  No one speaks for the cows….until now.  Join my organization, “End Cow Tipping Now”.  If we work together I believe we can end cow tipping abuse in our lifetime.  I know it sounds crazy, but I envision a day when every cow can live a full and peaceful life until the day of their slaughter.  It’s the way it should be and I for one intend to see that vision fulfilled.  Join me in this noble fight to protect those that cannot protect themselves.  Join or donate today at www.endcowtippingnow.org.  Becoming a member is free, the donation is not.  If like me you are former cow tipping abuser, then tell us your story.  Have the courage to make a difference.  “I just want this nightmare to end.”  Together we can end her nightmare.

Christmas is Only About Love

Intro: I wrote this about this time 2 years ago when I knew my daughters were going to face their first Christmas without their parents being together.  I was depressed and felt like a failure as a father.  So often when I write, it feels like someone else is writing for me and to me what I need to hear.  This is a good example of that.  I needed this and it helps me everytime I read it. 

Christmas is only about love:
This season fosters an amazing atmosphere that is so wonderful. It's my favorite time of year. I love the warmth and intimacy that seems to be everywhere. This amazing atmosphere is produced by the lights, decorations, the focus of buying gifts for others, the music, the yummy food, the feeling of free flowing affection, etc.

All of these things are wonderful, but the first Christmas didn't have any of those. The first Christmas only had love. The wise men didn't arrive with gifts until Jesus was a toddler and living in a house. That first Christmas eve and the next day, it was only a man, a woman and a newborn in a borrowed barn. There was no drummer boy. No joyful music. They didn't know anyone, so there were no friends or family to visit. Well, there were a couple of shepherds that were strangers to them. They told an odd story and smelled as bad as the barn because they had been living with their sheep for days.

The animals weren't cooing and snuggling with the baby. They were pooping and peeing all around them. It wasn't warmly lit like the manger scenes we see today. It was damp, cold, and dark. The atmosphere was anything but warm and intimate. In fact, it was miserable. And I suspect that Mary and Joseph felt like terrible parents that night. I wonder if they felt like they had failed their new son. In their eyes they had absolutely nothing to give to their baby, but they gave him what they did have -- love. They couldn't provide a warm Christmas atmosphere, but that baby was loved. The place and circumstances were horrible, but that baby was loved.

It's almost as if God wanted to strip everything else away so that the only thing left was love. He wanted it to be the only thing there that first Christmas because he knew what we often take a lifetime to learn, that the only thing that really matters is love. Christmas is about love. From the very first one it was always about love. So let's enjoy the warm and joyful atmosphere, but if we can't have a perfect atmosphere, that's ok- as long as we have love.

There are soldiers in harm's way that will not get to enjoy a warm Christmas atmosphere, but I bet they love someone and are loved. There are families who have lost a child, a brother or sister, a mother or father. There are families who cannot afford to make the Christmas season all it could be. There are people who will have someone they love in the hospital or struggling with a frightening disease. The difficulties of life do not stop for Christmas. But the difficulties of life must always bow to love. Love conquers all. So regardless of what we have lost, if we have love, then we will have Christmas. If we have love, then we will have Christmas the way it was always supposed to be.

Merry Christmas to us all.