CONTEMPLATIONS
FROM MY PAST By
Steve Van Nattan There
are those special moments in life when we stood still
and thought and wondered. We
thought, and we wondered, and we could not find the answer. But, the sense of
wonder called us to look more than once at the thing, and to think long thoughts.
A boy's will is the wind's
will,
And the thoughts of youth are long, long thoughts.
Henry Wadsworth
Longfellow
Long
thoughts are hard to make happen in childhood, and still difficult in our youth.
But, if our parents and mentors were inspiring us, we found those moments when
the world stood still, and we wondered. These
contemplative moments are very different from one year to the next, and from childhood
to youth. They are different for you than they were for me. “To
see a World in a Grain of Sand
And a Heaven in a Wild Flower,
Hold Infinity
in the palm of your hand
And Eternity in an hour.”
William Blake, Auguries
of Innocence The
Bible believer comes to this world looking for the hand of God. God spoke, and
the world was created. God then made a man and a woman, and he gave them the power
to create. In his plan, God anticipated that the man and the woman would create
more men and women and fill the earth. Then, history tells us that man went on
to create farms, cities, and Fords. Some creations of man are wonderful, and some
are utterly profane. One
day, when Cain was a little boy, Adam took his hand, walked into the forest, and
he started talking. He talked about the trees and flowers of the Garden of Eden,
the garden which God planted. He told of the animals and the birds, and he told
Cain of their beauty. There was still much beauty around the home of the first
family, but Cain soon realized that Daddy and Mommy had lost something quite special
when they sinned. Their first home was a thing of wonder. And,
Cain wondered. OK,
I know that is not in the Bible. But, there had to be a point in time when Cain
wondered. He wondered what Eden was like. He wondered what it was like to not
have evil thoughts. He wondered what it was like to run around naked and not be
ashamed. Then
one day, after Cain killed his brother Abel, he wondered what the rest of his
life would be like with the mark on him that he was a murderer. It
is very urgent that Christian parents cultivate a sense of wonder in their children.
If you do not do this for your kids, the world will do it for them. They will
either learn to look at a sunset, a salad, and sin from Daddy, or they will learn
to turn them all into lust and ignore everything that God made. Enough
of me nagging you for now. I want to take you on a journey through my years and
review moments when I wondered. They follow no particular order, but I think they
will tell you things about me, my parents, and my God. You see, when we are in
the journey from birth to the coffin, wonders never cease. The only question is,
are we paying attention? The
Psalmist certainly had a sense of wonder, and he was our example of a healthy
imagination: Psalms
8:3 When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars,
which thou hast ordained;
4 What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and
the son of man, that thou visitest him?
5 For thou hast made him a little
lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.
6 Thou
madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things
under his feet:
7 All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field;
8
The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the
paths of the seas.
9 O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the
earth! We
are perishing for want of wonder, not for want of wonders.
G.K. Chesterton |
David
is talking about man, not Jesus Christ. The writer of Hebrews, under inspiration
of the Holy Spirit, was moved to quote verse 5 in regard to Christ. If your Bible
has anything but the word "angels" in verse 5, it is a blasphemous bible.
This is obvious because the writer in Hebrews uses the Greek word for angels under
inspiration.
Hebrews
2:9 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering
of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste
death for every man. So,
because David was initially talking about man as the creation of God, and the
writer raised the application to Christ in Hebrews, we can see that man and Christ
are made a little lower than the angels in some way. The difference is that man
was crowned with glory and honor and appointed man to take dominion over the creation
of God. Thus,
I wondered: 
The
Great Rift Valley- Kenya and Ethiopia Langano, 5000 feet above Debre Sina, twelve
thousand feet altitude, looking down at the floor of the Rift Valley below. CLICK
HERE to see the overlook. Not the round building, a church, with the turquoise
roof. Standing at Debre Sina and looking east across the Rift Valley and seeing
the other side 120 miles away. 
Riding
the Green Car
into Los Angeles The
Green Car and the Red Car were two street car lines which ran from the suburbs
south of Los Angeles into the LA city center. They were electric, and they wandered
through sage brush for miles after leaving Huntington Park. The drivers were always
good to me, and they told me I could sit on the bench right up front. This bench
actually backed up against the windshield of the car, so I would get up on it
on my knees and stick my nose against the window. By modern politically correct
standards this was very dangerous, but back then it was not. Nothing was dangerous
if an adult was in charge. We had adults who could be trusted back then. The
street cars had wheels that were tucked far back under the car. This meant that
when they came to a curve, the front of the car would swing way out over nothing
and then suddenly come back to be over the rails. I would hold my breath as we
went around a curve, but I also kept wondering what would happen if the street
car came off the rails just then. We would most certainly go rolling out across
the desert and sage brush. That  would
be the best thrill of all. When you are a kid, anything is possible, at least
in your imagination. And, you were allowed by adults to ask questions like, "What
would happen if the street car came off the rails and rolled out in the desert."
Adults used to take the time to answer kids' question like that without laughing
at them. I
feel sorry for you folks who live in California and have never ridden a street
car. They were a fantastic way to travel, and you get to visit with people along
the way. The smell of ozone was in the air, and they were old and a bit raggedy,
but what fun. I really thought that there was no faster way to get to Los Angeles,
even though we were probably only going 30 MPH flat out. When you got on board,
there was this glass box you threw your coins into. The driver cranked the thing,
and it took your coins and gave you a ticket. Later these box machines were run
by an electric motor. I
always rode the Green Car with my Mom. Dad was driving a cement truck. We would
arrive in the center of Los Angeles, and I thought it was grand to walk those
streets and look at all the funny people. We would go to Bullocks and Sears, and
Mom would browse the bargain basement for deals. We would then go visit the Christian
bookstore at the Church of the Open Door and Sixth and Hope Streets. 
Finally,
we would to go Clifton's Cafeteria, and we would go through the cave entrance.
In the side of the long cave were niches with salads, macaroni, pot roast, and
pie. I thought there was no adventure better than getting my lunch in a cave.
We went to the dining room, and a man played the piano while we ate. I thought
I was living just about as grand as any movie star in Hollywood, maybe better. The
ride home was still exciting, and I kept watching on the curves to see if we might
take a ride across the desert. I am sorry for you younger folks. You probably
never realized that Sepulvada Blvd. once ran across open desert. I may be old,
but I would not trade my memories for your new Toyota. SHORT
STREET CAR DOCUMENTARY, NEW ORLEANS looks very much like the one I rode.
I
would rather have 30 minutes of "wonderful" than a lifetime of nothing special.
Julia L. Roberts |
THIS ARTICLE
WILL BE UPDATEDLATER:
Furlough- South Gate High School- English, Latin class,
Geometry, social misfit- how it helped me back at RVA  Climbing
Moro Rock in
Sequoia National Park in California
Moro
Rock is a granite dome rock formation in Sequoia National Park, California, United
States. It is located in the center of the park, at the head of Moro Creek, between
Giant Forest and Crescent Meadow. The rock is typical of such domes in the High
Sierra Mountains, and they are all great places for anyone, especially a kid,
to stand and imagine they are on top of the world. My
trip up Moro Rock with with my Dad and Al Friesen and his boys. We climbed the
stairs built by the National Forest Service in about 1930. The climb is quite
easy, and it is generally safe. The only problem is that people with too much
curiosity can leave the stairs and railings and try to peek over the edge.  Now,
I have wondered for years why we all have this urge to peek over. What is down
there is usually what we saw up close at the bottom, but we are not content to
just enjoy the panorama of the distance. We need to look down, and if possible,
straight down. I suspect it is all about this weird human trait to do something
dangerous simply for the rush.
Well,
my Dad and Al Friesen had to peek over the edge. Dad had this strange urge in
him, and I inherited some myself. I have a son who is obsessed with peeking over.
He will read this and know who he is at once. Al was the one who craved a peek
to most, so Dad held his hand as a sort of anchor, and Al had his peek. All ended
well, but Al's sons and I were delighted to see a grown up do something stupid.
Al and Dad immediately told us boys not to try that. It was clearly big guy stuff.
I am not sure that being an adult makes stuck-on-stupid safer or not. Al
then told us a story of a guy who climbed the rock, peeked over, and fell. After
he slipped off the rock, as he was falling, he relaxed, leaned back, put his hands
under his head like he was lounging, and smiled at everyone on the stairs as he
fell to his death. I
had one of those moments most people do not talk about because some shrink might
decide to mess with them. I wondered, and as I wondered I thought it would really
be cool to float to the ground looking happy and relaxed and mess with the minds
of all those people on the stairs. When you are a kid anything is possible in
your imagination. Only the threats and prophecies of your parents and other adults
keeps you from doing self-destructive things. Adults CAN be useful at times. So,
I did not float back down, I took the stairs. A
GOOD VIDEO OF HIKING UP MORO ROCK
TOPICS
UNDER CONSTRUCTION
Scroll down to see more finished editorial. The
lights of Los Angeles at night from Angeles Forest. The whole metropolitan area
is 140 miles by 120 miles. I remember wondering if someone I knew was driving
along one of the streets. Herb Downings threats Colonial
British Jim Otis, Pacific, MO Assassination of John
Kennedy- Remember right where I was standing. Stood in misery for a while. Yet,
even amidst the hatred and carnage, life is still worth living. It is still possible
for wonderful encounters and beautiful things
to exist.
Hayao Miyazaki |
Longonot-
From verandah, art class, hiked across My
confession of faith in Christ Off the coast of East Africa and the
year 2000 Briartown- Pecan trees The kitty with a short
tail- Bob cat. Westside School Mojave Desert- The day I could not
spell "of" Psalm
8:3 When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars,
which thou hast ordained;
4 What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and
the son of man, that thou visitest him?
King David |
Pretty
girl working in the library The wonder of a new born baby, knowing
I made an extremely small contribution to
the glory of God's plan for humanity. Preaching
on some text and seeing believers take action in an altogether different area
of life. The world of travel The Mojave Desert blooming one year. The
bridge
on the EAR west of Lumbwa.
Built by American Bridge Company circa 1920. Still in use. Very high. Minimum
materials. Miracle
of the train engines that derailed but did not turn over. ADVERSARIES
OF CONTEMPLATION AND WONDERThere
are groups of people who hate contemplation. They live for their own lusts, and
a sense of wonder is of no use to them because it will not turn a profit. Politicians
must be the worst dead heads in any society. They are people who leave a useful
life, get themselves elected to office, and then they learn the art of trading
votes and influence for bribes. They are among the most pathological beings in
any culture, for they have totally lost any sense of shame. The best way to destroy
your zeal for God's creation is to give your time and efforts to help a politician. Another
group which needs watching are the Globalists and New Agers. They have a sense
of wonder, but it is only to wonder at the glory of Marxism and collectivism.
They long for the day when people are all herded into communes where they will
produce wealth for the oligarchy, just as was found in the Soviet Union long ago.
These people also have no use for God's creation. They have a sham zeal for preserving
the environment, but it is based on nature being divine and ruled by "Mother
Nature." Thus, they campaign for all of us to be converted to worship and
deify trees, animals, and amoeba. This is not a sense of wonder. It is a sense
of power over people. You can tell who they are because they also have an instinct
to nag and nanny people around them. A
group I think I must mention are the academics of the White Race. They have sold
their souls to a system of snobbery and arrogance which is based on thousands
of presuppositions plus nothing. These men always have the last word on any topic
under discussion because they know they are brilliant and need to draw attention
to that fact. Thus, God's creation is of no interest to them unless it can be
co-opted into more glory for the jabberwocky. These doulbe domes are very sure
of themselves because they have gathered enough knowledge to be sure they are
right, but not enough knowledge to realize they are wrong. Do not waste you time
on them. Christendom,
the entity which should be first to exalt the inheritance God has given us to
wonder at, are horrible about burying themselves in their studies and books. They
get into powerful debates and wars over various doctrines, such as the sovereignty
of God, predestination, and third degree separation, and..... to hell with the
creation. Thousands of pastors never get out into the wilderness and the mountains
to wonder. They are much too busy trying to build attendance in Sunday School.
Do not trust a pastor with the education of your kids unless he shows clearly
that he has a sense of wonder. Psalms
19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.
2 Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge.
3
There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard.
4 Their line
is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In
them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun,
5 Which is as a bridegroom coming
out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race.
6 His going
forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and
there is nothing hid from the heat thereof.
LINKS
FOR KIDS OR ALL AGES WHO STILL HAVE A SENSE OF WONDER: 
This
is a Colani Streamlined Truck. Read about Luigi Colani and his sense of wonder
as he tried to make everything he invented round.
"Daddy,
can you get me that truck for my birthday present?"
Aurora
Borealis (Northern Lights). The red is the highest at about 600 miles away
from
the earth.
TWO
KINDS OF NOODLING: NOODLING
NUMBER ONE EXTREME
NOODLING NUMBER TWO
The story above about Jim Otis of Missouri tells of
his noodling exploits.
WALKING
THE PLANK IN HUASHAN, CHINA
You will need your Mom's permission to go on
a walk here.
VIDEOS
AND OTHER WONDERS: A
MAN-MADE WONDER IN THE DESERT OF EGYPT
This
is a lot like sand castles on the beach, but with a lot more trouble. The local
Egyptians were able to watch the White Race once again do what it does well.....
the recidivous. Then again, until the wind wiped it away, it was an impressive
wonder, right? We see that some wonders do not have a definition and don't need
one. They are just there. A
MAN MAKES THE MUSIC OF A STRING ORCHESTRA ALL BY HIMSELF and SECOND
ONE
This shows you that it is possible to cause wonder, and you can make
a few bucks on the side. THE
MONGOOSE AND THE BLACK MAMBA
What
if God gave you immunity to the power of Satan? Would you do battle with Satan
for the sake of the those with no immunity to Satan? ANTOINE'S
RESTAURANT IN NEW ORLEANS- DINING ROOMS
OK, young man..... After you make
your next raise of bonus, how about taking your Mom to Antoine's, and watch the
wonder on her face? If your Mom is gone, take that older lady in town everyone
loves, the one who helps people get through troubled times. The whole idea is
the return the favor with wonder. EXTREME
WONDERS- LIVING ON THE EDGE
Great documentary by "I Have No TV"
Please note the sense of humor in the men on Everest. In severe survival situations
two things are needed. 1) Extreme alertness, and 2) A sense of humor in the face
of hellish danger. This keeps you from simply going hopelessly stiff with fear.
Fear is needed to sharpen our senses, but it cannot be allowed to take charge.
And, remember, in the face of extreme terrors, you will temporarily lose much
of your IQ. You better have some idea ahead of time what you can do and what you
cannot do. That is the wonder of the man whom God made long ago in the Garden
of Eden, and he survived for over 900 years.
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