what to do...

I remember years ago reading a poem about a person who, "while on their life's journey," happened upon a crossroad. Right then and there they were faced with a life altering decision. As I remember it, the author made it fairly simple. The traveler could either go the right way or the wrong way. There ya go. Easy enough. If the poet got it right, life really ain't that complicated. The decision seems to be more about temptation than anything else.

First off, I don't believe the poem. I don't question the writer's intellect or intentions, but either they've never left their castle or they're living in the Land of Denial. Any kind of life experience tells you it's sometimes Hell out there. And we don't always get to choose to avoid it.

I've had this discussion with several good friends and a couple of family members. As much as I appreciate the simplicity of good versus bad and light versus dark and righteousness versus evil, those are really not our only choices. When I was young and in school I remember getting in trouble on a test because I answered, "good, gooder, goodest - bad, badder, baddest."

Sometimes the intersection looks more like a spaghetti junction than the simple, country fork in the road like you see in the paintings. It gets confusing. It gets frustrating. And it gets worrisome. Then when you consider that you only get to see a small sample of what's ahead and you have no idea what's beyond the crest or the curve, you get even more intimidated.

Most of the poet's questions were just about life. But I'm going to make it religious too. Pull up to that intersection and look at all of the road signs. They point in every direction! They're Pentecostal and Methodist and Catholic and Nazarene and Baptist and Episcopalian and Falwell and Jackson and Robertson and Wright and Dobson and Phelps and Sharpton and Swaggart and Jewish and Hindu and Islamic and King James Only and Eternal Security and Tongues Talking and Holiness and Predestination and Free Will and Traditional and Contemporary and Trinitarian and Oneness and Denominational and Independent and, and, and... Which way to go?

I stopped asking. When I did ask, the people who weren't salesmen but felt obligated to answer just told me to pray. They said God would show me. So I prayed. But whatever direction I ended up going, someone told me it was the wrong way. Then someone said I should go back to the road I started on. It was a good road, and I respect and cherish it, but maybe not the best road.

I've said it lots of times before. God made colorful rainbows. Then consider blue skies and water, green grass and trees, flowers and birds and butterflies and fish in colors we didn't know existed unitl hi-def television; aromas both pleasant and putrid; flavors for every pallet - sweet and bitter and spicy and minty and more; sounds that entertain, inspire, console and drive you crazy; textures that can soothe or irritate, make the journey rough or smooth. The choices are so many.

Want to make the decision even more of a chore? Imagine it's you at the wheel, but you're not the only person in the car. The choice you make now means something to others as well. Now what to do?

To be continued...