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Consider the Moth

Luke 12:22-30 (NIV)

22Then Jesus said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear.23For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. 24Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! 25Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life? 26Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?

27Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.28If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you—you of little faith! 29And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. 30For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. 31But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.

In the 12th chapter of Luke, Jesus alternates between speaking to a large crowd and teaching his disciples privately in this very public setting. In verses 22 through 30, using two lessons from nature, Jesus attempts to teach his disciples the fruitlessness and folly of worry. He shares the secret to handling the paralyzing grip of worry and selfishness: All we need to do is to put our lives into the protective and comforting hands of God the Father.

In the first vignette, God cares for the birds of the field (ravens or crows depending upon which version of Scriptures you use). Ravens and crows are scavengers and generally considered nuisances and pests. However, God takes care of them. That should give all of us hope and comfort.

In the second vignette, wild flowers or lilies (depending upon the version of Scriptures you use) are favorably compared with the splendor of Solomon, his palace and its royal trappings. We all know that all flowers are very temporary. They eventually wither and die. The remains of the flowers are either left to decompose and become part of the ground for the next crop of flowers, or they are gathered up and burnt, with the ashes scattered to the winds. Finally, time erases the signs of their presence and they are remembered no more. However, God gives these temporary plants as much beauty and concern as the royal trappings with which Solomon surrounded himself. We don’t need to be overly-concerned with the way we look and dress. God will provide us with our basic needs. [Note: I believe the key word in the preceding sentence is “overly-concerned.” We do need to dress modestly and appropriately for the occasion. Other people may judge us by the way we look, but God judges us for what is in our hearts.]

In these two vignettes and in other scripture passages Christ, during his earthly ministry, used examples from nature to teach us practical lessons. Some of these include the parable of the sower, the lesson of the mustard seed, and the lesson of the size of the harvest. God, speaking through writers of Job and the Psalms, used examples from nature to teach us practical lessons.

In Christian higher education, we have often used the phrase “All truth is God’s truth.” Arthur Holmes, in his book by this same title, uses the creation or cultural mandate given to Adam as license to search for truth wherever we might find it. We do not need to be afraid of truth. However, we do need to circumspectly make judgments between God’s truth and Satan’s imitations of that truth.

In that vein, I want to thank Tom Bartlett, senior writer for The Chronicle of Higher Education. He wrote an article that appeared in the August 17, 2012 edition of The Chronicle Review. Interestingly the article was labeled Salvaging God on the cover of the magazine section. Does God need salvaging? Do we think we can salvage him? When you get to the article inside the section, it is entitled, Dusting off God; Does Religion Really Poison Everything?

Bartlett begins this article with a parable about moths that Richard Dawkins, an outspoken atheist, introduced in his book, The God Delusion. Moths and bats are two nocturnal fliers. However, their evening flights are made possible because of two very different natural senses. Bats use the sense of sound. They use natural sonar to navigate around obstacles. Moths, on the other hand, use their very sensitive eyes and the light from the moon or stars to see the obstacles and navigate around them.

The fact that moths use light by which to navigate actually explains why they are susceptible to bug zappers. They are not attracted to the light of campfires, light bulbs or bug zappers. They are confused by that light.

Physics tell us that light is a chameleon in the physical world. Sometimes it behaves like waves of energy, and other times like particles with mass. Some physicists attempt to describe this aspect of light by saying that the particles resemble individual packets of matter that are pure energy. This seems to be a key to the complicated relationship between matter and energy. Recall Einstein’s formula, E = mc2.

Light radiates from a source in waves of ever expanding circles. Our eyes and other light sensors don’t “read” the wave. They are focusing on the individual packets of light. By the time light reaches the earth from the moon or stars, the waves of light are so large in diameter that the light sensors in our eyes are “reading” the light as if it was coming into our eyes as a series of parallel, straight lines.

If we look at a light bulb from a distance of three feet, the diameter of the light waves reaching our eyes is not very large. The light sensors in our eyes pick up multiple light packets, and not a straight, steady stream of packets. This can even make the light bulb seem to flicker. If you look at the light bulb through a very narrow slit, the flickering will be greatly reduced.

The great distances between the earth and the sun, moon and stars, fixes the position of these bodies in relationship to the earth. We and moths can then use those fixed positions to navigate successfully objects on the earth.

Since our eyes and sight receptors are so much larger than those in moths, the introduction of a much closer source of light such as a campfire, porch light or bug zapper doesn’t attract moths. It is actually confusing them. Therefore, they can’t navigate properly and tend to begin a death spiral into the source of the light. Self-immolation is not built into their instincts or DNA. It is the result of confusion. Dawkins explains that moths didn’t evolve to commit suicide. He claims that this is just “an unfortunate byproduct” of the evolutionary process.

Richard Dawkins suggests that religion is like a bug zapper for humans. It introduces another source of information that confuses people, distracting their attention from scientific truth. They behave like moths and seek patterns in religious texts. This begins people on a death spiral into the black hole of ignorance.

This is a very convenient and useful explanation for the confirmed atheist. It removes God from the equation. It eradicates any burden of personal obligation or responsibility for our choices. It then squarely places the blame for all of our problems on religion. Although the seemingly innate search for truth through religion and religious experiences appears to be a universal feature built into the soul of every human, it is nothing but “an unfortunate byproduct” of evolution.

Of course we could offer another explanation. However, this explanation is predicated on the existence of an omnipotent and just God who created the universe and everything in it. This God demands obedience and personal responsibility. However, this God is also a loving God. Through the sacrifice of Christ, this God has offered all people the opportunity for eternal salvation. Yet this scenario is unacceptable to many because man is no longer the center of the universe.

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Aphasia and the Art of Navigation

If you have been following my blog, you know that a little more than three years ago a hemorrhage introduced me to the world of aphasia. The hemorrhage occurred in a meningioma attached to the right frontal lobe of my brain. The hemorrhage created all the appearances, symptoms and after effects of a bleeding stroke. One common after effect of a stroke is aphasia, literally a loss of words.

Aphasia is a communication disorder resulting in the partial or total inability to process language but does not affect intelligence. In my case, aphasia has diminished the speed at which I can process language and make decisions. I don’t believe it has affected my ability to make correct decisions. It has only affected the speed at which I can make, communicate or implement those decisions. Since verbal communication is more spontaneous and offers less time to process language and reflect on the underlying ideas, I have more problems with verbal communications than written communications.

This difference has been brought home to me many times in the past several weeks as I have had to serve as navigator for me and my wife as we have had to find our way around our new town. With my history of seizure activity and potential for future seizures, I have had to relinquish my driver’s license and quit driving. This has forced us to rely on my wife to be our chauffeur.

My wife is basically a good driver. However, she would readily admit that she doesn’t like driving in heavy traffic. She would also admit that she is “geographically challenged.” East-west-north-south do not register with her. She doesn’t like to read maps. She wants to know whether to go straight or to turn right or left at the next intersection.

My wife and I approach driving very differently. Our approaches to driving are the exact reflections of our approaches to cooking. My wife is an excellent cook. People are always complimenting her cooking and asking her for her recipes. Prior to my episode and before I was told to stay away from electronic utensils and objects that had sharp edges or points, I liked to experiment in the kitchen and try different combinations. People would also compliment my creations. However, when asked for my recipes, I couldn’t supply them because I didn’t use fixed recipes. On the other hand my wife is a recipe cook. She wants a list of instructions to follow precisely. This practice carries over to her driving. She much prefers a list of directions over a map.

In my battle with aphasia, I have come to the conclusion that, “I am a lousy navigator.” In familiar areas, I know where to turn and what is the best lane to be in. In unfamiliar areas, by reading a map I know where to turn. However, in both situations I can’t seem to find the words quick enough to give my wife sufficient warning of what to do next. When I find the words to indicate an impending turn, I raise the volume of my voice to emphasize the urgency of an upcoming turn. This sometimes startles my wife or makes her think I am yelling at her. Both of those outcomes could be disturbing in the least or dangerous at the worst. When she misses a turn or makes a wrong turn, I get very upset with myself. Because I am angry my next several comments will usually reflect those feelings. I am not upset with my wife. I am just upset that I didn’t direct us appropriately.

I can hear some of you saying right now, “Why don’t you use a GPS?” We have tried two different GPS’s with less than satisfactory results. GPS’s operate off of optimization principles and programs. I am reminded of the computerized room scheduling programs that were being offered to colleges 30 years ago. The claim was that these programs would greatly increase room usage efficiency by filling dead space. The claims these programs made concerning more efficient use of space were undeniable. However, the results of these scheduling programs were neither satisfying to faculty or students. It was difficult for these programs to take into account the room preference of faculty, or the desire of students to have back-to-back classes scheduled in nearby rooms. There were too many variables for these programs to account for. The human mind of an individual who knew the curriculum, the facilities, and understood faculty and student preferences was a better scheduler than a computer.

GPS’s are only as good as the optimization programs on which they operate and the information that is entered into the data bank of the GPS. How old is the basic map that is used in the GPS? New roads are added every year and occasionally roads are closed. The major choices GPS’s give you to calculate optimal routes are: 1) shortest route (based on mileage); 2) shortest time (based on estimated time to cover the route calculated using posted speed limits); 3)toll roads (use or don’t use toll roads); and 4) roads to avoid. Any changes to the optimization strategies are difficult if not illegal for the driver to make while the car is moving. Construction and local conditions like accidents are not always known before one begins the trip. Dangerous intersections are not always accounted for by the GPS. Shortest or normally quickest routes may include left hand turns against traffic, which during rush hours or school change hours can be very problematic.

We do use a GPS on longer distance trips. However, on trips around town where road conditions seem to be more volatile, even with the speed at which I can communicate route changes, I seem to be a better navigational choice for us.

These events have convinced me that there are at least two jobs that are beyond my capabilities at this moment. I would be a disaster as a spotter for a NASCAR racing team or as an air traffic controller.

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Signs for a Positive Life

My previous posting concerning signs, “Signs, Signs, Everywhere Signs” was meant to be a less than totally serious look at how we use signs to communicate. The first two signs illustrate what can happen when we try to be clever and use humor to remind people of things that should be obvious.

The third sign was the most serious of the three signs. This sign was asking people to look at themselves and decide how satisfied they are with their own lives using a satisfaction scale that had a few new twists to it.

This post comes from a recent excursion my wife and I recently took through a combination nursery, produce stand, deli, bakery and craft shop. We are fortunate enough to live in a rural area where such shops abound. For those of you in urban areas, the next best choice for you would be to walk through the farmers’ market that almost every city has.

As we examined the offerings of the country stand through which we strolled, there were hand-made arts and craft signs everywhere. Five of them really caught my attention.

The first consisted of words that should be words of encouragement to anyone who has experienced aphasia. The sign read

Even if you can’t find the words,
God already knows what it is that you’re trying to say.

I pray that God will help me realize this, but not use it as an excuse to quit searching for the lost words.

The second sign was a humorous sign which expresses a sentiment that I pray God will keep me from stumbling into purposefully:

When in doubt, mumble.

I believe the third sign was meant to be a humorous reminder directed toward all of us who have been work-alcoholics or hobby enthusiasts at some point throughout our lives. It encouraged everyone to keep their priorities in order: 

My garage needs me now;
The least I can do is be there for it

How easy is it to prioritize activities over people? I know I must ask my family for their forgiveness for past occurrences of misplaced priorities.

The fourth sign was a serious look at how to prioritize one’s life:

As long as the day is full of time,
There will be room for your hand in mine.

God, thank you for my wife and giving us time together. Remind me to go for walks for no apparent reason with my wife, hold her hand and tell her “Thanks for being there.”

Likewise the fifth sign expressed a positive outlook on life to which each of us should aspire: 

Cherish yesterday
Dream tomorrow
Live today

Lord help me pray, “God please help me come to each day, cherishing the fond memories of yesterday, dreaming big about tomorrow and living in the presence. Please give me the proper perspective on remembering the highlights of past events. Help me to dream appropriately big dreams about the future and to make realistic plans for the future. Help me to live in the present, not dwelling on either the past or the future, but at the same time not forgetting about them.”

This is the one sign that I plan to carry with me, if only in my head. It reminded of the line from the Five Man Electric Band’s song that says, “Thank you, Lord, for thinking about me, I am alive and doing fine.” How are you doing?

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Signs, Signs, Everywhere Signs

Those of you who have followed my postings know that my wife and I have just completed a 650 mile move to be closer to our children and their families. This necessitated finding a whole new set of doctors. As I made the rounds of my new doctors, signs in their various medical venues reminded me of the 1971 hit song by the group Five Man Electric Band, “Signs, Signs, Everywhere Signs.” For those of you who are either not old enough to remember 1971, or those of you who are too old to remember 1971, here is a download of that memorable song:

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oeT5otk2R1g

 I was particularly fascinated with three signs. The first two of these signs were located in public or semi-public bathroom facilities. They reminded me of the pair of lines from the song:

“Blocking out the scenery; Breaking my mind.
Do this; don’t do that!  Can’t you read the sign?”

I can’t say the signs were blocking out the scenery. However, they were definitely “breaking my mind.”

One of the signs was in a combination shower and restroom located in a testing facility in a hospital, used by both in-patients and out-patients. A computer generated sign on an 8½X11 sheet of plain white paper was taped to the inside of the exit door. In bold print it said:

 “Patients please dress or cover-up before leaving the shower and returning to your room.”

 This sign gives new meaning to the phrase, “Just trying to cover your rear end.”

 The second sign was in the public men’s room located off the lobby of a doctor’s office. The sign was brown plastic with white engraved letters. The sign was firmly attached to the ceramic tile wall, behind the only toilet in the room, by what appeared to be clear glue. Residue of dried glue had oozed out from behind the sign at the top, bottom and both sides of the sign.

 The white etched letters of the sign read:  “Do not flush anything down this toilet except toilet paper.”

 Apparently one of the doctors or nurses realized the problem this command was posing. Someone had taken a piece of white surgical tape and stuck it to the wall below the sign. Then they had taken a bold-tipped Sharpie and scribbled on the tape, “What about poop?”

The third sign to which I was drawn was posted in the waiting room of one of my new doctors. It presented a quality of life Likert scale. For many years, I have used Likert scales in surveys to gather information, but I had never seen this particular Likert scale. The idea behind a Likert scale is to use points on a straight line continuum or a sequence of numbers to indicate one’s feelings about a particular topic. One of the most common Likert scales is the following 5-point scale:

  • Strongly Disagree
  • Disagree
  • Neutral-No Opinion
  • Agree
  • Strongly Agree

The respondent is asked to blacken the appropriate circle to indicate his or her feelings toward a particular statement such as:

 “President Obama is doing a good job managing the United States economy.”

The sign in the waiting room that fascinated me was asking patients what they thought about their quality of life. The suggested answer scale was a 7-point Likert scale: “

  • Delighted
  • Pleased
  • Mostly Satisfied
  • Mixed Equally Between Satisfied and Dissatisfied
  • Mostly Dissatisfied
  • Unhappy
  • Terrible

Which circle would you blacken to describe your quality of life?

This sign brought me back to one verse from the Five Man Electric Band song about signs. 

“And the sign said, “Everybody welcome. Come in, kneel down and pray.
But when they passed around the plate at the end of it all, I didn’t have a penny to pay
so I got me a pen and a paper and I made up my own little sign.
I said, “Thank you, Lord, for thinkin’ ’bout me. I’m alive and doin’ fine.” 

Returning to the question posed by the sign in the doctor’s office, which circle would you darken if I asked you about your quality of life? For my own life, I would have to say:

“Mostly satisfied—Thank you, Lord for thinkin’ about me. I’m alive and doin’ fine–most of the time.”

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Random Events, Conditions, Disorders, Diseases: Part II

I finished Part I of this post making two claims.  The first claim was that the labels given the circumstances of patients can affect the patients’ perceptions of themselves. The second was that those labels can affect the treatment offered to the patients. In addition to those two claims, I asked two questions. One of the questions was, “Is health care a public or private good?”

To those of you who are saying, “That’s a trick question,” I will admit that it is definitely a trick question. The trick spins on two pivotal points. The first pivotal point is how one understands the word “good.” If one takes it as meaning “benefit,” health care can and should provide a private benefit to individuals. I believe individuals should have the opportunity to enjoy their lives completely. If individuals are healthy, they are enabled to contribute as much as they can to society. The more individuals benefit society, the more society benefits.

I know the second pivotal point making this a trick question will get me in trouble with many readers, because I am going to bring the discipline of economics into the mix. Some of you are already asking, “How can you put a monetary value on a human life?”

Before I sink too deeply into this quicksand, I will tell everyone that I value everyone’s life, just as John Donne wrote in his essay, Meditation XVII,

“No man is an island, entire of itself…never send to know for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee.”  If one person dies or is incapacitated, that takes away a little piece of me. Most people are more familiar with Donne’s essay translated into a poem that Ernest Hemingway used in the flyleaf of his novel, “For Whom the Bell Tolls.” In this sense, health care is of social benefit.

Although many political careers have been lost or almost lost trying to traverse this quicksand blog, I’m not a politician and I believe that I must begin wading through the quicksand. Health care, just like everything else in today’s world, has expenses related to it. Expenses and money bring the discipline of economics into the fray. Economics defines a social good as a benefit with two properties.

The first property is known as “non-rivalry.” This refers to a good that all can enjoy in common in the sense that each individual’s consumption of such a good leads to no subtraction from any other individual’s consumption of that good. Health care on the surface may appear to be a non-rivalry good. However, on closer inspection it is not hard to become convinced that there is not an inexhaustible supply of doctors’ time, hospital space or medications.

The second property is known as “non-excludability,” that is, it is impossible to exclude any individuals from consuming the good. For health care, it is easy to see that certain individuals can be excluded.

Since health care fails both the non-rivalry and non–excludability tests, health care can’t be classified as a social good. Does that make it a private good? The major problem with labeling health care a private good is that the overwhelming majority of individuals can’t afford the cost of treatments associated with health care.

In addition, even if all the individuals who need a certain type of health care were to pool their resources, they couldn’t possibly pay for the research and development necessary to further the fight against their condition, disorder or disease. R & D for health care must be considered something beyond the communal efforts of those directly affected. R & D requires a social effort.  In Part III of this post, I will highlight a number of those R & D efforts as well as some communal efforts that attempt to help patients and their caregivers cope with their day-to-day problems.

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Random Events, Conditions, Diseases, Disorders, Part I

Random Events, Conditions, Disorders, and Diseases: What, if any, are the differences between these terms? The term “random event” carries with it the connotation of a single event for which an explanation is difficult, if not impossible. The term “condition” carries the connotation of repeated events, which may occur with regularity or in a predictable pattern. The term “disorder” carries the connotation of a condition which is caused by an identifiable internal malfunction, or design flaw. The term “disease” carries the connotation of a condition which is caused by an externally introduced agent.

  Why am I concerned? Should I be concerned? Should others be concerned? The human side of these questions includes the human psychological need to name, identify and control internal and external events. However, it also includes the practical side to these questions because insurance reimbursement almost always requires the identification of a problem. Insurance companies are usually hesitant to reimburse for the treatment of a “random event.” I have been questioned on coverage until the random event could be identified as part of a condition or disorder.

I began thinking about this post in relationship to my concerns and questions connected to my recent battles with health, communication, physical abilities, and mental capabilities. However, as I have talked and exchanged emails with others, I have found that I was not the only person to ask these same and related questions. The article, “Branding a Soldier with Personality Disorder” in the February 25, 2012 edition of the New York Times, raises the related concern of a hierarchy among disorders. The article may be found at <http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/25/us/a-military-diagnosis-personality-disorder-is-challenged.html?_r=1&nl=todaysheadlines&emc=tha2 >

This hierarchy among random events, conditions, disorders and diseases affects the coverage and treatment that one can expect to receive. Senior moments receive less attention than aphasia. Senior moments receive less attention than dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. Tremors receive less attention than Parkinson’s disease.

With these states of affairs stacked against an individual, it is imperative that individuals and their caregivers be prepared to insist upon and fight for the best and most appropriate treatment available. Given the current fiscal model under which medicine operates, the best and most appropriate treatment available may not be the first option offered to patients and their caregivers, if any option is offered at all.

Please understand that I am not condemning the medical enterprise for this state of affairs. I have spent 40 years in higher education. It has its own difficulties that many believe begin with a broken fiscal model. This often means that the best and most appropriate education is not always offered to students. At the risk of starting a philosophical war I invite responses to the question: “Are education and medical care, a public or private good?”