It's been a while since I've added some thoughts to this author's blog. I took a few months off to research my latest book, Roaming Crow, then a year to write it. The world has changed a great deal in the last year and a half, so I have some catching up to do.

January, 2025 started with a bang, when the Southern California wildfires destroyed 18,000 homes and caused over four-hundred deaths. Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the country, an Army Black Hawk helicopter collided with an American Airlines jet, killing all sixty-seven people as both aircraft crashed into the Potomac River. These two incidents seemed to be the starting gun to an onslaught of disasters, some natural, some man-made, but all of them freakish.

The fires have continued into 2026. A million acres in the Nebraska Sandhills have been charred by wildfires during March and April. Sparse grass, the only thing stabilizing all these dunes, is gone, leaving sugar sand at the mercy of springtime gales. It could take two or three years for the land to recover, depending on timely rains. Unfortunately, we are in a drought, and the cattle can't survive in a desert. Thank God for generous farmers from across the state who are donating hay for the livestock.

Am I wrong, or are we experiencing more tornados than usual? I was doing some reading in the unassuming Book of Hosea this morning and came across this phrase: They sow the wind and reap a tornado. I had to stop and ponder these words. The context was the country of Israel and the feigned godliness of it's idol worshipping kings. They spewed empty lies which humored the countrymen, but would eventually spawn a tornado which would destroy their nation. If you're wondering, Hosea was an 8th century B.C. prophet.

Then came the flash flood in Texas last July 4th that drowned 119 people. Twenty-eight of these were children and the director of a Christian girls camp. Natural disasters don't discriminate whom they affect.

Now, let's look at some of our man-made afflictions, starting with our pocketbook. Insurance costs have sky-rocketed; many folks are forced to go without medical insurance. Mortgage rates have doubled, making it more difficult to purchase a home. Prices at the grocery store continue to climb. Fuel prices have increased by 30% since the start of the war with Iran.

Speaking of the war, have you noticed a sudden change in people's demeanor lately? Vocal Trump adherents are strangely silent now. A befuddled hush has fallen across the country.  The most self-assured man in the world has created a world of uncertainty.

Speaking of uncertainty, the world now has a muddled view of Christianity. Christian Nationalism is a malignant cult that has taken over our current administration, along with it's red-state minions. With Trump as its leader, this cult is threatening to take control of the world. Threats to neighboring countries, threats to the Pope, threats to destroy entire civilizations, concern the rest of planet Earth. This war with Iran has brought out the true character of the Trump administration, which looks nothing like the teachings of Jesus.

The United States has had a special relationship with Israel since its declaration of independence in 1948. This is an interesting friendship, given the animosity between Jews and the earliest Christians. After all, we Christians are accusing the Jewish religious leaders of killing our Savior, and the Jews claim that Jesus was a heretic. It seems that those of the Jewish faith should be as much at odds with Christians as they are with Muslims. But here we are, strange bedfellows that we prefer to think as being the "good guys." But this war, and Israel's recent war with Gaza is shifting the world's view of us. Donald Trump's poor judgement and crude comments, along with Benjamin Netanyahu's war atrocities has the good guys looking like bad guys, and unfortunately, the bad guys are still bad guys. This is even confusing for me to write.

So, I've talked about the weather, which is a nice, neutral subject, and religion and politics, two forbidden subjects. Since I have violated the code of writing ethics, this blog post will not appear on social media, unless someone finds it worthy of sharing on their own page. If so, you have my blessing. As for me, I'm long past due a trip to the land of the living, otherwise known as the Sandhills, where I hope to regain a little sanity. Shalom!