Okay, Getting Nervous Here

A group called Family Radio claims that Judgement Day (when Christ will make his second appearance on Earth and take all true believers to heaven) will happen on May 21--which just so happens to be this coming Saturday--and the world and all who are left by then will be destroyed altogether exactly five months later. In their FACTS about May 21, 2011, they say that one of the things that will happen on that day is that there will be a worldwide earthquake. They also dismiss any possibility that May 21will come and go without anything happening. Another thing they say that those who are not saved by that time have no chance at salvation. So basically, those that are not in Heaven by this Saturday will die sometime within the five months that follow and will go straight to Hell. At least, that was how it sounded to me.

I know that I shouldn't let this kind of stuff get to me, but I can't help it. If the Bible says that God is the only one that knows when Christ will return and the world will end, then I would think that there IS the chance that the rapture, earthquake, etc. might happen at some point on that day. Then again, it might not.

My plan is that, IF May 21 comes and goes and no earthquakes or anything like that happens, then I will drop those people a message asking them what happened (and encourage anyone reading this to do the same). That is, unless they have information on their site after that date to reflect lack of anything happening. If I end up having to write to them or end up finding information after May 21, I will let you all know here. In the meantime, I should probably calm down and go about my business.

Do We Really Have One Week Left Until Judgement Day?

If you have been raised on any school of Christian thought, you were probably taught that "Judgement Day" is where Jesus will make his second appearance on Earth and take those who have been saved to Heaven. Everyone else will be left behind. (Ever read the "Left Behind" series? I've read the first ten books of the kid version.) Following that will be destruction and the end of the world altogether. What I was taught was, yes, this will all happen at some point, but it was my understanding that only God knew when this would happen.

However, there is a religious group that claims that Judgement Day will happen on May 21 of this year, followed by the end of the world altogether exactly five months later. It just so happens that the date that Judgement Day will supposedly happen is a week from today.

 I don't tend to quote the Bible very often in my posts if ever. However, Mark 13:32-33 clearly states, "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when the time will come." (NIV).  In other words, we don't know when it will happen. Maybe it will happen on that day. Maybe it won't.

I for one will take a "we'll see" approach to this and just go about my business as planned for that day (including a meeting I have with someone depending on whether or not that date works out for them). After that day, I will check back in on the site to see if it's still up, and write to the people running it to please respond if they are still here on this earth with the rest of us. After all, it will mean that either they made a mistake about the date or they were not saved. I may also write to them again on October 21 of this year if that day comes and goes and I'm still here and so is this world. With the latter date, I'll ask them what happened. I'll let you all know when and if I get a response.

Bin Laden? I Thought We Forgot About Him

Some of you may have heard the news that Osama bin Laden is dead. I heard it on the radio, and maybe it was because I was still waking up, but I didn't react strongly, one way or the other. To be honest, I thought we had forgotten about him. After all, it's been nearly ten years since 9/11 (and yes, I STILL remember where I was at the time), and if I recall correctly, the amount of talk there was about him eventually went on the decline.

I don't know what his death is going to mean for us or Al-Qeada. One of my thrift store colleagues thinks that there will be retaliation on the terrorists' end, and it'll be World War III for us. We'll just have to wait and see.

So, for those of you who heard about the death, how did you react? Did you have strong feelings either way, or did you, like me, pretty much forget about him?

It's Good To Be Home

I'm finally home from helping out with a family situation. Though it took a while to be resolved, it has been resolved nonetheless, and I can finally resume my regular routines as well as go in and out of the house on my terms. (The nature of what I had to do outside of my hometown limited when and under what circumstances I was out of the house I was staying in.) What's more, it's in time for Easter, so I'll get to go to church tomorrow. Yay!

Something I Might Have To Try This Summer

For roughly two months, I've been at my sister's house. One of the things I've done recently was help my nephew pick dandelions to give to the family rabbit and guinea pig. (We ended up picking more than was actually needed though, so some are currently on reserve.)

The only pet at my house is a dog named Layla, and I'm not sure how receptive she would be of dandelions. However, the dandelion picking got me thinking about what I could do with dandelions in my own hometown in case I don't have anything else to do this summer and decide go pick dandelions (at my own home or at a local park).

So, I looked on the Internet for some things to try. Some of the ideas were cooking-related, but I don't have that much experience with cooking, at least not from scratch anyway. However, something that I did find was a recipe for dandelion lemonade. It doesn't look very hard to make. I'd simply need 2 quarts worth of dandelions, certain containers (a one gallon jar and something that will help me measure out the right amount of dandelions), some lemons, and to make sure there's enough space in the fridge for a one gallon jar (not to meniton permission from my mom and/or stepdad). The recipe mentioned "add[ing] fresh honey to taste", but I think that part's optional.

I will likely be in my hometown this summer, and I plan on filling most of my week up with the job search, volunteer work at a local thrift store three times a week, and church on Sunday. However, I might have a day or two when I could take a go at gathering dandelions for lemonade. It'll be a new thing for me and give me an excuse to be outside for a while.

The Snow We've Been Getting

We had snow since the beginning of the month. It has been last Monday since I had consistent access to a sidewalk. Not only are the sidewalks covered to where I can't find them, but the piles are too high for me to walk through them without getting more than a minimal amount of pant leg wet. Needless to say, a lot of commutes I have had to make had me walking on the street but as close to the curb as possible.

Last Tuesday and Wednesday, the office where my mom works was closed. My stepdad had to work Tuesday, but the store ended up closing early, and he had the day off on Wednesday anyway. Wednesday is also one of the days when I do my volunteer work at a local thrift store, but last Wednesday it was closed and today, the weather was too risky for me to go over there without at least arranging a ride.

Things that were supposed to happen this month ended up not happening because of the weather. The fashion show that my mom and I were supposed to participate in this past Sunday had been postponed by a month. The work night that the aforementioned thrift store (for anyone, staff member or not, to come in if they wished in order to help further things along) that was scheduled for tomorrow ended up getting cancelled because of the weather.

Then, there's my job search. I have not been able to turn in a single job application last week because of the snow and the very bitter cold. I have one filled out that I hope to turn in tomorrow, and I'm hoping to seek out more. (Unfortunately, I will have to walk on the street for longer distances than what it takes to get to my volunteer work.) The snow does not change the fact that I've got student loans to pay off and not to mention I want to minimize my dependency on either of my parents (in addition to not wanting to let them down).

As a kid, I enjoyed the snow, especially if I got a chance to play in it. I remember various times when I've even built snowmen. As an adult, I've found it hard to enjoy. For one thing, it's keeping me from doing things I need to go out and do or at least making it difficult. Another is that I feel I have to much "indoor stuff" to do that I don't feel right about going outside without having any business calling me there. Also, while it'd be one thing to be out playing in the snow if my nephew 8-year-old were around, it seems silly for me to be playing in it by myself at 25 (especially given, again, the "indoor stuff" there is for me to do; but if I run out of it, MAYBE I'll consider going outside).

I will say though, it is pretty to look at. I'll sometimes look out the window at it. (And to think in the last couple of months it didn't look like we'd get any.) Being out in it is just a different matter. I'm hoping it doesn't become too much of a problem for me this month.

The Empty Seat

Since October of 2009, when I had returned to my mom after nine-and-a-half months of living with my dad when he had to have surgery and go somewhere to recover from said surgery, I had been attending a Baptist church in my current hometown. There was an elderly whom I would often sit next to. She and I would talk a bit before the service. One of the things that would come up was my job search. She'd ask how it was going, and I'd admit that it wasn't going so well. She was sympathetic of this. (She knew the economy was making it hard to get a job.)

Last week, I had heard that she was in the hospital. I think it had something to do with a hip injury. If the weather had allowed, I maybe would've gone to see her. I found out today that she died on Thursday, and her funeral was this afternoon. After church, I went home basically just long enough to eat some lunch and then headed over to the funeral home where said funeral was taking place. (The burial is set to be a private family one to take place on another date.) I was hoping that today, I'd maybe get some clarification from the pastor as to the details of her condition and maybe find out what part of the hospital she was in so that I could perhaps go see her. But obviously, it was too late. She lived to be 79.

We could all be confident that we'll see someone again or that we'll get to do xyz only for death to change all that. Will I live as long as my friend did? I don't know at this point. On the one hand, I regret not seeing her one last time before her passing. If I knew earlier specifically which part of the hospital she was in, I would've maybe toughed out the weather we had been having to go see her.

Church won't be the same anymore without her to talk to before service. Perhaps the empty seat next to me is symbolic of the void that her passing has left. Will someone else fill the seat next to me? Who knows? All I know is that I should never take for granted the people in my life (in my family, at church, or anywhere else). After all, one day they could be gone for good.