Hello, Love

Welcome ,welcome, welcome my dear friends! It's been a while, and I do apologize for being away from you all so long; but, as you may remember, your old friend and humble servant Reverend Buddy is committed to posting in the Church of the High Beams space only when there is good news to be spread about like so much fertilizer in the garden; and friends, I believe we are approaching such a juncture.
I have been scuttling about this vast land, subsisting on the kindness of strangers, the patience of acquaintances, and the forgiveness of friends. Every day, my dear ones, I meet someone who inspires me, someone who reveals to me another fold in the beautiful mysterious fabric of our shared existence. I am almost overcome thinking about making love in the green grass behind the stadium with you my brown eyed girl.....
Sorry, friends, your humble homilist just experienced a senior moment of sorts there. I am often transported during my sojourns by the sound of music, and sometimes, my dears, it is so transporting that I lose my way for a moment...or longer. Several extended absences took place during the disco years, and again during some of the more intense seasons of punk and or speed metal. I once lost my way for about a month on a two lane between two Springfields, listening to the same Steppenwolf album over and over, I think it was For Ladies Only; a kindly ex-nun barmaid named Candy nudged me back on to the Interstate and back to my dear Flossirosa with the gentle exhortation,"Stay hard, stay hungry, stay alive if you can!" (Happy Birthday Bruce)
On that day, as I sped towards the dirty old NYC, the front seat sour with Marlboro stink and the green dashboard glow spread like a puddle under Hopper's deepest-amber streetlamp, the dial on the AM radio lit up, and the sounds of pop rock in the night bubbled out of the rumbling engine's hind quarters. I thought, that daft station's jingly call letter song says 'Home' to me. I was still a couple hundred miles out; but the signal was strong in the dark, and I was singing along with the Hues Corporation, BT Express, Hot Chocolate, the Archies, and the Three Degrees, on the way home. The radio, that warm sound in the black, was my sidekick as I thundered on through the night.
By the time I was ready to park my jalopy on the old streets downtown, the voice through the speakers was calling out, "hello, love." Ron Lundy was the guy's name, and he was the 10 to 2 DJ on ABC for about a hundred years, completely anonymous, and nearly a member of the family.
Now friends, I never met Mr. Ron Lundy, and I wouldn't recognize him unless he came right up in front of me and  said hello love, but his voice remains with me today. I can still hear it in my mind, like the songs of the aforementioned singing groups and thousands of others. We each of us hold deep within reservoirs of emotion and sensation, the depths of which are unknown to us. We are wondrous creatures, composed of so much more than flesh and blood. Our bodies and minds, yea our very spirits, thrum and strum and hum with high and low vibration, in frequencies nearly imperceptible yet incomprehensibly profound.
We are creatures of love, uncommon, unique love that is also universal, because it comes from the Universe, the Origin, the Creator, the Infinite. And that manifestation of infinite love, that force of light, shines without glare in the very center of our beings when we hear, feel, or make music.
Just as  an ancient one silenced by dementia can be awakened by an old familiar song, so too can our hearts be lifted if, when we hear the dopey old strains, we but open our ears and our hearts, open them to our brothers and sisters and our beautiful world, open our hearts and say,
Hello, love.
Peace my lovelies, till we meet again.
Surf Into the light,
Your Friend,
Reverend Buddy Lee

Hope and Joyful Comfort

Greetings, friends! Your old wandering pal, the Reverend Buddy, has ended his self-imposed exile, and emerged from the non-digital wilderness, to once again lift your spirits and lighten your hearts, while illuminating our path ahead. Surfing into the light as we go, dear friends, I say unto you that I have been away these many months, for I have had nothing to say. (And my ability to compose run-on sentences remains as healthy as ever.)
Seriously, flock, I have lain in the weeds and bushes, wading in the bulrushes awash with scum and swampy effluvia,  biding my time and keeping my counsel, while the scribes, con artists, and carnival barkers have filled the air with vile curses and profane pronouncements. (Thank goodness the presidential campaign is over!)
So, flushed with relief after a vinegar smoothie, I am here once again to inspire and amuse you with gentle reminders that love is all you need, and if you want for less, you will be more easily satisfied.
I have missed our interweb intercourse, but I have always been true to my pastoral code, which maintains that a homilist should only say what he means, when he feels it absolutely necessary, for the benefit of the flock, and not himself.
Truth be told, dear ones, your pal Reverend Buddy certainly does not find the sound of his own voice unpleasant; yea lo these many years have I been my own favorite (and only) audience on more occasions than not. And I have been known to mistakenly consider my most incoherent ramblings to be sagacious pearls worthy of imparting to the widest possible audience. Fortunately, I have been mentored by many of the greats - Charlie Chaplin, Marcel Marceau, Calvin Coolidge, and Harpo Marx.
All have counseled me in the cardinal rule of preaching: Say nothing, unless you are absolutely sure that your words will help.
My children, you know that the Church of the High Beams is open to all, at no charge, ever, like Facebook without the ads. We welcome all, always, in the interest of bringing love to all. We are all children of the Light, in the Image Divine made; it's our job to take care of each other, to remember where we come from. Especially when events cause the forces of chaos to rise in our consciousness.
We all know that what should be a joyous time of year has been marred by fear and incomprehensible pain; that Biblical storms and inexplicably brutal acts have been visited upon the most innocent among us. It has ever been so, my friends - we must remain strong in spirit, and calm of mind. And in the face of the Mayan end time as it approaches in a mere few days' time, I beg you to remember that NASA has told us the Mayans were eating mushrooms, or peyote, so they screwed up the calculations, and the world really won't end, at least probably for another few years. So there's that; and we have the time of joy, of peace and hope and comfort, lubricated by egg nog I'm sure, to which we may look forward. It is for this reason that I've emerged from off the grid to speak with you today. I've been looking, and seeing a world full of my brothers and sisters in obvious need of some joyful comfort. And your pal the Reverend Buddy will not let you down. Herewith follows a list of things you may do during this season that I guarantee will make you enjoy the waning days of 2012 much more than just sex and drugs and rock and roll unless you're British and over 65, which means you're already a rock star anyway, and probably should take a break:
1. Buy a toy, and bring it to a fire station or Marine recruiting center. Don't wrap it, just give it to them. They will see it goes to a child in need.
2. Go to the Post Office, and ask where the letters to Santa get answered. Take a couple and answer them, impersonating St. Nick.
3. Tip your garbage collector. Those folks do a dangerous, dirty, thankless job all year. No one would appreciate a little love more than they.
4. Say thank you as many chances as you get, to as many people as you can, every day. Think about someone who has helped you in your life who you haven't ever thanked, and make it a point to seek them out and thank them.
5. Every time you hear about a bad thing happening, say a prayer or think positively on behalf of everyone involved. They all need your thoughts and prayers, every one of us.
6. Make sure to run or walk or just jump up and down for a while. Don't just sit there; exercise is good for you, and you've got to be good to yourself in order to be good for others.
7. Think about all the reversals, bad luck, or misfortunes that have befallen you over the last year. Bring each one up in your mind, one by one. Think of them each one last time, then say goodbye, and let them go. Really - let them go.
8. Think of everyone who has screwed you over, betrayed you, done you dirty, hurt your feelings, or otherwise hurt you.
Now forgive them.
I didn't say you had to like them, I just said forgive them. Forgive them so you can get past whatever crappy dirty nasty thing they did to you. Don't let them do it again, just forgive, and move on.
Leave your anger, hurt, guilt, pain, whatever, in the past, where it belongs. Stop dragging it around with you, and lighten up. Let it go.
9. Sit still for awhile, and don't think about anything. This one is my favorite thing to do. I always feel better after I let my mind go blank; I think you will too. Just make sure not to do it while driving or operating heavy machinery.
10. Sing lots of songs, and play a whole lot of music. Doesn't matter what kind. The world always needs more music, especially singing. Sing as much as you can.
And, if you know any, sing songs of hope and joyful comfort....
Songs of hope and joyful comfort
songs of peace I sing tonight
songs of hope and joyful comfort
songs of joy I sing tonight

Still and silent early morning
Ere the rising of the sun
here a bright new age is dawning
Days of joy and peace to come...

The days of joy and peace are coming, my dear friends. Keep love in your hearts, and you will always be strong. Give love freely, and you will be happy. And eat lots of fruits and vegetables while drinking plenty of water, because dehydration can cause you to become irregular, which will surely make you cranky.
Happy Hannukah, Happy Kwanzaa, Buon Natale, Joyeux Noel, and Merry Christmas!

Son of a carpenter
Mary carried the light
Well we must be surfin surfin into the light
Must be tonight...
all my love,
Your Friend,
Rev Buddy Lee

Burning Questions

Hello Children!

Blessings upon you all, I'm sure.

Friends, your servant-of -salvation, the humble Reverend Buddy, has been dutifully traversing the countryside, interacting with all who will have me, spreading the Word of Love like a juicy secret about a reality show starlet. Unfortunately, my story is not salacious; my tale does not appeal to the baser instincts of the human animal; my creed is not simply carnal instant-gratification.

No, my tale is the Greatest Ever Told, the story of a love so true and pure it transcends our bodies and our physical world. And these days, my friends, my story must sometimes play second fiddle to the racier TnA, melodramatic tabloid journalistic impulse-feeding tales of hatred, nationalism, race-baiting, and lowest-of the-low forms of psychotic titillation and riot-incitement. And I'm just talking about the front page of the New York Times!

Seriously, though, friends, it has ever been so. The passions of the populace have ever been inflamed by the reckless demagogues, bent on scratching the fears and phobias of the body politic into sores of civil unrest and social discord. Sometimes these rascals succeed; sometimes cooler heads prevail.

But either way, children, remember:

Love will outlast any storm, be it the fiery Holocaust, Kristallnacht; or the blight of strange fruit on the trees of the American South.

The arc is towards justice, Martin Luther King said. Dr. King, God bless him, was an optimist.

And that optimism, that belief in the ultimate goodness of people, is perhaps the deepest vein of wisdom mined by any of our greatest philosophers.

Remember, children, the faith of the multitudes bearing Good News, through flame, dungeon and sword.

There is always a voice that catches the ears of the crowd, that twists the wisdom into angry fear, a flaming passion stoked by fear of the unknown; just as there is the voice of the weary, fearful, or jaded, downplaying the deeply-felt doubt, the trepidation of good folks needing a strong voice to reassure them. And my friends, there is never a shortage of voices willing to join in the chaotic chorus of mankind, caught up in his daily fears, cares, and worries; there is no relief from the noise, it sometimes seems.

That is precisely when, my dear ones, you must seek out the serene silence of a safe place, a church, or library, or a park bench; when you need to put a little baby on your shoulder, and relax so she can fall asleep; when you should throw a red ball to a big old goofy dog, who will fetch that ball as many times as you will throw it; that is the time, my friends, when you need to take out a good book, and re-read the passages that first inspired you, and remember the heights to which your spirit had first been raised.

But friends, always resist the urge to burn the book.

Nothing good ever came from burning a book.

Seriously.

No matter how odious, objectionable, or offensive, burning a book is an act more reprehensible than the contents of any volume could ever be.

No one is saying you have to like what any book says.

No one is saying you have to agree with the contents of any volume.

Of course, books can contain evil thoughts, lies, fabrications, abominations; but they are only images, words, and ideas. If you are a Child of the Light, you are armed with the Sword of Reason, the Light of Love, the sustenance of Faith; those resources will be sufficient to keep your mind strong and your thoughts clear.

And most importantly, if you would treat the reader of any book the same as you yourself wished to be treated, you would grant him the peace and comfort necessary to read and enjoy the book he was reading.

You are not anyone's judge; there is only one Judge for each of us.

The most annoying thing about these kinds of arguments for me, folks, is the part where the followers of Jesus get cast as the Great Intolerants.

And unfortunately, there's always a toolbag somewhere willing to burn a book in God's name.

Please.

As you know, my dear flock, your pal the Reverend Buddy is not big on endorsing specific political philosophies. My goal is to cast a net of joy far and wide over all this great land, preaching virtually to all light surfers, telling the good news to everyone. But every once in a while, I've got to stop and address true craziness when I see it.

And burning books is just freakin crazy.

Have mercy on the poor souls who wish harm on each other for trying to burn books, or ban cartoons, or trying to rule others' thoughts just because they don't agree with them.

And children, though you know I am a lover and a man of peace, hear me when I say you shouldn't hesitate to fight for those freedoms, for if you're unwilling to fight for freedom, you will lose it;

but don't confuse these issues, my dear friends.

Live and let live.

We don't have to agree, but we can sure as shootin leave each other alone.

And just because some doofus somewhere wants to call attention to himself by burning books, don't think the world is ending. It's not.

There have always been a certain number among us who have thrived by sowing anger, mistrust, and ill will.

Many times these individuals have risen to power riding the waves of anger, suspicion, and fear.

But they have no power over those of us willing to take a deep breath, take out the garbage, and feed the dog.

Live your lives. Each of our lives is a precious draft draining from the glass, soon to be only a fading taste on the tongue.

Don't waste it in fear.

Don't spend your days in anger.

Drink deep your life, and belch it lustily. For I say unto you then, he who has drunk deeply of his joyous life shall never need the flames of a book-fire to warm his spirit.

And that is what I wish for you today, my dear friends:

May you always seek the truth, and be willing to face it yourself before shoving it under the noses of others;

May your faith strengthen your spirit, so you never feel threatened by the beliefs of others.

May you always be free, and cherish that freedom to the point where you are willing to fight to preserve it, for yourself and everyone else;

and may you always remember, you are loved, every moment of every day, just because you are you, in all your magnificent flawed impermanent fallible ways, and you always will be loved.

When you remember that, friends, your enemies are vanquished, and your loved ones protected, by that most powerful force in the Universe:

Love.

Feel the love. It's there, just for you.

Be the love. Verb that love, people, act it out.

Love.

And pick up a good book.

The noise will recede, and the smoke will clear.

Open your minds, and

Surf on into the Light

You can go by boat.

You can go by Kite.

Just go, go, go.

Surf on

into the Light.

I thank Dr. Seuss for inspiration

I wish you all sweet literacy.

Good night all you sweet surfers,

Your friend,

the Reverend Buddy Lee

Worship in Peace

Blessings upon you all, my friends!

Dear flock, your pal and erstwhile spiritual guide the Reverend Buddy Lee has been hard at work on the streets and byways, spreading like butter the Word of Love upon every nook and cranny I can find!

People, I have been on point, out working every day, shining the Light into every crack and crevasse which presents itself to me;

and, children, while I have often been embraced by magnificent humans who teach me by their brilliant example new ways to appreciate the art science and philosophy of Surfing into the Light, I have on occasion been dashed upon the shoals of hostility, my hardy little vessel of faith run aground upon the sandbars of indifference and jaded hipsterism.

And friends, I have even been accosted by, and scolded by, well-dressed community organizers, villainous billionaires, and chauffeured ne'er- do- wells, who from their station of privilege, have said unto me,

"Woe unto thee, Reverend Buddy, for thou hast cast a fairy tale of religion onto the masses, roiling them into a raucous and disorganized state, from which they are not as easily herded,"

So hath these great personages, cultural leaders, and high office holders, so have they derided me, your humble homilist:

"Thou hast cast aspersions upon our governmental orthodoxy, our venerated separation of church and state, in an immoral attempt to dilute our money-giving power."

They have wrathfully continued:

"Your invocation of God is unpatriotic and so last-century. You should come into the new day with us. Your insistence on celebrating God's love is dangerous and possibly bigoted. For you are not sufficiently tolerant of others when you espouse your own preaching. The Church of the High Beams is a gutter religion, illegitimate, and unendorsed by our pluralistic, diversity-driven paradigm."

Now, friends, it is true that I happened to be standing in the gutter at that very moment. I was watching a distinguished gentleman stand in front of a holy national statue and yell at the world about separating the church from the state, and how this might be our last chance to get it right, and I was saying to myself,

Reverend Buddy, this feller's preaching is far more apocalyptic and threatening in nature than anything you have been preaching since you gave up Thunderbird for inspiration, and I laughed softly to myself when I thought that little thought.

And a lady next to me, she said, 'What are you laughing at?'

And I replied, 'Well, I was laughing because most preachers I know wouldn't wag their finger at the flock, and tell them they should be ashamed of themselves if they don't do what they're told, or think as they're told to think; it's counterintuitive, to say nothing of the fact that it's intellectually dishonest."

"You're just a bigot," she replied.

"Madam, I beg to differ," I said. " I'm just saying that fire and brimstone went out of style a long time ago. If you want people to listen, you've got to offer them something real. Words like 'tolerance' and 'diversity' don't mean anything to people. They're abstractions, and this feller is using those concepts like hammers, hitting folks on the head with them. He thinks by standing in front of the Harbor Lady, everybody will overlook his angry face and arrogant Napoleonic manner, and buy whatever he's selling. But there's too much dissonance. Too much insistence, too much authority, not enough responsibility. Too much threat in his ordering us to be compassionate. It just doesn't add up."

"You're just a bigot, " she replied.

Right then, friends, I admit it, I sighed and turned away. I walked down the block, the words of the man in the suit ringing hollow off the pavement. Your pal the Reverend Buddy felt a mite defeated.

Because, as you know, children, my mission is to spread the joy around; I'm not anyone's enemy. I don't ever call names, and I never tell anyone what to do. I leave the judging to the Judge, if you know what I mean. Usually, I'm just so filled with joy that I can't wait to have a teachable moment with the folks I meet, because, even though I'm the Reverend Buddy Lee, in teachable moments, I'm always the one who learns something. Once in a while maybe I can offer an insight, but friends, I'm telling the truth when I say this world has a lot more to teach me than I it!

Anyway, I was feeling just a wee bit crestfallen after that session, and I stopped into a little shop to pick up some mints. The gent behind the counter didn't look too happy, either, so I gave it a try:

"Something wrong, friend?"

He looked up, and gestured to the show going on outside.

"Bad for business," he mumbled."They don't buy nothing. Scare away the customers."

He handed me the mints, and I paid him.

I noticed a photo above the counter. Three little kids were smiling in a tumbled pile on a sofa.

"Your kids?"

"Yeah."

"Beautiful family."

He smiled.

"Thanks." Just like the smiles in the photo.

"You have a blessed day, now."

"You know what?" he said.

"Where I go to pray, it's so small, no one even knows it's there. I don't care. I know it's there, that's all that matters. I came here to be left alone, just to make money, get a better life for my kids, no rich king or other asshole running my life. Here, they leave you alone. Pay your bills, mind your business, work all day, no problem.

That's why I came here, for a better life."

I shook his hand then, and said, "I truly hope you find it, brother."

I walked out of that shop, friends, filled once again with the spirit of hope and reconciliation.

And today, my friends, that is what I wish for you:

That, when you find yourself enmeshed in a swirling maelstrom of misunderstanding and mistrust, that a friend or stranger will reach through the miasma, take your hand, and lead you out of the chaos, back to where all is good and real, back to a place where you can be still, and grateful, and clear, and joyful; that someone will take your hand and help you find a calm space where you may worship in peace.

We know that place need not have GPS coordinates, or be found on a map; no, friends, it need only be a refuge where your spirit may once again get its bearings, rebalance, and continue its great journey. That is what I wish for you today, a rest stop of tranquility when you need it, as you keep on surfing into the Light,

Wishing you Peaceful Worship,

Your Friend,

Reverend Buddy Lee

Love's Labors

Hello Friends!

Blessings of saucy spicy juicy love upon you, each and every one!

I, your friend the Reverend Buddy, have been busily buzzing about the region since last we spoke, huffing, puffing and hefting the unbearably light blessings of the Lord, singing His sweet Song of Love on my rickety, slightly out-of-tune instrument, yea verily playing for all I am worth to any who will listen; and children, may I say, I have been enriched beyond wealth and words at the beauty I have witnessed.

O flock o' mine, your pal the Reverend Buddy has been copiously blessed by the many wonderful folks I have encountered in my recent travels. I am living proof of the Human Spirit's kindness, generosity, and Divine Grace, blessed as I have been by the legions of angels My Friend sends me daily!

In recent days, I have met mothers who have lost sons; instead of wrapping themselves in the comfort of grief, they have embraced the world and given it joy!

I have met strong young men who have lost arms and legs. Instead of retiring from life, they have grabbed for glory, climbing mountains and reaching across the world, conquering hatred and fear with love and courage!

I have met women, previously fallen from grace, now standing strong on their own, cradling babies bursting grandly into adulthood, growing up strong and giving life back to a world others would call cruel and unkind; transforming the very planet with love and grace;

I have seen the sick leap from their beds, saying, I have something to give, I shall not yet lie down, my life is not yet over!

And I have seen scores of people from all walks of life, from hedge fund manager to cab driver to garbage man to lawyer; I have seen them all, each day, laugh, cry, sweat, curse, and shout, as they work each day to bring their loved ones' dreams closer to reality. So many people, normal, flawed, imperfect; bless them as they drop their child at college. As they drive away, they think, I can't really afford this.... but she / he is my child, and I want them to have the opportunities that I did not have; I am investing in my baby, in the future. I believe in tomorrow, it will be better, if not for me then for my child; and I will work for twenty years more so it may happen, so my child may have a chance; because I believe in the future, the promise of tomorrow.

I may not love my work, but I love the child my labor will benefit.

I may never get a chance to become a tennis pro, but my child will get a chance to live her dream;

My great American novel will have to wait, because my child needs tuition money for college;

I may never sail my boat around the world, or lay on the beach, or invest the cash I've saved, because my son needs it to follow his dream;

And I will be a success because my children will have opportunity; and I will leave this world better than I found it, because I will have raised good children who have been educated and who will make the world better.

To you all, my brothers and sisters, to Iola,who lost her son Keith, but still held a race across the Brooklyn Bridge in his name; to Richie, who sent his son to become an engineer, even though he wanted him to join the family business; to each and every real person who gets up each morning to go to work because your kids need you to; to the RNs and EMTs who work all night so their kids can go to school in the morning; to the thousand million salt grains of the earth, I say to you, you shall all know heaven, because in your hearts you know love; you shall all be rewarded, for each day have you sacrificed; You will know joy, because with love in your hearts have you labored.

My brothers and sisters, think of the hope, pride, anxiety, and pain you have tasted each time you have left your child at another milepost; from the tearful first goodbye at kindergarten, through high school or college graduation. Remember the joys shared with their every accomplishment, the tears shared with their every frustration. Those moments are among your life's most intense.

Now imagine every face in the world, every grain of sand, every sparrow falling. Imagine sharing each moment of joy, pleasure, agony, and pain, as intently felt as when experiencing it with your own child.

If you can do this, friends, you can begin to imagine the beginning of the Lord's investment of Love in each of us. God cries at all our graduations, and funerals, and retirement parties; and His hand is on our shoulder in the moments no one else can see; the moments when we ask, Can I do this, I don't know; can I keep going when I want to quit; can I keep on coming through for the people who are depending on me?

Even when, yea, especially when you feel most alone, God is there at your shoulder, wing-man of wing-men, friend of all friends.

Just as love is the fuel of your sacrifice for your college kids, so is love the food of life, eternal life.

You're not alone friends, even though it may sometimes feel that way, as you pursue your life's labors of love; remember there is One who is always with you, through all of Love's Labors. Take the strength you need from the love, so you may keep it up , so you may

Surf on into the Light,

Your Friend, Reverend Buddy Lee

Choices

Hello My Friends, Blessings of Bounty Upon You All!

Once again dear flock, permit me to apologize for my extended absence. Your pal the Reverend Buddy has been hard at work in the vineyards, toiling diligently towards the maturation and development of his own pathetic instrument, in the interest of improvement and enhanced performance, particularly in the areas of redemption and salvation.

Hallelulia!

I have foresworn (most) libations, deigned to abstain from gluttonous and otherwise careless nutritional behaviors, and have begun to engage in more therapeutic forms of nocturnal wandering than I had previously performed; and the effects, my children, of these positive actions have been wondrous, yea miraculous, even.

How, Reverend Buddy you may ask, how have the miracles come to you?

Have you been made privy to fantastical visions?

Have you heard the voices of angels?

Have you glided above clouds, touched Salvation's hem, smelled the fresh morning's breeze of Victory?

Have you, Reverend Buddy?

And I must answer, my sweet naive charges,

No.

I have not.

For I am, as are you all, outside the Gates, and awaiting entry.

I am, as yet, unfit to tread upon the Path of Peace;

my ears are not yet tuned to the frequencies of the angelic host.

My eyes may not yet gaze upon the prophets, saints, and mystics in their serene glory,

nor smell the perfumed air in the Uncloudy Sky.

I may not yet touch that sky, for I have not yet obtained the Key, and made my passage.

But I ask you, my children:

Does that mean I should just wait, standing there with my mouth open and the properly-colored wristband on my arm, waiting like a drone for the doors to open and the show to start?

Shall I sit in my pew, nose to the sky, decomposing morally as I smugly judge others, lazily awaiting my perceived-to be-deserved eventual reward?

Should I recline before the Cyclops, in supplication to the false gods of momentary distraction, numb in the false comfort that my birth, faith, address, checkbook, or club membership will be all I need to flash as I pass on in?

Well?

I say unto you, it does NOT.

HELLS NO.

You got to prove it, people.

You got to bring it.

Every day.

All night.

You got to do it.

Your best.

Do your best, and forgive the rest.

Stay off the yellowbrick road of fanciful dreams; jog the cinder path as best you can. Put one foot in front of the other, thinking not of the finish line, but only the next step.

Don't imagine the sounds of heaven, when you can actually hear Buddy Guy, Stephane Grappelli, Emmylou Harris, and Ramsey Lewis provide the soundtrack to your grunting exertions as you try your best to move the body GOD GAVE YOU to a better place.

Celebrate the sweat that pours out of you, the result of honest toil, or butt-busting play, or the best dang karaoke version of You Shook Me you could possibly do.

Let the workout clothing and dedication of your gym-mates inspire you, as long as your inspiration, and their outfits, are not inappropriately revealing.

Amen.

Ahem.

As I was saying, children, I am here to tell you, as your humble homilist, that I may never attain the body of an athlete, or the mind of a scholar, or the spirit of a holy man. I will wind up my pursuits at their destination, wherever that may be. For my responsibility is the race, not the finish line. My duty is the action, not the result. My obligation is my best effort, and my best effort only.

Friends, Reverend Buddy the exercise guy will probably never achieve a six-pack, because I more closely resemble a keg-barrel. But that won't stop me exercising. I intend to bring it, every day.

And I may never compose a best-selling book. or become a self-help guru, because, as I have amply demonstrated, my talents, such as they are, are humble at best. But that won't ever stop me from straining my feeble mind to come up with stories and messages that make you smile, and entertain you.

And, despite my prayers, meditations, and supplications, I may never reach the summit of holy mysticsm that will allow me to purely impart the wisdom of Almighty Love to you. I'm not worried, though, because I will always spend each moment in my message bringing you laughter, love, and light, reminding you in every dopey way I can that you are loved, completely, just because you're you, and you always will be.

God loves us all, and God is in us all.

Love yourself, so you may better love God.

Love yourself, because God loves you.

There is Love, pouring like light from the Center of All Things, straight to your heart.

Open your heart, and let the Light shine in.

Let yourself get better.

Get better, or not.

We each of us have that choice, every minute of every day.

You're either getting better, or you're not.

Love always makes you better. The more you love, the better you feel.

So choose to get better, people.

Choose love.

Love yourself.

Choose love.

God loves you, and always will.

Choose love, and

Surf on into the Light,

Your Loving Friend,

Reverend Buddy Lee

Reverend Buddy's Message For the Holy Days

Peace to you, my friends!

I apologize for my ministerial absence over yea these last thirty days, but folks, your friend the Reverend Buddy has been deep in meditation, wandering the mystic wilderness, visualizing how best I could, through my own corrupt and humble vessel, provide to you my dear friends and flock, a message of peace that would give your minds inspiration and your spirits succor.

It is at this time of year when many of our Judeo-Christian friends and others turn to religious or spiritual thought, for the solemnest holy days celebrated by these faiths are nigh.

It is in that spirit of divinely-inspired reflection that I wish you all the most joyous of religious feasts; may your faith nourish your souls, helping you to reach and feast at the table of God.

And to all who find no path through the religious thicket, but who instead dwell in the land of diminished gods, or absent dieties, may you find the peace and comfort you require for sustenance of your instruments of consciousness, whatever they may be.

May the rites of Spring reawaken in your hearts the joy of life; may the budding world around you rekindle the fires of hope and goodwill; and may the songs of birds fill your ears and lighten your burdens.

Friends, many times the onset of Spring creates in our hearts the desire to clear the debris from the area; our souls are no exception to this urging. Spring cleaning is a good thing, whether it be clearing the fetid rooms occupied by one's own indolent adult children, or sweeping the cobwebs of resentment and regret from the crawl-spaces in our spirits.

After a time, everything needs cleaning, including our spirits. Now how, Reverend Buddy, you may ask, how in the world may I maintain my spirit, liberating it from the dust, grime, and dirt which threatens to clog and obscure it? Well, friends, I have prayed, dreamed, and pondered these many hours in the desert, waiting for the illumination of the Light upon my feeble mind; and it was revealed to me, that, just as a mop, bucket, broom and pan are the tools you may use to clean your rooms; so, too, may your soul benefit from the application of the cleansing powers of forgiveness, surrender, perspective, and empathy.

Friends, the cleansing power of the aforementioned attributes will have your soul sparkling, shining once again in purity and innocence. But, Reverend Buddy, you may persist in your denial-burdened way, how can these actions clear my soul? How, by forgetting, forgiving, giving up, and imagining to be those who transgress against me, how through these actions may I cleanse my spirit?

Well, friends, I will tell you, that, despite your obstinacy and pig-headedness, you will not only emerge with a sparkling clean spiritual vessel, but, if you act now, you will also receive, at no extra charge, Happiness and a giddy sense of euphoria at the lifting of the burdensome resentment from your hearts.

My dear sheep, your happiness can truly be limited only by the extent to which you are unable to forgive. When you forgive someone, you nullify the injury their behavior has visited upon you, at least in spiritual terms. Refusing to forgive, continuing to bear the grievance of your perceived affront, is much more trying than simply releasing the grievance from its stranglehold on your spirit.

Surrender the grief, anger, resentment, and bitterness. Let it fly away, like the seeds of weeds on the wind, to choke others' lawns; keep your own grass free of encumbrance, looking green and healthy!

Surrender the fight, no matter what it is, for truly friends, how many fights in life are really worth having? If we're honest, we realize that at least nine out of ten were not necessary at all, and that pursuing them only reaped more grief and heartache than ignoring them ever would have; To see this folly is to acquire perspective, to see before it happens how the snares of envy, vanity, and venality restrain us from being the true friend, the loving spouse, the caring parent we could otherwise be. Seeing the snares as they grow up prevents us from being caught up in them, allowing us to focus in our relationships on the important things, instead of the petty jealousies and trivial vexations that tend to beset our dearest, deepest personal connections.

And finally, when confronted with a thoughtless act committed against you, difficult though it may be, try to imagine what would cause that person to act in such a way. Walk a mile in the metaphorical moccasins of your neighbor before you condemn him. Such empathetic reasoning costs little effort; but it may save you countless hours of self-recrimination later.

Always ask: What can I do? How can I help? What can I improve?

Never ask: Why won't they do what I want? Why are they so mean/ ignorant/ intolerant, etc?

Never worry about things you can't control; never try to control another.

Always be responsible for yourself and all your actions; never cede control of yourself to another.

Clear your mind. Do your soul a favor.

And that is what I wish for you today, my friends:

That this Spring time, this time of holy days, will awaken in you a feeling of rebirth, allowing you to grow up like a budding beautiful flower;

May you forgive everyone, and may everyone forgive you, of everything, including everything you've ever done to yourself;

May you surrender to all who love you, and may they surrender to you as well.

May you stand back and see the long view;

and may you stand in the shoes of all those with whom you deal.

May you let go of all the fear, pain, bitterness, and resentment that holds you back;

May you open yourself to the love, beauty, truth, and opportunity that awaits you.

May you keep your own counsel, and keep your wits about you; and

May you give all you've got while you've got it to give.

My friends, if you're able to do that sometimes, you'll be making the world a happier place, for all of us; and that's all we can ask for, all of us, and any of us, as we

Surf on into the Light,

Your Friend,

Reverend Buddy Lee

Happy Passover

Happy Easter

Happy Spring

Be Happy Always!