Bless This Wounded World

Our only credible action as
believers is to bless this world.
We are to bless it as extravagantly
as wastefully, as passionately as
God has blessed us.

The most healing power on earth
appears when imperfect people
dismissing all signs to the contrary,
know they have enormous power
to bless this wounded world.

~Patrick Malone, SJ


Of Note: I am not embarrassed to say that every human is divine. Not just a knock-off, but actually and authentically divine. Because of this, the powers we have to use for good or not-so good are enormous. Once we use the divine powers we possess to affect goodwill on Earth, everything will change. Could be in an instant. It's up to us.

Today's Weather Report: In town yesterday, a sales lady told me that the sun had come out for an instant. I commented that I'd missed the big event. Today there will be no big event as heavy clouds hang dully in the sky. At least it's in the 20's rather than sub-zero like yesterday. What keeps my engine going in the winter is the picture of the sun blazing above the clouds--a bright, glowing, hot sun. The thought brings smiles even now....as does Marie's country lane photo above. She played with the colors a bit to bring out an unnatural, verdant aura. Makes the scene appear a bit surreal. My Mom sent the quote above; so, today's blog is a family affair!

Watch For Change Snippet: Glaxo was on the verge of abandoning its malaria vaccine in 1999 because of market issues when it made the unusual move to apply for a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Fast forward nine years, and thanks to this partnership, a malaria vaccine may be on the horizon. It was announced last week that an experimental vaccine has shown promise when administered to 340 infants in Tanzania, who showed a 35% reduction in the incidence of malaria as compared to the control group. An accompanying editorial in the New England Journal of Medicine cautioned, however, that Tanzania has a lower rate of malaria because of the consistent use of bed nets and medication, and the vaccine needs to be tested in an area with a higher rate. But promise is promise and thanks to the Gates foundation, the wounded world could have one less devastating disease with which to contend sometime in the future.