Jack’s Winning Words 9/26/22 “Respect your ancestors, for you are the result of a thousand loves.” (Linda Hogan)  This quote is from Hogan’s book, Dwellings.  I never thought of my grandmother having a love affair with the grandpa I never knew…and I feel uncomfortable even considering it.  But the reality is this:  We each are the result of a love encounter.  Some of you might remember the song, Let’ Fall In Love…and the lyric: Bees do it; birds do it; even educated fleas do it.  Let’s do it; Let’s fall in love.”  When the song was released, there were  probably calls by some to ban it.  Ha!  Try banning love.  Even my anscestors had love lives.  Did yours?  ;-)  Jack FROM MAGGIE:  Good morning, Jack. Mike and I have a family story that was uncomfortable when we first learned of it. But the family remained together and were graced by God. Stay well… ===JACK:  We each have our stories.  Truly being the pastor of a congregation means that you've heard many stories.  Yesterday we sag: "What a friend we have in Jesus....all our sins and griefs to bear." FROM ST PAUL:  good one, Jack!    i have sometimes told children that they would not be here today if i had not married their parents:):)   most often i get a laff from the parents. ===JACK:  The "Virgin Birth" keeps us from thinking about Joseph and Mary having sexual relations...as though that would be "bad."===SP:  i recall talking to a well informed Catholic woman who told me that Catholic theology has historically offered only two models of womanhood:  Eve,  the perpetual temptress and Mary, the perpetual virgin.   two extremes with nothing in between!===JACK:  That reminds of the song with the line"Don't mess with Mr (Missus) in-between."   FROM THE FISH IN NOVA SCOTIA:  more than I knew about until I took my ancestrydna test and was contacted by a half-niece and found out my Dad was her grandfather. Have adjusted to that, although since I always wished I had siblings, I never met or even knew about a half-sister ten years older than I am.===JACK:  Those Ancestry sites can be good and bad, sometimes telling us more than what we want to know.  A Swedish guy has said that my grandparents probably eloped to America because their parents didn't approve of the relationship.  That's just his surmise.  FROM GUSTIE:  Hard to imagine, but I guess even my parents did.  Ha!===JACK:  How about your grandparents?  Or, as your children if they know where they came from?===G:  I have done both ancestry and 23 and me but being so dumb on the computer I don’t know much.  My Mom came from a family of 12 kids and Dad from 10 so I guess they were loving.  Ha!  I did find out that I am 100% Scandinavian. ===JACK:  Only one look, and someone can tell that you're a Swede.===G:     Right!!  I sure eat like one!===JACK:  Who cares?  Except, maybe your doctor.  Just be careful.  Your loved ones want you around for a while longer.   FROM DAZ IN COLORADO:  I like your good positive WW thoughts for Monday. ===JACK:  Some days I need to read them in front of a mirror.  FROM WILLMAR REV:  Surely so! 0;-)===JACK:  Before or after your coversion?===REV:  I didn’t have much biblical or secular understanding in those earlier days asking Jesus into my heart at the age of seven.  Further back than I can remember, my greatest of all Grandfather Adam had a love affair with my greatest of all Grandmother Eve…Some of my pastoral friends tell me they aren’t real live characters, and if so, I have no idea who had the first intercourse encounter. 0;-))===JACK:  Does it matter?===REV:  I’m hoping they are actually an ancestor?.! 0;-)===JACK:  I guess that the lineage has to start somewhere.  FROM BLAZING OAKS:  Of course! And most of us are products of a love union! And my children are products of a Love Union!! VIVA LA AMOR! :-)===JACK:  ..."and the beat goes on! " FROM SHALOM JAN:  I'm here.  I imagine my ancestors and my parents (cringe!) had love lives.===JACK:  Why do some politicians insist on creeping into the bedrooms of "we, the people?" FROM BB IN CHGO:  Great line of prose.  I’ve thought about this one a lot; we don’t typically think of the grands having an intimacy kind of love.  Back in the day I think many married for security, partnership, family, and “love” if present grew over time.  I have some (for the time) 1916? Pix of my grandmother that I think are “saucy” given the standards of the day.  The pix of my grands were found in my uncles tacklebox when he passed at 90.  No one wanted them so I took them.  Apparently my grandpa carried them in the little metal/silver business card case in his pocket.  Wow – that was love and a little of the spicy stuff too😊===JACK:  I think that there was more hankie pankie going on in those days than we would care to imagine.  We're here, aren't we?