Belief in God

• I believe in god. Not a god that is necessarily bound by name, organization, or ritualistic practice; but a GOD I recognize I am not intelligent enough to comprehend or humble enough to appreciate its sway exhorted in my behalf. In spite of my short comings today I am grateful.

Knowledge

What we believe we know is far more dangerous than what we know we don't know.

If it doesn't kill you.. it will just try again.

Its not adversity in itself that makes us better, stronger, or even grow. It is those that help us through the adversity with wisdom and kindness that allows for the opportunity to become a better person. 

~Ardelia

Friends

"It's better to have few friends of quality than hundreds in quantity."

~Ardelia

Experience South Africa via Wichita Kansas.

In 1987 I accepted the position with Lodgistix, a company specializing in hospitality automation located in Wichita Kansas.  On third shift provided technical support to  hotels across the world using our PC based product called Lodgmate.  Occasionally I would receive a call for assistance from our  office in South Africa.  Being a proud young black woman recently relocated from Utah I’d  arrogantly wait them, thinking to myself “I’ll  help them when they free Mandela’.  A couple of years later people from our South Africa office came to Kansas for various meetings.  We were a small semi formal company that worked hard and partied at the drop of a hat.  My new best friend Mary (rock star) Turner was queen of party givers.  South Africans in town Mary hosted a  party.  Prior to my arrival I’m told a few people were causally discussing their plans to go ‘coon’ hunting.  Our co works from South Africans became visibly uncomfortable as this conversation ensued.  No longer able to curtail their disdain, the South Africans expressed their shock and disgust at not only the idea of actually hunting ‘coons’ but the ease of which the word was used regardless of who was at the party.

Although South Africans are proficiently fluent in the English language, the same word can carry a variety of meanings across various peoples.  Once It became clear they were only familiar with the term ‘coon’ as a derogatory name for black people, a good laugh was had as they were assured the Kansas office had no plans to hunt black American and there were no racist sentiment in the group and least of all allow in Mary’s home.  The only hunting being planned was for raccoons (Procyon lotor) the black masked, omnivorous, dexterous pawed nocturnal creatures often seen rummaging in trash cans or dead on the side of the road. At the time i was to young and / or arrogant to fully appreciate what the people who I held responsible for the complex evil injustice of apartheid had done.  The ironic contrast of similar but far more unpleasant experiences I’d encountered in Utah also escaped  me.

During  prayer and meditation for the passing of a the great Nelson Mandela it occurred to me that it was the people I deemed as bad, evil, and racist who went beyond expectation and spoke up against what they saw as wrong.  As i said I was not present so their actions were not out of a since of political correctness or concern of image.  No their actions were as genuine as it gets.  Maybe I missed this back then having just left an environment were this was never done.  at the time my recent past was filled with examples of people who prided themselves on being good, righteous, and clean who would only comment on their discomfort in similar situations secretly to me after the fact, and then go on to bombard me with their empirical data to prove why they were not a racist.  

        “Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.” Matthew 7:20

My lesson in all this is a reminder to be careful of labels, the ones I place on others and the ones  place on themselves.

As for my time as Lodgistix.. years later my olive complexioned  Lebanese boss and I were having a tanning contest.  You had to love that women, she was not going to loose .  in the midst of our contest she sent me to New York city in the middle of Manhattan to coordinate  the installation of  the system for at the time the tallest hotel in the city.  I didn’t see sunshine for closet to a month.  During my NYC experience Nelson Mandela was freed from prison, I’ll never forget the moment i learned of the news.  I promptly called back to Kansas asking since Mr. Mandela was free could i come home, i was only to have been there a few  days.  I was jovially told the South Africa office says ‘NO’.  I laughed, went back to work and then to dinner with some of the hotel’s management wonderful group of people from all over the world.  We ate great food, shared stories of our lives, and rejoiced in the good news of the day.  Thank you great people of South African for blessing my life.