An old story goes something like this; a man lost a leg and was sad about it, later he saw someone with no legs and thanked God for his one leg. 

"History is a sort of tangled web of contradictions. …" said Robert Service, Professor of Russian History at Oxford University.
Because obviously, we don't learn from history, and no time in our history have contradictions been more noticeable than now. I suppose that we have the internet and the social media to thank for it. This tangled web of contradictions becomes more confusing when our leaders are the ones contributing to its propagation.

Perhaps the best reason for running for US Congress was given by Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, the first refugee ever elected to Congress;
“I did not expect to come to the United States and go to school with kids who were worried about food as much as I was worried about it in a refugee camp.”

Money in hand, they stood in line by the hundreds. To buy tickets of chance. A chance to dream for a few days or hours of hope of becoming rich.

The birds, this morning, massed on the tree above the water trough we keep for our animals. A large flock of robins announcing their arrival.

Monday was Columbus day. A celebration of Americas founding. It was then in 1492 that the first immigrants arrived in the new world. The new world discovery became a source of riches and unlimited bounty for the explorers, their families, sires and countries.

The state of the world, such as it is, demands better understanding and appreciation of the events. In the United Nations, as well as the United States many are beating their chest to the drums of protectionism and patriotism.

September 21st is The International Day of Peace. Established in 1981 by the United Nations General Assembly as a day devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace, both within and among all nations and peoples.

In the far west corner of Texas, in the city of El Paso, the campus of the University of Texas, El Paso (UTEP), majestically adorns the barren face of the Franklin Mountains.