2026.09.16 The Golden Rule

My father's birthday was August 25.  People these days like to say things like “Happy Birthday in Heaven” —presuming on Divine Grace, not to mention making it sound as if heaven had an address! 

Call me agnostic, naive, or plain dumb, I am sure there is only one rule of life that matters, and it matters equally and the same for every creature on earth, in heaven, or even on Mars! It is gold. It will never tarnish. 

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It’s true that I don’t know a lot, yet I try not to presume or assume. The darkening sky often itself looks as if it presumes on the science of forecasting. So I just carry an umbrella and pray anyway that lightning will obey Divinity, my word for the author of this quite remarkable golden rule: Love thy neighbor as thyself. 

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From my window I see a boring parking lot, a numbered space for each car—obviously considerate of ALL residents. I also see a neighboring golf course, green, pruned, and neatly clipped. I see one woman whose swing is perfectly executed—full circle up and over one shoulder, eyes always on the wee ball, then back down to connect SMACK, then full circle—like a halo. 

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Still, all imagery isn’t so obviously “golden” but more subtle, like this one from Nature itself. Put straightforwardly, there stand two trees, each with its own trunk, branches, and roots. They stand upright and next to each other. Considered poetically, or using emotional intelligence, this image represent neighborliness itself. It’s golden. 

Two trees in love, leaning against each other is the perfect message for a time when we need to connect for the sake of loving our neighbors just as they are— not as we want them to be.

Here are neighborly trees. Look closely to see how they represent neighborliness while at the same time each maintains its own separate identity with the trunk firmly situated/planted in the ground.