Prophet

   
     A  visionary of a new belief, cause, or theory who may be able to predict the future.  Traditionally, a person who may receive guidance from the spirit world.  More loosely defined as someone who understands cause and effect in the past and present and may be better able to guess the future.  And most loosely defined as anyone with wisdom garnered from experience.
     Prophets, however, are not always believed.  The Bible even relates how a prophet often has no honor in his home town, in his own home, or among his relatives.  They often think he has lost his senses or gone out of his mind.  Even though a prophet always tries to tell the truth, those closest to him or her are resistant to what they attempt to teach.
     The process of becoming a prophet does not have to include spiritual intervention.  Intelligence, an inquiring mind, a broad perspective, and maturity can aid this process.  Most people have beliefs and theories that involve the future.  They may base their behavior on perceived outcomes, make plans to pursue goals, and avoid what may hamper future accomplishments.  They also may have the ability to have a positive influence on others.  Additional abilities can come from being a lifetime learner, from living many decades and experiencing many phases of life as parents and grandparents, as friends, as workers paid and unpaid, as witnesses to many years of history watching the changes in society and making comparisons how some things are better, some worse.
     Unfortunately, our society overvalues the young, often undervaluing the wisdom of the not-so-young.  The more mature generations have had the time to go beyond the beliefs they were  taught as children.  Some beliefs may have proven false; some may have evolved creating new beliefs.
     Just as in the past, those people closest to visionaries may not appreciate or accept their wisdom.  Have the confidence and courage in presenting new ideas and predictions, but don't be surprised when you find it difficult to get your message across.  Try to use logic and sensitivity to present your ideas when the time is right.  Remember that even the best prophets had problems.

Goodbye, Hello

   
     Saying goodbye does not mean losing the memories.  In fact, treasuring and protecting those memories is a privilege and responsibility.  A few years ago and even farther back than that, legal records, family trees, photographs, and more recently, movies and VCR tapes composed our record of the past.  The digital age has increased our record-keeping.  We can also tell our story in our words, verbally and in writing.  Deciding what mementos to save for ourselves and future generations is also a privilege and responsibility.
     Some goodbyes are out of choice; some are forced upon us.  Some are temporary, some permanent.  Time forces us to say goodbye to childhood, adolescence, and "youth."  As years go by, parents must say goodbye to their "babies," to their college-bound teenagers, to their "children" going away because of marriage or moving to other homes, even other countries.  Almost half of us will have to say goodbye to a spouse, a husband or a wife.
     Some goodbyes are beneficial, like saying goodbye to bad habits.  Other goodbyes are very sad and need a recovery period.  Adjusting to a new normal takes a lot of work but gives us an opportunity to renew ourselves and plan our future.
     Many people believe that we don't have a final goodbye, that after death, we will live in heaven and be reunited with those that have already passed on.  Others look to nature where everything that  lives, dies, and turns into small bits of matter.  Ashes to ashes, dust to dust.  No matter what you believe, we have to say goodbye to our life on earth.
     On a brighter note, many goodbyes enable new hellos.  Goodbye past.  Hello today.  Hello future.