Life as it should be!!!

Hello all of you,
Been a few weeks since my last post. Been busy here at the Nutcracker Headquarters trying to get everything ready for next Christmas's ride. However. I would like as we do each year beginning with January is to take each month with a dicsussion topic that we find interesting and write a little about it.
Today we are talking about the shooting in Arizona. Everyone's heard of it by now. We want to go back to speaking about what we consider is a society consumed with progress, speed and success. Normally Success wouldn't be a bad thing, except in this case, we feel that it's happening with the expense of your children and grandchildren's happiness. What make success? Alot money? Alot of stuff? Big house, nice new car? Nice clothes? How about the latest gadgets? Make you happy? Really? For how long? Until the next new car comes out on the market? Until you see another house bigger or fanicer than yours?Until you see a new how to do it yourself home show on the tube? What about the money? Does it ever really truly provide you inner peace of mind? Well statistics show other wise. Let's take a quick look at medical figures for 2010.
In 2008, Suicide was the 3rd leading cause of death for youth 15-24. It has risen since then.
Troubling numbers to say the least. Especially when the global average is a suicide attempt every 40 seconds.

What we here at Nutcracker headquarters are trying to say is, we need to start focusing on other things besides exterior frill and greed. We need to stop trying to force our kids to become smarter and let them be who God made them to be, not who we or society wants them to be. Until we begin to realize that being rich, popular and all around in control of half the world isn't the path to happiness. Peace of mind, love, inner beauty and inner riches are all things we here strive to express to others. We encourage our readers to do likewise. The world is spinning way to fast, and all most people have on their minds is money, power, control, popularity, technology, and speed. Why? I have one word that describes them all.....Fear!! Fear of being poor, fear of being not liked, fear of being dominated, fear of being out of sink with the rest of the world. STOOOOOOOOPPPPPP! Just stop for a moment. Go outside, take in a deep breath and just think a moment. Why? Why do you want all these things? Is it really because of you? Or is it instead because of others? I remember an old friend of mine who left his six figure job and moved to upper Idaho, near Priest Lake. Everyone in the community thought he was a nut job for doing it, even his wife and kids. But I tell you, now, I see him as the smartest man alive. He found that stopping point where money, fame, popularity, big houses, and his fancy Lexus wasn't making him happy. His job was becoming more and more stressful, he was fighting with his family half the time, that was when he saw them. He would come home, eat a meal in a box, crash on the sofa for a bout 30 min of TV then cram more knowlege from his labtop, then go to bed, worry all night if that account would actually take the sales pitch and join the firm, then wake up half tired, struggle to place his suit on, and go do it all over again. He did this for over 15 years. Climbing the corporate ladder of success, big corner office, respect, fear from other employees, company parking spot. Wow, the envy of the neighborhood.

But do you know what folks????He was one of the most miserable human beings I ever met. Inside and out. You know what he told me once? He said Joe, you know who I envy? I was like," No, who, your boss? The President of the company?" He shook his head...No Jimmy the janitor? I of course froze and then shook MY head. "What!" Jimmy?" I asked in amazement.
"Yeah, he gets to see his family every night, spend weekends with his son at the ballgame, go to see his dad and mom on the holidays and make a trip up to Canada Moose hunting once a year."

I went home that night and thought, you know..He's right. Jimmy made about 9.50 an hour, but he was a millionare. He had his family, his peace of mind, and his Lord Jesus whom he often spoke of to us from time to time. I thought so many times about that conversation. There stood a man, tall, handsome, successful, weathly, having about as large a house as a man could stand, all the toys and whistles once could enjoy. And yet, he was on the brink of losing his wife, his kids, toys never played with, heck he never had time..Home half lived in, a dining room never eat at. Three bathrooms to further isolate their family. All of it, one day he found totally rediculous. I'll never forget that day. He walked out of the office carrying a box filled with his desk stuff, and awards, plaques, and down to his fancy car he went. Behind him a string of startled and baffled executives, staff and employees, all with mouths open as wide as a mule who just ate a skunk. He went home, threw his stuff in the closet, kissed his wife for the first time in months, hugged his fifteen year old son, and twelve year old daughter for the first time in six weeks, and suddenly realized his daughter had gotten braces. His son he suddenly realized was much taller, and had outgrown his freckles. Then he looked at his wife of fifteen years, and grinned. Oh he was afraid, afraid of what he had just done. But slowly fear turned to relief, relief to satisfaction. He told her how much he loved her, and how he had been a fool for all these years, chasing millions when he had it right there in front of him the whole time. How he wanted to sell the house and move to Idaho where they'd always dreamed of moving. And they did. Of course the kids had a bit of angry words about dad's mental lapse, but soon, they had discovered a life worth living, He took a simple job working at a local call center, home weekends and every night by five. They played board games, and took long walks, went to the national parks and fishing trips on Saturday. At that point, he realized what so many people forget. That when we lose outselves, when we replace our own inner peace with something else, we will never truly be happy until we get it back. If that means less money so be it. If it means cutting down on the technology, So what! Does it really matter who's the richest or most famous, or best looking? Does it really matter if your car is a BMW or a Lexus or a Lamborgini and mine is a toyota, or a kia? What wasa car designed to do in the first place? What did Henry Ford build his trucks to do? Last time I checked they were for driving one to and from a location? No folks it was people who began filling other people with a load of nonsense that to drive one model versus another makes them a lesser being! Total Christmas poo!! I am no more lesser of a person with my kia, than Tom Sunshine is with his Lexus. More over, I am not any lesser of a person because I live in a mobile home, versus someone else living in a three story mansion in the burbs. People...people...listen to me...listen good. Unless we begin to change out mindset and start realizing what is truly important, family, our souls, our pease of mind, our simplicity, this world is in for a large bucket of hurt. We here at Nutcracker Headquarters have found that inner peace of mind. We develped this website to spread this ideology to others who will read it. Some will read it and laugh, others will read it and scoff, others will just ignore it. But that one person who reads it and takes it to heart. That person stressed at work, stressed at home, tired, alone and fearful..well it's all be worth it.