I Think My Dad's An ALIEN!

As a young child I was blessed with a vivid imagination, which allowed for hours upon hours of self propelled entertainment in my backyard and in my room. Growing up as an asthmatic who was allergic to pretty much everything, (except food), I spent a fair amount of time alone or indoors. Having a great imagination really helped to make those hours not seem so lonely as it often brought my dolls to life. They were: the audience for my concerts and theatrical performances; the students for my lessons; the patrons for my restaurant; the customers for my store; the patients in my ER and the citizens of my town! The walls of my bedroom would easily transform into the backdrop for any one of the aforementioned scenarios. When in the backyard, (on days that weren't to cold and when the air didn't have too much pollen or rag weed), the adventures were even better! There was a large Weeping Willow tree that I loved to climb and pretend that I was either a pirate on a ship, looking over the sea, or that I lived in a prehistoric jungle, charged with keeping watch for dinosaurs to protect my village! I also greatly enjoyed my swing set, where I would turn on my black portable AM radio, (pulling the long antenna up to get the best reception), and swing for quite literally hours upon hours, singing song after song at the top of my lungs. 

Well let me tell you, while my imagination truly was a gift, it did also get me into my fair share of trouble and often caused distress that was completely unnecessary. I would get an idea into my head and adding my imagination to it, was like adding fertilizer to the soil where seeds are planted - in no time things could grow and become quite dramatic between my ears! One such example of this happened around 1976, when my family had taken a vacation to Jekyll Island, GA. It was a bit of a change because we always took our summer vacations to Panama City Beach, FL. Either way, I was happy simply because I loved the beach so much. On this particular trip however, I was listening to my dad talk in the car and something in his voice sounded different, (he had cleared his throat a couple times, but it still sounded slightly off), and the idea came into my mind at that very moment, "What if my dad...isn't my dad at all?" Well, there you have it ~ the seed was planted!

You see, by this point in my life, (as a young television enthusiast), I had long been exposed to weekly shows like: Star Trek; Planet of the Apes and the Land of the Lost - with those creepy Sleestaks. So for some time, an idea had ten root in my subconscious, but now was all I could think of as I listened to the change in my dad's voice...ALIENS! As we rode along in the car it all started to make sense: My dad had ALWAYS smoked cigarettes, but now he DIDN'T anymore! My dad always took us to Panama City Beach, FL for summer vacation, but THIS dad was taking us to a place called, (dun..dun... dunnnn), JEKYLL ISLAND! Then it hit me like a ton of bricks..."I think my dad's an ALIEN!" My mind began to race as I looked at my sister and my mom - poor dears, they had NO idea! What was I going to do? What could I do? As we pulled in to the hotel parking lot I resolved that I would watch him, as I suspected that this must be the beginning of perhaps and alien takeover and that creepy Jekyll Island was where my alien dad was going to take my mom, sister and I to be swapped out for alien replacements!

That first night I tossed and turned, wondering when this could have happened to my REAL dad, and what it would be like to be replaced by an alien me - it was all just to horrible! The next day we were at the pool playing, but I couldn't quit thinking about it. That evening it all came to a head when he, (my alien dad), asked me to go for a walk with him on the beach. My heart began to race, (trying to think of what to say to get out of what surely would be my alien swapping), but all I heard come out of my mouth was "OK". After all, I loved walking on the beach and I loved my dad...and this alien dad just looked SO MUCH like him! We walked over the boardwalk that led to the beach and I dragged behind him, watching to see if he walked differently - gazing at the beach ahead and wondering, "Will this be the last time I will see this world?" Just then he turned back, (smiling), with his hand extended to me and said, "Come on honey, what are you doing? Hold my hand, let's go!" As I reached for his hand I thought, "Goodbye world"...but then...our feet hit the sand...we walked and we walked. Time passed and he told me funny things that made me laugh and slowly I realized, "He's not an alien - that's MY DAD!!"

It's funny though: How many times have we complicated our days, our relationships, our lives in general by not simply communicating our concerns? Surely, a great deal of stress, conflict, drama - and yes - even heartburn and ulcers, could be avoided by this simple sanity saving action!

(c) 2014-2021 Rebecca Balko

The Infinite ~ Remembering 9/11

I awoke this morning to my alarm going off with its irritating "BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!", as my arm in a most spastic fashion, felt its way in a blind effort to his the snooze for now the THIRD time. Rolling over and looking at the clock, I found that I now had approximately 35 minutes to get cleaned up, dressed, get the house put together, take care of our dog Zeke and get on the road to work. Jolting up, I turned on the TV as I began my hurried routine, and that's when I heard it - "Today marks the anniversary of 9/11". For just those first few minutes upon awakening, I'd not remembered. I stopped what I was doing, (as my mind began to set aside the trivial issues of the morning), and grasped that quite literally, thousands upon thousands of people knew EXACTLY what today was the MOMENT that they awoke this morning: It was a day they survived something that so many others didn't - It was a day they risked everything for their fellow man. Sitting down a moment, as the gravity of it all sank into my consciousness; I could only pray for them to be comforted and strengthened on this day of memorial.

Certainly everyone was impacted by what happened in the nation September 11, 2001. I don't know anyone who doesn't remember exactly where they were the moment they became aware that passenger airliners were flying or had flown into the World Trade Center's - Tower I and Tower II; into the Pentagon; and into a field in Shanksville, PA.

I was in my hotel room by Mobile Bay in Mobile, AL, having just gotten out of the shower and drying my hair when I saw on the television screen, a plane flying into the World Trade Center. I recall initially thinking it was a movie preview and slowly realizing that what I was seeing was real. Turning up the sound, I sat on the corner of the bed and listened  a the news anchor, (fighting his own emotion), attempted to articulate what was happening in live time. At that point both towers had been hit. I called family and then went to the lobby of the hotel; as I could not stand to watch what was unfolding alone. Walking toward the lobby I saw about 15 military personnel talking to staff at the front desk and then I saw to my right, a group of people around a television, where I then went to watch what, in a few minutes, would unfold. As the towers collapsed, I remember my ears ringing and I could hear my own crying, (as if distanced from myself), and then, (like the volume being turned back up), became aware of the cries and gasps of those around me. What I recall most is that no one was really talking, but rather, total strangers were weeping and simply embracing one another.

I came to realize that what happened in that hotel lobby that morning, was that all of us were being confronted with something infinite and attempting to grasp it with our finite mind. We were witnessing true evil, darkness and depravity on a scale, (that likely in the lifetime of those present), had never been experienced before. I have found that a natural impulse to such senselessly vile acts is to attempt to understand it with the use of our intellect. The truth is however, that our intellect can only go so far in the search for such understanding - but can certainly never fully comprehend the acts of that day or of any other kind of depraved indifference that we see in our world today.

With access to news, information and images 24/7, it is easy to bombard ourselves with the infinite darkness, which makes way and opens the door to feelings of hopelessness, fear, anxiousness, anger and sadness - that often lead to a skewed view of the world, our lives and our future.

The truth is though...this is only the darker side of something infinite, because there is another Infinite that is so much greater and so much MORE powerful - which is an infinite God. What do I mean by that? The infiniteness of: Love - which can be seen immediately in the eyes of parents as they bring their little ones into the world and see them for the first time, being filled with an awareness that nothing will EVER matter more to them than this precious little life; Forgiveness - which defies all logic in its ability to truly move beyond circumstances and acts which would seem impossible, if not unfathomable; Hope - the miracle of it! It is what allows the human spirit to prevail through circumstances beyond comprehension, enabling them to rise above and not be bound or held down by them.

The greatest darkness can be destroyed in an INSTANT by the tiniest amount of light; The deepest resentment can be annihilated with the smallest step towards forgiveness; The loneliest moment of hopelessness can vanish with one small world of encouragement! I think today it behooves us to remember that everyday...ALL DAY...we are surrounded by and have access to the Infinite - Who will always provide unlimited peace, hope and restoration with as little as one request.

©2014-2021 Rebecca Balko