No, this isn't a thread about one of the lesser known Bing Crosby - Bob Hope movies. It's a response to brucie's asterisk thread. For me, "To be" is a statement of the moment. "To be" is who we are right now. Life is "To become," not just "To be." I'd hate to think that I can't get any better than I am today. That would definitely make me another melancholy Dane.

Becoming the person we are meant to be is a lifetime task and an unattainable goal. It's something you can't do on your own... like trying to lift yourself up by your bootstraps. One of the greatest gifts we can give to each other is to help each other become the person we are meant to be. My friend Art Thieme has done that for me over the years. My wife does that for me, more than any person I have ever known. Without others to help us, life can quickly become a downward spiral that we can't escape. I am who I am at the moment because of the love and mercy of the Lord, and all those who believed in me when I couldn't believe in myself.

What a joy and honor it is to help pull each other up, when we have fallen. One of the things that Mudcat does is to help us to "become."
Forget "to be."

Jerry