Restoration 10:10

"I think that in retrospect I could have used a different tone, a different rhetoric" said President George Bush. The US leader is regretting the choice of words he used to deal with Osoma Bin Laden and the Iraq situation. Perhaps he could have spoken differently when challenging Iran over the issue of its uranium enrichment. ‘Bring them on’, ‘dead or alive’, 'all options are on the table' are just some of the phrases fired in the important global debate  about the Middle East problems. George is not the only leader to speak imprudently either. The newly elected Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad coined a phrase that he might regret. "Imam ghoft een rezhim-e ishghalgar-e qods bayad az safheh-ye ruzgar mahv shavad.” This was misunderstood as ‘Israel must be wiped off the map’. But apparently it means ‘this regime occupying Jerusalem must vanish from the page of time". Either way it sounds as though Mahmoud is looking for a final solution to a problem in Jerusalem. Whoops did I say ‘final solution’? Sorry that phrase sends tingles down my spine. It reminds me of another politician who wanted to permanently deal with Jews. His name was Hitler. He was adamant that the European Jewish community vanish from the pages of time. Consequently people were brought alive on trains to concentration camps. And there an unimaginable number of men women and children ended up dead. Of course George Bush didn’t really mean bring them on dead or alive. The USA has been misunderstood that’s all. And Mahmoud Ahmadinejad wouldn’t dream of wiping Israel off the map. Iran’s nuclear ambitions are only for domestic purposes. We believe them; don’t we?

Have you ever done stupid things? Well you’re not alone. Bank manger Dan Hill felt a right plank when he quit his £80,000 a year job to become a carpenter. His friends advised him not to give up his executive career. But Dan would have none of it. He resigned from his high-flying job and pursued his dream. He became a joiner. He endeavoured to have a quieter life in the country-side making furniture. But within weeks he discovered that he was allergic to wood. Doctors diagnosed a rare allergy to dust from the wood shavings. How unlucky is that? It’s like a builder being allergic to bricks; or a plumber having an allergy to pipes. Or a grandmother taking out her knitting needles and having an allergic reaction to wool. Dan wanted to get out of one stressful situation and he ended up in a worse situation. ‘I was heartbroken when I found out I had an allergic reaction to the wood, I wanted to do something worthwhile rather than sitting behind a desk” he said. Thankfully it’s only one type of wood and he can cover up with gloves, face mask and allergy cream. But it does show us how sometimes we can jump out of the frying pan into the fire. Dan now has less money, different stress and another health problem. It might be worth you staying put in your stressful environment for now.