So, I hung out at the lake with my new Mormon friend, Leann. I don't know why I keep finding all these Mormons with whom I become fast friends, but I do. I keep asking myself, if God puts me in the way of all these Mormons because I'm supposed to change religions.

Every time I actually start to think about that, I realize that that is NOT it. I love my church and while I think examining one's faith is a good thing, I keep finding my faith intact. But I feel like I am supposed to learn what God has in mind with me by putting me in the position of having to hear all the gory details of the Mormon faith by exposure. I say gory intentionally.

I wouldn't want to be a member of a church where I wouldn't be welcome into the temple of God. Mormons make a distinction between the temple and church. To enter the temple, you have to be considered "temple worthy." Of course, it's not God who determines a Mormon's worthiness, but fellow parishioners. My whole problem with that is that it flies in the face of what's in the Bible -- how when Christ died that the veil was torn that separated the most sacred parts of the temple from people -- the idea that God had accepted humanity (with flaws and all) fully into the church -- that there was no more holier than thou God any more. God had spent time with us kids and loved us unconditionally and would constantly remain part of our lives.

The idea that the Mormon's flout that really sticks in my christian craw. It's one of the most beautiful ideas in the Bible -- that all people are accepted by God and that God is accessible to anyone. As a hippie throwback, I think that most major religions are just different paths to God. Because God accepts us so unconditionally, he accepts that we travel different paths to gain that sense of godliness and service in our lives. My husband who doesn't really believe in God, behaves in a way that shows me that he has a sense of godliness in him. His willingness to help anyone in need is the biggest demonstration of that and is one reason I married him.

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At any rate, I think Leann's a sweetheart. Her kids are wonderful. Our kids liked each other and we had a wonderful day at the beach and were not keen on leaving because it was really lovely today -- not too hot or too cool.

I got a lot of mail today -- the book box from my kids' group, the therapy putty for Russell, but most importantly, I got my spiffy new floor cleaner. It vacuums up the crap, scrubs the floor for you, then sucks up the water to leave it dry. I wonder if it has a vibrate attachment. It's damned near as good as foreplay.