Taking ownership of my blog...

I saw something on my blog today that I deleted.  It was a comment from someone using the name "Nobody's Fool" and it was there just to start trouble.  The comment was inferring that I'm portraying myself as something I'm not, in my opinion.  I deleted it, and would do it again.  Not because I'm hiding something, which I'm not.  What I'm also not going to do is let my blog turn into the circus freakshow from this fall again either.

Attacking the messenger when you don't like the message is an old trick.  I don't think talking about my faith or random things that happen to me is preaching, but if you do, then I'm simply going to ask this question:  So what?

Are any of us too good to have someone share God's word with us?  What do I have to gain by telling you some of these stories?  Quite frankly, the baby sock story still has me freaked out.  I don't think that's preaching.  I'm just telling stories.  What you get out of them is up to you.  Hopefully you'll see that God is real and He cares for us, even a sinner like me.  If I help but one person not do the stupid things I've done in my life, then I accomplished something.

There are people on this planet I have turned my back on, but they are few in number and mostly from a past that by and large is best left in the past.  I'll own that.  Relationships end.

Sometimes you offer help and help is refused.  Sometimes you're the nice guy and try to do what's right and in the end, wind up looking like the bad guy.  Sometimes, other people portray you in that light so long that some people start to believe it.  Sometimes people lie about you to make themselves look good and make you look bad. It is what it is. I can't change it.

Here are the following people I'm most responsible to help:  Anyone with the last name Cooper that is related to me, (excluding former spouses) and my wife.  Those are my primary responsibilities.  I try to help out my friends when I know they need it and they ask.  I don't see a lot of them anymore, but they know I'm an e-mail or phone call away.

I've made peace with everyone I needed to.  Not everyone is going to accept an apology, an explanation, or that I've changed.  It's a tough sell.  I agree.  For some, it's something that won't happen overnight and I get that too.  That's OK.  Some, I hazard a guess, never will accept it.

If whoever Nobody's Fool is had something constructive to say, they'd tell me who they are, what they're talking about, and use my e-mail address because what I do to help people is a private matter between them and I.  I don't boast about what I do because it's really nobody's business.  I will talk about taking up a challenge to do good, to encourage others to do the same (as I did during the Child Abuse awareness weekend thingie on Facebook).  But who I give help to, what I do, and when, really is a private matter.

If you disagree with something I've said, feel free to comment.  If I've inspired you, again, feel free.   Private matters, please show me just a little bit of courtesy and drop me an e-mail.

Past that, positive or negative, please limit your comments on the blog to the subject at hand for the post you're commenting on, like messing up a really great story by quoting the wrong Bible verse and having all y'all look it up (if you did).  If I make a mistake, let me know.    Stupid comments, well, they're just going to get deleted.  I can fix the blog so I have to approve them before they're published.

Y'all know I'm not afraid of negative, but it's MY blog and I'm not letting a repeat of last fall happen again.

Thanks for reading my blog.

Coop