CHAINS
Apple tree next to Williams Monument
THE APPLE TREE
One thing always leads to another, like a chain of events or a chain of thought. I met a Shamanic Healer at a networking event, and we discovered a shared fascination for the history of Roger Williams. Here is particular story she shared that set off a curious chain of events and thoughts...
An apple tree was planted behind Roger Williams’ grave. When some workers were excavating just above
Hearing this gave me chills; my ancestral roots can supposedly be traced back to Roger Williams, although I have never been able to detail or document the connection. Could the condition of the apple roots signifiy native mysticism, our close tie with nature, or a connection back to Adam and Eve and to the original tree of wisdom? After all, Williams gained a notorious reputation for his religious beliefs about freedom of conscience.
In the middle of journaling this experience, I had to pause to drive my son to soccer practice, and heard the Genesis’ song Misunderstanding on the way back home – I “heart” Radio 101.5 FM – hmmmm.
(August 20, 2010) The next morning, I heard Genesis’ Misunderstanding on the car radio again and something very funny struck me about the Garden of Eden. A few minutes later a Boz Scaggs tune came on - Dirty Lowdown.
I found the timing of the Scaggs song even funnier than Genesis, because of where my mind had wandered at that moment, to some things that had been puzzling me for a couple of months after having read the Creation Story... What's the real story on that apple?
Imagine you are a judge listening to two conflicting testimonies regarding the incident with the forbidden apple...
“Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over fish of the sea... in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” (From Genesis 1:26-27 after God formed the beasts, King James version)
What's this reference to us and them? Does "us" indicate more than one god? Does "us" include God's angels? And "Them"! Is there more than just the man? Were Adam and Eve formed at one and the same time?
Is this the correct story? Because later we read...
“Then the LORD said,”It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.and the rib which the LORD God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. Then the man (not God) said, “This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh, because she was taken out of
Which of these two creation stories is to be believed? Now go back to 2:16-17...
“And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.... (and then LORD God makes the beasts again, except this time AFTER he had made the man.)
...And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.”
Whether the LORD God told the man once or twice; it doesn't really matter, but clearly he told man, and we're all still here. Ours is a benevolent and forgiving God, but seeing his works being taken for granted, he saw fit to apply some tough love in order to teach a lesson about appreciation. On to Genesis 3:6...
“So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she gave some to her husband, and he ate.”
(Remember, God "commanded the man" in 2:16-17; not Eve.)
Now, read this... Genesis 3:11-12
“He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” The man said, “The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me the fruit of the tree, and I ate.”
Notice Adam's pretty polite language and the finger pointing.
“Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent beguiled me, and I ate.” (Genesis 3:13)
I almost wonder, was she calling the man a "serpent"?
Did the other part of us stay his hand? Was there perhaps a LADY Goddess quietly sitting there giving her LORD a stern look? “Don’t be too harsh, Dear.”
Notice the reference to “God” and ‘us” earlier in the book and juxtapose it to “LORD God” in the remaining citings. Who wrote this particular story in Genesis and what was the intent? Adam did not write it. Nor did Eve. Do we have a witness?
Only the serpent, and clearly he was a trouble-maker.
Dirty Lowdown?... Boz Scaggs? Boss gags? Was the Big Boss up in heaven gagging over all of this? Nah, the LORD and his LADY requested that radio number, and they were laughing their butts off when they saw the look on my face.
Boss gags refers to Adam, the bossy one. When God came along, Adam must have almost choked on the apple that got stuck in his throat. Adam's apple? Couldn't quite get that one down, could he? (King James finally gets caught in his own lie.)
What a great story to teach about "Trust" and "Truth", that is if you are an attentive reader, who knows how to read between the lines and pick up on the littlest details. What is the moral of this story? Pay close attention, lest you be bamboozled? It doesn't pay to lie? Trust in the LORD and LADY?
Listening to the end of Dirty Lowdown, I got out of my car and went to buy a cup of coffee at Starbuck's before going up to the office. The server stuck a green thumb into my coffee cup. You know, one of those plastic plugs that keep the sippy spout in the lid from spilling. It was molded with a tiny Goddess shape at the top. Check it out next time you are at Starbuck’s.
Touche.
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