Senior Scribes
The Magi
By Mona Lease

Hi, all! As usual - my brain started thinking "out of the box." With Christmas and it's usual display of the Manger Scene (Bees to whomever stole the Baby Jesus from the Greenville display!) and the Three Wise Men - I did a little checking and a lot of thinking.

First - I could not find anywhere that there were 3 Wise Men - only "some Wise Men" or "The Wise Men." Perhaps three came from the gifts they brought - gold, frankincense,and myrrh...each Wise Man bringing one of the three...again no specific amount of gold, frankincense or myrrh. Interesting - to me.

Now the real thinking begins! As I write this; gold is selling for $1,202.30 an ounce - according to Bloomberg Personal Finance. The New York Stock Exchange is trading it at $1,205.65 an ounce. The report is that the price of gold is dropping....which, to me, means nothing - in that gold will not rust away, will not tarnish away, will not burn away, etc. Gold is actually "tried in a fire." In olden days it was mined out of the earth as ore - meaning it was not pure - it was mixed with other metals. Today a kiln or very hot oven is used. Either way - with enough heat the gold will melt - in this case it takes 1,947.50 degrees to do just that. The olden fire method involved a large quantity of gold in a vat over a fire. As the impurities rose to the surface, they were skimmed off of the top - much the way grease is skimmed off of a pot of chili. A second way to "try gold" is acids. Gold is "soaked" in an acid bath. The impurities are dissolved and washed away in the neutralizer rinse.

Frankincense is the resin of trees of the Boswellia sacra genus. These are largely produced in Somalia. It is touted as the single most portent oil on the face of the Earth. It is an anti-viral, anti-fungal, and anti-bacterial. I use the oil regularly. It is ridiculously expensive!

Myrrh is another resin from the Commiphora genus. It has many of the same properties as Frankincense and is stickier. The ancient Egyptians used it in their embalming processes. It is an antiseptic and also found in some of our healing salves and liniments. You can also find it in certain toothpastes and mouthwashes.

The Wise Men brought Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh. Hmm. We looked at all of these. So - in my mind - the Wise Men brought the Baby Jesus medicine and money!! For you faithful readers (thanks again!) - you know where my mind went with this.

What would happen if we all gave each other "medicine & money" for Christmas?...which, by the way, I largely do. I started giving my nephews straight cash. You should have seen the looks on their faces! I handed over the money - "Here's your present, the gift wrapping, the ribbon, the bow and the card. You're just gonna throw away the card, bow, wrapping, etc. - right?" Sheepishly they grinned and said - "Yep, I would." The medicine part should be obvious.

Remember the kiddies and our service people. Take good care of the furry and feathered ones out there. Be safe and healthy. See ya next time. Ever Toodles!! MONA