“Seek first to understand, then to be understood”

1.) First, please READ THIS ENTIRELY – and the full text of any discussion you wish to participate in.

2.) PLEASE STAY ON TOPIC – do not post something unrelated to the specific matter and content of the thread subject. There is ALWAYS a daily open thread available for any subject you feel should get attention. Never place unrelated, “O/T”, or “Off Topic” comments on a thread unrelated to the topic. It is not ok to say: “sorry, O/T but”… or any iteration therein, it is quite rude.

The Treehouse operates on the ‘old school’ standards and practices of civil discourse amid the original blogging community, long before social media took over.

3.) PLEASE NARROW YOUR THOUGHTS – Quality beats quantity. Please construct your comments to target specific areas and not broad generalizations about the discussion topic at hand. If you have four or five disconnected points, break them up into individual comments; that allows people to respond to the specifics.

4.) PLEASE AVOID GENERALIZATIONS – Do NOT speak in riddles. Words like “he, she, they, it, them” should rarely be used. Spell out “who” using the name, spell out who “they” are at the beginning of every sentence in your paragraph; so that there is clarity as to who you are talking about. Please avoid using acronyms.

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I’ve been asked to keep you updated on some serious communication issues Sundance is encountering. We received the following this morning.  Out of an abundance of caution, I’m omitting his location and past and future travel itinerary.  I’m sure he’ll fill us all in on the details when he’s able to get back online.

Hey guys, major issues here.  Just the cliff notes…

This from phone.  My laptop and electronics mysteriously hard crash – won’t even power up. 

Let readers know my comms issues; I’ll buy another laptop to get back online.

Lots to share later…

Love to all,

Sundance

2023 has been one heck of a ride.  I mean, wow.

This is the year when so many assumptions collapsed because we did not pretend. I will have other thoughts on the year upon better reflection, even some predictions that might seem a little “out there”.  Then again, I’m not exactly known for following the herd safety formula.

However, as the eve winds down, and as we are given to considering everything that has taken place, a revisit to the spiritual core of our association is appropriate.

For me, this year provided many memorable gifts; almost all were driven by a purposeful God reminding me to keep poking my head into the human mechanics of common presumptions.  Nothing is more empowering than listening to His message, being completely lost yet jumping on faith, and then finding out the wow; why it was necessary to put prayer in front of fear.

Yup, we are about to walk into entirely new challenges.  Perhaps we are not prepared, perhaps we will all test our faith, perhaps we will discover new limits to our exhaustion, perhaps we will discover we are much stronger than we realize.  One of the reasons for my optimism is that I think the latter is assured.

I believe we are stronger than we give ourselves credit for.  I believe YOU are stronger, more purposeful, smarter, more strategic, more influential, more necessary and far more loved than you can ever imagine.

Yes, I am stunningly optimistic, much more so today on the last day of 2023, than I was on the first day.  The knowledge we possess is powerful – far more powerful than the pretenses we fight against.

Regardless of how we exit this year, excited or slightly nervous, we must admit it can be challenging to retain a joyful ‘best life’ while everything around us seems created to deliver ultimate chaos and madness.

However, if we accept that a loving God is the source of the purest truth, we can create something stronger within ourselves just by making a choice.   Do that, choose that, follow that and we will have accomplished a great deal.

Regardless of what tomorrow brings, we always have choices.  A new year’s perspective:

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In this most busy and demanding time of the year, many still have the hope and desire to pursue happiness, to savor the moments and find that special something that replenishes us, fulfills us.

How strange, that we must stop, pause, slow down at least, to find that which keeps us going.

I think that part of our problem is our push to do more and do it more perfectly. As I have aged, I have necessarily had to learn to appreciate the slow moments, the silent moments. Of course, that should have come to me earlier in life, but I have ever been a plodding and slow learner.

How many wonderful, special, unique moments has our Lord gifted me with throughout my life that I rushed past, never listening, hearing his call, stopping to savor, share, enjoy with him? Moments crafted by the Master’s hand with love, moments he intended for me, for us, moments he came calling, only to have me never pause in my headlong rush?

How many times did I give up the peace I longed for, the joy I hoped for, all the things I insistently begged him for, wondering why he didn’t answer? (more…)

Treehouse!  Why the name?

Perhaps this is fuel for a conversation as you decorate your Christmas tree.

There are three types of people in your life cycle, Leafs, Branches and Roots/Trunks.

• The Leaf people are seasonal; they will be there for a little while then gone.  Enjoy them and the beauty they provide but accept they will transition and not remain attached.

• The branch people are more stable; they will be around for several seasons and grow along with you.  However, when the pressure really mounts upon you, they can break away and that process creates a need for healing.  Again, cherish the branches; hope they will always remain; treat them with kindness but retain your own spiritual core as you grow.

• The Trunk/Root people.  These are the most important. These are the relationships that will stand with you forever in your lifecycle.  These are the steadfast. These are the source of nutrition for your life of growth.  These are the people who strengthen your purpose, bond forever and will never relent.  In the world of natural creation, God is present here.

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I hope everyone is living their best life despite the created chaos intended to destabilize us. Several people have inquired about my not writing extensive research articles lately. Here’s what’s up…

There is actually a confluence of merging events that requires me to pause and think long and hard about whether the next step is correct for our CTH community in general, and specifically for me personally. It’s also very hard to write about this stuff without sounding like a braggadocious nut.

Here’s the problem that 360 million+ people do not comprehend.

♦ I need you to think about the person you are familiar with who you believe has a solid grasp of the scale of the problem in DC. This person doesn’t need to solve it, they just need to understand how massive the problem is. Who is the person you would say understands the root and essential core problem that creates the corruption in DC? Does that person in your mind, the person who really understands at a granular level what this corrupt enterprise is really all about and how it works, does that person look like Donald Trump, or Devin Nunes, or Kash Patel, or Ric Grenell?

Who would you assign that competency skillset to? Seriously, no joke – honest question, who understands the scale of the problem?

Here’s the hard pill to swallow, it doesn’t matter what name you put down, you are wrong. None of the aforementioned names, or any others, have a total picture of the problem from both a macro and micro view. None of them do.

The silo system in DC creates impenetrable barriers. I have not found a single person who knows how it all works and connects as a corrosive cancer buried deep inside our U.S. political system.

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Thank you to all readers and members of the Conservative Treehouse fellowship for your continued support.  Without your help this little corner of the research and discussion internet just could not exist. I will always work earnestly to be deserving of that support and fellowship.

We are fortunate, blessed and protected by a loving God, who has abundant confidence in our stewardship.

As new visitors attest every day, the fellowship in this commenting community is unique, insightful, articulate, intelligent and funny.  I love you guys.

As we cycle through the third anniversary of our original deplatforming, we have just learned that our server fees will be increasing 25% as we enter year four of CTH 2.0.  Inflation is hitting everywhere, I guess.

Due to direct targeting, without your support we could not exist. Retaining our ability to research, share and discuss ongoing events is my #1 priority.  Thank you again for your friendship and support.

There are currently two methods to support CTH 2.0, our ongoing mission and discussion. However, depending on your browser settings (and ad blocker software) the second option may not be visible.  There is a screengrab below showing what I am talking about.

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It might, heck, -check that- it does seem overwhelming at times. But that is the nature of this collectivist strategy. That is the purpose of this “great reset” bombardment. We must hold strong; you must hold strong.

If you look closely at the attacks that unnerve us, most of them are weak, and almost all of them are targeting your psychology. Do not fall into the trap of despair. Step outside of your home right now; look around, do you see any threat – or is the sense of fear and foreboding created by a dark imagining?  If the latter, ask yourself, is the psychological attack working simply because you are allowing it?

You have purpose. If you walk into a room, and the people within it respond negatively to your presence, it’s likely because your disposition unnerves their demons. The need for control is a reaction to fear, and you have stopped pretending.  As a consequence, you create fear amid those who maintain pretending as a survival mechanism.

When I share the message, “Live your best life”, it is not without purpose. Every moment that we allow the onslaught to deter us from living our dreams, is a moment those who oppose our nation view as us taking a knee. Do not allow this effort to succeed. You might ask yourself how I can, one person, a flea looking into a furnace, retain an optimistic disposition while all around me seems chaotic and mad?

Ultimately, the collective weight of leftism is putting us in isolation. There are many historic references to this disconcerting sentiment to review with hindsight. However, ultimately the feeling of isolation first begins with a rejection of God. Defeat dark imaginings by embracing Him. Stand in the light of a loving and purposeful God. Hold faith, and evil manifest will run away because the dark whispers will fall on impenetrable ears.

Yes, it is true; I will not deny it; all around us is this great sense of foreboding, ugh, and it’s not just connected to you – it’s everywhere. Everything being created by the constructs of those in power is weird; everything created around us is less comfortable; everything created around us is intended to project less joy – and as a consequence, it requires an intensity of thought just to carry on ordinary events. It’s exhausting at times.

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