One day I take my daily walk with ease and gusto while the next day it may take a more concerted effort. At times the road of life seems stretched out before me with no clouds in view and at other times it seems obscured by clouds and rain and lightning and the loud claps of thunder on the horizon. Each time I receive a good medical test result I am renewed to make the most of my golden years. But good medical reports and test results are not a given. Little things make me happy. A new pocket watch or a steel ring. Did you know that they make steel rings that are quite unique? I was looking at MJ this afternoon while we were ordering some new blinds for our bedroom and I thought…what a pretty girl! Friday will be our 45th anniversary.

Health becomes an ever-increasing issue as we get older. It was always an issue but we think about it more as we get closer to discovering the Secret… Carolyn reads scriptures in our church on Sunday. She is inspirational and has the ability to make the scriptures come alive which I have not seen in my 55 years of attending church. Life tends to make us a bit stoic. Also, it opens vistas to us that we did not imagine in our youth. What appeared insurmountable yesterday is a dim memory tomorrow…

At times we feel that our lives are whisking by us like the turns of the Weavers Shuttle. That is because they are. When we were children we thought that being old like grandma or grandpa was a long way off…until we woke up one morning and discovered that we had become what we thought would not happen for a millennium. Many folks believe that the end of times is near and that the battle of Armageddon is soon to be upon us. Do not worry too much as it will have to hurry to catch our fleeting existence.

Living can be likened more to a marathon than a sprint. If we judge the value of our days by how bad we feel for a day or two or even a year or two…perhaps we have missed the finish line of our joys and tribulations. The poet Rumi said that suffering carves out more room for joy…and I think he may have been on to something. When we experience the deepest and darkest valleys…we are much more grateful for the brilliance of the mountaintop!

I remember being so poor that I had no money for food. I have a vivid picture in my mind of walking while my friends were riding. I understand the herculean struggle for financial security. I have been there.

During my career at Southern Illinois University @ Carbondale, I wanted to extend opportunities to those who were unseen and unheard and to those who had no voice. I understood these people…they were my people…I had been them…

Marginalized is a category that I am a bit familiar with. However, I refused to become bitter…I wanted to be better than my anger and hurt feelings. Long ago I decided to forget the bad…as much as is within me…and remember the good…