The heat factor is 98 degrees at 9:15 A:M: on the Writing Porch. Indeed it is July the 5th! Life is good in our little corner of the world. I do not say that haughtily or with the expectation that it will always remain so….as life changes on a dime. In fact, the only thing that is certain about life…is change. The firecrackers and other sundry fireworks have been booming and crackling for several nights and early mornings. I am speaking of two and three o’clock in the morning. More than once they sounded with such a timpani that I thought they must be being set off in my front yard. Being an old retired guy with a little dog that is not afraid of the loud bursts I smiled and thought…people enjoying their independence on Independence Day and the surrounding days. Other neighbors that have to work in the morning or attend University…probably had different ideas.

How could we be half through 2022? It reminds me of watching Aaron and Jonathon grow up… every time that I looked at them…they looked different and older. It was like capturing sunlight in a bottle…impossible to do. So it is with our Journey…it is like the old Kalidscopes of my youth. Each time that you look into it the multi-colors are changing.

‘We have well less than two months of Summer Vacation left,’ said Billy B. with a frown. ‘It seems that it just started…and now it is nearly over,’ sighed Chet.’ ‘Mom says that we go back to school during the third week of August,’ Jane noted. ‘It is high time for an Eldorado Adventure,’ exclaimed Daryl! ‘What exactly do you have in mind,’ asked Chet? ‘How about a trip to the Channel 3 Television Station at Harrisburg,’ Darryl suggested. ‘Could we be in the audience when the Cactus Pete Show is being televised,’ Jane asked? ‘That is exactly what I had in mind,’ Darryl replied.

Clutch Cargo was being broadcast when our intrepid adventurers arrived. ‘I wonder if Clutch is in the building,’ Billy B. asked? ‘Clutch is a cartoon,’ Chet answered. ‘I heard that he was a real actor that was dressed up to look like a cartoon,’ Jane said with some authoritative knowledge. ‘Look over there…Clutch Cargos’ name is on the door of a dressing room, Darryl said. ‘See…I told you guys…Clutch is real as is his little pal Paddle Foot, Jane laughed with glee. Chet slowly opened the door with Clutch Cargo inscribed on its’ face. As they all slowly walked into the tiny room…it suddenly expanded into an airfield with a Propeller Plane and a voice rang out…’ Come on Adventurers…daylight is wasting…get in.’ ‘Clutch…you are real…I told them that you were real…where is Paddle Foot,’ Jane asked? ‘Come on Paddle Foot…come on Boy,’ called Clutch through his immovable angular jaw and lips that moved little. ‘Woof…Woof…’ Paddle Foot barked with canine glee. ‘Where are we going…Clutch,’ asked Chet? ‘We are flying to Appalachia to take a July 5th Picnic and some firecrackers to some children who have never had a fun 4th of July…and who are hungry,’ Clutch answered.

Cades Cove was in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee and just outside Gatlinburg. When Clutch found a field to land his plane on…the families who lived in the Cove came running up to greet them. They took the picnic food and drink to the Methodist Church and enjoyed a July 5th Feast…then the firecrackers…which the Smoky Mountian Kids had not seen. The pops and cracks and wonderful sparkling light brought a certain lightheartedness to all involved. ‘I have some little carvings for each of you,’ said Carl. ‘Have you ever heard of whittling,’ Carl asked? ‘What is whittling,’ Billy B.asked? Well…we take our Case Knifes that Daddy bought us for Christmas and we get some pine wood and carve out different items from the soft wood,’ Carl answered. ‘Mine is of the Methodist Church, said Jane. ‘I have one of the Old Barn that is in the distance, Billy B. said with joy. Darryl could not help but notice that the Smoky Mountian Kids…were barefoot. He then set about getting all of their shoe sizes and telephoned his dad, The Wiz, and his dad said to tell the kids that he was Air Mailing a pair of shoes for each of them and that they should arrive tomorrow. When the Smoky Mountian Kids heard the good news of the New Shoes…they asked if Clutch and Billy B. and Jane and Darryl…and even Paddle Foot had ever tried White Lightning? ‘Daddy has a Still in the woods…he said for me to take you there and for you to help yourself to the best White Lightning in the Smoky Mountains,’ announced Carl.

As Chet passed the side mirror on the plane he noticed that his face was a cartoon character…

‘White Lightning will make you see double and feel single,’ laughed Clutch Cargo through his barely opened mouth. ‘That does not compute…that does not compute,’ Chet proclaimed in his revelry of imitating the Lost In Space Robot…while under the happy influence of White Lightning! ‘I would like to stay in Cades Cove…forever,’ Jane said as she fell asleep. ‘Wooo…Wooo,’ Paddle Foot moaned as he rolled over. ‘Paddle Foot…you have had a bit too much of the WL.’ Clutch laughed. ‘Time to load up and go home,’ Clutch said. As they disembarked from the Propeller Plane they noticed Clutch and Paddle Foot were nowhere to be seen. Upon entering Channel 3 Chet bumped into a man who looked like Clutch in the hall. He was not a cartoon character…and he winked at Chet as he passed him…with a closed mouth… slight smile…

I just left our Sunday morning Church Service and I came away with the thought that the simple is sublime. Pastor Kerry spoke of Naaman who was a commander of the Army of Syria. Naaman had leprosy and was told by the prophet Elisha to wash in the Jordan River…7 times and that, ‘his flesh would be restored to him and you shall be clean.’ Naaman was at first offended by the command of the prophet and wondered aloud why Elisha did not come out to meet him and call on the name of the Lord and he also said that Abana and Pharpar, two rivers in Damascus, were better than all of the waters of Israel. However when Naaman did as Elisha had instructed him to do…his leprosy was cured.

The old Saturday Night Live skit with Steve Martin and Dan Akroyd where their catchphrase was, ‘We are two wild and crazy guys,’ can be said of God. God does what he wants and he does it well. The majesty of nature simply overwhelms me on almost a daily basis. The variety of living creatures that we share our planet with… is fascinating. We worry about office politics and who is up politically and who is down…we seek America for ‘True Americans’…which must mean we are searching for Native Americans. We wonder if we will be able to take the next Holiday Journey and when Covid will end. I often ponder on the fact that I did not purchase a ticket of admittance to be a part of this wonderful and chaotic world…and all that I have and hear and see and feel…is a gift.

As I became a young man and then a middle-aged man…and now an old man…my perspective on the values of life has changed. I first sought to leave my rural environs and become something and someone great and far above my rearing. I knew that I had spent my childhood in the country setting and working poor surroundings of Eldorado, Illinois…and I sought to separate myself from those early beginnings. Now I embrace my heritage and peaceful and fulfilling life. I not only do not seek to be someone that I am not…but I am exceedingly proud of the life’s experiences that created Old 64.

Perhaps you have heard the axiom…’Nothing succeeds like success?’ A life well-lived is success enough…

The rain is coming down in buckets as I sit at the Writing Porch. I love rain. But…it does make it difficult to light a firecracker. I heard fireworks much of the night and felt a special joy after receiving a good medical report on some tests that I had taken at Mercy Hospital in St. Louis. I can think of several times in my life when it seemed that the reset button had been pushed and I reflected on Louis Armstrong’s famous song, ‘What a Wonderful World.’ What we often think of as mundane…is special. We are angry for no good reason. As another great song says…’Always be humble and kind.’ I stopped in the Quick Mart at DeSoto and was so impressed with how friendly the young woman greeted me was. She announced…as she opened the door for me…’I knew that you were driving a Subaru because I recognized the familiar sound of the bell…it is the same as my mom’s Subaru.’ As I walked the streets of the little village of Elkville yesterday…I remembered the young man of 17 who moved there in 1975.

‘I am excited to be going to Pounds Hollow for an evening swim and a fireworks display at dark,’ said Jane in a happy manner. ”Yes, I believe that it is the first time that we have attended their Fourth of July Celebration…and I hear that it is fantastic,’ Chet commented.’ ‘Where do they set off the fireworks from,’ asked Neva J.? ‘They float a wooden raft out into the deep water and perform the show from there,’ Billy B. answered. ‘I have heard that it scares the Cottonmouth snakes so badly that they leap out of the water,’ Daryl laughed.

Pounds Hollow was packed with people such as Billy B. had never seen in his years of swimming in his favorite Lake. The sun was already setting and the mood was high with so many children that were thrilled about the Holiday and secure in their freedom from school for another few weeks. A couple of Eldorado Roughians had attempted to smuggle beer into the festivities…but had been stopped at the gate and sent on their way back to Eldorado. Neva J. had sequestered a couple bottles of wine in her cooler and some Dixie Cups to drink it from…once it became dark. ‘Have you heard the story that there are several bodies at the bottom of the Hollow…and that every now and then you can see them during the height of the Fireworks Display due to the brilliance of the light and the spookiness of the hour,’ asked Chet? ‘My dad told me that he was out here last year and saw the ghost of a Revolutionary Army General,’ Daryl said. ‘Dad said that the General stood by the wooden raft for a few moments as the Roman Candles lit up the sky…and that he had a dismall and foreboding look on his face,’ Daryl related with some trepidation.

‘Please join me in the countdown for the Fireworks…,’said the Eldorado Mayor. As the light shown brilliantly across the happy members of Little Egypt…before the audience stood several ragged Revolutionary Soldiers…and five British Soldiers. ‘My God…you can see right through them,’ Chet exclaimed! As they floated just above the water…men and women fainted…and the kids clapped…for the expertly acted…Fourth Of July Celebration…

A blogging friend has asked me about the Writing Porch. Here are some photos of it.

July has arrived and summer knows it. It is either hotter than ever…or I am older than ever…or a combination of the two. MJ and I did our Aldis Shopping this morning and it dawned on me that Aldis has become our primary market. For a small store, it has a fantastic variety of goods…and they are priced right. Aldis is Addictive! Then it was off to see Larry, of Electric Larrys, whose birthday is this weekend. Aaron, Jonathon, and I have been shopping at ELs since he opened and find the most eclectic paraphernalia and collectibles I have seen in many years. He is headed for a Canoe Birthday…and I say Happy Birthday…Larry! So…not to let the day waste…which is a primary concern for each day of my retirement. I pointed the Forester towards Elkville.

I moved to Elkville the morning after I graduated High School at Eldorado. Many of my friends lived there and I attended a little non-denominational church in the Village. I literally lived in the church for a few weeks until I could procure a rental property. The Christian Faith captivated my imagination…and it still does. My family knew the pastor of the little church and he adopted me as a surrogate son he and his lovely and kind wife, Mickey, were some of my favorite people. I wanted to become a minister. I still think it is one of the most important jobs and callings a woman or man can fulfill. Many members of my extended family attended the church. Three aunts and some cousins were among them. I met my good buddies, Steve and Faye, in Elkville and he and I had many exciting adventures. Jeff and Margo were a part of the little church…and we have enjoyed an over 50-year friendship. When I began I was one of only two young people in a church of primarily senior citizens. I loved the old people…and they took to me like a grandson.

I lived in Elkville for over twice as long as Eldorado. MJ and I raised Aaron and Jonathon in the confines of the little peaceful…Village. MJ Home Schooled for many years in order that I could have some quality time with our sons. I worked as the night manager of Building Services for over 12 years of their budding youth. MJ is a saint! Grandpa Hickam and Grandma Fernie lived just a few blocks away. Grandpa H. would come to our door…unannounced and peer through the glass pane in the door. When I was working the 3rd shift…Grandma Fernie would call our home at 9:00 in the morning… and when I answered in a weary voice…she would ask, ‘Jay…you are not still in the bed…are you?’

Karen and Carol Dean let me ride with them to our mutual job at Essex International in DuQuoin, Illinois. This was my first full-time job and I made $16 dollars per week. I was working at about this time in the summer of 75′ and many of the women on the production lines were fainting from heat exhaustion. I told the Personnel Manager when he was showing me the facility after he hired me…that I would be purchasing my lunch from the machines in the Commissary. He advised me that I might want to consider bringing my lunch as I would not be making enough money to buy it.

Many of my years at SIUC…I lived in Elkville. About a year after I was hired in 1978…Steve was hired and we shared car rides for several years. When I became a Presbyterian…we lived in Elkville and did not move for another three years to Carbondale. I drove Route #51 so many times that I often did not know just exactly where I was on the Route. As I walked the streets of Elkville…today…I was at home.

‘I can not believe that it is the end of June,’ said Billy B. ‘I know…it seems that we just got out for summer recess, replied Chet. ‘I have some M80s and Cherry Bombs that my dad purchased in Missouri,’ said Daryl with a wink. ‘I like the sparklers the best,’ Jane said with a laugh. ‘Have you guys ever lit the black buttons called snakes and watched them grow into a several-inch-long facsimile of a black snake,’ asked Billy B.? ‘I think that Snakes on the 4th are about as interesting as Sea Monkeys for Christmas,’ chuckled Chet. ‘Fire Crackers scare me a little…I am afraid they will go off before I am able to throw them,’ said Billy B. ‘I am looking forward to going out to your Grandma Askews’ house to watch the Starlight Drive Inns Fireworks display this year,’ said Jane. ‘Yes it will be something special…, especially with the Roman Candles dad brought from Chicago,’ Billy B. added.

It was getting dark at Grandma Askews. Billy B.s friend, Debbie, and her sister Shelia, who were Grandma’s neighbors…came over to join in the Independence Day Festivities. ‘The lights are getting blue,’ noted Grandma Askew. ”That is a sure sign that the Fireworks will not be far behind…when the new street lights began to first glow with an ethereal blue light…and then in about 15 minutes…reach the zenith of their lumens,’ said Aunt Guelda. ‘We do not have anything like this in Holland,’ said Yoop who had the rich chocolate candy that was in the shape of wooden shoes and made in Holland. Yoop…or Yoopi…as Aunt Guelda and Grandma Askew called her…was a big-boned woman with angular features and a thick accent. She was friendly and vibrant and seemed as strong as any man. ‘Yoop…have you any wooden shoes,’ asked Billy B.? ‘I do indeed and the next time that you are here I will bring a pair to show you…and if you like them…I will order you a pair…what is your shoe size,’ said Yoop. ‘Size 9…and thank you,’ said Bllly B. ‘May I have another chocolate shoe,’ asked Chet? ‘Look…they have started,’ said Jane in an excited manner. ‘I think that this is much better than fighting the traffic and people that are parked along Route #45 by the Drive Inn,’ said Guelda. ‘Who is that man in the bushes across the road,’ asked Neva J.? ‘Oh…that is my brother…Herman…answered Yoop…he loves to set off his own firework display on the 4th.’

Suddenly the sky around Grandma Askew’s home was as bright as the daytime at high noon. ‘Oh my goodness…I have never witnessed such a bright firework,’ said Grandma Askew. ‘It comes from Holland…and it is a big hit every year when homes across our land go from complete darkness…to brilliant light…in a moment,’ said Yoop with a wicked grin. ‘What makes the light so brilliant, asked Chet? ‘It is a solar flare…and only we people of the Netherlands understand its power and glory,’ Yoop answered. ‘But…it is still light as day and the flare went off several minutes ago,’ Neva J. noted. ‘The light lasts as long as the people around it…require it,’ Yoop said matter of factly.

The unearthly light of the solar flare from Holland has illuminated Eldorado for 50 years and has made the little town the tourist destination of the nation. People come from all around the United States…and indeed from all over the world to see the little City of Gold…that never sleeps.

I was reflecting this morning on my years as a supervisor/manager/administrator. First I never felt that I had the ability to perform any of the leadership positions…but God was kind to me. I remembered what it was like to work for a Boss who I could never please. More than one Boss…actually. There is nothing more demoralizing than to work your hardest and at the zenith of your abilities…and never hear from your Boss…’Good Job.’ I have started going to a Doctor in St. Louis and one of the reasons I chose him was that he said in his biographical statement that he believed in treating people like he wanted to be treated…this is a Platinum Precept of a supervisory position.

During my 32 + year career at Southern Illinois University, I was determined to work as a colleague with my friends at Building Services. Many of them were unhappy and their morale was at rock bottom. My three primary goals as Superintendent were to; Improve Customer Service, Treat each person as I wanted to be treated, and Produce Clean buildings for our precious students.

My contention to the University Administration was that if our goal was to recruit and then retain our students…we fundamentally must have clean buildings for them to attend class. To me, this singular precept seemed as natural as breathing. Telling one of our customers to, ‘Just put your foot in their overflowing trash receptacle,’ was anathema. I believed that the happier our housekeeping crews were and the more appreciated that they felt…was vital to the customer service that we produced. My motto I borrowed from the old Hertz Rental Car Commercials where they said, ‘Hertz puts you in the driver’s seat.’ Or the old McDonald Restaurant Motto, ‘We do it all for you.’ There was an additional motto that I strove to attain during my career, ‘The customer is always right.’

We spend much of our lives at work. It has been said that we spend the best years of our lives at work. We should be happy at work. It baffles me how anyone can think that good management involves frustrating the people who are performing the tasks that will decide if you are a successful department or a despised one. I have heard the excuse on several occasions that the reason a manager does not bond with their staff…or a preacher with their congregation…is there are just too many names to remember…and it takes time that they do not want to spend on the most important capital that they have in their organization… on truly knowing who in reality…their success is commensurate on. We make time for what is important to us.

As a manager, you are enrolled in the Construction Business. Be a Builder…not a Demolisher. The popular Motivational Speaker, Zig Ziglar, said, ‘I really do care how much you know…until I know how much you care…about me.’ My friend and former Chancellor, Dr. Jo Ann Argersinger, knew how to connect with all members of the University Community. She would stop what she was doing and trudge out into a field of tall grass that a Grounds Worker was mowing and shake his hand and introduce herself and tell him or her how happy she was to make their acquaintance and how much both she and the University needed them… When she was unjustly terminated…the Physical Plant came out in force to support her.

Open Door was my policy…but I was in my office a minimal amount of my day. I followed the creed, ‘The Best Management Takes Place Where The Work Is Being Done.’ I not only knew all of my full-time colleagues by name, at that time about 140 but most of our wonderful student staff, over 200. I did not do surveys…I talked to each integral member of Building Services on a personal and one-on-one basis.

A supervisor or a manager or an administrator is in the Human Resources Business. If you take care of your staff…they will take care of you…an excellent work performance will follow.

Now you may ask…Jay…did you never focus on disciplinary actions? My answer is yes…with a department of 300 -400 people, there are going to be some disciplinary actions. However, Disciplinary Actions were not my primary focus and when they occurred there is a humane and kind way to handle them. My colleague told me when she heard me terminate one of our student workers that had become very upset with her…as she had initiated the termination…that she had never heard a person perform a termination in a more kind and considerate manner and that the student not only had become calm but that he understood that the termination had nothing to do with his worth as a human being.

Praise in Public…Constructive Criticism In Private…and do not discuss what was said behind closed doors with anyone that is not essential to the mission of Building the Colleauge and making them a Roaring Success. Those leaders who have notches on their belt for the people that they have fired…should hang their heads in shame…for their personal failures in not convincing those human beings…how vital and essential and necessary to the organization that they were.

A lovely rain is falling outside the Writing Porch. Coming with the rain are welcome cooler temperatures. It has been awfully hot in Little Egypt. I was thinking yesterday about our desire to be seen and respected by our leaders… in Government or education or Church. The fallback mottos of freedom of speech and freedom of thought and that all are equal under the law…ring hollow in practical life applications. It is easy to feel lonely in a crowd. Many of us proclaim that we want and admire and appreciate diversity…and then look for people that are just like we are. This proclivity has to be overcome by our actions and determination to celebrate the wonderful array of the Human Family….with its’ panoply of colors and languages and customs.

Everyone does not think like me. Everyone sees our world a bit differently. We all desire to be known by our leaders and by those whom we respect. All too often vital decisions are made by old white people. I am an old white person. We can develop such a Tunnel Vision that we see only our personal beliefs and dogma as the correct Roadmap for our Government and our Church. We tend to think in terms of our short lives and how we want our institutions to operate during the span of our personal history. Perhaps our decision-makers are making a devastating decision…and yet they communicate with their small cadre of advisors…who think like they do…and thus all is right with the world.

Disagreeable Voices are vital! Contrary opinions are essential to the health of an organization.

‘I do not think that our pastor knows my name,’ said Jane with consternation. ‘Why is that, asked Chet? ‘He says hi to me when I see him…but I have never had a conversation with him,’ Jane continued. ‘He calls me Pal,’ said Billy B. ‘He calls me Buddy…and from time to time…Friend,’ noted Chet with a smile. ‘Well I feel the same way at School when I see Mr. I. laugh and cut up with the Jocks and other sports celebrities and when I pass he never acknowledges my existence,’ mused Daryl. ‘Mr. I. told me that I could not ‘Go Out’ for the baseball team…and when I asked him why he said, ‘Duh’ and I knew he was referring to me being a girl, said Jane in an angry tone of voice! ‘The Student Council proposed to Mr. I. that our School develop a Womens’ Baseball Team…but he summarily dismissed it along with the Board of Trustees…who all are men,’ said Billy B. ‘I interviewed for a job at the Ben Franklin Dime Store and the manager told me that he would hire me for 75 cents per hour when my friend Russel was hired last week for $1.25 per hour,’ Neva J. noted in a disgusted manner. ‘Naomi asked the Dime Store Manager why he paid women less than men…and he said because they are the Breadwinners of the family…when I went into his office on my second day and told him that I was the breadwinner for my family…he gave me a blank stare…and told me to get back to work,’ Neva J. continued.

Pounds Hollow was the place to be for Billy B. and Chet and Jane and Daryl. From Memorial Day until Labor Day…they spent the bulk of their time either on the sandy beach of the Hollow or in the air-conditioned comfort of the Orpheum Theatre @ Eldorado. Billy B. was never a sportsman but he could swim and float like a beach ball. The water was his second home and he loved it as if it was his first. Everything seemed possible to Billy B. as he meditated on life and its’ secrets while he was floating in the deep end of the Lake. In his Pounds Hollow Dreams, he was grown with a lovely wife and two wonderful sons. He treated all whom he met…as he wanted to be treated and subsequently was thought of with respect and a friend to all.

‘I love coming to Pounds Hollow…it is the most peaceful place that I know,’ mused Jane. ‘Yes, and the water is always so inviting…and room temperature on the 25th of June…just like I like it,’ Chet exclaimed. ‘Be careful of the Water Moccasins,’ said Neva J. ‘They hang out in the Deep Water,’ Daryl added. ‘Chet and I are headed for the far bank of the Lake,’ Billy B. proclaimed. ‘I am bringing my inner tube…in case I get tired of swimming,’ Chet said. ‘I will not need one…as I am buoyant as an inner tube,’ Billy B. laughed. ‘I think that I will accompany you guys…I want to experience Nirvanna, Daryl said. ‘I would not be surprised if there was not a sea monster that is similar to the Loch Ness Monster…in the depths of Pounds Hollow,’ said Chet as he swam by Billy B. and Daryl. ‘I once saw a shadow under the water that was as long as our Eldorado High School Football Field,’ remarked Billy B. ‘No one has discovered how deep Pounds Hollow is…as each time that divers attempt to measure it they get a reading on their footage meter that is different than the time before,’ Daryl said. ‘It seems that the depth of the Hollow increases and decreases on its own…with no rational or logical explanation as to why or how it happens,’ Daryl continued.’ ‘No one has ever touched bottom,’ Chet whispered in a spooky intonation.

Billy B. sat on his buddies, Ira Kaye and Ron’s, balcony at Miramar Beach, Florida. He thought of how relaxing it was to just stare at the mysterious Ocean in front of him. There were young families with their children…frolicking on the white sandy beach. He sipped his vodka and orange juice and lit the fine cigar from the Cigar Store in Destin. It was January 2022 and a trip to Florida was just what the doctor ordered. He did not swim in the Gulf in January…the water was too cold…he liked it at room temperature. Someone was waving at him from the Berm that was far out from the shore. Billy B. zoomed his camera to its fullest extent and before his eyes were, Chet and Daryl…jumping up and down and making funny faces and yelling…’Billy B…Come and join us!’

‘It has occurred to me that others are seeking to control me,’ said Chet. ‘I enjoy wearing my blue jeans but the principal at our school says that we must wear slacks,’ Chet continued. ‘It has always bothered me that I can not wear a dress above my knees and I have to measure each of them to ensure that they are two inches below my knees,’ Jane said in exasperation. ‘My Converse Tennis Shoes are twice…maybe three times more comfortable than my leather school shoes…yet I can not wear my Converse to class,’ Billy B. bemoaned. ‘It seems to me that people should be able to marry whom they love…rather than fill some outdated law that says marriage is only between a man and woman, Daryl said. ‘Why do people stare and whisper when a man and woman of different races love each other and are married, Neva J. asked with some consternation. ‘Why do we label people…rather than see them for the creation of
God that they are,’ Jane proclaimed.

‘The people that make the rules are the people that break the rules,’ said Billy B. ‘Neva J. and I attended a strict Holiness Church…and if you broke one of their numerous rules…you suffered the consequences…yet the leadership did what they pleased and broke most of their own rules…behind closed doors!’ ‘Power corrupts and ultimate power corrupts…ultimately,’ Chet said. ‘Powerful people are adept at making laws and rules that do not affect them…but rather are onerous for the poor and for those who have little resources and no voice in the affairs of the Elite, Neva J. said.

‘We live in our own reality…and often our religion colors that reality…our lawmakers’ fashion laws that are in lockstep with their faith…but it is not everyone’s faith, said The Wiz,’ Darryls’ father. ‘There is a fundamentalist outcry to return prayer to schools…however, the politicians who promise that they will get this done is not speaking of your faith of perhaps my faith…but their narrow view of the Christian Faith. They are pandering to their base of support and the other faiths or religions such as; Jewish, Moslem, Hindu…and the many Americans who are atheist or agnostic,’ The Wiz continued. The powerfuls’ wish for prayer in schools is specifically for the prayers that they approve of…not for those outside their circle of influence,’ Chet said in little more than a whisper.

‘The conflict and hate and strong words are what bother me the most when two or more people disagree on a rule or a law,’ Jane said with a tear in her eye. ‘We scream and holler and fight and rend and tear for our opinion and we do not see the human being that is disagreeing with us…as loved and of value and someone that we should live peaceably with, Chet noted with his wise words. ‘It seems that we all are true believers when it comes to the rightness of our cause…but we are blind to the nuances of the subject,’ Neva J. said with her eyes closed…as if in prayer. ‘We will never understand our fellow human family members until we walk a mile in their shoes,’ said Billy B.

I recall my 32-year and 2 months and 3 weeks career at Southern Illinois University @ Carbondale with great affection. I remember working for a manager who relished misleading the University Administration. This person went on to tell me that if we did not stage a work slow down and illustrate how personal cuts had hurt Building Services…we would continually be reduced by more and more staff. He had watched other departments do what he was doing…with seemingly all success and no downside to causing our students and faculty and staff to work in unkempt and deteriorating facilities and grounds. In fact, I almost became convinced that I was the ‘Goat’ and the fool for not doing what everyone else seemed to be doing with no apparent knowledge of the ruse by the University Administration and the grudging approval of the Community. I wondered how that Administration could not realize the games that were being played with them. When it seems that everyone surrounding you believes one thing and you believe the opposite…it is a lonely life. I simply could not play with the most precious gift of a career at SIUC…nor punish the University Community for the budget shortfalls of the Leadership. I am an admirer of the original Star Trek television show and my favorite character was Mr. Spock. Mr. Spocks’ measurement of problems and conundrums was whether or not the solution was logical. The concept of demonstrating a lie to produce a truthful result was beyond me. I was convinced that Building Services must do its best…and we would ultimately be recognized for our dedication to doing a good job.

During the past few years, we have seen the same struggle with Lies and Truth. The struggle has been on live television and an attempted Coup of our Government…that almost succeeded. The Tug-Of-War has been in clear view of everyone and the old adage, ‘Do not believe what your lying eyes and lying ears…are telling you!’ I have heard a statement…many times…that, ‘God uses rough instruments to do his will.’ I heard the same illogical theory when many told me that to short-change the students and to cause the staff and faculty to learn and work in dirty buildings and unsanitary restrooms and classrooms with no chalk and that you had to kick the Daily Egyptians out of the door to enter. Rest Rooms with no toilet paper and no hand towels and facilities that no one would use… except in an emergency. Our former President said, ‘Just say that there was a fraud…we will take care of the rest.’ In other words…Lie so the truth will prevail.

‘The numbers are the numbers…numbers do not lie,’ said Billy B. ‘Donald has lost the election for Class President…by a lot,’ Jane noted. ‘Donald is already saying that the election was fraudulent and he has several tough guys surrounding him,’ Daryl said. ‘A police officer is guarding Chet…as he is receiving terrible threats,’ Neva J. said with a very worried look on her kind face. ‘I am going to do my best to be a good and honorable Class President…that is all that I can do,’ said Chet. ‘My cousin is in Vietnam…and our former Schoolmates are fighting and dying for the freedom that we hold dear…I will not fold to pressure…I have known pressure all of my life,’ Chet continued.

‘It takes a lifetime to build a good reputation…and a moment to tear it down,’ Neva J. said softly.