I love this time of year. Writing in the cool of the autumn evening is inspiring. I look out on the pond and am reminded of Maine. We are called to greatness. At times challenges obscure the mission. Hope reigns supreme when we can peer through the veil. ‘For now, we see through a glass darkly: but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.’ I Corinthians 13:12

I saw a popular newscaster on television who looked different from his usual flawless visage. He had not had time to visit the makeup room. We often want to emulate those in the media and movies due to their flawless appearance. It is a bit like the clown at the circus; they do not always look that way.

A quest is to discover the reality of living. A family of crows was watching me today at the Woods. They were unafraid. They had seen me before. I knew them and they knew me.

Influencers are big. They control many likes. Their polished performance provides a facsimile of what their fans desire. Instead of respect, there is ‘Bling.’ Instead of love, there is sex. As Prince Charles said of his then-wife Diana he loved her, ‘Whatever love means…’

The faith of our mothers and fathers has become a dark image in the mirror of our lives. It has morphed into politics and that of hate, not hope. God’s love has become more gold diamonds and expensive homes and cars. You may be in the Christian Club but are you in the Christian Clique?

The crows know winter is coming. They live in the house on the land that God gave them. The mystery is real. Searchers we are. Humility is a gift. Read the words with your heart and not your head. A cool breeze we are. A cloud on the horizon. Rain falling on a thirsty Earth. Light in a clay pot.

The Clay Pot is cracked. The light is brilliant. Oh…what a magnificent Clay Pot and a compelling light…

Over the past few years, we have become homebodies. The Pandemic started the transition. Most years we have made an annual trek to Maine. Maine began in 2009 after MJ and Aaron discussed wanting to visit someplace we had not been. Soon we will have been to Maine 7 times. L.L. Bean has replaced Dry-Fit as my go-to clothing.

Leaf Peeping is our quest this year. We are going to the event later than ever. Our dear friend Margo has wanted to see the changing leaves of Maine for some time. We have promised that they will be at their peak. I hope we are right. Leaves have a mind of their own. One day they are green the next red and the next brown on the ground.
Leaves provide no schedule for Leaf Peeping. It is a crusade that yields good results and disappointment…not unlike life.

Travel widens the eyes. We see things we do not know. We hear words we have not heard. We think thoughts we have not pondered. There are many cultures in the United States. A melting pot we are. We enjoy various foods we must learn to enjoy different people. If I wanted to speak with someone who looks like me sounds like me and thinks like me I could stay home and peer at my old visage in the mirror.

Travel is hope. Hope in our family…the human family.

It is good to be alive! Fall is here and the leaves are turning colors. Peace is ours if we make our own. I have a new feature on my camera app called X-Ray, which is appropriate for Halloween.

Freedom is a wonderful thing. We go where we want and stay for as long as we like. We worship in the manner our hearts lead us or do not worship and feel satisfied. Most people are good. We dwell at peace with all men. Happiness is not an illusion.

Home is our sense of place. Friday night football and Monday night football for the junior varsity are rights of passage. We tell our kids they could grow up to be President and some do. Fulfillment unites with our spirits in a multitude of ways. Helping others is a worthy occupation.

‘Christmas is coming the goose is getting fat won’t you please put a penny in the old man’s hat. If you haven’t got a penny a hay penny will do, if you haven’t got a hay penny God bless you.

Meaning we search for. Purpose we want. Time is fleeting. Our days turn into weeks our weeks months and our months years. The Author is writing the book. We want an exciting narrative…sitting by the waters of Babylon we take out our harps…

So they say simple people have simple ways. This describes me. I found a photo app on my iPhone and it has seemed like Christmas. I am searching for ways to enhance my photos. Waiting for the leaves to fall is an exercise in patience. If you are not careful they change color and then drop overnight.

Maine is in our future for the seventh time. I hear seven is a complete number. Maine has become a second home. We are going to do some Leaf Peeping. Before I started my daily walks at Giant City State Park two or perhaps three years ago I and MJ would take an October drive in the Park to Leaf Peep. Near my birthday on October 24th was the optimal time to Peep…

‘I love being in the woods this time of year,’ Neva J said. ‘It reminds me of Grandma A and I looking for persimmons for dinner when we did not have anything to eat,’ she continued. ‘Grandma A loved to stop and look up at the changing colors of the leaves,’ Neva J said with a wistful grin.

‘What about when you and Grandma A were hunting persimmon and discovered a man laying in the leaves who appeared to be dead,’ asked Billy B? ‘I recall you describing him as having a big gapped tooth grin on his face,’ noted Billy B.

‘The old man was sleeping in the leaves and when we woke him he said that he was having a wonderful dream,’ Neva J said. ‘He said that he had lived in the Woods as long as he could remember and had a delightful life,’ Neva J recounted.

‘Greetings friends you have picked a lovely day for Leaf Peeping,’ Old Man said. ‘How have you been Neva J you are looking well what is your secret to not aging,’ the Old man exulted with a Casanova grin. ‘It must have been 20 years ago I woke to see you and your mom peering down at me under my leaf blanket,’ Old Man said. ‘It was a coat of many colors as the leaves were at their zenith,’ Old Man laughed. ‘Not many see me I blend in with the leaves and the trees,’ he laughed. ‘At times I call out Hello…Hello, and it frightens the Leaf Peepers,’ Old Man guffawed!

‘Would you join us for a glass of Merlot,’ Neva J asked Old Man? ‘Have you any family that live with you in the Woods,’ She asked? ‘Billy B tells me that he hears the trees talking to each other,’ Neva J said with a questioning gaze.

‘Billy B heard me on several occasions as I was blended in with the trees,’ Old Man said with a chuckle. ‘I remain incognito so I do not scare visitors to the woods, ‘he noted. ‘Remember when you tripped and almost fell Billy B I reached out an arm that appeared to be a limb and caught you, ‘ said Old Man. ‘My family are the animals of the forest they have a lot to say if you take time to listen,’ Old Man observed.

‘What is your secret of blending in with the leaves and trees,’ Billy B asked? ‘I have not heard of another person having such unique ability,’ Billy B continued.

‘Well, it happened slowly over many years as I spent time in the Woods and talked with the trees and animals,’ Old Man said. ‘I watched as the animals blended in with the Wood when danger approached and mimicked them,’ Old Man winked. ‘After a while, it became natural as breathing,’ he said as he disappeared into the trees…

Pastor Kerry delivered a timely sermon on the power of words this morning. Words have power over us. Words come from thoughts. Thoughts are the rudder of our ship.

Have you heard of people who besmirch their abilities? Apologizing for their perceived lack of skill and ability. Their words create their performance and the opinions others have of them.

Hateful words engender hate. Speaking evil of others hurts them and their reputation with others. Hate speech hurts the speaker. Speaking evil creates evil surroundings depressed feelings and a recipe for failure and subsequent disaster.

We crave happy words. Someone who will recount the good things that we have done and remain silent regarding our mistakes. Kind words create a settled spirit and a sense of place. Most people are lovely considerate and kind if we give them a chance.

We can control our future. Happy kind words forecast our days. When we speak of how awful life is and our propensity for getting the short end of the stick we create a self-fulfilling prophecy. When we speak of hope faith and success ‘As a man thinketh so is he.’

Life is a day-at-a-time proposition. There is no quick fix. No magic bullet. No elixir that cures all ills. There is a mental and verbal road map of success, accomplishment, love, and caring that will magically change our lives if we avail ourselves of its power.

‘I am trying to think of what Billy B is good at but nothing comes to mind,’ Minister said as he bragged on every young man in the church and told of their abilities.

Prove the naysayers wrong. Defy the critics. Illustrate the power of positive words and thought. Be the example that defies the bullies…

The Salukis are playing their first home game at SIUC. September is half over. Where does the time go? The State Fair has come and gone as well as Labor Day. Events I looked forward to as markers of my favorite season, Autumn. Now we are in the thick of it and it is like life not waiting. Scarlett O’Hara told us that tomorrow is another day but that tomorrow is today. Beetlejuice is 73 and we have no time to DillyDally…

Each day we begin again. The past is gone and the future has not arrived so we have today. Today it encompasses our world. What we want to accomplish is today. Our hope to help our fellow human beings is today. ‘Whatsoever they hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.’ Ecclesiastes 9:10

Love lost can be found. Relationships broken can be mended. Hope differed can be obtained. Rebuilding starts at daybreak.

‘Who knows how to write their name,’ Mrs. K said to her first-grade class on the first day?

Billy B announced that not only did he know how to write his name but write many other words. He strode to the blackboard as a conquering hero. Taking the chalk in his hand he winked at Mrs. K and began to write.

‘Oh goodness no Billy B…you can take your seat,’ Mrs K. said.

Before the class, some squiggles and marks were not dissimilar from the cuneiform script. Mrs. K was a kind teacher and told Billy B not to worry as he would soon be writing his heart out.

The mistaken script posing as cursive writing had disappeared…Mrs. K had erased it.

Cool and breezy my kind of Friday. The painters are gone, and you can not paint in the rain. The redwood stain is good. The yellow door is welcoming. The rain is appreciated.

‘I broke out my windbreaker this morning,’ Chet said. ‘It also repels rain,’ he added. ‘There are Halloween movies on TV they are the old ones which are the best,’ Chet grinned.

‘Well it is Friday the 13th,’ Jane noted. ‘Anything can happen be careful to not step on a crack or you will break your mother’s back,’ Jane laughed. ‘I stayed in a high-rise hotel last year that did not have a 13th floor,’ she added with curiosity.

‘Someone is knocking at the new green door,’ Billy B said. ‘I wonder if the painters have come to paint even in the rain,’ he asked? ‘Hello…hello he called out but to no answer as there was no one there,’ Billy B discovered.

‘Now there is a knock at the back door that enters from the writing porch,’ Chet said. ‘I will take a photo with my iPhone when I swing the door open,’ he added with flair. ‘Take that you Friday The 13th Trickster,’ Chet proclaimed!

‘There is a fuzzy image on the photo I can not determine what it is,’ Jane said. ‘It looks like a picture taken quickly where the person in it is blurred,’ she postulated. ‘I saw a figure of a woman standing over my bed the other night in what I call a waking dream, she was staring at me and when I asked her name she left in a blur,’ Jane said with fright.

‘I once talked with a Blurry Man who I assumed was unfocused due to my poor eyesight,’ Chet said. ‘He explained that he was from the future and that in my time his physical being could not be completely composed,’ said Chet. ‘He asked if I had any questions regarding the future so I asked him if mom and dad would live long lives…he answered ‘One Will.’ ‘I then asked him if I would attend university…he answered, ‘A short time.’ ‘When I awoke from what apparently was a dream Mom was crying as Dad lay dead of a heart attack in his bed,’ Chet said with tears in his eyes.

‘Hurry let us get packed for the Friday The 13th Movie Marathon at the Orpheum Theatre,’ Neva J exclaimed. ‘Blurry Man is going with us he says he knows each of you and is part of the family,’ Neva J said with a grin…

It has been dry. Rain is in the forecast. I love the weather I am part of it. The rhythms of life are predictable. We are affected by the phases of the moon. Tides know this. Long dead stars speak to us across the galaxy. The passing of a year seems fast when we are old but the length of each day does not change. We either look for ways to kill time so it will pass more quickly or to save it like a miser hoarding his gold. Our relationship with time is a dance. First-time leads then we lead…we think…

It takes a long time to accomplish good work. Speed is not a requirement for excellence. Success is incremental. We watch the 30-minute television show where the problem and solution are performed in a minuscule time. We sadly expect the same results in life. It takes years to develop a good name and minutes to tear it down.

Michelangelo took over 4 years to paint the Sistine Chapel. He worked 18 hours a day.

Quantity is not quality. Craft is a study effort to accomplish the product as near perfection as possible. The slow and steady work of professional workmanship is of value in all endeavors.

My first lesson was as a young man of 20 when I began in Building Services at SIUC. I was the replacement for a Building Service Worker I, who was obviously on the ’30 Minute Plan.’ All areas of the General Accounting Building were dirty with some being filthy. I set about cleaning them for perhaps the first time in some time. Soon I received compliments for the occupant’s clean work environment. I understood that all crafts were vital and should be performed excellently.

When I became superintendent of the department I hearkened back to the commercial axioms of my youth such as, ‘Hertz Puts You In The Drivers Seat,’ or McDonald’s Doest It All For You.’ I believed that the customer was always right. When someone thanked us for our service we did not respond with, ‘No Problem,’ we said ‘You Are Welcome.’

Building Services was full of career staff who loved their University and their valued place in it. They knew that their work was vital to the success of the institution. Recruitment and Retention were squarely on their shoulders…they welcomed the challenge.

I watched the painter paint our front door. He sanded the old finish. he put primer on the surface. He painted with care and precision. The front door looks like a new one. The old folks often said that if you could not afford something new a little paint does wonders…

The Painting Project continues. The young men staining the Writing Porch and painting the Patio are younger than my sons. They call me Sir. I recall how it felt to be working on projects for people much older than me…not so long ago in my compression of time.

Reversals are obstinate boulders on the road of life. What appears easy is hiding the challenges. Murphy said what can go wrong will go wrong. I remember painting. Painting is one of the few crafts that I felt I could have made a living at if I had to. Yet with my best efforts, I always got paint on areas I should not have. The last time MJ and I painted the front door we taped it off and had drop cloths and supreme will and focus…only to still spill some red paint.

Mistakes must become our friends. Mistakes are learning experiences. I despised hearing this as a young man. As an old man, I know it is true. The peculiar thing about mistakes is that you have to admit them to learn from them. Often when I would ask a colleague to clean an area on Campus they would respond that they had already done so and that the result of the experience was what I saw before me. Upon a small demonstration of what a little elbow grease would do they looked on in amazement. Once the Dean of Morris Library reported that her new office furniture was getting nicks and marks on the chair legs. When I asked our technician to demonstrate how he vacuumed around the marred chairs he first assured me that he was not hitting them with a vacuum. He proceeded to hit them several times in short order before I told him I had seen enough. Sometimes a second set of eyes is a good thing.

Focus aids in quality control. Excellence can not be phoned in. This is true throughout life. Success requires immersion in the task. I desired to be valuable to Southern Illinois University, and I wanted a career. I wanted to be good at my profession and understand my University through its many offices and disciplines.

Politicians are surprised. They seek simple answers to complex questions. Marquee silver screen moments with no substance. Entertainment has become pervasive in our society. We have difficulty distinguishing truth from fiction. Perception is the reality in Hollywood…

The answers we seek can not be found in the warm fuzzy depths of our iPhones. We do not write cursive any longer. Really we do not write much because we do not read much. Conversation is becoming a lost art as we hide behind our technology. We are social on Social Media we do not speak to the person sitting next to us in the pew at church.

To reverse reversals we must engage in our world. Religious fatalism is not the answer. Christ was deeply immersed in the people of his time. Conspiracy Theories go down smoothly when there is nothing to combat their assimilation. Friends and neighbors tell us that our fatalistic ideas and dark perception of our country are correct to encourage us in our despondency.

We must admit we made a mistake…today is a new day…

It was Tuesday…it seems like yesterday. Time stood still. A beautiful September Day. Thoughts were on autumn football school and work.

We were living in a new house. Neva J was with us. Retirement was slowly getting closer. There were good times and hard times. The basement was done—as large as our former house. We sang the Jeffersons Song…Moving On Up To The Big Time…

Newsflash…a plane hit one of the World Trade Center Towers. We had visited them a little over a year before. Soon both Towers were hit. Obviously not accidents. Pandemonium. What next? Who next? Where does it end?

Neva J did not understand…neither did any of us. Fog reigned. Fear ruled. Life-altering change had come to us in a moment…

My stepfather had died. My mom could not live alone. We had to get a bigger boat… A new century. We are under attack. Is it World War III? Will there be nuclear bombs?

A Tuesday 23 years ago…