It feels like 102 degrees in Mr. Brooks Neighborhood. It is uncomfortable for sitting and miserable for working. With the aid of my ceiling fan and the powerful flow of my floor fan…I am climatized and surviving. As Global Warming progresses each year…when will be our human breaking point? The politicization of the change in our Earth’s climate as well as the COVID 19 Virus…has resulted in devastation for our species and our planet. While we fiddle…Rome burns.

Sunny days and cloudy ones visit us all. Often our reactions to each… chart our course of life. Much of life is reaction. In stormy times we can choose to either throw rocks at God…or learn to make lemonade out of lemons. We can feel that the world is set against us…or we can identify with our mutual struggle.

Our Pandemic seems to have no end. Yet our reactions to it are a bit like the person who maxes out all of their credit cards and rails at no one in-particular regarding their massive debt. If we continue to ignore science and common sense…perhaps we will be fighting about wearing face-masks for the foreseeable future.

We mourn and debate the causes of the diminishing of congregants in our churches. We wonder, aloud, if we need new programs and classes…finally we say in exasperation that people seem not to be that in to church…anymore. I finished the excellent Netflix Series ‘The Chair’ in the early hours of this morning. The wonderful actor, Sandra Oh, gave a speech in the last episode that described The myopic view of universities in todays precipitous decline of enrollment. She noted that the only class in the English department…which was not suffering from declining enrollment…was the class that a brilliant female African American Professor was teaching that utilized ground breaking instruction that involved all of he students in her class. She cautioned that Academia was going to have to stop worrying on their endowments and change their teaching pedagogy or suffer the obliteration of the Academy.. So it goes for our churches…we are going to have to change and embrace new forms of worship and fellowship and ministry…or stay firm in our intransigence and hope that the organization does not die…before we do…

Shadows fascinate me. I think that they are illustrative of our time in this life. One of the most interesting cinematic experiences that I had lately was watching the movie ‘The Night House’ and its use of shadow in depicting what the main character perceived as a ghost. Each time that Rebecca Halls character saw the malevolent silhouette…the camera would back away and show that what she had seen could be explained by cut outs in the wood of the house and a combination of them with other physical features of the dwelling. Often what we see is an optical illusion of what our mind tells us that we are seeing.

It is 90 degrees in Little Egypt and it feels like 100. Yet with the aid of two fans the writing porch is comfortable enough. I was talking with my good friend the other day and something she said reminded me of the plethora of political pitfalls and sudden cliffs and 10 foot hurdles that an honest hearted person must negotiate in the workplace. During my 32 year and 2 months and 3 weeks career I experienced so many traps and snares that I became a bit of a person to watch in the escaping of bear traps. It has been said that some people speak out of both sides of their mouth…when in reality they often have multiple masks that they adorn themself with…as the occasion calls for. Dealing with hidden agendas and doublespeak is exhausting….and much the more so if you have to do it for many years.

I watched 3 episodes of ‘The Chair’ on Netflix last night. I not only laughed on several occasions but it reminded me of my time at Southern Illinois University @ Carbondale. I had several faculty friends and my dear friends, Peter and Jo Ann, that MJ and I spent countless hours with. University life is different than regular life. Being a member of the University Community was like living in a village within a city. Academia has norms and structures that are unique to their members. Yet when I see a movie or television series about academics…I feel like that I am a member of the group….I assume due to my lengthy association with them during my career. I think that I was a bit of a sponge in that I soaked up much

The Chair reminded me of the daily political games that are played on university campuses. In fact there are so many variants of what is expected from the members of the Campus Village that it is a wonder and somewhat of a miracle that the primary mission of the school, the teaching of students, ever gets accomplished. I have often said, and to my friend Jo Ann, that perception is 90% of reality in university life. One person may be working terribly hard and be extremely productive…while another may be a canny communicator and a great promoter of…themself.
All too often I have witnessed the self-promoter…and the excellent story teller…receive the promotion and the corner office.

University is the pantheon for truth. It is the enclave of free speech…and free thought. It is Sanctuary for the dispossessed intellectual and the shunned thinker. Academia is the refuge for Conservatives and Liberals as well as people of faith and agnostics and atheists. It is the place for speech that I do not care for or find offensive. What it is not is a place that puts people and position and power before those who have no voice.

All that I have to do is think about autumn and the cooler weather…and the Pumpkin Spice Coffee, which I am already drinking, and and I am as happy as the child with, ‘Sugar plums dancing in his head.’ Few natural phenomenon create in me a more clear sense of purpose and peace and contentment than the ‘BER’ months. Often I am prone to writers block in the summer…but not so in the fall. If reincarnation is real I am certain that I must have been a teacher or librarian or author…as I love books…and a lot of them. Our friend, Jo Ann, told MJ and I many years ago when she was giving us a tour of her and Peter’s home. that when she was in the middle of her library…with books shelves on each wall from the floor to the ceiling…that she felt safe and hidden. I think that books have much the same effect on me….the fall makes me think of books.

Bon Fires are a staple of the season that we are coming upon. I recall the exhilarating and frightening Bon Fire that we had in Chicago…so many years ago. Steve, Ivys son, had decided to have a Bon Fire and a marshmallow roast in his backyard in Sauk Village. Mom had hot dogs and potato chips as well as beer for her and dad and Choc-Ola for me. Ivys husband, Bob, had placed tiki torches around the perimeter of their backyard and Susie, Steves sister, had acquired bales of hay for us to sit on. Steve brought his marionettes out and performed a Marionette Ghost Show that was replete with Jack-O-Lanterns and a Headless Horseman and Ichabod Crane. There was JFK and Jackie…who appeared amazingly lifelike for puppets. Danny and Pauly had been invited…and Pauly cried when the Headless Horseman made his appearance. Dad laughed as I had never heard him laugh before as he asked for another Pabst Blue Ribbon beer. He and Bob talked about how lifelike the Kennedy couple looked…and Bob remarked that he had just seen a newsreel of them arriving in Texas for a campaign tour.

Out came Steve with a pumpkin mask that completely covered his head. He was wearing, strangely, a business suite and a white shirt and tie. The Bon Fire was ablaze and creating many sparks. Mom said that she truly considered President Kennedy a great President and that his wife was simply lovely. Susie was holding me on her lap and hugging me…which I throughly enjoyed…as I had a bit of a crush on her. Soon the adults in the Halloween festivities began to do the Twist. Ivy had brought a portable record player outside and ran an extension cord into her house for power. As Chubby Checker sang, ‘Grab me by my little hand…and go like this…’ Steve with the full pumpkin mask on his head began to Twist at a manic pace… Out of nowhere came a shot…then another…and another. and the pumpkin mask was gone from Steves head…and he was not Steve at all…He was JFK…with a perplexed look on his face…

Celebration was the order of the day this past Saturday as we traveled to Paducah, Kentucky for a Congratulatory dinner for Jonathon. We roamed Lower Town…where MJ and I have visited more times than I can remember. A decade or more ago…we visited the Lower Town Artistic Community at least once a month…and often more frequently. It was there that we met the extraordinary artist, Nancy Calcutt, who is the finest portrait painter that it has ever been my privilege to know. Also, Keyth Kahrs, who is a master in landscape art. On Saturdays and especially second Saturdays each venue had complimentary wine and cheese…and a lovely mood enhancer for purchasing art. We have pieces from Stefanie Graves and her husband David Lucht….and we love looking at them on a daily basis. Also we are great fans of Char Downs…and we love her painting of the Three Bulls.

Paducah is intriguing with its antique architecture and horse drawn carriage rides. Alben William Barkley, from Paducah served as Vice President from 1949 – 1953. MJ and I visited the Artistic Colony in Lower Town so often and became acquainted with the artists…that for several years I felt like a visiting member of the group. MJ reminded me of our carriage ride not long before Christmas…with our friend, Nancy, and Santa Claus was driving the sleigh. That day we purchased our first pastel from Nancy.

Freight House is a wonderful restaurant. We have eaten there twice and both meals and drinks…were to die for! Each time that I am in Paducah I am reminded of all the wonderful visits that we had at the Executive Inn, that is no longer there, as it offered two for one weekend stays where you paid for one night and got the other one for free. They had a lovely large swimming pool and many shops and delicious food. Also, there was a ballroom for live entertainment and we saw both Loretta Lynn and Boots Randolph there. When Aaron and Jonathon were young lads we would make a weekend of the Paducah Experience and our dear friends, Faye and Steve, accompanied us. We enjoyed going to the Kentucky Oaks Mall…where everybody congregated on the weekend. There was a multiplex theatre next to the Mall and we enjoyed seeing a flick there before returning to the Executive Inn.

Yesterday MJ and Aaron and I went to the AMC Theatre for only my second time in over a year and one half. I must explain that attending the movie theatre was one of my primary goals upon my retirement…and I subsequently attended 2 – 4 movie openings per week for many years. Going to the movies is one of my premier pleasures since I was a child. And…so…we saw The Night House. It is the kind of picture that causes you to wonder what it was that you saw on the silver screen… Extremely well done with Rebecca Hall as the main character. She is an actor, like all of the great ones, who can say more with her facial expressions…than with words. It has been so long since I have pursued my passionate pass-time…that I am out of practice. I am an AMC Stubs Premier Member…and I have re-installed their AP on my phone to keep abreast of my $5 rewards that accrue on a regular basis.

So…we christians believe that we are alive in the mind of God…even though we may have been dead for thousands of years. Many of us believe that God sees the panoply of our lives…from beginning to the end. So, is God watching the video cassette of our childhood…or is he watching it in real-time?

Oscar woke up thinking of home. He wondered how long that he had been sleeping. it seemed that he had just laid his head on top of his 3 pillows…and yet it was daylight then and it was pitch dark now. He recalled going about his daily routine activities. He had walked on Campus and taken photographs and written his daily blog…yet he did not completely recognize where he was at the moment. When he arose from his bed…there was Marnie watching her beloved Cubs. When Oscar asked who was winning…she replied, ‘Who do you think.’ Looking over the arm of his favorite chair, in the loft, was Wallace…with a bark…bark…and a snuffle. Darren came out of his hall bedroom and asked his dad if he was still going into work that night…and Oscar replied, ‘Am I? ….I guess so.’ As he sat on the edge of his bed to put on his work shoes…Bruiser…another of the families Boston Terriers…gave him his trademark single lick. Suddenly Oscar heard the doorbell ring. At the door were he mother and step-father, June and Demetrious, they were carrying a large smoked ham and Christmas Coffee Cake…and they asked Oscar to help them in with the Christmas gifts….

Something is a bit out of wack thought Oscar. I remember all of these happenings…but not in the same evening…or the same year…or even the same location. There was Marnie…in her 20’s…and she was asking Oscar if he was ready to go shop for their 1st Christmas Tree. Daren had been born November 16h and he was….brand new. As they drove their Ford LTD two door Sedan to DuQuoin…Oscar felt so lucky…and fortunate. He had a good job and he drove a good and reliable automobile…and he recently had been promoted to a crew leader in his housekeeping position. Why just the other day he and Marnie had laid their eyes upon a exquisite handmade Christmas village…and they bought it in celebration of Darren’s birth. It had cost $100…but there would be nothing but the best for their new baby boy!

Thud…laugh…laugh…laugh…Daniel had jumped out of his crib again! When he ran into find his mom, brother and Oscar, the few hairs that he had on his head…stood straight up and he grinned with abandon at his continuing victory over his parents useless boundaries.

Oscar walked down the stairs into his basement to see if he could distinguish some semblance of his present reality…at least the reality that he laid his head down on his 3 pillows with. At the base of the basement steps was his first home in Chicago. There was his mom, Neva, and his dad, Bill, and they were under a humongous Christmas Tree…and his dad was winding Laughing Santa…and Santa was laughing…uproariously!

Oscar walked up the stairs from the basement and up the stairs to his loft. When he reached the top step he was in the Varsity Theatre’s Loft theatre and he and Marnie and Steve and Faye were watching the premier of Godfather III. Faye leaned over and asked him if his headache was better…and he replied that it was since she had given him one of her pain pills.

We humans measure time in a chronological fashion. How does God measure time…

The late December Chicago winds were blowing briskly. Neva June was baking her famous Christmas Coffee Cake…and Bill had just come through the kitchen door, with his motorcycle cap affixed to his head and his leather jacket zipped up as a guardian against the winter wind. It was December 23rd and the Brooks home was excited about the holidays. The 6 foot Christmas Tree was resplendent in the living room with its lovely ornaments and popcorn strung garland and bubble lights and red candles in the windows. This year Neva had invited her dear friend, Ivy and her family, to join them for Christmas dinner. There would be delicious roast beef and mashed potatoes. Oyster dressing and Turkey as well. Homemade sourdough bread and candied yams. Aunt Wanda was bringing Divinity and aunt Vema was bringing homemade fudge. Grandma Askew was bringing her outstanding Country Ham. The Brooks lived in Chicago…as far as the Southern Illinois family were concerned…but in fact they lived in Sauk Village…which was well south of the Windy City. This was a first for gathering for Christmas in the northland. Always before the Brooks had journeyed to Eldorado in Little Egypt. But this year…they were risk takers. The southern kinfolk had decide to travel to the big city.

I was thinking about purchasing some Cohiba Cigars in Cozumel, Mexico a few years ago. MJ and I were on a Caribbean Cruise…in January…my favorite time to visit the Caribbean. Toward the conclusion of President Obamas Presidency he had lifted the embargo on Cuban products…and that included Cohiba Cigars…which are among the finest in the world. So, before me was an eight pack of Cubas finest tobacco product. I considered that I could smoke 3 or 4 while on ship…as they had a Smoking Room…and take the remainder of the Cuban delights back to the States…since there was no longer a penalty for doing so. The woman selling the cigars asked $100 and I countered with $50. She responded with an offer of $60…and then proclaimed, ‘All in…all in.’ I accepted the deal and proceeded to smoke my head off in the lovely smoking room on the Princess Cruise Liner Ship. Her statement of, ‘All in…all in,’ intrigued me. ‘To go all in in poker is to bet everything on a hand.’

People who live by their wits are my inspiration. The Mexican lady sold me the Cohibas by her ‘All In’ statement. I thought, at the time of the sale, what a positive creed for life. I have been ‘All In’ many times during my life. I have been all in as a father and a husband…and during my Southern Illinois University career…I was truly…all in. But…I have not always been all in. Insecurities and doubts and fears have held me back on several occasions. Often in my christian walk…I have left what I knew that I should accomplish in church life…to someone else who I felt was more qualified. It is easy to not be all in. Commitment is hard…commitment is real. The hero of the christian walk is the person who is slow to speak and quick to work…without fanfare or recognition. I remember being on the Stewardship Committee for the Session of First Presbyterian Church in
Carbondale. I considered myself quite busy…with daily duties at the church…when one day as I was in the parking lot of the church and I watched as Clark Ashby, a man older then me, slowly exit his automobile and walk around to the trunk of his vehicle to retrieve a tool kit and then to slowly walk into the building to perform some maintenance needs for our congregation. I knew then that I was but a beginner in the ‘All In’ dedication that is the christian life.

All In is a life style and a commitment of time and purpose. Commensurate with truly enjoying being all in with whatever you are doing in your life is the wise statement that, ‘It is amazing what can be accomplished if you do not care who gets the credit.’ I ran into my old friend and colleague Bob Smith this morning on Campus. Bob was such a great leader in the Building Services department. His care for his staff was noteworthy. I thought, today, that he has the same sunny attitude and disposition. I have been retired for over 10 years and have only seen Bob once during that time. Bob and I are the same age and were both born on October 24th. I think of Lisa and Ro and their all in commitment to our church and its mission. I think of all that my good friend, Elizabeth, has done for SIUC and her unfailing behind the scenes dedication to the success of others…and of the institution.

Success is seldom achieved by the Show Horses…but rather by the Work Horses.

I was enthralled with watching the new SIUC students joyfully drop ice on each others heads outside the Student Center this morning. They laughed and hooted and hollered and rejoiced that they were at University…and having fun with their friends. I felt better..just watching them. I wonder if we realize what a gift that we have been given? In a Universe that is full of Dark Matter…we have been given physical and measurable life. When we were young…we knew that our lives were full of promise and mystery…and adventure. We understood that each day brought new possibilities and challenges and a hope for our steady improvement. We loved travel…because we had not really seen anything. We enjoyed meeting people…as we did not know many people. We even appreciated the exhilaration of a bucket of ice on our heads…

Reversals have been served to me on a plate many times…cold. Life is chuck full of setbacks. Murphy’s Law states that anything that can go wrong…will. There are no ICU Beds within a 200 mile radius of Southern Illinois. Perhaps we should all take heed and wear our face masks in public and social distance….and get a vaccine.

Fall is knocking on our door. School has begun across our region. Autumn is my favorite season. I love the leaves turning colors. My old boss, Joe, used to say that fall was crisp like Lipton Tea, and he was right. A sweater or a jacket suits me well. October is my birthday month. Birthdays create in me…a happy thought. As an old fellow…I appreciate each additional year. I vividly recall receiving the Big Swinger Polaroid Camera for my birthday when I was in the 6th grade. I felt like a professional photographer. This was the same year that I was studying the Tenor Saxophone under Mr. Prince tutelage. Mom snapped a photo of me, with my new Big Swinger, of my playing my tenor saxophone…which I loved. I took my new Polaroid with me on a school trip to New Harmony, Indiana. I still have the photos that chronicle my escapades in the 6th grade.

Happiness is being happy where you are…and with who you are. It is not a magical unattainable elixir. Most of our contentment comes from placing one foot in front of the other toward a worthy destination. We are the sum of our stories. Life on earth is a large collection of stories. When we reflect on our history…it is in story form. Focus on the good times…learn from the bad and then forget the hurt… Make a conscience effort to think happy thoughts. Remember the victories….walk over the defeats…

A constant theme through the 6 episode limited HBO Series, The White Lotus, was that of a newlywed couple being placed in a different suite than the groom’s mother had booked for them at the White Lotus Resort on Kauai in Hawaii. The fascinating series was actually filmed at the Four Seasons Resort on Kauai. The groom strove to get he and his new brides room changed to the Pineapple Suite…to no avail due to it being occupied by a German Newlywed couple…and the Resort Manager’s increasing distaste for the young man’s continual harangue. So, as the series episodes progress and the young, rich, man gets involved and involves his mother, who made the initial reservation…and the Manager’s boss…the complaining mother and son get their passionate wish…The Pineapple Suite. Their first words were in regards to the ‘overdone pineapple decor’ and that they could not see the ocean…which they could from the better located room that they fought to be moved from. Finally, a knife comes with the room for the purpose of peeling…pineapples.

So often what we believe that we need for our complete happiness…is not the answer. We seek a job that will provide; friendship and camaraderie for our social needs. We look to a marriage for a mirror image of ourself. We desire our significant other to reflect out idealized image of our perfect self. As we acquire resources we spend on better and bigger houses….and finer automobiles…and richer holidays…to supplant what is lacking in our hearts…and souls. We hope to be admired for our physical riches…and worry little about our inner life.

Pounds Hollow is in my thoughts much this summer. The waining days of meteorological summer are fast coming to an end. Pounds Hollow…as most of the swimming areas in Little Egypt will close on Labor Day. Floating on the deep water for hours on end, when I was a lad, crystallized life for me and renewed my perspective on what matters. I had forgotten that MJ and I travelled to Pounds Hollow several times after we were married. Nature has a flow and rythm that is much different than our manic race to the top of the Capitalistic Heap… There is more than fighting…there is more than blood/money…and the heady…drunken…myopic view that it brings… Look at your world in Long Exposure.

Dissatisfaction fuels our enterprise. Despair generates many of our life decisions. The desire to seek and acquire the spiritual in a physical world…leaves us continuing to come up short…and to seek the Pineapple Paring Knife…

Beware the Pineapple Paring Knife…

Long Exposure photos are mysterious. I shot one of students on our Campus the other day…and the print looked like spirit wisps…walking.