‘We Are All In The Same Boat In A Stormy Sea, And We Owe Each Other A Terrible Loyalty’
The author, G.K. Chesterton, wrote the quote that is the title of this blog. It has been my favorite quote for over 20 years. For the 5 years that I was the chair of the Civil Service Council at Southern Illinois University @ Carbondale, the Chesterton axiom was the measurement that I used for my interactions with all members for the university community.
A time such as this, sweeps the detritus and chaff of our, perceived, needs and focus’s our thoughts on what is essential to our existence.
MJ and I have had our lives totally formed and blessed by our sons, Aaron and Jonathon. There is little that we have thought or intended or accomplished…that has not had the two most important people in our lives as the center of our production.
Christ and church and our fellow congregants…are an extremely important component of our journey back to Jerusalem. Tomorrow is Palm Sunday; ‘The next day a great multitude that had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, and cried out: ‘Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’ The King of Israel!’ Then Jesus, when he had found a young donkey, sat on it; as it is written: Fear not, daughter of Zion; Behold, your King is coming, Sitting on a donkey’s colt.’ John 12: 12-16 NKJV
Humanity is important to me. I do not have to philosophize regarding the poor…I seldom postulate a hypothesis regarding why the poor are poor…I have been poor on more than one occasion. I remember my dear departed mother, holding my hand as we waited for the people who were distributing the commodities…to throw us some government cheese, and dry milk, and potted meat. I, vividly recall, that we did not have enough money for milk that came in a carton…but rather we drank the dried government milk…and I could not keep it down. So I saved my pennies until I had a dime and purchased a glass from a local restaurant, that was the next street over from our house. When I first struck out on my own, the day after I graduated high school, I was still growing, taller, and thus had ‘high water’ trousers.
Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com
Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com
Photo by Polina Tankilevitch on Pexels.com
So, I think of the poor…daily. Not the middle class…the working poor…of which there are countless forgotten members…who are food insecure and have neither insurance nor a rich helpful relative…but are afraid and waiting: ‘In reply Jesus said; ‘A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They robbed him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man he passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him he took pity on him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. Look after him, he said, and when I return, I will reimburse you for any additional expense you may have.’
Many of the working poor have just had their jobs go away. When they develop Coronavirus symptoms…many will not rush to the doctor…as they have no insurance. They have no money for the rent nor the groceries. If they are to receive the twelve hundred dollar check from the government…it is weeks away…and does not cover the rent…
Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com
Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com
Photo by Anna Shvets on Pexels.com
Photo by Rahul on Pexels.com
It is vital for each of us that have some resources…to help our brothers and sisters who are with us in the boat on this stormiest of seas…when you gaze into their eyes…please reflect on how quickly and how abruptly…you life has already changed…
Zoom Coffee for Two
A wonderful blog about our present, shared, condition!
In our time of social distancing I met up with a dear friend this morning by means of a Zoom meeting. My friend Sheila asked me recently if I would be interested in meeting her for a Zoom coffee. Of course I said yes. She set up the meeting for 9:00 AM.
I had to hurry to make it to our meeting on time! I wanted to have a shower and look my best. A shave was in order. I had not shaved for around three days. Unfortunately, I did not shave again this morning. I sacrificed my shave in order for the greater good of being timely. I wore a nice button-up shirt and cologne. During our virtual coffee rendezvous I made the joke that the cologne did not really matter and was probably unnecessary to the enjoyment and success of our meeting. Sheila laughed.
My friend and I…
View original post 240 more words
This Is Real!
‘Jason Hargrove was behind the wheel of a bus in Detroit when he said a passenger began to cough. The middle-aged woman let loose four to five times without covering her mouth, he said; and watching her do this — at the same time Michigan was under a state of emergency for the Coronavirus – got him upset, he felt compelled to vent his frustration in a video afterward.’
Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com
Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com
Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com
Photo by Korhan Erdol on Pexels.com
Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com
Photo by Gerd Altmann on Pexels.com
Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com
Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com
Photo by Anna Shvets on Pexels.com
Photo by Polina Tankilevitch on Pexels.com
Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com
Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com
Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com
Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com
Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com
‘I’m mad right now because that s*** was uncalled for.’
‘Now, nearly two weeks after he recorded the video, which viewers shared widely on Facebook Live, Hargrove himself has died of COVID-19.’ NPR
We are all in uncharted waters…with 20 foot waves …and a starless night sky. The shore that we seek to arrive at has cliffs that are steep and rocks that can gash the hull of our vessel open. We have a lighthouse…and it is our medical professionals. We have heroes…they are our nurses and doctors and all hospital staff that bravely continues to care for their fellow human beings…who are desperately in need…while they endanger their own lives.
Photo by Pok Rie on Pexels.com
Photo by Pok Rie on Pexels.com
Photo by Zack Melhus on Pexels.com
Photo by Life of Wu on Pexels.com
Photo by Emiliano Arano on Pexels.com
Photo by Emiliano Arano on Pexels.com
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
Photo by Alex on Pexels.com
Photo by Snapwire on Pexels.com
In the year of our pandemic, which will fill history books and be taught of in schools across the world, it will be noted that many of us did not believe the science…as we thought that it was being promulgated by the Deep State. The profound peculiarity of the plague that we are in the midst of…as being a Partisan Pandemic…will astound future generations. The sadness that the richest country in the world…did not have enough Personal Protection Equipment for our front line medical soldiers in this horrible war…will mystify the students of 2040…and 2060…and 2080… Then they will ask…why did not the United States manufacture more PPE…and the history books will note that we called on China to come to our rescue. They will beseech their elders and their teachers and their professors…why did the governors have to out-bid their fellow governors…and the highest bidder received the life saving equipment…while those with less resources…died?
Our future progeny, the inheritors of the Earth, will ask why didn’t the youth of 2020 believe that the social distancing admonishments of medical leaders…did not apply to them?
Then the young ones will ask why other countries, across the globe, declared nation-wide stay at home orders…while the land of the free and the home of the brave…decided to leave that decision to the governors…and they sought direction from the president…and the president…deferred to the governors.
Mr. Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law and his key advisor, told the country that the Strategic Supply of PPE’s…was “theirs” and did not belong to the states. The students will ask…’what did he mean?’
Photo by Zack Melhus on Pexels.com
Photo by Skitterphoto on Pexels.com
Photo by GEORGE DESIPRIS on Pexels.com
Photo by Josh Hild on Pexels.com
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
Photo by Vladyslav Dukhin on Pexels.com
Photo by Flora Westbrook on Pexels.com
Photo by Avery Nielsen-Webb on Pexels.com
Photo by Jeremy Bishop on Pexels.com
Photo by Ave Calvar Martinez on Pexels.com
Servant Leaders
Servant Leaders
I have been watching Governor Andrew Cuomo, of New York, during his daily press conferences. But, first of all, have your ever visited New York city? It is full of people who are so tightly packed together that they seldom make eye contact with you…they do not have either the time or the energy. Life is so fast paced, at least to this Southern Illinois native, that if you do not have your head in the game…you will be left behind. We were staying in the Hotel Edison…when we decided to purchase a cup of coffee in the restaurant. As I sat down at the bar, the person behind the bar came up to me in a hurried manner and asked me, I think, what I wanted. As I looked up from the menu and paused, momentarily, he went to the person next to me and served them. He then…
View original post 501 more words
Main Street Books
Each year on the day after Thanksgiving, we time travel to Charles Dickens…A Christmas Carol…via St. Charles, Missouri. This has been a holiday tradition for well over 20 years in the Brooks home. One year we did not go…and Aaron and Jonathon let us know of their displeasure. There is, Pierre Noel, and Father Christmas, and Santa Claus…alongside Tiny Tim, Scrooge and Bob Cratchit. There is a colorful parade that marches down the cobblestone street, that has soldiers and drummers and Santa’s elves.
We have been visiting Jansens Clocks, each year, since our first sojourn into the magical world of St. Charles. Nine clocks later …our house has been transformed into our own clock shop. We enjoy a delicious Reuben Sandwich at Bradden’s Restaurant. On Black Friday, there is a generous and kind red headed lady that is the bartender. Each year I order Grand Mariner…and she pours me a triple…or more! I then, being in the Christmas spirit, order another! After that we visit my favorite Bookstore; Main Street Books. This unique shop reminds me of the book store in the 1998 Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan movie, You’ve Got Mail. Emily, who is the owner of the compelling literary cornucopia…has the personality and ability to cause you to want to read something new and different and to take an intellectual journey.
Photo by Polina Zimmerman on Pexels.com
Photo by Ekrulila on Pexels.com
Photo by Oluwaseun Duncan on Pexels.com
Photo by Tanya Gorelova on Pexels.com
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com
Photo by Engin Akyurt on Pexels.com
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com
Photo by Rigged Photography on Pexels.com
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
Photo by Lisa Fotios on Pexels.com
Photo by @thiszun (follow me on IG, FB) on Pexels.com
Photo by Nubia Navarro (nubikini) on Pexels.com
Photo by Ksenia Chernaya on Pexels.com
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
Photo by Jordan Benton on Pexels.com
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
Photo by Oleg Magni on Pexels.com
Photo by Flickr on Pexels.com
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
Emily and her wonderful colleagues, simply, bring the books to life and their familiarity with the content of them…causes the words to jump off of the page for the lucky reader! They can be found @ mainstreetbooks.indielite.org.
Main Street has, temporarily, closed it’s doors for the pandemic, but they have a vibrant and efficient on-line presence. I have, already ordered 5 books…and I probably will order more. This quaint shop is important to me and my son Jonathon, who first pointed out the beauty of their bibliophile enrichment to me…several years ago.
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
Photo by Kaboompics .com on Pexels.com
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com
Photo by Rigged Photography on Pexels.com
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com
Photo by Tanya Gorelova on Pexels.com
Photo by Oluwaseun Duncan on Pexels.com
Photo by Ekrulila on Pexels.com
Photo by Polina Zimmerman on Pexels.com
I just received my first order of 3 books from Emily at Main Street Books, and she enclosed a handwritten post card thanking me for my patronage and wishing me good health and safety. You will go far and wide and not find such personal and considerate customer service as what Emily exhibits on a person by person basis!
Jonathon just walked out on to the porch, where I do my warm weather writing, and told me that he is preparing to order another book, a science fiction selection entitled, Lagoon, from Emily at Main Street Books. And…she even sends a book mark with every selection!
Books are the fabric that connects us in our present pandemic distress. Main Street Books, in St. Charles, Missouri, is a purveyor of peace…
The Earth Renews
The Earth Renews
As I enjoyed my daily stroll across campus, today, I considered that our Earth is engaged in it’s annual spring renewal, irrespective of our pandemic. The trees are resplendent with their blossoms. Squirrels are playing and frisky in their antics. They have always been comfortable on the campus of Southern Illinois University @ Carbondale…but they are additionally so..due to the lack of humans in the way of their happy antics. Today was cool and pleasant…and it had that, certain feeling, of promise and hope and renewal of life!
I enjoyed a few puffs of my wonderful Christmas gift from Aaron, my Christmas pipe, in my automobile. Remember, we are on a stay at home order due to the coronavirus, and I was on my way to Walmart for needed groceries…which is permissible…from necessity. I though of friends and family and suffering and joy. MJ and I have a dear friend…
View original post 319 more words
Hope…Not Hubris
Hope…Not Hubris
As I was driving to my walk, this afternoon, I noticed a group of young men who were jogging…and not social distancing. It is funny how I noticed this, now oddity, when not long ago the close pact group of athletes would have appeared normal and uneventful. They ran with the unabashed abandon of the invincible.
‘Dozens of choir members became ill after a rehearsal earlier this month in Mount Vernon. According to Skagit County Public Health, 60 members of Skagit Valley Chorale met on March 10. Within several days, 45 members became ill, 28 tested positive for COVID-19, and 17 members did not get tested but had consistent symptoms. Two people in their 80’s died.’ Q13 Fox
‘The city of Lynchburg is furious.
‘We had a firestorm of our own citizens who said, ‘What’s going on?’ said Treny Tweedy, the mayor.’
‘Some Liberty officials accuse alarmed outsiders of…
View original post 438 more words
The Joy Of Seeing Friends, Or Zoom To Happiness! — The Jazz Man
This morning our church had a ‘Zoom’ worship service. What a joy to see our friends doing well, in their homes. The Spanish flu, pandemic, occurred from January 1918 – December 1920. ‘It infected 500 million people-about a quarter of the world’s population at the time.’ Wikipedia. Zoom and other social streaming programs are a tremendous […]
via The Joy Of Seeing Friends, Or Zoom To Happiness! — The Jazz Man
‘But The Greatest Of These Is Love’
I read, today, of a university student taking in a homeless person, to stay the night, due to the individual not being able to find admittance in our cities homeless shelters. This wonderful person noted that the shelter seeker… was her ‘neighbor,’ according to the scriptures.
Photo by James Frid on Pexels.com
Jonathon told me of an article where a minister attested that God was good in that the coronavirus was only killing 1% of those that contracted it. I wonder what the minister would say if his loved ones were members of the 1%? By the way…why does God get the blame?
There is a popular school of thought, in certain religious circles, that some suffer due to their wayward and sinful ways. Inherent in this doctrine is the caveat that if you follow the teachings of the church or sects, leader, you will flourish…while others are the chaff of the wheat from the threshing floor…or the dross from the refinement of silver. The exclusionary doctrine is tepid and cold comfort to the adherents of the ‘us against them’ philosophy.
There has never been a time, in the majority of our lives, like this time. The unseen enemy that we are fighting is no respecter of persons or rank or religious affiliation. From the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and the heir to the British Monarchy…to United States Senators and members of Congress…to our beloved American actor, Tom Hanks, we are all in this together.
Our first responders…are not boasting of their accomplishments…they are to exhausted…and afraid. Nurses who have no choice but to wear the same face mask, all day, and wash it out and bleach it…in order to have a semblance of protection…while they work to save our lives…are demonstrating profound love!
I spent my career in housekeeping services at Southern Illinois University@ Carbondale. I know of the courage and love that our custodial staffs across the world are demonstrating as they disinfect and protect us from the coronavirus!
As Jonathon and I were standing in line at our local supermarket, yesterday afternoon, I noticed that management had installed a plastic shield that partially protected the cashiers from human contact with the customers as they rang up their sale totals. However, the shield offered no protection when it was time to pay for the purchases and receive your change and receipt.
Our state governors are, often, the leaders in the United States effort to combat the pandemic. To discuss political persuasions and to categorize their extreme and herculean efforts according to political likes and dislikes…is obscene.
Grandma Askew, spoke to me when I was a child, and talked of coming plagues and pestilences and drought and famine. As I read the Bible I noted that the theme of all of the scripture writers…was love. We engage in social distancing…from love for the members of our human family.
Photo by Janko Ferlic on Pexels.com
Photo by Janko Ferlic on Pexels.com
Photo by Rodolfo Quiru00f3s on Pexels.com
Photo by Lynnelle Richardson on Pexels.com
Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com
Photo by Matheus Bertelli on Pexels.com
‘If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.’ I Corinthians 13: 1-7 NIV
Another Round of Sandwiches for Me and My Friends
Please enjoy a wonderful Jonathon Brooks, Blog!
The secret to having friends is to make the first move. If I aim to be a friend, or friendly, to my fellow life traveler then perhaps they will return the favor of friendship. We all want friends. Although we don’t all want to boldly initiate the first move.
I am an introvert in an extroverted world. I’ve worked hard throughout my lifetime to be more outgoing. The desire to be kind and make the world a better place has caused me to be more extroverted than I ever could’ve imagined as a boy. If I would have always stayed in a shell of shyness my life would not be what it currently is. My life wouldn’t be as rich or as full of love and friendships. For this I am thankful to be an extroverted introvert.
Kindness is a king of the virtues. Mean is no way to live…
View original post 207 more words
The Happy Traveler 