Independence Day
‘Independence Day, also referred to as the Fourth of July or July Fourth, is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776.’ Wikipedia
‘At the second Continental Congress during the summer of 1776, Thomas Jefferson of Virginia was charged with drafting a formal statement justifying the 13 North American colonies’ break with Great Britain. A member of a five man committee that included John Adams and Benjamin Franklin, Jefferson drew up a draft and included Franklin’s and Adams’ corrections. At the time, the Declaration of Independence was regarded as a collective effort of the Continental Congress; Jefferson was not recognized as its principal author until the 1790s.’ History
Two Hundred and forty-two years ago we, rebels, decided that we had enough of the king of England’s’ abuse and domination.
‘We hold these truths to be self-Evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.’ Declaration of Independence
‘That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it,…’ Declaration of Independence
We live in a country that that was founded on the freedom of the people to form their own government that best reflected their needs and best interest.
July 4, 1776 was a declaration against tyrants and dictators and a recognition that ‘…
all men are created equal, and that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.’
The vision of the United States, that was held by our forefathers was a country of freedom and opportunity and acceptance of the ‘unalienable rights of man.’
Now the writers of the Declaration of Independence, vision did not comport with their reality.
Many of them, including the author of the document Thomas Jefferson, were slave owners.
When referring to the king of England, Jefferson wrote, ‘He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavored to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages whose know rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.’
But, this is the story of our nation…we have learned and grown through the sweat and blood and tears and sufferings of large groups of peoples who we have not recognized as our equals…and, alas, we have not measured-up, to our founding document…on numerous occasions.
We are still trying to be the men and women that the Declaration of Independence calls for.
At our countries best moments…we have been a brilliant beacon of hope for the Earth’s oppressed.
We are a young country and an experiment in social justice and the international rights of humanity…
We are, currently, being tested regarding our commitment to, ‘He has endeavored to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.’ Declaration of Independence
‘Isn’t it amazing that we are all made in God’s image, and yet there is so much diversity among his people?’ Desmond Tutu
‘A lot of different flowers make a bouquet.’ Muslim Origin
‘Diversity: the art of thinking independently together.’ Malcom Forbes
‘Ultimately, America’s answer to the intolerant man is diversity.’ Robert Kennedy
‘An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity.’ Martin Luther King Jr.
‘It is time for parents to teach young people early on that in diversity there is beauty and there is strength.’ Maya Angelou
We visited an American cemetery in Tunis, Tunisia that had the most lovely grave markers and it was maintained in an immaculate manner. Our Muslim tour guide wept when he recounted the sacrifices that American G.I.s had given to defend his country during the Second World War.
On the white and glistening grave stones were Star of David and the Crescent and Star and the Christian Cross and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the Presbyterian Church (USA) and the Hindu and the Buddhist.
When I was the chair of the civil service council at Southern Illinois University I witnessed a heated exchange between an African American member of the council and a white member of the group.
As we were discussing our attempt, and ultimate success in obtaining Veteran’s Day as a university holiday…the Caucasian member of the council said that if we could recognize Martin Luther King’s birthday…we could recognize Veterans’s Day.
The African American member responded that she did not recognize the Fourth of July as it certainly was not her people’s independence day.
Now, if your people had come to this country as slaves and you did not have voting rights until the 1960s and you lived with the constant fear of the Ku Klux Klan and lynching and Jim Crowe…how would you feel?
I love our flag and or country…but it does not make me any difference how my African American brothers and sisters choose to recognize it…as this is their country as much as it is my country…and we will either succed together…or we will all fail… in this grand journey from the cradle to the grave.
A View From the Cheap Seats
I have been honored to have several Southern Illinois University chancellors and, one, president as friends during my forty year affiliation with SIU.
Last week, I read with great interest the emails that have been made public regarding communications with the president of SIU and other university leaders.
Absent a cogent explanation from the university president…it appears that we have a leadership mess on our hands…and a Carbondale campus that can ill afford such a comedy of errors.
I admire SIU trustee, Joel Sambursky, for his courage in asking for a meeting of the executive council of the Board. During my forty years…I have seldom witnessed such exemplary courage and commitment to truth telling by leadership.
When university leaders, ‘play’, with our beloved campus…it can be likened to disturbing our homes and families.
It is not funny, to us, for you to nickname our chancellor, ‘Rasputin’, or to speculate on a dismissive attitude to the needs of the Southern Illinois region by quickly pivoting to the needs of the Metro East region…which is comparing one of the poorest regions of our state with one of the wealthiest.
I have witnessed divisiveness and duplicity…many times during my career at SIUC…but what I read this past week shocked me.
I worked, behind the scenes, with SIU president, Glenn Poshard, on numerous occasions over many years. I had a front row seat to witness president Poshard’s love for the entire university system. I have been with Glenn…when he wept over the loss of employees to lay-off.
President Poshard began his career as a civil service employee in the Physical Plant. He loved the working people of SIU.
For university leadership to have the caviler and condescending attitude for the Carbondale Campus…which is the flagship campus of the SIU System…is an offense that cuts to the bone of all who love SIUC.
I have been retired from my university for nearly eight years. I am past knowing leaders personally…but I am still called upon by my former colleagues and friends for advice and consultation regarding pressing university matters.
I am humbled and honored that some from the civil service community still look to me for advice…and I told them to have confidence in some who, it appears, have misled us. This saddens me…like I have not been in many years.
As I was fastening my, ‘old man velcro walking shoes’, near Anthony Hall…a few months ago…I looked up to see chancellor Montemagno standing in front of me and smiling. We exchanged pleasantries and I was struck with how friendly and open that he was, with me, in view of the fact that we had never met.
As the chancellor walked away…I noticed that he had a pronounced limp and that he was walking slowly. I was concerned regarding his health and observed him, graciously, stop a few feet from me and speak to another, senior person, like he had to me.
Free Will…Or is Life… Lines of Code in an Algorithm?
The popular HBO show, Westworld, concluded its second season last night.
The program is a remake of the original film,Westworld, written and directed by Michael Crichton in 1973.
Westworld is a theme park, much as a Disney Hall of Presidents…on steroids, and the story line has followed the intellectual awakening of the robots and their seeking of free choice.
In the final episode of season 1, the robots, or hosts as they are called in the program, have an uprising and begin killing all of the VIP human guests that are attending a cocktail gala that is in commemoration of the a new attraction at the, humongous park, created by Dr. Ford.
This season of the program has revealed that the true vision of Westworld was to map the minds of every guest that had attended the park over its thirty year run and to subsequently perfect transferring humans to robots, with their minds and psyche in tact,…or immortal life.
The surprise finale, for the season, was to learn that, the man in black, or the owner of the park, was indeed one of the robots…and had apparently been so for some time.
Two of the main characters, Bernard and Dolores, journeyed into the mind of the computer system, that controlled the park and all of its creations, and they talked with the system, in the form of person, who told them that he had discovered that the re-creation of a human mind was simple…only 12,348 lines of code in the algorithm.
And, so by way of a rather involved science fiction television show…what controls our lives…nature or nurture?
When we make decisions are we making our own choices or are we pre-programed by our genetics to take the fork in the road that is in our programing code and hard wiring?
Some would say that we are pre-destined by our creator to become a christian or not.
Others would inform us that all of our decisions are totally our own and that we are free agents as to the directions that our lives take.
I was watching the new Jurassic World movie this past Saturday, which is another Michael Crichton creation, and was taken aback by the final decision made by one of the stars as to the survival of the dinosaurs. The decision did not follow logical progression of thought…free will?
Many of the decisions that we make during the course of our time on Earth are nature decisions. As an example, if you are out of work and have no money to pay your bills or buy food for you family…you will probably accept the first job that is offered to you. Now, you had the right, as a free agent, to say no…but logically you would not…survival made the decision for you.
You find that you like the job and receive a promotion and have the promise of additional promotions in the future. You can make the decision to leave…?
As a child you are told that you must attend grammar school and then high school and then college. These acts are by and large perfunctory and involve little decision making on your part…other than perhaps where to attend college.
Then, you graduate and get an entry level job in the discipline that you studied and you are given a large manual of rules and regulations that outline, in detail, what you are to do and what you are not to do in order to succeed at the company that you hope to have a prosperous career in.
You work in an office that has a preponderance of republicans…while you are a democrat. You have an opinion…but if you utter it…you will be roundly criticized and condemned. You want to get along with your co-workers…so, often, you are silent regarding your heartfelt political views.
You marry or you have a partner who’s primary mission is you. They want to create a clone, or robot, of themselves. Do you attempt to re-form yourself in their image?
You are part of a church that recognizes particular norms of behavior and deportment of its parishioners….and so your act, much as theatre, the role that your are expected to play.
How much of our lives is determined by our, sometimes, limited choices and our desire to fit into the group and our biases?
Why not stretch your options and your vison of your future and increase your choices?
We do not to find at the end or our days…that we have been a robot for most of our time on this blue planet.
‘The Pilgrimage of The Magi’
‘Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the was to Jerusalem, Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born. And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judea: for thus it is written by the prophet, ‘
‘And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.’
‘Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, inquired of them diligently what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, what I may come worship him also. When they had heard the king, they departed; and lo, the star which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was…’
‘And when they were departed, behold the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thous there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him….’
‘Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men.’ Matthew 2: 1-9, 13, 16 KJV
I shared, on Facebook, the other day a captivating painting depicting Mary and Joseph and the baby Jesus, fleeing to Egypt. The caption stated, ‘That Moment When You’re so Desperate To Protect Your Child That You Risk Fleeing To Another Country.’
I was, subsequently, admonished to ‘get my head out of the sand and research the real story,’ and I have listed the real story above.
I was a bit perplexed by the, I am sure, kind admonishment…and then I considered that perhaps the person giving me the sage advice was considering the real story the current southern border crisis and the fact that we have separated thousands of children from the parents as they attempted to cross our border and therefore committed a misdemeanor.
Certainly our current president traffics in the politics of fear and class warfare.
We are told by the president that those attempting to apply for asylum in our country are; rapist and murderers and drug dealers and criminals and members of the MS 13 Gang and that ‘coyotes’ are responsible for bringing many refugees to our border.
The president highlights the familes of US citizens that have had a loved one killed by an illegal immigrant. Of course, this is terrible and we must have strong border security and through checks and procedures in place to stop entry or the granting of assylum to criminals and murders. This is simply common sense and necessary and vital to the security of our nation and our people.
It is not necessary to seperate minor children from their parents to facilitate the determination as to whether they qualify for assylum in the United States.
Many of the refugees have taken an extremly dangerous journye of over 2,000 miles to come to our border…only to find that the legal ports of entry…are either closed or that they must wait for days and weeks to talk with someone. This is by design…to slow down immigration.
The number of immigrants that we accept has been declining for several years.
The Chinese have the largest number of immigrants to the U.S.
The United States unemployment rate is 3.9%…we need immigrants to work in our country in many fields, including construction, and to perform jobs that our aging citizenry have been unwilling to do for many years.
If an African American is mean to me…that does not quantify that all African Americans are therefore mean.
When a white person murders or rapes or pillages another…that does not signify that I and my family should be labeled…murders…rapist…or pillagers.
When a woman flees domestic violence…with her young children holding on to her hands…the human beings at the shelter…believe her…and comfort her…and help her.
Jesus…was not an American…and he was not white…yet would not we all be honored to welcome him into our home and give him the best seat at our table and tenderly binds up and care for the wounds that he received…from his own people…and in his own country?
‘And the king shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, in as much as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.’
Hollow Leaders
‘Hollow – Having a hole or empty space inside.’ Google Dictionary
I was talking with a friend, the other day, and reflecting on the hollowness that is in some leaders and managers of people.
When I first encountered this type of narcissistic management…I was still a teenager and the concept that the person that was leading me cared nothing about my well being or self worth and that basically everything that I accomplished…was about them and I was merely a dim reflection of their manic paranoia.
When I began at SIU my crew supervisor, Don, would regularly assign me additional buildings to clean when others members of the staff were either sick or on vacation. At first, I did not concern myself with additional duties as I was ecstatic to be a part of the organization. However, I could not help but notice that my boss sat in front of the television in the Law School Lounge…for the majority of the work shift and drank coffee and visited with his boss, Jim, while I worked harder and harder.
Again, I simply felt that Building Service Worker I’s and the student custodial staff must be the only members of the operation that performed manual labor.
One day I was told that my boss was supposed to be a working supervisor and that it was his job to pick up, at least a portion, of the work that he was assigning to me and my student colleagues.
Still, I thought that this is fine…I have the best job that I have ever had…until he began to criticize the work that I was performing on the shifts that I had neither time for a break or a lunch.
I determined that if I ever had the honor to lead others in the department that I would treat them with respect and dignity and recognize the worth and value that they brought to the organization.
Some leaders/supervisors have a group that are their favorites and they receive the good and easy jobs and the best perks that the manager can supply them.
But, there is another group…and that is those who must be punished…and these unfortunate members of the staff are given increasingly more work…that they can not possibly perform…and then chastised and punished and disciplined for not being super human.
Photo by Thibault Trillet on Pexels.com
I have worked for and witnessed leaders and managers and administrators that led by their conspiracy theories and paranoia.
I have sat in meetings where the Bible was quoted and the scriptures perverted to support the hollow and heartless agenda of the administrator.
I have witnessed the caviler locking up of children and those of a ‘tender age’…babies and toddlers…for a narcissistic and political agenda…using the children as pawns on a chessboard…to reflect the all consuming needs of the leader…admiring his reflection in the mirror.
Work assignments yield to logic. That is why there are recognized time studies and manuals written regarding work loads as to what is doable in a work shift and what is punishment and that will have the result of breaking down the health of the loyal and hard working staff person that is trying to not fail in what they have been assigned.
I have witnessed staff, during my years at SIU, that have been given more work than they can possibly perform…break emotionally and I have had people come to me, privately, and admit that they were thinking of suicide.
The power of a manager or administrator or leader…or president…is a fearful and delicate dance of getting a job done and not hurting or damaging the wonderful technicians that are performing that work.
The Escaping Jewel of Little Egypt
Carbondale, Illinois, the home of Southern Illinois University once had four movie theaters. Now we have one.
Our University Mall has ever increasing vacant store fronts.
One of the two Dry Cleaners, in town, has closed and posted on their door that there simply was not enough customers in Carbondale to support two Dry Cleaners any longer.
Our only independent Book Store, Book Worm, which had been a staple of our economy for many years…has closed due to the lack of a buyer for their store.
The Marion Mall, which is about ten miles from Carbondale, is sectioning off their vacant spaces and retrofitting the structure due to about two thirds of the facility being vacant.
When I was hired at SIU on October 10th, 1978, I immediately began searching for a new automobile to purchase. I looked in DuQuoin, Illinois and when the car salesman asked me where I worked, I responded that I was just hired as a janitor at SIU. He responded that my credit would be good at their establishment as SIU had wonderful and extremely secure jobs.
The first custodial crew that I supervised as a Building Custodian contained student staff from; Africa, Malaysia, Japan, Mexico, Turkey, and Iran. What an education in international diplomacy!
I was not on the college track in high school. I was on the vocational track. The first SIU course that I took was something that I did not perceive that I would ever do. The course was an Introduction to Computers and the professor told me that I had a great aptitude for university course work and I received an A in the course.
I wanted to enter a discipline and I called the Chair of Electronic Data Processing. The African American Chair treated me like I just transferred from Harvard. He met with me in his office and spoke with me at length regarding the benefits of an EDP Associate Degree.
I wrote computer programs by punch card and received the printed out data on watermelon paper.
I studied Basic and Fortran and flowcharts and garbage in and garbage out…and I did well.
I studied composition in Carol Burns class in 1984. We read the book ‘1984’ in 1984. Carol spoke to me as an equal and she told me that I could succeed in any academic discipline that I chose. She suggested law.
Carol was my favorite professor.
Before I retired I was privileged to be a member of the Civil Service Council for over fifteen years. During that time I served on two chancellor search committees and became friends with several of them and one president of SIU.
What I observed regarding the administration of SIU and the management thereof is that it is not rocket science. Both Don Beggs and Jo Ann Argersinger were doing a wonderful job and subsequently were not allowed to continue due to human egos and personal agendas.
I personally witnessed students and faculty and staff be attracted to the leadership of Chancellor Argersinger.
I saw the lightness of spirit and the renewal of a vision for the future of SIU under the benevolent two years of Chancellor Beggs.
I was a member of the coming together of the university community while positive chancellors influenced positive change for our beloved school.
I spent my entire 32 year and three month and two week career in Building Services as SIU.
The Building Services Staff love SIU!
We worked tirelessly to provide clean and immaculate buildings that reflected the academic excellence that was provided from our school.
Many custodial staff received their Bachelors and Masters degrees while they were working for SIU.
We were fortunate to hire many individuals who were challenged by either physical or intellectual disabilities.
These custodial technicians were some of our finest staff. Before I left, one of our deaf staff, Jamie, was promoted to supervisor and subsequently managed a crew of several students and Building Service Workers…and did a tremendous job!
I think of my friend, Ryan, and the herculean work that he performs on a nightly basis. This man loves SIU and is totally invested in its success and it requires a good and dedicated and humanitarian and visionary leader…to be worthy of leading him.
Listen SIU Leaders…your staff are believers in SIU…strive to be worthy to lead them!
Southern Illinois University at Carbondale is a school that has wide open doors to those who have disabilities.
SIU had a open door to minorities when it was not politically fashionable to do so…and they still do.
SIU is the home of the first generation college student.
SIU has so many natural advantages and houses elite academic programs and is waiting for a leader to bring them together…to dream again!
Let us seek vision over monetary reward.
Who wants to lead us because it is in their soul…not on their resume?
Who will fire the furnace of desire and vision and dreams and hopes…that was SIU…and that is more needed now than ever
When I was asked, suddenly, to lead SIU’s Building Services…I prayed that I could be worthy of the dedicated men and women that made up the organization. I knew that they deserved the best…and that without God’s help…I was not up to the task.
It is Not a Liberal or Conservative Problem…It is a Humanity Problem
‘The internment of Japanese Americans in the United States during World War II was the forced relocation and incarceration in camps in the western interior of the country of between 110,000 and 120,000 people of Japanese ancestry, most of whom lived on the Pacific Coast. Sixty two percent of the internees were United States citizens. These actions were ordered by President Franklin D. Roosevelt shortly after Imperial Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor.’ Wikipedia
‘Japanese Americans were incarcerated based on local population concentrations and regional politics. More than 110,000 Japanese Americans in the mainland U.S., who mostly lived on the West Coast, were forced into interior camps. However, in Hawaii, where 150,000 plus Japanese Americans composed over one-third of the population, only 1,200 to 1,800 were also interned. The internment is considered to have resulted more from racism that from any security risk posed by Japanese Americans. Those who were as little as 1/16 Japanese and orphaned infants with ‘one drop of Japanese blood’ were placed in internment camps.’ Wikipedia
President Franklin Roosevelt was a democrat and a liberal and what he did was wrong.
The separation of children from their parents to make a point regarding how difficult that it is to immigrate to the United States…is wrong.
The majority of the South and Central Americans, along with many Mexicans, who are seeking refuge in our country are fleeing drug cartels and gangs and threats to their lives…they have no other options!
When you listen to the cries of little more than babies…for their fathers and mothers and you see them in cages…replace those images with the loving images of your own children and your precious grandchildren and then tell me that this Hitleresque policy is just and necessary.
Times are changing much more rapidly than any of us could have imagined…what if we engage in a nuclear war and our opponent is the victor?
What will you say when our victorious adversary begins to round up our children and separate them from our privileged and white and upper middle class life?
Will we plead for humanitarian…mercy?
Or will we quote the Apostle Paul and say that we had to obey the law…just like the Germans did…in Nazi Germany?
Travel By Book
A locally owned bookstore, Bookworm, is closing after many years in operation.
Jonathon and I visited Bookworm on Saturday and the crowd was so great that you could not adequately see the books on the shelves…while the line for check out was at least an hour long.
We returned this morning and found a healthy amount of patrons…but not unmanageable.
You, see, all books are on sale for $1 and this includes; rare books and books signed by the author and new books.
People were purchasing multiple bags and baskets full. Many of the happy shoppers remarked to the owners…that they would be back….this week…of course.
Giant books for photos and medical journals and mystery and thrillers and suspense and local authors too.
Books that cried out. ‘read me’ and ‘I will show you adventures like you have never experienced’ and ‘I will tell you of mysteries that you have never thought of!’
The joyful and ecstatic and childlike look in the patrons eyes…especially those with multiple bags of books…was compelling.
I am currently listening to the Audible book, Bonfire of the Vanities by Tom Wolfe. It has transported me to the New York city of the 1980s’.
In Junior High School I read Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt and I saw and the Civil War through the eyes of the Creighton family. I was so mesmerized by the narrative that I thought that if this is what reading can do for me…I do not want to ever stop.
Have you ever read a Shirley Jackson story? Try, We Have Always Lived in the Castle a mystery that she wrote in 1962. Once you read it…you will want to read it again.
Or the Bible? I have read so much of the Bible…that often I think in scriptures. Not religious dogma or doctrine or the warping and misuse of scripture to facilitate someone’s narrow political or religious agenda…but scriptures that illustrate God’s love and, what should be, our love for our fellow human family.
Books can cause their readers to change their lives for the better…to stand up and accomplish great things…and they can bring peace and contentment and a rest in your spirit.
History books can teach us about past mistakes and how to avoid them in the future…but our leaders have to read them for this wonderful benefit…to take place.
So, there is a reason that the patrons of the closing Bookworm bookstore, were ecstatic, this morning…for the price of a few dollars they were purchasing years of adventure and intrigue and joy.
All Hats Off to My Father
A touching post from my son, Jonathon.
The celebrating of Father’s Day is a pretty big deal. My father has always been good at his job. For this I am grateful. There isn’t enough gratitude in the world today. There’s not enough shout outs, friendship cards, thank-you notes, words of compliment or even people who say “You’re welcome.” instead of “No problem.” Here’s the problem concerning those we love, admire and appreciate. Many of us don’t tell them we appreciate, admire and love them. I believe appreciation and admiration should be shown through word and deed daily. What a more wonderful world this world would become if this became common practice.
A funny story from when I was a little boy about my dad and I was when he advised me to take a nap before my kindergarten graduation. The time was early afternoon and graduation was to be held that evening. I was up and around…
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My Favorite Title…Father
Although we had the Annual Father’s Day Dinner, last weekend, due to some travel commitments, I can not help but think of my wonderful sons and their precious mother today.
My mother and father divorced when I was six years old. I loved my dad and I missed him desperately…I still do. He used to carry me on his shoulders…and I thought that I was a giant.
He seemed so mysterious to me and such a powerful man.
He rode a Harley Davidson motorcycle and at times mom and I rode with him. He wore a leather motorcycle jacket and a motorcycle hat and he carried a gun. He was a Bad Ass.
His favorite televison show was Gunsmoke and he had a hearty laugh.
My brothers, Brock and Bill, both look like him.
I had a heart condition as a child and I remember tears in my dad’s eyes when we were at the doctor’s office and three doctors were evaluating my condition.
My sons, Aaron and Jonathon, have been and are the light of my life!
I am contnually renewed and regenerated and strengthed by their maturity and courage and innovation.
I marvel at the men that they have become.
They not only have never dissapointed me…but on the contrary they daily give my life meaning and purpose and richness.
Mary Jane and I have been married over 40 years…and it seems like a moment. The excitement in both of our lives and the mission and the blessing for both of us has been our wonderful sons.
Time has made me old…but I stay young through their eyes and their unique and mature personalities.
When, Aaron or Jonaton say, ‘dad’, to me…they have my undivided attention…as it is the greatest compliment that I have ever received!
