One of the first critical life skills I learned was to tell the truth. I found it was a good habit especially if I did not go down the Lying Road of Perdition. Once you start lying it is difficult to recall being consistent with the lie you told when questioned regarding the prevarication. There was a time not so long ago when the truth had value. It still does in some venues. But, in many hallowed halls of our government and among the ‘Honorable’ elected leaders it has been twisted and melted down to suit the agenda of those who are manipulating the facts.

I had a friend once who chose to lie when the truth would have been easier. It could be said that perhaps my friend was fashioning fiction stories for further publication. Have you ever been lied to and when the person is caught in the untruth they simply switch lies to facilitate the first lie’s false veracity.

None of us like being lied to. We trust our colleagues friends and neighbors until we have the lie revealed. Then trust becomes the fungible fragile victim of the expediency of the moment. A former supervisor of mine told me that the first thing that he learned when he became a manager was that he had to ‘lie his ass off’ to survive.

So, the dog really did not eat your homework? Is it right to say that all politicians lie… it is right and just and God’s will to pick the liar that he is backing?

When January 6, 2021, happened it was for the most part agreed that it was not only terrible but an insurrection. The Event had few public backers. Now many of the guilty and in prison perpetrators are called hostages… Their claim is that they were defending their President from an election that was stolen from him.

Lies can be terribly effective…

‘School is almost over or as Neva J says…’ Schools out teacher let the monkeys out,’ said Billy B. The next few days will be like the beginning of summer vacation only with the restrictions of being in school during the day,’ he continued.

‘The trip to Giant City State Park yesterday was exciting,’ Jane exclaimed! ‘I especially enjoyed eating fried chicken at the Lodge and seeing George sitting by the bar,’ Jane laughed. ‘He spoke to me and asked me what I was studying and if I had been hiking,’ she stated.

‘I told George that I was searching for a walking stick and he directed me to a new bunch that had just come in and were laying next to the checkout counter,’ Neva J said with a laugh. ‘He reminded me of my brother Gene and is a funny old guy,’ she said with a wink and a nod.

‘George helped me pick out a walking stick that was just my size, you know that they are supposed to come up to your chest,’ Daryl noted. ‘He left his chair by the bar and walked into the main lobby of the Lodge and visited with everyone that came in until I finished my chicken dinner he is a big hit with the Lodge visitors,’ he added.

‘George is a facsimile of a country gentleman,’ Chet said. ‘Not so long ago he would have been called a ‘Dummy’ like Charlie McArthy or Mortimer Snerd, Chet said. ‘He is not real…he adds color to the establishment he is for fun and a conversation starter,’ he added with a sly grin.

‘Well I don’t know about Charlie McArthy of Mortimer but George is coming for dinner tonight and we should be on our best behavior,’ Neva J admonished. ‘He said that all of his family except his sister have gone on to their reward and at times when the restaurant is closed he gets a bit lonely,’ Neva J noted.

‘George is bringing his only family member who is still living with him, he says she works at an antique store in Murphysboro,’ Chet said with a grin.

‘George’s sister works in retail while he works in Hospitality,’ Chet laughed…

It was a lovely Mother’s Day in Little Egypt. We all want our Mothers to be proud of us. We seek their approval. We desire their blessing. After all, they are the first to teach us how to negotiate the hurdles in our confusing world. We were not born with our combat boots on or our briefcase in our hands. We came here crying and using the restroom in our diaper. We might still be doing what we did in the beginning if it were not for Mom. Mom thought we were the most handsome or pretty baby that had ever been born. She knew we were possibly geniuses by the way our eyes followed her as she made our oatmeal. We did not know if it was day or night and Mom stayed up with us until we learned the secret. As the new mother on Seinfeld said to Jerry Kramer George and Elaine…’You got to see the baby!’ Now the actual sight of ‘The Baby’ brought cringes and turning away from the figure with Kramer pronouncing that ‘The Baby’ looked like Lyndon Johnson…

I often marvel at MJ’s love and concern for Aaron and Jonathon. She is a wonderful mother. MJ taught our sons at home for several years for them to have some time with me due to my working nights. I was looking at her today as we sat for lunch at Feather Hills Winery and I said to Jonathon and Aaron, ‘What a pretty lady mom is.’

When I look back on MJ and my life I know that I could not have made it without her. She has always been there for me. In my darkest days, she has been a constant light.

A Lighthouse is known for its beacon. MJ is the beacon for our Lighthouse…

MJ and I were at Mary Jane’s restaurant in Cape Girardeau, Missouri around noon and marveled at how busy they were. MJ remarked that it probably was a good day to be out of Carbondale due to it being Commencement and also the Saturday before Mother’s Day. It was not long before I noticed that many of the large groups in Mary Jane’s were a mixture of the old and the young with the young having a look of accomplishment on their bright faces and the old having the proud misty eyes of parents and grandparents at the accomplishments of their progeny. The University is across the street from the restaurant.

A young woman had a tiara pronouncing her accomplishment of graduation. I reflected on the joy of youth and all that may be coming. The easy laughter of the graduates was musical. The watchful relieved eyes of the parents said much.

When I was a graduate age I was often told to enjoy my youth as life passes rapidly. That seemed an adage of the elderly. Now I know it is true.

Life is a bit like driving to Cape Girardeau in that it seems longer to arrive at your destination than the time it takes to drive back home. I recall how many events in life seemed interminably long when I was anticipating them, but the time of them has compressed into minutes rather than years as I look back down the road.

Forward we look throughout our lives. We strive to accomplish the next task. We hope at the end of the day we can wear the tiara and the cap and gown. We will look for our parents and our grandparents too as we proudly and humbly enter the next phase of life.

It is Mother’s Day Weekend. We may go to the Antique Store. We old folks like antiques. They remind us of our past and even our parent’s past. At times a vintage item can transport me in time.

I saw my little metal JFK Bank last evening. It came from the Antique Store. When I noticed it I immediately recalled being a child in Eldorado and Neva J speaking of the President as if he were a member of our family. My life had been a bit upended as Neva J and Bill had contemplated divorce and subsequently moved from Chicago to Eldorado to save their marriage. President was a constant in my young life. I knew we would somehow be alright as long as JFK was around…

Grandma A loved to serve me cold milk in a large white ceramic coffee mug. The milk was ice cold and good. Although I was small I could drink a couple of mugs full. When her little dog Nugget whom she renamed Narky died. Grandma A was devasted. She poured me a customary mug of milk and told me that she was going to go and pray for Narky and when I completed my milk I should join her. I wondered why she was praying for her deceased dog so I drank slowly.

Old things are precious to us. We Americans revere our Constitution. The Holy Bible is the most-read book ever written.

Steve from Sauk Village was a master of Marionettes. When he conducted a puppet show I was mesmerized. The Marionettes took me to another world. When I discovered Marionettes at the Antique Store I was euphoric.

This past December we brought a large and a small blo-mold Santa to our Southern Illinois home. I remember them from my childhood. They made our Christmas complete. A few years before that Jonathon bought me a Christmas gift of a small stuffed Santa in the image of my Laughing Santa from Chicago Days.

Our lives appear to progress in a linear fashion when in reality we live all of our experiences that formed who we are. When you look in the mirror you see a reflection of someone who has lived many lives in the skin that appears in your view.

Fifteen years ago today the Derecho hit our region. MJ and I were working at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale and had seen many storms. This was different. I was talking with my Director Phil Gatton and he remarked that I might want to go to the basement with many of the staff in his building due to the storm that was just beginning. I smiled and valiantly told him that I was not afraid of storms as I had once stood at the door of our little four-room house in Elkville and watched a massive tree uprooted and laid on its side. As I started to exit the building I noticed that the air handler in front of my office was dancing about as if it weighed nothing. I decided to go down to the basement.

Wind can be a terribly destructive force. May 8th 15 years ago was Commencement on the Campus of SIUC. A college had already begun their ceremony when the Derecho hit. Large old trees were uprooted like matchsticks across Campus. Chaos and confusion reigned as we began to assess what had happened. Chancellor Sam Goldman was a rock during the turmoil. When the decision was made to attempt to clean McAndrew Stadium to facilitate the Saturday Commencements as there was no electricity Sam asked me if our housekeeping staff could do it and I assured him we would give it our best effort. I vividly recall my dear friends Elizabeth and Ryan busily cleaning the bleachers with Elizabeth holding a flashlight for Ryan to see. Sam who recently passed away said that he considered Building Services cleaning of the Stadium under the most difficult of circumstances to be the best lesson in a Campus group working together to accomplish a purpose that he had seen.

We had over 27 thousand dollars to our house. I am home from the Woods today as I have learned to respect Storms on May 8th…

So today we have the highest severe weather warning that we have had in a year. Is it just a coincidence or is it fate…

I like Tuesday and I always have. When I was working it was the day after Monday which brought its own advantages. Tuesday means we are underway and full steam ahead in our week. No more dithering or puttering around as the week was progressing whether we were in the game or not. Whimpy of Popeye fame said, ‘I would gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today.’ Tuesday is one of the ‘T’ days with the other being Thursday which is another of my favorites.

You can accomplish a lot on Tuesday if you set your mind to it. The weekend is over and gone and the new weekend is not quite visible over the horizon. Plus if you have paid your hamburger bill you have fresh credit.

Tuesday and Thursday are the middle days and thus I have an affinity for them. No one expects too much from either day and therein lies the joy of them. The ‘T’ days are the days that you can truly make a showing. Great ideas can be hatched on Tuesday. Hurdles can be jumped and the high jump is within your reach on Tuesday.

Tuesday may not possess the panache of Friday but then again it does not have the burden to bear of being the opening act of the weekend. You know that the Opening is important. Thursday is not Saturday and the Sabbath in the Jewish faith and it is not Sunday the Sabbath in the Christian calling. God is not looking for too much on Tuesday…he just hopes that we will not jaywalk.

The report that you did not complete on Monday will certainly be refined on Tuesday and submitted with boldness and assurance. The Friday deadline for your recruitment plan you submitted on Thursday and took Friday off for a much-needed long weekend.

Tuesday affords the protection of banality and mendacity…not much is expected and thus much can be achieved…

By the way who does not enjoy a good hamburger…

Another week is here. We seek them here and we seek them there the elusive leader we desperately need. When I was a lad the adults in my orbit told me that I lived in the greatest country on the face of the earth. I considered if there had been a contest or a runoff and I had not been a party to the results. When I asked the criteria for the award I was assured that we believed in Truth. We were a government of the people and by the people. We had fought the Revolutionary War to ensure that we would not have to bow the knee to the king. Religious freedom was always mentioned and a dedication to the enshrined creed, ‘that all men were created equal with certain unalienable rights among them were life liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.’

The middle-aged and younger adults that were in my life had fought and died in World War II. They had not read in history books about Hitler they had fought Nazism up close and personal. Most of them had lived through the Great Depression. They understood from real-time events what deprivation destruction and fascism were. There was not an academic question about service in our military because there was a draft. All men served and women replaced them on the factory floor and made the armaments to use against our enemies.

The Greatest Generation was wary of Con-Men and Snake Oil Salesmen. They had witnessed the preening and strutting of Benito Mussolini. They saw Auschwitz and the emaciated Jewish people. They smelled the acrid smoke of the furnaces. Freedom is not free and is not the domain of narcissistic lunatics as it had been given to in Europe in WW II.

Now we ‘Pop a Top My Friend’ and laugh about the Woke Agenda. We take as Truth the inane ramblings of conspiracy theorists who have less than our best interest at heart and more of their hidden agenda. We turn the dial or scroll until we find the commentary that agrees with our prejudice and provides the answer to why we are left out of modern society.

Former Presidential candidates who not long ago admitted that the last Presidential Election was won by their opponent are now in line to be picked as the running mate of the leading Presidential Candidate will not say yes or no if they will accept the results of the Election in November…

God have mercy on us if these self-same leader candidates have to ever make a life-and-death decision that affects us all…

So I heard Cinco de Mayo mentioned on numerous occasions at approximately this time of year and wondered what it meant. I must have been a victim of my sheltered life…

‘Cinco de Mayo in Mexico for ‘Fifth of May’ is a yearly celebration held on May 5 to celebrate Mexico’s victory over the Second French Empire at the Battle of Puebla in 1862 led by General Ignacio Zaragoza.’

Today it is a joyous celebration of all things Mexican. It is a signpost to me that our year is progressing rapidly. Of course, May 4 is ‘May The Fourth be With You’ in honor of Star Wars.

Winter has passed and summer is staring at us from around the next corner. This is one of the numerous happy events that mark our calendar of celebration. We have so many holidays we are a bit numb to the blessing of enjoying life. As Tiny Buddha says, ‘Stop acting surprised when good things happen to you. You’re a good person and you deserve it.’

Life is a patchwork quilt of small joys and exciting occurrences that tend to go unnoticed if we are not actively looking. Look we do for the big events when our existence is replete with small blessings.

Last evening our dear friends Jim and Joan visited us and Jim and Mylo put on a show of mutual affection that lifted our spirits. They clicked and they were into each other and it showed! Jim even stroked Mylo’s tail and Mylo did not seem to mind whereby if MJ or the rest of us did that we would be met with a reprimand by him. Jim chased Mylo and Mylo piroetted for Jim and both understood the dance. Their joy in mutual communion made the evening complete.

Repetition is beautiful. The choreography of our time here is resplendent with color action mystery and meaning. At times we can not see the forest for the trees and at other times we see the trees clearly. Each moment is a gift. Every breath we take is special.

In the woods, I hear the voice of God. Not loud and with thunder but quiet as the trees making the sound of their motion in the wind. The wood actually makes a creaking noise that I had not heard until recently… It is therapeutic.

I have been reading Annie Jacobsen’s book Nuclear War. It is breathtaking in its reality of nuclear war. What we assume is our birthright and a matter of everyday life can be taken from us in an instant. Baseball games and picnics on the ground can disappear in a flash of blinding light.

Desensitized we are by our love of social media and big bank accounts. Safe we feel in our gated communities. We buy what we want and what we desire. We go where we please and stay until we are ready to return. There is no guarantee that it will always be so…

‘I am anticipating good things in your future, Pastor said. ‘I had a dream that many of the men in our church will one day work for you,’ he continued. ‘You will be a leader, he added.

Sarah laughed when the angel told her and Abraham that they were going to be parents and she knew that she was well beyond childbearing years. From time to time we hear prognostications that seem incredible.

Where we are and where we are going to be can be much like a fantasy story. Indeed we are not ruled by our present surroundings. My dear friend Jeff did not visualize himself as a millionaire when he was homeless on the streets of Chicago.

‘Hope deferred maketh the heart sick but when the desire cometh it is a tree of life.’

You may feel down today and wonder why you should continue when in fact good news may be around the corner. The success stories that excite us most are the ‘rags to riches’ stories.

My favorite aspect of my time as superintendent of Building Services was my role in offering career opportunities to those who had never had the brass ring provided to them. My good friend Anthony told me recently that he had not forgotten the looks on people when I offered them a job and their excitement at the chance to earn a good living.

We must look in the mirror when wondering why many of our fellow human families are sad and forlorn. What can we do to give them good news…

The opportunities that I was blessed to offer were being a member of the professional housekeeping department of Southern Illinois University @ Carbondale. Opportunity comes in many facets and good news is available to all of us.