” The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away.”
Pablo Picasso
What is a home?
24 Jun 2015 1 Comment
in Perspectives Tags: home
Dear Fellow Journalers,
The word “home” means so much to all of us. Here is Paul‘s observation:
What is a home? A home is so much more than the structure you live in. Home means different things depending on who the inhabitants may be. A shell is a home to a snail or turtle, an apartment is home to a family or couple, a dormitory is home to a college student, a palace is home to a king or queen, a cabin is home to a hunter or pioneer, a hotel is temporary longings to a vacationer or traveler. Homes are large and homes are small. A home can be found in your neighborhood, in a country, town or city, in a fairy tale, in a setting of a novel, or in your imagination. Homes are almost everywhere. No matter where or what type of home it may be, all homes have one thing in common. Home is where the heart is.
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10 Things I remember about my Dad
21 Jun 2015 Comments Off on 10 Things I remember about my Dad
in Perspectives Tags: Dad, son, Viet Nam
Dear Fellow Journalers,
The following is a moving tribute from G.
My Dad has been dead for 28 years now, but of course, there are things I will never forget about him.
Now let it be known that my Dad and I were polar opposites. Things he did well, I couldn’t, and vice versa. I know there are fathers and sons who are peas in a pod, but not Dad and I. But still, we managed to form a very strong bond between us, and we had it all our lives. Here are 10 illustrations.
- Anytime I did something Dad thought was right and just, honest, true and holy, he seldom said I love you, or was proud, he just gave that deep nod and smile of approval, and that meant more than anything.
- The Christmas I got a toy gun that shot ping-pong balls, and Dad and I had target practice on Moms’ precious tree ornaments. Dad took the blame for it all. Mom “punished” him severely, both for his part, and for covering up for me.
- My sister had a very sickly childhood. Somewhere around the age of 10, without being asked or told, I took my place in the rotation of her caregivers. Dad simply put his hand on my shoulder, squeezed hard, and said that God would bless me for this. Since Dad was not religious, this meant a lot.
- The time Dad put himself in peril by placing himself between an attacking dog and me. Dad killed the dog with his bare hands, and said “nobody hurts my family.” The lesson was not lost on me.
- Another Christmas when I got EVERYTHING I wanted. It had been a very difficult year with my brother always in trouble and my sister always sick. I did my best to be on my best behavior, and did what I could to help. I bet it took Dad years to pay off that Christmas.
- The time I went to the store to help Dad, and it came down to enough money for Dads’ God awful unfiltered Camels, (no wonder I have a lifelong hatred of smoking) and me getting an ice cream. And yes, the ice cream was good. Dad said he enjoyed his bite too.
- I was leaving for Viet Nam from the New Haven airport. I kissed Mom and my girlfriend goodbye. Dad came over, grabbed my neck, and I’m positive, having NO idea what he was saying, said: “Come home alive or I’ll kill you!”
- I only saw Dad cry twice in his life. When my son was born he looked at him with amazing love, and with tears in his eyes, said: “Now the future of our family passes to you and him.”
- The day Dad insisted the distinction of “Big Ray” and “Little Ray” that was always between us, be abolished.
- The day, lying on his deathbed, dying from the ravishes of cancer, he said what I believe are the words of EVERY Father to their sons: “I’m sorry I couldn’t have done better.”
Now, I’m damn sure that everyone of you could write a list like this about YOUR Father. Stop, stop whatever you’re doing now, and go do it!
Then, on Fathers Day, if your Dad is still with you, go see him and read your list to him. If he’s not still with you, go to his grave and read it to him.
Fathers come in only two categories: Good and Bad. No matter which yours is in, he deserves this final tribute or condemnation from you. He is / was YOUR FATHER.
~Sallie
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Seeing goodness in life
19 Jun 2015 Comments Off on Seeing goodness in life
“Not in his speech, not in his thoughts, I see his goodness, only in his actions, in his life.”
Herman Hesse
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Creatures of Ink and Technology
17 Jun 2015 1 Comment
in Perspectives Tags: computer, ink, internet, words
Dear Fellow Journalers,
The following is a perspective piece from Paul. Please let us know what you think.
I recently watched a television program about Hackers on our local PBS channel and while being a tad scared about the prospect of my blogs/emails being hacked, I was still intrigued about the entire concept of coding. You see my first experience with the computer was when I was working in a bank. My supervisor informed me that my entire department’s records were going onto a computer disk ( we were using typewriters and files then). I supervised the transfer while being taught code and have respected the science ever since.
’til next time,
Sallie
Creatures of Ink and Technology
Our thoughts these days are of ink and technology. Printed words and emails, text messages and pictures, and music and movies downloaded from iPods and computers fill our minds perpetually, to an extent that we do not realize until we stop and reflect on it. As far as print, these black enthralling words are counters and symbols, which pass from lip to lip, from brain to brain, until they are worn and rubbed thin and shiny and lose their real significance, if they ever had any. Technology has led to many major changes professionally and personally, and for better or for worse. Computers are used in homes, businesses, cars, schools, and in our hands while we walk, exercise, drive, or travel. communicating, socializing, researching, working, and shopping have been made easier for consumers via the internet and with the click of a mouse or the tough of a screen.
Our theories of life come to us through ink. We are affected by the work of editors, reporters, compositors, website designers, and technicians. A few centuries ago, even after the invention of printing, the domain of books was limited. Only a few could read at all (for example, the monks translated and copied the Bible), and those few read but seldom. The majority depended on others to read to them, or a town crier to spread local news, or an oral tradition, where stories were told and handed down from one generation to another.
Ink did not saturate these ancient people’s brains. Now newspapers, magazines, brochures, and advertisements like billboards along highways, and laptops and cell phones govern us, big and little, local and regional, national and international, wise and unwise, rich and poor. They flourish us all with our religion, our politics, our current events, and our sociology. They set our fashions, frame our manners, and dictate our amusements and other interests.
Technology has taken the printed word to an advanced level, which makes it convenient for one person to communicate with another near or far and at any time of the day, seven days a week. It has become a necessity for those in the working world, those attending school, those looking for a mate, and those looking for fun and leisure as they search the Internet. Tons of information once stored in books, files and archives is now available at the click of a button online.
What was the world like before written words and computers were known, when men and women thought in terms of pictures, or of sounds, and did not smother facts in words, or spend countless hours searching the web with eyes staring at a screen? Yet, there were great deeds then, even, if all tales be true, some great speech uttered, which reverberates in all our hearts today. And along after writing and printing were invented, men relied upon them very little.
Spoken words made the communication of life, words spoken from the pulpit, from the stage, round the hearth, on the front porch with neighbors, at the corner of the street, by the water cooler at work, or in public places. Emails, text messages, websites, DVD players, video games as well as Xbox and PlayStation, and cell phones have taken the written word into a different dimension. These new forms of communication have not only brought people closer, but have left many vulnerable to computer viruses, hackers, identity theft, predators with devious and dangerous intentions, accidents and disasters, and addiction to mindless games and idle chatter. Now ink and technology have usurped it all; the world is drowned in a torrent of a dependency on impersonal ink and computers, and the invasion of privacy.
Some day there may come a rebellion, but it is difficult to see how. Instead, it seems for the present that the tyranny of print and technology over us has grown daily greater, more crushing and less responsible, less intelligently guided, while simultaneously remaining a dire necessity. Meantime, let us individually oppose the dominion of ink and technology wherever and whenever we can. When we do need to use them, we must remember to use them productively and wisely. Also, let us think for ourselves, to live for ourselves, and not be altogether creatures of ink and technology.
Let us keep our eyes open, our hearts open always, the fingers of our souls stretched wide to help others, teach the younger generations, smell the roses, commune with nature, feel the warmth of sunshine, appreciate our blessings including family and friends, smile and laugh more often than frowning and crying, and be determined to move forward in a positive and collaborative fashion. But most of all, let us not let the black veil of printed matter or a large or small screen cut us off from the reality of life and the wonderful people and special gifts that fill our lives.
Paul
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