I set alarms for every hour today and took a picture of something that I am grateful for and then reflected on how that person or thing has changed my life over the years...
7 am- Geography. Maps. I never get enough of them. My freshman Geography class at Troy State University was a mind bender for me. I am also able to retain 99% percent of what I learned in that class, because I came home and told my dad everything I learned and he quotes it back verbatim 44 years later. I have been working on drawing the 50-state map from memory. I think I need that Previgen drug. This was inspired by SNL Legend and former Senator Al Franken - Senator Al Franken draws map of USA
8 am- The natural world. Sometimes the hymn, “This is My Father’s World” (I like Mother Earth better but whatevs) just pops in my head. It must have made an impact on me around 3rd grade or so. I knew those words rang true for me– “I rest in the thought of rocks and trees, of skies and seas.” The natural world was always a thing to appreciate and find wonder in for me. My Big Mama (Great-Grandmother) taught me about the Crepe Myrtle and many other trees. Mr. Ben Speight, my Future Farmers of America Agriculture teacher, showed a slideshow of trees early in our semester and I almost fell out of my chair in amazement of how diverse the plant world was. I just sat there transfixed on the Norfolk Island Pine. That was a life-changing class for me even though I spent time picking corn and throwing it at my buddies in class. I deserved the ensuing paddling from the Vice-Principal and still feel it on cold nights.
This is My Father's World (Hymn 31) - Hymnology (Official Video)
It is the best, addictive, legal mood-alteringdrug out there IMHO.
Try it here → The Staple Singers - I'll Take You There (Official Lyric Video)
10 am - Light. This is a GI Bill thank you. The GI Bill sent me to film school and my eyes were opened to a world of light that I will never learn enough about…and never be less than fully amazed by the power and beauty of it.
12 pm - Food is love…and I love food. My mom and grandmother’s
1 pm - Wheels. I remember my dad buying a new Chevy Caprice to go
2 pm - Everything. All the time. Really? Is this something to be
grateful for? I don’t know. We did pretty good just waiting a few months to head into JC Penney or Sears. I could go see Mr. Arant or Mr. Gunter at the Hardware store and have a new lawnmower or rad stereo and speakers on a payment plan. That was cool. I think my (our?) desire for better, better, better is making us empty. Pics on film…developed and in your hand. Old cars. Writing a letter (what?!) …and baseball. Baseball is always old even when it is new. Amen.
3 pm - The Center of the Universe. My Universe. Karen Messick Avery.
Nothing is possible without her. I do not pass Go. I do not play well with others. I do not do the things I should do. She makes everything right and everything good and I have no idea why I deserve her. I mean she had me with the 1982 blue jeans jacket, but she just keeps giving me reasons.
5 pm - My dad told me a few weeks into my college freshman year, “son, just go talk to Major Toft, that ROTC Instructor, you never
know.” He knew. I think his years of high school Naval Reserve and 2 more serving in the Carribean, the Atlantic caused him to see the world and be a different person. I’ve never met someone with a wider focus and deeper insights. I had that conversation and that instantly changed the vector of my life. Luckily, the people, the palmettos, the oranges and the opportunities I took with me from Ft. Meade, Florida were as good as any kid could ever ask for. The Air Force gave me constant education, opportunity and purpose…I could do a darn good cheesy Aim High commercial right now. But it showed me the world and tested me and gave me triumphs, lonely deployments, and memories that flash like that St. Elmos Fire I saw on the windscreen on a perfect night halfway to Australia.
6 pm- Teaching High School JR ROTC. 12.5 years of madness, bliss, disappointment, creativity & enthusiasm on steroids!
and energy. When they tell you to do what you love, man I hit the jackpot. I am grateful to the students, the parents, and my fellow educators. Flying was fun. Teaching was hard. No one ever thanks you for your service as a teacher. If they only knew.
7 pm - Travel. I collect rocks. Hopefully legally. I bought this Mississippi looking petrified wood in Arizona. We travel the Interstates to and from Alabama and to and from Chicago because we can’t leave our baby dog with anyone when we leave home. I mean look at him, he’s 100% sweetness.
are.
9 pm - Sports. I. Learned. Everything. Playing. Sports. I saw someone drop that quote from Field of Dreams the other day and I wasn’t ready. It hits me like a sledgehammer and tears form from creeks crusty for decades.
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| Yes, SGA is Canadian... and they believe in each other... check the stats below... |
The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It has been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. This field, this game: it's a part of our past, Ray. It reminds of us of all that once was good and it could be again. Oh... people will come Ray. People will most definitely come.
Why does this quote give me such hope for my country? I don’t know, but I’ll take it. I’m looking
hard for a way out of this doom loop.
I want this country
to slide into third base like Pete Rose,
Superman style. Together.
10 pm - No picture. Just an image from a terrifying survey... We think A LOT of our fellow citizens are morally bad. Canada is the MVP at the good side of this. But I believe this is only a surface feeling. It is not deep. It is not soul deep. I know. I had a red/blue argument with an old friend recently. We haven't seen each other in over 40 years and had little social media interactions. We got off the main public message arena and privately chatted 2885 miles apart...and guess what? Two guys saying 'I love you man and miss you"-- in a few seconds. I am as happy today as I have been in a while. This national animosity is temporary. My friend and I lucked into renewing an old, but solid foundation. No one can make us hate each other even if we disagree with each other. Those connections are real. They are deep. They are the norm that we need to swing too. It's time.
Nightmare fuel below-->
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