It's Happened Again

 I can't stop thinking about the fourth grade classroom in Uvalde, Texas. I can't believe it's happened again.

Though I've been retired for many years, I'm still an elementary school teacher in my heart. For thirty years each Fall, I prepared for, opened my classroom door to,  and cherished a new classroom full of children for 180 days. They were my kids. 

Today my mind keeps going through my former students; the Michaels, Robbies, Seans, and Jasons, the Kates, Susans, Danielles, and Lauries. I see beautiful eyes, hear their sweet voices, and marvel at the ideas they might have in our calm and safe classroom. We had the regular fire and earthquake drills, the occasional bee or spider that threatened, but never an active shooter on campus.

Now I'm eighty, have no public forum from which to decry the gun violence, and I know so many people resent the phrase, "My thoughts and prayers..." but we must do something.

 "If you see something, say something," is a common sense plan. The shooter in Uvalde had posted pictures of his assault weapons on the media. Surely that red flag could have been reported to the town authorities. 

And, I still pray. There's a song by Katy Nichole I hear often at night when I can't sleep that says, "I speak the name of Jesus over you, In your hurting, in your sorrow I will ask my God to move. I speak the name 'cause it's all that I can do."

The Bigger C

Anyone who has had cancer or has a loved one with it knows that "The Big C" has always meant Cancer. Today however, we have a bigger C; the corona virus. We all know this pandemic is affecting our world in ways not yet understood.
On a smaller level of this situation, we finally ventured out to the market. We have senior hours in many of our local stores during which the general population stays away and lets those of us who supposedly are more at risk come in.

I was expecting stripped shelves, masks firmly in place on every face, and a grim atmosphere. While not the jolliest of situations, it was not as bad as I expected. Except for the fresh meat counter, most shelves looked pretty normal and only two women (way older than I am, ha ha) had on masks. Every item on our regular list was there and I experienced an amazing sense of gratitude and assurance that for now, this area of our lives was going to be o.k.

When we got home, I washed my hands, wiped off the containers, and yes, even washed my hair as the CDC recommends. It would be easy to slip into an attitude of fear right now, but that is not what will get us through these months. Mental health experts are recommending that news is tuned into only once or twice a day, that our conversation be turned to other topics when possible, and that we lean into God and trust Him for the future.

Doggie Blues

Today I feel a little blue, down; whatever this feeling is I have today. Actually learned a new word which might fit; ennui, pronounced (an wee) means a feeling of listlessness and dissatisfaction. My ennui may be rooted in a dog problem.

I am a dog lover and have owned at least one or two dogs all my life until we moved to San Marcos. Having a smaller place with no fenced yard hasn't been conducive to having a dog. However, last week I convinced myself it was time, and found a Miniature Pincher at the shelter. Having just a tiny idea of what this breed was like, and thinking he was terribly cute, we brought him home. We bought a crate, (his cone wouldn't fit into it) a bed, (he hated it) toys, treats, and food. 

The first night was terrible; he had kennel cough, a new wound from being neutered, and a constant desire to flee and find his real home. All he wanted to do was whine when he wasn't running. So the next day we took him to the vet and got a cone to keep him from biting himself, and antibiotic for the cough. 
For the next five days, I punished my knees and hips by walking, walking, walking, and lost sleep every night  because I was worried about him. Perhaps it was a sense of needing to survive that caused me to surrender him back to the shelter, but I did. The staff was totally understanding and sweet. They assured me he'd be given the rest of his antibiotic and would undoubtedly be readopted by younger people with a secure yard. 

I realize now I do not need a dog to fill my time and aside from a prayer for him to find a good home, I don't think about him.  I think my blues are coming from a Facebook response to my plight, actually three people I don't even know, who posted "Angry" emojis. Silly I know, but perhaps they can read this and see why I took the dog back. I also won't make any FB post public again!

Thoughts on the Women's March, 2017

The Women’s March yesterday with all the media coverage, posts from friends and family who marched, and my own views on the subject, are bumping around in my brain today! I’m going to copy and paste some of the comments with which I agree, as well as some to which I’m opposed. I'm not identifying any of my sources, but have put quotes around thoughts other than my own.

Here are some facts about the marches:

“Millions of Americans have taken to the streets from New York to Los Angeles and everywhere in between as the Women's Marches on Washington is estimated to be the biggest one-day protest in US history.”

“An estimated 60,000 people marched in Atlanta. 250,000 are marching in Chicago. There are estimates of 250,000 people in Boston, and 200,000 more in Denver. In New York, the estimate ranges from 200,000-500,000. City officials estimate that 500,000 people participated in the main march in Washington, DC. In Los Angeles, the estimate is anywhere from 200,000-750,000.

There were also protests of 60,000 in Oakland, CA, 50,000 in Philadelphia, 100,000 in Madison, WI, 20,000 in Pittsburgh, 20,000 in Nashville, TN, and 60,000 in St. Paul, MN.” 

These are statement which ring true to me:

“To Women who march for Women, this says it ALL:
" I do not feel I am a "second class citizen" because I am a woman. I do not feel my voice is "not heard" because I am a woman. I do not feel I am not provided opportunities in this life or in America because I am a woman. I do not feel that I "don't have control of my body or choices" because I am a woman. I do not feel like I am " not respected or undermined" because I am a woman. I am not a "victim" because you say I am.
I AM a woman.
I can make my own choices.
I can speak and be heard.
I can VOTE.
I can work if I want.
I can stay home if I want.
I control my body.
I can defend myself.
I can defend my family.
There is nothing stopping me to do anything in this world but MYSELF.
I do not blame my circumstances or problems on anything other than my own choices or even that sometimes in life, we don't always get what we want. I take responsibility for myself.
I am a mother, a daughter, a wife, a sister, a friend. I am not held back in life but only by the walls I choose to not go over which is a personal choice.
Quit blaming.
Take responsibility. “

“I was asked why as a mother of daughters I am not protesting today... And I have tons of friends who are marching in their cities.. I respect their right to, but no, I won't be. Here's my thing.  Want to support women? Volunteer at a women's shelter. Mentor a teenage girl, help a single mom, offer to babysit for somebody you know is overwhelmed, take a meal to someone who has breast cancer, donate some money towards women's research. BE the change, don't holler at people you wish would do it.”

I agree with  these  assessments of part of the march:

“About to leave to attend the Women's March on Washington. I love my country and will continue to work to support it and the Constitution as best I can.”

I disagree with these statements:

A celeb smilingly proclaims, “I’m angry and have thought of blowing up the White House.”

"I don't believe marching around actually affects change."  

My own thoughts:

I understand the march included scores of different groups, marching for rights, demanding change, and adding their presence to the count.  They have affected change if only in their own hearts and minds.    Many of them marched in freezing weather in rain or snow, getting their feet wet and super cold. I respect their drive and tenacity.  
Marchers who chanted obscenities, thrashed property, or left their signs and trash for others to pick up were probably few and far between, but they undoubtedly harmed the image of the serious marchers.  

Obviously, millions of people who felt strongly enough to leave their homes and families to travel hundreds of miles to show their support for various causes cannot be dismissed. 

“Just a Thought” from Don Clucas September 14, 2016....

This just may be the scariest thought I’ve had so far.

I just saw a report on the news about driverless cars being used by Uber.
Does this mean that on November 8th I can hire a car to “blindly” take me to a polling place in order to make a choice between candidates who seemingly have no vision for this country?

Just a thought....Yikes!!! 

“Just a Thought”... Sept 2, 2016... Speak Softly and Carry a Big Stick

• 
  
  The following story is from an article posted by the Mystic Stamp Company site entitled “This Day in History” on September 2, 2016:
  On September 2, 1901, Theodore Roosevelt delivered a speech at the Minnesota State Fair where he first publicly used the now-famous phrase, “Speak softly and carry a big stick.”
  Roosevelt had previously used the phrase in a private letter the year prior when he was governor of New York. In the letter to Henry L. Sprague dated January 26, 1900, Roosevelt expressed his happiness that the New York Republican Committee had revoked its support of a corrupt financial advisor.
  Roosevelt wrote, “I have always been fond of the West African proverb, ‘Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far.’” Interestingly, there is no record of this phrase in West African literature, leading some to believe that Roosevelt in fact coined the phrase himself.
  A year later, Roosevelt was U.S. Vice President under William McKinley. That September, he made a stop at the Minnesota State Fair to deliver a speech supporting the president’s international policies:
  “Right here let me make as vigorous a plea as I know how in favor of saying nothing that we do not mean, and of acting without hesitation up to whatever we say. A good many of you are probably acquainted with the old proverb, ‘Speak softly and carry a big stick – you will go far.’ If a man continually blusters, if he lacks civility, a big stick will not save him from trouble, and neither will speaking softly avail, if back of the softness there does not lie strength, power. In private life there are few beings more obnoxious than the man who is always loudly boasting, and if the boaster is not prepared to back up his words, his position becomes absolutely contemptible. So it is with the nation. It is both foolish and undignified to indulge in undue self-glorification, and, above all, in loose-tongued denunciation of other peoples. Whenever on any point we come in contact with a foreign power, I hope that we shall always strive to speak courteously and respectfully of that foreign power.
  “Let us make it evident that we intend to do justice. Then let us make it equally evident that we will not tolerate injustice being done us in return. Let us further make it evident that we use no words which we are not prepared to back up with deeds, and that while our speech is always moderate, we are ready and willing to make it good. Such an
  

  attitude will be the surest possible guarantee of that self-respecting peace, the attainment of which is and must ever be the prime aim of a self-governing people...
  “Barbarism has and can have no place in a civilized world. It is our duty toward the people living in barbarism to see that they are freed from their chains, and we can only free them by destroying barbarism itself. The missionary, the merchant and the soldier may each have to play a part in this destruction, and in the consequent uplifting of the people. Exactly as it is the duty of a civilized power scrupulously to respect the rights of all weaker civilized powers and gladly to help those who are struggling towards civilization, so it is its duty to put down savagery and barbarism. As in such a work human instruments must be used, and as human instruments are imperfect, this means that at times there will be injustices, that at times, merchant, or soldier, or even missionary may do wrong.”
  
  
  
  

  Just four days after Roosevelt delivered this speech, an assassin at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York, shot President McKinley. Another eight days later and Roosevelt was suddenly the youngest U.S. president in history. 
  

  Just four days after Roosevelt delivered this speech, an assassin at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York, shot President McKinley. Another eight days later and Roosevelt was suddenly the youngest U.S. president in history.
• y

“Just a Thought” from Don Clucas...August 24, 2016...

 Is Trump Really Changing?
There are some who are hopefully, and desperately, looking for any change in the behavior of Donald Trump which will give them an indication he is turning into a “good guy.”
Sorry to disappoint you, friends, but is just isn’t so. The following is from an article I sent out earlier this year (February 27). It was originally written and published by U.S. Congressman Ron Paul in Ron Paul Forums: Liberty Forest. It was last edited five years ago on May 1, 2011.
From what Ron Paul and “many others,” including myself can see is someone who has been a spoiled bully since he was young, and still remains a spoiled bully to this day.
I believe the article is worth reading again or, perhaps, for the first time for some. Please think about what Ron Paul has to say here..... “Just a Thought.”

Donald Trump Was a Horrific Spoiled Schoolyard Bully By Ron Paul

After I reported on the ex-Trump employee Julian Long’s account of extensive on-the-job harassment suffered under the extraordinarily abusive Donald Trump, the editor-in-chief of one of the world’s premiere yachting magazines read my article and said “I saw an extreme example of this in person at one of our events. He wasn’t even trying to be discreet. This is likely just the tip of the iceberg.” What are the origins of Donald Trump’s sociopathic behavior? Cursory internet research reveals that Trump as an early teen had “troubles” at the private Kew Forest School in Queens, New York. Trump publicity materials would have you believe the young Donald got switched to the New York Military Academy merely because his parents wanted to give good direction to his “energy and assertiveness.” Yet the truth apparently is that young Donald Trump was a bullying menace. The attitude and behavior that feed his adult bullying and harassment of employees and others were already visible when Trump was 13.

Trump does not want the public to know the specifics of his bullying at the Kew Forest School. One can imagine that school officials would fear retaliation from him, were they ever to put a reporter in contact with people who witnessed Trump’s despicable behavior when he was there. After all, when the New York Times’s Gail Collins published things about Trump that Trump did not want published, he sent her the newspaper with her picture and wrote “The Face of a Dog!“ on it. I e-mailed Trump’s longtime secretary and PR contact Rhona Graff-Riccio, telling her I was on deadline for this article and wanted to know specifics of how Donald Trump as a Kew Forest School student had given the school community such nightmares. It would be interesting to know,

additionally, whether Trump feels any remorse over what he inflicted on his victims. Graff did not give me the courtesy of a reply. Jerome Tuccille’s book Trump; The Saga of America’s Most Powerful Real Estate Baron gives us clues, despite Donald Trump’s efforts to cover up the profound character defects he exhibited when a youth, character failings that only festered and increased and later caused him to behave like a wretchedly-mannered, f-bomb-spewing, shameless bully as an adult. Tuccile describes Trump and his siblings as having grown up in a “plantation era mansion with more rooms than they could count.” Trump’s father Fred Christ Trump was on the Board of Directors of the Kew Forest School. He not only was one of the school’s most generous financial donors; he helped his tyrannical little bully’s school with construction projects – giving the institution free building materials – Tuccile says that daddy “lent” the materials – and then when the school was

building a new wing, Trump, Sr. “lent” a work crew to the construction project. Tuccile writes “the question of disciplining Donald was one that had to be handled delicately; Fred Trump was too valuable an asset to risk alienating him.” Tuccile produced a sycophantic account of his wealthy subject’s life. He portrays Trump’s bullying and harassment of students, teachers and staff at Kew Forest School in unjustifiably euphemistic terms. He describes Trump’s bullying and harassment, for example, as “antics” and “hijinks,” as if the victims of the bullying and harassment had been having a regular good ol’ time. Tuccile the Trump apologist even describes Trump by saying he was “Overflowing with energy and a need to assert himself among his fellow students.” Yet he gives us just enough specific information to confirm the suspicion that Donald Trump made life a living hell for others at the Kew Forest School. He states that Trump “squirted sodas at girls” and “flung erasers at teachers.” Consensual play is very different from bullying and harassment. The girls whom Trump squirted with sodas did not want him doing it, and the teachers at whom he flung erasers did not want to be the targets of that violence, either. One or two instances of consensual in- school play would not have caused Trump to be, essentially, expelled from a school where his father was a board member and top donor. That is to say, what we know of Trump’s bullying at the Kew Forest School is with certainty only the tip of the iceberg of his sociopathic behavior there. A juvenile delinquent who had gone on to become an exemplary citizen could of course be forgiven the bullying and harassment of others he carried out in his childhood and teenage years. Yet Trump, far from having rehabilitated himself, continues harassing his chosen victims in ways that society should consider absolutely intolerable. His current public bullying of LGBT Americans, grand- standing against their civil rights would alone be bad enough. That he uses President Obama as a proxy for bullying and harassing all African-Americans sets a new recent low bar for contemptible public behavior in the United States. Whereas President Obama’s innate intellectual capacities and

his academic merits and accomplishments remain unimpeachable, Donald Trump has yet to give a full and honest accounting of how he tortured the victims of his bullying and harassment at the Kew Forest School, leaving his parents no choice but to send him to be disciplined at the New York Military Academy.