About Me
Introduction
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“I Coulda been a Contender”
You may recognize Marlon Brando’s famous line from the 1954 film On the Waterfront. The movie won 8 Oscars and numerous other awards. This classic film about mob violence occupies the #8 slot on the American Film Institutes Top 100 movies of all time. [1] There’s anguish in Marlon Brando’s character as he speaks the line, “I coulda been a contender.” A longing for what might have been. A few wrong choices closed the door to his hopes and dreams. For whatever reason, many of us try not to think about what might have been. Still, it’s natural to wonder where the roads not taken might have led. Did I…
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Running Away from Home
[Remembering from my life an earlier All Saints’ Day, here’s an edited chapter, excerpt from my memoir manuscript.] That both our fathers had died the year before, within months of each other, this had nothing to do with Dianne and me running away from home on November 1, All Saints’ Day. Neither of us had planned to run away, but instead of going to school, Dianne and I awoke that morning after Halloween on sugar overload eager for an adventure. Dianne had spent the night with me on a school night. My mother had already left for work. To school, or not to school? Our plan unfolded. We combined our…
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Man Knows Not His Time
Tragedy struck this week in the town where I lived for 25 years, the place our children grew up, the place where memories call me back. Tuesday, after receiving email obituary notices for young boys (ages 12 and 13 years old), I contacted a friend for more information. Four adolescent boys sneaked out after midnight on Sunday for a joyride. joyride––conduct or action resembling a joyride especially in disregard of cost or consequences Conduct and consequences reminded me of what Judge Carl Kennedy said to his own kids. “Nothing good happens after midnight.” The unforeseeable consequences of that night’s joyride ended in tragedy. Three of the boys died at the…
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When Kids Say the Funniest Things
I hope you write down what your kids or grandkids say when what they say makes you laugh. Adults need more refreshing spontaneity of children and less duplicity from adults. If you are a teacher of children, you have an unending supply of funny things that kids will say. Somewhere I have a book that a teacher compiled after asking her students how to cook a turkey. She asked these young children to draw a picture of their Thanksgiving turkey and give instruction for how to cook it. The one I remember: “Get up in the middle of the night. Turn the oven to 2 degrees.” A child’s perception of…
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Graduation: Celebrations, Ceremonies, and Remembering to Say Thank You
Memories, misty-watercolored or otherwise, can foreshadow future events as well as reinforce occasions we should never forget. When I graduated from high school, a friend invited me and a few other girls to lunch at the Zodiac Room inside Neiman Marcus, downtown Dallas, Texas. [1] This made me feel like Cinderella going to the ball, celebrating graduation in this world-famous upscale restaurant, all dressed up and wearing hats, like we did on Senior Day at school. Fast-forward 39 years when a woman who sat next to me in one of my seminary classes treated five women to lunch at the Zodiac Room. After being gone from Dallas for 34 years,…
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Necessary Endings: Coincidence or Providence?
Mark Twain advised writers to slay adverbs, so I pause to consider whether to write, “Coincidentally, I am currently reading a book titled, Necessary Endings, by Dr. Henry Cloud.” Two adverbs, not slain. While the book aims primarily at business strategies for handling relationships, the author makes application to personal relationships and decisions as well. Sometimes, life can force upon anyone a decision they would rather avoid. Each of us will face difficulty deciding to end something we have invested ourselves in. Dr. Cloud’s book alerts readers to recognize signs of when it’s time to quit. Sometimes the time comes when something has to give. Whether a business venture, a…
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How Full Is Your Love Tank?
Love is something you do for someone else, not something you do for yourself. – Gary Chapman When a friend commented following my birthday, “Your love tank is full,” I thought, Well, I guess it is. Only, I didn’t know I had a love tank (looked it up), and I could not have imagined how having my four grown children with me and their dad would fill my heart. What had kept many families from celebrating Thanksgiving together this year hung like a cloud over all possibilities of being with my family to celebrate a Big-O birthday. Expect Anything Except What Happened When the original plan––a surprise no one could…