What do the Kennedy's know that we don't?

My heart is heavy today with the passing of Edward Kennedy – the last of a family dynasty that I have been through a lot with.

This is NOT a political piece – rather it’s about an “era”…the passing of a generation that I have been a part of. John Kennedy was the first President of the Untied States I voted for. That in itself always makes me feel good and gives me pride. I was just married, poor as a mouse, and didn’t have a clue about anything. Yet, as I watched the campaign between Kennedy and Nixon develop, my inner instincts told me I was watching, and was a part of the beginning of history. John & Jackie were something new…. youth, energy, enthusiasm for new ideas, money, love for their country and each other…..Camelot indeed.

Why would a young girl living on Cow Creek, in the middle of a depressed oil field boomtown, find a connection with a wealthy Eastern family? We were worlds apart. I think I must have thought that if he cared that much about other poor people, he must also care about me. A wealthy family that was devoting their lives to the service of others?.... It seemed like a fantasy. The day of his assassination, I had went out to my parents house that morning… As Mom and I were visiting, we heard Walter Cronkite deliver the news over the little black and white TV. Those words ring in my ears today.

Five years later, we had moved out of state and was still trying to survive. I had gotten a job at the local radio station and hired a baby sitter to stay with the girls at home. Between driving home from work and walking into the house 20 minutes later, the baby sitter informed me as I came in the door that lil’ bro Bobby had been killed.

NO….not again. All he had done was stand up for the poor and oppressed….

Through the years, we seen more….the beginning of the special Olympics by Eunice Kennedy Shriver, Ted gaining his seat in Senate and escaping near death in a plane crash like that which had taken the lives of two of his older siblings. Ted’s wild partying leading to the death of his female passenger. His son Joseph losing his leg to cancer, his daughter battling lung cancer, nephew David, Bobby’s son dying of a drug overdose, Another son of Ted’s going thru cocaine addiction and rehab. Another son of Bobby’s being killed in a ski accident, the loss of both of his parents, a divorce… his sisters, sister in laws, his wife & children, nieces and nephews, and half the country leaning on him for everything. His sister Eunice’s death… And now Ted…. Dead at age 77 from brain cancer.

He was a brother, son, father, 2nd father, uncle, and confidant to all of them. Both a disappointment and a hero to millions… To describe him in one word I would have to use “Fighter”. He fought for himself, for his family, and for us, and for so much more.

From Civil rights, to immigration, to veterans, to education, to decent health care for all Americans. The "liberal lion" as he was endearing called, fought on to the end. And he did it with a broken heart.

I remember seeing a an interview one time that explained how their Dad (Joe) used to set at the head of the dinner table and quiz the kids on world affairs… Service to their country and others was taught from a very young age. Their Mother (Rose) was the one to instill religion and biblical teaching. They were expected to follow both regimes in their lives.

Every family I know has had tragedies through their lives, but I’ve never known a family that has had so many as the Kennedys…. Yet they have usually handled them with grace and dignity.

How have they lived thru so many heartbreaks…what do they know that we don’t? I’m not sure I have the answer, only that it happens to the best of us, and the Kennedys have set an example for us all to follow. When you think your world is crashing around your feet, and your heart is broken, and you think you can’t live thru the pain…. You will. Until God comes up with another plan, you have no choice, so you just have to straighten your shoulders, take a deep breath, count the blessings you have left and carry on. Others have done it, so can you. you just have to do it, Ted Kennedy has shown us, there is no choice.

Ah....Aerie

Home…..

I left for a while

I seen many things

I experienced enough

I tasted delicacies

I felt bare rock and earth

And the carpet of green grass

I touched the mountains

I rested beside lakes

I refreshed my soul..........

I heard peace

And now I am home

I feel renewed

And I found nothing that would compare

To what I have here…..

now this is livin!

I promised a fish story.....here is the proof! The first pictures are of the second fish I caught today, I was all ready to pose and he flopped! the third picture in front of the lake, was the 3rd fish I brought in....I'm holding it up to a tape measure.....14 1/2 inches. He was sooo fun to bring in, boy did he jump and play..... As soon as I got him off my line and on the stringer, it started to pour down rain.....then hail, then the clouds opened up and it was a down pour so I headed for the pickup..... It's so beautiful up here!

Ahhhhhh~~~

Vacation......according to Webster, "A break from work, or spending time in a different location than normal, doing various activities one would not normally do, relaxing or having fun".

After the work of getting ready to go, it's nice to be here. There will be some fish stories to come and writings of thoughts that may enter my head ....... only pleasant ones though, I promise!

Yes, that's me in the hammock, beside the mighty Rio Grande, with a book in hand...... I hope my snores didn't echo through the campground or scare the fish away!.......

Second Chances

I had a great conversation with my son last night, who just returned from going with his daughter to her two day college orientation. She will be attending his “alma mater” so the visit was especially heart rendering as he slept in his old dorm and they visited the various educational halls and classrooms. They also paid a visit to some of his old favorite hangout’s. After a little stammering and working his way around the subject in many different ways, he finally said “Mom, you know I feel really bad that I didn’t get to involve you and Dad in my college experience as much as I wish I had”.

He had transferred from a junior college in our hometown, to an out of state University for his junior and senior year – therefore he did not go thru the freshman orientation. I remember helping him pack up his car and watching him pull out of the driveway and go down the road driving out of the life we had known with him for 20 years….. He was thrilled with all that was before him, I cried for three days…..

He graduated 2 ½ years later, mid semester at Christmas time with his Petroleum Engineering degree. They had no mid term graduation ceremony, and because he was already working, he chose not to return for the Spring graduation ceremony…. We had a small celebration at home the day he received his diploma in the mail, and then it was back to work.

The only thing I could think to say to him last night was that all of the disappointments you go through in raising your own children, is why God gives us grandchildren. He laughed and informed me that the weekend before, 3 of my perfect little grandchildren had accidently met up at “cactus canyon” a favorite hangout for college kids in a neighboring town, and they had not gotten home until 3:00 a.m. and he had been up half the night worrying. I just had to laugh…. My son, you never appreciated the nights we did the same for you, only to finally understand 20 years later…..

My response to him?......... “Ah, the freedom of youth”. Get used to watching it, as they’re experiencing just a taste of being almost on their own, and are willing to pay the price in wrath from their parents as they sample the good and the bad of growing up. Give it another 25 years or so and Dad will also get to enjoy the story of his grandchildren leaving the nest…… I reminded him last night that he’s already given her “flight training” now all he can do is hope she takes the lessons with her…….

Not a lot different than the baby birds I've been watching

Michael's Dead, and Elvis is Still out of The Building....

June 25th, 2009, and August 16th, 1977…two dates forever etched in the minds of Rock & Rollers around the world.

As the news of Michael Jackson’s death was released yesterday, I couldn’t help but think back to the day we learned of Elvis’s death…. Another fallen icon of the music that has made our world go ‘round, each in their own era that has now evolved into history…… From Elvis’s “shake”, to Michael’s “moon walk”, and melody’s like “Billy Jean” and “All Shook Up” rolling around in our minds, we are different, if not richer because of them.

Michael Jackson, as Elvis, both absolutely overflowing with talent, were souls born into a part of our lives and thus making our lives more complete. Each of them creating and changing the world of entertainment in ways that have molded what we conceive as enjoyment. Beyond their influence in music, their influence is also reflected in how so many of us view our world and conduct our lives.

I can’t help but think of their parents…both Michael and Elvis lent by God to common families for a short time to love and cherish before they had to give them up to the world… They were given an enormous task, so if mistakes were made they are totally understandable.

And the world did change their children. For sure, their lives were not their own. They gained great wealth and notoriety and enjoyed self indulgence, but they also suffered great physical and mental pain for the largest percentage of their lives. All of it as their parents stood helplessly by, unable to control the world’s intrusion and their children’s own self-destruction.

I have the distinct privilege of being one who loved Elvis before Pricilla did. I left behind my childhood with Elvis’s music, and the reality of an unkind world as I mourned his death, just as those whose introduction to life came in their teens with Michael. It’s sad, but many of you just learned another hard lesson, that of how fleeting life really is.

My prayers go out to Michael’s family, and especially his parents who had no choice but to stand by and watch God’s plan come full circle once again. It is being repeated over and over again in their minds at this moment that "it wasn't supposed to be this way".

Mrs. & Mrs. Presley, and Mr. & Mrs. Jackson started out as just regular Mommy’s and Daddy’s like millions of others, only to learn a different view of sharing than most of the rest of us have. Thank you for that, we all grew from your sacrifice.

Flight Training

The baby birds have been leaving the nest over the past two or three days.....The parents have taken them out, (or coaxed them out) one or two at a time, so it's been quite the process. Their house is under the eave right above this porch rail, and that was their first landing place... They set there talking about where to go next, and the Mom was over on the back of the patio chair. Next thing we knew, they made their way over there.

From the back of the chair, they followed Mom to the fence... then we lost track of them for

awhile. The way they got from one place to another could not really be called "flying", as they just fluttered through the air, very lopsided and unsteady with awfully rough landings, but very cute to watch. Mom and/or Dad were never far away....

The ones left in the nest to wait their turn were not very happy.... however; they did what they were told and waited, and waited, and waited. It helped some that brothers and sisters got to come back to the nest at night after a hard day of training so when dusk arrives, so do the babies. You can actually tell they're pretty tired when they return. This morning the

last one got to go out for his lesson, then we had a storm hit about 5:30 this evening and it wasn't long before they were all 5 back in the next to await tomorrow's journey.

As all the excitement is happening in the yard every day, there is usually quite an audience..... The little sparrows are lined up watching and seem to be saying "didn't take US that long to learn"! I caught six of them lined up in a row like they were just setting there observing....

The Robins have also left the nest, but their first time out they just set on the ground. Their Mom will bring them worms and feed them for a few days out of the nest but they're not expected to fly so quickly. They are fairly large by the time they leave, so I'm sure flying is quite a chore.

Take notice of the field of cabbage behind the fence....it's beautiful this year! Part of it is planted in purple cabbage and part in green....