MY RESPECTS

As a writer, I draw from the heart. All day Sunday and now Monday--the beginning of a new week-- Rosa Parks has become the first woman in the history of this great country of ours to lay in State in the Capitol Rotunda Washington, D. C. This post is not meant to make anyone sad, although our hearts are heavy. Rosa Parks was a woman of Faith. She was practical, she lived a long life. I smile and think, 'I hope and pray we each live to 92'. Rosa Parks will continue to inspire each of us, regardless of background or ethnicity to reach higher and farther in our pursuits, to slow down and realize the value each of us has to be kinder and to embrace peace and Justice as the family of mankind. So it is out of Respect that I'll let my Sunday blog stand in for me today. As my late father used to say: "We mourn". This is as far as I can go today. I just want to reflect and Respect in my own way.

Tonight, the kids will be ringing the doorbell in Halloween costumes and I have bags of Reece Cups to hand out. I look forward to that each year--this too is part of Life!

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ROSA PARKS 1913-2005

On December 1, 1955--before many of us were even born, Rosa Parks boarded a city transit bus in Montgomery, Alabama. She paid her fare and sat down. As Coretta Scott King wrote, "There was no hint that anything would occur that would signal the dawning of a new day in that city. But she was also the secretary and youth advisor of the Montgomery Chapter of the NAACP. That organization had protested the inhumane treatment of blacks so often that Parks was well-known to bus drivers, who would sometimes pass her by rather than allow her to board the bus". When Parks was ordered to stand to allow a white passenger her seat, she was soft-spoken and said "No, I will not stand up". The driver told her, "I'm going to have you arrested". She replied, "You may do that".

December 1, 2005 is a special date. We will all celebrate 50 years of this courageous woman's decision to make a stand on Principle. I'll close by quoting Mrs. Scott-King again. "Let us honor Rosa Parks, not only with words of tribute but also with renewed dedication to end racism, sexism and all forms of bigotry, and by following her still-radiant lodestar to guide us through the freedom struggles for the future."

God Bless Rosa Parks.

PLEASE...NO FALSE TEETH!!!

How could I forget this one? While thinking back to my neighborhood as a kid, I recalled a story told to me "second-hand", mind you, but from a "reliable source". Here it is. Catty-corner to the right and across the street from my house, was a family with an ever-present Black Cat and the parents had 4 kids. Two boys and two girls. The youngest boy was about 5 when he was crying outdoors in the summer. Across the street was a rather colorful neighbor (whose son looked like a bearded John Lennon). Well, she was barefoot and walking outside wearing a summer dress when the little kid across the street started wailing in front of his parent's house. So, as the small kid's brother (my "reliable source") told me, my neighbor two doors to the right from my house walked over and said, "Well now, what's all this crying about?" The kid responded through sobs: "My mom won't give me any candy! Waaahhhhh!!!" The neighbor then reacts. "Well good for her! Because you want to see what candy did for me?" At this point she removes her set of false teeth and holds it out to the traumatized kid who quickly ran screaming into the house. The neighbor, put her teeth back in and promptly walked back inside her house, presumably to squeeze some fresh Poligrip on her set of dentures! To the best of my knowledge the affected kid still went out for "Trick or Treat". But, geez!! What a wacky event!!!...

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Slightly different subject. I've fielded some e-mails about "Friday Movie Suggestion Night" and the answer is YES! Suggestions are definitely welcomed. That's what keeps it FUN! Another hard night to sleep caught me channel surfing when I noticed a recent movie I suggested (and a personal favorite)--"The Horse Whisperer". For the first time in years, I stayed up until 5 a.m. So, suggest away because I have written in November's schedule in lead pencil only. Sure, we can change it up! This weekend, it's time to laugh. The floor is yours on last weeks film or whatever crosses your mind...