June 2002

A Memorial Day To Remember
By JJ Oakley

We all have memories of times and things we have done in lives. This year a young man learned a lesson surely most will never have to endure. This past Wednesday, the day before finals at his local High School he bade goodbye to his parents and sauntered off to church with his compares. Now, John never misses church.  Hmmm, could it be that his girlfriend attends there as well. 

About 9pm, upon arrival to the house, he immediately passed the parents and cantered toward the bathroom, closing the door behind him. After an hour ticked along, the father went to the room to inquired as to his state of wellness. There was a long pause before the boy sad,  “Dad, come in here please?’” 

The father was speechless as he gazed at his son. “What happened to you?”  He exclaimed in great confusion.

 “Well, you see Dad I found this suction cup and was sticking it on stuff and I wondered if it would stick on the skin? So I stuck in on my forehead.” 

As you might imagine there right between his 15 year-old eyes, from the top of the eyebrows to the crown of his hairline, was a 3” perfectly round bruise.  He had been trying to cover it with his sister’s makeup, which certainly exacerbated the situation. 

“Gosh! What am I going to do? I can’t go in the public like this much less school tomorrow . . . I have to go for finals though. I can’t where a bandana as they are banned at school.  And what will my friends think?” the teenager exclaimed. 

And to John’s dismay, he awoke the next day with an even more noticeable mark.  Mustering his courage, he went off to class where he spent the day explaining to classmates, friends, teacher’s and principal’s the problem with his newly acquired blemish . . . which his father named the 3^rd blind eye. 

Fortunately, John made it through this day without too much suffering beyond what friends and a teasing father will do . . . and this little lesson will just become a pleasant memory that I will occasionally remind my son, John, about.  (Interesting the importance of a given incidence based upon where you are in life and how you will remember it later.)

Now for a somber thought about the recent USA Memorial Day . . .

The rain of lead explodes
Around their heads.
To arms, to arms our
Country had said. 

They fought, they died,
For freedom we share.
What have we done to
Show that we care? 

Raised up our children
With hatred every where?
Morals, values, or work
Ethics; Do we share? 

Were we at Woodstock
Proclaiming to be free?
While our brothers fought,
Dying in war’s across seas. 

Dear God let us turn,
So our children will learn.
Freedom, is not given;
”Freedom is earned.”