Joy, hope, peace and love? | Juneau Empire - Alaska's Capital City Online Newspaper

Joy, hope, peace and love? | Juneau Empire - Alaska's Capital City Online Newspaper

hero: a coward who has said his prayers.

   On this eve of Veteran's Day, I would like to suggest to anyone not a veteran, that you simply go and spend some time with a veteran tomorrow. It doesn't require that you dress formally or stand for hours in inclement weather. Here in Alaska, per capita, we have the most veterans than any other state. Perhaps you know a veteran who is a shut-in, or in the care of others, be it at home or an institution of some sort? You may find that they have not attended any Veteran's Day event for years, for a variety of reasons of their own. Think of yourself as the actual celebration coming to them, and what a gift that would be for them. Whatever you choose to do tomorrow, remember that your ability to choose, every day, is attributable to the choices they made in their life.

Go and vote!

   I still remember the anticipation I felt to go vote for the first time. It seems now everybody has to be reminded to vote. Maybe that explains also their often foolish looking voting records. Some people not only have to be reminded to vote, but occasionally they must be reminded how to vote. That's a problem I don't have, making my own political decisions that is. The problem I, and many others, have is with those who whine but don't vote.
  I think it was the mother of Bob Scheiffer who told him "Go vote, it makes you feel big and strong!". That simple advice is more true than any I have.

Let your light shine.

   My childhood was pretty simple, yet it is full of fond memories of all types of church's. Some of the fondest memories are the songs of children, particularly This Little Light Of Mine comes to mind. As a child I pictured a candle that was not being snuffed out. Simple, right? That's what children need.
   But now our world isn't near as simple as it once was. The more questions that are asked, the more answers that mankind has been given. We have learned, for instance, that there is only 5% of light matter and energy in the universe, the rest is 72% dark energy and 23% dark matter. It is now more important than ever to let your light shine, whatever it is you do good in the world (good, that is, not well), you are denying your neighbor the fruits of that good, as well as yourself, if you don't do that thing. When you consider that our universe is made of 95% dark matter or dark energy, it only stands to reason that the minority of light must struggle harder to overcome the dark.

Never turn your back on traffic.

   In this 'who's your daddy, who's your mommy' world we live in today, my heart beckons back to a time when the question often heard on the street was "Who's your Mother?", a simple query of which the correct response was to stop what you were doing and address the questioner. Only an adult making an on the spot correction of youngsters in their midst asked that. The child promptly responds with their name or their mother's, depending on the age of the child.
   Mothers of then taught the child most importantly the info they needed to know on the street, both how to represent the family and how to stay safe. Today's children are faced with more danger than ever, yet we continue to see them riding their bicycles on the street with their back facing the traffic.