Reflections

I purchased my NASA approved eclipse glasses on Amazon. As they promised,  they were delivered within two days. As with half the population within 100 miles of either side of the totality line, our office waited in great expectation. When the time came, sporting my safety glasses, I looked up into the heavens. The picture that I saw was amazing. It spoke to me of heaven itself. Years ago, King David wrote, "The heavens declare the glory of God; and their expanse shows the work of his hands." Obviously, I don't look into the eye of the sun on a regular basis. But with these powerful shades, for just a moment I could see the sun and moon perfectly pair with each other. I said to myself, this didn't happen by accident. How could it? I looked up and beheld the majesty of an almighty creator. If you're a person who is skeptical about this God thing, think about yesterday. Think about the chances of this happening. It couldn't have happen without an intellig...

Wrong Today, I reached out and offered a handshake to a young millennial. Don't think I'm picking on that age group, that's just what he was. He's not a friend of mine on social media, so he probably won't read this blog...but if so...good. I remember my dad telling me as a young man, "offer a tight squeeze, and look the person in the eye".  This young man didn't attend the Jerry Swicegood School of Handshakes. I honestly felt like I was holding the hand of a corpse. It was limp and lethargic. If the hand had a personality, I would have called it melancholy. A short search on google identifies that the custom of handshakes started in the medieval times. As dangerous as those times were, it was important to demonstrate that you weren't carrying a weapon. Later it became a customary way for a gentleman to politely greet one another. Then it was a demonstration of a bond, an agreement. Today it is gender neutral. Right In 2017, I don...

Who would have thought in 1983 that my friend, Lee would be an executive manager of a successful town and I'd would have owned a business for 28 years.  We had just turned 16. We were idealistic young "bens" ( b oys trying to be m en ). School had just let out. For 9 months Lee was an experimental driver; one might call him a novice. Me on the other hand, I had only had my license for three months. But like most "country boys" we both had been driving the back roads since we were 13, praying we wouldn't get caught. I had a jack-up, large tired, roll-bar pick up strewn with KC 1,000,000 power spot lights. I considered myself a sophisticated redneck. For months we had been dreaming about heading to the mountains.  Camping, experiencing nature as two independent men (or so we thought). So the week after school was released, we loaded up the bed of the truck with sleeping bags, lounge chairs, coolers, flashlights, food, a tarp and rope. Basically everything ...

Some people would have probably called me cheap, but others that knew me understood. There was something about being outside and on the water that caused me to have some of my most cherished dates with my wife Elizabeth Swicegood; what were we doing? Fishing, yes fishing. Back in 1984, I had seen a number of afternoons on the water. There wasn't a fishing pond within 5 miles of my parent's house that I had not paid a visit to. So, when I took my first visit to Elizabeth Sharp's house, I had only heard there was a pretty girl from Texas that had moved in. No one said anything about two fishing ponds. So, I possibly could have been accused to picking Elizabeth as my girlfriend because her dad had a 100-acre farm with two fishing ponds.  One open and the other with great cover. The two tranquil bodies of water were special. Un-fished for many years before they moved from the prairies of north Texas, these two ponds were target central for me as a 17-year-old. Ok, ...

I  Travel is my favorite past time. And when I travel, I like to get off the beaten path.   I remember flying into the capital city of Paraguay, Asuncion, and enjoying the Latin metropolitan scene but hiring a taxi driver to take Elizabeth and I across the tropical rain forest   through Caguazu over the border to Brazil in Cuidad de Este to the world’s largest water fall system, Iguazu falls. Adventure! That particular 12 hour day trip is worth a story in and of itself. Finding places that are not overrun with people & billboards is where I believe you really find the beauty of this world. Concrete, asphalt and towers are necessary, but finding peace, tranquility and nature usually is far from these man made objects. Soon, we will be traveling to a similar adventure; this time Americana style. My home away from home for sometime has been Montana. My close friends, Dan Pate & Leah Welsh have welcomed us into their world; Big Sky world. ...

Sometime life paints beautiful pictures and you were there to watch.  In fact you're on the canvas That was the thought I had today watching my wife, Elizabeth and son, Lewis interacting on the beach. Throwing the football, swimming in the water and strolling on the slanted sandy beaches. Now 23 years old, I have been a witness to the great passions of my child; he was train crazy for a time, then dinosaur crazy. He was so amazed at military history, we spent a heated July at Gettysburg, paid tribute to General Lee's grave and his trusted grey American Saddlebred , Traveler in Lexington Virginia, then over to the tall granite monument honoring the General's right hand, Stonewall Jackson. Probably the most memorable was honoring the fallen on the French beaches of Normandy. I could tell you about the duck hunting obsession or the trout frenzy, but I think you get the point. He is serious about his passions. Lewis always understood the important things in history and li...

People in the ancient world always said that "all roads lead to Rome." Now, as I left Oak Meadow Lane in Mocksville, NC  yesterday morning, I can say that even my rural farm road leads me to Rome. Rome, or Roma as the Italians call it is the capital of Italy and is located in the Lazio region of the uniquely designed boot shaped country. The city of Rome has a population of approximately 4.3 million residents. Vatican City, an independent country is located within the borders of the city. It has two capitals within the city.  It is referred to as "Roma Aeterna"  or the Eternal City ] and " Caput Mundi "  or Capital of the World). Although we had a red eye, a nine hour flight from Charlotte to Rome, as soon as we got off the plane we were taken directly to our tour bus.  We traveled just a few miles to a very "Italian" eatery. We had bread,   Salami, Soppresata, Prosciutto, Pepperoni and that was just the appetizer. We had a course of ...