RECORDING MOMENTS IN TIME

I’ve given up giving advice. I’ll give an opinion with the following disclaimer: at best the results are 50-50; you will agree or disagree, it will be right or it will be wrong, you will follow it or you will ignore it. Let me share my grandparents (Thomas) and parents’ advice until they didn’t. Proverbs 22:6 “Train children in the right way, and when old, they will not stray.” Any questions? I have some. Proverbs 13:24 “Those who spares the rod hate their children, but thos

Closing my eyes, breathing slowly, I can see snapshot pictures I reach for and wonder: Was that it? My life? In elementary school, break-time meant a container of milk and half a graham cracker. I would carefully nibble the edges, shaping it into a gun. Other times I arrived late to class after lunch, having stayed on the playground simply to enjoy the solitude. In junior high, lunch was the best part of the day: an open-faced roast beef sandwich, mashed potatoes smothered in

In the beginning, in a city back east, Southport, New York, watching a hobo push his cart past our house, I thought, I could do that . An independent business owner avoiding people. Outstanding job for an introvert. Considering the pros and con aspects decided I would prefer… … a job as a mattress tester. I possessed the skills required, I can to that . No college or high school degree is required. Paid to sleep, then maybe prepare a review. Meanwhile, avoiding people. Pay an

This is easy. One pound of elbow macaroni, one pound of ground beef, one can of tomato sauce, and one large can of diced tomatoes. Start by bringing a large pot of salted water to a boil, then add the elbow macaroni. Stir occasionally. Cook the macaroni until firm; do not overcook. Takes seven to eight minutes. Once done, rinse in a colander. While the above is being completed in another, large pan cook off the ground beef. Remove excessive grease. Next, add diced tomatoes, s

This would be one of several regrets. I have a collection (of regrets) that keep sneering at me, reminding of a life, dreaming of what I would never accomplish, wishing I could step back in time. College. Now there were several family members, on the Thomas side of family having attended college, but none had completed their degree programs. Attending college while in the middle of the Vietnam War was critical, especially since my lottery number was forty, which technical gua

Why Keith? In high school there was a Kieth, so at least my parents spelled it correctly. Although when I sign in with the hostess, she or he will often spell it Kieth. You know the whole i before e, yada, yada, yada. Anyway, I hated the name from day one. Well, not literally day one. Last name Maynard, which we, the family, pronounce to this day incorrectly, but whatever. When I tried to pronounce it correctly, I received odd looks. On the school playground, students thought

This will be quick, no. During the school year, academic endeavors on weekdays and bowling leagues on weekends. During the summer, entertaining myself. I sought employment, Sort of, and in Arizona (11th and 12th grades) mowed (a few) lawns and or watered yards/plants while neighbors were away on vacation. Always church activities weekly, vacation Bible School yearly, door knocking in Tucson and Sierra Vista. I recall once raking our rock/dirt filled backyard, creating piles o

Approaching adolescence, I found adults liked to ask, “Bet you’re looking forward to becoming a teenager.” Or some such nonsense. “Think driving, high school, independence, girls, blah, blah, blah.” Actually, it all seems fuzzy. Then the question, “What age would you like to be?” My reply did not go over well, and people looked at me oddly and quizzically before asking the always inquisitive question… what. Why? Best I could do in response to the what-why question was shrug m

The timing of this question was startling. Unexpected and initially uninviting. Digging through feelings can be difficult (memories) and avoided when possible. And to be honest, we are talking over fifty-years ago. Researching Kith and Kin, our family trees, and now writing a personal story, One Story in Two Voices, found this an abrupt yet, maybe, a fortuitous question. Let me begin with a shared statement repeated often, starting while in diapers, certainly in my preadolesc

Favorite, hum, let’s start with least favorite. English with the parts of speech, diagraming sentences, reading poetry, and writing. That’s right, folks, hated to write. Why? Because teachers returned every paper covered in red ink. Often at the bottom of the page in larger than necessary print is the word, Redo. Now, before I continue, I need to note that I attended two high schools, two years in New York and two years in Arizona. In New York, they still considered ninth gra

While attending the University of Arizona, taking a Western Civilization class (1968), the professor confidently stated that historically civilizations have a lifespan, on average, two-hundred and fifty years, give or take. I thought that was ridicules. The United States would last like the Roman Empire, two thousand years or more. The instructor emphasized these countries did not collapse from any outside enemy, rather disintegrated (degenerated) from within. The United Stat

The quick answer, none. But… with that said, let me share the restaurants I remember as a teenager back in Elmira, New York. Loved it. Number one on my list. The occasions were rare, but treasured. Family, sometimes extended family and friends, would precede after Sunday morning church services to Curly’s Chicken House https://www.curlyschicken.com/ Established in 1955 still exists today. Not fancy, but the food, prepared using “secret” family recipes, is always scrumptious.

I recall one fad I sought to follow with a tragic ending, a wardrobe fad. My parents were “believers in the essentials.” For Sunday...

I envisioned ending up homeless, standing on a corner, collecting handouts, surviving off the kindness of strangers. Growing up had three...

Icon a person or thing widely admired especially for having dominant influence or significance in a particular sphere. Perhaps: … a...

I was probably eleven or twelve, living in Horseheads, New York, maybe thirteen. I saw someone wearing a black onyx ring with their...

No. Had a few friends in New York, and then, when we snuck off to Arizona, left them all behind. Arrived in Arizona as a High School...

I was far more interested in participating in sports than in being a spectator. My grandfather, Thomas was a fan of the Green Bay Packers...

My favorite sounds? Birds singing, rain on the roof, walking in the snow, or a television, volume low, playing in the background as I...

I didn’t I don’t enjoy being the butt of a ‘prank’ and the idea of being the prankster is anathema. A prank, a practical joke or...