Am I the Only One That Thinks Of This Stuff

Of course not everyone is awake too much during the night so that is when I solve our world's problems. My trip out to get groceries really did me in , I am working on finding a place that does not hurt.
Now aside from my problems here is what I was wondering,there are so many unhappy young people specially in large cities where the poor tend to be warehoused in public housing. Then when all hell breaks loose we accuse the wrong people and make a lot of noise usually with property damage because the hatemongers are there agitating the young people.
Okay instead of rioting why aren't these people doing something constructive? Like tech schools for the at risk young men and women. learning a trade, learning self respect, being able to get out of the horrible living situation they are in. Both men and women , there is so much need for plumbers, electricians, carpenters,  heavy equipment operators,truckers, the list is endless and the pay for each of these kinds of works is excellent. Men and  women alike can do this work, Maybe learn values along with the trade. Instead of trying to keep them slaves to the government handouts ,
Back a long time ago in Africa  tribes of people caught and sold other tribal people into  slavery, at first it went to England , France etc, then to the USA. In England the answer to so called wrong doers of all colors background was to hang them or to send them to America to be indentured to others for years, they had to work to gain their freedom, so it is not just African people that were enslaved, they were the ones taken advantage of. I do think the tribal slavery in the middle east and in parts of Africa are still going on. Look at Nigeria stealing all of the women from a school. Trying to keep them enslaved to their way of living and religion. it is man's inhumanity to man that is still on going.
Now how much would it cost to have schools with dormitories for these young at risk people? Is it more or less than the prisons they end up in? For that matter why isn't prisons doing the same thing? teach a man to fish mentality is what we need in this country. Not the "lets go show them how much damage we can do" mentality that is prevalent now with the hatemongers. The problems in the black community and in the poor white, Hispanic, from all ethnic backgrounds are the same, they are being taken advantage of by a system that needs them to stay where they are in order for the system to exist. What a farce and what a shame. If anyone thinks about this, they will see that I am right.

Just Venting a bit

This has been a strange year, I loved summer so some reason I was able to enjoy most days out side for a while. even fall was pleasant. then my  health problems came to the fore front. had a check  up with eye doctor, they said i had bad floaters but other wise I was fine. fast forward two months and for a short time I lost part of my vision in right eye so back to eye doctor. This one found ischemia in the eye and bleeding. Did a sonogram of carotids and found one 100% plugged and the other 70 %. so now I am going to vascular doc. And while all of this is happening I had scheduled MRIs of my spine and neurology because I am losing feeling in parts of my body. So it is run run run to these doctors and the worry, one mentioned paraplegic, one mentioned stroke, one mentioned losing vision in eye.  All of this while they are watching lymph nodes for some kind of cancer,my goodness all of a sudden I am a mess!
So far I  am taking this a day at a time and put my faith in God that he knows what is best for me,  It is a test of faith for me, trying to stay relaxed and calm is harder to do than one thinks, so I am writing,  thinking if I put  it out there in the universe it is less on my shoulders.

Tangled

Of course not everyone is awake too much during the night so that is when I solve our world's problems. My trip out to get groceries really did me in , I am working on finding a place that does not hurt.
Now aside from my problems here is what I was wondering,there are so many unhappy young people specially in large cities where the poor tend to be warehoused in public housing. Then when all hell breaks loose we accuse the wrong people and make a lot of noise usually with property damage because the hatemongers are there agitating the young people.
Okay instead of rioting why aren't these people doing something constructive? Like tech schools for the at risk young men and women. learning a trade, learning self respect, being able to get out of the horrible living situation they are in. Both men and women , there is so much need for plumbers, electricians, carpenters,  heavy equipment operators,truckers, the list is endless and the pay for each of these kinds of works is excellent. Men and  women alike can do this work, Maybe learn values along with the trade. Instead of trying to keep them slaves to the government handouts ,
Back a long time ago in Africa  tribes of people caught and sold other tribal people into  slavery, at first it went to England , France etc, then to the USA. In England the answer to so called wrong doers of all colors background was to hang them or to send them to America to be indentured to others for years, they had to work to gain their freedom, so it is not just African people that were enslaved, they were the ones taken advantage of. I do think the tribal slavery in the middle east and in parts of Africa are still going on. Look at Nigeria stealing all of the women from a school. Trying to keep them enslaved to their way of living and religion. it is man's inhumanity to man that is still on going.
Now how much would it cost to have schools with dormitories for these young at risk people? Is it more or less than the prisons they end up in? For that matter why isn't prisons doing the same thing? teach a man to fish mentality is what we need in this country. Not the "lets go show them how much damage we can do" mentality that is prevalent now with the hatemongers. The problems in the black community and in the poor white, Hispanic, from all ethnic backgrounds are the same, they are being taken advantage of by a system that needs them to stay where they are in order for the system to exist. What a farce and what a shame. If anyone thinks about this, they will see that I am right.

Aone....Again....

For once I am afraid you see,
The visit this day is bothering me
Where oh where is any of my family
What will I hear with no body near
Is something I dread, something I fear,
Where did they go those children of mine
I know they  what they say, too busy today.
So to the doctor I will go, alone and afraid
How I wish one of them would come to my aid
Tee October 2014.

Another writing assignment

 I am definitely new at writing rhetorically. I am not even sure I get what I am suppose to do,I have a passion for many things. The one thing I will write about today is aging, it is talked about in a negative manner by many different groups of people, I keep thinking do they not know that one day they will be old and what will their quality of life be, will anyone care about them?
 Aging is a unique challenge for everyone. I do not believe that anyone of us do it the same way.  For what ever reason I do not feel old mentally. My body is probably in worse shape than most people my age but that does not stop me from dreaming. It does not stop me me from thinking that I can do what ever project my brain comes up with, like taking this writing class. There are times when I feel society would rather we all just went away. That we have have a use by date stamped somewhere on our bodies. That is such a fallacy,  part of what will happen to us is environmental, genetic, the aging process, how we are treated mentally, if we have a support system of family and friends. For instance my mother's family have into their 80s and 90s even when the average life span was in the forties and fifties, they were soldiers, farmers, preachers, pioneers well into their later years, in fact my great great grand father homesteaded in Nebraska when he was in his 70s.
There are the so called experts that are constantly giving out opinions, One self proclaimed expert, who helped write the Affordable Care Act, Ezekiel Emanuel wrote in the magazine The  Atlantic, This is an except from his article,“But here is a simple truth that many of us seem to resist: living too long is also a loss. It renders many of us, if not disabled, then faltering and declining, a state that may not be worse than death but is nonetheless deprived. It robs us of our creativity and ability to contribute to work, society, the world. It transforms how people experience us, relate to us, and, most important, remember us. We are no longer remembered as vibrant and engaged but as feeble, ineffectual, even pathetic.”
Now this quote of his in an article September 17, 2014 does not mean he wants every one to die at age 75, just  that he thinks life should be over specially for himself at this age. Dr Emanuel has no real idea  what aging is about, he must think anyone older than 75 is useless. He is wrong there is a wealth of wisdom out there and it would be nice if the younger generation would take advantage of it.
For instance I have physical handicaps, I can not walk very far even with a walker but that does not stop me from making  good nutritious meals for  people that are ill, it does not stop me from painting pictures of the beautiful flowers I can not grow any longer, It sure does not stop me from writing  poetry, stories of times long past. There are so many very healthy men and women that volunteer daily at food shelf, visiting the less fortunate patients in nursing homes. Make quilts for the homeless, the list is endless.
I remember my mother at age 81 getting married to an old beau she had as a teenager. These two people had a reception and dance, it was amazing watching  all of those senior citizens, some in their nineties, one with one leg and crutch out dancing polkas and waltzes and thoroughly enjoying life. This short space of time showed me that if there is a will, there is a way.
yes we cost money but the knowledge and  wisdom can learn from the elderly is priceless. What is a human life worth to  Americans, is it disposable like abortions or is it  person's right to life as they choose.
 How do other  areas of the world treat their elderly is a good question , like Adrianna Huffington wrote in her book "On becoming fearless," "Ten years ago I visited the monastery of Tharri on the island of Rhodes with my children. There, as in all of Greece, abbots are addressed by everyone as 'Geronda,' which means 'old man.' Abbesses are called 'Gerondissa.' Not exactly terms of endearment in my adopted home. The idea of honoring old age, indeed identifying it with wisdom and closeness to God, is in startling contrast to the way we treat aging in America."  or as Confucious wrote in Analects," "A superior man is devoted to the fundamental. When the root is firmly established, the moral law will grow. Filial piety and brotherly respect are the root of humanity.
The sad part of all of this is the young people are losing that special bonding that can happen between the old and the young, The everyday things they can learn that would help them make the right decisions in their lives. Instead they are being taught that living in the now is what is important for them. We as a people have to rethink exactly what is important in  life and to go back to some of the very basic things they they learned as children from their elders.

Reading  essay assignments from other writers in this class shows me that its is people that are important not their age. For instance Barbara Guess  wrote when  telling about retiring and then realizing there is so much more life out there, "To help other people find solutions to the problems in their lives I returned to voluntary work. I’m training and stretching my brain to accommodate computer research and communication. I’m connecting and facilitating appointments, contacting  social services, delving in the quagmire of legal rules and government forms. The sap still runs connecting me to society. As a leaf I’ve changed colour to a shade of grey, dyed brown, with crow’s feet webbing the corners of my eyes; but I can still walk and run, my brain is still alive to new experiences.  I can travel to the city and not get lost, or need a chaperone and nature can still amaze me with her talents". Her stories should be told. It is not just my story on aging but my fellow seniors that do have a world of experience to share.

Grandma Tee's Thoughts ( My first autobiographical paper on something I am passionate about).

I grew up in troubled times, it was just after the great depression and things were still pretty tough for too many people. Then  World War II came to America, our country was under terrible strain. People did what they had to do to survive. There was no actual fighting in America, but almost everyone had a relative in the fight.  As a small child I remember the fear when they came to our home and said my brother had been hurt.  He was in the Navy in the South Pacific, they told us he was alive but had been wounded.  But to a four year old that fear of the unknown was there, I believe that the fear of loss taught me to hold my family close, this has stayed with me to this day.
Both of my parents had an 8th grade education. they were self education,reading the newspapers, listening to the radio, I did not realize until I was older how much they had learned just living life, learning as they went. They knew how to survive, how to do what had to be done and still teach us right from wrong. As I grew into an adult and years passed I realized more and more the "old fashioned" sayings that mom would say were so true, "do unto others" comes to mind.
We did not get spanked but we knew the rules. I did get a swat on my behind once when I frightened my mother. At age five I was climbing on roof of the neighbor's chicken coop and the siren went off. The other older children got down and ran home and there I was stuck, and frightened of heights, I sat there crying, when my older brother came and found me and took me home. Mom must have been pretty upset because my dad, who never disciplined us children, gave me a swat on my back side and said," do not ever scare your mom like that again", and I never did,.
There was the respect for your elders that was engrained into us,  we would never think of calling someone older than us by their first name, to do so would be rude. The the familiarity that we see and hear today is down right disrespectful, I often wonder who is teaching them manners, who is teaching  these soon to be adults respect.
As I grew into a teenager, then an adult and started my own family, I brought with me certain unbreakable rules of life.  Respect every one in a way you would want to be treated. Above all I was taught no one owes you anything, if you want something  work for it. At age fifteen I was babysitting buying my own clothes, what I could not afford to buy I made , not realizing it was teaching me to be responsible.
I taught my children there was no end of possibilities for them as they grew. I encouraged them to be individuals, each with special and unique talents. They grew up and married and had children and I must say that when I see them raising their children with the basic values they were taught, that is when I know I had done a good job.
As time passed and society's values changed, I have to wonder what happened how so many people seemed to lose those very basic rules of life. There are so many young people struggling through life trying to survive, making the wrong decisions., creating havoc in their own lives and others. Many of them have babies while they are babies. Where is the guidance that these young people with babies need? Then we have the killing in the large cities Black on Black, brown on brown, black on brown and all of them fighting, shooting, and killing the white young men included, maybe not as many but they are as lost as the different ethnic young men are.
I  have to shake my head at the excuses our government gives or the that they ignore the reason all of this is happening. For what ever reason Public housing, welfare food stamps help create a loss of respect for themselves. Then apathy sets in and the hopelessness of no future grows.
When we will we wake up  and  see the damage we have done to  the future of our country. We need to get back to the basics, manners, respect for others, work ethics, responsibility, we can not ignore these young people and then expect them to know how to be  adults with a future.
We have young people that graduate from high school and still can not read, they can not write a proper sentence.  Again where is the basics that should be taught in schools? As a student a long time ago, in the 1940s and fifties we were taught the basics then when we went into higher grades more subjects were added. In fact I went to thirteen different schools and when I started ninth grade. I did not let it stop me from learning as much as possible. I was was taught knowledge can take you anywhere you want to go in life, that truth was reenforced in every school I went to.
We are failing our young people. I am not saying that everything was perfect, there were good teachers and bad teachers even back then .In fact when I was in a new school in fourth grade my teacher told me in front of the class that I was too dumb to learn anything and I ran out of the room crying, while she screamed you come back here.  Fortunately  the principal that found me  sobbing my  broken heart out, comforted me and got  what happened, then he  took care of the situation. From that time one I never allowed anyone to call me dumb again.  It started me on a life long journey of learning everything I  could.
So what has changed since the 1950s? Trying to add too much in the way of electronics, rewriting history to make it more PC  creates confusion. Of course there is learning disabilities which makes it hard for  the child to learn. The  way  these children spend more time going to different rooms to different teachers repeating the same boring information that they will never use. What happened to the teacher having the patience to allow that slower student the time he or she needs to comprehend the subject matter. Of course we need  teacher assistants to be able to work one on one with a slow learning child, but is shuffling them from room to room teaching them to feel good about themselves? Will it help them to grow into positive role models for their children or will they be the ones that are out there making the bad decisions.

Thursday Thankful

Things to be thankful for, is a good theme for today. I am  very thankful for each and everyone of my family. For the friends I have  through out my life.  I can not count a lot of friends , but I can count the ones that have great meaning to me. People collect friends, like something they can show the world they have value.. I have found that we have value no matter. People come into our lives for a reason, for that I am thankful. I am thankful for what health I have, at my age any health is sign that I woke up this morning. I can vent and complain about aches and pains, but  sometimes they are the  only topic I can think of.  If I am busy they are forgotten for a while and that is a good thing.
I am very thankful for my memories, as we age they are like reading a good book. there is always some sadness, pain, laughter, love, disappointment but they are our own and no one else’s. I like remembering the good times and sometimes I have to drag  out the not so good ones. But even the not  so good ones are what makes me who I am.
I am thankful that I have a home, a warm fire when I need it. It might not be fancy, but it suits me .A bit wacky, old of style and comfortable. That does sort of describe  me also. Well they say that you start to look like your partner and my home has been my partner , my fortress, a safe haven  and never failing me, so if we seem to be alike that  is okay.
I remember as a child when I had a lot of fears and with good reason, I am thankful a lot of the fears did not happen. There were times as a child that I should not have been afraid but I was and children should not have to go through that. I am here now and  a grand mother and great grand mother. I have survived most of what I feared. Packed them up and put them where they belong in the mostly not  thought about memories. I am thankful that I want to remember the good.
I am thankful for the dreams I still dream and the ideas that I know I could do  if I was able to do them. A good imagination a wonderful gift from God and I exercise it  frequently. In fact  my writing is a bright? Idea I had one day and here I am doing it.
I am thankful that I met someone  that showed me my potential. The potential I always had but  thought was lost. He showed me there is no limits to what a person can do if they want to . It just takes the dream to try, so I will keep on dreaming and trying.

The Gift

Back when I was working home care one of my clients was a little 10 month old baby boy named Sam. He had just been diagnosed with a rare condition, with a long fancy name that meant he was normal except for one thing. There was no separation between the left and right frontal lobe. The parents were advised to put him in an institution because he would be retarded and helpless. Well the parents hired  the company I worked for and because I had experience with children with medical and mental problems  I was chosen to be his primary caregiver.
I had Sam for four years and in that time I realized that in that child's head shining through those big brown eyes was a bright child with a great sense of humor. Yes he could not move much could not sit by himself, had to be fed,  every move that was needed  to position him was done by someone else, namely me or his dad.
It was a constant job, but was so rewarding, I even took him home for week ends so his parents could spend time with the other child. Sam and I were buddies.My grand children treated him like one of our family, which in a way he was. Then the day came when two things happened , the doctors said I could not work anymore and Sam's family moved away. They asked me to move with them but I could not, I was  not in any physical shape to care for Sam anymore. So October 31st 2001 was the last time I saw him, he was gone from my life as I was from his. 
Yesterday I was looking on line at an online rummage sale site and I recognized a name, it was an aunt of Sam's. On a whim I went to her FB page and was looking at pictures and there was Sam, Still in a special wheelchair, still can not sit by himself, but the smile on his face  filled my heart with joy. Sam was alive, Sam was happy, I then messaged his aunt and explained about Sam and I and said I did not mean to snoop or be rude by looking at her page. She answered back and told me how Sam was doing and she was so happy that he was remembered after these years.
The truth is, we are blessed with so much that we do not realize , even if the blessing is mixed in pain, and parts of your life that has ended and new things begin. I know that there is nothing in this world that could have made me happier yesterday than seeing Sam.

Creative Challenge #289 ~Oh ~

OH YEAH!

Creative Challenge ~Joy~

                                                         Jackson Lee Born 1-1-2014