#207: Johan van Parys: Thoughts on Forgiveness

/in , , , , , /by

Dr. Johan van Parys is Director of Liturgy at Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis, and the lead article in the Sunday June 27 church bulletin was this powerful commentary.
Thoughts on Forgiveness
Paris is one of those magical cities. No matter what time of year one visits, the city has a way of capturing a person’s imagination. I don’t quite remember how many times I have been to Paris. Growing up in neighboring Belgium it made for an easy trip. Surprisingly, there was one monument never visited until my last trip there: the Mémorial des Martyrs de la Déportation, the memorial to those deported from France during World War II.
My grandfather and the other men working in my grandmother’s shoe factory were deported to Nazi camps because she refused to make shoes for the Nazi army. The family home was occupied and my grandmother and great-grandmother were made to work for Nazi officers. When my grandmother died, I inherited her papers including the moving letters my grandfather sent from the camp as well as letters from one of the officers who had occupied my grandmother’s house. The latter include descriptions of the devastation of his village; about the death of his two sons; and about the horrors of the war. Most striking was his plea for forgiveness.
Until I read these letters I had been unable to visit any death camps or memorials for those who died in the Second World War. After getting a glimpse of the power of forgiveness that was revealed to me through these letters, I was moved to learning and visiting. Thus I went to the Mémorial des Martyrs de la Déportation. It was an amazing experience.
At the edge of one of the islands in the river Seine a narrow and steep stairway leads down to the memorial courtyard. A low-level fenced-in window is the only place that allows a glimpse of the outside. A severe sculpture representing imprisonment and torture hangs in front of this window. On the opposite side, a narrow door guarded by two oppressive columns barely allows entrance into the memorial itself.
The main installation, on the far end of the foyer, is a long narrow corridor lined with 200,000 quartz crystals, one for each man, woman, child deported from France by during the Second World War. A rod-iron gate prevents entrance. An eternal flame burns at the very end of the corridor.
This extraordinary building captures those who enter it from the very first moment, guiding them down the narrow steps, through the courtyard, into the foyer, to the wall of remembrance and the eternal flame. This journey takes each person through the reality of the suffering of these particular people and all human suffering, to the light of hope for humanity which too often seems untenable and almost absurd.
My walk back to the hotel took me past Notre Dame Cathedral. I could not but enter and light a candle for all those who are suffering at the hand of other people. I stayed for Vespers and prayed “Thy Kingdom Come” with more fervor than ever before.

#204 – Dick Bernard: The "War Parties"?

/in , , , /by

A recent e-mail conversation on my own e-list has been focusing on the general question: “poll [the others on the list] and see which branch of the War Party they belong to: the Republicans or Democrats…?”
So, I asked the question, and got a range of responses.
If only things were so simple as labeling a group and then dismissing everyone in the group because of the label stuck to it….
Since I opened shop on this blog in March, 2009, I’ve identified myself as a “moderate pragmatic Democrat”. So, what does this mean in my own real world?
Tuesday night I attended – and volunteered at – a very successful summer picnic for our local Senate legislative district. It was a gathering for Democrats, and there were several hundred of us there. Every major candidate for Minnesota state and local offices showed up at the picnic and spoke. Those who found themselves scheduled in two or three or more places at once (there were a couple) sent others to represent them. These candidates are impressive people, ready to do the adult work that governing our complex society demands.
You would have seen me around the picnic. I stood out for a couple of reasons: I was wearing my DFL Senior Caucus t-shirt (I’m active in that recognized Democratic Party caucus); and I was also wearing my Veterans for Peace cap (I’m a member of that group as well), on which is affixed a button saying I “vote in honor of a veteran“, in my case, “my vote honors” Uncle Frank Bernard, who went down with the USS Arizona at Pearl Harbor. At the Secretary of State’s website I have written tributes to two WWII veterans, Marvin Campbell and Lynn Elling.
But in my case, it would be pretty hard to typecast me (and I think I’m a pretty typical person, Democrat, Republican or otherwise.) I’m something of a typical Democrat, I guess.
I would never have learned about Veterans for Peace, had I not been among the 6% of the American public in October, 2001, who challenged our going to war against Afghanistan (I could see no good coming out of the bombing, and I still can’t.) Yes, I was part of only 6%…it was a very, very lonely time.
Yes, most Democratic Representatives in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives supported this War, probably because they were like most people back then. Their decision, while I think it was foolish, was born out of personal conviction that it was the right thing to do at the time. In addition, it was likely a political “death wish” to vote against War then…and even now…people aren’t very well educated for Peace.
Tuesday night, none of the speakers focused on, or even mentioned to my recollection, things like “war”, “terrorists”, the like. Mostly they focused on concerns that ordinary people have today: jobs, education, environment, health care. Things like that horrible catastrophe in the Gulf of Mexico tend to divert attention from other issues…and there are a lot of other issues in addition to the War issue.
The next afternoon I visited with a friend who’s been hospitalized a long time, about to be moved to an extended care home for hoped for rehabilitation. While I was there, his sons came in, and talk got around to Peace issues – Verlyn is an old-school peace activist.
One son suggested that the risk of death for American soldiers in Afghanistan is less than getting killed in Washington D.C. and he was probably right. The other said today’s kids don’t have to risk being drafted, and they are constantly entertained, and not easily made to be interested in stuff like killing fields in far away places. Neither son was raising comments to ‘bait’ anyone; they were simply observations, which anti-War folks dismiss at peril. They gave me another insight about justifying war these days. If you can forget about collateral damage: never-ending psychological consequences of being in war, destruction of other peoples, destruction of our own economy, destruction of a sense of global good-will, war can be justified as relatively cheap and even safe. Plus, it is a good source of jobs. The anti-War movements marketing pitch needs to be very seriously looked at. Preaching to the choir is not good enough.
The War issue is, I would suggest, a very, very complicated issue…there are few around now who actively promote War, and similarly very few who think War is a useful way to resolve problems or assure our future.
But that picnic on Tuesday was full of people like myself, who either are veterans themselves, or know people in their own family or other circles who have served in the military.
I reject the notion that the Democratic Party is simply a version of the “War Party”.
The Republicans and everyone else can speak for themselves.
Posts for June 25 and June 27 directly relate to this topic.

#203 – Dick Bernard: Ship of Fools, Part II

/in , /by

After publishing #202, a long-time friend, a liberal Democrat, wrote with her comment on the post: “Maybe Republican was written too many times [some readers] don’t want to hear it.”
The comment caused me to use my word search function at the blog, to see in how many posts, of over 200, the words “Democrat/Democrats” had surfaced in my blog; and, similarly, how often “Republican/Republicans” had been mentioned. There were 16 posts where Democrat was used; 11 where Republican appeared. Eight of these mentioned both Republican and Democrat. One, the Index, really does not apply.
In short, fewer than 10% of my blog posts had any focus on named political parties.
Of course, this is not as simple as it might seem. For years, as a “liberal”, I have noticed that the word “liberal” has been adopted as one of the many hate words of the current brand of Republicans who run the Republican party. Newt Gingrich, never below the political horizon, bears lots of credit (blame) for deliberate abuse of language for political purposes. One of his long-ago basic training lists for his PAC, named GOPAC, is here. As often as not, “liberal” (or other words from that list) is spit out, almost as a swear word, by dedicated followers of the “conservative” mantra.
In my liberal friends case, tolerance is a virtue (pretty common for my liberal friends and acquaintances); for the contemporary Republican campaign operative, tolerance for other points of view is an intolerable attitude; or at best, a weakness in the opposition, to be exploited. On the other hand, if a Republican leader is criticized – other than by one of the flock – one has hell to pay: “How dare you?!”
So, I stand my ground on the “word” usage issue. Political rhetoric is a weapon.
About a week before my friends comment I had been at a speech given by a current state-wide office holder in Minnesota. This person is highly respected, including by his peers in similar positions in other states.
Like all politicians, he is condemned to several months of going around to every conceivable setting to convince enough people to reelect him. He seems to enjoy the tussle.
During his speech he related a recent visit to some community event where one of the local citizens told him “we need to vote all you bastards out“. The angry man apparently didn’t define his terms: if “bastards” were Democrats only, or if he meant all politicians regardless of the office or party anywhere.
Really, it’s no matter. The “bastard” guys shallowness of thinking is such that he probably really believes an “ethnic cleansing” of politicians will save the day…though having known people like him through my life, he would be the first person complaining when his dream took effect about the pothole that wasn’t repaired, or this, or that, or the other. Still, there’s a strong attitude out there, “to hell with them all”, and certain political constituencies are trying to focus their diverse angers to take control of the very government the angry constituents despise.
Similarly, there are people – lots of them – who can’t be bothered with any broad view of the role of government, or the diversity of people in their society. It is enough for them to focus on their single issue, whatever that is, without any consideration for anything else. At some level they must know they can’t look at “government” this simplistic way, but nonetheless they do.
We are the government, and we deserve what we elect.
As I close, I think of some guy my age, senior citizen, who I happened to be next to at our voting location some years ago. This guy, obviously a very angry guy, was with his wife, and went in the booth and voted.
He came out and told her (and anyone else within earshot), “Now, I’ve voted and that gives me the right to complain.” Sometimes I wonder where he’s at today….
At least he voted.

#202 – Dick Bernard: Why Are We a Ship Full of Fools?

/in , , , , /by

Thursday afternoon a friend stopped by to visit. He’d been to a wake at a nearby mortuary, paying respects to a long-time colleague who, he said, had few friends and almost no family. A kindly gesture.
We visited.
Jim is a fairly recent retiree from a career position in state government. I suppose somebody could call him a “bureaucrat”; some others wouldn’t even elevate him to that hated status. But he’s had a career inside the state system and he knows it very well. He also knows local politics, having been an elected city council member in his suburban community.
Our state like many others is grappling with huge budget issues. Recently the legislature (Democrat) avoided a special session showdown with our Governor (Republican-and-running-for-2012-GOP Presidential-nomination) by, as Jim put it, putting off catastrophic decisions until 2011. Either taxes must be raised, or draconian cuts made in needed services (meaning also, of course, cuts in personnel and/or their wages and benefits which in turn hurts the economy). But our formerly (ten years or more ago, I’d say, when negotiating differences meant something) responsible state government has again succumbed to political reality – getting elected in November.
Earlier in the day my wife had been to the hospital to visit our friend Annette who’d been “fired” from her job in early December. I put “fired” in quotes, because she was simply let go under the guise of being “fired”: She qualified immediately for unemployment, with no contest whatsoever from her former employer. She has not actively sought a job as she needed the surgery to work. She could not get the surgery until she qualified for a certain stop-gap insurance to cover the bill, which in turn she couldn’t qualify for until a month after her eligibility for another insurance plan (one she could not afford) ran out. (Yes, it is complicated, but it’s how I remember the scenario).
Thursday night I watched the news, part of which was the failure, once again, to get an extension of unemployment benefits through the U.S. Senate. The vote was to allow an up-or-down vote and avoid a filibuster. The senators call it “invoking cloture”. It takes 60 votes for cloture, in a 100 member Senate. Fifty-seven Democrats voted aye; forty Republicans and one Democrat voted nay, and the motion failed. There are so many issues, and filibusters are diversions that cannot be afforded. The politicians have their issue: “that’ll show those shiftless and lazy dolts who are feeding at the public trough – go out and get a job” (even if there’s no job to get). Jobs are the reason the stimulus is needed in the first place. (The excuse used by senators – and it is only an excuse – is that this will increase the deficit; they all know its actual effect will be the opposite, which is why the Republicans want it to fail. I wrote about this multiplier effect one year ago on this blog.)
The Republican strategy is the same as it has been from Day One of the Obama Presidency: make him fail, and in failure, enhance the prospect for Republican success in November. That 60-vote cloture rule is one of their main tools.
Blocking legislation is a good short-term political strategy…and we are fools to bite, but many of us are – at least that’s the Republican calculus to win in November.
That night we had a house guest while I watched the national news. He was one of our grandsons, whose Dad was working his second job.
His Dad is one of those who was laid off from a corporate job last March, and has taken a temporary job – “no more than a year” – with lower wages than he was earning, with the State of Minnesota*. His job seems to be intake phone calls from fellow-unemployed persons, including occasional ones contemplating suicide because they can’t find work. He is the first point of contact with the State, and he is to help them navigate the maze to possible assistance on their particular problem. It is hard work.
When the axe falls, as it will, on our state in January, his job will almost certainly be history. So will, likely, the usual possibility that even a temporary state job might lead to something more permanent. He has to work two jobs to survive, which cuts into his opportunity to seek other employment….
And we continue on, cruising on this Ship of Fools, justifying our short-sightedness and selfishness.
At some point, our ship will sink; it’s now rapidly taking on water. We seem not to care.
* – Subsequent to this post, I visited with my son-in-law: he’s one of 400 doing this job, and he receives over 100 phone calls per day. There is no down time.
A directly related post, by Paul Krugman in Monday’s New York Times, is here.
A followup post at this blog and on this topic is #203, here.

#201 – Dick Bernard: Sock Monkey takes a trip

/in , , /by

Back in April, my son Tom alerted me to watch for a package containing a Sock Monkey. It was in Michigan, he said, and our home was its next stop. When I received it I was to let people who knew his daughter (thus my granddaughter) Lindsay see the monkey, and write a note or such wishing well her and her-husband-to be Jeffrey.
We talked by phone, and Tom mentioned that the monkey was his idea. He could remember seeing such a monkey at some relatives house years earlier, and he thought it would be a neat idea to have a Sock Monkey carry a message of good wishes to the newlyweds.
It was certainly a neat idea.
Sock Monkey came, and I got into the task far more so than I had expected.
Sock Monkey went out to North Dakota to the ancestral farm, and took a photo with Tom’s grandmother’s brother and sister.
Back in the Twin Cities, the Monkey got around, visiting all of the places that Tom had lived and gone to school before he migrated to Colorado many years ago. Sock Monkey posed with Tom’s sisters and their families, and with friends.
I worried about misplacing, or forgetting, the Monkey in its makeshift home – a small packing box.
Memorial Day we began our trip west via the Black Hills with an overnight in the famous Wall S.D. Sock Monkey got free ice water at the Wall Drug (well, figuratively speaking); made a call out west from the phone booth in front of the drug store; posed with the dinosaur, and was pretty generally was a pretty typical tourist. Walking through the Wall Drug with the Monkey I found a whole rack full of Sock Monkey’s! The friendly monkey had a family reunion, right there on the Main Street of Wall!
We drove on, through eastern Wyoming, where Sock Monkey (below) took a moment to perch on the dashboard and take a look at Wyoming’s scenery.

Sock Monkey visits Wyoming


Safely in Denver, I delivered Sock Monkey to the father of the bride, who, at the reception presented the Sock Monkey to the new couple. I gathered this was a surprise gift, but one of the highlights of their wedding weekend.
At the gift opening the day after the wedding, one of the highlight gifts was a Sock Monkey stained glass window made by one of the relatives in Michigan. It was a hit.
That Sock Monkey was a very simple idea.
But what a wonderful one!
Related posts: here and here.

Sock Monkey gets undivided attention at the Wedding Reception


A wedding gift: Sock Monkey in stained glass!

#200 – Dick Bernard: Fathers Day

/in , , /by

Happy Father’s Day all you Dads, and those whose role is or has been or will be that of “Dad”.
Wikipedia notes, without any fanfare, that this is the 100th anniversary of the observance of Father’s Day, it’s first observance on June 19, 1910.
I’ve been around long enough to have been a Dad not far short of half of those 100 years. Most Dad’s days have been pretty normal days; once in a great while comes one that’s not so hot; and if you’re really lucky, every now and then comes one that is a peak experience, not always on the day itself.
This year was one of those “peak experience” years, two weeks ago Friday, when I watched my oldest son give away his daughter, my granddaughter, to her new husband, Jeffrey. It was one of those “chest-swelling, button-splitting proud” moments for me. Leaving the Chapel, people in the pews applauded we grandparents of bride and groom, and I self-consciously waved. It’s a difficult experience to describe.
This Father’s Day also marks the end of a year spent trying to summarize nearly 400 years of my French-Canadian father’s family history. I’ve been going through boxes of documentation, recollections, letters, pictures: mother’s, father’s, sons and daughters, extended family…. For me the dates of birth, marriage, death are not nearly as interesting as the stories of these assorted names who are the roots of my particular family tree. The Bernard family story includes all of the elements of the story of most every family – memorable things, things you’d rather not have known. It’s just how it is.
Father’s Day came to be as an appropriate recognition somewhat akin to the earlier and still better known Mother’s Day. Father’s Day was, apparently, a woman’s idea at the beginning.
There can be endless discussion of why Mother’s Day came earlier than Father’s Day, or why it seems to still have a higher place in the pecking order of observances even today, but those can take place off to the side, and individually.
Being “Father” or “Mother” has traditionally and likely always will mean different roles and responsibilities which evolve over time in each family. (I’ve been both father and mother on more than one occasion – that is another story.)
Recently, a wonderful relative, now 90, wrote me about a long, long ago happening in her home when she was five years old. Her Grandpa – her Dad’s Dad, and my Great-Grandfather – had come to live with them on the farm after his wife had died. One day he fell down the steps and had to be hospitalized. After some time in the hospital, a decision needed to be made about him coming back to the farm for his last days, or remaining in the hospital. He died in the hospital a few months later. To this day there remain some residual feelings about whether or not Great-Grandpa’s last days were handled appropriately, and there are still conversations many years later. (In my opinion, there is no question: his last days were handled very appropriately.)
Agnes, with the directness a person her age is entitled to, wrote about the decision making process at that time: “Mom could not take care of him. [She c]ould not depend on Dad or brothers to help. Farm men don’t spend their time in the house.” And so it went. Another dilemma in the country, repeated endless times, people doing the best that they could under not always the best circumstances.
As we deal with the complexities of our own lives, a Happy Day to All, especially Dad’s.

#197 – Dick Bernard: Taking Responsibility

/in , , , , /by

In an hour or so President Obama will deliver an address that will be closely watched world-wide. Afterwards, as he and his advisors know, every word (or lack of same), expression, inflection, will be analyzed and isolated to suit the purposes of endless numbers of observers, who will then cast judgment, positive or negative, on what he says or doesn’t say. This is how the game is played.
I’ll watch the address. That’s about it.
I choose to focus, rather, on some random events, starting with an e-mail from a friend about 9 this morning. This friend is in international business, an exporter of USA and Canadian food and feed grains and seeds. He said: “To be honest business is just terrible. I do not see how the world can avoid a double dip recession as consumption is down in all areas with inventories not moving as anticipated.”
My friend is an astute veteran international business man. What he observes is not some abstract thing. It’s where he lives, literally.
What he said this morning ties in, I think, with what the President faces tonight when the camera rolls at the White House.
From May 31 through June 7 we were on the road to a family wedding in Colorado. By the time we left on our trip, the President had accepted responsibility for taking care of the oil spill. When we got back, one of the first film clips we saw on evening news was of Elizabeth Cheney asserting on one of the Sunday newsmaker programs that since this thing happened on Obama’s watch, it was his responsibility. There was not any acknowledgment that her Daddy, the former vice-president who’s been silent as stone on this issue, might share some responsibility. Their behavior reminds me of something I once heard from an ordinary person: “Mom taught me never to apologize“.
President Obama did what we expect of him: take on our responsibility. The Cheney’s, on the other hand, did what we too often expect of ourselves: nothing.
Every now and then on our trip out west (we were two couples in a Prius) we talked about whether or not this 2500 miles was a frivolous trip. Even at a pretty amazing 40mpg, we wondered, should we be doing this.
Occasionally we’d ask business people about their business, and in each instance, business was down: fewer people travelling; those people spending less.
During the past week, we’ve now begun to hear the expected refrain from the British, whose pensions are in many ways depending on the economic health of the mega-corporation, BP. “Make the corporation responsible and it’s going to damage all of us“, so goes the refrain. I think it was yesterday that Haley Barbour, the political genius who’s Governor of Mississippi, seemed to begin to make the case that drilling ought to resume, regardless of what had just happened. After all, the saw goes, people need jobs. “Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead”.
And so it goes. Personally, I’m inclined to be moved by my friends comment earlier in this post. If we can afford to do so – and most of us can – I think now is a time to put money into the economy so as to help allay a darker and deeper recession. Sure, make choices of where you spend that money, but best to put some of the treasure in the money bin into circulation. I won’t buy a bushel of my friends soybean seed, but the money multiplier does work. And we’re the base for this.
I’m glad we made our trip. So is my son and granddaughter and daughter-in-law. So are the motels we stayed in. So is the girl from Russia who waited on us at a restaurant in Wall SD.
President Obama will be on stage tonight. But everyone of us, in the wings, has our own important and constructive part to play.
For those interested, here’s a link to the White House, related to the Presidents address.

#196 – Dick Bernard: Lindsay and Jeffrey's Wedding

/in , , , /by

Okay, okay.
Here’s a slide show of a wedding with 84 slides, and I took them all. (Simply click on the first photo in the group, and then you can play this as a slide show, as you wish.)
Do cut me some slack. After all, it was granddaughter Lindsay’s wedding, June 4, 2010, at the beautiful Red Rocks in Morrison CO, with other events in Denver suburbs Lakewood and Littleton. We had a wonderful trip, and time.
Some of you know the “players” in the slide show; others may know no one. I’m the white-bearded, white-haired guy…there aren’t many of us to pick from! In the photos are my siblings and my kids and many of their spouses. At the wedding, a few deer were a delightful distraction (the man officiating reminded us that he knew the deer were there, right behind him, but we were in the chapel for a wedding!) But how can you not notice?
Simply Sloppy Joe’s is there in the slides: it is a small, well known popular walk-in eatery in Denver area, the enterprise of Lindsay’s Mom, with her Dad’s help. The business name says it all. A few standard varieties of Sloppy Joe with a weekly special. Even Sloppy Joe cookies. They’re a local institution, well known and loved in the Denver area, at the corner of Pierce and Mississippi in suburban Lakewood. Check them out if you’re in Denver. If you know someone in Denver area, let them know of Simply Sloppy Joe’s!
But this slide show is about a wedding. And it was, truly, one of the nicest, best weddings I’ve ever attended. Sure, I’m biased. But it was.
In the images are some clues about the high points of the wedding.
There’s a sock monkey who appears in a few places. “Sock Monkey” travelled all over creation, and appeared in lots of photographs on both sides of the new family. The images ended up in an album, an enduring message about the strength of family. One of Jeffrey’s relatives in Michigan made a stained glass sock monkey. Cute. I took my sock monkey duty seriously. Along the monkey went to North Dakota, Minnesota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Colorado. Sock Monkey even stopped at Wall Drug for a glass of free ice water!
I liked the refrigerator door display in the new couple’s townhome. It’s in the photos. Lindsay loves the Beatles, for a very personal reason. I told her the Beatles were just hitting it big in the United States when her Dad was born in 1964.
Instead of the traditional unity candle, the couple used a natural theme, a young sapling, for that portion of the ceremony. The simple wedding cake followed the natural theme. A story teller told a marvelous story. At this wedding, good followed good followed good….
They recently closed on their townhome, and a criteria was that its cost be low enough so that it could be paid for if only one of the two were working. Good practical old-time kind of thinking.
Marriage is often viewed as a destination.
More accurately, I see it as the beginning of a trip along a road which is not always predictable.
I wish Lindsay and Jeffrey well.
From what I experienced last week, they’re off to a good start.
Congratulations and best wishes!
A pre-wedding post on the upcoming wedding is at the blog for May 31, 2010.

#193 – Dick Bernard: A Place called "Town"

/in , /by

Been a spell since I’ve posted here. No particular reason. Maybe time for a break…the beginning of Memorial Day Weekend seems a good time to break the silence.
A little over a week ago I took a trip out to North Dakota to visit my Uncle and Aunt who live in an assisted living facility in tiny LaMoure ND. There was no particular reason for the visit – just a bit overdue. The 6 hour drive out, and then, back, was about the hardest “work” I did.
The days were perfect spring days.
One morning – it was a Thursday – I went to join my kin and their fellow residents for breakfast. I was early, so I decided to sit outside and watch the world go by before 8 a.m.
In a town of 1000, as LaMoure, there really isn’t much of a “world” to pass by, but my bench was on the street heading to the local public school just one block away.
It was the last day of the school year this particular morning.
A solitary kid came by with a backpack as big as he was, made a right turn heading up the block to school.
Across the street, another kid came by on a bicycle and saw someone he knew in their yard, and said “hi Mr. ___”, startling the man who was walking towards his car. The man, probably my own kids age, said “hi” back, got in his car and drove off to wherever his day was taking him.
It was only a block to the school so I took the short walk to the front door. A little ahead of me were a couple of young girls dressed in the simple style of Hutterites, who have a community nearby. They were quietly chattering. One went in one door, another in the other.
I stopped to look at a monument in front of the school which featured the school bell from the old building which had occupied the block where the Assisted Living facility now stands. I looked at the plaque explaining it, and it had been a project of the local Boy Scout troop some years back.
Another kid came in the door, and I left.
Back at the facility, my bench faced the American flag on the flag pole. It had seen altogether too much North Dakota wind. I decided it would be a good family gift to the residents, and later went downtown to the Hardware store to pick up the flag. Almost immediately it was installed by the appreciative administrator.
Other happenings, at the local Drug Store, Gasoline station, Grain Elevator; a brief visit with some old friends; the news in the local paper, the LaMoure Chronicle…. All added positively to my visit.
Before I left town, I went up to my uncle and aunts apartment, and outside the window saw the flag billowing in the wind. I took a photo.
There are a great plenty of problems in our society and in our world. Yes, the local LaMoure paper has police happenings, and Cable TV is ubiquitous everywhere.
But it was good, on those three days in North Dakota, to notice the other and (I believe) still dominant side of American society. Basically we are a bunch of good people trying to make a positive differences.
This Memorial Day I prefer to focus on the bright side, the good side.
Have a great weekend.

#185 – Dick Bernard: Easter (and other) Postcards from the olden days

/in , /by

Happy Easter.
Some years ago I convinced my Uncle to loan me his collection of old postcards, sent to the rural North Dakota farm where he and my mother and many others grew up. The cards were mostly from the early 1900s, and in the end I scanned over 150 of them, and wrote a commentary about them which is still accessible. (At the end of the commentary I suggest that the cards are still viewable, but they are no longer available from that source. Maybe another spring project…. See paragraph below.)
I comment on the Easter cards in the post. Succinctly, about 40% of the cards had a religious theme, while the other 60% had more seasonal or secular themes. This surprised me somewhat because this farm family and its root family was very religious. And these cards were mostly from the first decade of the 1900s.
Following are samples of the cards, secular, religious.
There are many others. (The on-line album listed at the article is no longer available. Here is a link to all of the postcards, including the Easter themes.)
Have a good Easter, or spring day, or whatever is your wish or belief on this April 4, 2010.