Monthly Archives: May 2025

The Road to Diamond, Day 164: Mothers

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Posted by on in collaborating, Community, Entertainment, Family, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

May 11, 2025, Saugus, MA- In the end, my plan to take the rocking chair left by my mother when she passed away last year ended up a bust. The structure of Sportage was the main issue-the bar supporting the back storage privacy screen cannot be removed. It is a design flaw of the 2020 models, and is generally not an issue. It was, this time, but the chair is in good hands.

I spent a few minutes graveside this morning, then joined my brother and sister-in-law for a Mother’s Day lunch. It was held at a steak house, which Mom would have enjoyed. Some traditions continue and others are newly established. I like to think the steak house lunch is a bit of both. Time was that Hilltop Steak House was the place to go. It closed and was re-developed into a mixed use collection of residences and small shops. Across the highway, though, is Jimmy’s Steer House, an equally fine establishment. That was our lunch venue today.

After three days of rain, the skies were clear and it was shirtsleeve weather. This was fitting for honouring the people who have kept the human race going, for at least a million years. The first woman was probably not called Eve; she may not even have had a name. Language would have come well after human consciousness arose. The maternal instinct, though, has been passed up from some fairly simple animals to us, the highest form of earthly life.

I have recently been told that, in a certain person’s view, everything that I am today is because of the government. The state has little to do with who I am, though. That honour goes quite strongly to my parents, especially to Mom, who did so much for the five of us. Without her roadmaps and admonitions, my father’s work of keeping a roof over our heads and food on the table would have been next to impossible. It is because of her that “adulting”, for me, is less of a burden, and is in fact a joy.

I will leave this hometown of mine tomorrow, heading first to Pennsylvania to family and friends there, then on to Virginia and Tennessee for brief visits with other friends and to Texas, for a few days with my little family. Mom’s spirit will stay with me, as will Penny’s, and each leg of the journey ahead will be safe.

Safety and guidance are the pillars of a mother’s love.

The Road to Diamond, Day 163: America’s Stonehenge

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Posted by on in collaborating, Community, Hiking and Nature, Historical, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

May 10, 2025, Salem, NH- About a month ago, Hiking Buddy and I were talking about the petroglyphs of Williamson Valley. She mentioned about the existence of a site in southern New Hampshire where documented pre-Columbian standing stones, with some verified inscriptions of Celtic and possibly Phoenician origin had been found. I know there have been similar sites in Minnesota that have been investigated and debunked, but this one had more of a ring of truth to it. I made a promise to myself to check out the site that was once called Mystery Hill.

Today brought that chance, and after enjoying lunch with my sister and brother-in-law, I headed up I-495, to New England’s other Salem. The town was a staple of my childhood, with visits to my mother’s sister and her family, and an annual summer gathering at Canobie Lake Park. I stopped briefly at the north end of the lake, which is a water supply for the area. Fishing is plentiful, but as one might guess, swimming is not allowed. We mainly picnicked and enjoyed the small amusement park.

Salem, NH
North side of reservoir, Canobie Lake, Salem, NH

America’s Stonehenge, as Mystery Hill is now called, was a gathering site for Pawtucket First Nations people, themselves a branch of the Penacook Confederacy, which held sway across a wide swath of New Hampshire, Vermont, northern Massachusetts and western Maine, for hundreds of years before European settlement. The Pawtuckets themselves lived in an area from what is now Fitchburg (north central Massachusetts) to Saugus and Lynn, on the Atlantic Coast. Their central community was at what is now Lowell.

Pawtuckets
Pawtucket First Nation history

The area itself was farmed by the Pattee family, from the late Eighteenth Century until around 1900. Seth Pattee attempted to turn the property into a quarry for building stone, around the time of the Civil War. His son ended that practice and worked to preserve the area, having gleaned its cultural and historical heritage. This preservation began in earnest, with the research of William Goodwin, in the 1930s. When Robert Stone took over the property in 1958, he and his son, Dennis, saw the value in enlisting public support. The Stone family has been working hard, since 1958, to increase public awareness of the connections between peoples on both sides of the Atlantic, and that these connections are likely much older than is customarily believed.

The site seems to have been used as a ceremonial area, for marking major yearly astronomical events, such as the Solstices and Equinoxes. These seem to have been marked in a manner more customary for the Celtic peoples of western Europe than for early First Nations peoples of the Americas, and their predecessors. This suggests that there was, at minimum, regular contact between people on both sides of the Atlantic, as far back as 4,000 years ago.

I took several video clips of the trail. Unfortunately, these are too large for the Word Press format, so here are some still photos that accompanied the videos.

EW Chamber
East-West Chamber, also called Gallery Grave. This is similar to Celtic structures in Ireland and Brittany.
Small chamber
Outdoor stone table, with a small chamber perhaps used as a storage area.
Eye Rock
This rock, with a faded “eye” , was intended most likely as a watch talisman.

I will continue to look into sharing the video clips via this blog site. In the meantime, here are some resources by which you may learn about this unique site, and its archeo-astronomical importance.

America’s Stonehenge: Souvenir Book Paperback – October 1, 2018

by Dennis Stone (Author), Katherine Stone (Editor), & 1 more

America B.C.: Ancient Settlers in the New World, Revised Edition Paperback – June 1, 1989

by Barry Fell (Author)

The Road to Diamond, Day 162: The Incessant Rain

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Posted by on in children, collaborating, Community, impediments, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

May 9, 2025, Southboro, MA- It rained all day, from Williamsport, PA to here, in a suburb of New England’s second largest city, Worcester.

The small group of teens sent two of their number to greet me, as I was fixing my coffee, in the gas station convenience store. After exchanging pleasantries, the girls went back to their group and said something on the order of, “He’s safe”. This was Newtown, where, in December of 2014, 26 people died at the hands of a lone gunman-in the school where the people gathered in the store today would have been either pre-schoolers or kindergartners. It makes sense for them to, at some level, be checking strangers for signs of either compassion or hostility. The incessant rain of fear falls even now.

A couple of workmen, still in their work uniforms, came into the laundromat where I was washing and drying my clothes, this evening. They spoke little English, but it didn’t matter to me. We were all just humans, tending to what we have been given. We were all okay with each other’s presence. It will ever be so, with me anyway. Yet, 3.5 hours away, at Delaney Hall, NJ, the sitting mayor of Newark was arrested, for having been inside a Federal detention center and protesting the random detention of people suspected of being in this country illegally. The incessant rain of distrust falls, all around us, as the rule of law is questioned.

There is no relief from the physical rain, while it does its work of cleansing and replenishing our water supply. It can bother some, while comforting others, but it will continue until it’s done with its work. There can be relief, from the rains of fear and distrust, if one takes the time to get to know those who might initially strike that fear or distrust. The caveats are that we always need to be aware of our surroundings-and take responsibility for our own safety and well-being.

The kids mentioned above might have been sizing me up to be mugged-except that they weren’t. Ditto with the two young men who had just knocked off work. Four people, in the past ten years, have had ill intentions towards me. Each one, initially, came across as friendly. The difference was that they quickly dropped their guises and variously had their hands out for money or, in one case, decided that physical assault was in order. I caught on in time, and saved life, limb and resources. Intuition and discernment are better than blanket suspicion and fear.

As I lay me down to sleep, it’s still raining outside and might still be, tomorrow. It will not be raining fear and suspicion in my heart.

The Road to Diamond, Day 161: The Long Repair Job

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Posted by on in children, collaborating, Community, distraction issues, Inspiration, Personal Values, service, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

May 8, 2025, Williamsport, PA- From the time I got onto I-80, in Mishawaka to the time I left the road, at the junction with U.S. 15, fifteen miles south of this headquarters city for Little League Baseball, there was virtually nonstop road construction. It resulted in closed lanes, almost every 15-20 miles or so, for a length of 2-3 miles for each segment.

I am told this is one of the major projects that is being funded by Build Back Better, the program that some say is a “left-wing, Green New Deal” boondoggle. Note that this work is focused on shoring up the concrete median, between eastbound and westbound lanes of the Interstate Highway, and fixing guardrails. While it was initiated by Progressives, a better roadway system is in the best interests of anyone who drives, both commercial and recreational. Stopping the work now, or even soon, would not save much, if anything, and would leave remaining fixes undone. While it is inconvenient for those of us driving now, it is best to get the work done before schools let out and families hit the road.

Most of the day was highway-bound. I came upon Ridgeway Inn, just south of downtown Williamsport, around 8 :30 pm. This lovely little motel is managed remotely, but apparently by someone who is close enough that major issues could be addressed readily. Williamsport itself is a clean and, in places, somewhat upscale community, with a strong tourist base that derives from its association with Little League Baseball. Several years ago, one of my nephews was on Saugus, MA’s Little League championship team, which faced against a team from Japan, in the Little League World Series. The Japanese boys won, but Saugus has named a public athletic field as World Series Field. It’s right across a lea from my boyhood home.

For this, and the general ambiance of the city, Willliamsport is another Pennsylvania city that has a place in my heart-along with Bedford, Wilkes-Barre, Exton, Oley and Clarion, to say nothing of Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Harrisburg and York.

The Road to Diamond, Day 160: Windy City Calmness

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Posted by on in Assistance, children, collaborating, Community, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

May 7, 2025, Mishawaka- As I walked around the outside of the Baha’i House of Worship, in Wilmette, about 40 miles north of the Chicago Loop, it struck me that the air was a bit cool and the wind brisk. About halfway through my walk, the wind died down and I felt a lot more comfortable. Maybe it was just a matter of acclimation. The atmosphere inside the Temple was warm, and made more so by quiet prayer, said for all who are important in my life, and those who have gone on.

The day started in earnest with a drive up I-39, to the small city of Rochelle, and a satisfying lunch of soup and sandwich, at Sunrise Family Restaurant. The kids were all in school, of course, so the families were mostly people my age or older. The wait staff knew many of the patrons, giving the place a comforting ambiance. I was also treated very well.

After a winding drive through the farmlands and older suburbs of west Chicagoland, I managed to get to the House of Worship around 3 pm. 90 minutes were more than enough time to accomplish the circumambulation, prayers-and purchasing a fresh copy of Baha’i Prayers. I let my friends here in Mishawaka know when leaving the parking lot of the Temple, and started the drive through Chicagoland, fully anticipating a long, slow slog.

Likely due to the fact that it is midweek, that drive took a mere fifty minutes, from Wilmette to the Skyway, which is just shy of the Indiana state line. Another hour, and I was here at my friends’ new house. The Windy City showed an unusual calm, along the south and east bound freeway. For whatever reason, though, the north and west bound roads were bumper to bumper. I’ve been in that situation, countless times, so experiencing the opposite was a blessing.

It is always nice to touch base with V and M.

The Road to Diamond, Day 159: Another Freeway Day

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Posted by on in collaborating, Community, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

May 6, 2025, El Paso, IL- Everyone, it seems, knows Doc. The grill cook at Penny’s Diner, in Wellington, KS, is congenial, relaxed and goes about his craft in a methodical manner-as if he’s been slinging hash browns, scrambling eggs and frying bacon since he was five. Maybe he has. My order, a short stack with bacon, took little doing, and set me just fine for five hours or so.

I left Wellington, a little after 9, and while I normally take I-44 to St. Louis and then up I-55 to Chicago, with my cousin in Avila, MO hard at work and thus better left alone, I chose the Kansas Turnpike to I-70, at Kansas City and then crossed Missouri in its mid-section. One meal stop at Emporia, KS (Braum’s is one of my guilt-free pleasures) and a couple of gas-ups along the way sufficed.

Tonight’s stage-setting for a visit to the Baha’i House of Worship, Wilmette involved NOT going over to Chicago and getting into the scrum on the city’s mess of freeways. Instead, I am on the far southwest corner of Chicagoland, near where it meets the Peoria metropolitan area.. El Paso was actually founded in the mid-19th Century, by a couple of railroad men. One of them, George Gibson, gave the place a Spanish touch because of the rail switching station here. El Paso’s claim to ill-fame came in 2022, when 100 cars managed to pile up on I-39.

I will be taking that freeway tomorrow, up to State Route 72, then to Hwy 68 and down I-94, a bit of exploration of west Chicagoland, but why not? For now, I am relaxed and just glad to not still be on the road, at 9:30 pm. Econolodge is a fine place for the evening.

The Road to Diamond, Day 158: Small Service Bookends

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Posted by on in Assistance, collaborating, Community, Matters of Faith, Personal Values, service, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

May 5, 2025, Wellington, KS- Cinco de Mayo was marked at Mama Fina’s, in Plains, Kansas. The unofficial holiday has nothing to do with the United States, per se, but does commemorate the victory of the Mexican people over French invaders, in 1862, at the Battle of Puebla. It is said that we just love a good excuse to party-which seems to be human nature, and doesn’t hurt anything, unless carried to excess. Serafina produces both mild and spicy Mexican fare. Her smothered burrito is of the former variety, but filled the bill for the evening. A local high school student was the server, and spoke of her experiences at the small county-wide school. She also shared that she prefers watching Netflix to being on her phone-as a live action “Peter Rabbit”, featuring a kung fu Peter, was on the wide screen-with its video off.

Earlier in the day, I drove from Socorro to Mountainaire, NM, and found a small deli- cafe, nestled inside B Street Market, the town’s grocery store. The proprietor served up a fine breakfast sandwich. While I was waiting, a lady came in and asked me whether there was any hot food available-so I pointed her in the cafe’s direction. Ten minutes later, there was another satisfied local customer for the deli-cafe.

The day rolled out nicely, and connection with a Zoom call, over the phone and Bluetooth, proceeded, intermittently but basically well, as I rolled through the High Plains of eastern New Mexico and the upper Texas Panhandle, on the way to Dalhart, Guymon and Liberal (KS). Covering four states in a day, even driving fairly straight roads, is a good effort.

Kansas is often treeless, but seldom featureless. The glaciers of the last Great Ice Age did not spare this area, especially in the region known as Flint Hills. The red soil evokes some of the lower hills of Sedona.

Red Hills of western Kansas (above and below)

I rolled in to Wellington, around 10 pm and chose Travelodge, looking ahead to tomorrow’s breakfast, as a Penny’s Diner branch was next door. This is one of those properties where two separate hotels are managed by one desk, so I went to the Baymont office to register. Back across the street, i found a man looking in the window of the former Travelodge office, and scratching his head. I called to him to go over across the street, and ended up repeating the instruction in Spanish. He was happy to have his confusion resolved to say the least.

It was a fine thing, to be able to offer small services, in morning and evening.

The Road to Diamond, Day 157: Phalanxes

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Posted by on in animal and plant life, Assistance, collaborating, Community, impediments, Matters of Faith, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

May 4, 2025, Socorro, NM- All along my drive through the Gila Mountains of eastern Arizona and western New Mexico- and into the grassy foothills, they stood, alternately grazing and watching me, from the safety of the road’s edge. They were veritable phalanxes of elk, probably four dozen in all, from just outside Alpine, AZ to just south of Datil, NM.

The last pair, between Datil and Magdalena, were an adult cow and a juvenile bull, the latter of which tentatively decided to challenge Sportage for the road. As I turned the car to the left and gave him space, he decided that two tons of metal and fiberglass was more formidable, and moved backwards, sparing us both the grief of a collision.

There were near phalanxes of rabbits, also. Most of them scattered at the approach of the SUV. Only one ran under the car, and sadly met death. Rabbits being fodder for coyotes, I was pleasantly surprised to not see the canines out and about. Deer were also nowhere to be seen, though they tend to not compete with elk for forage.

This all took place after the second day of our Baha’i conference in Phoenix. We have discussed the matter of forming strong communities. The idea of a separate group of people setting the tone for the wider community only works to a limited extent. The community as a whole must be, and feel, included in decision-making-whether it be a matter of spiritual growth or material well-being. Further, there can be no separation, no us and them, in the process of community growth. The phalanx must be one.

It was thus a very full day, and I am most happy, relieved, at being in this comfortable room at Economy Inn. Socorro has had its struggles, but it is a nice town. I will rest well tonight.

The Road to Diamond, Day 156: Heroes, Super and Otherwise

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Posted by on in Assistance, children, collaborating, Community, Entertainment, impediments, Inner Struggles, Inspiration, Matters of Faith, Personal Values, service, Social, Spiritual, Striving

May 3, 2025, Phoenix- The comforter on the bed I am borrowing for the evening is Superhero-themed. I am now safe from anything that could threaten the well-being of a six-year-old boy. Since he’s away, this seventy-four-year-old, overgrown kid can expect the same. Monsters and villains, be gone!

Heroes, in real life, come in many shapes, sizes and guises. The people who seem to stand in our way, and keep us from what what we think we might want, will sometimes turn out to be our best friends-and unlikely heroes in our lives. Remember the tale of Majnoon, searching for his beloved Layli (Layla, of the Eric Clapton song). His path was blocked by one or another watchman, until he vaulted himself over a wall-and found her looking fr a ring she had lost.

Heroes can be full of bravado, or they can be ordinary people (as in the Dave Grohl song). They can be constantly in action, in the limelight or just be around-for one day (as in the David Bowie song). Yes, we have been celebrating our deliverers and saviors from time immemorial. From the Epic of Gilgamesh, to the Iliad and Odyssey, the Tales of Hiawatha, Icelandic sagas and stories of the Samurai, all the way to the Marvel and DC characters, we derive much comfort in the idea that someone has our backs.

It is best, though, that we are our own, and one another’s champions. Acting in the interests of each person in our world-starting with ourselves, but not stopping there, can be challenging. The alternative, though, is to let someone else determine the entirety of our existence. That may seem easier, but recall the fates of those who acquiesced to tyrants, throughout history. Were they happier, in the fullness of time? Were their needs met?

Today, in conference with many of my fellow Baha’is, at the Center where Penny and I spent many happy hours, in the often troubled 2000s, I was reminded that “heroism” is hard work and that it is often not intentional, but the result of just putting oneself out there, on behalf of humanity-and of all creation. It most often involves teamwork, and always involves discernment and fortitude.

After our long day of consultation, my host and I joined several old friends, and many youth, in honouring a hard-working college graduate. It was a joy to see people I haven’t seen in fifteen years and to witness how several of them have grown from childhood and become successful adults, in various fields.

Heroes-some of them “super” come in all forms.

The Road to Diamond, Day 155: Ahead of Self

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Posted by on in Assistance, collaborating, distraction issues, impediments, Inner Struggles, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving

May 2, 2025- The proactive young lady cleaned the empty table and put the glasses on the counter, next to where I was sitting at the bar. I thought nothing of it, until another patron asked “Who took my wine?” I showed him the 1/4 full goblet and water glass, which he gratefully took back and finished imbibing. Nothing further was said, on the floor. I am sure the server/busser was gently admonished by the floor manager, but there was no embarrassment involved.

We all have probably gotten ahead of self, at one time or another. Ambition, pressure to produce-or to perform, the drive to out do the competition or just an overactive work ethic can lead to the cart racing past the horse. We have seen how this has worked, variously to the advantage, or more frequently to the detriment, of large corporations, government agencies or hybrids of the two (like DOGE).

It starts, though, with the individual. How one learns from overkill largely determines the longevity of a career or the implosion of same. One can be a quick study and avoid the pitfalls of hyper-ambition and a false sense of superiority. One can also be a stubborn, arrogant fool, succeeding for a while, but then letting self-concept be the cart that flies past its draft animal, careening in the wrong direction. In the latter instance, the fool can sometimes recover, with the passage of time and a use being found for his/her skills allowing for a second chance-or even a third.

It all depends on how open a person is to learning from mistakes.