Category Archives: children

Brevity and Longevity

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Posted by on in Assistance, children, collaborating, Education, Entertainment, Family, Fiction, Historical, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Striving

May 2, 2026- If I live to be 100, or longer, it may well be partly due to the things in which I invest time and energy. Certainly, being fully involved in the life of my grandchild has a part to play. So does any exercise or even resuming travel again, once Hana is of school age and her parents have earned vacation time. Diet also comes into play.

Then, there is the reading material in which I invest time. I am rediscovering classics, in my choice of what to read to Hana. I have read her “Heidi” and am currently reading her “The Red Pony”, by John Steinbeck. It’s a bit tougher than Johanna Spyri’s classic,and shows a different way of looking at life’s challenges. She will only have a slight sense of the mood of the story, so I am not concerned with its effects. I will revert more to more conventional children’s works, going forward, as her awareness grows and she actually starts asking questions. That day is coming faster than some of you may think.

My personal reading, both print books and long form Substack pieces, is also going to keep the gray matter oiled and lubed. Both media are comprised of thought=provoking pieces. I am presently reading “The Beginning Comes After The End”, by Rebecca Solnit and “The God of the Woods”, by Liz Moore. Substack sites range from “The Hungary Report” and “Life Intelligence” to “The Gut Check Guy” and “The Good Men Project”. There are a total of ten sites, not all of which show in my feed every day.

Many people opt for the fast food of journalism: Reels and clips. The problem I have with high brevity is that only part of any given story is presented. Then there is a hint, “Click to continue”, which the one time I fell for it, I was asked to subscribe to the reel’s host site-big bucks for the equivalent of a Big Mac.

Brevity has its place, but the maintenance of a well-oiled thinking machine needs a considerably higher-level investment. I may not be digging into “War and Peace” anytime soon, but long-form is a better investment of time and energy.

May Day

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Posted by on in Assistance, children, collaborating, Community, Family, Historical, impediments, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Striving

May 1, 2026- As another gray day dawned, yet in a new month, Hana and I looked out at the squirrels frolicking on the lawn and in the trees, as they went about their day of climbing and parkour. (Squirrels are premier roof-vaulters.) For her part, my granddaughter was focused on army crawling and semi-crawling, as she is now able to move with her hands and knees in sync, though not yet with her torso fully off the ground.

Several people, across the country, and in some other nations,observed a day of protest. Many were on strike. May Day is traditionally a day for Organized Labour to call attention to its grievances, and on this particular day, concerns are many. We did our shopping earlier in the week, so it was not hard to honour the call to refrain from discretionary commerce. Son and daughter-in-law had light work schedules, and I, being retired, had only my labour of love to engage, as I have done every day for the last four months and two weeks. So, we were, in a de facto sense, in sync with the day’s mood.

Protest and criticism often rankle their targets. A parent may take umbrage at a child’s refusal to go along with a directive. Government officials, increasingly these days, don’t like it a bit, if citizens stand up and voice a contrary opinion. I watched a program this evening, in which a judge ordered a witness to break confidence, and the witness refused, thus invoking a contempt-of-court citation and time in a holding cell. (The judge’s move backfired, as the witness’s confider took the stand and spoke truth to power. The jury then convicted the defendant-who was a friend of the judge.)

We are all made different, distinct from one another, right down to our basic building blocks. Even identical twins have differences. So, there is no way that any two people are going to agree, 24/7. Yet, there is, especially among insecure people in positions of authority, an increasing intolerance for criticism, either public or private. The operative word here is insecure.

A better course of action is always to hear out the criticism, find points of truth in it, and examine how those points of truth could help one improve. That requires reflection and trust in one’s basic abilities.

Bugs

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Posted by on in Assistance, children, collaborating, Community, Family, impediments, Personal Values, Social, Striving

April 30, 2026– When my son returned from a shopping run, this evening, among the items he brought out were two electronic flying insect zappers. This sparked a conversation about the pests that occasionally find their way in from the outside-the houseflies, mosquitoes and sewer cockroaches. We maintain roach motels for the latter, which only show up after a heavy rain. So, the zappers should take care of the rest.

To be clear, we maintain strict standards of cleanliness around the house. With a baby becoming more mobile, we take no chances. Besides, who wants to “share” food with flies? The kids loathe them, and even I, in my sanguinity towards all life, will wield a fly swatter or kill a mosquito with my hands, before seeing either harm anyone in my family.

This brings up the place of scavengers in nature. Aram would gladly burn all vermin, if given the chance. So, what would the planet look like, with no flies, cockroaches, mosquitoes, rats (which we don’t have, thankfully) or carrion-eating birds? Since all living things eventually pass on, I daresay the planet would be far more of a mess, if not for the clean-up crew.

Further, I have been in places where there is either irregular trash pick-up, or none at all. My penchant for being a good citizen and picking discarded paper or plastic off a sidewalk and depositing it in a trash receptacle would have seemed ludicrous in such communities, The animals are, in such cases, fully “on the job” and humans have their work cut out for them, in maintaining hygienic boundaries in their homes.

So, we carry on with the balance of cleanliness and dirt, life and decay, conflict and resolution. The effort is a constant-and the bugs will keep getting zapped.

Well-Tended

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Posted by on in children, collaborating, Community, Family, Inspiration, Matters of Faith, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving

April 27, 2026- My four-month dental check-up and cleaning, by a new provider, touched all the bases that the team at Desert Dental, in Phoenix, did for thirteen years. New Bite is our family’s dental care provider, so I helped Aram get a small sign-up bonus, and I get one as well. The practice is state-of-the art, checking sinuses and thyroid, as well as teeth, tongue, gums and jaws. I will be well-tended.

Hana had her four-month physical this morning and is on track in all her growth areas. This morning, she greeted me with “Hi” and when I asked her if she had a good sleep, she answered “Yeah”. It happened that she slept through the night, so things are going well, for her and for Mom and Dad.

The house is far more comfortable now, then it was last week, before the HVAC work. There is still a little left to straighten out, here and there, but we should be in good shape for the height of summer. The three of us share every task pretty much equally. Whoever comes upon something that needs doing, does it first. I even whipped up some pancakes, yesterday morning, like my Dad used to do on Sundays. Yunhee covered the lettuce bed with a “critter proof” mesh, so the rabbits will take what is theirs and leave our greens alone.

The country can be well-tended, if people work together. A few days ago, the governing body of the Baha’i Faith in the United States, our National Spiritual Assembly, put forth a reasonable call to action. I leave you with a link to this document, in the hopes that it might inspire some to take concerted action of their own, for the good of the nation-and of the planet.

https://www.acommonendeavor.org/

The Knowing

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

April 26, 2026- Virginia Roberts Giuffre died a year ago today. In that year, halting progress has been made in finding justice for her, and the thousands of other victims in the Epstein Network. There is a long way to go. In that year, justice was found for Gisele Pelicot, as 51 males were found guilty of raping her, while she was drugged by her then husband. In that year, CNN brought a “mainstream” website to light-it being openly called “Motherless.com-Rape Academy”, viewed over 62,000,000 times. In that year, serial abusers from across the political spectrum were called out-even one, Cesar Chavez, who is long dead.

I have shared a Substack post about the meaning of the term, “motherless”, on Facebook, and can only hope it gets read and taken seriously. I was raised by an exemplary mother. The idea of denigrating her infuriates me. I would have done anything she asked, even though I was a difficult child at times. My son was raised by an exemplary mother. He treasures her memory to this day, even though he was a difficult child at times.

I don’t know many openly misogynistic men, but many men I do know have areas in which to grow-as do I. Suffice it to say, those who hate women also harbour self-loathing. Many tell themselves otherwise, weaving fantasies of greatness and irresistability. They project themselves as monumental figures, as men of consequence, legends in their own time.

I once was deep among them, always wondering why I had no success in finding a mate. When I did find a woman to love, it was only because I had begun to rein myself in, take stock of my behaviour and put sexuality in its place-not as the be-all of life but as one aspect of a committed relationship. My wife initiated the process of my maturation. It took until she passed on, for that maturation to fully take root.

All those who viewed “Rape Academy”, and took its misguided message to heart, are only fooling themselves, damaging their own lives and those of any women hapless enough to become their victims. Humans, our animal form aside, are primarily spiritual beings. What one does to another person, to another sentient being, even to another life form, affects the spirit. It is not a matter of Heaven or Hell, but a matter of behaviour and consequence. Some of those men who have been publicly exposed as rapists and abusers have also done good, even great, acts for the betterment of humanity. Yet, in the end, Christ’s admonition-“Whatsoever you do to the least of my brethren, that you do unto Me”- refers as much to the harm we do others as it does to what we do that is of help.

The physical, however enticing and pleasurable it may be, is as nothing in the eternal realm. Power, the driving force behind most rape, does not carry over into the next world, but the lessons one must learn in this life are put off by the reckless pursuit of power-and must be learned, with considerably more difficulty, in the next.

Growth can come only with the Knowing, and its practical application to life.

Threads

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Posted by on in Assistance, children, Community, Family, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Striving

April 25,2026- “Where have you been?”, fumed the Farmer’s Market assistant director, as she was sweeping up a pile of vegetable refuse. In the next breath, she said “Oh, that’s right, you moved to Texas to be with family,” At that point, I woke up and realized it was the day for Farmer’s Market, alright, but I was going to the Plano market-and I am not a volunteer there, The vendors all have their own tents and chairs, which they keep with them. There is no set-up/breakdown crew here, as there is in Prescott.

I read the newsletter from Prescott Farmers Market, so I know they are doing well and have a sizeable group of volunteers. Threads of nostalgia come every so often-and mostly in dreams. It seems like a healthy way for good memories to intertwine with a good feeling about my life here.

A Navy colleague of Aram’s stopped by this afternoon, with some of his family members. Turns out they live in West, TX, which is one of the places I visited on my first real Texas jaunt, in 2012. The place where they live now is a stone’s throw from the site of the fertilizer plant explosion that devastated the town in April, 2013. The town has recovered quite well from that tragedy. This is just another thread that keeps me connected to places that helped me re-establish my sense of equilibrium, after losing my wife.

At one point, this evening, there were ten of us in the house: Our family of four, the four visitors from West and two HVAC workers, who were on the last portion of the installation of a new heating and cooling unit. Hana had never seen this many people together in the house, and was actually quite happy. She smiled broadly at the visitors, while being uncharacteristically quiet. She is usually quite vocal, when we are sitting around, or when she is involved in an activity.

The threads of belonging are fashioning another fine quilt-like the ones in Arizona,in the Northeast, in the Philippines, in Canada and in parts of Europe.

Pros and Cons

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Posted by on in Social, Inspiration, Personal Values, Family, Striving, children, Community, service

April 24,2026- In a conversation with my son last night, he went over the pros and cons of living in this house, in this city, as opposed to living closer to DFW Airport and Fort Worth. The cost of living over there is a tad cheaper, as are housing costs. It’d be a shorter commute. His glass, and mine, are half full.

On the other hand, the houses would be smaller, and it would be more difficult for me to stay with them, as well as no room for expanding the family, should it come to that. He came to the point of counting blessings, pointing out the good schools, the nice neighbourhood and decent parks nearby, lots of children-a plus for the gregarious Hana- and everything that’s needed is no more than 15-20 minutes away.

I’m fairly easy, with regard to living situations. I let go of aspects of my life like frequent travel, mountain and canyon hiking and supervising shelters for the Red Cross, in order to prioritize Hana’s getting a solid start on her life, and so that her parents may continue to earn a living. Thomas Sowell’s Trade-Off Doctrine has been top of mind for many years now. I live nicely here, get a fair amount of exercise tending to my granddaughter-and will get more, as she becomes mobile. I am at the same point, friend-wise, that I was at in Prescott, after the first four months. Things will get better, just as thy did there.

The vagaries of my online connections, which were a problem for some months, have largely been straightened out. Those who want to keep in touch with me have noted the change in my e-mail address. The rest have fallen away and that is just part and parcel of life. Major accounts are still accessible.

The pros outweigh the cons.

Recaptured

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Posted by on in children, collaborating, Community, Family, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Striving, Technical stuff

April 23, 2026- I regained access to two critical sites today: My old g-mail and a Flickr account. When I switched Internet providers, upon moving to Texas in January, losing track of my g-mail password locked me out of that account and by extension, the e-mail-dependent Flickr. The photographic storage site’s customer support helped me get back in, and a short time later, I contacted by g-mail, offering a more secure means of accessing the old account. This means I have two g-mail accounts, and a Yahoo! address, so I won’t be out of anyone’s loop.

Many times in life, I have either lost contact with people and things that have meant a great deal to me. Some have resurfaced, a few years later; others, have returned to my circle after a few decades and some are still out there somewhere. In every case, those losses have been because I have been needed by those closest to me. The old adage, “If you love something, let it go……”, keeps coming back on replay; and that’s okay. My life of travel and community service has been set aside for the benefit of a very bright, rambunctious and captivating little girl-and I would do this a thousand times over. There is no telling how much she is going to mean to the world, but I sense it will be a great deal.

Some of what I have given up will be brought back into my life, especially if it will benefit Hana. I look forward to all of that, and to much else that I can only imagine at this point. My sense of worth and of accomplishment are what have most strongly been recaptured.

Earth Girl

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Posted by on in children, Community, Family, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Striving

April 22, 2026- Hana was born under the sign of earth, much as her father was born under the sign of water and I, her grandfather, under the sign of fire.

I had a penchant for controlled, responsible burns, in my twenties and thirties. Earlier, I loathed arsonists for their destructive use of what I saw as a element that was cleansing, when used the right way. Fire should be controlled, with a system for extinguishing in place before the spark is even lit. My continuing connection with fire is mainly a concern with cleansing places. Clean-ups can be accomplished without burning.

Aram could while away hours playing with toy boats-in a sink, on a pond or lake. Eventually, he took his sign one step further and became a sailor. He took to swimming at age five and has never stopped. He steered a destroyer in and out of crowded harbours, around the Pacific Rim. He remains in the Navy Reserves.

Hana turned four months old today. It will be a while before we know her interests. She does look at signs, and logos on t-shirts, scanning them from right to left. She sometimes laughs at the appropriate moments, even before the rest of us are chuckling. As for any earth connection, it’s probably there. She does like sitting and watching the mother rabbit that has taken a spot in our backyard, probably getting ready to birth a litter. She also loves watching the leaves on trees being blown by the breezes (Yes, I know that’s an air sign thing.) She is dedicated to her army crawling exercises, and knows when to turn at corners and stay within boundaries. I will have a better sense of how strong her earth sign is, as the weather warms and I get her out in the yard or to the park. Will it be a passing interest, like mine with fire or abiding, like her father’s connection with water?

Happy Earth Day, everyone.

Whose Voice?

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Posted by on in Assistance, children, Community, Family, Personal Values, Social, Striving

April 21, 2026- My family had a brief “conversation”, between the three of them, about going out for a brisk walk after the adult dinner. Hana had the veto poser, since it was intended for her benefit. She “spoke” her opinion and essentially wanted to stay in. It’d been raining most of the day, and she was hungry, besides (She usually has a feeding just before bedtime). They stayed in, she had her feeding, then quietly went to bed. Mom and Dad relaxed in the family room and had a much-needed private conversation on another matter. I stayed out of both situations.

Earlier, there was some discussion about an enterprising rabbit, which was trying to collapse the cover over our lettuce patch. Aram chased it off, as I would have. While he, as property owner, has the final say in how wild animals and birds are tolerated on the property, I would focus mainly on keeping the small garden safe and leave the rest to be grazed. It saves on mowing.

People in Virginia narrowly approved a redistricting proposal that could be used to favour one party over another. The cities and suburbs voted “Yes” and rural areas, “No”. I am personally against any gerrymandering and if Texas ever came up with such a referendum, I would be a naysayer, for the simple fact that I believe every citizen of voting age should have an equal voice. I think the Legislatures should also stay out of it, and an Independent Redistricting body, in each state, should do the honours.

Basically, my take is that each person deserves empowerment, commensurate with their developmental level, from Day One. If one can understand the matter and have good reason for their opinion, then he/she should have a say. A full range of voices brings out the fuller truth.