Tag Archives: USA

2016 Election From A Small State Where It All Begins

It’s after 1am. I am wide awake. I couldn’t sleep if I wanted to. Not now anyways. This election for the President of the United States is not over, yet. Sitting here, I can still see Hillary Clinton pulling this out, and I can also see Donald J. Trump winning this election. Time will tell, and soon (hopefully).

Unfortunately, I have spent too much time on social media recently, mostly reading what others are saying. As I read comments, and more comments that are liked by the friends that I have who clearly have voted for Clinton, and the establishment; I am actually shocked. As I hypothetically apply such commentary to me personally, I am mortified at the things, names, titles, stereotypes, etc. that would be applied to me as a person. Now, in a different breath, I am certain that many, if not all, of these people who I know, do not see me as any of those things. Furthermore, regardless of the result in this election, I would shake hands with, or give a warm, welcoming hug to these people, were I to see them tomorrow. So, I battle the predicament of taking things personally, while pursuing what I hold dearest to me.

I didn’t write it, but I started to do so several times in the last few weeks. With the diversity found within our borders in this day and age, I find it nearly impossible that any one candidate could perfectly encapsulate, in platform, everyone’s best interest, or even one person’s. So that makes me wonder how outrageous and, quite frankly, frightening some of the commentary has been.

This is where I have to wonder how differently people see our country. I want to be proud of the United States of America, and mean it. I want our country to be great now, then, again, always. I want our people to be as safe as they can be. I value our veterans immensely, and they should be better cared for, always. I want my kids, and their kids, to be safe, and to have a place where Americans can get work, and perform in fields of employment with the best in the entire world. I do want one flag. One country. One God. I want us to be indivisible, maintaining liberty, and justice for all.

I have said for many years, that it is no mistake that the greatest organizations in the history of the world, have one thing, among other things, in common; and that is good leadership, good people, in positions, making good decisions. Personally, I feel as though our country has slacked off in this area, at an alarming rate for many, many years. I certainly don’t know what the future holds, but I do like hope.

As we pass 2am here in the East, one thing is absolutely certain; people are fed up with the way that politics have been done, and for some time now. At this point, only God knows who our next president will be. And I am good with that. God is the One I go to for help on these matters. Prayer, sincere, reverent prayer, when my ego, my plan, and my desires are shelved just to talk with God; this is when a clear, peaceful mind emerges. That is a good thing.

I am not against any one of any color, sex, or heritage being our president. Period. There is nothing to read into here. Listen, I am not a Hillary Clinton fan. She doesn’t come across to me as a loving, caring, sincerely interested in much outside of herself, type of person. Quite frankly, neither does Donald Trump. For the last two months, Hillary has told us in her ads and empty speeches, not specifically what she will do, and worse, she has stepped on opponents in an attempt to raise herself up. That last point is the only commercial loop I have seen from her for weeks and weeks. I get it, Trump is no angel either. To each of us, some things resonate, and other things do not.

After much prayer and research on the facts, and the promises yet to be kept, it became clear in which direction I would go.

So, here it is, in my own words, my own thoughts. I don’t know how you were raised, but I do know how many of my friends were raised. I see it like this. In my day, the household, especially us teens at the time, were always a little fearful when Dad was coming home, after we had been acting up. Because Dad would get the report from Mom, and discipline would follow, and guess what, rightfully so. Well, my friends, and each of you, in my opinion, we, the USA, have been acting up for some time. Whether or not Mr. Trump wins this election, people are fearful because just the thought of the instrument of correction coming back to the United States has turned this election into a dead heat that almost nobody saw coming. Correction and discipline in our society, it is so badly needed. Our quite imperfect founding fathers would be laughing at us for becoming the soft, whiney, entitled country that we have become. I don’t want that for us, for any of us. The left, the right, whatever, I want America to be great again, for every one of us. We may live in a great lifestyle, with freedoms that we enjoy, yet we are a still a shadow of what we once were, as a country.

Well, there you have it. I went there. A political piece on a night that won’t end. I haven’t said a whole lot to anyone about this stuff, so here, I share my opinion, or at least some of it. Thank you for your patience, from a small state in the northeast.

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Make America Great. #GodBlessAmerica

Allard Park 2016

Sometimes I sit and I wonder, what would fill the hole in my heart, were it not for this little gem, Allard Park.

Allard Park - 2016 Districts Game 10

Bow vs. Concord. National Anthem. Final game of the 2016 District Tournament, Pool A. 13-15 yr. old Babe Ruth All-stars. Allard Park, Goffstown, NH.                                 (click on the picture for larger view)

God Bless the USA, Let’s Pray

I don’t need science to tell me that meditation repairs brain matter

Just bow your head and talk to Him, void of all the societal chatter

 

See, there are places all around you can find a spot filled in silence

Here, at least for now, my walk and talk with Jesus, is my license

 

Go to some quiet place, exhale, bow in reverence, and just pray

List every little thing you are thankful for if you need words to say

 

Ask with respect, Lord please give me direction in these areas of life

Better yet, kneel beside your bed together, praying, husband and wife

 

Then maybe look inside yourself, find the hidden, and set it free

Talk with Him about it, all of it, don’t open your eyes, and you’ll see

 

It’s okay to ask Him for help here, where else would you rather go

There’s always an answer whether we understand or not, God knows

 

Which came first the Power of the Almighty or the power of repentance

I know it changes hearts, much less the obvious, our countenance

 

Pray at length for our leaders instead of complaining about him or her

We all long for the way that it was, so bend a knee, that’s how we were

 

Bring your grievances to the bench of the Supreme Judge in humility

Don’t carry them another day, have faith, it’ll be better for you, and we

 

It’s heard across this great land less and less, God Bless the USA

Maybe we’re the problem, let’s find a place, bow our heads, let’s pray

#NeverForget

I wrote this in 2011, and this post has been a permanent page on my blog, and still is. This morning, I remember.

This page is a place to more permanently keep this close at hand. On 9/11/11 I watched, I listened to, and read pieces on the 10 year remembrance of 9/11. I cried, I thought, I remembered, I swelled with pride, I felt a lot of emotions that day. That evening into the wee hours of the following morning I also wrote a piece in my style, my words, and I want it to be here, close at hand. There will be times when I will add to this page I am sure but this is where it starts for me. Never forget.

9/11 – Ten Years Later – God Bless the USA

Today, and every day really, I thank God that I was fortunate enough to be born and raised in the greatest country in the world. I am proud to be an American every day. Please God, continue to bless the USA, and may we honor and glorify you in all we do. There is goodness in all of us. We were created and born, morally aware. And, just as those who ran towards the unknown terror of 9/11 as to free those who needed help, so did our founding fathers brave the unknown in hopes of freedom for all. It’s the USA, “One Nation, under God”, made up of millions of people with tremendous resiliency, and free will to choose that we will not give up, while harboring a true responsibility to help one another (all of whom are created equal) in times of need. I feel, and I pray for those who lost loved ones or saw so much more than anyone should see 10 years ago today. May we never forget those who were innocently taken and those who have sacrificed so much.

I am in no way trying to be political here and I don’t always know where my thoughts may take me, so let’s find out. I pray that we, the USA (that’s each one of us), don’t lose sight of the spirit that was embraced in founding our great country. I hope that we don’t forget to fight for the freedoms that we have defended around the globe. We should be continually thankful for those who have literally battled on our behalf and knowingly risked the greatest asset; a human life, for their country, our country, the USA. We should be cognizant of our own behaviors that help pave the way for true freedom in the future and be wary of those self indulgences that provoke others to restrict our freedoms with red tape and political correctness. This country was founded on right and wrong, and there is nothing political about that which is right. Right is right. Right is morally justified, while politically correct is often times a choice to act in a manner that gets a desired outcome. If the desired outcome is not right than why be politically correct?

It was December of 1967 when my dad and mom drove over the border from Canada back into the USA just so I could be born in the USA. That may not mean as much now as it did then, but I am awfully proud to have been born in the United States of America. I love Canada dearly and cherish my Canadian family who are some of the greatest people I have ever met. Still, I thank you dad and mom for making that run to Caribou, Maine, USA, right before Christmas, on my behalf.

My favorite combination of colors is truly the red, white, and blue. My favorite song is “The Star Spangled Banner”. Our National Anthem being sung at various events and venues is the television I record most often. I get goose bumps every single time I hear it. I think of the words and the inspiration behind them in a time of uncertainty. Those words will be 197 years old this week, and I think of how many times those words have meant so much too so many people. Climatically our anthem gets to “Our flag was still there” and I think of our resiliency, I think of our free will and am reminded to be so careful with this precious gift. I truly do think of us as the land of the free and the home of the brave. This week I again connect this to 9/11 as there has been, and hopefully always will be an American flag flying at Ground Zero. I will also never forget those who were technically free to run, as thousands did, but instead, instinctively were brave as so many before them have been.

I offer a closing prayer for those who care to read it. With my head bowed, I thank you God for this great country of ours, and for the thousands upon thousands of brave men and women who have given their all to maintain our freedom and our independence. I pray that we don’t forget the sacrifices and struggles past and present, allowing our quality of life to be what it can be today. We have so very much to be thankful for. In a time when we seem to measure our life’s success by things we have accumulated, money we earn, or status we have attained; may we truly cherish the choices we have, the freedoms we share, and the right to put God and our families first. I pray that each of us make the time and the commitment to love and fellowship with friends and family. At the end of our days, it’s our family who will be there with us. The recollection of the choices we were able to make will ease our hearts and minds when our days here are short. It will be the freedoms we embraced, the risks we were willing and able to take, and the free will to forgive and make that which is wrong, right that will allow a smile on our lips as we breathe for the last time. Lord, I pray we wait not, for those days to think on these things, but to actively pursue them with all that we are, and all we can be. We know not what the future holds for any of us. Let us not be caught up in that uncertainty, but have faith in You, and the tremendous power we possess to be present now. May we serve you Lord each day, knowing that the time we invest in one another is truly what makes the world go round. Lord I thank you for your many blessings as there are too many to count. Our days are full of blessings that we often times don’t even take the time to notice or thank you for. Forgive us for our sins and may we learn from our mistakes, in doing so, setting an example for others to follow so that we all may be better off for it. Lord, I ask these things in your name. Amen.

It’s Memorial Day – established to remind people to remember

Lest we forget.

Please remember what Memorial Day is about.

Give this a listen…pretty cool.

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Remembering Pearl Harbor

There are a lot of people, memories, and events that I focus on in December. One I try never to forget is remembering Pearl Harbor. It was before my time but it did in fact shape a period of time and altered the course of history. I am remembering, and I’m very thankful to be an American afforded with the opportunities I have, because people before me wouldn’t let freedom be snatched from them.

http://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/us/pearl-harbor-remembrance-day