A beautiful sunshine

When the sun comes up this morning, a dear friend of mine is going to have the most gorgeous view of anyone I know. She will be on a hillside overlooking miles of green valleys and views that answer the question "Is there really a God? with a resounding YES.

And when the summer finally gives way to winter, she will find herself overlooking a snow covered valley. The once green trees will have given up their leaves and reveal large and numerous lakes and ponds that attract literally thousand upon thousands of various species of ducks.

As the winter progresses, the ducks will be replaced by flocks of wild geese migrating their way south.

We can see her smiling from ear to ear with that contagious grin as she begins to design pictures she will be sharing with her new friends. They will look in wonder at what she has done to bring new life to their home.

She will bring smiles to their faces because she has brought a fresh, new life to their home

Making people laugh and enjoying life is what she makes her such a special person!

And when Spring arrives, and the green fields return, flocks of wild turkey will come marching up the hill with their newest broods to introduce their newest resident.

She won’t suffer under the heat of the summer sun, because there is almost a constant breeze blowing over her hillside. So while we will complain about the summer heat, she will be smiling – always smiling – and overlooking her valley that will change before her very eyes.

And she will start each day - from now and forever - with that beautiful sunrise.

(My friend, Jennifer Wallace Ditterline, was laid to rest at the Mount Olive Cemetery near Pope County, Illinois Tuesday, August 14, 2011 Jennifer was 34 years old. She lost her life in a tragic vehicle accident and left a great void in the lives of her parents, brother, husband and countless friends. She will be greatly missed by us all.)

The 545

We agree with President Obama following remarks me issued at his news conference this morning. Well . . . . at least partially!

Gearing up for his re-election bid, he does what any good politician does who looks to the future and sees himself back in Illinois without a job in two years – he finds someone else to blame.

His target today was Congress. “They need to lead,” he said, and he’s right.

But he failed in putting himself in that category, also.

In an undated piece I have, written by Charley Reese, is penned the following:

“Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them. Have you ever wondered why, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, we have deficits? Have you ever wondered by, if all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes, we have inflation and high taxes?”

Let us interject that if you are not familiar with Mr. Reese, he is a nationally syndicated columnist who has received a nomination for the Pulitzer Prize. He is also widely acclaimed for several books he had written.

Reese noted that: “You and I don’t propose a federal budget. The president does. You and I don’t have the Constitutional authority to vote of appropriations. The House of Representatives does. You and I don’t write the tax code. Congress does. You and I don’t control monetary policy. The Federal Reserve Bank does.”

Are you beginning to understand why our current president may have come close to shifting the blame so convincingly? But don’t jump the gun and cast your vote just yet.

Reese didn’t exactly leave out the person who holds the highest position in our government.

“One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one president and nine Supreme Court justices – 545 human beings out of 235 million (311,655 currently) – are directly, legally, morally and individually responsible for the domestic problem’s that plague this country.”

The writer went on by excluding a number of people that we all might want to hold responsible, directly or indirectly, to the mess we are in today.

“I exclude the members of the Federal Reserve Board because that problem was created by the Congress . . .

“I exclude all the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a congressman or a president to do one cotton-picking thing. I don’t care if they offer a politician $1 million in cash. The politician has the power to accept or reject it. No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is the legislator’s responsibility to determine how he votes.”

His writing, which if far better than this author can pen, explains that the ultimate power with lies with only 545 citizens of this country. He encourages each of us not to be conned by the rhetoric politicians spew forth that it is all the economy, inflation, or politics that keep them from their oath to the people who sent them to Washington to take care of the people’s business.

“Those 545 people and they alone are responsible. They and they alone have the power. They ad they alone should be held accountable by the people who are their bosses – provided we the people have the gumption to manage our own employees.”

Obama cannot shift the entire blame to Congress. He is part of the 545 people who are part of the problem and he holds the top spot.

He was only partially correct when he tried to shift the problem.

Remembering Kevin

In the early 1990s, Kevin was just another young student at Dyer County High School He had rather be on the football field than in the classroom, but that didn’t stop him from his graduation in the spring of 1993.

Kevin wasn’t the Valedictorian, but was the Most Valuable Player that year. Guess which one he cherished the most.

At his side during those years were a group of boys, and a girl – now young men and woman with families – who grew up with Kevin. They went to kindergarten in the Newbern area. They threw water balloons at Halloween. They hooped and partied and planned for the future then took jobs or when off to college.

But they all stayed close only as friends can.

Three years later, those friends, the community of Newbern, and the surrounding area joined his family in a state of shock as word swept through the close knit community that Kevin had been killed in a place that many had never heard spoken.

Pfc. Kevin F. Edgin, with the Army's 87th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division based in Fort Drum, N.Y., died in Helmand province's Baghran Valley, Afghanistan.

It was on July 6, 2006, that Kevin died as he defended his comrades from enemy fire and gave them protection they needed for a few brief moments. When his weapon stopped firing, he dropped it and grabbed another, prior to being fatally wounded.

He was the youngest of three sons – he was 31 - and lived at home with his parents. He'd never married. He still had the same friends since kindergarten.

And it is those buddies – both male and female - who have honored their friend in remembrance each year with a memorial golf tournament in Dyersburg.

They don’t do it because he was the first solider from Dyer County to lose his life since the Vietnam War; they don’t do it because literally thousands of people attended the funeral; they don’t do it because the Army awarded him commendations and metals; they don’t even do it because Kevin played golf.

They do it because he was their friend and classmate.

If you don’t play golf, or even if you never knew Kevin, you can still help. Call Greg Garner at 731-445-0983. Money raised by Kevin’s friends is contributed each year to a College Scholarship fund in his name.

This year two students, Demetrius Wheeler and Donnie Nelson each received a $1,500 scholarship this year to assist with their college education.

We think Kevin would like that.