Religion

Hubby Dear often speaks fondly of his godmother, a Roman Catholic nun now deceased. She was a woman of faith, fidelity, and forcefulness. The bar was always raised in her presence. On one occasion in his life, when H.D. was just knee high to a grasshopper, he received a card from her that bore a simple message, but one he has never forgotten. It read, “An obstacle is something that gets in the way when you take your eye off the goal.”

 I frequently state my inadequacy regarding history. There were so many facts, dates to memorize with accompanying names of rulers or tyrants, winners and losers. I had a hard time keeping them straight. So, it was cram for the exam and don’t give heed to any future impact. No one ever offered the option to view history as our human story. No one tried to make it interesting. No one seemed to think that one day I might … one day we might … beg, “Tell me a story before I go to sleep.”

It has been a long, long preparation time for this country, for all of us who live here and call it our homeland. Replete with care and concern, angst and anticipation, it is yet the land we love. It is yet a place where diversity births distinctive unity. It is where we both find our lamps and light them to banish the darkness of hatred, bias, prejudice and evil of all sorts and dimensions.

 I recall reading an article about reading résumés and doing interviews. Because my grandchildren are immersed in job searches, it caught my attention. Perhaps I could find suggestions to offer them, easing their way through the process and empowering them to enhance their presentations to result in ultimate success. “When the final interview looms large, everyone is, or seems to be, equally qualified” I read. I paid close attention to the two questions the author (whose name escapes me) always asked the final candidates.