Who is MUCH more likely to die on the job? A woman? Or a man?
FACT: 93% of workplace deaths are to men. Why?
Because men take the dirtiest and most dangerous jobs and work the longest hours to make as much money as they can while they can. I know because it was what I did. I could have been in those workplace death certificates. I did some dirty and dangerous jobs.
They say your 20s are the best time of your life but for me, there were years of frustration and suffering and separation from loved ones. But I just stoically carried on. Getting your first full-time job is sometimes very difficult. People are surprised but I would say in my early life I was turned down for every job I applied for. I was too qualified or not qualified enough. It was humiliating and a chastening experience. So I left home and went West. I told my mother I would keep going until I got a full-time job and if I had to go to Alaska or Australia, I would do that. I ended up in Washington State and later California. But by following the economic magnet and moving where there were SOME job openings I got work and for over forty years I always worked. It was hard to leave home (essentially never returned) but working felt a lot better.
After I left the service I had very little money (a few thousand dollars) and an old Chrysler (free and clear). I worked in construction for five years. I started by unloading rail cars $6 an hour I recall (then stacking over 1000 bags of Owens-Corning fiberglass insulation); then I dug trenches under a place called Yesler Terrace with an e-tool.
The first day my partner and I got ZERO PAY. That’s right ZERO pay.
We were paid by the square foot of insulation installed.
But we worked Friday, Saturday and Sunday and finished the job (a job no one else wanted). Monday morning at 5AM we got another job.
And we gained the respect of the foreman (a tough ex-Marine) because we did not complain. We knew the job had to be done and we knew the terms of the contract.
We also knew it was no good to complain; to get more work you had to finish the job you were on satisfactorily. Even the guy I was with was surprised but I told him hauling loads and digging in the dirt was nothing new to me. In fact, the quiet of the Yesler Terrace underfloor was almost soothing compared to the noise and explosions of Marine Corps maneuvers.
We crawled into a little entrance with a long series of extension cords and a light. The kid I was with said to me, “what if there is an earthquake?”
And I told him, “Kid, if there is an earthquake we are dead and they will never find our bodies. But you can’t live forever. Let’s dig and get out of here as soon as possible. We can do this job if we work 10 hours a day.”
We finished Sunday evening about 6PM. We spent most of three days in the semi-darkness digging and then stocking (with tubes of insulation -Certainteed was the only thing we could fit in the trench) then installing the batts. It was a huge job. I think we made about $2 an hour. Piece work in construction or farm labor is the low end of the job market.
Above us were lounging welfare families. The kid asked me what I thought of them and I said,
“I feel sorry for them; they don’t know the pride and dignity of work. Anyone can run away. Anyone can be AWOL but its the man who stays and does the job who can be proud. If you work you get ahead; if you sweat you get; things at rest remain at rest. If you stay here with them you will be miserable and ashamed your whole life. Kid, get a job do a job. Be reliable and on time. Get what education you can and finish whatever level you start. High school, Certificate programs. Don’t have any kids until you are married and when you are married stay married. You may not get rich but you will never be poor if you are lucky enough to stay healthy. Quien joven no trabaja viejo duerme sobre paja……work when you are young so you are not homeless when you are old.”
I never got rich but I have a roof over my head, money in the bank and money coming in.
And it all started because I wasn’t afraid of dirty and dangerous jobs. I had a family to support and it was what I had to do. I still have the scars from those years. But later on, I really appreciated paid vacations, benefits and a regular hourly wage.
To live between a rock and a hard place In between time Cruising in primetime Soaking up the cathode rays To live between the wars in our time Living in real time Holding the good time Holding on to yesterdays
You know how that rabbit feels Going under your speeding wheels Bright images flashing by Like windshields towards a fly Frozen in the fatal climb But the wheels of time Just pass you by
Wheels can take you around Wheels can cut you down We can go from boom to bust From dreams to a bowl of dust We can fall from rockets’ red glare Down to “Brother, can you spare…” Another war, another wasteland And another lost generation
It slips between your hands like water This living in real time A dizzying lifetime Reeling by on celluloid Struck between the eyes by the big-time world Walking uneasy street Hiding beneath the sheets, got to try and fill the void
You know how that rabbit feels Going under your speeding wheels Bright images flashing by Like windshields towards a fly Frozen in that fatal climb But the wheels of time Just pass you by
We can go from boom to bust From dreams to a bowl of dust We can fall from rockets’ red glare Down to “Brother, can you spare…” Another war, another wasteland And another lost generation
Wheels can take you around Wheels can cut you down Fall from rockets’ red glare Down to “Brother, can you spare…” Another war, another wasteland Another lost generation
Walking across the sitting-room, I turn the television off Sitting beside you, I look into your eyes As the sound of motorcars fades in the night time I swear I saw your face change, it didn’t seem quite right And it’s hello babe, with your guardian eyes so blue Hey my baby, don’t you know our love is true
Coming closer with our eyes, a distance falls around our bodies Out in the garden, the moon seems very bright Six saintly shrouded men move across the lawn slowly The seventh walks in front with a cross held high in hand And it’s hey babe your supper’s waiting for you Hey my baby, don’t you know our love is true?
I’ve been so far from here Far from your warm arms It’s good to feel you again It’s been a long long time Hasn’t it?
I know a farmer who looks after the farm With water clear, he cares for all his harvest I know a fireman who looks after the fire
You, can’t you see he’s fooled you all Yes, he’s here again Can’t you see he’s fooled you all? Share his peace, sign the lease He’s a supersonic scientist He’s the guaranteed eternal sanctuary man Look, look into my mouth he cries And all the children lost down many paths I bet my life you’ll walk inside Hand in hand Gland in gland With a spoonful of miracle He’s the guaranteed eternal sanctuary We will rock you, rock you little snake We will keep you snug and warm
Wearing feelings on our faces while our faces took a rest We walked across the fields to see the children of the West But we saw a host of dark skinned warriors standing still below the ground
Waiting for battle
The fight’s begun, they’ve been released Killing foe for peace, bang, bang, bang Bang, bang, bang And they’ve given me a wonderful potion ‘Cause I cannot contain my emotion And even though I’m feeling good Something tells me I’d better activate my prayer capsule
Today’s a day to celebrate, the foe have met their fate The order for rejoicing and dancing has come from our warlord
Wandering in the chaos the battle has left We climb up the mountain of human flesh To a plateau of green grass, and green trees full of life A young figure sits still by a pool He’s been stamped “Human Bacon” by some butchery tool He is you
Social Security took care of this lad We watch in reverence, as Narcissus is turned to a flower A flower?
If you go down to Willow Farm To look for butterflies, flutterbyes, gutterflies Open your eyes, it’s full of surprise Everyone lies like the fox on the rocks And the musical box Oh, there’s Mum and Dad, and good and bad And everyone’s happy to be here
There’s Winston Churchill dressed in drag He used to be a British flag, plastic bag, what a drag The frog was a prince The prince was a brick, the brick was an egg, the egg was a bird (Fly away you sweet little thing, they’re hard on your tail) Hadn’t you heard? (they’re going to change you into a human being!) Yes, we’re happy as fish and gorgeous as geese And wonderfully clean in the morning
We’ve got everything, we’re growing everything We’ve got some in, we’ve got some out We’ve got some wild things floating about Everyone, we’re changing everyone You name them all, we’ve had them here And the real stars are still to appear (All change!)
Feel your body melt Mum to mud to mad to dad Dad diddley office, Dad diddley office You’re all full of ball Dad to dam to dumb to mum Mum diddley washing, Mum diddley washing You’re all full of ball
Let me hear your lies, we’re living this up to the eyes Ooh, aah, na-na-na Momma I want you now
And as you listen to my voice To look for hidden doors, tidy floors, more applause You’ve been here all the time Like it or not, like what you got You’re under the soil (the soil, the soil) Yes, deep in the soil (the soil, the soil, the soil!) So we’ll end with a whistle and end with a bang And all of us fit in our places
With the guards of Magog, swarming around The Pied Piper takes his children underground Dragons coming out of the sea Shimmering silver head of wisdom looking at me He brings down the fire from the skies You can tell he’s doing well by the look in human eyes Better not compromise, it won’t be easy
666 is no longer alone He’s getting out the marrow in your backbone And the seven trumpets blowing sweet rock and roll Gonna blow right down inside your soul Pythagoras with the looking glass reflects the full moon In blood, he’s writing the lyrics of a brand-new tune
And it’s hey babe, with your guardian eyes so blue Hey my baby, don’t you know our love is true? I’ve been so far from here, far from your loving arms Now I’m back again And babe, it’s gonna work out fine
Can’t you feel our souls ignite? Shedding ever-changing colours In the darkness of the fading night Like the river joins the ocean As the germ in a seed grows We have finally been freed to get back home
There’s an angel standing in the sun And he’s crying with a loud voice “This is the supper of the mighty one” Lord of Lords, King of Kings Has returned to lead his children home To take them to the new Jerusalem
Talk about biting the hand that feeds Sitting there watching as it bleeds Try your best in the winter light When it really should be summer night
Is it too late, baby? Too late now Too late, baby? Too late now Too late for you to realize Everything could have been alright
Is it been to long? Yeah Is it too long now Is it too long for you to make the change? Gotta love yourself to make a better day
I hate the way you don’t want to move What’s the matter? Money rules the groove now What we’re doing here today Won’t make the bad life go away
You gotta grow the beard Find the doubt And maybe you’ll work Something out, hey
Is it too long baby? Too long now yeah Too long for you to make the change You got to love yourself To make a better day, better day
Look out
And recognize your soul And everything’s alright You gotta see the whole And everything’s alright
Come on give yourself a break Everything’s alright We’ll be breathing deep And everything’s alright
Well, come on come on come on Everything’s alright
In a dream I was crossing African plains And elephant’s graveyard, a bone dry place And I was wondering why there was no more rain And in a pile of bones, I saw your face
When I feel disappointed or have negative feelings I turn to literature. I like to re-read Stoic Philosophers and the Bible. I have a wonderful little book called LINCOLN’S DEVOTIONAL which was edited by Carl Sandburg. I also write little quotes in the book which I review from time to time. O often carry it in my pocket when walk in the park. I wrote (from Ovid) Temporis ars medicina fere est (Time is a great medicine or healer). Yes, this too shall pass. I have an other quote by TR: “Do what you can where you are with what you have.”We have a situation in our life: We are older and feel more pain and have less energy. But we count our blessings- we can still walk and hear and see and think reasonably well. If my eyes are sore I use eyedrops. If I am still fatigued or have a headache I listen to Audible Books or music. Sometimes I just sing an old song from memory.I remember my father used to say. “God made man strong only for a while so we can help others.” As Romans said. “We that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak and not to please ourselves.” When weaker people we despise, we do the great Redeemer wrong. For God, the gracious and the wise receives the feeble and the strong.Let us do good to all men especially to those in the household of faith. (Galatians).We have people in our lives who worry us and disappoint us. Arguing and accusing does nothing positive. Sometimes one has to be patient and listen and pray for that person.Praying for the well-being of a person is often more effective that fighting with that person. Why am I frustrated with that or this person? Is it because I really care about that person or is it because I find it embarrassing for me personally?So following Epictetus it is NOT THAT PERSON who spoils or affects my life. It is how I emotionally think about the situation. I can be angry and confrontative OR I can be philosophical and patient and pray with sincere love. I can tell the person I will be there in reserve any time I am needed. Ultimately you cannot do that person’s exams or work. You cannot force them to stay home or stay sober. You cannot force that person to love you our be your friend.All you can do is encourage them to make good choices. You choose how you want to respond. I like to think of the good side. This person is not dead. This person is not sick or injured (he survived a car wreck). This person did not hurt or kill anybody else. It is unfortunate to total a car and lose the use of it but the car is just so much rust and metal anyway. This person could have parked the car on the street, clean and shiny and in good repair and then walked across the street and been killed by a passing bus. What is better to have the person you love or a late model car? We all have ups and downs in life and hopefully and thankfully we can learn from mistakes and do better in the future.We choose how we spend our hours of lucidity and reasonable health. It does not good to be sad and bitter that we do not have the energy when had when we were 25 or 35. Be glad you worked hard in youth to provide some security in your old age! Quien joven no trabaja viejo duermo sobre paja (If you don’t work when you are young you will regret it -suffer humiliations even homelessness when you are old.).I remember my father always had two great worries: 1) being evicted and then homeless 2) not having enough to eat or fresh water to drink. 3) not having a regular job.I used to call him on the phone long distance, and he would always say “HOW’S YOUR WEE JO-AB? (job). He figured if you were working you are in reasonable health and gaining a reasonable security. He also advised me NEVER TO SPEND my “bottom dollar” (better to go hungry) and try to have always a free and clear car, some food on hand (even if it was just peanut butter and crackers or oatmeal) and enough money for gas or transportation.Your next goal was to own your own home. In itself it was a good investment (or could be ) and forced savings. I am glad I took an economics class in high school and one year of economics in college! I am very glad that when I studied to be a teacher I was working FULL TIME at a Bank (including nights and weekends) to provide insurance and some security for my family but ALSO TO LEARN about CREDIT, INTERESTS RATES, FRAUDS, IDENTIFY THEFT, BANKRUPTCY and FINANCE.We started modestly with a condominium then a home in a reasonable neighborhood (we were considered rich) than a home in a nicer neighborhood (we were considered poor!). My son was a boy scout in his old school. When we moved to the new neighborhood he had to join another troop. He wasn’t accepted. Each parent had to organize activities. Ours were not fancy enough. Once we organized an outing to the local minor league baseball team. No one showed up. My son was very disappointed be we had a good time. He decided to quit the Boy Scouts. But instead he took SPORTS OFFICIATING and later made money officiating SOCCER, BASEBALL and BASKETBALL. He played soccer, basketball and baseball in high school. In college he played on an all-boys practice basketball team against the Varsity Girl team. He did that for one year. He tried to get scholarship. They didn’t offer him one so he quit that and played on intramural teams. Eventually he became a teacher and a successful coach in baseball and soccer. His knowledge and experience prepared him for a satisfying career which he enjoys very much. His coaching led to him meeting people in professional baseball and now (part-time) he tutors and mentors rookie players from Spanish-speaking countries.None of our children had cars in high school. But many of their classmates had luxury cars of their own and had active hedonistic social lives. Parties, ski trips, secret drinking. When our children were in college they helped pay their own way. When they had jobs and NEEDED a car for safe transportation, we helped them by sharing our second car with them or helping them buy a used car. It turned out, over the years, we never have a second car for ourselves which mean I did not have my own personal car. But we lived perfectly happy. By working during college our children reduced their school debt to a minimum and gained a great appreciation for studies and leisure time. Our children paid their own rent and daily expenses themselves. We helped them 1) get their first car -a used car 2) we gave them AAA cards and gas credit cards (FOR EMERGENCIES ONLY). They never abused the privilege and in fact I remember my daughter would send tip money to my wife to help pay the Chevron bill. We never paid a penny of interest on those cards!Children have to learn the value of money and the value of work early in life. By 18 a youngster should be contributing to his or her upkeep. The most important thing is to get EXPERIENCE and to develop the DISICPLINE of getting up every day and showing up on time for work. That means sometimes working nights or weekends.Yes, it is hard to work and easier to play and sleep in.But we choose how to respond to our problems in life and if we work hard and are sober and judicious we can create the outcomes we want or at least outcomes that are better if we had not planned and made good choices. In each life some rain shall fall But if we have a roof over our heads, an umbrella, a hat and a raincoat we will get through the storm more easily
“One ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture, and, if it were possible, to speak a few reasonable words.” ― Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Wilhelm Meister’s Apprenticeship
That’s certainly is my motto FOR THE GOOD LIFE.
And this shall be for music when no one else is near The fine song for singing, the rare song to hear! That only I remember, that only you admire Of the broad road that stretches and the roadside fire!
(R L STEVENSON)
***
O I had ance a true love, now I hae nane ava; And I had three braw brithers, but I hae tint them a’. My father and my mither sleep i’ the mools this day – I sit my lane amang the rigs, aboon sweet Rothesay Bay.
It’s a bonnie bay at morning, and bonnier at noon, But bonniest when the sun draps and red comes up the moon. When the mist creeps o’er the Cumbraes and Arran peaks are gray, And the great black hills, like sleeping kings, sit grand roun’ Rothesay Bay.
Then a bit sigh stirs my bosom, and wee tear blin’s my e’e, And I think of that far countrie wha I wad like to be. But I rise content i’ the morning to wark while I may – I’ the yellow har’st field of Ardbeg, aboon sweet Rothesay Bay.
This old Scottish song, which I have known for most of my life, reminds us there is beauty in this world but also sadness, loneliness, loss, and separation. But we should rise content each morning to work and study while we may and if we have lost loves and homelands we should be grateful that we have known friendship and love.
Working as a tour guide in Segovia Spain in the early 1980s. AMOR BRUJO TOURS and TRANSLATIONSI don’t have a lot of cash on hand but I always have a leather purse with $20 worth of half dollars at hand and I have a bag with about $150 of change hidden away. I don’t normally carry a lot of cash. Most of my purchases are by credit card. I never use a debit card.
I have a chance for a long life.
Already I am grateful for the years I have lived (mostly in good health). I am 68 years old and older than many people I worked with, studied with or loved. I have known people who died in their teens, in their twenties, in their thirties in their forties, in their fifties, and in their early sixties. I once saw a Sea Knight Helicopter fly away and cursed the fact I was not on it. It hit bad weather and crashed about 15 minutes later 23 Marines were killed including some people I knew. Our company commander canceled our trip and we had to march more than 20 miles back to camp in bad weather. Sometimes as Auld Pop used to say your number is up.
One lesson I have learned in life is that the body is a fragile vessel and that we are all mortal. Every day of good health is a gift. I think being married has kept me reasonably happy and healthy. Choosing a good spouse is one of the most important decisions one can make for one’s happiness and health. I have been married for almost forty-two years to my best friend of the last fifty years. John Joseph Powell in The SECRET OF STAYING IN LOVE wrote: “It is an absolute human certainty that no one can know his own beauty or perceive a sense of his own worth until it has been reflected back to him in the mirror of another loving, caring human being.”
Yes, no one can know true happiness unless they know the love of a husband and wife or of a child. I know when I first saw my grandchildren it was love at first sight! I do believe in enthusiasms and love at first sight.
Yes, no one can know true happiness unless they know the love of a husband and wife or of a child. I know when I first saw my grandchildren it was love at first sight! I was happy the day I was married -but not as happy as my parents I think and I was happy when our children were born -a very special gift for which I am eternally grateful- but there is no joy like the surprise or extra-inning gift of grandchildren. Children mean sacrifice and a lot of hard work but they pay dividends a hundred times over. Hugh Heffner with his multitudinous and mostly sterile dud in the mud sex was really a chump, not a champion. He thought he knew what life was but wasted most of his life in hedonistic trivialities. He thought he knew what love was but he knew only a fraction of the Four Loves.
This is the actress MAUREEN O’ HARA (1939) as Esmeralda in the film HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME. Who with eyes and heart in breast could not fall in love with such a smile?
To be happy one has to be in reasonable health. One has to have something to do with your time. So it is important to have hobbies and intellectual interests and a few good friends. One should be loved and have someone to love, have a roof over your head, some soup at the boil, some tasty food to eat, One needs plenty of water to drink and wash, One thing l learned is that one can go days even weeks of light eating but one cannot go very long without water. So water is my favorite beverage!
To be happy one has to have some dreams and something to hope for. Many of my personal dreams are unrealized but I had fun trying to achieve those dreams. I hiked many mountains I climbed many ruins in Sicily, Crete, Madeira, in Portugal, Spain, Scotland, Greece and Italy. I kissed a few pretty girls and they kissed me back. I have gone deep sea fishing in the Atlantic and Pacific. I played a lot of baseball and became in the words of a local athlete “decent”. I served honorably in the Marine Corps. I have published a few articles and one-act plays but never have written (a published book). I have written (privately) three volumes of essays and personal recollections that my daughter published. They are primarily for my grandchildren. I have taught many classes in history, literature, and languages and helped many students. I have coached sports teams and seen great athletes at play. All of our children and grandchildren are bilingual and were or are being raised as native speakers of Spanish and English.
I love monumental public memorials and sculptures though Shakespeare sang in the Sonnets of the immortality of literature:
“Not marble nor the gilded monuments
Of princes, shall outlive this powerful rhyme,
But you shall shine more bright in these contents
Than unswept stone, besmeared with sluttish time.”
When I visit the cemetery or war memorials, I walk past hundreds or even thousands of names that represent life stories now silenced forever.
Oh, they are the Silent Ones. May the many monuments that abound around the globe to those who have fought to protect our freedom and national independence remind us of duty, the cardinal virtue of courage, the inestimable value of valor, the honor evoked by such sacrifice!
Look at and contemplate {those}
” names …inscribed on the parchment of fame;
Heroes whose seeds were a noble example
That others might follow and honour thy name.”
I know that recorded history holds the adventures of a few who managed to be inscribed in the parchment of fame.
I have never thought I needed to live a life worthy of being recorded.
I never really sought fame or wealth but contentment and the quiet and security of a nice house and library. ] I enjoy quiet cafes, quiet rivers, quiet museums, and quiet walks in the park or in a forest. I have always wanted to live an honorable life of service to my school, my country, my family, and my God. “non mihi non tibi sed nobis as the Romans said, “not for me alone nor for thee all but for the common good of all.”
I knew all about the world of books. For most of my life, they were my biggest adventure. Books could take you into a better world. A world where there were fine songs for singing, moving laments, sports heroes, romance, adventures, tragedies, military adventures, explorations, mysteries, prayers, legends, and yes, even magic. Of course, the articles, stories, songs, and books ended eventually. Then you had to go back to being yourself.
So in the final analysis bookish adventures are not enough. A man craves the freedom to see places and do things. And when you are old you can look back and remember. This is one of the reasons I enlisted in the Marine Corps , worked in construction as a laborer (I helped build Bill Gate’s home in Bothwell, Washington), and why I lived and traveled in Latin America, Spain, and Europe as much as I could. I knew my time, my health, my freedom, and my financial independence were limited. My father always said, “You have to take chances in life. The door of opportunity opens and then closes. If you don’t move ahead when you have the chance you can lose out forever. You have to decide if it is worth taking the chance.”
I realize I am the biggest threat to my emotional, financial, and physical health.
So what do I do?
Number one I have a wife, children, life insurance, some savings, and some property. I am not a doomsday prepper by any means but I believe in having emergency food, water, and medicine just in case of some natural catastrophe. I have a solar crank radio, a solar charger, flashlights, batteries, candles. a first aid kit, an emergency stove, extra medicine, and spare glasses. That is not excessive. If one wants to have a long life one must be prepared to take care of oneself in case of an accident or an emergency.
One thing I hope is that I do not outlive my wife, my children, or my grandchildren. I hope I live long enough so that my grandchildren have memories of me and get to know and love me. That is an important goal in my life. I look forward with joy to every spring. I love the birds who come to visit and feed in our garden. I love the plants and flowers that bloom.
Leo and Laney enjoy our garden too Jan 2024
I do a lot of serious reading (classics, non-fiction, biography) but I enjoy lighter fare such as adventure tales, mysteries and westerns. I enjoy reading jokes and joke books.
I love reading about baseball and listening to games (chiefly) via MLB at Bat. I listen to games in Spanish and English. I first listened to baseball games in Spanish in the 1970s and it helped develop my Spanish.
Otherwise, I don’t spend a lot of time on spectator sports. I glance at the newspaper but that’s about it. Most of the time I am happy to read about the final score.
I try to set time aside for PHYSICAL EXERCISE and JOY ( I try to walk daily in the park and clean the pool and garden). When the weather is good I swim once or twice a day. I love reading and listening to classical music so I have CD’s and a nice BOSE player, plus SPOTIFY plus ITUNES for my phone.
I love to read the papers -The Wall Street Journal and our local paper every morning or Commentary magazine. I listen to LONDON TIMES radio reports as well as the Daily Telegraph and some Israeli news as well.
I spend some time on PERSONAL GROWTH. I love studying languages and spend about 2-3 hours a day studying new languages and reading ones I know. I have taken up a new hobby! Drawing. I always have drawn a little bit in my language studies but I have decided I can improve the quality of my notebooks! I enjoy singing or humming songs. I enjoy reciting poetry by heart just for fun. I also set aside time for relaxation. If I am tired or have a headache I rest and have some tea with lemon, Splenda or honey. I make a thermos of it to sip all afternoon.
I love doing FACETIME with our grandchildren it is so wonderful to talk to them and see them so full of joy and happiness. It feels good to hear them say “YAYO, WHEN ARE YOU COMING TO VISIT?”
I enjoy phone conversations with a few friends but am not really a phone person. I have to plan to call someone. Basically, I think calling can be an intrusion. And I know some people don’t like long or serious conversations. So my conversations with books are more satisfying than most phone chit-chatting. But I call people who call me. People who don’t call me or write to me I pray for but don’t worry about. It’s sad when old friends drift away but the truth that’s life.
So I prefer to write on my blog,The Spirit of Cecilia or THE GILBERT HIGHET SOCIETY on FB or email people. I text some family and friends and share book titles via Audible.
I try to be moderate in what I eat and drink (I primarily drink water coffee and tea). I have a physical once or twice a year and take my medicines.
I know that if one is to enjoy a LONG LIFE one has to do what one can to stay as healthy as possible. Then the chances for a happy long life are better.
As a young man and in middle age I traveled a lot so I am happy that I had that experience. But now I really have lost my wanderlust. I only want to travel to visit our grandchildren. Most days I am at home, on the porch, in the garden, in my library, in the TV room , or listening to podcasts or books on tape in bed. My wife and I enjoy JEOPARDY and British mysteries and shows on Masterpiece Theater. I don’t drive very much anymore perhaps once a month or less! I spend some time on Twitter (X) and Facebook and check my email at least every other day. I enjoy corresponding with people in Italy, Scotland, Israel , and throughout the English-speaking world.
I have always had the Munro motto in mind which is Dread God (and obey his commandments because that is the whole duty of man). BIODH EAGAL DHE OIRRE in Gaelic or Reverence you unto God. It is a very ancient motto and reminds us that Munro is a Christian name -it means the descendant of the Men of the Halo River the Roe (the Saint’s River) a place name in Ireland. That is probably the first Bible quote I ever knew and I heard it at least from 1959. I think It helps to have God and a little religion in your life. But that’s just my opinion. People should have freedom of conscience and choose their own paths. The only thing I go do is set a good example and invite people to consider the Good Life as I see it and seek it.
An ancient motto I have known since at least 1960 is NE OBLIVISCARIS do not forget. This was the Regimental motto of my grandfather’s old Regiment 1914-1919, the Thin Red Line of Heroes (The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders) At Balaklava in the Crimean War, the Argylls were called the Gaelic Rock. If they had failed the entire British and Allied army may have been destroyed but they calmly spread out in a thin line of two, fixed bayonets and fired aimed volley after volley from their Enfield Rifles. Their commander Sir Colin Campbell said, “Lads, we have to stop them or fall in the effort.” The Argylls near him said to him laconically, “Aye, we’ll stand until you give the order.” The war correspondents who were present were astonished at their discipline and cool courage. The Thin Red Line of Heroes became a symbol of the courage and professionalism of the British Army but especially the Scottish Highland Regiments. Many of my ancestors served in Highland Regiments.
And of course, I am a loyal man so SEMPER FIDELIS (always faithful) is a motto also. This is the motto of the US Marine Corps.
Another motto is CUIMHNICH AIR NA DAOINE BHON TAINIG TUSA (REMEMBER THE PEOPLE YOU CAME FROM).
I believe marriage is a sacrament and I have always been loyal to my wife and family putting their security and happiness above everything else.
I face firmly towards the future but never forget the past. I know in a long journey some things have to be left behind.
I only wish for my granddaughters and future grandchildren that they will have strong faith, good values, a good education, and the warmth and security of a good family.
For that is the duty of a good man, a good father, and a good husband. If you live a good life you will want to live a long life and I think you have a better chance for achieving a long life.
Daily writing prompt
What are your thoughts on the concept of living a very long life?
Spirit of Cecilia 
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