A Tribute to the Fallen

Today is the 70th anniversary of D-Day, the day that when Allied forces landed on the beaches of Normandy to commence the final destruction of the Nazi empire.  In this country, there will be a number of reminders of this day and most of them will focus on the heroic actions of the American servicemen who landed on that beach and who fought in that war.  However, what is sometimes lost sight of is that World War II was a "World" War and there were men from other countries who landed on those beaches in Normandy and fought in that war.  

As some of you know, I have a branch of my family that were pioneers of the Canadian West and, in the past, I have been reminded of the contribution made by my Canadian relatives to the cause of Freedom.  On this day, along with remembering the contributions of the American heroes, I will also remember theirs.

Peace.

Family Members Who Served In Canada's Armed Forces Overseas

Lester Mapp – Father

Raphael Mapp - Uncle

Carl Mapp – Uncle

William Stanley Saunders – Uncle

James Earl Saunders – Uncle

A salute to all those who have served

Lest we forget....forget what?
Forget the troops, men and women, who fought for the freedom and rights of other people....the people of all the countries under siege.

They laid down their lives for others, without thinking of their own safety. They helped people in the countries in which they were fighting by caring for them, helping feed them, at the same time giving up some of their own food for starving children.

We will never forget the men and women who put their own lives at risk during the great wars, the
“incidents” and the UN peacekeeping assignments, which have ravaged and are still ravaging much of this world. Many of our troops have served in skirmishes, incidents and other battles which have never been given the respect and honour which they deserve.

Those of us who were too young, too old or not fit enough to serve alongside these brave men and women stand here free and able to live in comfort because of the sacrifices of so many.

To all those who served and are serving: we salute you with pride.

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

A Wise Comedian

One of the more memorable moments for me from my attendance at the Amherst Black Alumni Reunion in 2013 did not occur with the Amherst Black Alumni.  In fact it did not occur at Amherst at all.  One of the more memorable moments occurred the Monday night after the reunion when, after a day of sightseeing in New York, Ping and I returned to Princeton, New Jersey, for our night's rest.  Before returning to the hotel, Ping treated me to dinner at what appeared to be one of the better eating establishments in downtown Princeton.  During the course of our conversation, we found ourselves engaged in a conversation with a man who had been dining alone at a table one over from our own.  Somewhere during the conversation, we became aware of each other's backgrounds and we briefly discussed the fact that his profession in life was the buying of companies. I suppose he would be akin to the Richard Gere character in the movie "Pretty Woman". We discussed some of his business dealings for a brief while but surprisingly the conversation took on a more spiritual tone.  For the next two hours, we sat there chatting about our personal theologies and spiritual experiences.  We talked and talked until the restaurant workers began to indicate that it was time to close.  So we left the restaurant and talked on the streets of Princeton for a good fifteen to twenty minutes more. 

Since that time, we have kept in touch and last week he sent me an unusual email about a commencement address given by the comedic actor Jim Carrey.  It may seem strange, but I found the address given by Mr. Carrey to be rather profound.  Perhaps, you will as well.

Peace.

To watch a great commencement speech by Jim Carey MUM, go to:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V80-gPkpH6M

 

It will be well worth your time.

A Perfect Effort

I gave a speech at the Annual West Contra Costa YMCA Awards Dinner held at the Richmond Country Club last night.  It was well received by the audience, perhaps it will be by you.  Have a great weekend.

Peace.

Good Evening,

 

In a couple of months at a movie theater a couple of miles from here, you are likely to find a movie playing that is entitled “When the Game Stands Tall”.  The movie, which will be out just as football season begins, tells the remarkable story of a high school football dynasty.  The high school football dynasty depicted is De La Salle High School of Concord, California, and its  football teams coached by Bob Ladouceur.

 

Now, it is unusual to see a movie being made about a high school football team, but the De La Salle High School football teams depicted were special.  Indeed, beginning in 1992, the De La Salle High School football teams went undefeated for twelve seasons and for 151 straight games.  That is a phenomenal record and is highly unlikely to ever be broken.

 

In seeing this streak continue and the success of the athletes that graduated from it, many began to ask what was the secret to the success.  As it turns out, the secret to the success was that the coach did not so much emphasize the winning but rather focused on getting his players to give a “perfect effort” not just in the game, but in life.  Coach Ladouceur knew that success would come if the players were challenged with responsibility and commitment, when the players both individually and together came to develop integrity, discipline, faith and commitment.   When that happened, then the “perfect effort” would come, and so would success.

 

One of the players on the De La Salle High School football team highlighted in the film “When the Game Stands Tall”, is a student from Richmond, California.  His name is Terrance Kelly, and he was a star on these undefeated De La Salle teams.  Indeed, Terrance Kelly was the captain of the last team to keep the streak alive and during his four years at De La Salle High School, the team never lost a game.  At the end of his senior year, Terrance, a four star linebacker prospect was awarded a full athletic scholarship to play football at the University of Oregon and, as a disciple of the “perfect effort” philosophy, appeared on his way to continued success at Oregon and beyond.

 

However, in what seemed to be a cruel twist of fate, Terrance Kelly’s career at Oregon was stopped before it had even begun.  After spending the summer in Oregon, Terrance returned to Richmond before his first year of school was to start to take care of some business and to say goodbye to some friends.  While saying goodbye to some friends on an August evening in 2004, he was shot and killed by a young man who allegedly mistook Terrance for someone else.

 

This seemingly senseless act shocked the City of Richmond and devastated Terrance’s family.  It just left so many wondering why such a thing would happen to a young man who had so much promise and who was so good.  For so many, the question was “Why God? Why?”

 

I suppose God answered that question in different ways for different people, however, it is rather remarkable and rather fitting that after the tragic death of Terrance Kelly, Landrin and Mary Kelly, Terrance's father and stepmother, created the Terrance Kelly Youth Foundation. The mission of the Terrance Kelly Youth Foundation is to inspire and empower at-risk youth who face challenging circumstances to become successful, productive, contributing members of society. The foundation strives to motivate the youth to seek education as an alternative.  In essence, the Foundation in its own way strives to encourage our young people to make the “perfect effort” just as Terrance had made during his all too short life.

 

About 4 years ago, the Terrance Kelly Youth Foundation came to our Y looking for a new place to house their youth programs. As an agency that is always looking for partners to work with, our Y welcomed the partnership.

 

Over the last 4 years, Landrin and Mary Kelly have brought a number of valuable resources and programs to our Y and to the community.  And Mary Kelly, in particular, has made significant contributions to our Y facility and Y operations.

 

Today, Mary Kelly is the coordinator for the Terrance Kelly After School program at the E M Downer Family Y.  But Mary is also always looking for new ways to engage the youth. Mary has been the person who has coordinated bringing in specialty programs including photography, hip hop dance and cooking. Mary volunteers with the afterschool program’s homework help and tutoring striving to help others onto the path to success that Terrance Kelly was on.

 

Mary also supervises the ANGELS program which stands for: Achieving New Goals through Education Learning and Self-esteem.  ANGELS is a five-week comprehensive violence prevention program designed to raise awareness before violent acts are committed. At-risk youth between the ages of 12 – 17 are challenged and motivated to reflect upon personal choices, communication and problem solving skills.  The program reinforces non-violence and provides a safe environment which allows the youth to build the necessary skills to succeed in life. 

 

In April of this year, Mary, who has worked for Home Depot for 20 years, talked to her boss about the need to spruce up the landscaping around the E M Downer Family Y, where the Terrance Kelly Foundation activities take place. Store manager Allen Fox agreed to donate about $1,000 worth of materials from the store and also solicited donations from vendors, who provided soil, bark and strawberries. On Saturday, April 12, 2014, about 20 volunteers from Home Depot stores in Vallejo, El Cerrito and Hercules worked side by side with youth and families from the Terrance Kelly Foundation and also from the E M Downer Y after school and sports programs. Together they donned gardening gloves cleaning out the planter beds and filling them with fresh dirt. They put together picnic tables for the youth, placed small planter boxes complete with irrigation along the south fence line filled with strawberry plants and cleaned up the area including pulling weeds. On the west side of the building they cleaned up the landscaped area and covered it with new bark. The crew also installed new landscaping along the outside wall of the gym complete with a drip irrigation system. There was great coverage of the day by the news media and a lot of smiling faces both young and old for a job well done. Obviously, teaching youth to give back to the community is an important part of the Foundation’s work.  But it appears that teaching adults about the joy of giving back is also one of the great side benefits.

 

Mary and the other volunteers at the Foundation have two events coming up to support the important work of the Terrance Kelly Youth Foundation: The Terrance Kelly Youth Foundation 4^th Annual Golf Tournament which is happening next Saturday June 14 and the 10^th Annual Gala Dinner and Auction which will be on August 23^rd. If anyone is interested in participating in either of those events you can go to the Foundation website www.TKYF20.org

 

In a divine way, by showing how to turn a great loss into a great gain, Mary, who was born in North Richmond and attended local schools graduating from Richmond High School, and who came into Terrance’s life when he was 4, has continued with Landrin to keep Terrance’s memory alive by motivating youth from impoverished communities to gain a broader view of the world, enabling those youth to rise above the negative circumstances prevalent in both the community and their lives. Indeed, both Landrin and Mary have through their “perfect efforts” with the Terrance Kelly Foundation helped to make it possible that the spirit of Terrance Kelly lives on in the lives of those many young people that they touch.  And so, it is quite fitting, and quite an honor and a privilege for me to say, “Mary Ann Kelly, for the many hours of volunteer work you contribute in our community, the YMCA tonight honors you by presenting you with our Volunteer of the Year Award.”

 

Ladies and gentlemen, our Rita Davis Volunteer Award Winner for 2014,  Mary … Ann … Kelly.

 

Ethic of Constructive Peacemaking

As is my custom, I peruse the New York Times obituaries on a regular basis.  During a recent perusal, I read the obit for a Dr. Glen Stassen, a noted theologian and peace activist.  I was first struck by the fact that Glen Stassen was the son of the perennial Republican presidential candidate, Harold Stassen.  That relationship was interesting in itself.  However, in reading further I became intrigued by the theology/philosophy of Glen Stassen.  Stassen's Ethic of Constructive Peacemaking was a novel one for me and I wondered if it is still being employed or if it had died with Dr. Stassen.  In my mind, I found it interesting to ponder its efficacy and the prospects for its universal application in a world where other faiths and beliefs advise to the contrary. The pondering, in itself, was an interesting exercise.  Perhaps, during your weekend of rest, you will find it interesting to so ponder as well.  

Peace,

*****

Dr. Stassen argued, Christian ethics demanded organized action to save the world from self-destruction.

“Christians need more than an ethic of ‘just say no,’ ” he wrote. “Jesus didn’t just say no to anger and revengeful resistance, but commanded transforming initiatives: ‘Go make peace with your brother or sister; go the second mile with the Roman soldier.’ ”

What Christians needed, he said, was “an ethic of constructive peacemaking.”

Theologians had long wrestled with the Christian response to war, and whether it was ever morally justified to kill. Two schools of thought had emerged: pacifism, which said it was never justified, and “just war” theory, which described circumstances in which killing in war was morally defensible. Dr. Stassen advocated what he called a third option: preventing wars from starting in the first place.

“Why do we only keep debating whether wars are justified?” he asked.

In “Just Peacemaking: Transforming Initiatives of Justice and Peace” (1992) and a dozen other books on nonviolence and conflict resolution, Dr. Stassen described techniques for hard-nosed negotiating in which both parties admit culpability for past deeds, take a clearheaded measure of the interests of the other side and sometimes make calculated unilateral initiatives.

“Biblical realism,” as he described the mind-set for negotiations like these, “is about diagnosing sin realistically and seeking deliverance, not merely about affirming some high ideals.”

An Awakening

On my desk, I have two Zen calendars, one from the year 2011 and the other from 2013.  Occasionally, I view some of the pages from previous years to once again ponder on the lessons that are to be learned from Buddhism about life and being in the present moment.  I must admit that often the lessons are lost on me.  I do not fully comprehend what being fully "awake" may mean from a Buddhist perspective, but I do appreciate that the need to live more in the present than in the future, or the past, is an important aspect of the faith.  

In my contemplation of my best minute, and in my "awakening" to the appreciation that my best minute may be the minute of the now wherein I can simultaneously reflect on the "best minutes" of the past while enjoying the beautiful marvels of today, I doubt that practitioners of Buddhism would approve.  And yet, there is something to the experience that seems to have merit.  I am wondering whether others have experienced their own "awakening" moment and, if so, if they would be willing to share it with us. 

What experiences have led to your "awakening" and, if you are now awake, are you more attuned to life and the beauty that surrounds us?  

Speaking for myself, it seems that by living in the now one does indeed become more "awakened" to -- more in tune with -- the beauty of the world that exists all around.  But perhaps I am mistaken.  Please "enlighten" me if I am.

In the meantime, allow me to also mention that the journey to an "awakening" is not necessarily a solitary journey.  Indeed, as indicated previously sometimes one must be "pulled from bed", to be able to see the wonders that abound in this world and beyond.   If your journey was not a solitary one, please tell us who your "guide" or "fellow traveler" was or is.       

In my case, my recent "awakening" has been made possible by my girlfriend, who pulled me out of sleep to see the stars.  Who, along your journey, has helped you also to be able to see? 

Peace.

The Best Minute of My Life

This past week (on Monday night/Tuesday morning), I was pulled from bed to go outside and witness a rare astronomical event, the first of four Blood Moons.   On Tuesday evening, I caught up on some of my television viewing by watching the third episode of Cosmos where I learned, for the first time, about the relationship between Edmond Halley, Christopher Wren, Robert Hooke, and Isaac Newton and how it was Edmond Halley who financed Newton's Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica,one of the greatest scientific treatises of all time.  And today, I am confronted with the news (see below) that a planet has been found that exists in the Goldilocks range (the habitable zone) of a nearby (500 light years away) solar system. 

As I reflect on all these celestial and scientific marvels, I am mindful that any attempt to single out the best minute of my life may actually be subject to Heisenberg's principle of uncertainty in that any attempt to observe the best minute of my life in retrospect is colored by the age and perspective of the observer at the time of observation.  Over time, the validity of the observation changes and the value of the moment can vary.  

Or perhaps it is Einstein's theory of relativity that affects my assessment of what might be the best minute of my life.  The perception of the candidate moments for such a designation varies based upon the observation of the minute at any particular space and time in my life.

However, ultimately, in going through the process of thinking about the best minute of my life, simply thinking about all the moments of joy and happiness that I have experienced brought a great smile to my face.  To realize that I have been fortunate enough to have so many moments indicated that I have had a good life ... a blessed life.   And in the process of mentally reliving all those moments and reaching the conclusion that I reached, it dawned on me that that moment of "awakening" just might be the best minute of my life.  

Peace.

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/kepler-finds-new-earth-like-planet-500-light-years-away/

The Best Minute of Your Life

Last weekend I donned by charcoal grey pants and my dark navy blue shirt and resumed my "career" as a Little League baseball umpire.  The games were held at Clayton Community Park in Clayton, a quaint suburb community situated at the base of the Bay Area's highest mountain, Mount Diablo -- the "Devil Mountain."  It was a beautiful day for baseball and the setting was grand.  There was green everywhere.  Indeed, there was such a variety of green, it seemed to me that one would need the 128 crayon box to match the various shades of green that were visible at the park.  Additionally, looming over the center field was the site of the majestic Mount Diablo inspiring us with its size and green grandeur.

The field was a little damp from the previous day's rain, but that did not deter us from proceeding on with the game.  I, along with the kids, was looking forward to renewing this ritual of Spring.  And so, with a great deal of enthusiasm, I commenced the proceedings by using my "umpire voice" to yell, "Play Ball!"

The game was going along quite well without incident until about the fourth inning.  At that time, one of the young pitchers lost his control and accidentally hit the batter on his helmeted head.  I immediately called "Dead Ball!" and motioned for the coach to come over and tend to his player.  The helmet had taken the brunt of the pitch so the player appeared to be okay.  Nevertheless, I walked with him halfway to first base just to make sure that he was okay.

I was about to resume play when the pitcher's coach asked for time out.  I gave it to him and allowed him to go out to talk with his pitcher.  After all, these are 11 and 12 year old kids and, after hitting a batter in the head, it is customary for a coach to talk with his pitcher to settle him down and to get the pitcher to refocus on the task at hand.

As the coach talked to his pitcher, the next batter began to engage in some banter with some fans behind the backstop.  One of the fans noted that the hit batter was the identical twin brother of the batter on deck and asked the on deck batter which one of them was older.  The on deck batter replied, in the smart aleck way that only a twelve year old can, that he was the older one by one minute ,and ...this is were I could not help myself from cracking up ... that that one minute was the the best minute of his life.  The implication being that the best minute of his life was the minute he was in the world before the arrival of his twin brother.

That smart aleck moment was priceless fun for me... but it also got me to thinking.  What is the best minute of my life?  I mean most of us can think of our best year or even our best day, but our best minute?  The exercise that I have engaged in since pondering that question has been a rather illuminating personal experience indeed.  And, in engaging in that experience, I began to wonder what others would say was the best minute of their lives, ... and why.

And so, my friends, wherever you may be.  Please let me know what was the best minute of your life and why?  If you are like me, I think you will find the exercise a rather interesting one.  On the other hand, if you do not have a "best minute", do not despair, another minute is just a few seconds away, and it is conceivable that the next minute to come will be the best minute of your life.

Peace.

P.S. The team that the twins were on lost their game.  But it was a good game.  The next game, however, was even better with the home team winning 5-4 on a thrilling three run inside the park home run.  It was inside the park because the park had no fences and the kid had to run as fast as he could around the bases to barely beat the throw to home plate. What a great day for baseball!