“Sometimes a Bible in the hand of one man is worse than a whisky bottle in the hand of (another)… Some… who so worry about the next world, they’ve never learned to live in this one, and you can look down the street and see the results.” Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird
A friend on twitter shared that quote the other day, reminding me of the wisdom of Harper Lee as exemplified in the character of Atticus Finch. How relevant that quote is today, but that’s all I’m going to say about it. I’m too emotionally tired for a social commentary, and maybe we all just need something to smile about. So I have some sweet thoughts from grandparents coming up.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Has Autumn come to your part of the world? Not here yet, but I keep hoping. Fall is my favorite time of the year. I’m always ready for cool weather, pretty leaves that crunch under my feet when I walk, and a reason to pull out my favorite flannel shirts. That photo is from two years ago when I saw a tree adorned in gold and red.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A friend sent me the following quips from grandparents. They are charming and amusing and I wish I knew who originally wrote them. My friend didn’t know. Someone had forwarded them to her without citing the author.
So, whoever you are, if you read this blog, thank you for the wit and wisdom.
I didn’t know if my granddaughter had learned her colors yet, so I decided to test her. I would point out something and ask what color it was. She would tell me and was always correct. It was fun for me, so I continued. At last, she headed for the door, saying, “Grandma, I really think you should try to figure out some of these colors yourself!”
When my grandson Billy and I entered our vacation cabin, we kept the lights off until we were inside to keep from attracting pesky insects. Still, a few fireflies followed us in. Noticing them before I did, Billy whispered, “It’s no use Grandpa. Now the mosquitoes are coming after us with flashlights.”
When my grandson asked me how old I was, I teasingly replied, “I’m not sure.” “Look in your underwear, Grandpa,” he advised, “Mine says I’m 4 to 6.” (WOW! I really like this one — it says I’m only ’38’!)
A grandfather was delivering his grandchildren to their home one day when a fire truck zoomed past. Sitting in the front seat of the fire truck was a Dalmatian dog. The children started discussing the dog’s duties.
“They use him to keep crowds back,” said one child.
“No,” said another. “He’s just for good luck.”
A third child brought the argument to a close. “They use the dogs,” she said firmly, “to find the fire hydrants.”
A 6-year-old was asked where his grandma lived. “Oh,” he said, “she lives at the airport, and whenever we want her, we just go get her. Then, when we’re done having her visit, we take her back to the airport.”
I was in the bathroom, putting on my makeup, under the watchful eyes of my young granddaughter, as I’d done many times before. After I applied my lipstick and started to leave, the little one said, “But Grandma, you forgot to kiss the toilet paper good-bye!” I will probably never put lipstick on again without thinking about kissing the toilet paper good-bye. . .
A grandmother was telling her little granddaughter what her own childhood was like. “We used to skate outside on a pond. I had a swing made from a tire; it hung from a tree in our front yard. We rode our pony. We picked wild raspberries in the woods.”
The little girl was wide-eyed, taking this all in. At last she said, “I sure wish I’d gotten to know you sooner!”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Before you go, check out the contest at Booksweeps where you can enter for a chance to win a prize package worth $250. The name of the contest is The Breaking Bad Giveaway, and the reference of course is to the hit television series. My sponsoring title is One Small Victory, and Jenny, the main character, is one tough lady, willing to do whatever it takes to get drugs out of her small Texas town before they take another one of her children.
In her courage and determination, Jenny is much like Walter White, the high school chemistry teacher in the Breaking Bad television series who had no idea what dangerous turns his life would take when he made one fateful decision.
Unlike Walter, Jenny doesn’t get into bed with drug dealers, but her life is never the same after she makes the decision to go after the drug dealers.
The giveaway starts today, Sept 26 and runs through October 10. However, if you don’t want to wait to see if you win the contest that includes a copy of One Small Victory, my publisher has reduced the price on Kindle to only .99.
BOOK BLURB:
What do you do when grief slams you in the gut and brings you to your knees?
Jenny Jasik’s life changes in an instant, when her son is killed in an automobile accident and drugs are found at the scene. She bullies her way onto a drug task force, working as a Confidential Informant.
Jenny only reports to her supervisor, Detective Steve Morrity, and can never tell anyone else what she’s doing. There are days she is not sure she can hold it all together.
But when she looks into the face of her daughter, she knows she has to try.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
That’s all from me folks. I hope your week ahead is productive, satisfying, and has a bit of fun thrown into the mix. Stay safe. Stay happy.