The Importance of Family

“The Importance of Family”

 Webster defines “family” as….

              “A fundamental social group in society typically consisting of one or two

              parents and their children; two or more people who share goals and values,

              have long-term commitments to one another, and reside usually in the same

              dwelling place; all the members of a household under one roof; A group of

              persons sharing common ancestry.”

Pre-World War II families generally lived together under one roof or at least in the same town.  Soldiers returning from war were no longer satisfied with status quo and set out to seek their own fortunes…going to college, seeking professional employment, moving away.

I am a nostalgic.  Family is important to me.  As I get older and I realize that two-thirds of my life is now behind me, family becomes increasingly more important to me.  Sometimes I find myself looking back over my childhood (older people do that you know).  I was a daughter, a granddaughter, a sister, a niece.  It was a simpler time.  As a child my family consisted of me, my siblings, parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins we visited often in Skokie and Oaklawn.  I remember my grandmother sitting in her chair carefully cutting the skin off of an apple with a paring knife…paper thin skin…one long strip of skin…never breaking it once!  I don’t think I ever remember my mom when her hands weren’t busy with something….sewing on buttons, knitting, crocheting…her hands were always working.  And sitting next to her on the table was a large cup of coffee…never empty…coffee pot always going.  Dad making his Sunday night trip to the Dairy Queen in Wauconda to bring back ice cream…one quart soft and one quart hard…one can of Hershey chocolate syrup. 

Annual family picnics at 522 Rose Avenue brought family from far and wide. Dad roasting chickens….lots of chickens….on the brick bar-b-que he painstakingly built when we moved in.  The patio, and I suspect the brick bar-b-que is still there, although the original house has been remodeled and expanded.  The men would sit around and play poker and drink beer; the women enjoyed rousing games of pinnacle, while the kids ran around the yard, went down to the beach, or played badminton in the side yard.  

Fast forward.  I am no longer a daughter, granddaughter, or niece.  My parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, great-aunts and uncles…all gone now.  I am the mom, grandma, aunt, and great aunt.  I am still a sibling, but our numbers are cut in half.  A new generation is growing up around me…growing up and adding more generations to the family.  With the exception of a few, our family still lives close by, but as they grow and seek new adventures, I fear they, too, will want to seek fame and fortune in places I probably will never see.  My heart will break as I say goodbye.  I wish I could keep them all close, but know in my heart I must let them fly. 

Many look at the Christmas season with a sense of dread and foreboding…the chaos of shopping, baking, and cooking.  Christmas Eve and Christmas Day festivities where the young folks must split their time with two sets of family.  I no longer do that, but their family obligations dictate they must.  It is difficult and tiring.  The noise, the crowd, everyone talking at the same time…picking up a conversation here, a conversation there, men watching television and dozing after a hearty meal. 

This is my favorite time of the year.  Getting together with my children, grandchildren, my sister’s daughter and her family on Christmas Eve.  Then on Christmas Day getting up early, packing up the car, and doing it all over again with the other side of the family.  Yes, it is crowded.  Yes, it is noisy.  Yes, it is chaotic.  But I love it!  After it is over, there is a sense of disappointment because I have to wait a whole year to do it again.  I don’t think my children understand how important this time is to me.  It is a time of family…of giving to one another….not just gifts…but of time and love of family…of establishing and re-establishing family bonds.  It is a time of joy, of putting aside all the problems and issues of the year and loving one another.

Thanksgiving is a tie for thanking God for all the blessings He has bestowed upon us.  In spite of the economy, the high cost of gasoline, high unemployment, and upside-down mortgages, God has given me a wonderful family and extended family and reasonable good health.  The rest of what is going on in the world is unimportant.   Christmas is a time we celebrate the birth of our Lord.  It is a time of gathering of family members. And yes, it is the time of year when chaos and noise seem to be primary.  I love it!!

Paul Revere's ride....or not!

"Paul Revere's Ride"....or NOT!!"

I do not consider myself an expert historian and certainly do not rank myself in the same literary category as those including Shelby Foote, James McPherson, Michael Shaara, and Daniel Martinez.  However, I do believe that I am learned enough to hold my own in any kind of historical dialogue regarding various portions of American history.

One of the most frustrating and annoying aspects of studying and subsequently teaching American history…(ok, I admit….it makes me downright MAD!)….is the misinformation, inconsistencies, and LIES that have been printed and continue to be printed in history curriculum and taught to our children over the past century.

The dictionary defines the term “ignorant” as “lacking knowledge or information.”  We are all “ignorant” of some things.  Only when we become “knowledgeable” about things do we cease to be ignorant.  Simple concept.

For decades those who write the curriculum have relied on previous information from previous textbooks or from those who loosely “verified” documentation.  Unfortunately, as members of academia began doing extensive research on various topics, discovering the inconsistencies and misinformation in the nation’s textbooks, very little was done to correct the wrong.  This is doing our young people a great disservice.

Recently my grandson was learning about Paul Revere and his famous “ride.”  In case you aren’t aware, the current info we have been taught is really as a result of Longfellow’s famous poem.  Read that poem and one gets the impression that Paul Revere did all this by himself.  So, that is how history has presented the event.  Anyway, when his teacher said that Revere made the ride, my grandson stepped up and said “No he didn’t!  He didn’t finish it.”  Long story short, the teacher said his grandmother was wrong.  Now, I take that personal!!!  So, if by chance that particular teacher ever reads this blog, I have one thing to say to you….DO YOUR RESEARCH!!!!!!  (ok, I feel a little better now.)

It’s not that I am this super intelligent human person, it’s that I do research! And I try to verify and re-verify that research!! Below is just an excerpt from something I Googled just a few minutes ago.

In 1774 and the Spring of 1775 Paul Revere was employed by the Boston Committee of Correspondence and the Massachusetts Committee of Safety as an express rider to carry news, messages, and copies of resolutions as far away as New York and Philadelphia.

On the evening of April 18, 1775, Paul Revere was sent for by Dr. Joseph Warren and instructed to ride to Lexington, Massachusetts, to warn Samuel Adams and John Hancock that British troops were marching to arrest them. After being rowed across the Charles River to Charlestown by two associates, Paul Revere borrowed a horse from his friend Deacon John Larkin. While in Charlestown, he verified that the local "Sons of Liberty" committee had seen his pre-arranged signals. (Two lanterns had been hung briefly in the bell-tower of Christ Church in Boston, indicating that troops would row "by sea" across the Charles River to Cambridge, rather than marching "by land" out Boston Neck. Revere had arranged for these signals the previous weekend, as he was afraid that he might be prevented from leaving Boston).

On the way to Lexington, Revere "alarmed" the country-side, stopping at each house, and arrived in Lexington about midnight. As he approached the house where Adams and Hancock were staying, a sentry asked that he not make so much noise. "Noise!" cried Revere, "You'll have noise enough before long. The regulars are coming out!" After delivering his message, Revere was joined by a second rider, William Dawes, who had been sent on the same errand by a different route. Deciding on their own to continue on to Concord, Massachusetts, where weapons and supplies were hidden, Revere and Dawes were joined by a third rider, Dr. Samuel Prescott. Soon after, all three were arrested by a British patrol. Prescott escaped almost immediately, and Dawes soon after. Revere was held for some time and then released. Left without a horse, Revere returned to Lexington in time to witness part of the battle on the Lexington Green.

Lest you think my research comes only from the Internet, in doing this search years ago, I was able to get a photocopy of a handwritten letter from Paul Revere to General Washington verifying the entire event.  SOOOOO,  Paul Revere, one of MANY members of the Sons of Liberty, was joined by two other riders and were ARRESTED by an enemy patrol It was Dr. Samuel Prescott who managed to escape and it was HE who finished the ride.  This information is documented and verified by the U.S. Library of Congress; and if I was able to acquire it, anyone can.  Nuff said!!! 

Oh, and one more thing…it is highly unlikely that anyone yelled “The British are coming; the British are coming!!”  Think about it…this was PRE-war; they were ALL British subjects.  It would be like them riding through town yelling “I’m coming, I’m coming!”  In all likelihood, they probably used the term “Regulars” since British troops were generally referred to by that name.  “Redcoats,” a derogatory term for the regulars, was also used.

It is my goal to cover about four or five major discrepancies found in our history books, but this Paul Revere thing has been an irritation to me for a long time….that and the Betsy Ross story…which is another blog. (she didn’t sew the flag, folks!)

"It's A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood"

   “It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood”

I was going to discuss my years in the Civil Air Patrol this week, but thought I’d put that on hold for awhile.  CJ Rose jogged my brain a while ago with a Mr. Rogers comment, so while it is fresh in my mind, I’ll just share a little on how it came to be that I celebrated Mr. Rogers’ birthday in my classroom every year.

My first year of teaching (1989-90), I was getting ready for school one day in March.  NBC Chicago news at that time used to announce celebrity birthdays and I heard that it was Mr. Rogers’ birthday.  Now, since March is typically a “dead” month…no real holidays, not quite spring, and winter won’t go away…I decided to have a little fun.  Stopping at Jewel in Round Lake, I bought a plain frosted cake, a tube of decorating frosting, some ice cream, streamers, and other stuff.  I put up my meager decorations in our little classroom with no windows, one door and half a wall.  At lunch time I brought out the cake and ice cream and made the kids sing the Mr. Rogers’ theme song.  I’m sure they thought I had finally gone over the edge, but they wanted the cake and ice cream….so they sang. 

I thought that would be the end of it. But when the next school year started and I had a whole new flock of 6^th graders, they reminded me of the previous year’s party and asked if we were going to do it again.  So began a tradition that lasted every single year I was there.

On MY birthday one year, I received two birthday cards from students with a picture of Mr. Rogers on it.  I still have those cards on my bulletin board in my office.  I remember one time a certain science teacher at CCS kidnapped my card and held it for ransom.  I subsequently lifted his little plastic skeleton and mailed it back to him piece by piece. Yes, sometimes even I questioned the stability of the teachers from time to time!!!

One day I received a letter from a former student who had graduated, married, and had a couple of kids. She and her family were visiting California and she took a photo of Mr. Roger’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.  I still have that photo on my bulletin board in my office.  I really do treasure these little mementos.  When Mr. Rogers passed away I put up a little memorial wall in his honor in the hallway outside of my classroom.  I posted some of the newspaper articles from that day’s paper.  It really was a sad day.

So, what began my fascination for Mr. Rogers Neighborhood?  I used to watch the show with my two children when they were growing up. When our oldest grandson, Michael, was little (around 2 or 3), I used to baby-sit him.  We had a regular routine of watching Mr. Rogers, Lamb chop with Sheri Lewis, and Barney.  Yes, Barney.  I never really liked Sesame Street because I thought the activity was too rushed.  Mr. Rogers’ program was slower paced…something that was needed in order to put a toddler down for a nap.  Michael learned the words to all three theme songs and we would sing them together.  (I’m sure he is going to appreciate my saying this!)  he he.   .

Now, when many of my former students think of me, they remember the crazy teacher who used to celebrate Mr. Rogers’ birthday every March 20^th.

As I was typing this little walk down memory lane, my mind started to remember lots of little tidbits of info from my wonderful days at CCS.  Thanks CJ; I believe you have created a monster here.  The topic ideas are coming faster than I can write them down.  I think I’m going to enjoy this.  One particular topic is associated with the song “Aura Lee.”  Ah, but that’s another blog at another time.

The Early Years

The first subject of my first blog was easy…the perils of adjusting to 21^st century technology.  No matter how hard I try, I will always be several steps behind the norm. I recently gave away my VCR, so I guess there is hope.  However, the fact that I still have no idea how to work my DVD player, sets me back again….AND…I need to call on one of the grandchildren to help me figure out why Bruce can’t reply to emails….AND….just when I figure out how to maneuver around Facebook, the creators of the world’s most popular social network step up and CHANGE THE FORMAT!!!   AARRGGG!!!! 

Ok, calming down.  One of the topic suggestions CJ offered was stories of my life/youth.  Not sure how interesting that would be.  I did not grow up the child of some Hollywood star or of royalty, so there are no “secrets” to reveal that would make the six o’clock news.  Well, our great-grandparents did serve the king and queen of Denmark, but I don’t suppose that counts here. 

I am the youngest of four kids.  This is a great time to insert of picture:

                                                                       

(it really would be nice if I knew how to type in that empty space next to the picture….can we say technology challenged??)

I’m the cute one on the right, by the way.  My brother, Larry, is on the far left, Lois and Jean in the middle.  That’s the four Thompson kids.  I always felt a little neglected because my mom didn’t make me a matching dress like my sisters.  Oh well, moving on.  Those who knew us knew that my brother and I were always pretty close.  However, not everyone knows that my big bro wanted …and actually made arrangements….to trade me for the new baby boy born to the parents of his friend across the alley in Chicago!!!  He made it perfectly clear to our mom that if she had another girl to NOT bring it home!!! According to the stories Mom told us, he refused to even look at me for several days.  But when he did finally sneak a peek, he was hooked!!!  I was just soooo  adorable!!!  I love to tell that story!!!!

 Sorry CJ, but most of my growing up years was pretty much normal for a kids growing up in the 1950s.  Other than my girlfriend and I breaking into the new Island Lake school on the weekends and setting ablaze the big clump of dried trees in back of the school, I led a pretty quiet life. 

Some things I miss about growing up in a small town during the 50s: 

    1.  Didn’t know of anyone who actually locked their doors.

1. Daily milk deliveries by Cary Dairy.
2. Playing hide ‘n seek until after 10pm.
3. Trick or treating and NOT finding razor blades in the apples.
4. Getting fresh baked break from Miss Bailey at the bottom of the hill.
5. Sledding down Ivy Road in the winter, crossing Eastway Drive, and down to the lagoon!!!
6. Walking to Garland’s grocery store for a soda.

As I said,  the story of my life would never transit into a best seller or a box office hit.  Besides, parts of it are like the Nixon tapes….with parts missing….never to be revealed!!

OCCUPY WALL STREET”

As I watch the news reports over this past week on the global economic protests, my thoughts flashed back to a similar protest 79 years ago (no I wasn’t there) when several thousand WWI veterans marched on Washington DC to protest President Hoover’s veto of a bill that would provide these soldiers of their bonus pay. 

In 1932, America was in the depths of depression and mass unemployment.  Veterans were not exempt from these hardships in spite of their service to the country.  They needed their bonus money in order to survive and provide for their families.  Tired of individually appealing to the government for some action, they banded together, set up a tent city in the nation’s capital that was dubbed “Hooverville” in response to the president’s veto of that bill.  For all their efforts, they were rousted out by federal troops led by Douglas MacArthur, their tent city dismantled and burned.  Bonuses were ultimately paid out in 1936…four years later.


Now, in October of 2011, we are seeing not only Americans, but thousands of people in 87 countries gathering together in and around their individual financial institutions in support of others who are gathering in Washington to publicly blame Wall Street and Corporate America for the economic downfall resulting in hundreds if not thousands of home foreclosures, employment layoffs, etc.

Demonstrators all over the world have set up tents in municipal parks and marched along major city streets thus blocking rush hour commuter traffic for hours.  Additional police in riot gear were assigned to try and keep the peace, several protestors were arrested, and in some areas, things got a little out of hand.





There really is very little difference between these two protests.  Modern technology has allowed us to witness today’s events even as they are happening; whereas, in 1932 it took the news a little longer to reach the bulk of the nation.  But the purpose of each originated in Wall Street and corporate greed.

The question is what effect do these protests have in ultimately solving the problem?  It took four years, but WWI vets eventually did get their bonuses.  Vietnam protests did finally bring the war to an end.  Maybe a major, global, march on government and financial institutions will send a message to our lawmakers that we need those “changes” our present leader promised during his campaign.

Martin Luther King talked about “civil disobedience.”  Civil disobedience is not a bad thing if it is used to protest a bad law and shoddy leadership.  And shoddy leadership, both political and corporate, is what we have now.  People in this nation are beginning to take the stand from the film “Network” by saying “I’m mad as [heck], and I’m not gonna take it anymore!”  

People are losing jobs and homes while Chicago bigwigs are collecting illegal pensions, oil companies are raking in big profits while we consumers are paying big bucks at the pump, congress traditionally votes themselves huge pay raises while their constituents struggle to put food on the table, mortgage companies duped new homeowners into taking out large mortgages on homes they did not need and could not afford…only to take them away in foreclosure.

We are coming up to another presidential election.  While I have no problem with the protests going on and I do feel they will get the lawmakers’ attention at some point, in spite of everything, the best way to effect change in this country is still at the polls.  Traditionally less than 60% (and I’m being generous here) of the voting citizens of this nation actually go to vote.  Yet it seems that those who choose NOT to vote are the ones who make the most noise about conditions in this country.  DUH!!!!!  If you don’t contribute to the voting process, you have no right to complain, so KEEPITH YOUR MOUTH SHUT!!   If you are not happy with the way your representatives are running things, let them know that you will express your disapproval at the polls.  Make your representatives aware that they are largely to blame for the economic woes this country is experiencing and you expect them to start putting the people first and not themselves…or you will contribute to voting them OUT! 

And while I am on the subject, I am one of over 12 million seniors in this country who, next November, will remember that it was THIS president who threatened to withhold social security checks if Congress didn’t agree with HIS proposals on the budget.  And…I am hoping that our service men and women will remember that he also threatened to withhold military pay.  Remember this next November.  I, personally, will remind you from time to time!!!! You can count on that!!

Baby Boomers and the 21st Century

Ok, I now have a blog!  It only took me three hours to figure out how to set up a blog, what to write about, think up a snappy title, and I'm still not sure I've done it correctly.  Up until last year I never knew what a blog was, let alone write one.  As much as I hate to admit it, I needed the help of a few former students to get even this far.  So, since I am not one to take credit for someone else's fantastic ideas, I will take the time right now to run some credits:
CJ Rose for reminding me that I had a wealth of useable info still stored in recesses of my brain.
Jesse Butts for my Blog title
Jason Dahl for leading me to Blogspot and reminding me that I was witness to the advance of the British!

Yes, I am a Baby Boomer.  I grew up with telephones with dials and party lines...(that's five or six people sharing the same telephone number).  A cell phone was my mom yelling for me from three blocks away!  I learned to type on a typewriter.   I came into the computer age kicking and screaming when my boss took away my IBM Selectric typewriter and gave me a moniter, keyboard, and a mouse.

I admit, I do not handle this new technology very well.  It's advancing faster than I can keep up.  I'm on a first-name basis with the AT &T technician for heaven's sake!!  My cell phone is considered outdated because all it does is ring and place calls...no photos, no internet, no movies...just calls!

At some point I know I am going to have to scream UNCLE and come completely into the 21st century.  For now, I'll just continue chatting on facebook, working my multimillion dollar farm, and trying desperately to beat my opponent in scrabble!