tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86561170270469278052024-03-21T21:01:29.474-07:00Light from the PitLight for Anyone . . . in the DarkJohn D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.comBlogger49125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-9316649197671277222020-10-10T12:01:00.004-07:002020-10-10T12:12:08.139-07:00Are Christians Judgmental and Critical?<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5KSVLSsjYPXmGp1q28oJ2Db1gpiSPBocgmeh5ChwcO94qJJGjiDb_vkWGfuQGlc80u2bxWytjpWNQSDOql9WhyxRhPqpKNV_cGKEimKXEypcPRpPPrj50JK9uQoimjZ4H4gY5TZlwfkc/s700/Are+Christians+CAP.PNG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="399" data-original-width="700" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5KSVLSsjYPXmGp1q28oJ2Db1gpiSPBocgmeh5ChwcO94qJJGjiDb_vkWGfuQGlc80u2bxWytjpWNQSDOql9WhyxRhPqpKNV_cGKEimKXEypcPRpPPrj50JK9uQoimjZ4H4gY5TZlwfkc/w495-h281/Are+Christians+CAP.PNG" width="495" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">All Christians are taught through every sermon, lesson, and song that they hear --- not to be afraid of information, knowledge, awareness, discernment, life-measurement, critical examination, uncovering faults and flaws. Considering what might be true, or important, of value, of worth, what might be applicable or on point.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">We read the Holy Bible every day and it is filled with with bad news and Good News about us -- and everybody else in the World. On every page there are laws, rules, statutes, commands, commandments, orders, instructions, revelations, and observations.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">We believe that the Bible is God's Word - and that through it He is trying to show us what is wrong with us, and what is wrong with the world. He wants to save us, but before He can we have to be aware of the danger, of the need, of the problem.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">The Bible calls itself a Mirror - and it is not always kind, or gentle, and it does not always show us what we want to see.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">Yes, I know that we are most often criticized by other people when we measure THEM. We do appear to be crossing a line when we thrust OUR Mirror into THEIR faces. When we show THEM what the Bible not only says about US, but what it says about ALL People.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">It is thought to be one thing when we choose to examine, sift, measure, weigh, and judge OURSELVES --- but quite another thing when we foist that same philosophy or belief or approach to life upon OTHERS.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">I get it.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">And some Christians use what they consider to be Truth as a weapon, or a cudgel, or a blunt object. The Truth CAN cause harm, it can damage, it can curse, and it can damn. We ourselves know and have felt all of these painful effects.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">But in most cases (I know in mine), we just see you dancing too close to the edge.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">We truly believe that you might be heading down the wrong road.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">The bridge is out. </span><span style="font-size: large;"><span>The food is poison. </span><span>The building is on fire. </span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">I guess that <b>any </b>unsolicited advice, statement, negative word or contrary opinion might be unwelcome at all times - if such things never had the slightest potential of diverting someone from disaster, or catastrophe, or calamity.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">But most Christians are just very grateful - that someone said something to them that needed to be examined. Something that was different than what we believed or what we wanted to believe or even hear. Someone told us their Truth. Someone held a Mirror up to our face. Someone told us that our slip was showing, our zipper was unzipped, our makeup was smeared, our hose had a run, there was toilet paper stuck to our shoe. Our hair was sticking up in the back and our socks didn't match.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">They were not trying to hurt us, they were trying to help us.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">Yes, it embarrassed us. It made us mad. It called us out, it called our hand, sometimes it called a spade a spade. Sometimes it was wrong, or I chose to judge it so.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">But - ultimately I am glad for all of the contrary words that have been poked at me from the mouths of critics, teachers, coaches, parents, grandparents, professors, preachers, teachers, and prophets throughout my life.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">I am no longer afraid of hearing anyone's Truth. I may never make it MY Truth, but I am willing to hear all of it.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">Quote your scriptures and Holy Writings to me. Tell me about your beliefs and all of its teachings. Show me how I compare, how I fall short by its standards. Show me the error of my ways, the difference between your ways and mine. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">Share your political platforms, your scientific proofs, your moral treatises. I do not fear them. I am not offended by them. I welcome them.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">If I tell you to go away and leave me alone - I expect you to comply. If you send me away, I will go and be silent. I will never be forced to expose myself to your words, and I have no desire to force what matters to me upon you.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">But if I believe that the building is on fire, I'm probably going to tell everybody in the building. The building may NOT be on fire. That is up to you to decide. Don't dismiss me as a lunatic until you have examined the halls and smelled for smoke. Don't be angry that I woke you up for a false alarm, though I guess it really is none of my business.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">Here is some unsolicited advice (but you ARE reading my words): Don't dismiss anyone who wants to interact with you. Be careful. On your guard. Don't believe everything that you hear or see. But listen, weigh, sift, sort, examine, test, try, discern, discriminate, judge.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">The building may actually be on fire.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><br /><p></p>John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-24457520324278518892018-11-06T09:32:00.001-08:002018-11-17T09:00:14.441-08:00It Was a Wonderful Life<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:RelyOnVML/>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/>
<w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
<w:Word11KerningPairs/>
<w:CachedColBalance/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="267">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: small; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">(A Fictional Alternate History Short Story)</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">It was a Wonderful Life</span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
by Dennis Bain</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
July 4, 2001</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">My Doctor (read <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">shrink</i>)
has suggested that I take a swing at writing as a part of my therapy and
recovery.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have been preaching and
speaking publicly since I was fourteen and that has been my primary mode of expression
or my means of communication.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I'm not as
comfortable or as experienced with the written word.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large; mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I have produced a number of formal papers, articles, book
analysis's and reviews while pursuing my academic degrees and I wrote a few
articles for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Ardmore Shopper</i>
while I served as pastor at Wooley Springs, but I have never considered myself
a writer or thought that I was very good at it, or that it had any
particular therapeutic effect on me (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">or</i>
my readers).</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">The only time in my life that I have intentionally sat down
with pen and paper in hand to record my thoughts was when I kept a journal
while on my mission to India.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was
there for several months (September to December) in 1974 and hand wrote about thirty pages describing our day to day travels and
activities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I recorded some of my
thoughts and reflections.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I'm not sure
that I have ever read the words that I penned since I recorded them or that I
could even now lay my hands on the pages that are stored in some box in the
attic or in our storage pod.
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">And I guess that Terri still has my letters of love and
devotion stacked away somewhere, but there are no sonnets among them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have serenaded her with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hooked on a Feeling</i> (and other popular
love songs from the radio) but I have never written her my own special song or
a poem.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I think that that is the extent of my writing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not too impressive, nor formative of any kind
of foundation upon which to rely for a beginning now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I guess I'm willing at this point to try
anything suggested that will drag me into making more progress.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I began in college on the old manual Underwood typewriter
and used it in seminary, and I graduated to using an electric typewriter when I
began my doctoral work but one of my tech-geek church members has loaned me his
personal computer to use as a word processor for the office and I'm tackling
this personal project on it with fear and trepidation.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Computers are becoming increasingly popular (and their
appeal is not entirely lost on me), but until now I have not been bitten by the
tech bug and wonder if it will provide some kind of magical inspiration for
pouring out my thoughts in this medicinal homework assignment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know how to turn it on and open the typing
program, but for now that is the extent of my knowledge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jonathan thinks that I now have a game in my study and it is all that I can do to keep him away from it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The greatest embarrassment would be if he was
allowed to turn it on and he actually became more adept at using it than me.
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">My physical therapy over the last six months has progressed
from once a day during my last months in the hospital and then once a day for
six weeks while in rehab to three times a week after release from rehab.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I'm now down to once a week at Mobile
Physical Therapy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can drive myself over
there with little difficulty and have been working out there under the
supervision of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Jake the Pain Afflicter</i>
for the past two months.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I use the term <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">progress</i>
loosely, but perhaps also pessimistically.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I have regained a great deal of mobility and the only contrivance I
require is a cane. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am probably at a
point where I might get a little stronger or have a little more endurance, but
my hip will never heal any more or get any better structurally.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I have come to the point where I have
resigned myself to the fact that the pain will be my constant companion until I
die.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">That is one element that has placed me under the care of a
psychiatrist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, of course, I am
wrestling with several sources and levels of pain besides trying to get around
with a shattered hip.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We all are.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">The deal -- or the proposition -- was, "If you'll go,
we'll all go."</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">So, once a week I see Dr. Sonata, Terri sees her once a week
and Jonathan sees her once a week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On
the last week of the month we all meet with her for a family conference and
head session.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We talk, she takes our
emotional temperature, checks on how we are doing on our meds (Jonathan has
been excluded from that, he's doing well enough to have been taken off his
medication), and assigns simple goals or tasks for us to apply ourselves to
individually and as a family unit.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">My new assignment is therapeutic writing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How am I doing so far?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I feel better already.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Can I quit now?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Being an invalid (over-extended word) has taken its toll on
my Positive Thinking and motivational gear (not to mention my faith) and
"Can I quit now?" pops out of my mouth a little more easily than I
would like to admit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jake hears it
almost every week but I think he's a little deaf.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I need to speak with his superiors about
getting him some hearing aids.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Well, if I can't quit yet I've got to find a place to
begin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I'm told that I can't just write
a lot of nonsense, my journal should probably be like a memoir or diary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Doc has suggested that I tell the story or describe the last year
and a half in my own words.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Writing will
get it "out" and maybe reading it will help me to find some answers,
or get some peace of mind that right now is lacking.
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">But I have wasted a half ream of paper trying to write a
simple chronicle and that doesn't seem to be what I want to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just the facts?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No, that won't do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I guess if it is going to be of any value for
all of my effort (I'm <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">such</i> a busy
cripple!) it will have to be reflective or interpretive.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I doubt if there is any part of the facts
that might provide an answer or inspire any peace or closure.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">So, here goes . . . .</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">It was a dark and stormy night.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Actually it wasn't at all, but I've always thought that if I
ever sat down to write the great American novel that I would start it with that
line from Snoopy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It began on what had
been a very pretty, sunny day that we all thought was just another one of those
great days of which our lives, until that day, had been composed.</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Our lives individually, and over the years as a young family
had been composed almost entirely of one great day after another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a wonderful life.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I guess that that thought is as good a place to begin as
any, because for the most part our lives and our time on this earth together
had been perfect, with no complaints or regrets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And it is probably not reasonable that one
tragedy in a family could threaten to cast a pall over all the good that had
preceded it and stain or ruin everything that was to follow it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It doesn't seem reasonable, and Dr. Sonata
says that it is not inevitable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We don't
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">have</i> to be doomed to be eternally in
a state of grief or sadness.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I've been looking at that whole picture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The picture of the wonderful life with one
awful bloody stain in it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I guess that
everyone that has been through some kind of trauma has thought the thoughts of,
"What should I have done differently?"<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">could</i>
I have done differently that would have created a different life, taken us down
a different path, altered our lives so that this tragedy would never have
happened at all?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I don't feel that our loss happened as some punishment from
God for having made a wrong turn, a wrong choice or having taken the wrong
road.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First of all I don't believe that
God is that vindictive or that the Will of God is that restrictive or
narrow.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Second, I truly can't find a
single element in our journey that appears upon examination to have been a
misstep. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">The only missteps that are apparent are some of those that I
have taken since having been shot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Everybody tells me that I use my cane on the wrong side.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since my right hip is the source of the
problem I should use the cane in my right hand to support that weak side.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it just seems more natural to lean a
little farther to the left, placing my weight on the cane in my left hand while
flailing my whole right arm for balance and stability.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I win any way, it's my cane and my hip, I'll
limp them around any way that makes me happy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>As if limping around in any way at all could really makes me happy. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I have replayed it all over and over in my mind . . . so I
guess that putting it down on paper won't be all that much different.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe I'll be able to put a circle on the
page at the exact point that, if changed, would return our daughter to us and
place me firmly on two good legs again.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I would even be completely happy to keep the shattered hip
to have Charise back, but I can't see some kind of replacement scenario that
would involve a teenage girl shooting me with a high-powered hunting rifle that
does not also involve our baby.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The pain
in my hip and up my spine is a nagging and throbbing inconvenience that ebbs
and flows according to how effective my medicine is on any particular day . . .
the pain in my heart is almost unbearable and it doesn't ebb or flow.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Charise was born in West Memphis, Arkansas on a Friday
afternoon on August 17, 1984.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I'll start
my journal there because I know that that was not a mistake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It wasn't a wrong turn or a part of the story that needs to be
changed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wouldn't change that part of
the story for anything in the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Terri nor I would ever give her up to spare us any future pain or
loss.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">She was such a joyous surprise to us and truly a gift (from
the Greek word <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">charis</i><span style="font-family: "greekc";">)</span>from God after eight years of childless
marriage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It had been a happy and
wonderful eight years but the arrival of our daughter multiplied our joy and
magnified our happiness beyond description.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Our friends at the Vanndale Baptist Church were witnesses
(literally) to Charise's arrival but only got to see her grow for six months of
her new life before we moved back to Alabama to serve as pastoral family (and
now not just pastoral couple) to the Wooley Springs Baptist Church. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">This was our first major fork in the road after Charise's birth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Were we wrong in leaving Vanndale?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did we leave too early or too late?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had a very good ministry there and we loved
the people dearly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were sad to see
us go and we hated to say goodbye, but we were ready to get back home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had accomplished everything that we felt
that we could on that field and in that place.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There was a very real sense in which we felt that our work, God's work
through us, was finished there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
church was debt free, all of the children of the members of the church had been
saved and baptized, the members there seemed to be maturing and growing and I
had finished my M.Div. degree at the Mid-America Seminary in 1982, two years
before we left.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">And the window (or door) that opened at Wooley Springs seems
upon reflection and examination to have been divinely and providentially
placed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our ministry there was to become
one of our most successful and fruitful works.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If we had stayed in Arkansas a little longer we probably still would
have eventually moved back to Alabama.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We just wouldn't have been able to go to Wooley Springs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It would have been another Alabama Church in a different city.
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">We served and ministered at Wooley Springs for fourteen
glorious years, saw the church grow from running between sixty and seventy in
Sunday School to running nearly three hundred by the time that we left.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were a part of countless successes and
victories, many baptisms and additions.
</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Jonathan was born to us there on June 23, 1987 -- doubling
our joy and happiness, and I finished my last three years of schooling to earn
my doctorate at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Our work at Wooley really began to take off during our
eighth and ninth year there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I
confess that during my tenth year as pastor there I was beginning to wonder if my work there was complete and I told Terri that I thought that it might be time to move forward.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I really didn't want to go back
to school but most of my close friends from my seminary days were already
tackling their doctoral degrees and that task was beckoning to me with a steady hand and a constant draw.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I was trying to ignore that attraction
and I began talking to friends outside of the church about my thoughts on
making a move and I even circulated a few resumes to see if God might use them
to give me some direction.
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I had a few nibbles on the line several months after
initiating these steps but nothing really promising or eye-popping turned
up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, quite a bump and stir was
created when a pulpit committee from a church in Decatur showed up unannounced
and uninvited one Sunday morning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">A sister-in-law of one of our Wooley Springs members lived
in Decatur who had no idea that I was contemplating a move, who had not heard a
whisper about my interest or come within ten miles of one of my resumes, sicked
her church's pulpit committee onto my name and they showed up off radar and out
of the blue for one of our Sunday morning services.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">It created a bit of a ruffle at Wooley Springs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People called me; one of our Church Deacons<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a> came over to the pastorium to ask me point blank if I had
been in on the committee's visit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
assured him that I had not but I did not reveal to him that I had been thinking
about a move.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I spoke with the chairman of the committee that visited the next morning by phone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was minimally familiar with the church when it had been in its heyday, but I learned from the chairman that they had been declining in
every area that a church can decline since 1974. There were only about forty or
fifty attendees in Sunday School at the time of their visit to meet me.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">They operated under the burden of a tremendous debt that had been incurred during their time of optimistic growth. Their philosophy of "If you build it, they will come" had left them with a monstrous building complex to maintain and a base ministry field that was transitioning out. The families that composed their target demographic were moving into the suburbs. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">To make matters <i>much </i>worse, many faithful members who had expressed deep concerns about going into such debt to build an elaborate empty facility became angry and left the fellowship.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I had no experience in leading a declining church that was located in the middle of a fleeing community. To grow a congregation back to health that had been steadily declining for twenty years seemed beyond my experience, my knowledge, <i>and </i>my wisdom. I am an optimistic leader and I have great faith that God can do anything, but I doubted my suitability as the instrument that God was choosing to use to guide this desperate family of faith to a new beginning.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I declined the committee's invitation to talk further and
turned to smoothing the feathers at Wooley.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There was no permanent damage done and the shakeup gave us all an opportunity to reevaluate where we were and where we were going.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">No more bombs dropped, my phone quit ringing and I'm sure
that my resume disappeared off of the face of the earth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>School was still beckoning; when I called my
old friends to invite them to come lead in revival or some other special function I was now introducing them as Dr. Bob, Dr. Jack
and Dr. John.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">But I didn't want to enter seminary just so that I could keep up
with the <i>their </i>academic progress.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I knew
that I should only go because God wanted me to go.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I lost any desire to seek any immediate change of location and hunkered down to
stay where it seemed God had put me for the time.</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Wooley continued to grow, we were reaching many of the young families who were moving into our growing neighborhood. We built a
new Family Activities Building during my eighth year there and we would
have to remodel the whole church facility to accommodate God's Blessings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It appeared that we might have to begin
having two Sunday morning worship services and eventually build a new
sanctuary.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">The church increased my salary because of the new growth and
we began hiring additional staff and paying to have more of the church administration performed by additional professional ministers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I led the church to sell the pastorium,
increase our pay again and give us the opportunity to buy our own home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We moved into our very own first home on
Thatch Road in 1995.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">With the upward trend, the new home and the new salary I
really had no excuses for stalling any longer, so, in September of 1996 I
enrolled in the Professional Doctoral Program at the New Orleans Baptist
Theological Seminary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It didn't seem to
spook our folks very much but eventually this very element would prepare the
way for our leaving under less surprising and more acceptable circumstances.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">In May of 1999 I became Dr. John Dennis Bain and during that
same month I was contacted by the First Baptist Church of Foley, Alabama.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They never sent a pulpit committee or
required me to preach a trial sermon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
did drive down to Foley to meet with them and discuss our ministry and theirs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They extended a call to me to become their new pastor immediately, approval by the church was
assured to be a mere formality.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I promised them that I would return home, pray about their
invitation and give them my response as soon as I had an answer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We came home and I prayed while Terri
packed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She figured that all we really
needed to take with us was our bathing suits, sun screen and shades.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Charise was fifteen years old and would be attending the
Foley Intermediate School on South Cedar Street (just a few blocks away from
the church) and Jonathan would begin the sixth grade at the Foley Elementary
School that was on North Cedar Street just down the way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They had the summer to make friends, enjoy
the beach, get past their sadness at having to leave Ardmore and their madness
at me for having dragged them away from the only home that they had ever
known.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The beach part didn't hurt. I was soon forgiven.
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">One of our new members at FB (a real estate agent) helped us
find a beautiful new home down in Bon Secour near the river inlet and our fairy
tale life escalated into undreamed territory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Charise
joined a local city softball league team that was in the middle of their season
and Jonathan signed up for band camp with his new best friend Jeffrey (son of
our new next door neighbors).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Charise's athleticism opened the door to her new life and
home and the baby fat was beginning to fall off of her, too, which made her popular
with the boys.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I always thought that she
was beautiful whether short, fat, snaggle-toothed or freckle-faced and as it
turns out . . . I was right.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">We were always a little more concerned about Jonathan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He seemed to always be a little less
adaptive.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was undecided as to who he
was, what he was, where he was going, or what he was going to be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He had tried the sports route that his sister
had laid down before him but it never seemed to be his bag.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Band came completely out of nowhere from his
own choosing and we were taken aback but happily surprised at his new passion
and we were immediately supportive.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">A decisive element was Jeffrey, who was a Godsend to us . .
. and to Jonathan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He had already
completed a year of beginner's band at FES and his invitation to Jonathan to
join him in the trumpet section at band camp was the clincher.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We didn't know it at the time but a
friendship had been launched that would last a lifetime.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our son had the best friend that he would
ever have in his life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Since our first day in South Alabama until now, if you see
Jonathan, Jeffrey is never going to be far away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if you can't find either of them, listen
for the sound of video games and you'll find them both.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">In all of the anguish that we have been through this past
year, Jeffrey and his family (the Almonds) have been an anchor for us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stan and Theresa have been there for us and
Jeffrey has been there as a rock for Jonathan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Jeffrey and the band family have both been a great part of what has
shielded Jonathan and kept him even healthier than either of us emotionally.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We could see God's hand working for our son
then and He continues to work now.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">When Terri and I moved to Memphis in 1979 to attend seminary
for my Master’s work everybody in our family came for a visit . . . or to visit
Graceland.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Elvis had died the year after
we married (I remember Terri, Mother, and I heard the news on the radio driving
in Canada in my new Toyota Corolla) so, Graceland mansion became a popular
pilgrimage spot in the south.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">We convinced ourselves that everyone was really coming to
see <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">us</i> and not Elvis and cheerfully
adopted the role of tour guide.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was
okay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That was the greatest distance
that we had ever lived from home and we were always glad to see everyone, no
matter what reason.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Now we lived only twenty minutes from Gulf Shores and had a
home with two spare bedrooms.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As soon as
we could unpack and arrange our furniture we started having company again and
it was very welcome.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everyone in our
family loves the beach and it had always been so expensive to get away to the
sand and the sun. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">It was a great joy for us to have Mother down for a week
(she came the week that we moved to help us unpack, stock the shelves and get
the kitchen in order).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bob and Beth came
down; Bob drove his truck down and pulled a trailer with one of his tractors on
it to help me with some yard work and landscaping.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I couldn't have done it without him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Beth helped finish off the move by helping
Terri hang new curtains and blinds and get all of our pictures on the walls.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Joey and Lori and the girls came down for a weekend and left
the girls to stay with us for two weeks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We cooked out almost every night on the grill, drove down to Orange
Beach for supper a couple of nights.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
was good to see our family enjoying the blessings that God had provided for us
and we did not take any of it for granted.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">My Brother, Danny, and his wife, Liz even got to visit us from Augusta for a
weekend our first summer in Foley.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They
arrived late on Friday night, we did the beach thing on Saturday, they worshiped
with us on Sunday morning and then headed back to Georgia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They sang for our folks during the morning
worship service and we had a great seafood dinner after church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their visit was too short but we were happy
to have them and they were happy for us in our new home and place of service.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">My Step Mother, Helen's health had been declining and<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Daddy was devoting all of his time to taking
care of her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They never got to come and
visit us in Foley together; I know that they would have enjoyed it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They always came to see us no matter where we
moved to in our ministry and we always enjoyed having them as company.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Helen passed away during the fall of our
first year in south Alabama without ever having had a chance to be our guest.</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">When Daddy got things settled away after Helen's death he
came and stayed a week with us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was
very sad and very weary but he enjoyed his time with us and it gave us a chance
to minister to him in a way that we had not been able to during all of the
commotion over our relocation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Listening
to the waves crashing into the shores washed some of his worries away and being
away in Paradise for a little while was very restorative.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Looking back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Reading
what I have typed this far.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Wasn't it all as it should be?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Hadn't it all had the marks of having been God-ordered? </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Happy successes, glorious blessings, mixed with sad partings, and new beginnings.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I can't find an errant step, a disobedient turn, or a
rebellious action or motive.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can't see
a day or a moment that I would have changed or that I think now should have
been different.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">God began blessing our work at Foley First from the very
moment that we arrived there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were
graciously, happily, and enthusiastically received.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were growing and healthy before we
arrived and I was able to pick up the ball from a very successful and
well-loved predecessor and to begin building through my own leadership immediately.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">There was no need for Terri to get a job outside our home,
so she continued to serve as a devoted pastor's wife in the church, she and
Theresa double-teamed the Band Mom thing, and served as taxi driver for the various
ball teams.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whenever I couldn't find her
I knew she was at the beach.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When she
couldn't find me . . . I was at King Neptune's.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">At this point most of the pieces of our coming sadness were
in place and the stage was almost completely set even though we didn't know
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course Terri and I have both
micro-"what-iffed" that day in search for possible differences.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes, there could have been a death in our
family and we all had to be out of town --- even for one of the year's most
important games.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And even if Charise was
injured and would not play that day she would still have been sitting on the
bench or in the gym somewhere and would have still been a target.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">What if there had been an extra armed policeman in the gym
lobby that night?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if a tornado or
hurricane had caused the cancellation of the game?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if the gun case had been locked when
Melanie went to get her father's rifle?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What if the ammunition had been stored in a secret place instead of in
the gun case?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if she had been
caught when she was sneaking out with the weapon?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if Charles and Samantha had been a
little more sensitive to the mental condition and pain of their daughter?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">What if I had been a little quicker?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if I had started moving down the
bleachers a little sooner?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if
Melanie had responded differently to the out-stretched hands that were to be
the last act of compassion that my daughter would ever extend?</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">It was the most natural thing in the world for Charise to
move right from summer softball, into school volleyball and then into school
basketball.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I'm just glad that our
school didn't have a soccer team!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">She excelled at sports from the very moment that she started
T-ball in Ardmore.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She loved it and we
loved watching her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Terri had a secret
athlete hidden inside of her that she had never been able to release and I was
an old has-been athlete who enjoyed reliving those days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But even though we could play games through
Charise vicariously, she wasn't playing for us . . . she was playing for
herself, and for the love of the game.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Any game, any time.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">There were sore muscles, bumps and bruises, heat and
thirst.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Practices and games.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And very strong competition . . . and not
just between teams and schools but also between teammates. It is a part of
sports, a part of playing competitive games.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Charise was an excellent athlete and would become a player,
a mover and a shaker --- a starter --- on any field that she walked onto.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On any court.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I guess we just expected that and did not think much about it when it
happened.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We signed her up, she put on
the uniform and she always played well.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I can't speak for Terri but it never entered my mind for a
single moment that when Charise took her place on first base that she was
taking someone else's place.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Someone who
may have played first base ever since they were a little girl . . . until
Charise Bain moved to Foley.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Someone who
played on the volleyball team last year but was having to sit on the reserve
bench with very little playing time . . . because of the new girl.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Someone who had been the point guard ever
since she had put on a basketball uniform but was now relegated to watching
from the foul line.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I realize now that
each one of those sports positions represented a different girl and maybe a
disappointment.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Melanie Trumond had filled one of those positions and felt
that disappointment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Terri had
volunteered to keep the score and record book for the team during games, so as
always she knew all of the girls and their parents better than I did. From my
observation through a video camera lens and even from Terri's closer
perspective, neither of us saw even a hint of the kind of trouble that was
brewing.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Melanie was not a multi-sport athlete like Charise, she only
had a passion for basketball.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her older
brother had been a star basketball player for Foley High and had been part of
the team that had led the school to its first State Championship.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She had grown up bouncing a basketball and
she had played the sport from the time that there was a team for her to sign up
for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By the time that she was fourteen
she was already nearly six feet tall and had always taken the spot under the
goal without question or challenge.</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Melanie was a good athlete and had a lot of heart but she
was a little clumsy physically and didn't have a sharp or quick mental reaction
time that is so crucial for playing most of the game in the paint.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her size had always been her greatest asset
but as she grew taller her ball-handling skills and game intellect did not.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">When Charise tried out for the school B Team she told her
coach, Rhonda Cline, that she would be happy to be Melanie's backup on the
court after she finished off the volleyball year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>FHS has never had a great volleyball team and
they improved a little bit with the addition of the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ardmore Bomber</i> but there was no risk that tournament play or
post-season play for the team would cause Charise to miss very much of the
preparation for basketball season.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Coach Cline had an assistant (Joe Kennedy) but there were no
other qualified coaches on the school staff who could serve in her capacity, so
she coached the B Team too and worked it out so that Joe (and one of the girl's
parents) could be with the team when there was any kind of game conflict with
the varsity schedule.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had never seen
an arrangement quite like this and were surprised that there was less provision
from a school the size of Foley, but it appeared that they had been making it
work for several years so we accepted it without question.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Charise’s team finished a mediocre volleyball season and she
began practicing with the <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Basketball
Team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The B team and the Varsity squad
practiced together and the drills, play-running and scrimmaging between the
younger and the older girls worked fine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It actually stretched the younger girls to have to compete with older
and more experienced players and was the perfect setup to allow an
exceptionally talented younger girl to take a shot at moving up to Varsity
early.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">And that is exactly the door of opportunity that Charise
found.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">She started out right on the ground floor as a newbie,
without any special regard from Coach Cline for her star performances and
winning record from Ardmore High.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She
was Melanie's second on the B Team and began working very hard behind her
during practice and rode the pine during all of the exhibition games that they
played pre-season.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">But the Coach's game philosophy was to award start-position
to the players that performed the best during practice prior to each game and
Charise was demonstrating not only that she was an excellent player but that
she had the potential to become a game and team leader.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is a rare kind of athlete that all
coaches are always on the lookout for.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Melanie started at the point guard position on the first
game of the season out of deference to her previous year's service there but by
halftime it became necessary to position Charise there for the remainder of the game in
order to pull out a win.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Lady Lions
won in the final minutes against Mobile Christian 67-63.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Charise only played half the game but scored
16 points, had 13 rebounds and 6 steals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Half of her points were foul shots where she was 8 for 10 from the line.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This single game and showing not only locked
her as a starter and team leader for the B Team but would assure her lots of
floor time during her first season with the Varsity Team.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Charise started every other B Team game that year in the
point guard position and averaged nearly 40 minutes of playing time each
game.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She always dressed out with the
Varsity team and traveled with them for away games.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She averaged 10-15 minutes playing time for
each of those games.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Varsity Lady
Lions starting point guard (Melissa Smith) was a senior that year and her
graduation would place Charise in place to become the starting point guard on
the varsity squad during the next season.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Seeing that happen early in our arrival in Foley was just
another part of our happiness and a part of what we would have described as a
part of how God was blessing us in our new home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Charise's rise to prominence as an athlete at
FHS was not mean or vicious or directed at anyone in any way to be hurtful or
spiteful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every step just seemed like
the usual give and take of competitive sports.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Perhaps we were insensitive or unobservant but I can truly say that we
saw no harm in our arrival on the scene or the part that we played as a new
family in a new town.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">The Trumond's were not a wealthy family, they did not attend
church or circulate much socially in Foley.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Terri and I never met or knew Charles and Samantha Trumond before the
shooting, had never seen them at any of the ball practices or games.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They had four children:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Todd, the
oldest, who had played varsity basketball at Foley in 1992 and then gone on to
play college ball at USA (the University of South Alabama in Mobile), Maria,
the next oldest was married and had moved away before we became citizens of
Foley, then Joseph and finally Melanie.
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I've learned what little I know about the family since the
shooting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of it from friends or
church members, most of it from reading articles in the newspaper.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was told that Samantha and her daughter,
Maria, attended the memorial service at the church in Foley but Charles did
not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I have never felt that knowing more about Melanie or her
family or their background or circumstances would answer any of my questions or
explain to me what happened and why.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
don't think that something like this can ever be made to make sense or to seem
logical and rational.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">But it seems that Melanie's only social contacts were her
teammates.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The only attention or
recognition that she had ever received from anyone had been because of her
performance on the basketball court.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She
did reasonably well academically and hoped to follow her brother's footsteps
from high school basketball into a local college.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Todd had been the only member of the Trumond family to have ever
attended college.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Basketball had made it
possible for him to move up that ladder and to get away from what may have been
an unhappy home environment.
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Melanie drifted back to reserve point guard in Charise's
first season at Foley, sullenly played from the bench during the second season
but did not try out or return to play during that third and fateful
season.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were saddened to have lost
any teammate but we really had no idea how hurt, disappointed . . . and angry
Melanie had become over having lost something that mattered to her more than we
had realized.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Whenever we win . . . someone else loses.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes when we excel it is inadvertently
at someone else's expense.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In sports, in
school, at work and in life in general we are all moving and hope to move
upward, to climb, to prosper and to succeed.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">There are, of course, many unscrupulous and vicious people
in the world that intentionally use others as foot mats or stepping
stones.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are dream crushers and
conniving charlatans that take advantage of the weaknesses or flaws of other to
advance themselves to profit and gain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But we have never been among that crowd.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And our daughter was never of that mind or spirit.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Most of us who want to grow and succeed would be more than
happy to take everyone with us and often can see that our successes and
victories can be helpful and beneficial to everyone else around us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn't supplant or replace anyone to become
the pastor of the church where I serve but it could have very well
happened.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even pastor's fail or fall
sometimes and God can bring in someone else who can continue the work without
loss or interruption.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">We have celebrated Jonathan's moving gradually to
first-chair trumpet in the band and have never imagined for a moment that such
a wonderful achievement might be a circumstance that might threaten his life or
our happiness as a family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We cheered
for every point that Charise made, every ball that sunk, every shot the striped
the net.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But we would have been just as
happy and loved and cheered her just as much if she had sat the bench every
game, played only a few fleeting moments, and only scored the occasional point.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if she had been a poor athlete?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if she had become a cheerleader instead
of a player?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if . . . . .</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">No one had any clue at all about the cauldron that was
boiling in the heart and mind of Charise's former teammate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No one had any idea of the gall of bitterness
that was brewing just out of everyone's sight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Charise has always been loved and liked by her teammates in
any sport.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There have always been, of
course, minor jealousies and tiffs for every kind of reason, but nothing out of
the ordinary or beyond what you would ordinarily expect. Charise has always
been friends with her teammates and they have always been her social circle and
world.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">When Melanie failed to show up for tryouts and practice
during that final season Charise spoke to her at school and tried to encourage
her to come back to the team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know
that she called her on several occasions to try to get her to come to some of
the things that the girls were doing on weekends but she was always rebuffed
without any promise of reconsideration.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>She attended her classes at school, kept to herself and gradually
blocked off any contact and friendship that she had had to any of her former
friends.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Honestly, she drifted from my mind and my memory when she
left the team and when I saw her enter the gym that day I didn't even recognize
her at all. A totally strange teenage girl walked into our world in an
unforeseeable murderous rampage with a high-powered deer-hunting rifle and
killed one of the greatest treasures of my life . . . and blew me into an
oblivion from which I may never recover.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">The 2001 season was over for the Lions but the Ladies had
had a better year.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">They were number one in the county, undefeated, and were
scheduled to play to in the area tournament.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Foley was hosting the area games and we had no doubt that the Lady Lions
would dispatch their opponents handily and might soon be playing for what
promised to be the school's first girls basketball State Championship.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Charise had had a great year, I had filmed every minute and
we didn't miss a single game at home or away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I was sending videos back home to all of the family members and every
member of the family got to travel down to visit for a least one game during
the season.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She had averaged over 20
points per game and had double-doubles for more than half of the games and two
triple-double games.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">High school sports is a pretty big deal in Foley and when
the area tournament came to town everybody in the city turned out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The games were single-elimination and we drew
a good leg on the schedule and played well against every team that we faced.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">The final game came down to Sidney Lanier HS of Montgomery and
FHS.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were favored to win and the
State playoffs were scheduled to begin in one week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were already packing our bags and making
hotel reservations in Birmingham.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">We knew that we would have to get to the gym early that
night to even get a seat and of course Charise had to be there two hours before
jump ball.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had my camera charged with
two extra batteries and extra tapes in case the game went into overtime.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">The parking lot was almost full and the gym was already
packed when Terri and Jonathan and I arrived a full hour before game time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A section had been reserved for the band,
they didn't have to dress in uniform but they were there for this special
occasion to support the girls and play.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Terri headed to the score bench, Jonathan split off to join the band and
I took my camera position in the bleachers.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I picked a place behind our team about twelve bleachers up
and down toward the middle of the gym.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>From the inside there were two access doors on the east and west side of
the court that led to the lobby.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
main entrance to the facility was a central double-door, the concession stand
was at the east end of the lobby.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A
faculty member was set up right in front of the lobby entrance selling and
taking tickets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Soon the lobby was full,
the bleachers were full and people were standing against the walls on the north
and south ends of the court at either goal.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Terri was seated at the score table at the half court line
just a little to my right and near the floor level.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I couldn't see Jonathan from where I was
sitting but I could hear the band making racket and the cheerleaders were down
on the floor just in front of them.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">The game was scheduled to start at 7:00 and everything was
already wild on both sides of the gymnasium by 6:30.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Lady Lions came out in their sweats at
about 6:45 and began their final warm up on the court.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sidney Lanier joined them on the court at the
south end to my right.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">The game started on time with Charise in the center of all
of this hoopla for the jump ball that would start the game.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We won the jump and controlled the game from
the very first bounce.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">After only six and a half minutes of play we led SL by a
score of 18 to 8 and we had all of the momentum.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As usual I was seeing the whole game through
the view-finder of my video camera.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Charise was at the foul line on the north end of the gym to my left near
the lobby entrances.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The opposing
cheerleaders were leading in a chant of "miss that shot" and I was
zoomed in for a tight view of Charise as she bounced the ball on the foul line.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">At the very moment that the ball hit the foul line the second
time before she posed to throw the first ball, the sound of a gunshot exploded
in the lobby.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I know now that it was a gunshot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don't think I knew it then.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I'm not sure that anyone in the gym
recognized what the sound was and only about half of the people there even
heard it at all.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Melanie Trumond had driven her dad's pickup truck right
across the grass at the main entrance to the gymnasium, up onto the sidewalk
and almost crashed into the entrance door.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>She turned off the engine, jumped out of the cab and pulled her father's
deer rifle out from behind the seat.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I only know anything at all about these first events from
having read them in the local newspaper months after that awful day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Witnesses who were in the school parking lot
and loitering around in the gymnasium lobby gave precise details to the police
investigators and later to reporters.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">There was no sound of the arrival of the truck, perhaps if
she had actually crashed in through the front door it might have given the
people in the lobby a little warning and more time to react.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As it was, very few people even noticed as
the truck came to a stop a few feet from the entrance, but some saw Melanie as
she stepped through the door with the rifle in both hands, slung low at her
hips as she strode in.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Those who saw her in that brief instant moved instinctively
away from her position toward any route that might lead to cover.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mrs. Haynes, the ninth grade English teacher
who was collecting tickets and money, sitting squarely in harm's way, was
frozen with fear.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">But, Mrs. Haynes posed no particular obstacle or threat and
Melanie grimly marched around her without even giving her a glance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Officer Mike Olsteen caught her eye, though,
as he leaned on a trophy case against the south wall of the lobby drinking a
cup of coffee from a Styrofoam cup.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Melanie raised the tip end of her rifle and
fired a round into the officer's head from fifteen feet away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That had been the sound that we all had heard
as Charise lined up at the foul throw line.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">There were Foley Policemen all over the school grounds that
day but most of them were working traffic and patrolling the parked cars that
filled the school parking lot and every street that was near the school
property.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the past there had never
been any kind of disturbance, lawlessness, or violence inside the gym during
any kind of school athletic event.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But,
there had often been fender-benders on the street and in the parking lot before
and after games and there was a history or minor vandalism to the vehicles that
were not watched in the lot and surrounding area.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">The only officer inside the gym at this particular time was
Mike.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was to be joined by three other
policemen when the traffic detail was considered completed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their usual pattern for retiring to the inside was to do so about eight
to ten minutes after a game or event had started.
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">In this brief window of time there was great outside security
and poor inside security.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I'm not
implying that the Foley Police Department was at fault, their strategy for
guarding the safety of the school at such gatherings was a reasonable one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nor should Melanie be perceived as a cunning
planner on this point.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don't think she
had given much thought or planning to these kinds of details.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It just happened that she began to execute
her rampage at just the right time . . . for her.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Inside the gym I heard the shot that killed Officer
Olsteen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I turned my head toward the
lobby door that was closest to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
kept the camera trained on Charise and rolling to see if I could tell what the
disturbance was without losing the foul throw.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>When screams irrupted from the lobby I was sure that something awful was
wrong.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Several people poured into the gym proper from the two doors
to the lobby.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They looked panic-stricken
and didn't stop inside the entrance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They
kept moving south, some of them even ran across the court oblivious to the
game, the players, or the referees.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I didn't know exactly what was happening in the lobby, but I
didn't think that there would be a foul throw.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I must have lowered my camera arm at that time and focused both eyes on
the left door to the gym lobby.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Melanie entered the gym in the midst of still scattering
lobby bystanders and she strode straight to the Lady Lions team bench and
killed Rhonda Cline with a single gunshot to the chest.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Rhonda's body flew backward from where she had been struck
and sailed over the metal chairs that formed the Lions team bench.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The impact carried her to the second row of
bleachers behind the team.
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Have you ever seen that magic trick with a bowl of water and
black ground pepper?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You fill a small
bowl with ordinary water, sprinkle black pepper all over the surface of the
water until it is covered.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The pepper
floats on the surface of the water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You
then can take dish-washing detergent and put a little on the tip of your
finger.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When you touch that finger with
the detergent on it to the surface of the water in the bowl, all of the pepper
will run instantaneously and magically away from your finger to the outer edge
of the bowl.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">For some reason that's what I think of when I think back to
that moment in the gym.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I could sense
(more than see) every person in that gym fleeing madly away from what was
happening in that northwest corner of the gym at that moment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But not everyone was running away.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Coach Cline had been frozen with shock at the sight of
Melanie raising the gun as she marched with determination directly toward
her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I saw Charise leave her stance
at the foul line and begin walking resolutely toward her angry friend.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">From the sound of the first shot in the lobby until then was
only a few seconds. Everything seemed to be happening in a jar of dark
molasses.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Slow, dreadfully slow. I
learned later that even though I was up and to the right from where Coach Cline
was hit that my clothes and face had been spattered with her blood.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I still have the video cassette upon which I was recording
that day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was returned to us by the
police after they viewed it and made a copy of it for evidence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have never watched the tape.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don't suppose I ever will.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have picked it up to destroy it or at least
throw it away hundreds of times but never have.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">When the police came to interview me in the hospital two
weeks later after viewing my tape and sorting through tons of other tapes and
other evidence they told me that I had brought the camera down to my side when I saw
Melanie enter the gym.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The camera was
still running and collecting sound but the only video it was capturing was an
upside-down film of the people who had been sitting behind me.
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I don't remember very much of what happened exactly --- and
of that I guess I am grateful --- but I am told that upon seeing Charise step
toward Melanie I jumped in two strides down to the floor of the basketball
court.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had dropped the camera at my
feet and it continued to record the sound of the melee.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I do remember running toward Charise. Melanie
chambered another round with the rifle bolt and slowly and deliberately turned . . . and fired.
</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Charise was hit in the chest in the very center of her
heart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She lost consciousness upon
impact and was lifeless before her back hit the gym floor.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I remember that the whole universe disappeared in that
moment and all I could see was my daughter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Her head was thrown backwards and her knees buckled and she fell
straight back with her feet under her body.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Her forward momentum as she had started towards Melanie had prevented
the impact from lifting her or throwing her backwards.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I don't remember sound. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don't remember hearing the shot. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I couldn't hear Charise but I could see that
she was speaking to Melanie as she moved toward her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know that she mouthed the word,
"Melanie" and I believe that her last words might have been,
"Give me the gun."</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I don't remember anything else after Charise fell.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I'm told that Terri was only a few steps behind me when
Melanie bolted the gun a third time, turned toward me and fired the last round
that she would expend on that day.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I guess that she thought that I was coming for her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wasn't.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">She hit me in the right hip and every bone shattered into a
million pieces.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes I'm happy that
I lost consciousness immediately.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did
not regain consciousness for two days -- blood loss almost ended my life that
day, too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I'm happy that I didn't have
to deal immediately with the death of my daughter or with the grief of my wife
and son.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn't have to notify our
family and friends that Charise was dead.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">But I'm sorry that Terri had to deal with all of that alone.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Of course, she wasn't totally alone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our church and friends surrounded her and
enveloped her in care and help immediately.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But it would have been better if I had been there to help her and
Jonathan.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I don't remember being Med-Flighted to the USA Medical
Center in Mobile.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don't remember the
surgery or the first time that they say that I regained consciousness.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I didn't get to attend my daughter's funeral and it was
several days after the funeral before our family could make it to Mobile to see
me. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I have been able to travel to Decatur a couple of
times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When they finally placed her
headstone and we all went back home on Mother's Day and put fresh flowers on
her grave.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The church has called an interim
pastor and is paying me full salary until I can return to my full pastoral
duties.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I go to the office several days
a week and I have picked up my studies again, but the church insists that I do
not pastor right now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have given me
an open ended Sabbatical and have been very gracious and helpful as they have
ministered to us.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I am physically able to get back to work now but I know that
I am not emotionally or spiritually well.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I am not angry at God because an 18 year old girl took the
life of my daughter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can't even find a
way to be angry at Melanie.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Two Foley
Policemen subdued and disarmed her one second after she fired her last shot in
my direction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her case is in the court
system, she has undergone extensive psychiatric examination and her legal and
mental future is undetermined.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
circumstances surrounding her killing spree, her access to her dad's weapon and
his truck and all of the other details and diaries will be combed over for
months and perhaps even years to come.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">The Bain family is not involved or interested in any of
that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is nothing that can bring
Charise back and pursuing some kind of retribution against Melanie or her
family would not make us feel better.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">It was a wonderful life . . . my daughter's life.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">And our life was wonderful, too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it's not wonderful now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don't know if it ever will be again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I'd give anything in my life to have her back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would change anything that ever happened in
our lives before that moment if it could place us on a path that would lead us
to a different universe . . . an alternate reality.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">And I would be happy in that reality and thankful that God
had spared us a nightmare far beyond any sleepless night that we had ever had
before.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">There's my story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Depressing reading isn't it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Thankfully I have several different kinds of pills and a psychiatrist to
help me through.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don't know how to
help you through yours.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Go talk to your
pastor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe he can help you.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">If you saw my wrong turn in this tome please let me know
what it was.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you can put your finger
on my mistake or the path I should have taken I'd like to see it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">But I'll bet that you can't see it either.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">It was a wonderful life.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">********************************</span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">This was an awful story.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Every word was painful to write. I'm glad that it is finished.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">It was like pulling a poisonous thorn from deep in my flesh or opening an infected wound so that it could drain and heal. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I asked my wife, Terri, to read the story and she hated it even more than I. She was angry that I had required her services as editor and reviewer, and I understand. Her feelings were warranted.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">This is my one and only personal alternate history production. I may never attempt such a thing again.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I've used us, our life, our names, and a portion of my family's reality to tell the story of what did not happen. A story that might have happened, but didn't.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I actually wrote the story sometime in 2008, though it presents itself as having been penned in 2001. I was recovering from some very serious bouts with depression and darkness at the time. I was very angry at God and wrestled with Him daily about a dozen different aspects of my life and ministry.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I was in the deep, throwing life-lines and grappling hooks toward anything that floated near me -- and this story is something that caught hold. I hauled on it, and it saved a part of me. It was an important step in many ways. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">First, it knocked the edge off of my anger. The difficulties by which I'd been besieged had not even come close to the most terrible kinds of things that <i>could</i> have happened. My troubles were not as devastating as events in the lives of others, about which I knew or was aware.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Second, I found ways to plug my imagination into my faith that I had never explored before. I found and began to explore and develop my writing as a healing instrument instead of just imparting knowledge or experience. This story may be the first work of fiction that I ever put on a page. It was a beginning.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">"It could be woice!" (Igor, <i>Young Frankenstein</i>).</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">That placating statement had never appealed to me before. Ha!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Could you actually cheer yourself up, or pull yourself out of a pit by imagining that -- however bad it was -- it could have been worse?! The pit could have been deeper? The pit could have filled with water? The pit might have a lid on it?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">As it turns out, desperate people have known this philosophy since the beginning of creation. It is a way of dealing, of coping, of getting father down the road in a crisis.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I believed that I had made a terrible mistake.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I had made a wrong choice.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I took a wrong turn and took my family with me.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I had missed God's Will for my life and ministry. I had destroyed God's Plan for my life and I was irrevocably off track. My future was broken and it could never be fixed. I was out of step, out of sync, out of the groove that I was supposed to be in.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I could never be happy again. My relationship with God would never be the same. I couldn't go back and I couldn't go forward. I was stuck in the dark. Forever.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">But -- it is now 2018 -- and I am happy. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Not because all of my problems are solved or because all of my broken toys have been repaired. I didn't go back -- but I am going forward. I am no longer in the dark . . . and yes, things will never be the same as they were before. They are not the same, they are different. Things have not returned to being the same as they were, and many things are better than they were.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I have never served at a Church in South Alabama. The scenario described in this story is one that would have fit my vision for the future. It is one that I would have thought was perfect. This might describe where I thought that I was going.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">It was not.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">My relationship with God is different than I have ever known or imagined. Different, and in some ways better. It is more real and has greater substance. It takes much, much more to rattle my cage, badger my faith, or thwart my intent. I have more resolve. Deeper insight.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">But like the Patriarch Jacob -- I have a new name and I walk with a limp. I'm a little beat up, scarred, and calloused. I'm a different person. A different husband, father, pastor, friend.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I still fall into the Pit occasionally. And sometimes the lights go out. But I have learned many ways of crawling out, crawling into the light.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I hope that you didn't enjoy reading this story as much as I didn't enjoy writing it, or editing it for this publication. It may never see the light of day itself, other than here on this blog. It is a peek inside my soul, and I'm a little embarrassed for others to see it.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">It was a wonderful life.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">It is again.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-76552273429363233862018-10-11T08:28:00.000-07:002024-01-31T09:38:16.194-08:00The Rescue<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOw2sIZOOT2DgKx8zpA2dfpWtP-jzSp6dt3Y45vrsspGf-ZDlCHl4tIZlNhCLzz78-0NDEbJT-huXOXM-1wFc-dYuCytUMo2VmnJGZreBWZ79Akew_rF_YYIxMWD4NVRCFfAUK57y3uBc/s1600/Crenshaw019.PNG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="568" data-original-width="817" height="276" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOw2sIZOOT2DgKx8zpA2dfpWtP-jzSp6dt3Y45vrsspGf-ZDlCHl4tIZlNhCLzz78-0NDEbJT-huXOXM-1wFc-dYuCytUMo2VmnJGZreBWZ79Akew_rF_YYIxMWD4NVRCFfAUK57y3uBc/s400/Crenshaw019.PNG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span id="goog_2075513542"></span><span id="goog_2075513543"></span><br />
<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 24pt;">The
Rescue<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt;">A Short Story by John D. Bain<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I opened my eyes.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I was standing outside in near darkness; in the
grass facing an asphalt two-lane highway.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I looked in front of me, to my left, and then my
right. There was no traffic. No sound but my own breathing and the shuffling of
the soles of my shoes as I turned my body slightly to survey my location. My
situation.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I can’t remember exactly where I just was.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I don’t think that I had been in bed asleep. I had
no sense of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">waking up</i> or
transitioning into a dream.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I look down at myself to take personal inventory.
I’m unclear about where I just came from, but I know that these were the same
clothes that I wore to work earlier.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">What I call my work shoes (plain loafers), Khaki
pants and a dark, untucked, short-sleeved shirt. Not quite enough shirt, it
seems, because it’s a little chilly. It was an unseasonably warm October
evening when I left work. And now I was standing in gray, cold.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Then I noticed that my breath was creating a little
fog. My arms had goosebumps from my sudden appearance (sudden appearance?) into
a lower temperature, but I was becoming acclimated to the change, and the bumps
were receding.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">The air is still. In the dimness of what seemed to
be pre-dawn I could see that there was frost on the grass in which I was
standing.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I knew where I was. But I didn’t know <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">when</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I was standing in the grass, facing East on Highway
31 at the very foot of Hartselle Mountain. Highway 31 runs from North to South
the entire length of the State of Alabama, and on up into Tennessee. Across the
road I saw the small Kayo Service Station that was backed up to the base of a
hill that was a part of the eastern ridge that ran through Flint City, all the
way to the Tennessee River.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">That little filling station had been owned and
operated by Mrs. Pace. She was a little, round, blonde-headed lady who was Archie
King’s Mother, and I recall not understanding why he and his Mother had
different last names. He had a younger sister. Archie and I had played baseball
together, though he had been a year older than me in school. Archie and his
family lived in the little trailer park that perched up on the hill behind the
station.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Just two gasoline pumps. The sign out front
advertised that regular gas was selling for twenty-four cents a gallon, and
high-test for thirty-two. There was no advertisement about unleaded gas.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">The station was very small. Just hardly enough room
for a small desk, a chair or two, a cigarette vending machine, and a rack that
held quart cans of oil and transmission fluid.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">The structure was made mostly of glass, or appeared
to be so. Large pane of glass on the front for viewing the pumps, glass on each
side with glass doors. A cash register sat on the edge of the desk along with a
display that held a variety of road maps of Alabama and the surrounding states.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">That is where I was.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">But Highway 31 had not been a two-lane highway for
many years.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">To my right was unquestionably Hartselle Mountain’s
steep climb to the South. I looked to my left to see three narrow bridges that
took the road North across Flint Creek (a part of the backwaters of the
Tennessee River). I could see the Kayo Road directly across from me to the
left, beginning its snake up into the mountain. Kayo Road winds from that
beginning point on 31 toward the East, and runs through the infamous haunt, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Cry Baby Holler</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDwIsDFvJOzZhj_SZf_2KOAgFvgUhaY43Ub90xpSact_EOF8-6akUFHCaMiEhK2YM0TNAXszuPgTJiS-4Is_qp98eAYyaN564r11nGMpovQ2fnBoIEXnbNGz6JNgW8Kd6s0fLP8gIcc94/s1600/IMG_7449-e1496350251169-700x933.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="933" data-original-width="700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDwIsDFvJOzZhj_SZf_2KOAgFvgUhaY43Ub90xpSact_EOF8-6akUFHCaMiEhK2YM0TNAXszuPgTJiS-4Is_qp98eAYyaN564r11nGMpovQ2fnBoIEXnbNGz6JNgW8Kd6s0fLP8gIcc94/s320/IMG_7449-e1496350251169-700x933.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">According to legend, in the area’s distant past, a
young Father, Mother, and newborn baby had been traveling East up the road by
buckboard, when a flash flood washed them off of a narrow bridge into the
stream. The adults survived, but sadly their little girl drowned.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Alabamians in this part of the state have been
scaring each other for many years about seeing the ghost of the little girl
playing near the fateful bridge. Sometimes they hear her crying for her Mommy.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I’ve heard that you can go to that bridge in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Cry Baby Holler</i> (Hollow), and place a
candy bar or other piece of candy on a rock or a tree stump. If you leave and
come back to where you left the candy, you will discover that it is gone. Taken
by the hungry baby. (Or perhaps just a hungry raccoon.)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Others have discovered small hand prints on the rear
bumpers of their cars after driving slowly through the area on a dark night.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">My goosebumps came back, but not due to the cold.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I was still quite a safe way from the haunted
holler, but I felt that I was also quite a way from the year 2018.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I took all of this in and registered all of these
thoughts and realizations (had they been <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">realizations</i>?)
in only a few minutes. Maybe five minutes, tops.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I took my eyes from my surroundings and looked down
at <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">me</i> again. I seemed to still be a
sixty-two year old, overweight, white man standing on the side of the road
before sunrise, dressed in the clothes he last remembered putting on. Somewhere
in about 1962? 1963?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">No.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I was standing in 1965.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Something that one of my Facebook friends had said
to me recently had brought this particular place . . . and this time . . .
hauntingly to my mind.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Honestly, though, I can say that in fifty-three
years I have never ridden or driven down this road without remembering the terrible
tragedy that is associated with this stretch.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">In the last years of my Mom’s life, I carried her
from her home each month to a treatment facility in Cullman. It was quite a big
effort for her, she was already almost completely debilitated physically by a
disease which her Neurologist called Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating
Polyneuropathy (CIDP). The body’s immune system causes an attack of
inflammation upon the insulating protective cover (Myelinine) that surrounds
our thousands of miles of nerves. The inflammation causes the depleting of the
protective barrier around the nerves, electric <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">signal</i> is lost in transfer from brain to muscles. The victim
becomes less and less able to move, to walk, breath, or function.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">She was taking an experimental infusion treatment
that was intended to restore the lining around her nerves. She took the
treatments once a month for nearly a year and a half, but, alas, she began this
procedure so late in the progress of her disease that it was not as effective
for her as it was for others who took the same path at an earlier stage. She
passed earlier this year.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Interstate 65 is a very fast track from Decatur
(where Mother lived) to Cullman (where her treatment was), but I always took
the route down Highway 31 and back. I wasn’t just transferring a patient, I was
spending time with my Mom, and this road held a lot of memories for both of us.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Mother’s mind was not always tip-top, but for the
most part, even in the latter stages of her life, she was pretty clear and
sharp. She had lost much of her joy in life, and her smile and laugh was very
rare, but she could remember and engage in conversation.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Sometimes on those monthly trips we both would
repeat parts of our conversation from previous times. At least half a dozen
times during her treatment journeys, as we passed over the bridge (now double
bridges, four lanes of wide road) nearest the foot of Hartselle Mountain,
Mother would say, “This is the bridge where all of those little girls were
killed.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">It was actually the second bridge where the accident
happened, but the first of the three has been dedicated to three military
service personnel. There is a large sign at the South entrance to the bridge,
and a duplicate at the North entrance of the northbound bridge that lists their
names and rank. Mother thought (she couldn’t read the words) that the signs
commemorated the lives that were lost there in 1965.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Either going, or coming home, she would see those
memorial signs. “This is the bridge where all of those little girls were
killed.” Every time, I would solemnly respond, “Yes, it is, Mama. I remember
the day that it happened. What a terrible thing. It still makes me sad to think
about it.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I said all of that to say that I have never
forgotten what happened at that bridge so long ago. I think of it often. And I
had been thinking about it more often lately because of the stray written
comment of one of my friends. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">As a matter of fact, more than ever it had been
haunting me and bearing on my mind. It would not go away. It was not just
another passing recollection. I was troubled. It seems that old age has given
me the wisdom and maturity to see the questions more clearly, if not the
answers.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">This old memory was making me poke my faith. To stir
my beliefs. Break up the fallow ground of my foundation. God makes me do this
from time to time. It is always beneficial, but not always pleasant. It is
unsettling. He wants to unsettle me. To stir me.To make me grow. And I have
always been one that has been susceptible to growing pains.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I was born with completely flat feet. I didn’t have
fallen arches . . . I never had arches that fell. Most normal human beings have
a slight physical arch in the soles of their feet. I do not. I never did.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">As soon as I started walking and growing, my feet
and legs started to hurt. I didn’t know that everyone else was different. I
didn’t know that it did not hurt for them to walk. I wouldn’t complain when my
feet would hurt, but if I walked for a while, the hurt would go up from my feet
into my legs. I know that I would cry then. It was more hurt than I could bear.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I remember that my Mom would sit me down next to her
or lay me down on the bed or the couch and massage my feet and legs until the
pain subsided and I could go to sleep. She took me to our family doctor and
eventually to an orthopedic specialist, but no one had a cure for me.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">The diagnosis was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">growing pains</i> and the only solution offered was specially made
expensive orthopedic shoes. They didn’t help. As a matter of fact, the
introduction of an artificially created arch underneath my foot was like
walking with a big stone in my shoe. It made things worse. It made the pain
worse.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">The only thing that really helped was my Mama’s
care. She was so patient and loving and she rubbed my feet and legs for what
seemed like hours as the tears ran down my face. I’m happy to say that I never
forgot her sweet kindness (my feet and legs <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">still</i>
hurt after a long day of walking), and on many occasions I openly thanked her
for that particular thing that she did for me during her life. There were so
many things that she did for us . . . I hope that I expressed my gratitude for
many of them.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Standing by the side of the road in the cold now for
about ten minutes . . .<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I can see tinges of sunlight as they begin crawling
up the backside of the hill that I am facing. Just faint traces. Not total
darkness. Grayness.Shadows. But the light is coming. Perhaps thirty or forty
minutes away. Is it 6:00 or 6:30?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Still no traffic. No people. No sound.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I was pretty sure that I could walk . . . but I had
no compunction to take even a step from where I stood and surveyed this shadowy
scene from my past.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Then I saw motion . . . someone was coming down from
the trailer park. Down the left-hand gravel road that led to the gas station
lot. Someone small.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">They walked all of the way down the incline, across
the lot and toward the highway. Toward me.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">It was a young girl.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Her pace was deliberate and her steps never
faltered. From the time that she left the trailer above, she had been coming
purposefully to me.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">As she neared the eastern edge of the highway my
parental sense made me look quickly to the left and then to the right to make
sure that her way was safe. I knew that nothing was coming, but I remember a
feeling of relief as I saw her continue to walk to where I was standing.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">When she reached the middle of the road I could see
even in the dim light that was growing behind her, that it was who my mind had
first imagined her to be when she first caught my eye.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">It was Cathy.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I am now glad that my feet were planted . . . or I
might have run away or at least taken a step backward in shock.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Cathy never missed a step.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">She came straight to me, planted her freckled face
in my chest, and wrapped her skinny arms around me in an enthusiastic hug. She
squeezed me as tightly as a spindly nine year old girl can squeeze a big fat
man. “Dennis!” she said smiling up into my face just before she collided with
me and applied the embrace. “I’m so glad that you came!”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Pause, for just a moment.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Two things. (These are the kinds of thoughts that
flash instantaneously through my mind as I live and think and reflect
throughout my conscious, walk-about hours):<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">One, I had never hugged or probably even <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">touched</i> Cathy Crenshaw during all of the
brief time that I knew her . . . <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">That was not unusual for me. I was shy and very
backward socially, growing up, and I think that I was probably both in love
with all girls and at the same time horrified of them.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I probably never had <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">any</i> kind of intentional contact with any of my female classmates at
the Flint Elementary School. For six whole years!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Don’t misunderstand me, if I had had the gumption to
act upon my crushes and blushes I might have hugged and kissed them all! But my
romantic overtures to the girls never extended much farther than spiders and
snakes, and occasionally shaking a frog at them.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Cathy and I hugged each other as if we were familiar
with each other . . . a hug that seemed comfortable and was not out of place or
inappropriate.A hug between very old friends who were reuniting after a very
long absence.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I smelled the fragrance of a recent shampoo in her
hair that made me think of my granddaughter. I was giving my very best
Grandfather hug, in spite of my surprise, my shock, and my awe.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Two, very few people call me Dennis, anymore.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">It is my childhood name.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I began trying to be grown up, mature, and
respectable years ago and asked everyone to call me by my first name: John.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">For the past 25 years I have been, and am John . . .
but family members still call me Den and old friends still can’t refrain from
calling me Dennis.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I placed my hands gently on Cathy’s shoulders and
drew her away from our embrace to look into her face at arm’s length.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“Cathy . . . how can this be?! What is happening?”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“Come with me,” she said. She grabbed me by my left
hand and began pulling back the way that she had come.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">In 1965 I was in Mrs. Monroe’s Third Grade Class at
Flint Elementary School. Cathy and I, and about twenty-five other little boys
and girls were all classmates. Many of us had been together in Mrs. Ryan’s
First Grade Class and also in Mrs. Graves’ Second Grade Class. But we had some
new friends that had joined us during the latter part of our stint in Second
Grade and the first part of our time in Third Grade.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">In the early 1960’s industry was growing in the
little river town of Decatur, Alabama. There were plant jobs, jobs in building,
hauling, and construction. A number of acquainted families came over from
Georgia or down from the Carolinas to live and work in the areas of Decatur and
Hartselle. Flint City was a little community between those two towns that had
its own Mayor, Policeman, Rescue Squad, Civitan Club and City Hall . . . as
well as three family-owned grocery and gas stores.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Many years ago, the county school system had a
school in Flint City that taught children from the First through the Ninth
Grades. But in 1963-64 the first six grades of that school were moved into a
new and modern brick, steel, and glass facility about a half mile north of the
former campus. I remember that we began meeting in the new school buildings in
the final half of my year in Second Grade with Mrs. Graves.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Brenda Emmett joined us at the new school. She and
her family were some of the new arrivals. Her Dad and mine were involved in the
dump truck business, hauling dirt, gravel, and asphalt for local construction
companies. They became friends, and Brenda told me that she <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">liked</i> me and told me that she fully
expected me to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">like</i> her back. It
seemed like a good idea.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">The Emmetts moved back or moved on soon after they
arrived. I do not know where they went or where they wound up. I would love to
know what became of Brenda.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Keith Barbrie and his family came from South
Carolina. He moved back there after graduation and lives in his old home town
today. He had a brother and two sisters – they were all my dear friends and
remain so. I connect with Keith through Facebook.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">The Wilke family is another South Carolina family
that moved into our part of Alabama looking for work and school. Wanda and
Joyce were sisters. I believed that Wanda Wilke was one of the prettiest girls
that I had ever seen. I know that I blushed and mumbled every time that she
spoke to me. I never got the courage to tell her that since Brenda had left . .
. I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">liked</i> her!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Another family that came to our little town looking
for work was the Crenshaws.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">A Father and Mother and a little baby girl who had
three older sisters.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Actually the head of the family was Mr. J.B Walters
and his wife was Doris. Little Robin (nearly a year old) was their first child
together, Cathy (9), Cindy (10), and Debbie (11) were their Mother’s children
by a previous marriage. I can’t remember if I ever met Mr. or Mrs. Walters (he
worked at the Davis Construction Company) . . . but I have always thought of
them as the Crenshaw Family. Cathy Crenshaw was my age in 1965.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">1965.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">February 23, 1965.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">As Cathy was dragging me up the hill (I assumed to
where she lived) by the hand (it was a steep incline, and remember, I’m old and
fat), I glance back over my left shoulder, down and back to the highway where I
could see the first of the three bridges that led North.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I turned my head back to look at the little girl who
was impatiently trying to hurry me up to our destination.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I wondered silently, “Is today February 23, 1965?” I
concentrated a little more on putting one foot in front of the other. A little
more scattered light was beginning to show over the top of the hill that we
were climbing . . . bright sunlight was beginning to burn off the dew on the
grass from which we’d just come.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“Cathy, are you taking me to your home?” I asked
breathlessly.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I don’t remember the papers ever mentioning where
the Walters and the Crenshaws lived, but for some reason I have always had the
impression or some memory (whether true or false) that they had lived in the
little trailer park on the hill behind the Kayo Gas Station.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“Yes,” she urged, “come on! We don’t have much
time!”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Her words echoed in my mind, “We don’t have much
time!”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Was “Yes” the answer to the question that I had wondered <i>and </i>the question that I had asked?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">At 7:30 a.m. on Tuesday, February 23, 1965 I was
peddling my last couple hundred yards to pull up to the Flint Elementary School.
Soon the harsh buzzer that had been installed on the North end of the building
near the Principal’s Office would sound.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It had replaced the old school bell from the former building and it
would shake the skies at 8:00 a.m. -- time for school to begin.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">At about 7:30 a.m. Mrs. Walters and her four
daughters were in their car hoping to beat that buzzer as well. She pulled out
of their driveway, down the gravel road and turned right on Highway 31 to head north
toward school.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Cindy, Cathy, and Debbie had all of their books,
papers, notebooks, bags, and pencils. They were all dressed in their Brownie,
Girl Scout Uniforms because at the end of the day Mrs. Taylor would be there as
their Troop Leader and take their through their pledge and their steps toward achieving
their badges, ribbons, and buttons.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">We were nearing a trailer and car on our right and
in the increasing light I could see that Cathy was indeed wearing her little
brown Scout dress, the little cloth belt, and necktie.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">No one really knows the cause of the accident,
though there were several eye-witnesses.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">When Mrs. Walters pulled out on the highway and
straightened up her car they were already very close to the first bridge.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">She may have been distracted, trying to make sure
that the girls had all of the things that they would need for school, or trying
to pacify the baby. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">There were no seatbelts, air bags, or a baby car
seat. None of that would have mattered one bit after all.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">There may have been another vehicle involved that
created the danger.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">A truck hauling 30,000 pounds of steel was being
driven North on 31 by 26 year old Freddie Waters. Some speculated that perhaps
Mr. Waters tried to pass the car before they pulled onto the narrow passageway
leading to the second bridge. That is where the accident occurred.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">However the tragedy began, who or whatever was at
fault, if anyone . . . the truck and the small white Impala collided in the
middle of that bridge.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">According to testimony, the car flipped entirely,
and the roof of the vehicle was sheared as it was carried over the guard rail
of the bridge by the force of the initial impact. It crashed upside down in the
creek bed below.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">The truck and its load of steel was carried by the
momentum of the crash and it followed the car over the side.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">The truck perched for a moment in mid-air as it
dangled by its rear wheels from the bridge, but that was no respite to what
followed. The truck broke loose from the bridge and crashed onto the overturned
car. The fuel tanks on both the car and the truck exploded into flames . . .
and then 30,000 pounds of raw steel followed the truck to bury everything, and
everyone.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">It is unlikely that any of the
occupants of the car survived the initial collision and fall. However, one
person interviewed by the Daily reported having possibly heard the cries of a
child. It is hard to imagine or to bear that possibility.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Fire and Police Departments from Hartselle and
Decatur arrived quickly, the Flint Rescue Squad was on the scene almost
immediately . . . but there was nothing that anyone could do. No rescue was
possible.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I pulled up from our feverish trek to the top of the
hill, still holding Cathy’s hand.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I turned her to face me with a sweeping motion,
“Cathy, I have to talk to you! I need to see your Mother! What is today? What
time is it?”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“We don’t have time for all that . . . come on,
we’re almost there!”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“We’re here!” shouted Cathy as we came under the
awning of a trailer. A white, four-door Impala was parked underneath, all four
doors were open.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">A woman came out of the trailer carrying a toddler.
She looked like an older version of Cathy (all of the Creshaw girls favored
each other, I now saw that they resembled their Mom).<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Cathy looked up at the sky from underneath the
awning, she spoke directly to her Mother, “We’ve got to hurry. Go ahead and get
into the car with her and start the car. I will make sure that the others have
everything and that we can leave on time.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">As Doris Walters obeyed her insistent Daughter,
Cathy turned her attention back to the trailer. She had released my hand when
we had crested the top of the hill and entered the driveway. I stood as a
dumbfounded witness with my back to the trailer just beneath the edge of the
awning.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Debbie and Cindy were exiting the trailer burdened
with all of their school and Girl Scout items. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“Get into the back seat . . . leave this side door
open . . . I’ll join you in a minute.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Everything had seemed to be a confusing buzz since
we had arrived at the trailer. But the confusion was only on my part. On my
instant reflection and a second evaluation it occurred to me that what was
happening before me was exact, planned, and precise. Everything was happening
and everything was moving as if the steps of a dance were being performed. As
if a drill was being executed.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Debbie started to enter the car . . . and before she
ducked under the door frame she looked, full-faced at me. And as she gave me a
beautiful smile, her eyes twinkled like starlight. The brightness startled me
and took my breath away. I was still trying to grasp what I had just seen as
she lowered herself into the back seat.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Everyone had their part, their place . . . and the
nine year old had given all of the orders and directed all of the traffic.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Now . . . everything and everyone must have been in
place and ready. Well, only one person out of place. Everything quieted and
calmed. Everything was still. Cathy had almost seemed to radiate with purpose
and intent.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Her back was to me as she faced the car after having
given her last commands and taken a final inventory. I saw her take a deep
breath and release it. She turned to face me and came closer to me, smiling
broadly. She stopped in front of me and looked up into my face.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I looked intently at her and then glanced at the car
load of people behind her. I looked back to her . . . and then I glanced to the
right where I could see the highway below and the bridges that extended to my
right.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I looked back at Cathy.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I knew. And she was letting me know.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I could see. And she was giving me a few heartbeats
to know what I saw.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“You’re not Cathy . . . <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">are</i> you?”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Her smile got wider. “No. I’m not – Cathy and her
family have been gathered.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“Who . . . are you?”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“My name is Mahallalel.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">That didn’t mean much at the moment, but it was
something for me to hold onto. “And them?” I asked nodding my head over her
shoulder at the car.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“They are like me. They are my people. You might say
my unit, or my team.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“So, you’re like . . . on a mission, from God?” I
smiled weakly. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">And as soon as I asked the question, I was certain that neither
Cathy OR Mahallalel could possibly catch a reference to John Belushi or <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Blues Brothers</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“Yes, we are.” She responded to my surprise. “We
have been sent here on a mission from our Maker.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I looked at her . . . feeling in more a dream-like
state than I had since I appeared on the side of the road.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“He’s my Father.” I said quietly.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Cathy . . . Mahal . . . she brought her hands
palm-together, thrust them out from her body and swept them apart palm-up in
front of me as she bowed deeply at the waist.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I blushed deeply, with a warmth that flooded my
entire being.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“I thought that maybe <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I</i></b> was on a Mission from
God. A rescue.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">She reached out and placed her right hand on my
heart. She looked up into my face.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“No, Child. The Rescue . . . is complete.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I stared at her and let the gears in my brain spin.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“So . . . you’re not here . . . to stop the wreck .
. . to prevent the accident.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">It was not a question.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“No – they faced a terrible danger that threatened
not only their lives, but also their souls. The Bridge and its event, though an
apparent tragedy in the eyes of the world, were the portal and the time through
which the Maker chose to send His rescue.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“The threat and danger ended when they were gathered
. . . it is not for you to know more.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I stared intently at her face, searching for more.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">My friend and her family were rescued . . . but NOT
from the awful accident that I assumed had ended their lives prematurely.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">The very devastation that I had thought was the
great darkness in this story was actually their doorway into the protective and
saving Presence of God.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I could not, at this moment, imagine a danger more
terrible than the collision on the bridge, but now I knew that something
wonderful had happened . . . instead of something terrible. I had been given a
glimpse into one single event that revealed to me the lengths to which my
Heavenly Father would go to bring light out of darkness. To rescue those whom
He loves.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">The Angel looked up at the rising sun, then back at
me.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I knew that they would have to go at any minute.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“What about Freddie . . . the driver of the truck?”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“Mr. Waters has been gathered by a different team.
Everything is in order.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“So . . . you are going to give your life?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“Oh, no! Our spark will escape at the speed of a
lightning bolt! Only these will remain,” she said, indicating Cathy’s form with
the sweep of her fingertips.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“Only the Maker has given HIS Life.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">She came closer to me, reached up on her tip-toes,
took my face in her hands and kissed my cheek. Tears were streaming down into
my beard.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“The Maker knows that you are troubled. That this
particular happening has hurt you for many years. It has placed something hard
between your faith and Him.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“This is what happened . . . He wanted you to see
it.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“It happens differently in every giving of life and
in every taking. This is only one time, one way, but in seeing this He wants
you to know . . . that always in every part of His Plan . . . He is Good.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“Farewell, Dennis. I will see you again . . . we
both will.” said Cathy as she turned and crawled into the back seat of the car.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">The car pulled away, turning left to go down the
hill to the highway.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I could hear all of the metal rolling noisily down
Hartselle Mountain, headed north.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I bowed my head, clinched my fists, and shut my
eyes.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">“Thank you, Father . . . I’m ready to go back to
where I belong, now.”<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYSgqvmvdlJVF7bfqAn6nC77Uy3j3Tz0ZBoYK9Qposvz6WLAhQnPuHnFCM20a-e8AWV4IaeKKSgu5cCXr6uv_GDNrHr8OEw0zzrilvASq7g-v8SByt9ONtFMxIX5-avqm5nVlcU-vyfhY/s1600/DSCN9086.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYSgqvmvdlJVF7bfqAn6nC77Uy3j3Tz0ZBoYK9Qposvz6WLAhQnPuHnFCM20a-e8AWV4IaeKKSgu5cCXr6uv_GDNrHr8OEw0zzrilvASq7g-v8SByt9ONtFMxIX5-avqm5nVlcU-vyfhY/s400/DSCN9086.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">A Note from the Author</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">God created us all in His Image.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">So . . . we are creators, too.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">A Writer is one kind of creator, or maker . . . and what they create is also in <i>their </i>image.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Every word that a Writer pens - whether prose or poetry, fact or fiction - traces of himself, his family, friends, and acquaintances are all a part of what ends up on paper (or the display screen).</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">According to Genesis chapter 1, God created <i>some </i>of the things in this world out of <i>nothing</i>. But the Bible records that He made Man and Woman out of available materials -- after His Image.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">You may assume, then, as you read that novel or other publication from your favorite Author -- you are learning a little bit about him, or her. You are meeting people that they know or have known or have met. You are visiting places to which they have been. It is hard to disguise or deny.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">There have, no doubt, been authors who have had the creative ability to create plots, stories, events, and characters out of whole cloth -- but they are either rare or non-existent. It is either very hard or impossible to write about something or someone about which or whom you know nothing.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">We (Authors) are taught to "write what we know." And we pretty much try to stick to that advice.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Every sermon that I have ever preached has had me, and you, in it. What is the point of a sermon, otherwise? We will not receive any benefit from just Jeopardy style knowledge and wisdom -- facts about the Bible. We learn the facts and then fact them with, "What does all of that information mean to ME and how I live my life?"</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Every story that I have ever told or written, every book that I have ever published is about me, my life, the people around me and their lives.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">That is rude and presumptuous, isn't it?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Don't worry -- we always disguise the facts and change the names so that we will not embarrass you. And so that we can present a claim of deniability!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">But, sometimes we don't.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>The Rescue</i> is the first work of fiction that I have produced that is based on an actual event. I also use real names of people that were associated with that event.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">But -- <i>The Rescue</i> is a work of fiction. It is the product of my imagination. The characters are all fictitious, even though some of them carry historical names.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">There are many lines in the plot and story of <i>The Rescue</i> that never really happened. The story is an <i>I Wonder</i> or a <i>What if</i>. It might even be an <i>I Wish</i>.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">If you find any harm or offense in this little short story, then I am sorry. It was not my intention.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I have published it here (and only <i>here </i>for the moment) in <i>Light from the Pit</i> because writing it made me feel better about something very dark that has occupied my heart for many years. Yes, you have been invited to peek in on both my inner turmoil and my self-created and imposed therapy.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">*If you want to learn more about the tragedy upon which this story is based, go to <a href="http://www.johndbain.com/tragedy.html">http://www.johndbain.com/tragedy.html</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<br />John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-41309132568659043112018-09-25T16:10:00.001-07:002018-09-25T16:10:16.762-07:00NEED<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4vZgM7jHo8HGeBK4xhiYyXaLOjm5Ko3ukhR12MUD6WAsu-lyfEIw9TWKx_9xrOs79g2tepS_9KjVOFkWMKwWTeTiozjrETX0Wg7gr2oW5_BjnlCDNKjo7hJj3UHWmR_4tIDh-EQn_36c/s1600/Need.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="537" data-original-width="365" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4vZgM7jHo8HGeBK4xhiYyXaLOjm5Ko3ukhR12MUD6WAsu-lyfEIw9TWKx_9xrOs79g2tepS_9KjVOFkWMKwWTeTiozjrETX0Wg7gr2oW5_BjnlCDNKjo7hJj3UHWmR_4tIDh-EQn_36c/s400/Need.JPG" width="271" /></a></div>
<br />John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-41558441248358850412018-09-25T16:09:00.003-07:002018-09-25T16:09:34.552-07:00WANT<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSro6qwt9pSv0c-AwoW4tTYORKfZz0DjlYvQtGn9MNO3pSfsJmN1_iJVI7rszDmGbF_XRRuTYHMWIZ93rwsMLtCt_M1Wtp5G55Od0KIGPXb8EB3iJqyD3l2vwJCEJi3yPfy2nGbgQQY64/s1600/Want.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="305" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSro6qwt9pSv0c-AwoW4tTYORKfZz0DjlYvQtGn9MNO3pSfsJmN1_iJVI7rszDmGbF_XRRuTYHMWIZ93rwsMLtCt_M1Wtp5G55Od0KIGPXb8EB3iJqyD3l2vwJCEJi3yPfy2nGbgQQY64/s400/Want.JPG" width="256" /></a></div>
<br />John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-82730151161956194652018-09-25T16:08:00.003-07:002018-09-25T16:08:46.868-07:00Content<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0O7A3TkuXhmFIke7vW3FB2t1TpIYlj5dTYclMjCGDV5uU1yoFDlySvHBcHKQ4PoGADQOHevNJZzMJGXi-myhyphenhyphenUn1N5xH9nYMJzTYrmxWi9aGLlsY1MHDM_OmdIFkyLfImu9Ntdri08ns/s1600/Content.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="431" data-original-width="343" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0O7A3TkuXhmFIke7vW3FB2t1TpIYlj5dTYclMjCGDV5uU1yoFDlySvHBcHKQ4PoGADQOHevNJZzMJGXi-myhyphenhyphenUn1N5xH9nYMJzTYrmxWi9aGLlsY1MHDM_OmdIFkyLfImu9Ntdri08ns/s400/Content.JPG" width="317" /></a></div>
<br />John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-81500794632651808192018-09-25T16:07:00.001-07:002018-09-25T16:07:26.658-07:00Unoffendable<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTyNouQrVzz8M6fOFDomvZrSa69qf4b7b8qOpO-PXn0f5BIE84tRfKboUhIk-3juJhhqI1qCMbQWCUzpgifxntCWjYei6ieNE4lUQzA0eclNd761ZqytNqW0JEnI31Wj0bOKfyLsxG0wA/s1600/Peace.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="383" data-original-width="295" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTyNouQrVzz8M6fOFDomvZrSa69qf4b7b8qOpO-PXn0f5BIE84tRfKboUhIk-3juJhhqI1qCMbQWCUzpgifxntCWjYei6ieNE4lUQzA0eclNd761ZqytNqW0JEnI31Wj0bOKfyLsxG0wA/s400/Peace.JPG" width="307" /></a></div>
<br />John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-58174687632578674742016-11-29T08:51:00.000-08:002016-11-29T08:51:01.731-08:00In Everything . . . Give Thanks<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
In Everything . . . Give Thanks. I Thessalonians 5:18</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKV-vpt8t90UdckcRgQpf6ZOdoGlG7ruz0bt-N3NfNErJtTMvTl44CvcsIdI6ivRDTUw24PBdUW2Nc5PVJoh6yCuhH6505dIhZr5d2pwC6125YQmAFNDTxPPd1bbCx3hApYlRcpoMrTcc/s1600/Capture-A-Man-Fell-In-A-Hole.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKV-vpt8t90UdckcRgQpf6ZOdoGlG7ruz0bt-N3NfNErJtTMvTl44CvcsIdI6ivRDTUw24PBdUW2Nc5PVJoh6yCuhH6505dIhZr5d2pwC6125YQmAFNDTxPPd1bbCx3hApYlRcpoMrTcc/s320/Capture-A-Man-Fell-In-A-Hole.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<br />One of the duties of a pastor is to interpret scripture . . . to explain or define the meaning of words, phrases, verses, or passages in the Bible.<br /><br />As Brother Dave Gardner used to say, "Let me cut it up for you!"<br /><br />Bible interpretation carries great responsibility . . . and it is one that true ministers of the Faith never take lightly.<br /><br />I have heard all of my ministry (46 years), "The Bible says what it means, and means what it says!"<br /><br />That makes it all sound pretty simple . . . but I have found that discovering God's intended meaning is often illusive . . . requiring a great deal of knocking, seeking, and finding.<br /><br />When mortals speak for God we are not always correct . . . sometimes we flavor our utterances with our own philosophy . . . sometimes we substitute our truth for God's outright. We must be accountable . . . well will be held accountable.<div>
<br /></div>
Here is a line from scripture for the Season:<br /><br />"In Everything . . . Give Thanks."<br /><br />Found in Paul's first letter to the Thessalonians, chapter 5 verse 18. No explanation . . . just a brief, simple statement.<br /><br />Is it really simple?<br /><br />Does it say, "Be thankful for everything?"<br /><br />N0, it doesn't.<br /><br />It says, "Be thankful IN everything."<br /><br />Whatever circumstance you are IN . . . whatever ditch you are IN . . . whatever hole you are IN . . . there will always be something that you can truthfully, honestly be grateful for.<br /><br />I do not believe that God requires us to be thankful for our pain or hurt or tragedy or difficulty. <br /><br />I do not believe that you have to be thankful for the HOLE . . . but in every hole you can find cause and good reason to be grateful.<br /><br />Paul (and God through Paul) is not calling us to an unreasonable, emptily pious response to hardship . . . but we ARE being called and challenged to defy our troubles and all of the powers of the Dark . . . by giving thanks at all times.<br /><br />No matter the weather, the temperature, the situation or circumstance.<br /><br />We are not merely fair weather faithful . . . we are defiant, bold, unbreakable, victorious thanksgivers.<br /><br />Thank you, God . . . no matter what . . .John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-77920138378848894662016-11-23T10:11:00.002-08:002016-11-23T10:14:23.453-08:00Being thankful . . . in the Hole<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLY42-P3g-_YSnd1tDrXGnf7WqhaylUiEjtTScebgMgMCjfd_eIKnTZSrv0BrJ6nEBepiP1JnD54qf0OMyQMERSXQW7XA0kKTRvfqsz1wMjr3MxcYaNQIcFfRCjQuUJMN1STAutWWwuGM/s1600/Hole.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLY42-P3g-_YSnd1tDrXGnf7WqhaylUiEjtTScebgMgMCjfd_eIKnTZSrv0BrJ6nEBepiP1JnD54qf0OMyQMERSXQW7XA0kKTRvfqsz1wMjr3MxcYaNQIcFfRCjQuUJMN1STAutWWwuGM/s320/Hole.JPG" width="253" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
In Everything . . . Give thanks. I Thessalonians 5:18</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Not thankful FOR everything . . . but thankful IN everything . . . even in the hole.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
In the hole . . . in the red . . . over your head . . .</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
You know . . . down and out (or down, but not out)</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Up to your neck . . . </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Thankful.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
There's a great gospel song about a grandmother telling her grandchildren the story about Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from the Book of Daniel in the Old Testament.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
They refused to bow down to the image of King Nebuchadnezzar . . . so he threw them in a fiery furnace.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
But God protected them from the fire. They were in the fire . . . but the fire didn't win. The three Hebrew Children were freely walking in the flames of the furnace: unharmed.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
King Nebuchadnezzar looked in and saw them . . . he also saw a Fourth Man walking about with them in the blaze. He said that it looked like the Son of God.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
The three young men walked out of the furnace . . . and the Bible said that they didn't even smell of smoke!</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
In the song the grandchildren asked their grandmother, "But grandmother . . . what about the Fourth Man? Where is HE?"</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
She smiled and happily said, "He's still in the Fire!"</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Whenever we are thrown into the fires and flames of life . . . He is already there . . . waiting for us . . . to be with us . . . to see us through.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Phillip Yancey has written a wonderful book for Christians in the Pit: <i>Where is God when it Hurts?</i></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
You should read the book.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Sometimes when we are in the hole . . . in the pit . . . in the furnace . . . we cannot see Him there. Sometimes we can't find Him, or sense Him, or feel Him. In the hole.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Yancey's conclusion at the end of the book is profound . . . and we knew it all along.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Where is God when it Hurts? He's in YOU!</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
The Apostle John wrote: "Greater is HE who is IN YOU . . . than anything or anyone in the world . . . or in the hole."</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
He is.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I am thankful.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<br />John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-32063668659307559562016-08-05T11:23:00.001-07:002016-08-05T11:23:19.676-07:00Someone's Boring Me<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcWIf_TlLOOZXc0Fuq_Nat6HfmqMPS8WB_-bGF8sUrhOIQmeD-jKzKyilwEYv1vg9-PINbgnG_n0Ig63pbi8E6xgSjYKmMaIbvngYPq37ZuqnlCYd43srwHU1CzcDX-OXSy3NHyXcM0R0/s1600/Someones-Boring-Me-I-Think-Its-Me.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="422" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcWIf_TlLOOZXc0Fuq_Nat6HfmqMPS8WB_-bGF8sUrhOIQmeD-jKzKyilwEYv1vg9-PINbgnG_n0Ig63pbi8E6xgSjYKmMaIbvngYPq37ZuqnlCYd43srwHU1CzcDX-OXSy3NHyXcM0R0/s640/Someones-Boring-Me-I-Think-Its-Me.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-65960123194237467302016-07-21T15:26:00.004-07:002016-07-21T15:38:25.237-07:00I am Never BORED #3<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]--><br />
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/>
<w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
<w:Word11KerningPairs/>
<w:CachedColBalance/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="267">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0in;
mso-para-margin-right:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0in;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
</style>
<![endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Bored people have a
Favorite</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Here is my Favorite
COLOR . . .</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiToYCAFj9uZVrcQJeXeivvv1m-7LYqxxEIujMA6d8Pns9yhT9HgNGuv2nZbr9XiUrxmg8O8Hc5VMhMtF1kbfTNw0cG4hw_NXubvPEhka6Qlk9Oi8d6jC4QVv9_pAZj2w43VFNODYFuizo/s1600/Favorite+Color.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="392" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiToYCAFj9uZVrcQJeXeivvv1m-7LYqxxEIujMA6d8Pns9yhT9HgNGuv2nZbr9XiUrxmg8O8Hc5VMhMtF1kbfTNw0cG4hw_NXubvPEhka6Qlk9Oi8d6jC4QVv9_pAZj2w43VFNODYFuizo/s640/Favorite+Color.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/>
<w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
<w:Word11KerningPairs/>
<w:CachedColBalance/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="267">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0in;
mso-para-margin-right:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0in;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And I like this one, too . . .</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDs3NaVh1hlop8s8_4zFAr9j1KfFIG-xaA3Pz94OoW4JTTQmmRo8ClzlYL4ABjiSmwVNiqdrVn_Qg5_K4VM4yaARD_dYZPsa52hcecU09x9KUjcOzG-QinMxuynU7aFBtg1cMVwsl2EQk/s1600/Favorite+Color2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="393" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDs3NaVh1hlop8s8_4zFAr9j1KfFIG-xaA3Pz94OoW4JTTQmmRo8ClzlYL4ABjiSmwVNiqdrVn_Qg5_K4VM4yaARD_dYZPsa52hcecU09x9KUjcOzG-QinMxuynU7aFBtg1cMVwsl2EQk/s400/Favorite+Color2.JPG" width="400" /> </a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]--></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/>
<w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
<w:Word11KerningPairs/>
<w:CachedColBalance/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="267">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0in;
mso-para-margin-right:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0in;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I like ‘em all.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Do you really think that one color is brighter, prettier . .
. . better . . . . than another?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Okay, you prefer one color over another. I DO get it . . .</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But do you know what happens if you’re wearing a shirt that
is NOT your favorite color? You get bored with it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And if your friend never wears clothing colored in your most
favorite shade . . . you get bored with your friend.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
You might feel negatively toward entire races of people who
do not suit the color that you enjoy the most.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If the radio is not playing your favorite song . . . do you
change the channel or turn it off?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If your favorite meal is not on<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the menu . . . do you leave the restaurant in
search of another?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIriCth6WSgi5Z5ODLZh1jC7O73MMwBBhzgFjvCm5Wneb0ZEeO5KprugFtkafpEZ2hbNk1ZqqwWi8i3IhAupJwBdIcNJvdT3y4S4JLUjbQe4d9tk1kzqwdQz4j-69pTNLyl1QXF8EYMu0/s1600/Proverbs.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIriCth6WSgi5Z5ODLZh1jC7O73MMwBBhzgFjvCm5Wneb0ZEeO5KprugFtkafpEZ2hbNk1ZqqwWi8i3IhAupJwBdIcNJvdT3y4S4JLUjbQe4d9tk1kzqwdQz4j-69pTNLyl1QXF8EYMu0/s1600/Proverbs.JPG" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]--><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/>
<w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
<w:Word11KerningPairs/>
<w:CachedColBalance/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="267">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0in;
mso-para-margin-right:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0in;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Is having a Favorite really a bad thing?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Yes . . . and it’s boring.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
You get bored with people and things that are not your
favorite.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can’t wait until they are
out of the way so that you can get to your Favorite. Your best time, attention,
and devotion is dedicated to your Favorite.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Favoritism includes so little . . . and excludes so much.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIiJaHvLSz6nJIxS7bYdg5v0_0dTepWiV-I2r98vVShqjg4ZitD-rTKcUXhAk0NLon3TTxD1wBdXmcqAVkRlaOe0s9zWmqTGT7qWJcwgVKem9HGh2Q_ZdTJOuETpg1tnUkf4g2QzNVM8Q/s1600/Fish.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIiJaHvLSz6nJIxS7bYdg5v0_0dTepWiV-I2r98vVShqjg4ZitD-rTKcUXhAk0NLon3TTxD1wBdXmcqAVkRlaOe0s9zWmqTGT7qWJcwgVKem9HGh2Q_ZdTJOuETpg1tnUkf4g2QzNVM8Q/s320/Fish.JPG" width="320" /> </a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/>
<w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
<w:Word11KerningPairs/>
<w:CachedColBalance/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="267">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0in;
mso-para-margin-right:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0in;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
</style>
<![endif]-->It is limiting . . . it is narrow . . . it is close-minded.
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Do you have an expansive list of things that you like and do
not like?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I suspect that if you are keeping THAT list (real or
imaginary) you also have a list of PEOPLE that you have judged and sorted
similarly. I wonder which list I’m on?!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Do you lose interest . . . snerl up your nose . . . turn
your back . . . or click your tongue?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do
you get bored if it’s not your Favorite?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In order to cling lovingly to favorites . . . you must judge
. . . and indulge in critical thinking. THIS is my Favorite . . .THAT is NOT.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
You do not <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">reject</b>
everything or everyone that is not your Favorite . . . . . . or do you?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX2dPRB8kvkHIiPpwMsQ-QTPrP7tbm5pTFKchVs40gTaI7xaPe3fEJt91UQuBXqQycwzIppAZamGEIRIHDSPipuRDy5iAYTAn3Ehk_3Fxtt3KRbuYM2jZ4PZilbpbf8SG1Nj1vg0GxYTo/s1600/Favorite+People.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="170" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX2dPRB8kvkHIiPpwMsQ-QTPrP7tbm5pTFKchVs40gTaI7xaPe3fEJt91UQuBXqQycwzIppAZamGEIRIHDSPipuRDy5iAYTAn3Ehk_3Fxtt3KRbuYM2jZ4PZilbpbf8SG1Nj1vg0GxYTo/s400/Favorite+People.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]--></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/>
<w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
<w:Word11KerningPairs/>
<w:CachedColBalance/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="267">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0in;
mso-para-margin-right:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0in;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The goal of Baskin and Robbins is NOT just to get you to try
31 flavors . . . it is to get you to try thousands, and like them all.
(Personally, I have never put ANY flavor of ice cream in my mouth that I did
not like!).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Having Favorite people, things, or preferences seems like a
very harmless practice . . . but it can define your thinking and point of view
in negative ways.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes, it IS about
liking something . . . but it is also about unconsciously establishing and
unnecessarily promoting negativity toward OTHER things or people. If you find
your less than Favorite people tedious or trying, if you find things that are
not your Favorite boring, you may be limiting the amount of joy and happiness
that you are capable of having and the amount of joy and happiness you are
adding to the lives of others because Favoritism is not only boring . . . it is
selfish.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKAhpQgM7UEfqeRQ5DfE6QtQKk7DlEl8weo6n-IcLltqWRxeedR5Um3ATV4suvfiOKp9a_9RpKWjU4Qh-alCJZB9Q-YogP5HCXMzdtJSmJggYAGQOX3eAvtfNi8he0l3mDbPLuEIQVFZ0/s1600/Sucks.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="531" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKAhpQgM7UEfqeRQ5DfE6QtQKk7DlEl8weo6n-IcLltqWRxeedR5Um3ATV4suvfiOKp9a_9RpKWjU4Qh-alCJZB9Q-YogP5HCXMzdtJSmJggYAGQOX3eAvtfNi8he0l3mDbPLuEIQVFZ0/s640/Sucks.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/>
<w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
<w:Word11KerningPairs/>
<w:CachedColBalance/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="267">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0in;
mso-para-margin-right:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0in;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Here’s a sad song to close this post.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
New Favorite.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/upzrUBltoDQ" width="420"></iframe></div>
John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-60178597877419067822016-07-21T06:59:00.002-07:002016-07-21T07:00:07.946-07:00Bored as a Gargoyle<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5AzE9mkjoXcWPQhAQsZTamdUo4XoFXv0V2R5BJTbOL0jHPxQdGjEiMp5IHJqZykUDv0J7AYZubI-7cUJV-DpSF_bPvRmJy2G7KQ7GsD4rTUEFeodg8DqeuKVUKx_uggRqSW30NuMecVk/s1600/Ertz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5AzE9mkjoXcWPQhAQsZTamdUo4XoFXv0V2R5BJTbOL0jHPxQdGjEiMp5IHJqZykUDv0J7AYZubI-7cUJV-DpSF_bPvRmJy2G7KQ7GsD4rTUEFeodg8DqeuKVUKx_uggRqSW30NuMecVk/s640/Ertz.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-6327259437925694732016-07-20T19:40:00.003-07:002016-07-20T19:40:52.176-07:00Boredom is a Choice<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8ZivMqoKpocCXNAtoRov63cbEpsQZUSbyJPEOV8d6Mr3_qdVw1YUCYoqxlVgSuKOPFuuSOs_DH9XzismvSXa-0jX_mGvDnv1Fsn-PCgVGdD6s7aqLWYAQNz92PMxsiSEvbRisdnF7sJY/s1600/Choice.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="336" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8ZivMqoKpocCXNAtoRov63cbEpsQZUSbyJPEOV8d6Mr3_qdVw1YUCYoqxlVgSuKOPFuuSOs_DH9XzismvSXa-0jX_mGvDnv1Fsn-PCgVGdD6s7aqLWYAQNz92PMxsiSEvbRisdnF7sJY/s640/Choice.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-22589948063328256452016-07-20T19:27:00.004-07:002016-07-20T19:32:50.738-07:00I am Never BORED #2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiym3F2VJL8XxZwFACUQVPRHuPpgC7XlOt_5dz5YmFIW0w_7lRD0julVqMbfb7isnvrPqxKT0SLGqjAw79TnsvX9KZvbPk01_Be2H0ytig5fzr2SwfeSXQx2yIUNJZpqHxiJxrR9GdsnA/s1600/I+am+never+BORED.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiym3F2VJL8XxZwFACUQVPRHuPpgC7XlOt_5dz5YmFIW0w_7lRD0julVqMbfb7isnvrPqxKT0SLGqjAw79TnsvX9KZvbPk01_Be2H0ytig5fzr2SwfeSXQx2yIUNJZpqHxiJxrR9GdsnA/s320/I+am+never+BORED.jpg" width="279" /></a></div>
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:RelyOnVML/>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Bored people are EMPTY people.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
They have nothing inside them . . . so they can only
experience<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>what is before their
eyes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The only sensation they have is
what they are currently touching or feeling.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The only smells they can enjoy are the aromas and olfactory waftings of
the moment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The only sounds they can
hear are those vibrating physically about them.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
They have no inner reserve from which to draw.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If you want to avoid boredom you must fill yourself . . .
become a bank of recorded and stored sights, sounds, sensations, and smells.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3rTYnuIF3qykcIjmfKsOudyeMaUaX_gXxSXMD03j-rMsE1Jm5DQSvwdAF2j_zfAnO6z7xGTSVvfSSvLaWUaDrGkgs1CapeFcSoJGEmbvAcWEpXj2YlvAFZyP2qDMpRTLXsUMR696mb8Y/s1600/Bored+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3rTYnuIF3qykcIjmfKsOudyeMaUaX_gXxSXMD03j-rMsE1Jm5DQSvwdAF2j_zfAnO6z7xGTSVvfSSvLaWUaDrGkgs1CapeFcSoJGEmbvAcWEpXj2YlvAFZyP2qDMpRTLXsUMR696mb8Y/s320/Bored+2.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:RelyOnVML/>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Make every day of your life a Quest to fill yourself with
every good thing that you can find.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Transform yourself into a repository of stories, pictures,
books, songs, and sounds. Fill your memory with flavors, tastes, and smells.
Intentionally and purposefully file away moments, scenes, and experiences.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Plan and put forth the effort to intentionally go to places
where you have never been.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Taste foods and dishes that have never before crossed your
palette.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Inhale rich, unusual smells and attach them to places,
situations, and circumstances.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Open your eyes wide to the wonders of every sunrise and
sunset that you can possibly view. See every new born baby, count the stars and
planets, burn the constellations into your heart. Bathe your eyes with every
color, blend, and hue.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Consider yourself to be on a treasure hunt . . . and fill
yourself every moment of every day with everything imaginable.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Application:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’m in a Doctor’s waiting room . . . I will be there for an
undetermined amount of time. I don’t know where the remote control to the
waiting room television is . . . I don’t want to touch ANY of those ten year
old magazines that are scattered around the room (who KNOWS who has been
smearing infected body fluids on THOSE!). </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I can just sit and wait for the nurse to call my name . . .
and be BORED . . . or I can board the Pequod with Ishmael<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>as a member of Captain Ahab’s crew . . . and
chase Moby Dick across the seas. I don’t need an iPad or a Kindle to do that .
. . I’ve got it on the shelf of my mind!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Or . . . I can boldly go where no man has gone before by
reliving any of the 79 episodes of Star Trek the Original Series.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t need a mechanical video device.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I could also listen to the Beatles White album . . . . don’t
need earphones or a contrivance . . . and I know every word of every song.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Sitting right there in the waiting room I could visit
Niagara Falls again (I was there with my family in 1968 and took my new wife
with me again in 1976). I can still hear the roar of the water cascading over
into the iris below . . . see the rainbow within its horseshoe arc . . . and
feel the cool mist on my face.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I have filled my mind with every Hubble Space Telescope
image that has ever been posted on the internet . . . so, I can travel to the
outer reaches of our solar system and on to the galaxy beyond.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Well, the nurse just called my name . . . let me go on to
other examples . . .</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’m at a scheduled and required conference with hundreds of
other people<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>. . . and frankly, none of
the material being delivered is new, fresh, or innovative. So I am going to
work on the sermon that I am going to delivery this coming Sunday . . . I have
all of my notes right here . . . in my brain. I’m even going to practice my
delivery . . . and no – no one sitting around me at the conference will even
know or be disturbed.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’m riding with my friend . . . and can’t politely change
the channel on his radio . . . but I can make any song that he is playing sound
like <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Inna Godda DaVida</i> by the Iron
Butterfly.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
I have been invited to dine out with a friend and the
restaurant that they chose does not serve exactly what I have a craving for . .
. but every bite I place in my mouth today tastes like the very best Italian
food.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’m attending a church revival service . . . and the speaker
is not the most gifted preacher that I have ever heard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But in my ears today he sounds like R.G.
Lee.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(I heard and met Dr. Lee at the
Vestavia Hills Baptist Church in 1976. He preached <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Payday, Someday</i>, his most famous sermon.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
I started filling my life when I was 8 or 10 years old.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I read every kind of book, magazine, newspaper, and internet
article. I constantly listen to music of every sort from the four corners of
the world. I watch movies and I study life and the living.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
I am always ready to go to some place yet unvisited . . . to
meet someone new . . . to have some new wonderful experience.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My life is FULL of music, melody, magic, and madness!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I have thousands of faces, smiles, and laughs recorded
indelibly in my heart.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I can relive that day that I became a Christian without having
lost a single detail.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I can kiss the love of my life again for the very first time
(it was on her home doorstep on Byrd Spring Road, she smelled like
honeysuckle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That doorstep, in the
carport, is now covered by their living room).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I can hold her hands as we stand in front of Dr. John
Hamilton, exchanging our wedding vows.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And any time . . . any where . . . I can realistically
relive the arrival of my daughter and son into the world.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I never get bored.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF56t5E_sN_QYhdZgRTOjfIangtETlhMSkC4NzOaqyTG2Fsn4Je22Ept4XITpT7P6mLRb6Ep1r8mSSZnmqBmj2KwMHDu3HGjqJsg2tynZpD0qRMHcM21dlJ0TsIvk0_cKlUc61WmPGr2g/s1600/Bored+Kids.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF56t5E_sN_QYhdZgRTOjfIangtETlhMSkC4NzOaqyTG2Fsn4Je22Ept4XITpT7P6mLRb6Ep1r8mSSZnmqBmj2KwMHDu3HGjqJsg2tynZpD0qRMHcM21dlJ0TsIvk0_cKlUc61WmPGr2g/s400/Bored+Kids.JPG" width="400" /> </a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:RelyOnVML/>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]--></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/>
<w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
<w:Word11KerningPairs/>
<w:CachedColBalance/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="267">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0in;
mso-para-margin-right:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0in;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I can visit the Iron Man (Vulcan statue in Birmingham), the
Zoo, the Circus in Houston, Texas.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It is all very real . . . and all of it is at the fingertips
of my mind.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I can understand if you don’t like a speech which you are
compelled to hear, or you don’t like the vegetables that are on your plate, or
the song that has been selected, or the scene that is on the screen. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
You are
distressed, sad, annoyed, angry, disappointed, critical, and sour . . . you are
bored.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Because you are hollow . . . you are empty . . . and all you
have is what is in front of you. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’m sorry . . . and sad for you . . . but I can’t let the
emptiness in YOUR life . . . bring MY life down.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Excuse me . . . right now I’m Neil Armstrong . . . and I’m going to
the Moon!</div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/>
<w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
<w:Word11KerningPairs/>
<w:CachedColBalance/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="267">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0in;
mso-para-margin-right:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0in;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
</style>
<![endif]--><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/>
<w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
<w:Word11KerningPairs/>
<w:CachedColBalance/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="267">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0in;
mso-para-margin-right:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0in;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
</style>
<![endif]--><br />John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-74199741369094511792016-07-19T16:22:00.004-07:002016-07-19T16:22:48.871-07:00Only boring people are bored<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmkbfrZuQiRgJa4F8nCHKnTsAHeqAlVKxneRNoRyPg6fgnUe9y2hzngnoKnmxhyZ1LiKBNQNPmv3JfbyD3LXhJnvFG3pKEXhK2oQFWh1sic-CIOnlfIDCrFCGTmiPV6rFy0rnmYI3zNP4/s1600/Only+boring+people1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmkbfrZuQiRgJa4F8nCHKnTsAHeqAlVKxneRNoRyPg6fgnUe9y2hzngnoKnmxhyZ1LiKBNQNPmv3JfbyD3LXhJnvFG3pKEXhK2oQFWh1sic-CIOnlfIDCrFCGTmiPV6rFy0rnmYI3zNP4/s640/Only+boring+people1.jpg" width="492" /></a></div>
<br />John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-67817680359286778692016-07-19T16:04:00.003-07:002016-07-19T16:32:56.251-07:00Boredom is NOT a state of mind . . .<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIpaSG126ELltBlnRQNJcfmcebKVHGnhCQ2Qg_FTJKpewSBWoI5-B_AaIwy0LIHXqprO7Of7Sw90yLQWRidk9SBf8YeHFZDIM_tkZhmo9niDeG2Llx75ZEwyOUz474Fz1O8SmA3xg0k2E/s1600/Boredome+is+NOT+a+state+of+mind.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIpaSG126ELltBlnRQNJcfmcebKVHGnhCQ2Qg_FTJKpewSBWoI5-B_AaIwy0LIHXqprO7Of7Sw90yLQWRidk9SBf8YeHFZDIM_tkZhmo9niDeG2Llx75ZEwyOUz474Fz1O8SmA3xg0k2E/s400/Boredome+is+NOT+a+state+of+mind.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-6346504251708224772016-07-19T16:04:00.002-07:002016-07-19T16:29:28.488-07:00I am Never BORED #1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTbCg4cdXJu9iTyjxt624hHpwKE0B7a1Bzz3vnIN0Opd5toRZ3cn3D-Wyba4J62nFzzkUMVXfHtopM7dbH1iB7DhkLx3oBoP19MoJgb8GpjitlhOj-nE0w25pFzFaYIZCz1Ow-iyXwRYg/s1600/I+am+never+BORED.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTbCg4cdXJu9iTyjxt624hHpwKE0B7a1Bzz3vnIN0Opd5toRZ3cn3D-Wyba4J62nFzzkUMVXfHtopM7dbH1iB7DhkLx3oBoP19MoJgb8GpjitlhOj-nE0w25pFzFaYIZCz1Ow-iyXwRYg/s320/I+am+never+BORED.jpg" width="279" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
I am never bored.<br />
<br />
<div class="definition-inner-item">
Merriam-Webster: the state of being weary and restless through lack of interest</div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
<br /></div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
Synonyms: disinterested, mentally fatigued or tired, dull, blase', inattentive, spiritless, turned off.</div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
<br /></div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
I am never ANY of those things.</div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
<br /></div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
I have not been bored in many, many years.</div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
<br /></div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
I learned how not to be bored when I was very young. Maybe only 8 or 10 years of age.</div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
<br /></div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
It may be possible that I was only bored once . . . . I don't remember what brought me to that state of mind . . . but I obviously decided it was not for me.</div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
<br /></div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
I didn't like it.</div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
<br /></div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
I've never been back.</div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
<br /></div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
Doin' time in the Boredom County Jail?</div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
<br /></div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
I can show you how to get out . . . </div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiNEWj6FDYr-MnqbbCf0IpV9LDmiRrrBb575JtmNz2N1y45n3Ga_NbhBPo6kgLfSntF7dqQugWoGRhp0IYgebwjRUJMdwxcSH2LeFn0088jRaWiKVGjUC2B3NyHqmDvRgFWz3bzByuWgA/s1600/Jules+Renard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="187" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiNEWj6FDYr-MnqbbCf0IpV9LDmiRrrBb575JtmNz2N1y45n3Ga_NbhBPo6kgLfSntF7dqQugWoGRhp0IYgebwjRUJMdwxcSH2LeFn0088jRaWiKVGjUC2B3NyHqmDvRgFWz3bzByuWgA/s400/Jules+Renard.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="definition-inner-item">
<br />
Boredom is not a state of mind. It is a state of not using your mind.</div>
John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-91727235935949331062016-01-02T15:37:00.003-08:002016-01-02T15:39:32.389-08:00Footprints in the Sand<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_ICvnJdP6OkQg8VdAx_uDRW33JxrPhZl-o7vPycXxDnhbLNvmW-VMP1CfVC0eDd_7LiMEdTaUVvtyxHxYIoxkzSM8EUV4utjuwlbD-LpdFfXlb8E_IfrGp3PxXwk-mAnDsYPVMRVqLSg/s1600/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_ICvnJdP6OkQg8VdAx_uDRW33JxrPhZl-o7vPycXxDnhbLNvmW-VMP1CfVC0eDd_7LiMEdTaUVvtyxHxYIoxkzSM8EUV4utjuwlbD-LpdFfXlb8E_IfrGp3PxXwk-mAnDsYPVMRVqLSg/s400/images.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/>
<w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
<w:Word11KerningPairs/>
<w:CachedColBalance/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><br />
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="267">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0in;
mso-para-margin-right:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0in;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">One night I dreamed a dream.<br />
As I was walking along the beach with my Lord.<br />
Across the dark sky flashed scenes from my life.<br />
For each scene, I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand,<br />
One belonging to me and one to my Lord.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">After the last scene of my life flashed before me,<br />
I looked back at the footprints in the sand.<br />
I noticed that at many times along the path of my life,<br />
especially at the very lowest and saddest times,<br />
there was only one set of footprints.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">This really troubled me, so I asked the Lord about it. <br />
"Lord, you said once I decided to follow you,<br />
You'd walk with me all the way.<br /> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">But I noticed that during the saddest </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">and most troublesome times of my life,<br />
there was only one set of footprints.<br /> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I don't understand why, </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">when I needed You the most, </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">You would leave me." </span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">He whispered, "My precious child, I love you </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">and will
never leave you.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
Never, ever, during your trials and testings.<br />
When you saw only one set of footprints,<br /> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">It was then that I carried you."</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<span style="line-height: 115%;">- by Mary Stevenson</span></span></span>John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-90414062213148899492016-01-02T15:29:00.002-08:002018-01-18T15:45:38.568-08:00Footprints, too.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ4VlUVFyeYJugZ9UV2YPmgJ6Sf9qu8e3ftZcSrRMqAMEhbWNAYxNkoKONdSracj8r8f34EP1XW4wEFsADJpCELvRR_GjjxCabT352qgTws0QWqVFw6BzLihlL2In-5U2GdLhrefR4XFY/s1600/index.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ4VlUVFyeYJugZ9UV2YPmgJ6Sf9qu8e3ftZcSrRMqAMEhbWNAYxNkoKONdSracj8r8f34EP1XW4wEFsADJpCELvRR_GjjxCabT352qgTws0QWqVFw6BzLihlL2In-5U2GdLhrefR4XFY/s400/index.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/>
<w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
<w:Word11KerningPairs/>
<w:CachedColBalance/>
</w:Compatibility>
<w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><br />
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="267">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0in;
mso-para-margin-right:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0in;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I dreamed I saw my life as a sandy seashore.<br /><br />My first marks looked like two furrows in an unplanted field
as I crawled on all fours alongside the water of life.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br />My two small prints joined a chorus of impressions as I
trailed behind the walkings of family, then friends.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br />Then I met You . . . our footprints became four . . . and <i>my</i> journey . . . became <i>Yours</i>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The tracings and trampings of others were always before me,
behind me, and around me . . . but our way was two . . . and I could always
distinguish our prints from all of the others.<br /><br />I even learned the lesson from seeing a single pair of
deeply set indentations . . . sometimes you carried me.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br />But tonight I saw a confusion of scrapes and circles,
backwards and forwards. A disarray of digs, pivots, drags, and jumps. Sand
kicked and tossed, ‘round and ‘round, no progression, no progress, no advance,
no promotion.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br />“What happened, Lord? Did I lose my way? Did I lose my mind?
Did I fail or fall? What was this mayhem, this havoc, this seemingly pointless commotion?
What gave rise to this disorder and pandemonium in our journey together?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br />He laughed at me with that warm familiar ring of
soul-thrilling amusement, compassion, and adoration . . .</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br />“Child,” He said with a lingering, admonishing smile in his
voice, “that was when we danced!”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">
</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">(Based on a 1990 poem by Mark Littleton in <i>Escaping the Time Crunch</i>)</span></span></div>
John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-35530099098885498312015-02-03T12:04:00.002-08:002015-02-03T12:05:08.003-08:00A New Hobby can be Important for You<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVDvyX1WsyT18TDUI0FrlRv0xlmAw6Q6c3Nq5CcWqudkI1Ot7myB9XO2NRUaWBab3cI-lrdL7fAOlRUu9A-DSzZ_hp0Ehs7NCGcwJzODZFQw3KHmXvMQCbgDlHN9MpnOWIdTm-9lDN5f8/s1600/Hobbies.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVDvyX1WsyT18TDUI0FrlRv0xlmAw6Q6c3Nq5CcWqudkI1Ot7myB9XO2NRUaWBab3cI-lrdL7fAOlRUu9A-DSzZ_hp0Ehs7NCGcwJzODZFQw3KHmXvMQCbgDlHN9MpnOWIdTm-9lDN5f8/s1600/Hobbies.JPG" height="301" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Are you watching television more than two hours each day? </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Is your day filled with napping, nodding, and day dreaming? </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Is meal time the most enjoyable and anticipated time of your day?</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Are you mentally and intellectually lethargic and sluggish?</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Do the visitors that come into your world pose the only stimulation, excitement, aggravation, pleasure, or distraction to your day?</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">If you answered "Yes" to any of the above questions . . . you may need to find a life-saving hobby.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Hobbies are more than empty pastimes (things to pass the time).</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">They are more than vain or useless play.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">They are not always frivolous or petty. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Hobbies can be more than simply nonsensical piddlings or odd compulsions.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Hobbies can be exercise for your body, soul, spirit, heart, and mind.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">They can challenge you.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">They can wake you up and activate you.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">They can make you think, work, study, learn, hear, see, touch, feel, and do. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Hobbies can reward you. They can reintroduce you to achievement and accomplishment. They are something to start . . . and to finish.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">A good hobby can give you purpose . . . a great hobby can give your life new meaning. An extraordinary hobby can change the world around you.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Turn off the TV and go to <a href="http://discoverahobby.com/">http://discoverahobby.com/</a> today.</span>John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-20748429234206908942015-02-03T09:44:00.002-08:002015-02-14T09:56:44.040-08:0010 Steps to Break the Groundhog Day Loop<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivvdWEMX6FXa2ps3UmAcQNRGVTWeTiWFAMPR9WbEVOCUsUGQfyhBxOivgFT9HWFJxvaz6xi6_XL5-cuHhk-2WRCwae-PTyL0RN1fcBzTewRdAhuFGZSFxjoKPYbbSK8KG4RrQPzCUJxG0/s1600/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivvdWEMX6FXa2ps3UmAcQNRGVTWeTiWFAMPR9WbEVOCUsUGQfyhBxOivgFT9HWFJxvaz6xi6_XL5-cuHhk-2WRCwae-PTyL0RN1fcBzTewRdAhuFGZSFxjoKPYbbSK8KG4RrQPzCUJxG0/s1600/images.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br />Repeating the same boring life over and over again?<br /><br />Try these to get you moving.<br /><br />1. Go somewhere you've never gone before.<br />2. Do something you've never done before.<br />3. Make a new friend.<br />4. Learn something new.<br />5. Listen to a new station.<br />6. Buy a new hat.<br />7. Take a different route.<br />8. Eat something you've never tasted before.<br />9. Get a new do.<br />10. Put something in your pocket that no one knows you have.<br /><br />1. Go somewhere you've never gone.<br />It doesn't have to be to the moon . . . or Paris . . . or the Grand Canyon. Maybe just the next town over, a store, shop, or public spot where you've never been. The Library, the Mall, the Fountain, the Tower. Find that historical marker, the local venue in the city brochure, or that dingy flea market. Drive until you get lost, then find your way home.<br /><br />Expose yourself to new and different sights and sounds. Meet new people. Stir up your location.<br /><br />2. Do something you've never done before. <br />Nothing illegal! Maybe not even risky or dangerous. Maybe even something plain and mundane -- but something different. <br /><br />Break the monotony of your actions.<br /><br />3. Make a new friend.<br />Do you even remember how to do this? If this step seems daunting to you -- you really need it. Find someone going up, living up, looking up. Find someone who is bright, enthusiastic, and positive. Find a successful person - or someone on their way to success. Find someone with drive and determination. Find someone headed toward tomorrow, and follow them!<br /><br />Don't throw away any of your old friends --- but make at least one new one.<br /><br />4. Learn something new.<br />It doesn't have to be a new language! Maybe just a useless fact or vocabulary word. Find something that interests you and stirs your mind.<br /><br />Scare the heck out of your brain by dropping something new and unusual into it.<br /><br />5. Listen to a new station.<br />Listen to your Dad's music, or your Grand Dad's. Listen to your kid's music, or your Grand Kid's. Give talk radio a whirl, see what's on NPR. Find something ethnic. It can be quiet and soothing or jumping.<br /><br />Use the DIAL or the scan button -- don't just hit the presets.<br /><br />6. Buy a new hat.<br />Or new shoes. Or a bow tie. Or a purse, or a belt. A small piece of jewelry. You don't have to pierce your nose or get a tattoo! Just find a small adornment, a new pin for you lapel, or a pen for your shirt pocket. It doesn't have to be flashy or expensive. A new scarf or handkerchief.<br /><br />MAKE someone say, "There's something different about you! But I just can't place it."<br /><br />7. Take a different route.<br />Go to work or school a different way. Go home a different way. Take the long way, the scenic route. MAKE yourself look at your surroundings instead of driving in a daze to your next location. Go left instead of right.<br /><br />Is life really about the journey? Or just about arriving?<br /><br />8. Eat something you've never tasted before.<br />It doesn't have to be sushi or snails (both are delicious, BTW). Ditch that PB&J and have some macaroni! Trash those Raimen noodles and have corned beef or lox on a bagel. There are SO many flavors in the world! Spicy, Sweet, Sour, Salty! Eat a crawdad, or an alligator, fried instead of scrambled.<br /><br />How will you know if you like ANYTHING . . . if you don't try it first.<br /><br />9. Get a new do.<br />You don't have to shave your head (though it worked for Britney), or color your tresses green or blue. Grow a mustache -- or if you have one -- shave or wax it off! Flip it a different way, spike it, or pull it back. Wear it shorter-- or longer. Get a new style or curl ... or straighten it out.<br /><br />Hair is so doable ... do something new with it.<br /><br />10. Put something in your pocket that no one knows you have.<br />(Maybe something Preeeeecious). Something secret. Something that only you have or know about. Something odd or unusual. Something that no one will ever know.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Let me know how these work for you.</span><br />
<br />
<br />John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-39413630074639185132015-01-06T09:48:00.004-08:002015-01-06T09:51:16.916-08:00Coping with Grief and Loss<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAug6eg8nVvk3XJ3GZ-FqnELluHjQ8G4rXELtAGhhCQcMs-YSM-gNVMIENmPaq6zbsxE_IhDJrHldfUqeb0Pujpz3cvekibBX_X6IgZrJLuaTYm6kUiBdWTRsV_M3HBawF1HrSEETzGD4/s1600/grieving-man-350.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAug6eg8nVvk3XJ3GZ-FqnELluHjQ8G4rXELtAGhhCQcMs-YSM-gNVMIENmPaq6zbsxE_IhDJrHldfUqeb0Pujpz3cvekibBX_X6IgZrJLuaTYm6kUiBdWTRsV_M3HBawF1HrSEETzGD4/s1600/grieving-man-350.jpg" height="256" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Follow this link:</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.helpguide.org/articles/grief-loss/coping-with-grief-and-loss.htm" target="_blank">Coping with Grief and Loss</a></span></div>
John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-2327803163689922222014-10-17T11:59:00.003-07:002014-10-17T12:01:24.031-07:00What if this is as good as it gets?<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/9MiO-2Qnm8M" width="560"></iframe>
</div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Melvin is struggling.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">His whole life has been a struggle.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">He is obsessively compulsive.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I fall off into the pit of OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder - see this Mayo Clinic <a href="http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/ocd/basics/definition/con-20027827">article</a>) myself.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Though I choose to see it as CDO (those letters really <i>must </i>be in alphabetical order!)</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">In this scene from the motion picture <i>As Good as it Gets</i>, Melvin Udall has burst frantically into the office of his psychiatrist, has not found the answers that he was looking for, and has stormed out into the patient waiting area. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">He doesn't know these people, but he assumes that they are like him. He is probably right. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">He is still looking desperately for help, for relief, for normalcy.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">So, he addresses the waiting patients with an exasperated rhetorical question.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">"What if <i>this </i>is as good as it gets?"</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The most striking element of the whole scene . . . is when one of the patients responds . . . "Ohh."</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Did you hear that? Watch the clip again.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">If you have ever allowed yourself to believe that it's all downhill from here . . . my best days are over . . . nothing is left but the blues . . . then, "Ohh" just about sums up your life.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">This, however, is an uplifting movie. It does not have a classic happy ending, and at the conclusion of the film you know that there are still going to be many difficult days ahead for all of the characters.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">But, things are different. Melvin has changed. His good times have increased and he has experienced the kinds of relationships that anyone who knows him might have thought impossible.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Great things still await me in this life. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">And no, I will not allow myself to believe that my life is over until I am drawing my very last breath. And then . . . I expect my life to get better than it has ever been before.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I believe that there is something next.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">This is <i>not </i>as good as it gets. </span>John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-55839321436329955412014-10-03T21:39:00.004-07:002014-10-03T21:39:40.052-07:00Lifting the Lows in Your Life - Part 3<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Strange Fire</span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/4MTQ5wQA2RI" width="560"></iframe></div>
John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8656117027046927805.post-84828893735245204572014-10-03T21:37:00.002-07:002014-10-03T21:37:12.036-07:00Lifting the Lows in Your Life - Part 2<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Where is God?</span></div>
<div 560="" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/xlXLf82TX6Q" style="text-align: <iframe width=;">
</div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/xlXLf82TX6Q" width="560"></iframe></div>
John D. Bainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17661031023211164094noreply@blogger.com0