"The dog is very smart. He feels sorry for me because I receive so much mail; that's why he tries to bite the mailman." ~ Albert Einstein

I can't remember in my management days ever implementing a floating schedule, however, I think over the past two months I have pretty much had one going on here. You know what I am talking about. It's the make-it-up-as-you-go schedule. It is Thursday, May 7, 2020, and I am at it again. That is, I'm sitting at the keyboard trying to think up some tunes to play for everyone. (Typing keyboard only, the tunes is a metaphor for stories.) I think there's a rule if you have to explain what you are saying then maybe you shouldn't say it. As you well know I have never allowed that one to impede my progress. I'm still trying to think about any similar scary times when I was growing up. Outside of personal tragedies and a few hurricane threats I really can't come up with anything like what we are dealing with. Polio was a huge threat when I was young. I do remember when we all went to be vaccinated. I can remember a few times when the power was out for an extended period and a few times when everything was frozen up. But, nothing like this Covid-19. I know we are in the at-risk age group but to be honest I am actually more concerned for our children and their offspring in dealing with the longterm issues that will impact things like the economy for years to come. Still can't come up with anything close to being comparable so I guess the word unprecedented may not be that far off the mark.

Speaking of dealing with adversity, I have written many articles on the subject over the years. Back in May of 2007, I wrote a fairly long piece dealing with the subject. Here is a brief excerpt: ~ Facing the Vicissitudes of Life! Hang in there. You’ll get through this. Keep on keeping on. We are pulling for you. We’re here for you. These are some of the slogans we use to encourage one another as we deal with the ups and downs faced in life. Perhaps you’ve had mostly placid pools of peace and tranquility, but for the rest of us, life can and often does confront us with challenges and storms. As we deal with these and observe others going through really tough situations, it is nothing short of inspiring to observe the strength found within the human psyche. God did a good job when He created the human family because that ‘something’ that tends to come forth when circumstances demand it, is remarkable to behold. Often I hear people who lean on God during times of great challenge say out loud: "I just don’t know how others who do not know God make it during this kind of trouble." They make it because God made us with inner strength and a tenacious will. It certainly is not His will that we go it alone or face trials by ourselves, but my way of seeing it says that even when people do it alone it’s only because of what He provided in them, and the evidence of their strength demonstrates, without acknowledging Him, His creative genius at work. ~

My point? Stuff happening is a part of our human existence. It works that way. We are fallen creatures living in a fallen world. Charles Dickens wrote this little jewel: "Accidents will occur in the best regulated families." It's a mess we human beings have made of things. Mark Twain quipped, "God created war so Americans could learn geography." Think about the times we are living in. They are unprecedented to us personally but history shows how stuff goes on and on. George Bernard Shaw said, "A government that robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul." That's not just true during these days of crisis, it is an institutionalized political reality for all times. Some like to think we do not live in a corrupt world. Ronald Reagan explained, "Politics is not a bad profession. If you succeed there are many rewards, if you disgrace yourself you can always write a book." We've seen this one time and time again. Terrible leader but best selling author. We all have things we would just as soon they never become known. That's the world we live in. I'll leave you with another founder who was famous for his quotes, Benjamin Franklin, "Three may keep a secret, if two of them are dead." I started out by saying I had a point. I'm not sure I do. Maybe it will come to me by the next time we get together. Until then, may God bless each one. Amen. ....More later.