Category: Short Stories
Without Fear
“No man is without fear.”
He was handsome beyond imagination, more intelligent than any human alive, a leader of men, a captain of industry, successful in all pursuits and loved by all that knew him. Women swooned at the sight of him, men bowed low in his presence and children studied his greatness in school. Rulers of nations envied him. He lowered his head to no one on earth. Except for his mother and father. For they new he was afraid of the dark.
Deeds
“Our deeds determine who we are”
I know it’s hard not to believe that the world is ‘going to hell in a hand basket’ particularly with so much negativity going on right now. I’m talking about a government shutdown, political feuds over who might be right and who might be wrong when we all know that none of them have a clue. Then we are faced with tsunamis, earthquakes, and volcanoes that seem to be ripping the world apart.
But now that 2018 has joined her brothers and sisters in the annals of history, we find ourselves still kicking and breathing. Still scratching our heads and wondering what the heck is happening.
Friends, I hate to say it but such is the nature of this race known as mankind. Bad news makes us feel better than good news because it reminds us that someone else is worse off than we are. It’s up to us though to choose how we wish to live our lives.
We can plop our children down in front of the 72” plasma with surround sound and show them the chaos of the world in vivid 4K color or we can pack a lunch and head off to the park to play in the sunshine and talk face to face with other people. I for one prefer the later and choose to look for the good in mankind. I know that I can’t change the hearts of my fellow man but I can at least choose to not let my fellow man change my heart.
So let’s sit back and take a quick look at some people and countries that have decided enough was enough and chose to make the world a better place. In 2017, people like Bill and Melinda Gates, Michael and Suzanne Dell, Warren Buffet, Henry Hillman, Michael Bloomberg, Florence Irving and Charles Butt combined to donate over 10 Billion dollars to various charities.
In 2018, Columbia, South America added 5800 more square miles to its protected rainforest, bringing the total to 17,000 square miles. The Pakistani government pledged to plant over 10 billion trees to restore 50,000 acres of forest. Sweden opened the first electronic road which recharges your car battery while driving on it. In Detroit two 14 year old girls turned in a wallet with the cash still in it to authorities. It was returned to the disabled veteran that lost it in the snow. In London a bus driver, former a homeless man was given an award to recognize him for always smiling. China placed a ban on ivory and the demand (and subsequent poaching) decreased by nearly 50%.
Yes, there are tons of bad apples thrown into the barrel of life, but we can’t let their deeds govern us. We must let our own deed determine who we are.
Memories
“Memories are the glue that holds a family together”
I could probably sum up the whole damn thing with one sentence. We are the Brothertons and there was a passel of us for sure.
From Arlie and Sylvia’s commitment to each other, 15 of us pushed and shoved our way into the world and you either loved us or hated us. Sometimes you admired us and other times prayed for the day that we would have our “come to Jesus” moment.
Among my many other faults, I am the youngest boy of the clan. I suppose the older ones loved me enough…when they cared to think of me at all. Mostly, I was just a passing thought. “Oh him, that’s just my little brother, don’t pay any mind to him and he’ll go away. I grew up with a myriad of names…brat, punk, kid, baby…but legally I was named Jerry. Or, when my mother or father believed I was in the wrong…Jerry Wayne Brotherton, get your ass in here…NOW.
However things went, my little sister and I just never seemed to catch up to the rest of the family. You see, when we had just entered our most impressionable years, we were plucked up from the beloved town of Wakenda and plopped down in another story altogether. So we would sit around and listen to all the stories, jokes and folklore about the old town like it was a shrine or something. Hell the entire town was wiped off the face of the earth in a flood so we couldn’t even go back and try to recover what we had missed. Sometimes it feels like we just never quite belonged.
So take every opportunity with your friends and family to make as many memories as you can. After all, what glue holds a family together better than the memories they share?
Enjoy Life
“Enjoy Youth but Protect the Future”
This one goes out to all the younger readers. Many years ago, in the virginity of our marriage, Deb & I did not dwell on the absence of money or the scarcity of possessions. We had enough to get us through to the next paycheck and that was all we needed. Life was hard but wonderful and exciting. But now that we are, shall we say, on the elderly side of life it seems as if every penny spent has to be examined under a microscope to make sure we get the best bang.
Now I can tell you that like you the 21 year old us really didn’t give a rats behind about which bank had the best interest rate on their CD (no that’s not a music disc) and we could have cared less about 401K’s, compounded interest, or the difference between APR and APY.
But I have a message for all you young’uns’ that might be thinking the same way. I know that tax refund time is close at hand so before you run out and buy a new gun or the latest gaming system or get that 1500 dollar phone…pay attention…It’s never too early to start saving. So set a little aside.
Now mind you, I am no expert by any means. I’m just trying to knock some sense into your hormonally driven though process. I hope you will heed my advice.
Let me show you an example.
Let’s say, at the age of 25, you invested just 200 dollars a year into a 401K and assuming that you will get a 7% return…after 40 years (age 65) your 8000 dollars would be worth $41,434.Thats just $16.67 per month or $7.69 per pay period. Increase that amount to $2000 per year and you would end up with $414,261 for your $80000 investment. Not a bad nest egg to supplement Social Security. I know that the last thing on your mind is what’s going to happen to Social Security, but it is a looming question that you young people will have to get answers to. But that’s another post for a later date.
So with all the technology we have today, there are many ways to invest in your future. I could list them out here for you and profit from the links but then this advice would become more of an advertisement. And does anybody really need another click-bait. Besides, who am I to tell you how to use Google.
Enjoy your youth but protect your future. Start investing today and have a wonderful journey.
Jerry Brotherton 