Goodlife Mississippi: This first novel by Mississippi native, Eileen Saint Lauren, is the story of Mary Myra Boone, a youngster who endures a lot of misfortune, carries an incredible amount of guilt, and has a lot of faith. And while the author has some pretty impressive credentials, and is identified as an award-winning photo journalist, the novel is a bit difficult to follow for a Northerner who has to struggle through the English expressions and language of the poverty-stricken South of the 1960s.
More a series of short stories than an easy transition from chapter to chapter, Goodlife, Mississippi describes everything from the love and faith of family to Sunday School teachers, the Lord’s Day and Hallelujah’s at camp meetings.
The descriptions are terrific if a bit overdone…..”the sun illuminating an oval window of broken purple glass…..the sunlight infuse its gold amid the purple’s brokenness until soft sparkles of yellow broke into vein-like colorful streams leaving the church window glowing from a brown to a gray rose…” before going into a spider, a palm leaf and an olive branch engraving hugging a set of stairs that led off to a dark corner. To me, far too much information before launching into the grief at a funeral and the church that reminded Mary Myra of the Bible stories his momma used to read.
If it’s meant to show the faith of the leading character and the author, it reaches its mark. If it’s meant to show the customs of the deep South more than half a century ago, it probably does that as well.
But it seems more like a book teaching inspiration, the need for the Bible, revelation and redemption than a good old-fashioned story about growing up in in the mixed racial poor neighborhoods of Mississippi mud of the 1960s.
It’s been a wonderful Christmas in spite of not all of us being able to get together, power going out, heat failing, and long road trips to make some wonderful things all happen. But in the end, so many of us were together, so much love was spread around, so many cousins got to spend time together in person or on ZOOM, and this Granny could not be more proud, more happy, or more thankful for a family that truly spells love.
Of course where the girls all get together, there are smiles and hugs. We span four generations, 86 years! There are four more too far away.
and when Granny can get together with most of the men in her life, it’s magic! There are three more spread too far to be home!
The very youngest of the great grands was Aria, who arrived two months before Christmas for Jason, Melissa, James, my oldest great grand, and Cadence…the Smiths
FREEHOLD – An investigation has been launched into a bank robbery from earlier this morning in Middletown, Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond S. Santiago announced today.
This morning, December 28, at approximately 10:40 a.m., the Middletown Township Police responded to a report of a bank robbery at the Valley National Bank on Rt. 35 in the Kohl’s Plaza.
The investigation revealed the suspect to be a white male, possibly Hispanic, wearing a dark North Face winter coat, blue face mask and a light colored winter hat. The suspect may be operating a silver vehicle, possibly a Honda Accord. Details on a license plate are not available at this time.
The investigation is being handled in conjunction with the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, the Middletown Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigations’ Red Bank Office.
Anyone with information regarding this robbery is urged to contact Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office Detective Nicolas Logothetis at 800-533-7443 or Middletown Police Detective Keith Hirschbein at (732) 615-2120.
MIDDLETOWN – Mayor Tony Perry and Committeeman Rick Hibell are expected to be selected to serve as mayor and deputy mayor once again when the Township Committee reorganizes at noon on Sunday Jan. 1. Reorganization will be held in the courtroom at Town Hall, 1 Kings Highway.
Both Hibell and and Kevin Settembrino, both incumbents elected to serve on the committee another three years, will take their Oaths of Office at the beginning of the meeting, followed by the governing body electing the 2023 mayor and deputy mayor, under the Township’s form of government for one year terms.
If elected as mayor as expected, this will be Perry’s fifth consecutive year as mayor — the longest serving mayor in more than half a century and Hibell’s third consecutive year as deputy mayor.
The Fire Department and Emergency Medical Services officers will also be sworn in at this meeting. Additionally, volunteers appointed to various township boards, committees, and commissions will be announced. Each group focuses on different aspects of the community and works to enhance Middletown’s quality of life. Residents are appointed to these positions by the Township Committee.
The meeting will be held in person, but interested persons can also watch it virtually by clicking the event link.
To call in to the meeting, dial 1-408-418-9388. The event access code is 2333 354 7358 followed by #. Enter 2023 if a passcode is required. Prior to the meeting, the event link will be published on the Township’s Facebook page.
A recording of the meeting will be aired on the Township’s TV channel (Verizon FiOS Channel 26/Comcast Cable Channel 20) and YouTube channel.
For more information regarding the meeting call the Township Clerk’s Office at (732) 615-2014
In the New Year, I will be starting yet another column in VeniVidiScripto.com. It is time to recognize the Congressional Medal of Honor recipients this nation has honored, and time to learn more about them. Starting with the 70 from New Jersey. In every war from the Civil War to Iraq.
I don’t know why this is so important to me to get underway in 2023.
Maybe the idea came to me when I was so destroyed when Atlantic Highlands failed to follow the Presidential and Congressional regulation to lower the flag on municipal buildings to half staff from sunrise to sunset on Dec. 7, Pearl Harbor Day.
Maybe it was when the Atlantic Highlands councilman first told me Atlantic Highlands “did it right,” by having the flag flowered only from around noon on, to mark the time the Japanese launched that horrific attack.
Or maybe it was when the same Councilman, my councilman in the town where I live, urged me to ask him how many towns he was in in Pennsylvania that day that had their flags lowered. He wanted me to ask because he wanted to tell me he did not see one with lowered flags, in spite of his being both in Bethlehem, Pa. and western Pennsylvania during the day.
I did not ask, because I did not care, I tried to tell him. I can’t take on the entire nation at one time, or even towns in the neighboring state, if I cannot get a councilman in my own town to care enough to explain to me why my town did not follow the national regulation.
Maybe I thought I had to do something when the rest of the Council sat mum while this exchange was going on. Not one of them questioned whether this was true that plans were specifically made to ignore the Presidential directive and instead only lower the flag for half the day.
Not one of them asked whether it was just an honest oversight, a mistake that was rectified when alerted. Nor did they ask who made the decision, if the councilman was correct, to disregard the national directive. They did not even offer whether they had taken a vote to specifically keep the flag raised in spite of the regulation. Nor did they say why they did not think the attack on Pearl Harbor was important enough to lower the flag for the entire day.
They simply listened to the Councilman ask me about Pennsylvania towns.They did not say a word.
It could have been any of these things. Or it could have been because the Atlantic Highlands school never bothered to lower its flag at all. That’s the school where our children are being introduced to American history. Yet their flag, in spite of a Presidential proclamation, remained at full staff the entire day.
That also apparently did not bother the borough fathers. They still did not say or do anything about it, even though the school is supported by the borough’s tax paying residents. Some of them even military, active, disabled or retired.
Or it could have been something else.
It could have been the fact not one Middletown official, other than the Chief of Police, bothered to stop at Thorne School to join the National President of Gold Star Mothers… a Gold Star Mother……as she participated in Wreaths of American ceremonies honoring Middletown’s own Medal of Honor recipient.
Not one member of the County Commissions was there either. I can only hope they at least attended a similar wreath laying ceremony in Shrewsbury where Wreaths Across America also stopped with their caravan carrying 70,000 American flags to Arlington National Cemetery where so many more heroes are interred.
It could have been all these things.
But rather, I think it was the inspiration I got, the pride I felt, the gratitude I have, for the principal and social studies teacher at Thorne School who scheduled, planned and participated in that very moving ceremony at the school named for a nationally recognized hero.
They are the ones that made me realize, even with my pride and love for my country, I can still learn more about the heroes who are cited for keeping it that way, they, along with the tens of thousands of others who may have died on the battlefield, came home injured and changed for life, or simply served because they had to, but did their jobs admirably and safely.
So my new column will start, my very small contribution towards bringing some patriotism back to the United States. Hopefully, some of my fellow citizens will learn something about the Medal of Honor, and who is selected to receive it. And why. Hopefully some of my readers in the more than 150 countries who read by blog will see the pride of American people for those who have protected our country and in many cases, given their lives to do so. My column will tell more of the story about the Medal of Honor itself, when it started and how. It will tell the stories of the 70 fighting men, from every war since the Civil War as well as in peacetime, who signed on for the job of protecting the nation from New Jersey, and were awarded its highest honor.
Hopefully it will let people know more about the soldier buried at Bayview cemetery, though where is unknown, the one who was a lighthouse keeper at the Twin Lights who along with 51 other men, received the award because of their role at Cienfuegos in Cuba during the Spanish American War.
The column will talk about Bud Thorne from Middletown, Pvt. Fallon from Freehold, two more MOH recipients from Hillside in Union County, another from Elizabeth or Patterson or Jersey City or Newark…the list goes on.
We do not seem to be teaching American history in our schools. We do not seem to be proud of our military members. We do not seem to appreciate it is the politicians who sit behind their desks and plan the strategies and reasons for war.
But it’s our American men and women who join those forces our nations commands who carry the burden on their backs.
The least we can do is know a little bit more about them. Maybe that will give us some reasons to show more pride in a nation that still stands head and shoulders above any other for freedom, personal rights and even more than life and liberty, the pursuit of happiness.
Oh, this indeed was going to be a wonderful evening for Jimmy Mouse. His friends Jimmy, Patrick and Bobby were all coming over. They were large Mouse families, and each of the boys’ parents had taken all the little mice out to borough hall to be there for the Christmas tree lighting. All the older boys loved to play around the Lighthouse and all lived close enough they could meet there every day.
For the parents and little ones going to Borough Hall, they all knew they had to hide in the corner and be very quiet. There were lots of ladies who weren’t very fond of them. The mother Mice were always sad about that. They figured if they just took the time to know the little ones, they might like them. Sure, they all had nibbled on any food left out on the table, and yes, they did tickle feet when they ran over them. But they were kind and nice, and just liked having a little fun. So tonight, just because all the parent Mice wanted their little ones to enjoy the magic of Christmas and the beauty of all the lights, so they were going to be extra careful so as not to be seen.
Not so Jimmy. He had put out the word to all his friends he was going to be alone in the family nest in the corner of his house tonight. Jimmy lived in a big cozy home in the woods close to the Twin Lights and he and his friends had a great secret they had been keeping for a long time. Tonight seemed the perfect night to carry out their plan, what with the parent Mice being down in Highlands. So Jimmy had told his mom that no, he didn’t want to see any lights. He just wanted to stay at home and play by himself, maybe read his newest comic book, “The Big Cheese.”
The truth of the matter was, Jimmy really did want to see Christmas lights. But he also knew he, Bobby, Patrick and Jimmy had all plotted that the very first chance they could get, they would climb all the steps to the top of one of the Towers of the Twin Lights and have a look around. They kept telling themselves they were big mice now. Their parents had all warned them, “You better never climb either of the towers until your fathers take you up there on a bright sunny day. We don’t ever want to take the chance you will slide through one of the sides and go crashing down to the floor. Nor do we want you hanging out around one of the windows on your way up.” All the parents had warned their little boys that the towers were no place for them to play.
Surely they were always happy running through the tall grass, or hiding under the steps into the Museum. Or even jumping from display case to display case in one of the big halls inside. There were all sorts of things they did, of course, only when the museum was closed, the lights out, and no one was around. All the Mice knew if they were ever seen, why, oh, they couldn’t think about it. They just knew if they were caught, something terrible would happen. The little boy Mice did not want that, of course. They all lived close to the Twin Lights, and loved going up there to play.
The little Mice enjoyed their days playing outside and their nights exploring all the magic and wonder inside the museum. The boys were all close friends, and never a day went by that they didn’t get together to tell each other something else they had learned, something else wonderful they had seen. Bobby loved being in the room where all the Highlands people were pictured on the walls; Patrick liked seeing all the sail boats and lifesaving equipment, the two Jimmys especially liked all the post card pictures that made up a beautiful display of the Twin Lights and the story about the hero lighthouse keeper from the Spanish American War.
But tonight was tonight and it was special! So the boys finished their tour around, then scampered inside to see if they could go any higher. They knew they could, but knew there was another door they had to squeeze under, and quite frankly, they did not know what they would see up there. But they wanted to go on and try.
Once at the top, faced with that door and not knowing what they would find, the Mice were getting frightened. “Maybe we should have just gone with our parents to see the tree in town,” one of them murmured. “Yeah,” said another, “this is fun and I’m glad we’re doing it, but we’re missing the lights on the Highlands tree.” “Maybe we should have saved this for another time,” the third one grumbled.
Well, we’re here and let’s make the most of it, the boys finally decided! So they got together and helped each other squeeze under that last door. And once inside the very top of the tower, each of the four of them simply gasped in surprise. They couldn’t speak for a second, so taken by the wonder of what they could see.
But here it was, in all its glory. The boys couldn’t believe their eyes! There, right in front of them! Well, of course they had to look up but they quickly scampered to the ledge so they could get a better look. There, to their surprise, was the most beautiful Christmas tree they had ever seen. There, right smack in the middle of the very top of the South Tower of the Twin Lights they loved so much, was a beautiful lighted Christmas tree, with colors of red and green and gold and more, all as bright as, well, they thought, as bright as a lighthouse should be!
Each of the four sat in awe, and for the first time ever, no one spoke. Each secretly made a silent wish, blinked twice to be sure they were seeing what they thought they were seeing, then pledging friendship forever, turned and scampered back down the stairs, out the door, into the woods, and back in their own homes, safe and snug before their parents came home.
Each of the boys was in his own bed when his parents came home. But as each mom and dad kissed their sleeping sons and wished them a Happy Christmas, each smiled the smile only a parent knows. Just like the grandparent people knew when their sons and daughters jumped off the old bridge over the Shrewsbury as their rite of passage, the Mice people knew their bigger children had made the climb to the top of the tower for their own rite of passage. And those who did it when the Christmas Tree was in the South Tower had the best time of all.
MIDDLETOWN – A truck driver mis-estimating the precise distance between the height of his vehicle and the depth of the roof overhead covering the entrance to Care One at King James Care Center has caused some inconvenience expected to be corrected soon.
Care Center Administrator Jimmie King confirmed that the incident is causing an inconvenience to visitors to the Care Center in that they have to walk further to gain access. However, the repair, to ensure it is done correctly, includes structural engineers, the township building department, more than one construction company, even sprinkler companies and several other specialists and consultants to meet all the advance approvals and certifications necessary to ensure safety.
All of those approvals are anticipated to be in place this week, he said, and construction to complete the re-installation of the protective roofing will begin shortly after Christmas.
In the meantime, King said, visitors to the Care Center unable to walk the additional distance, approximately 100 feet or so, from the parking lot to the main dining room entrance on the west side of the building are invited to call the front desk at 732-291-3400 when they arrive for their visitation. Nursing home staff will come out with a wheelchair to accommodate the visitors and will return them to their vehicles at the end of the visit.
“We regret the inconvenience this has caused everyone,” King said, “and we are so appreciative of all the understanding our visitors have shown and their willingness to look at this as ‘a minor inconvenience’ that will not keep them from visiting their loved ones.”
The administrator said he has always known how wonderful his residents are, and recognizes their visitors are as well.
Although there is an office door closer to the parking area in front of the Care Center, King pointed out that cannot be used as a substitute during the repair, since that door directly affects patient care centers, and Covid and other health and safety processes must be observed. Opening that door also releases outside winter air into both the hair salon and the therapy departments. “As always,” King said, “our residents’ comfort and well-being are of the utmost importance to each of us here.”
Jake Rue, wearing a Jersey Blue Third Regiment Revolutionary War uniform
After two solid days of rain, the sun shined brightly on Dec. 17 on the army of volunteers out to participate in the annual Wreaths Across America (WAA) wreath laying at the Presbyterian Church in Shrewsbury.
This is part of the national journey of this event which concludes at Arlington National Cemetery to mark National Wreath Across America Day.
Wreaths Across America is the national non-profit organization whose mission is to Remember, Honor and Teach, carried out in part with the placement of over 2,500,000 veterans’ wreaths at locations across America, at sea and abroad. Each of these wreaths are handmade by volunteers in Maine before journeying in a massive caravan of 18-wheel trucks to sites along the way to Arlington.
This year, as before, the historic Presbyterian Church at Shrewsbury welcomed a crowd over 200 families and individuals to be a part of this reverential ceremony.
The ceremony began with a procession and the presentation of the colors by the Boys Scouts. Next Rev. Katja Gruening, Pastor of the Presbyterian Church at Shrewsbury gave a beautiful benediction. Color guard members of the Sons of the Revolution in period attire explained the meaning of the day and reminded every one of the great sacrifices made by, not only the fallen war dead, but all who have served our country. Jake Rue of the multi-generational Rue family shared that is uncle, Pvt. Robert Campbell, the son of Bruce and Margaret Rue Campbell was one of the veterans being honored at the ceremony. Pvt. Campbell was killed in action in Anzio, Italy on May 23, 1944.
Mr. Rue instructed the volunteers that each person laying a wreath should speak the name and thank the soldier and their families for their great contribution in preserving the freedoms enjoyed in this nation. “By speaking their names, we are re-affirming the important service each has played.”
Finally, the dedicated attendees began the noble work of honoring the fallen war dead by placing the wreaths on each headstone.
If you would like to sponsor a wreath for the 2023 escort or learn more about WAA, visit wreathsacrossamerica.org. Each $15 sponsorship goes toward a fresh balsam veteran’s wreath that will be placed on the headstone of an American hero.
The ceremonies at Thorne Middle School last week hosting the caravan of volunteers heading from Maine to Arlington National Cemetery was a refreshing and stimulating contrast to the Atlantic Highlands Elementary School’s complete disdain for any outward appearance of recognizing Pearl Harbor Day the week before.
The numbers of people of all ages waving flags, cheering on people from all over the country on their way to place wreaths on the graves of military men and women at the nation’s cemetery was far more refreshing than an Atlantic Highlands councilman saying the borough “did the right thing” by not lowering the flag for the entire day, in spite of the President’ s proclamation to do so under law.
The inspirational principal at Thorne, and a social science educator who has made World War II study, especially at a battle in which one of its own lost his life, a vital part of the Thorne School curriculum, were more American, patriotic and memorable, to say nothing of being educational for students, than an Atlantic Highlands council who sat quietly without issuing a single word about the school a block or south west of it that did not make any outward sign of even remembering Pearl Harbor, let alone teaching it in the classroom.
But Middletown government leadership fell by the side of the road as well. As did Monmouth County. Where were they when the Wreaths Across America caravan was present at Thorne School paying homage to Middletown’s veterans?
There were no members of the County Commission present, though two were at the ribbon cutting for a dog park in Atlantic Highlands that same day.
There was no one from the governing body there , although the Chief of Police was in attendance and coordinated with his department all the necessary traffic safety issues to enable the caravan to honor the local military.
Too many times, too many people, are dropping the little nuances, the simple ceremonies, the presence and appreciation of times, places and events that keep it uppermost in our minds that this nation did not get to be the great place it is to live, does not offer the freedoms and opportunities that surround us without the blood, sweat, tears and often times lives, or those young and brave men and women who remember the history of the nation and what it has taken to remain as great as it is.
What will happen to a nation whose next generation s not being taught, or shown, the importance of remembering the past?
A belief or behavior passed down within a group or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past.
Traditions can persist and evolve for thousands of years—the word tradition itself derives from the Latin tradere meaning to transmit.
The song “White Christmas” is a tradition. Written in 1942 by Irving Berlin, it is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the best-selling single of all time.
Shelden Harnick wrote the lyrics sung by Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof, the story of a Jewish family in Imperial Russia that believed in tradition:
And who has the right, as master of the house,
To have the final word at home?
The Papa, the Papa! Tradition.
Who must raise the family and run the home,
So Papa’s free to read the holy book?
The Mama, the Mama! Tradition!
Traditions are important, they’re memorable, they make a celebration important, they pass on values. They teach love and respect and honor and special home-made traditions that keep it all alive.
Two Families
I learned of two families with a very special tradition that started when the children were very young, some not yet even born. It is a tradition these families have kept alive for more than two decades. Now they have passed on to the spouses and friends of their family as well as the next generation.
It’s a tradition that started at NWS Earle, the Naval installation that sprawls across five different towns in Monmouth County. Earle has seen Marines and Sailors, officers and enlisted, spend time here, either as visitors on ships loading or unloading the powers of war as well as those stationed here, their families living in their own community in base housing.
It was a tradition for the civilian arm of the Navy personnel to have festive Christmas celebrations each year, celebrations that included the children dropping letters to Santa Claus in special mailboxes on base, sure they would get a response from the jolly bearded gentleman.
And they did.
Every year.
Families came and families went.
Navy & Marines
One time in particular, there were two families who were stationed there at the same time, one a Marine family, one a Navy family. Both loved the traditions of Christmas and loved the ones celebrated at Earle. They loved them so much, in fact, that when they both moved on to accept other orders and continue to defend and protect the nation, they decided they never wanted the tradition of Santa letters to die.
For the next many years, children in both families, or their parents, continued annual letters to Santa regardless of where their military members were stationed. Santa loved the letters, loved keeping up with the families’ growth, learning more about the different bases where they were stationed, the heart breaks and happiness that life in the military brought, the joys of family. And always the tradition.
Expanded Tradition
At least one of the families has expanded on that tradition of writing to Santa and receiving his response. They saved the letters. And over the years, they have started another tradition. On Christmas Eve, the family gathers around the tree or the Manger scene, pulls out that year’s letters as well as some from previous years, and re-reads all that Santa has written. The youngsters of yesteryear laugh and remember the past, they wonder where Santa is and how he still knows where they live and what they are up to. They don’t really care, though. They just love the tradition.
Tradition. It brings families together. Helps people laugh over sad times, reminds them of things of the past, hopes for the future. Provides a stability, a family that stays together and passes on its own values.
“The traditional ways and rituals of all of Earth’s peoples are kept in containers of poetry, song, and story. It is how we know who we are, where we are coming from and who we are becoming.”
A love for tradition has never weakened a nation, indeed it has strengthened nations in their hour of peril.
Sir Winston Churchill
Is this the year your family should start its own new Christmas tradition?
