SAVE THE DATE

The Continental Army was officially formed on June 14, 1775, so June 14, 2025, the Army will be 250 years. That's a milestone worth marking and reflecting on. And apparently, plans are churning to do just that. Word is there will be a parade--the Army's birthday parade--through the center of Washington D.C.

I wish I could remember where I read the details so I could give proper credit, but the notes I made are missing the source. According to the report the parade will include:

28 M1A1 Abrams tanks (at 70 tons each, the heaviest in service)
28 Stryker armored personnel carriers
more than 100 other vehicles
a World War II-era B-25 bomber
6,700 soldiers
50 helicopters
34 horses
two mules; and
a dog.

I love a parade! In fact, it may be the pomp of a parade that first motivated me to want to be a drummer. As a kid I remember standing along the curb looking up Boston Avenue in downtown Tulsa in anxious excitement for the first of the parade to come into sight. But, before seeing that first car carrying the the grand marshall, before you could smell the horses, before any of that you could hear the cadence of the distant drums.

I've been to and marched in many many parades: Christmas parades, Rooster Day parades, Independence day parades, and one presidential inagural parade in D.C. for the infamous Nixon, which, by the way, will be the same parade route as the Army/Trump Birthday parade.

Oh I know, his name won't be on the cake so to speak but I'm sure that since by coindence he shares a birthday with the Army, he will feel celebrated too.

It should be a fine parade. Estimates are the cost will be in the $25 million to $45 million range. "But it could be higher because the Army has promised to fix any city streets that the parade damages, plus the cost of cleanup and police are not yet part of the estimate." I wonder: has DOGE heard about this?

Speaking of memorable points along the Army timeline, remember when Elvis, "King of Rock n Roll", served from 1958-1960? Let's take a look. From Wikipedia: "Before entering the Army, Presley had caused national outrage with his rock and roll music. Many parents, religious leaders, and teachers' groups welcomed his draft into the military. Despite being offered the chance to enlist in Special Services to entertain the troops and live in priority housing, Presley was persuaded by his manager, Colonel Tom Parker, to serve as a regular soldier. This earned him the respect of many of his fellow soldiers and people back in the United States who previously viewed him in a negative light."

Speaking of birthdays: depending on your view of the state of Elvis's aliveness, on January 8, 2026, Elvis will be or would have been 90 years old! How cool would it be to have a parade to commemorate? I'm open to brainstorming what it might look like: lots of Cadillacs, maybe a flyover of an old plane dropping Elvis impersonators out over the parade route, floating under bright parachutes. Maybe everyone could wear blue suede shoes. Floats could include a "Heartbreak Hotel" and another with a jail cell and a choir of recent pardonees singing "Jailhouse Rock". And of course there will be one "Hound Dog".

Although I'm not an Elvis fan, I respect his significant musical legacy and contribution. I do, however, remember his birthday every year. Coincidentally, old Pops here too was born on a January 8th, several years after the birth of Elvis. I know it's not a unique idea, but maybe I could go along for the ride as sort of a birthday 2-fer.

Speaking of psuedo-kings: There's another series of events planned for June 14, 2025. I don't know who's doing the planning but they've come up with a thought-provoking idea.

Maybe Elvis and I don't need the conspicuous consumption of a parade afterall. Remember that one Elvis song? The one with the bridge that said:

People, don't you understand
A child needs a helping hand
Or he'll grow to be an angry young man someday
Take a look at you and me
Are we too blind to see
Do we simply turn our heads
And look the other way?

-- In The Ghetto

Or, here's an idea: maybe we delay gratification for a little more than a year to, oh, let's say, July 4, 2026, and go all out for a party celebrating our Nation's 250th Birthday! We could save the $25 plus million until then and make it the the greatest, most huge party in the history of the world. I realize that steals the sparkle for those who have a June 14 birthday, but maybe if we need add-ons we could do a quick shout out to a few others with July 4 birthdays like: Calvin Coolidge, president #30. He was a conservative, limited government kind of guy. And Bill Withers who wrote songs we love and need like "Lean On Me"; or Nathaniel Hawthorne, who wrote "The Scarlet Letter", a book about sin and shame and repentance and judgement and imposing our morality on others.

July 4th just makes sense. A good party needs fireworks and July 4th is the pinnacle. And, according to the Oklahoma Fireworks Act, codified in Title 68, Section 1621-1635 of the Oklahoma Statutes the law that establishes the legal framework for the sale, possession, and use of fireworks across the state. Consumer fireworks can only be sold and used from June 15 to July 6 and from December 15 to January 2. So, to light a fuse on June 14th for a joint Army/Trump birthday bash would be illegal here in the Sooner state.

July 4th also would be perfect because Hobby Lobby already has all the trappings of a good celebration lining the shelves. Where in the H. E. Double Hockey Sticks are you going to find plates, napkins, banners, gnomes, flags, swizzle sticks, tablecloths, lights, hats, visors, flip-flops and a CD of saxophonist Kenny G playing "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" and "Onward Christian Soldiers" for a June 14 extravaganza?!

Oh well, enough of all that. It's not my call to make. It's his party--he can strut if he wants to--strut if he wants to; you would strut too if it happened to you; ta da dat dat dat.

IN THE MOMENT

"Sometimes we don’t recognize a narrative when we’re living it." That's not a quote from a famous speech or a book or movie. I read it in the comments of a sports blog. That doesn't make it less thought provoking though. Does it?

You know the analogy about future/past perspective: "You can either look through the windshield or you can look in the rearview mirror."

There's at least one other option (we'll get to that in few more paragraphs), but first let's step out of our car and pretend we are watching it from the outside as it goes through life. Try this: imagine you're in one of those Little Tikes cars going through Kindergarten. Looking through the windshield at your future is myopic at best. We can barely see past recess and naptime to gathering our jacket and lunchbox to head home for the day. This little car doesn't even have a rearview mirror which is fine. There's just not much "past" back there to view anyway.

How about the cool car of our adolescence? Again, there's not much in that rearview--little experience to inform the decisions about the road ahead. We’re probably more enthralled with what’s happening in the car rather than what’s ahead. Hopefully we see the next curve coming,

It seems like this is where we can fall prey to the third option in our windshield/rearview mirror metaphor. This is the one where we are looking at the windshield but not through it to the path ahead. We are in the moment and the moment only. Next time you're in the car try it. Just look at the windshield. Focus on some bug guts if that helps. Don't try it long because it can be disorienting. It's like time is marching on, the miles are passing but we're neither forward-focused or looking back to inform the future.

Ever have one of those moments when you're driving, your mind drifts, all of a sudden you realize you've driven several miles but you can't remember the details?

Don't get me wrong; I'm not disparaging living in the moment. I'm a big fan of daydreaming and peaceful reverie. Maybe though, I need to replace the blank stare at the bird poop on the windshield with an occasional look out of the side windows, taking in the moment, making the most of the trip.

All this introspection about introspection turned to some recent soul searching for me. It all started when watching a documentary called "The Jesus Music". It dawned on me just how formative that era and that music was. Jesus Music was at the heart of what Time magazine called "The Jesus Movement". This thing that started in southern California, and as it spread across the country and my psyche, became part of me and I became part of it in a small way; maybe a few small ways.

The whole hippie movement had an appeal. I was fascinated by the whole "antiestablishmentarianism" of it all. (Ever since I learned that word and discovered it was one of the longest of our language I've been trying to find a way to use it in a sentence. Check that off the bucket list.) This movement gave me a way to be a little transgressive but still compliant with my upbringing.

Not only did I quickly adopt this new genre of music, setting "christian" messages as lyrics to the rhythms, melodies and chord structures and instrumentation of folk/rock music of the 60s and 70s, but I got the opportunity to join some fine musicians as the drummer in a Jesus Music band called "Light". It was largly bank-rolled by a man named John Frank who was the founder of Frankoma pottery. He had a heart for ministries to kids.

We played in coffeehouses, which were springing up in empty downtown buildings all over (places for young "Jesus Freaks" to hang out), and at "Jesus Festivals" (outdoor mini Woodstock type gatherings). We didn't play in churches. At that time, drums and electric guitars were the devil's instruments.

a concert poster i saved from back in the day. according to the u.s. inflation calculator $2.00 in 1972 would be about $15.30 today. Still a pretty cheap date.

People like evangelist Jimmy Swaggart had a few things to say about the music:

"Swaggart, was conducting one of his mass revival crusades in New Haven, Connecticut. Before the cameras and the glare of stage lights he paced back and forth, waving his arms like he was fending off a swarm of bees. He raised his Bible high above his head. He shouted at his audience about the moral degeneracy that dragged reprobates through the gates of hell. He took aim at ‘the devil’s music’: rock and roll. How had Christians made peace with this vile, hideous music, he asked with urgency in his voice: ‘You cannot proclaim the message of the anointed WITH THE MUSIC OF THE DEVIL!’ shouted Swaggart. —https://www.historytoday.com/miscellanies/god-gave-rock-and-roll-you

One of the earliest pioneers of Jesus Music, Larry Norman, had a hard-driving song to counter Swaggart's point:

I want the people to know that he saved my soul
But I still like to listen to the radio
They say rock 'n' roll is wrong,
We'll give you one more chance
I say I feel so good I gotta get up and dance

I know what's right,
I know what's wrong,
I don't confuse it
All I'm really trying to say
Is why should the devil have all the good music?
I feel good every day
'Cause Jesus is the rock and he rolled my blues away!

larry norman from his album “only visiting this planet”

Apparently a real rocker, with shoulder length hair, swatting the hornet's nest so to speak, didn't do much to smooth the gap between this new movement and the established church. It took Billy Graham himself to calm the panic of church leaders and help them see that there can be other songs along with "How Great Thou Art" and "Just As I Am" to move people.

By 1969, Graham had launched a series of youth nights during his crusades, which attracted young Jesus Freaks with a laidback coffeehouse vibe, and folk singers. By 1994, huge acts such as DC Talk and Michael W. Smith headlined a series of revamped Billy Graham crusade youth nights. Teenagers could belt out Smith’s “Place in This World” and headbang to DC Talk’s “Jesus Freak” before hearing a “grandfatherly” Graham deliver a short gospel sermon. Graham’s reaction after the first such concert, held in Cleveland: “Personally, I didn’t understand a word of those songs [as they were being sung]. But I had all the lyrics written down, and they were straight Bible; great lyrics.” —https://www.christianitytoday.com/2024/04/songs-love-sing-billy-graham-edith-blumhofer-crusades/

Shortly after that, I toured with a youth group, playing drums in a musical, performed in a number of churches. Teens and young adults gave great reviews. More than a few old deacons gathered on the church steps afterward to have a cigarette and wonder out loud what fresh hell they had just witnessed, no doubt prophesying the end of the world as they knew it.

As Jesus Music was taking root I began working with youth in local churches. I always made it a priority to try to expose as many of them as possible to a wide spectrum of music and musicians, not just as listeners but as participants themselves. Now, many years later, I look in the rearview mirror and realize I am grateful for those early troubadours, those ground-breaking disciples. I am grateful to courageous leaders like Billy Graham, to my own Dad and Brother who were open to new expressions of the power of music. I am grateful for the vulnerable who let me set up a drum kit and play in the Sanctuary of the church they led. And I'm grateful to some of my favorites:

Larry Norman
Randy Stonehill
Second Chapter of Acts
Jars of Clay
Jennifer Knapp
Audio Adrenalin
A Few Small Fish
U2
DC Talk
Switchfoot
Sixpence None The Richer

... just to name a few.

Now at 70-something, most of the ride is in the rearview mirror--not trying to be morbid, just honest. If I'm not careful though about too much longing for the good old days, I'll wake up and someone else will be doing the driving. I'll be in that rear-facing seat in the back of the station wagon, which is terrifying because we had one of those in a family car of my youth and I would always get car-sick riding in the way-back. It's a wonder I don't have a drug problem; I always enjoyed the haze of a Dramamine induced nap on a long, long road trip.

---

Here's a suggestion for road trip music for this stage of the journey:

Now think back to when you were a child
Your soul was sweet, your heart ran wild
Each day was different and life was a thrill
You knew tomorrow would be better still

But things have changed, you're much older now
If you're unhappy and you don't know how
Why don't you look into Jesus?
He got the answer

--lyrics from verse 2 of "Look Into Jesus" by Larry Norman.

JUST A SUGGESTION

SOMETIMES IT JUST DEPENDS on how you look at it. Or, [cue The Twilight Zone theme song] how you're told to look at it.

My Dad grew up in Louisiana. When we would travel there to visit grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and those not related by blood but by some deep southern root, we were given the talk as we approached our destination. "Now remember boys, here in the south people say, "Yes Sir and Yes Ma'am to their elders." It actually came out more as "yessir and yes-mmm". Also, we were told to expect different foods on the table than we were accustomed to, and we were to try every food that was on our plate.

There was always a big bowl of what I knew as Lima Beans, and I also knew for a fact that there was nothing I liked about them. "Here, David Lee, have yourself a heaping helping of Butter Beans." Wait. What? Could this be a delicious cousin to the evil Lima? A buttery beauty that would make bean eating better? Nope. A Lima bean by any other name is still a Lima bean: officially Phaseolus Lunatus.

Here's an excerpt from the official chronicle of southern living--Southern Living Magazine.

"Why two terms for the same bean? Well, lima beans get their name from Peru’s capital city, Lima, where they’ve been grown for more than 9,000 years. While we can’t say with 100 percent certainty how these beans also came to be known as butter beans, we can offer a theory: See, lima beans were often disliked, so some semantics likely came into play to encourage people to eat them."

What kind of southern-fried trickery are they trying to pull here? It's a perfect example of manipulation through the Power of Suggestion. Kind of like that little girl pulling one over on her daddy who thought he was getting fried chicken: "No Daddy, it's not fried! It's Shake'n'Bake, and I helped!"

Comedian Dusty Slay is unique and wonderful. Several times during each of his stand-up bits, in between jokes, he will say, “We’re having a good time.” He explains that most comedians ask audiences if they’re having a good time, but he likes to tell them they are because it’s less risky than asking. It's become a catchphrase for him and a testament to the power of suggestion. CLICK HERE TO SEE SOME DUSTY.

nora.

In a matter of days we attended a college track meet and an elementary school track meet. I heard a phrase at both: "You've got this Kyndall!" Or, "You've got this Blaze!" Blaze clearly did not have this. Blaze didn't even really appear to be interested in having it. I guess sometimes the power of suggestion can only do so much.

We had our youngest Grand, Jeremiah with us for awhile on Saturday. He had chosen to wear his "Flash" costume from a couple of years back. We went to his favorite park which has a foot race track complete with LED clocks for both lanes. Let me say this kid is fast. But, when he stepped into the blocks and pulled up his hoodie with a lightening bolt on each side--SWOOSH. He became the manifestation of his costume.

Although I feel like the times require something, I'm not going to put on a Flash costume, but does it feel too contrived to suggest, "We've got this!?" (Question mark added for the ambivalence that surrounds the confidence.)

Bob Dylan wrote these lyrics 61 years ago in 1964, suggesting that "The Times They Are A-Changin'" They were then and they are now. And as we read in Ecclesiates: "To everything there is a season; a time for every purpose under heaven."

Come gather 'round people
Wherever you roam
And admit that the waters
Around you have grown
And accept it that soon
You'll be drenched to the bone
If your time to you is worth savin'
Then you better start swimmin'
Or you'll sink like a stone
For the times they are a-changin'

Come writers and critics
Who prophesize with your pen
And keep your eyes wide
The chance won't come again
And don't speak too soon
For the wheel's still in spin
And there's no tellin' who that it's namin'
For the loser now
Will be later to win
For the times they are a-changin'

Come senators, congressmen
Please heed the call
Don't stand in the doorway
Don't block up the hall
For he that gets hurt
Will be he who has stalled
The battle outside ragin'
Will soon shake your windows
And rattle your walls
For the times they are a-changin'

We're having a _________ time.

GOOD AND A GOOD STORY

"Let's watch 'Garfield'."

"No, 'Sonic'!"

"I want 'Lyle, Lyle Crocodile'."

"We watched that last time."

We had three of the Grands spending the night with us. We had just finished the buffet that Mimi fixes because there is no concensus among: quesadillas, scrambled eggs, corn dogs, sloppy joes, and spaghetti. The last word of one of the parents after delivering 2/7 of our bundle of joy: "They've probably had enough sugar already today."

So after lemonade and ice cream sandwiches, it's movie time.

Cutting off a filibuster by the five-year-old, I offer the solution. "Let's watch 'Karate Kid'." The aforementioned 5YO tells us he knows karate and starts his demonstration on his brother, his cousin and his Pops.

"Is this a good choice?" My Amazing Missus asks, but means, "This is not a good choice."

"Is it appropriate for kids 5, 8, and 10?" she asks.

I explain that it is rated PG-13, which in my interpretation stands for "Pops' Guidance" and I can give 13 reasons why this will be fine, and besides they're going home tomorrow and their parents can debrief them.

It proved to be an excellent discussion starter--not about the key issues of things like: intergenerational friendships, balance, focus, looking deep enough to see the morsels of beauty in life, being able to catch a fly with chopsticks, but still...

The questions were more like: why is his mom making him move from his home? Where is his dad? What is a bully? Isn't that a bad word? Then why does he keep saying it? Can we switch back to "Lyle, Lyle Crocodile?" Can I have another ice cream sandwich? Why is Mr. Miyagi making him do all that work?

"Just wait and you'll see!" I tell them, giddy for the moment that Mr. Miyagi reveals his subterfuge and demonstrates that by building muscle memory with stuff like wax-on; wax-off, sand-the-floor and paint-the-fence, he has in fact taught him karate. I look at them carefully in that moment to watch their eyes when the eureka lightbulb comes on for them. NOTHING. No "aha". The connection fails. Maybe later at the finals of the "18 and Under All-Valley Tournament."

We all cheer for and celebrate Daniel's win; for various reasons.

As Mr. Miyagi beams with pride for his young student, as the dark husks of Cobra Kai slink back to their dojo. As Daniel San hoists the trophy and finds balance with Ally, his tormentors and himself, I wipe a tear from my eye. The Grands don't notice. They're too busy practicing the "Crane Technique" on one another.

Reflecting on this movie that I've seen too many times, I can't help but draw comparisons between the “No Mercy, Sir” essence of the Cobra Kai dojo and the meaner side of The Whitehouse. I can't cleanse from my psyche the image of J.D. Vance in a karate costume with that smirky grin, along with Musk and his chainsaw, yelling "Sweep the leg Donnie!" in a trumped-up fight with PBS, NPR, The Kennedy Center, public education, higher education, The National Endowment for the Arts, The National Endowment for the Humanities, and all things that can enrich and inspire, which we've apparently taken for granted. This fight, it seems to me, isn’t so much between left and right, or good and evil. It’s about illumination vs. darkness.

The youngest of our group won the battle for the next feature of movie night: Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile. Turns out there are lessons to be learned here too. Consider Mr. Grumps who hides his manipulative ways behind the persona of being a good neighbor. It's a cautionary tale to be wary of those whose ruse is "keeping things right" or making something nebulous great again. Watch out Mr. Grumps, we see you for who you are. Even your cat has turned against you.

I have a friend, Alissa Wilkinson, who is a movie critic at The New York Times. She has a new book out called, We Tell Ourselves Stories: Joan Didion and the American Dream Machine.

In an interview with Sojourner magazine about her book featuring the writer Joan Didion, Alissa is asked:

You write, “We seek meaning and order in the world by creating story arcs that tell us why things happen and how they will sort themselves out.” What is one of the prevailing stories you continue to tell yourself today?

---

So here’s the thing: You don’t know that you’re telling yourself that story. That’s kind of the point that she (Didion) makes throughout her work, starting from when she is writing The White Album where she writes the line, “We tell ourselves stories in order to live.” But she was saying this much earlier than that, just not crystallized yet.

Everyone tells themselves stories, whether it’s stories like “this person deserves to experience this political repercussion because they are bad in this particular way,” or simple ones that the movies are always telling us like “good things happen to good people” and “follow your heart” and “don’t let anyone tell you who you are, be yourself.” Those are stories that we make up. They’re longer in story form, but those stories tell us how to live.

I think for Didion, the thing that you had to do if you were a person of any moral seriousness was to try to see the story and continually try to figure out where it came from and whether it is the right story or whether it needs modification.

---

I love stories and seeing the stories we live. But, I realize we have to be careful. To Alissa's point, if we hear a story, for example, about a young leader in Ukraine being an aggressor, subjecting his country to death and destruction, we are hearing a false narrative. It's told for truth and it's told again and again and again until it sounds plausible. We need "to see the story and continually try to figure out where it came from and whether it is the right story or whether it needs modification."

Objectivity is not a strength for me. For some reason I cannot see black and white exclusively and distinctly. Like the days of TV when I grew up, when our TVs were called black and white but in reality they were shades of gray. Now I still see those shades; and colors too. I hope that each story will end with: "and they lived happily ever after." But I'm older now and more calloused, and jaded, and starting to think not all stories end as I had hoped. But, still...

BONSAI DANIEL SAN. BONSAI!

---

Why does Mr. Miyagi yell Bonsai to Daniel?

Mr. Miyagi yells “bonsai” to express his enthusiasm and appreciation for tasks done exceptionally well. The phrase implies that the task has been completed with precision and care, much like a bonsai tree is sculpted into perfection over time. He also uses the phrase as a motivator, encouraging those around him to strive for excellence in their craft. Beyond this, he likely uses it as an expression of pride at having passed down his wisdom and skills to others who can now use them to find success. --bonsaitreehelp.org.