To: My Grandson
A BOOKMARK FOR LIFE
(the planting of a seed)
Take up the baton and pass it on ....
Guidance against the odds, as you thinketh in your heart, so will it be the legacy of your soul. You, my grandson, be a descendant of slaves, the great-grandson of farmers, laborers of unity, and the child of educators—a bona fide haven of survival, wisdom, and knowledge. Be forever conscious of who you are—never resting in conceit-ism, in the river of for grant-ism of your accomplishments. Your successes have been preordained, self-replicating, earned by those who came before you—the examples of what you must strive to set for generations to come. I call it engraving the baton, with generational achievements. Always remember, someone is watching. Your consistency of actions will always speak louder than words, garnishing reverence when you speak. You need not prove anything to anyone except yourself through your attributes, limits set by GOD. Compare yourself to no one but the man in the mirror.
Humility cures pride, and kindness cures envy. Abstinence cures gluttony, Chastity cures lust, and Patients cures wrath. Kindness also cures greed, and Diligence cures sloth. While at the same time. A grudging heart will induce divisiveness and anger, tarnishing the soul.
Your Granddad
For the last six years, my communications have been and will continue to be canvassing, not in divisiveness, but in the facilitation of civil conversation. With a direct challenge to the media in its propagation. A Bookmark for Life (The Child) and Grandparents in Unity 2022 (The Adult). Letters in the hundreds I've written to the community, the church, John Hopkins, educational boards, and elected officials, the news media, along with six years of social media posts. Paragraphing each in succession, could be converted into a book. The title would be: "Don’t Limit a child to your learning, for they were born in another time." The book, no doubt ...... would be scrutinized, under the auspice of critical race theory and band from school libraries.
DIALOGUE >> THEORIZED & DEFINED
As a NOUN:
A conversation between two or more people as a feature of a book, play, or movie:
As a VERB:
To take part in a conversation or discussion to resolve a problem:
Martin Buber was an Austrian Jewish and Israeli philosopher best known for his philosophy of dialogue. He assigns dialogue a pivotal position in his theology. Buber cherishes and promotes dialogue not as some purposive attempt to reach conclusions or express mere points of view, but as the very prerequisite of authentic relationship between man and man, and between man and God.
Greetings Senator Scott
Senator Scott, I pray this letter is received with a gracious heart. My name is Henry Lee Faulkner: retired Navy and a senior citizen. I'm an inquisitive soul and an avid reader. I've read a couple of your books. "Opportunity Knocks," and "A Redemption Story." I am also a canvasser for ideas and a facilitator of concepts. I've even written a book myself. With that said, this letter is with a gift, a copy of my book, and to inquire about your viewpoint on "Cordial Communications."
First, about your books. Have any of your republican colleagues read any of them? And, if so, how many would commit to an open dialogue on the merit of the content? I permeate this question because of the "State of our Nation" as I search for optimism in a deteriorating democracy. My intentions are productive discussions without degradation or victorious fanaticism to be the money maker. Combative dialogue is not a means to a constructive end.
It's no secret that fear has become reflective of the unspoken truth. With dominance and hatred being the bottleneck. It's modern-day warfare, as appose to the "Preamble to the Constitution," "We the people." The fear of being humiliated if you don't go along with a lie by the power of one person seems to resonate in the Republican Party. The indignation was amplified auspiciously in the 2016 presidential primary.
This letter and book be sent to you in the form of a request for you to read and respond in kind. I am not a writer or politician. Just a senior citizen who has been around the block a few times, with the anthology, heart of hearts "Instincts" together with genuine intentions from "The Seat of my Soul," searching for a solution in a divided nation. Our democracy is in peril. We should not fight hate with hate. Elected officials need to demonstrate bipartisanship. And not use the power of position to divide us further. i.e., A committed liar is seated in a chamber of legislation. Some members of Congress are wearing AR-15 assault rifle pins even after an insurrection—speaker of the House releasees Capitol riot footage to a motivator of hate. Even deeper, an elected official is calling for a national divorce. "Arbitrary power is most easily established on the ruins of liberty abused to licentiousness," A quote by George Washington to the states, May 9, 1793.
Democrats constantly speak of reaching across the aisle. In the business world, the need for fellowship is essential, the meeting of the minds by arbitration when parties cannot agree when money is at stake. There's partisanship when you pay a person a penny when the cost of living is a dime while the rich are making a dollar paying little to no taxes. It is one of the biggest reasons for urban decay, PEONAGE. When fear is induced by enacting laws based on race, sexuality, the control of a woman’s right to birth control and abortion, etcetera, etc., I call it psychological warfare. When a people's history is forbidden, or should I say under forbidden learning, with the assertion of teaching privileged children to hate themselves. It's PRIVILEGED INDOCTINATION by omitting the eradication of the past. The 3Ps of modern-day slavery which will lead to the fall of our democracy.
“Nothing to fear, but fear itself,” a phrase from the 1933 inaugural address of Franklin D Roosevelt. Fear united the country in those times, which now divides. From the beginning, fear has always been used as a means of control. In your book, your sister's words spoke of your father's fear of driving. In America, for the black man, fear has always been present while trying to maintain the dignity of a man. Besides driving, the fear of walking, jogging, or just being in the wrong place at the wrong time while black. Something I developed early in life. In my youth, I was taught by my mother how to act around white folks for my safety. Fear was instilled in me when Emmett Till was lynched; I was eleven. This is from a 78-year-old citizen to you, a lawmaker, saying: a deaf ear to history will not solve this country's problem. Carrie Nichols beating in Memphis was a shot in the arm for me. Ironically, while stationed at the Naval Training Center near Memphis in the early 70s, the police stopped me on many occasions. One time I went to jail. There was a beating. The judge didn't listen, and I'll leave it at that. Two things were in the balance: "My life and my Naval career." Guidance Against the Odds speaks for millions who have navigated the minefields, where the system wholes dominion over destiny. I have 39 more years of living, which could be another book I could write. Different places, different times, but with replicating scenarios. As the saying goes, "You can't make this stuff up."
I'll end this letter with three questions: Why did the chicken cross the road? To get to the other side. So why wouldn't a politician reach across the aisle in a democracy? The answer should not be paradoxical in seeking a cordial conversation. And why would I, a nonwriter, produce a website, write a book, and continue to write blogs unanswered for seven years? My response to the third is that I love my country and because I believe in WOKE. Because "I can't breathe," and through the grace of God, I need to be heard as a man. And in the words of Rodney King, “Why can’t we all just get along?” I pray you will read my book and harmoniously post a convivial response or at least respond in kind.
God Bless!
Respectfully
Henry L Faulkner USN Ret.
Chief Navy Counselor
Ref:
https://twitter.com/hlf442207
http://www.bookmystory.net/
https://bookmystorydomain.blog/2019/07/20/a-tweet-for-the-45th-president-4th-re-tweet/