On this day, as we remember the man whose nonviolent activism set a new direction in search of civil rights for all men, women and children, my heart remains heavy when I consider the plight of the people whose land the United States Government stole in the name of greed. They were the stewards of …
Category Archives: Heroes
December 15, 1890 … a Day to Remember
On this day in 1890, legendary Lakota Indian Chief Sitting Bull was gunned down by Indian Agency Police on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation. No one remembers. Earlier this year, ‘Standing Rock’ was front page news. Many of you raised your concerned voices. Six months later, most remember few details. I remember, and I remember …
Caesar Joins His Band of Angels
With more good friends in my lifetime than any 10 men deserve, Caesar was my best. This morning, I freed his spirit from his cancer-riddled body. Unwittingly at the time, I cast his memory into future generations by including him in two of my novels. When people ask me which of my books I like …
For my father …
The Greatness of a Nation
A few weeks ago as my friend Ch**k was driving down the road chatting with me on his cell phone (VERY safely I must emphasize [and I have disguised his name so he will not get in trouble for driving and talking at the same time]), he was unable to avoid a small Arizona ground …
Jesus and the Disinherited
I never knew who Howard Thurman was until January 2014. I know it was in January because that is when I posted “A Place for Angels,” a post about Howard Thurman that was well received. I believe in angels just like I believe dog is man’s best friend. That’s reality. I finished Thurman’s book Jesus …
The War Prayer
I may have mentioned I have been reading an excellent volume, The Rag and Bone Shop of the Heart: Poems for Men. I come upon poem after poem that demands and commands my attention. I so much like this book that I purchased four copies, one for each son and one for my son-in-law. Last …
David Walsh McGrath, Smiling Hero for All Time
Just last week at Friday Mass, we read all about friends from the Book of Sirach [6:5 – 18]. “A faithful friend is a sturdy shelter; he who finds one finds a treasure. A faithful friend is beyond price…..” I have been blessed with many people I call ‘friend.’ The two funniest men I know …
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Martin Sheen: A Hero who Broke Through
Yesterday morning as I waited in the foyer of an assisted living facility, I glanced at a basket filled with old magazines. The magazine on top of the pile was the AARP magazine. I am not an “AARP guy,” but the cover picture was a picture of a smiling Ramón Antonio Gerardo Estévez, better known …
“I’ll Stand With You.”
Yesterday, October 16 marks the 44th anniversary of one of the most memorable events at any modern Olympic Games. On October 16, 1968, silver medalist Peter Norman joined American gold medalist Tommie Smith – who had just become the first human to break the 20-second barrier in the 200-meter dash – and bronze medalist John …