I have on my desk a small statuette given to me by my son on his return from Argentina.  It is of a man with a dog, and on one leg he displays an open wound.  He is St. Roque, (Rock, Rocco) and he reminds me every morning that very few of us get through life without a physical or mental malady.  (I’ve had a quadruple bypass operation for mine.)

There is a Catholic church named after him in Glen Cove, and it has an annual festival famous for the cooking of its parishioners, besides the usual carnival.  You can have a Sunday dinner, home cooked, if the weather is good.

I pray to him to keep myself spiritually alert.  I am far from superstitious.  It’s good to have a company of saints looking after you.

I almost stepped right on it, there in the muddy rain water.  It was a symmetrically shaped elm tree leaf, the classic leaf shape, arrayed in the fall colors of bright yellow streaked with red.  What a gift—given to us to step on!  How beloved by the Creator we must be, for a gift that took millions of years in the making.

We are not asked much in return: to be faithful to our wives, to help the poor, to consider our neighbors’ welfare.  With the news tonight about China and Taiwan, about pedophiles, about Facebook, we make a sorry lot.  What will change us?

 I for one intend to stay as close to my youthful ideals as I can, and I pray to God for when I fail.  The means and the intentions are here; let’s go!

Every year the moon moves a little further away from us.  It’s only a fraction of an inch, but that can add up if you’re anxious.  Anyway, it’s nothing in the foreseeable future, but it fits in with my blog on entropy.

Yes, scientifically the Bible was right when it said,”Earth and the heavens will pass away,” though there are some scientists today who don’t believe that (they don’t believe in the Big Bang).  But hey, it takes all kinds to make a human population.

The Big Bang was proven at Bell Labs in New Jersey when two scientists, trying to rid their radio antenna of static (you can hear the same sound on FM radio) proved it was cosmic radiation left over from the Big Bang.

There are twenty-three species that have recently gone extinct, but we seem unaware that in the past, there were civilizations that disappeared.  Ours is in danger.  Some European countries have a minus growth rate—abortion and birth control are doing their job.  What if Western Civilization became extinct?

What, would Islam replace it?  Would Chinese Communism?  Communism seems inherently selfish, and that’s just what’s doing Western Civilization in.  But the West has Judeo-Christian concepts that may yet save it.  Man, woman, pray!

I keep myself busy writing this blog, and I always look for a punch line.  If it is somewhat religious, never mind; not enough people recognize their Creator.  Existence is a great thing, full of potential, feeling and love.  There ought to be some gratitude here.

What about my gratitude?  How do you say thank you for a lifetime of wonderful families and friends?  Is it possible?

No, but I can repeat it again and again, thank you.  And thank you to all who read these blogs—I appreciate the comments, good or bad.