EC's Southern Association

[Eugene Church]

Long ago in a galaxy far, far away...
No, can't do a dynasty about that... Han Solo is dead... it wouldn't be the same without him.

How about this?

It was the best of times and it was the worst of times...
Oops, that one has already been used...

To begin again...
It was a dark and stormy night when a young boy came into this world in 1940. He was born at home... not in a hospital... by a mid-wife.

And thus began the long journey into this world of Eugene Church, the infamous creator of the All-Time All-Star Association, the Islandian Pro Alliance, the State Line League and the arguably good radio program, if you could call it one: the DC RC Sippers Association, which ran on the radio many years... no, I wasn't Eugene on the radio... I was Danny Church... I spent about 32 years sippin' on RC Colas, eatin' moon pies and playing the best music I could find... country, pop and rock.

Snoopy might not appreciate me stealing those lines from him... for a dog and a funny-looking shortstop, Snoopy is a darn good writer.

Forgive me, Snoopy.

(Thank goodness, dogs can't sue people)

Actually, it really was a dark and stormy night the night I was born... and it was a good time in my life... the breath of life is a wonderful gift from God, but it was also the worst of times for my wonderful mother. She was only 17 and a half years old with a son born out of wedlock, which in 1940 was just about the worst thing that could happen to a young girl. Society was very harsh in those days, not as forgiving as today... it was stigma for life. My father, who I only saw four times in my life, was a 32-year-old married man... a man of the world and quite the dandy... he was a gambler and a bootlegger with political connections in the small town of Florence, located in northwest Alabama. The area was called the Tri-Cities and also encompassed Sheffield and Tuscumbia.

In that day and time families usually sent the daughter to an aunt in a faraway city where she had the baby quietly and it was put up for adoption. But not my wonderful, strong-willed mother. She kept me. This was a tremendous blessing to me. I always had someone who loved me dearly. She was both mother and father to me... as I was a gift from God... she was a gift from God, too. I have been truly blessed in my 76 years of life. I hope and pray the Good Lord will bless me with a few more years... I hope God is a baseball fan, too....

Dear Lord, I may need about 10 years to finish my Southern Association dynasty replay... so you gotta help me out here.

The Southern Association will be a lot about baseball and it will also be a little bit about me and the world I grew up in.

It will be about the good times in my life... I've had a bunch of 'em... and the sad times in my life, too... fortunately, I haven't had too many of those... I hope you will join me in my journey through the years from 1947 to 1959 as I cover my beloved Southern Association in its latter days of existence... I will try to recreate it as closely as OOTPB can do it.

And now let the games begins.

.

[JaBurns]

Thanks, I have been following your trials and tribulations trying to set up your dynasty. I look forward to the start of what I am sure will be entertaining reading for 10 or more years.
Good Luck.

[Eugene Church]

Originally Posted by JaBurns

Thanks, I have been following your trials and tribulations trying to set up your dynasty. I look forward to the start of what I am sure will be entertaining reading for 10 or more years.
Good Luck.

Yeah, I'll need it... 10 years is a mighty long time at my age... and to quote one of the greatest songwriters and entertainers we ever had, "I'll do it if the Good Lord's willing and the creeks don't rise". (Hank Williams, Sr.)

[Eugene Church]

1940

Movies, Music and Baseball have been very important in my life.
Music is the only one of them I collect. In the last five years I have bought all the songs I ever wanted. The total is now over 6000 songs in pristine condition. Strange as it may be, I was a disc jockey for 32 years, but didn't collect records.

The number one song on my birthday was "When You Wish Upon A Star" from the movie Pinocchio... another oddity, I don't have this song.

The number one record of the year was "In the Mood" by the Glenn Miller Orchestra... I do have this one... I love Big Band Music... Glenn Miller is probably the best.

I like country music, too... Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys put country and big band together and created Western Swing music... an example of this was the 1940 hit "New San Antonio Rose"... when the Playboys played you just had to dance and do some lowdown boot-scootin' boogie woogie.

"You Are My Sunshine" by Jimmie Davis was one the year's biggest hits. I have lived most of life in Alabama and Louisiana. Davis was the governor of Louisiana and it is the state song.

I can't forget the Great American Pastime... The Cincinnati Reds defeated the Detroit Tigers in the 1940 World Series by 4 games to 3... the Reds' star pitchers Paul Derringer and Bucky Walters won two games apiece, with Derringer winning the decisive seventh game. Walters hurled two complete games, allowing only eight hits and three runs combined. He also hit a home run in Game 6 in the midst of his 4–0 shutout, which sent the Series to a Game 7.

Ever wonder why it's called the Great American Pastime?... because in the late 1800s into the mid 1900s without TV and video games all the kids were busy out playing outside on the diamonds... they were passing time the right way... I'm glad that I got to do that, too,.. yeah, I'm a child of the 50s... that's the 1950s, y'all,.. let's be clear about that... sure wasn't the 1850s, pilgrim.

Whatever was in season... baseball, basketball or football... we played it sunup to sundown, seven days a week... and when it rained we would play a great board baseball game called APBA at Buddy Dansey's house... boy, that was a great time in my life..

The National Basketball Association didn't exist.

In the National Football League: Chicago Bears defeat Washington Redskins 73–0 in the championship game... this game still holds records for the highest score and biggest win in National Football League history... this game also marked the last time that an NFL player (Bears end Dick Plasman) played without a helmet.

Oh, yeah... before I forget... the year I was born there was a pretty big commotion going on in Europe, too... but I don't think I had any anything to do it... World War II was just getting underway in Europe... the US wasn't in it yet.

I never thought of it, but does that mean I'm part of "America's greatest generation"? I'll have to check with Tom Brokaw and see if I made the deadline.

The #1 song on the night I was born was "When You Wish Upon a Star"... Cliff Edwards was the singer... the song was featured in the Disney classic "Pinocchio".

You can hear it at this link:

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q...F7&FORM=VRDGAR

[Eugene Church]

THE NEW ORLEANS TIMES-PICAYUNE
Wednesday, April 2, 1947

SOUTHERN ASSOCIATION BEGINS 47TH SEASON

CRACKERS CRUISE BY VOLS 16-2
The Atlanta Crackers put the giddy home crowd in an even more jubilant mood after crushing the Nashville Vols 16-2 in the season opener at Ponce de Leon Park... 2B Ted Cieslak was just one of the heavy-hitting heroes... he socked four hits, scored four runs and drove in a pair... CF Babe Ellis homered and singled, scored four times and batted in three runs... 3B Charlie Glock chimed in with five RBIs, slamming a bases-loaded double... and SS Ben Steiner had a pair of hits and three ribbies... Forrest Thompson (1-0) was the winning pitcher... he went all the way, allowing 2 runs on 11 hits with 4 walks and 6 strikeouts... loser Ben Wade (0-1) was clubbed for eight runs in his four frames.

CHICKS' HOERST HURLS 6-0 GEM
Lefty Hoerst of the Memphis Chicks spun his magic on the New Orleans Pelicans today in the first game of the new season... he blanked them 6-0 on 5 hits at Pelican Stadium in the Crescent City, registering 2 strikeouts and 2 walks... Walter Cress (0-1) was the losing pitcher... the Chickasaws battered him for five runs in six innings... topping Memphis at the plate was SS Freddie Hancock with two hits, two runs and two RBIs... Hancock tripled and singled in four at-bats.

'NOOGA RALLIES PAST LITTLE ROCK 5-4 IN 9TH
Fans of the Chattanooga Lookouts who packed the stands for the home opener at Joe Engel Stadium were rewarded with a Chattanooga win over the visiting Little Rock Travelers, 5-4... the Lookouts rallied with three runs in the last of the ninth, winning on CF Gil Coan's fourth hit of the game, a two-run single... reliever Vern Curtis (1-0) notched the win, while the defeat went to Milo Johnson (0-1)... the Travelers outhit the Lookouts 13 to 10, but stranded 14 baserunners... Coan had the game's only home run.

BEARS OUTSLUG BARONS 9-7 IN SA OPENER
Rickwood Field was the site of the home opener for the Birmingham Barons... however, the visiting Mobile Bears went away with the 9-7 win... they snapped a 1-1 tie in the top of the 7th with a 6-run outburst, then held off a belated Baron rally in the bottom of the ninth... LF Shotgun Shuba paced the Bears with three RBIs and RF Homer Matney added two more... 1B Joe Collins topped the Barons with a three-run roundtripper... John Hall (1-0) went the distance for the victory, yielding nine hits, but only two earned runs... he walked four batters and fanned four... Frank Nelson (0-1) took the loss, punished for seven runs and seven hits in six-plus innings... the teams had nine hits each.

Click on LIne Scores to Enlarge

[Sizeman21]

Good start to this league. Excited to see how it progresses!

[Eugene Church]

THE NEW ORLEANS TIMES-PICAYUNE
Thursday, April 3, 1947

KENNEDY TAMES TRAVS
At Joe Engel Stadium in Chattanooga, the Lookouts got strong pitching from Bill Kennedy and solid offense from 2B Ed Lyons as they knocked off Little Rock for the second day in a row, taming the Travelers 9-1... Kennedy (1-0) went the route, holding them to just one run on five hits... Lyons bashed two doubles and a single, driving in three runs, going 4-for-4 for the day... RF Gil Coan and 1B Jack Sanford pitched in with a pair of RBIs... Little Rock starter Carl Lindquist (0-1) had a terrible outing and was slammed for seven runs in five-plus innings... he walked six batters.[B]

PELS' MODICA MOWS DOWN MEMPHIS
The New Orleans Pels hammered Memphis long and hard for eight runs in the first two innings and roared past the Chicks 10-1... southpaw Pete Modica (1-0) had a wild and wooly day on the hill, fanning 10 and walking seven, but he restricted Memphis to just five hits... the Pelicans and Chicks are even for the year at 1-1... CF George Stumpf paced the Pel 10-hit attack with three hits and three RBIs and C Fred Walters chipped in with two RBIs... seven walks in four innings pinned the loss on starter Chuck Eisenmann (0-1).

KELLNER THROTTLES BEARS 7-1
Birmingham left-hander Alex Kellner came up with a good performance and beat the Mobile Bears 7-1 at Rickwood Field to gain a split in the first two games of the new Southern Association season... Kellner (1-0) was tagged for nine hits, but held the Bears to just one run... Mobile starter Ray Boles (0-1) shut out Birmingham 1-0 for the first six frames, but was bashed for seven runs in the last of the seventh, highlighted by 1B Joe Collins' grand slammer... it was his second homer this year... Collins has seven RBIs in the series so far.

VOLS BOMB CRACKERS 14-6
At Ponce de Leon Park in Atlanta, the Nashville Vols turned the tables on the Crackers and bombed them 14-6 a day after being crushed 16-2... 1B George Byam went 3-5 with a homer and five RBIs... 2B Hank Schenz scored four runs and three other Vols drove in two runs apiece: CF Hal Jeffcoat, 3B Cy Block and pitcher Pete Mallory... Nashville lashed out 15 hits off three Atlanta hurlers... the Crackers got 14 hits, but left 14 runners on the basepaths... they were led by RF Charlie Trippi, who went 3-for-5 and batted in three runs... the University of Georgia football star also got his first homer of the season... Pete Mallory (1-0) got the win, but retired after six innings, giving up five runs on 12 hits.

[Eugene Church]

Originally Posted by Sizeman21

Good start to this league. Excited to see how it progresses!

Thanks for checking it out.

Much appreciate your feedback and support.

[BigRed75]

I wonder how many people know how to properly pronounce the name of the Crackers' home ground?

[abell1198]

I'm going to be rooting for the Chicks! First professional game I saw as a kid in the early 80's was in Memphis with my dad. Eugene, as a student of history, I'm looking forward to reading your recollections. There's nothing like hearing history from the people who were there and experienced it firsthand.

Sent from my SM-G920P using Tapatalk

[Eugene Church]

Originally Posted by abell1198

I'm going to be rooting for the Chicks! First professional game I saw as a kid in the early 80's was in Memphis with my dad. Eugene, as a student of history, I'm looking forward to reading your recollections. There's nothing like hearing history from the people who were there and experienced it firsthand.

Sent from my SM-G920P using Tapatalk

Great to have an enthusiastic supporter, abell1198.

At least there will be a few of us following the Southern Association dynasty.

I once posted a thread asking "What makes a good Dynasty".... one of the best suggestions I got was that the dynasty writer had to enjoy it himself... that was the bottom line... it didn't matter how many views he got as long as HE HIMSELF enjoyed it.

I have found this to be true... but I'm still vain enough to want a lot of viewers.

So if it's just a few of us... so be it... I know that I will immensely enjoy it.

[Eugene Church]

Originally Posted by abell1198

I'm going to be rooting for the Chicks! First professional game I saw as a kid in the early 80's was in Memphis with my dad. Eugene, as a student of history, I'm looking forward to reading your recollections. There's nothing like hearing history from the people who were there and experienced it firsthand.

Sent from my SM-G920P using Tapatalk

My wife and I have a special project to go to all of the Major League parks.
We have 7 more parks to see.

We also love to go to minor league parks... actually I prefer them... they don't rip you off financially like the severely overpriced Majors... also there is no bad seats at a minor league park... in the Majors from the nosebleed sections the players look like little fleas running around the diamond.

Auto Zone Park in Memphis was very new and very nice.

Blessedly, my wife loves baseball, too... she loves to keep score at a game... she does the first half of the game... I do the second half.

She made me a large scorebook in a binder to give us more room to put more info about the game.

She still has trouble figuring out whether 7 is left field or right field... shortstop totally confuses her... by her thinking he should be 5... not 6.

She bought me a wonderful book... The Joy of Keeping Score by Paul Dickson... it tells the history of keeping score and how it came to be.

We learned to use a "backward k" for a player called out on strikes... a "lower case f" for a "foul fly out"... an "upper case F" if it is a fly out in fair territory... we also indicate if it is a "ground single", "bloop fly ball single" or "line drive single".

We keep a better scorebook than most pro scorekeepers... not quite as good as Elias, though.

[BigRed75]

Originally Posted by Eugene Church

a "lower case f" for a "foul fly out"... an "upper case F" if it is a fly out in fair territory...

That's the thing I love about keeping score at a ballgame - everyone has their own style that makes sense to them. I knew I should differentiate if the ball was caught in fair territory or foul, so I decided, many years ago, to use "F7" if the left fielder caught it in fair territory, or "FO7" if they caught it in foul territory.

What I don't know, and I really should, since it's my system, is if the "FO" stands for "Foul Out" or just "FOul"

Long live scorebooks. I hope that I can pass the enjoyment of scoring a ball game to my kids.

[Eugene Church]

Originally Posted by BigRed75

That's the thing I love about keeping score at a ballgame - everyone has their own style that makes sense to them. I knew I should differentiate if the ball was caught in fair territory or foul, so I decided, many years ago, to use "F7" if the left fielder caught it in fair territory, or "FO7" if they caught it in foul territory.

What I don't know, and I really should, since it's my system, is if the "FO" stands for "Foul Out" or just "FOul"

Long live scorebooks. I hope that I can pass the enjoyment of scoring a ball game to my kids.

Would you like a copy of the book "The Joy of Keeping Score"?
I think you would love it.

[themonk]

Glad you're back, Eugene, with your new dynasty. I'm sure I'm going to enjoy this one as much as I did your other dynasties.

Just an aside. When you mentioned that you were born in 1940, it suddenly dawned on me that my Dad was born in the same year as you were. Unfortunately, he passed away 23 years ago when he was only 53 years old.

My Mom was very young when I was born. She meet my Dad in a party and they fell madly in love. A few months later they eloped. My Mom was 16 years old, and my Dad was 17 years old. They got married, and 9 months later I was born in June of 1958.

They were not perfect parents. (I don't think there are perfect parents). But they were good parents. My Dad, in spite of the fact that his college education was cut short because of his early marriage, became a successful businessman, which means that we were well provided for.

He later had a conversion experience when he was thirty-three years old and became a lay missionary. For the next 20 years his passion was sharing God's word and helping people that he came in contact with.

When he passed away, I was working in the IT industry. But I decided to leave my high-paying job as a Project Manager in a software development company to become a lay missionary, too. It dawned on me that there's more to life than accumulating material possessions.

Unfortunately, after almost 20 years of missionary life, I was struck with chronic illness. I am mostly home bound now. I'm fortunate, though, to be blessed with a loving and caring wife who takes care of me. Also, it was during this time I discovered the joys of playing OOTPB, which has become a form of therapy for me.

Anyway, sorry for the long digression... I'll surely be following your Southern Association dynasty, and I wish you all the best...



Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Eugene Church]

THE NEW ORLEANS TIMES-PICAYUNE
Friday, April 3, 1947

LOOKOUTS SWEEP 3 FROM TRAVELERS
The Chattanooga Lookouts have begun the Southern Association season in grand fashion, taking all three games from the Little Rock Travelers... Thursday at home at Joe Engels Stadium 'Nooga finished them off with a six-run fifth frame... winning pitcher Ronny Miller got the big hit... a three-run triple... the Lookouts got a superb relief job from Alex Zukowski... he retired all nine batters he faced to save it for Miller (1-0)... RF Gil Coan (.545) also played a big part in the victory with a two-run clout, his 2nd of the year... Chattanooga collected 10 hits, led by CF Junior Wooten (.364), C Mike Garbark (.600) and SS Angel Fleitas (.300), all with two hits apiece... LF Bil Sinton (.250) went deep for the Travelers and RF Howard Cantrell (.385) added two hits and two RBIs.

CRACKERS, KINNEY BLANK NASHVILLE
Well, it took three games, but the Atlanta pitching staff finally shut down the red-hot Nashville Vols... a big, tall 6'3 right-hander, Shelby Kinney, blanked them 5-0... the Vols got eight hits, but couldn't make a dent in home plate at Ponce de Leon in the final game of the series... the Crackers took two of them... Shelby (1-0) fanned eight batters and walked only two in a sterling performance... C Red Mathis (.417) led Atlanta with three hits and LF Ernie Logan (.267) slugged his 2nd roundtripper... Nashville came into the game batting a torrid .338... Leon Twardy (0-1) caught the loss, giving ups three earned runs in six innings.

HARRELL 2-HITS PELS
The hometown New Orlean Pelicans were pretty much helpless Thursday afternoon at Pelican Stadium against the left-hand slants of Ray Harrell... the Memphis hurler dominated them 4-1, limiting them to just two hits... Harrell rang up his first win of the season, striking out seven batters and walking four... the Chicks managed seven base hits off loser George Diehl (0-1), who also went the distance... Diehl had nine Ks and permitted only two earned runs... pinchhitter Lindsey Deal (.571) delivered the crucial hit in the game... he singled in CF Paul Armstrong (.417) and 1B Ted Kluszewski (.200) in the top of the eighth to give Harrell and the Chicks some breathing room... Armstrong racked up three hits... Memphis won two of the three games.

BARONS TAKE RUBBER GAME FROM BEARS
In the series finale at Rickwood Field in Birmingham, the Barons blasted the Mobile Bears 11-5 to take the rubber game... Birmingham improved to 2-1 on the season... in a gritty outing portsider Jack Teagen (1-0) held the Bears at bay, shutting them out over the final four innings... in a complete game Teagen whiffed eight batters, walked four and allowed nine hits... the Baron batters supported him with 11 hits, paced by 1B Joe Collins (.455) and CF Bud Matheny (.333), each with two RBIs... plus Matheny and RF Joseph Scheldt (.300) had homers... Collins leads the Southern Association with nine RBIs... C Cliff Dapper (.308) drilled a solo homer for Mobile... losing pitcher Frank Laga (0-1) was blistered early for nine runs in just three innings.

[Eugene Church]

Southern Association Logos

I did most of my logos using the images from cephasjames' great logo collection and justafan's wonderful software... but did get some help from the good designers, too... I am severely limited because I can't change colors or use scripts.

My logo creations are fairly sufficient, but the good logo creators could do much better.

tlowe77 did a fine cleanup job on the Chattanooga Lookouts for me... the one I created had four lines on it because I had to use a non-transparent Lookout eyes image... I can't do transparencies, either.

[Eugene Church]

Southern Association Logos

I got help from the master, justafan, on the Mobile logo... he changed the color to Blue on the Bears... it was originally Red...which really was a better color and made the Bear image stand out, but it would not be authentic Mobile colors... justafan also lightened up the logo with the white to make it clearer in the game... I can't change colors... really need to learn how to do it.

I think No Pepper created the fine New Orleans Pelicans logo.

[Eugene Church]

Originally Posted by themonk

Glad you're back, Eugene, with your new dynasty. I'm sure I'm going to enjoy this one as much as I did your other dynasties.

Just an aside. When you mentioned that you were born in 1940, it suddenly dawned on me that my Dad was born in the same year as you were. Unfortunately, he passed away 23 years ago when he was only 53 years old.

My Mom was very young when I was born. She meet my Dad in a party and they fell madly in love. A few months later they eloped. My Mom was 16 years old, and my Dad was 17 years old. They got married, and 9 months later I was born in June of 1958.

They were not perfect parents. (I don't think there are perfect parents). But they were good parents. My Dad, in spite of the fact that his college education was cut short because of his early marriage, became a successful businessman, which means that we were well provided for.

He later had a conversion experience when he was thirty-three years old and became a lay missionary. For the next 20 years his passion was sharing God's word and helping people that he came in contact with.

When he passed away, I was working in the IT industry. But I decided to leave my high-paying job as a Project Manager in a software development company to become a lay missionary, too. It dawned on me that there's more to life than accumulating material possessions.

Unfortunately, after almost 20 years of missionary life, I was struck with chronic illness. I am mostly home bound now. I'm fortunate, though, to be blessed with a loving and caring wife who takes care of me. Also, it was during this time I discovered the joys of playing OOTPB, which has become a form of therapy for me.

Anyway, sorry for the long digression... I'll surely be following your Southern Association dynasty, and I wish you all the best...



Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I love digressions like this... if a viewer doesn't have any interest in your story, that's sad and is their loss.

Thank you for sharing... you have a wonderful story to tell... my eyes teared with joy when I read about your father becoming a missionary... and when you went into the ministry... most believers won't give up the so-called good life for Jesus... you did and should be humbly proud... you are special.

I came to know the Lord late in life... age 34... I, too, have been blessed tremendously.

Agree with you... no parents are perfect... we are all flawed... it's is only the merciful grace of God, his forgiveness and sacrifice on the cross that saves us... all parents are flawed, even the best of them... but many of the them raise good kids in spite of their imperfections... my mother was not a saint... she could be very difficult to get along with... she could be mean and hateful one day and give you her last dollar the next day... but I never doubted for one minute that she loved me... I'm thankful God gave me to her... not a lot of women would have done what she did or had to go through to keep me and raise me.

I'm sorry for your chronic health problems and I will be praying for you on a daily basis... each morning around 8 am I have a prayer list I go through... you will be added to that list.

I don't know why bad things happen to good people... but after all is said and done... it's not the things of this world that matter... it's where we end up that matter... the apostle Paul was one of the greatest believers ever... and yet like you... he had an affliction... a "thorn in the flesh" that God didn't take away even when Paul asked him on several occasions to remove it... God answered Paul's prayers and said His grace is sufficient for us.

I don't understand this world... don't understand many things of God, but I'm still going to depend totally on God to get me through it... even if people question whether God exist or not... I still am going to give him control of my life... I'm going to love him and my fellow man as well as I can... even the bad ones and the ones that are different from me and my life style... and hope one day at the end of time that Jesus will say the most beautiful words in the world... "Well done, good and faithful servant".

Don't ever apologize for sharing your life... you should be humbly proud of it... one day I think you will hear those beautiful works from Jesus.

Thank you for your kind words about my dynasties... many times they have helped me keep on keeping on when I wanted to quit.

Also please pray for me, too.

[themonk]

Originally Posted by Eugene Church

I love digressions like this... if a viewer doesn't have any interest in your story, that's sad and is their loss.

Thank you for sharing... you have a wonderful story to tell... my eyes teared with joy when I read about your father becoming a missionary... and when you went into the ministry... most believers won't give up the so-called good life for Jesus... you did and should be humbly proud... you are special.

I came to know the Lord late in life... age 34... I, too, have been blessed tremendously.

Agree with you... no parents are perfect... we are all flawed... it's is only the merciful grace of God, his forgiveness and sacrifice on the cross that saves us... all parents are flawed, even the best of them... but many of the them raise good kids in spite of their imperfections... my mother was not a saint... she could be very difficult to get along with... she could be mean and hateful one day and give you her last dollar the next day... but I never doubted for one minute that she loved me... I'm thankful God gave me to her... not a lot of women would have done what she did or had to go through to keep me and raise me.

I'm sorry for your chronic health problems and I will be praying for you on a daily basis... each morning around 8 am I have a prayer list I go through... you will be added to that list.

I don't know why bad things happen to good people... but after all is said and done... it's not the things of this world that matter... it's where we end up that matter... the apostle Paul was one of the greatest believers ever... and yet like you... he had an affliction... a "thorn in the flesh" that God didn't take away even when Paul asked him on several occasions to remove it... God answered Paul's prayers and said His grace is sufficient for us.

I don't understand this world... don't understand many things of God, but I'm still going to depend totally on God to get me through it... even if people question whether God exist or not... I still am going to give him control of my life... I'm going to love him and my fellow man as well as I can... even the bad ones and the ones that are different from me and my life style... and hope one day at the end of time that Jesus will say the most beautiful words in the world... "Well done, good and faithful servant".

Don't ever apologize for sharing your life... you should be humbly proud of it... one day I think you will hear those beautiful works from Jesus.

Thank you for your kind words about my dynasties... many times they have helped me keep on keeping on when I wanted to quit.

Also please pray for me, too.

Like you, Eugene, I'm a firm believer in the power of faith and prayer. To quote Lord Alfred Tennyson:

“More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of.”

Also, my wife, who is a woman of faith, always reminds me that the LORD has never let us down, even once, during the many times that we've faced seemingly insurmountable challenges.

Thank you for your kind and encouraging words. But, above all, thank you for the prayers.

I, too, will be remembering you in my prayer time.

God bless!