crossing bridges, finding poison

There is a reddish dot near the center of the picture above. It was taken by my wife, and the reddish dot would be my shirt... I was lagging behind, looking for 'gator tracks.

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This was one spot I just HAD to see before we returned from our Florida trip. That was the park near my parents' home that had the alligator signage. It had the coolest bridge that went from a playground to the lake. I wouldn't have minded purchasing a one-day fishing license if I had my tackle with me, because once we got past 'gator-ville, the lake looked great for fishing! As I said in a previous post, we did not spot any alligators, but instead, the most dangerous thing we came across was poison ivy. No, I didn't touch it. How do you get rid of this stuff? Did you know that if you burn it, you can get that nasty rash inside your lungs, just from inhaling it?!

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Hey, have you heard about Disney courting controversy in their newest feature? The new movie will pair a black princess and a white prince. The negative criticism I was reading, suggested that "it was about time they had a black princess, but what's wrong with giving her a black prince?" That person complains too much. It is good to show children (and everyone else) that black and white can live happily ever after. I'm curious to see how big of a reaction they stir up with this movie. You'd think today's world would have healed this rift by now, or at least that we would have more progress than this. Racism is a nasty poison, and I can't stand even the smell of it. How are we going to stop the bleeding, if people keep inflicting fresh wounds?!

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I left a comment, saying how I applaud the positive image Disney is creating with that movie. Ethnic diversity is a beautiful thing, and I feel I must speak up whenever I catch any talk of racism. What about you?

Jai Hind

According to Wikipedia, "Jai Hind" is an Indian patriotic salutation that roughly translates, "Victory to India" or "Long live India."

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India won the world cup! (Cricket.) For the record, I am an American egomaniac who doesn't know the first thing about the game of cricket. When I heard they won the world cup, I assumed that it was talking about soccer or futbol. And most of my knowledge of THAT sport comes from my son's soccer club.

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Anyhoo, I was thinking about India and soccer, and it made me smile, because my son is blessed to know several people of Indian descent through church and through soccer. This picture shows a pregame goal kick with two of our soccer pals. The defender with his back to us is a very skillful player whom I have nicknamed "Superfoot." The gent in the white jersey is their coach. They bring their whole family to the games, including Mrs. Coach, the baby and Grandpa.

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When I was a their age, I did not know ANY people from India. For much of my younger years, we only knew two cultures, caucasian and hispanic. Chicago may have all the nations of the world represented in the city, but it is still quite segregated.

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That's why I love the town where I live now. You pass a Bolingbrook church parking lot or walk through a supermarket, and you will find many cross-cultural friendships.

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This reminds me, a bigot once warned me not to let my oldest daughter date black (African) people. "What if they have children?" was supposed to be the convincing factor. But whether a child has an homogeneous or mixed lineage, are not ALL children beautiful?! Besides, mixed backgrounds produce some of the most amazing skin tones and features!

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Am I talking too much? Okay, I'll wrap it up now.

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What I meant to say was that I am grateful to be able to enjoy my friends with Indian roots. God bless you, and congratulations on that cricket thing. Jai Hind!