Hello, Neighbors. A couple of things have happened the past couple of weeks that boggles the mind or at least in my mind anyway. Powerful things that snuck up on me and filled me with hope that our little town as well as our world can come together.
It started when my truck stopped running in as a dangerous position as could be done. I might not have given the credit for the man who jumped out of his car to help me push my truck off the road and out of danger. Then the truck drivers that pulled around me and left me safe. Waving at me and mostly smiling at me folly. Then the Highway Patrolman who just appeared and pushed my truck, alone, to safety. But I have already mentioned these things.
I would like to add a few things that happened that I didn’t mention, but were pretty close to my heart. These things happen, it seems every day, which touch me and fill me with hope for a loving future.
The other day I was watching our local news channel out of Salinas where they found it newsworthy to mention a veteran from over on the Peninsula. He sits in his driveway every day and waves at the passing cars as they honk their horns to let him know they saw him. He has been doing this for quite some time to let the drivers know they have made his day a little brighter. I know how he feels.
The last time I watched the news and saw this story I couldn’t stop a tear from cascading down my cheek. It may seem a little maudlin, but I too wave at drivers. I have had a couple stop, as does that veteran. Some stop because they were a little unsure of what my gyrations represent. That is one of the reasons I even started the waving and silly dance steps. I tell those that stop that it is because they are neighbors, and we should know our neighbors.
We love this country and knowing who lives near you is a treasure. I don’t pantomime honking a horn, but I always feel it a sense of belonging. Where we live, especially here in South County, is an example of what this country stands for, love of country and love of neighbor. The veteran over on the coast gets it as by his age probably fought in one of our terrible wars.
As time goes by I remember standing outside the recruiter’s office in 1971 and he stuck his head out of the door and said, “Come on in! I’m going to make you a warrior!” Now I ask, what 17-year-old high school dropout wouldn’t want to be a warrior? In those heady days, I could dream of the young women who were surely looking for a warrior. Over 50 years later, I still feel I made the right choice. I made a home in Gonzales, raised my family and have strived to be a good neighbor.
Which brings me to the next good thing that has happened: I got a phone call from my oldest son the other day. He was in his truck heading over to the Central Valley. His job requires him to travel a lot, so we often just call each other to help pass the time. He surprised me with a question that I had not anticipated. “What do you think of our new Pope, Dad?” I demurred and said, “I don’t have a good answer for that son.” “Well, it will be good to hear the Homily in English,” he replied. That seems to be the question of our times.
“What do you think of our new Pope?” Rev. Robert Prevost from Chicago, Ill., who is now Pope Leo XIV, an Augustinian friar who studied Saint Augustine, which is where my son Austin got his name. We often joke in our family that Austin is a deep thinker, just like Saint Augustine. So it remains to be seen, but we are all hopeful.
I was raised mostly by my mom taking her boys to the nearest Pentecostal Church. I was too young to understand what the Preacher was teaching. I didn’t spend any time in a church until I asked my wife to marry me. We were married in Sacred Heart Church in Salinas by Father Larry Bertrozoff. Since I came to the Catholic Church later in life, I feel a sense of belonging and have always admired the rituals and sense of community.
I wave to say thank you. Thanks to those wonderful neighbors who stopped and helped me catch Ranger on a day the traffic was a little heavy on Fanoe Road. This crazy dog of mine finds it entertaining to see what happens when he steps in front of a car. Thank goodness through training and commands he has learned the right way.
Oh! I have been questioned about why I wave and my excuse is the same as the veteran that sits in his drive-way every day. We do it to show folks that we are all together in our journey through life. I, too, am a lucky guy like the veteran, in that I have faced the enemy and still came home to our loved ones. I haven’t asked the veteran from over on the coast, but I don’t have to. I know why we do this. To say thank you to everyone we see and to let them know we would do it again in a heart beat.
For those who weren’t as fortunate as we were, our next holiday will be Memorial Day. This day is a somber one. Please don’t say “Happy Memorial Day,” especially to a veteran. Just say thank you, and remember what Mr. Rodgers used to say, “Won’t you be my neighbor?” because we are all neighbors.
God Bless.
