Memorial Day, 2013

Daddy, E. L. "Jiggs" Ritchey

Today my husband gets a day off from teaching school along with millions of other people in our country. Memorial Day is a day to remember the people who have served and are presently serving in our armed forces. What a daunting task! To be in the military to risk one's own life and give up the comforts of home is unthinkable to me. I am grateful to all of the men and women serving at home and abroad to protect us from enemies who wish us harm.

God bless all of the armed forces who have gone to war over the years. Fighting, dying doesn't seem right to me, but I was not ever in any position to fight. I'm neither strong nor brave. My dad and his 3 brothers all went to war back in the 1940's. One of those brothers was lost after surviving the battle at Midway when his aircraft went down somewhere in the Pacific only six weeks later. My grandfather suited up for WWI. Those were wars before my time.

Johnny E. Ritchey & Me

Two years after I was born, the Vietnam War broke out in 1955. Later, in about '62 or '63, my brother, Johnny, was drafted and enlisted in the Army. He was only 20 or 21 years old. I would have been about 10 or 11 years old at the time and I recall being scared for my brother leaving home and his newlywed to go off to training where we were not supposed to correspond with him.

Johnny often went hunting with our granddad and was really good with a rifle. He was also very smart and had graduated from high school in the top 10 of his class. He received a scholarship to Lamar University to pursue an engineering degree. He completed 2 years of college, then dropped out to make a living for he and his newlywed. That was when he was drafted. As long as he was in school, he could be exempt from the draft. Dropping out of school and his number coming up sent him further away from home.

Johnny achieved the rank of captain and was in charge of a platoon at one of his boot camps. He once told me a story of a time when he was awaken by a private bursting into his barracks yelling that one of his men was drunk (or on drugs) shouting and waving a gun around. Johnny said he ran out and had to wrestle the crazed man to the ground putting him in a head-lock. He told me the incident happened fast and really scared him. With all that adrenaline pumping through his veins at the time, he had not noticed the wild man turning purple in the face until another private told him. He immediately let go of his grip so the soldier could breath again, almost killing the man. War didn't just happen on the battle fields. As captain of his platoon, he told of another guy who was terrible at using a syringe during their medic training. No one wanted to be his partner and get stuck by that guy, so Johnny volunteered. Ouch!

From Fort Poke, Louisiana, he flew to Japan. From there, a large percentage of the soldiers were sent to Vietnam to fight. He was spared from the 80 sent and got to stay in Japan where he worked with the medics, and had other duties I don't know about. I do know he drove a bus and picked up wounded who were flown to a hospital in Japan from Vietnam.

As a young teenager, I remember those months we didn't hear from Johnny and we wondered if he was dead or alive. I remember being scared that my brother might be hurt. We didn't even know if he was still in Japan. After waiting for many months, my dad got information when he corresponded with Johnny's superior. I believe that Johnny was ordered to write home. He was still stationed in Japan at the time. As I look back I believe he was homesick, sad and depressed. His marriage of 2 years was failing back home, he didn't want to be there in the Army, he wanted to be home working on his marriage. It was hard on a new marriage to be so far away in a foreign country during war times.

My brother never told me about what must have been the horrors of the wounded he picked up on the bus he drove or how they had suffered in the killing fields. Soldiers don't want to talk about the blood or their buddies who were mangled or never returned. The stories I told here are only a few of what Johnny ever told me about the Army. I'm certain to have my facts a bit confused, but that is how I remember it. I never even saw a picture of Johnny in uniform. I guess there is one somewhere, I just never saw it. There was a lot I would ask Johnny today if he were still alive.

God bless those men and women who enlisted either willingly or not, who served so we can have a free America.

What Now?

The time is just before noon and here I am again, at home, still in my pajamas on the first day after completing yet another job. Starting a month ago, I have tested 47 elementary students ranging in ages from 5-11 years old. Spring Break came just before the last week of testing providing obligation-free time away.

As the dust is settling, so to speak, from the end of another job, I am once again faced with "what now"? What will I do next to supplement our income, or afford happy anticipation of waking each morning to the day's activities. Limbo is not a state I cherish, as I am one who respects knowledge of what waits around the corner. I do not like the unknown. In fact surprises scare me. 

Take for example, my brother Richard. He is three years my senior and as young siblings, we were close enough in age to annoy each other. Unfortunately for me, this little sister spooked easily. Richard took great personal pleasure and entertainment in frightening me. Our childhood home sat on the corner of Llano and Holland Avenues in Port Neches, TX. A unique feature of the house was a small closet-sized enclosed back porch. A sort of dropping ground for dirty work clothes or anything my mom didn't want inside. The little porch was also the passage through which people entered into the house and our kitchen. As night fell, I often entered the back porch with caution because my brother, Richard, might be lurking just inside to scare the snot out of me. I was not a fan of the, "Surprise!"

Arriving home from church at night, the little porch and the inside of our house were dark. Richard jumped out of the car, racing ahead of us disappearing inside of the house. With a furrowed brow, sighing, I knew he was up to no good. As any little sister having been accosted numerous times before knows, one learns to expect the unexpected out of a big brother. He turned on no lights so as to set a spooky mood, making my entrance onto the porch room dark and creepy. Slowly, the screen door screeched as I opened it with anticipation of his antics. As I tiptoed inside the enclosed porch, I squinted to see any movement and called out to Richard, "You better not be hiding!" When I was certain my brother was not there, I knew he would be waiting for me inside the house. Touching the back door leading into the kitchen, I inched the knob around in my hand, cautiously pulling back on the door. To the immediate right of the kitchen door was my parent's bedroom and it was there that Richard often stalked his prey. My heart racing, I held my breath and, "BOO!" Richard yelled, jumping out at me like phantoms in a spook house. It never failed to frighten me and my screams only fueled Richard's laughter with delight at my jumping fear.

Even though my brother's practical jokes were innocent, childish fun, to this day as a grown, almost senior citizen adult, the fear of the unknown still scares me. (By the way, Richard has outgrown playing practical jokes on me.) This state of Limbo or uncertainty is like anticipating a surprise. When the next venture comes around, I hope I laugh and feel fulfilled by whatever job or project comes. My God alone knows what lurks around the corner and I have to believe that with Him all things are possible. He will lead me through the darkness and on him I can rely. Years of Sunday school pay off when we are in Limbo. Maybe my physical daddy is smiling down on me as I recall Psalm 23 that he took the time to help me memorize as a child. It is often these words of my Lord's encouragement that flow through my mind in times of uncertainty.

 

Psalm 23

King James Version (KJV)

23 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

² He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

³ He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

⁴ Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

⁵ Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

⁶ Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

My brother, Richard Lee Ritchey and me. Sept. 2012

In the Year Twenty, Thirteen

In the year 2013 we will...what?  My hope is to crawl out from underneath some of our debts. We were blessed this year when I was assigned two long term jobs substitute teaching in the schools and enough daily jobs to help with finances. If you read my previous entry, then you know that last sub job was not a walk in the park. However, the income from the jobs, plus the generosity of my in-laws allowed us to selfishly gift each other with some new furniture this past Christmas.

Such was a welcome gift to begin 2013! Now for the rest of the year. Retired in 2007, I have had many work opportunities come my way through the God's mercy. Though none have panned out for regular employment, I am thankful to have been able to pad my retirement checks and help pay bills. The last two month long term job has ended and I am currently on a short break of sorts before I begin administering tests to Gifted and Talented candidates in elementary schools. Even though I tell myself I "deserve" this break, I feel guilty every day I do not go out to earn a paycheck. Kim works hard for us and I know God has blessed me with this man. So, it is my daily desire that I can help him with our joint efforts by doing my part.
(You may be asking yourself, "Why did you retire, Mary Lou?" I ask myself that question too. I will say that the last long term job reminded me of why I retired.)


This year I would like to see more active resolve in our financial problems. My thought has been that we should move, to downsize to a house with less monthly mortgage. One day I am completely convinced that this would save us. The next day, not so much and a wave of sadness rushes over me at the thought of moving from this place. Today I am of the mind to shop around on the internet for our next home. Tomorrow I'll pray for more work to come my way.

Once again for as long as I have been retired and before, it is at this time of year the money saga looms overhead. Sometimes I just hate money and all the problems it brings. Other days, I realize that money brings many resolutions to problems we go through. It was certainly a welcome surprise to receive a monetary gift so we could afford our new furniture. There is a bit of irritating irony in that thought because it is money that has me twisted in knots and money that will get me out of the entanglement.

2013 will likely rock along as any other year, over the ups and downs of life. There will be on this earth storms, fires, natural disasters, people starving, people dying, evil lurking around the corners, evil shooting innocents with no regard to life itself. I worry, fear, and long for the exhale of relief from so much wrong in my little part of the world. Yet, out in the bigger parts of the world I know there are tragedies of such magnitude were those to effect me personally, I would surely lie down and die. One day I praise God for his mercy and grace in my life as He sustains my days, providing me with all I need. The next day I hear of senseless shootings taking place in common places as a mall, a movie house, or the most unlikely of places for tragedy to strike, in elementary schools; I pray for my uncertainty of a God and pray that He does in fact watch over me and my family. Lord, give me strength!

My hope in 2013 is that there will be no evil person/s to use his/her unhappiness to punish innocent people, that the Lord God will petition the natural disasters on earth to be still and that I will finally breathe a sigh of relief over personal matters. In my anxiety about life's turmoil, I have to keep my eye focused on my Father and remember He exists and knows what I do not. He has seen the outcome of this life and I have only read about it. May God's mercies continue to bless our lives in 2013 and may we believe more fervently in the power of an Almighty Savior.