Mornings, Puppies, and Kittens

 

MORNING, PUPPIES, AND KITTENS

 

 

Shadows peak and scurry from the trees,

a puppy shivers and whines while upon my knees.

 

Full of life and wonder a kitten chases its tail,

a bee darts and dives around a flower’s water pail.

 

It’s morning in the country and creatures are a stir,

the morning started fresh again and before night, all will be a blur.

 

If only we like morning, puppies, and kittens would remain,

then the dawning of each new day would be without pain.

 

This morning is a faithful reminder of God’s care,

life begins anew with the promise every sorrow He’ll share.

 

Bobby E. Hopper

July 1, 1998

Standing Alone and Having the Last Word

 Most of us have ventured farther than we needed to go in life.  We took that infamous next step and fell flat on our face, had the last word and it has cost a life of regret, got one more laugh and it led to embarrassment.  My family says that I always have to have the last word.  I usually reply, “No, I don’t.”

When I think about going a little farther, I remember the words of my dad.  He would say, “Son if you make a stand, be willing to stand alone because most of the time you will look around and see that you are all by yourself.”

Forty-five years ago, I had the one of many “stand lone” experiences.  It was Friday August 13, 1976.  I was fried from my job after I confronted the owner about an insurance policy. 

It started at the birth of my eldest son, Andy, on January 18 of that year.  The insurance policy included coverage for the birth of a baby.  I paid a deducible and took Andy home from St. Vincent’s Hospital in Birmingham.  Shortly, I received statements that I owned for Andy’s birth.

I asked the owner, since he was boss, human resource, personnel, and insurance managers for the company why the insurance did not pay for the hospital stay.

He said he had to get with his partner in New York and that he would let me know.  Another statement came and I again asked the owner about the status of the insurance inquiry.  The same question received the same response, “I will get with my partner in New York.”

I revisited my policy and once again, all I owed was a minimum deductible that I had already paid.  I don’t know about you, but I dislike to be ignored and for people to be disingenuous with me.

Since I was a young man of twenty-three, I sought the wisdom of older guys whom I worked.  They talked of all the shady things that transpired in the routine work of the shop.  I remember doing things that I thought were improper and wrong, but I was a stupid twenty-three year old.  What did I know?

The collective thought of the employees was that the owner needed to answer some questions we had.  I received encouragement from my Sunday school class that we as Christians needed to stand for that which was moral and right.  I remember a sermon that the pastor preached about snakes.  He said, “If you mess with snakes, you will get snake bit.”

I finally got an answer from the owner about the insurance.  He said that he and his partner did not know of any insurance that paid for baby delivery.

On my favorite day, Friday the 13^th, I, with the backing of six to seven employees, confronted the owner about irregularities with work and insurance.  I know now, but was clueless back then that my companions lacked backbone, why else would they let a young man lead? 

I showed him my policy and the coverage.  Looking back, I realize I caught him with the proverbial “hand in the cookie jar.” He became hostile.  When the discussion got heated, I looked around and I was the only one standing up to the owner.  After a short exchange and my short diatribe on the owner’s spiritual lostness, he fired me.

The response from my allies shocked me.  They said I took the discussion too far.  I thought I did the right thing.  The premiums I paid were for full coverage, but the owner and his partner were paying for a lesser insurance coverage.  When caught, they agreed to pay my hospital bill.

The owner realized what he did and offered my job back, but I took another road on life’s journey.  I never made a full machinist because I never had an opportunity to continue the apprenticeship.

After two months of building houses, I went to work at the cement plant on October 13.  During the between months, I faced great challenges and criticism.  Everyone was mad at me for getting fired.  I stood for what was right, I found myself alone, and I went into a time of a personal low.

Lying on the front seat of my old Ford pickup, my dad asked what was wrong.  I told him that I stood for a principle I thought right morally and ethically.  Now, I feel abandoned.  His words I never will forget.  “Son, if you stand for what is right, be willing to stand alone.  If you are right, that is what matters regardless of what others think, including me.  Son, I am proud of you.”

At a pastor’s conference Dr. Rick Lance, Executive Secretary for Alabama Baptists, gave an inspirational devotion on Jesus at Gethsemane and the phrase, “Jesus went a little farther in following God Will, Word, and Work.”  I immediately went back to 1976.

 Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder. And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.  Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.  And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.  And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour? (Matthew 26:36-39 KJV)

I cannot start to imagine how Jesus felt at that tremendous moment in His journey to the Cross.  His dad knew that His Son would be all alone.

My Last Supper With Dad

The other day I was sharing with some folks about the intimacy of sharing a meal together.  There is a sacred bond when sharing a meal.  Growing up as we gathered around the breakfast, dinner, and supper table, we shared and learned about life.  Time there was one of mostly laughter and fun. 

Sometimes anger would penetrate our sacred table and the devil would enjoy our confrontations.  The most ungodly were ones when mom and dad would be at odds.  These sad and intense moments rose their satanic goading and the terrible and frightening displays of animosity would side down the walls and splatter the dining room curtains with food that God had given us, momma had prepared, and that we not longer had an appetite.

Thank the Good Lord that these devilish moments were few and far between and our table was one of reconciliation and love.  Times around the table together grew scarce as we all got older.  Dad would work evenings, mom worked days, and my sister, brothers, and I would be involved in extracurricular activities.  For a short time, mom and dad both worked evenings but momma would leave us a great supper on the table.  That is back when you did not have to worry about food spoiling on the table.

When we did gather around the table, there was love.  We all had our places.  Dad sat at the head.  I sat at the other end.  My two brothers sat at daddy’s left and my sister and mom sat to his right, momma being next to him.  Today when I sit at a rectangular table, I always set on the opposite end from the head seat.

Daddy, even though for many years did not know the Lord, requested that someone say grace.  Granny Hopper taught her family to say grace.  As a widow trying to raise nine children, Granny Hopper knew the importance of thanking God for His blessings.  How that Granny cooked in dishpans on a wood-burning stove with no running water amazes me.

One of the special moments of the supper table was dad saying grace for the first time.  We all teared up as He thanked God for the food and our family.  There were some shenanigans at the supper table, some even during grace.  One was my sister would pinch me under the table and stupid me would hit her.  Momma hit me.  Finally, my Uncle Clifton told mama was happening.  Momma hit my sister.

There have been times when pieces of chicken, especially the pulley bone, would mystery be missing off the serving plate and amazedly appearing on our sister’s plate.  After prayer, someone’s lips would be burning only to have his lips burn more.  Cayenne pepper will do that when rubbed on the rim of your drinking glass.

Dad asked momma to turn thanks.  She was standing beside me putting another dish on the table.  Momma seemed to have a difficult time praying.  I think it was because I rubbed her stomach as she prayed.

I remember the last time I sat at the supper table with dad.  It was a Monday night in April.  Dad was dying from a brain tumor.  He could not longer walk or talk.  Mom and I put him in his wheelchair.  I had arranged for her to take the night off.  Caretakers unselfishly sacrifice to care of loved ones.  Mom and my sister were wonderful to care for dad in his illness.  My brothers and I cannot thank them enough for their sacrifice.

I fed dad his last meal.  It was the most moving moment at the supper table.  I sat at dad’s right side.  Mom had prepared a good southern meal of purple hull peas, oiled potatoes, okra, corn, and cornbread.  I fixed dad’s plate and fed him.  I used a fork to feed him and our only mode of communication was the nod of his head.  I was used to that because dad nodded his head when he could talk.  One time I put the fork to his mouth and he nodded no.  I put the fork to every bowl to which he nodded no.  Dummy me. I forgot to give him some sweet tea to drink.  I pointed the fork at the tea and he nodded yes.

Dad was a big eater, never eating between meals.  He did not like diary products, especially butter, and rarely ate sweets of drink soft drinks.  His last meal was a big one.  We were doing fine until daddy choked on cornbread.  I thought he was going to die on me.  Later that night dad would have a seizure and rushed to the hospital.

From early Tuesday morning until Friday morning, around four in the morning, dad had only fluids for substance.  Momma always mourned that dad starved to death.  The nurses bragged on momma saying that dad was the healthiest cancer patient that had.  Dad lost very little weight during his illness.

Last meals are important and those precious moments bring with it a tear of sadness and a smile of joy.  Not long ago I share my last breakfast with Nanny, my sister-in-laws mother.  She sat to my right.  I passed the breakfast dishes to her, helped her jelly a biscuit, and poured her some coffee that Saturday morning at my brother’s home.  It was their Saturday ritual to have breakfast with his in-laws.  Nanny always picked at me.  She loved it, as did I.  The morning of her funeral, I sure missed her.

We all share moments not certain if they are last moment together.  I do not remember the last meal I had with momma before cancer overtook her.

 

I wonder how the Disciples of Jesus felt after their last supper together.  As our Savior girded himself and washed their feet, did they often think of that moment when the God of the universe bathed their nasty feet?  Did they think of the moments they were all concerned with their position in the Kingdom that Jesus’ position would be hanging on a cruel cross in a few hours?  Did the wine they shared remind them of the blood that flowed from Jesus?  Did the ripping and tearing of the bread weigh heavy on their hearts as the body of Christ shredded as the whip thirty-nine times crossed the back?

The moment they were together was a celebration of the watershed belief of Old Testament, the Passover.  It was the last meal that the Hebrews had before leaving Egypt.

 

As they were eating, Jesus took the bread, blessed and broke it, gave it to the disciples . . .

Matthew 26:26a

 

 

 

 

Time is on My Side

The gadgets that humanity has at its disposal have always shaped society and intellectualism.  Overnight luxuries become necessities.  If society is not careful, gadgets become idols determining what and how we worship.

Take the invention of the clock.  Most of us live by the clock.  A clock wakes us from our sleep.  Our sleep time started by looking at a clock to see the time of night to analyze the proper hours of sleep we would need for proper rest.  We needed to rest because we start work by punching a time card in a time clock.

During that time of work, clocks determine our breaks, dividing our work time into strategic intervals of rest and time to refuel our bodies.  We leave work by looking at a clock and once again punching a time clock.

We race home looking at the clock to determine what time to prepare supper.  Once food has been prepped for cooking, we use the clock to determine how long each dish will have to cook.  This determines what time we will enjoy a meal and how much time we have to enjoy the remaining time doing homework, watching TV, and other pertinent things before time to go to bed.  It makes me wonder how humanity, especially Americans, operates without a clock. 

Speaking of a time clock, ABC Rail in Calera had an incident where men were in line waiting to clock out, which was against company policy and considered stealing.  As a supervisor approached to give a royal chewing to the time stealing employees, a stealing, quick thinking employee confronted him by saying, “Looks like a company as big as ABC Rail could have two clocks that had the same time.”  The supervisor turned and walked away, outsmarted, at least until the next time.

Another question is what was the necessity that prompted someone to invent a clock?

Well, it was the church.  It was invented to see how much more time it would take the preacher to finish his sermon after saying, “Now in closing” when he really means I have five more minutes to preach because it is not after twelve yet.  No, I am kidding.  However, the Catholic Church at the Pope's insistence initiated the invention.

Reading Clarence P. McClelland’s book, Quotation Marks and Exclamation Points (The Lakeside Press 1935), it reminded me of the clock’s origin.  You know necessity is the mother of invention.  McClelland writes, “Lewis Munford in his fascinating book The Techniques of Civilization tells us that the first manifestation of the machine age was in the regular measurement of time and that the clock, and not the steam engine, is the key machine of the modern industrial age.  He shows how the new mechanical conception of time arose largely out of the routine of the monasteries, particular the Benedictine monasteries.  It was in the seventh century that the Pope decreed that the bells of the monasteries should ring seven times in twenty-four hours for devotions.  Some means of keeping count of these punctuation marks in the day and insuring their regular repetition became necessary.  This led ultimately to the invention of the mechanical clock which in the thirteenth century got out of the monasteries into the cities and brought a new regularity into the life of the workman and the merchant.”

Munford says, “Eternity ceased gradually to serve as the measure and focus of human actions.  The clock, moreover, served as a model for many other kinds of mechanical works, and the analysis of the motion that accompanied the perfection of the clock with the various types of gearing and transmission that were elaborated, contributed to the success of quite different kinds of a machine.”

Did you notice something important there?  “Eternity ceased gradually to serve as the measure and focus of human actions.”  Spiritual things gave way to mechanical things.  Humanity slowly moved from God centered thinking to mechanical thinking.

When Dr. McClelland wrote his book, the Great Depression was six years prior.  That great catastrophe came after a period of great inventions and a frame of mind that technology could save humanity.  It is pre-World War II.

There are those that say that new technology (cell phones, blackberries, etc) are the new gods that people have to have to survive.  The god of technology will save humanity.  I will say that I have been in some worship services and funerals where a cell phone captured more attention than a sermon point.  I have even heard some folks, not necessarily young people, who say they cannot live without a cell phone, computer, etc.

Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.  And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever (I John 2:15-17 KJV).

What would Munford think today?  Well, it is time to go!

 

Oblivious Rider

My brother David is back on the road as a hardwood salesman.  David attends hardwood conventions across the nation.  At a convention in San Antonio, Texas, he won a fully loaded Harley-Davison motorcycle.  He was hesitant to enter the contest, but did so at the insistence of a young lady.  The keynote speaker was the CEO of Harley-Davison.  When they drew David’s entry, the CEO said that the winner comes from a long line of bikers, referring to Dennis Hopper of the cult movie “Easy Rider.”  David said his heart began to beat faster, faster, and almost exploded when they called out his name.  David claims that this is the first thing he ever won.  Of the three of the Hopper brothers, David rode a motorcycle the least, yet he won one.

David has met some interesting characters over the years, but he has the uncanny ability not to recognize famous people.  For instance, he and our cousin Tim were at a hardwood convention In Nashville and decided to attend a Gaither Concert.  They were fortunate to get seats on the front row.  On the way to the concert from their hotel, a longhaired man in a long trench coat got on the elevator.  They spoke and David wanted to invite the man to the Gaither concert.  He never garnered the nerve to ask.  They did ask where the man was going.  He said that he was headed to work.  When they exited the elevator, David told Tim that he felt sorry for the man.  He said we are so lucky to be going to hear some gospel music and that poor man was probably headed out for a night of wine, women, and song.  David could not fathom such a thought.

David and Tim were enjoying the luxury of first class seat as The Gaithers entered the stage to a standing ovation.  David looked at Tim and said that’s the man in the elevator.  It was Guy Penrod, lead singer for the Gaither Vocal Band.  Penrod is internationally known for his powerful vocals and broad singing range. 

The morning of the concert, an elderly lady asked David’s assistance to set up a display.  David graciously helped the lady and they struck up a conversation.  He found out that she was from Alabama and very familiar with the happy Goodman family.  Oblivious to her identity she finally told David her name was Vestal Goodman. 

Vestal was honored to be named “The Queen of Southern Gospel” and won her first Dove Award in 1969.  She and the Happy Goodmans won multiple Grammy and Dove Awards.  She sang for President Jimmy Carter at the Whitehouse in 1979.

To show that David is really bad at recognizing people, David and Mike Allen, former pastor of Sardis near Thomaston, were playing in a pro/am golf tournament.  Now if you are playing in a pro/am tournament, more that likely you are paired with a professional somebody.

David had teed-off and was returning to his golf cart.  There was a big burly looking man in a cowboy hat smoking a cigarette, slouched on the golf cart.  David told the stranger that he must be his pro teammate.  He asked who are you and what do you do.  He said I am Trace Adkins and I sing.  Did I forget to tell you that David is a true blonde and that he is a minister of music?

Trace Adkins is a movie, television, and country music star.  He is famous for his baritone vocals.  David fits one of Adkins songs, “This Ain’t No Thinking Thing.” Adkins also authored a book.  I am thinking about getting it for David.  The book is A Personal Stand: Observations and Opinions of a Free-Thinking Redneck.

My brother is with some pretty good company when it comes to not recognizing people.

And, behold, two of them went that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was from Jerusalem about threescore furlongs. And they talked together of all these things which had happened.  And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them.  But their eyes were holden that they should not know him (Luke 24:13-16 KJV).

 

And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, He expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself.  And they drew nigh unto the village, whither they went: and He made as though He would have gone further.  But they constrained Him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And He went in to tarry with them.  And it came to pass, as He sat at meat with them, He took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and gave to them.  And their eyes were opened, and they knew Him; and He vanished out of their sight (Luke 24:27-31 KJV).

 

Truth is that most of us have a hard time recognizing Jesus when He is walking with us.