Subject: a heartwarmer : cinderella men
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kathy shares some keen insights that were revealed to her this
past father ' s day . the family decided to go to the movies , and she
came back quite a different , and better , person for it .
it ' s hard for the current generation to understand or appreciate
what times were like in the 1930 s - - today ' s problems just pale in
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cinderella men
by kathy whirity
it was the afternoon of father ' s day .
the girls had just treated us to a lavish lunch at bill ' s
favorite restaurant , and the two of us were contemplating our options
for the rest of the special day .
we had a few choices - - a leisurely walk around the
neighborhood , a bike ride through a scenic preserve , or go to the
movies .
since it was father ' s day , bill chose to go to the movies to see
cinderella man , the true story of depression era boxer , jim braddock .
i ' m not what you ' d call a russell crowe fan ( he ' s playing the
main character ) and a movie set in the time period of over 75 years
ago didn ' t exactly ring my bell , but it was , after all , bill ' s big
day so off to the movies we went .
a few minutes into the movie i was sure i was going to hate it .
the scenes of depression era poverty and hopelessness hung heavy on
the big screen . rationing mere morsels of food , going without heat
and electricity , causing little children to shiver and suffer in the
wrath of winter storms wasn ' t shaping up to be my cup of tea .
but then something happened .
memories of my own dad , god rest his soul , gave me reason to
view this movie in a different perspective .
my dad was a young boy in the early 30 s . his family suffered
great financial loss along with countless others . his childhood was
a hand to mouth existence , and more times than not , his had reached
his mouth totally empty .
jim braddock worked hard for his family . he fought in the ring ,
ever faithful to his manager . then a broken hand caused the end of a
promising boxing career . he stood in long work lines doing his best
to hide the cast on his broken hand while working through the pain
for a pittance of pay to feed his family .
i thought about the stories told across the kitchen table , when
i was young - - how my father ' s father worked as a laborer in just a
thin spring jacket in the middle of bone chilling winter , to pay the
bills . as a kid , i didn ' t really appreciate or understand the
sacrifice , but sitting in the theater as a middle - aged adult my eyes
soaked up the surroundings of unbearable situations .
that afternoon , as i saw children on the screen going without
necessities , i felt like i was witnessing a tiny fraction of my
father ' s reality .
jim braddock got a second chance at boxing . no one in their
right mind would predict this opportunity could lead to a comeback
but that ' s just what happens . on the eve of a big fight , he tells a
reporter that he now knows what he ' s fighting for - - milk money .
the reporter , clueless and most probably childless , doesn ' t
grasp the meaning . in every father ' s heart in those hard and
horrific times was the same sentiment of survival . watching scenes
of new york ' s central park reduced to a hovel of homeless people made
it almost hard to comprehend that america once was so destitute it
resembled a third world country .
jim braddock embodied the hope of america in his time .
people were inspired by this underdog who had the courage , will
and perseverance to succeed . a poignant part of the movie shows jim
paying back every penny of assistance given to him when he was left
with no choice but to accept the hand out from welfare .
i will never forget what happened shortly after placing my
father in a nursing home . he could not bring himself to eat what he
considered " free " meals . he ' d spend a good portion of his days
hanging around the nurse ' s station asking for a job .
" i can work to pay for my meals , " he ' d tell anyone who would listen .
my dad was stricken with alzheimer ' s but the character built in
him through the toughest of times remained with him forever .
we baby - boomers have been blessed in the sense that we will
never truly know the gut wrenching sacrifice that spurned our
ancestors to live passionately in times of pitifully dire straits at
a time when the whole of america was the underdog that would rise up
once again to beat the odds - - true champions of spirit .
sitting in the darkened theater tears couldn ' t help but fall .
in a sense , the movie brought me to the realization that , like jim
braddock , the heroes of america back then were the fathers waiting in
mile long work lines to put food on the table to feed starving
children .
this was father ' s day . i thought about my father and his father
before him , with loving humbleness and quiet respect for enduring
what i will never face . my memory lingered on the man who gave me
life , who often times went to bed hungry , with nothing more than the
clothes on his back . he grew up to work hard to provide for his
family the privileges he had never known .
a really touching movie , i left the theater thankful for all the
cinderella men of the depression era - - heroes who rose to the
challenge to give their families all the best they could .
truly america ' s inspiration in extremely difficult times .
- - kathy whirity
kathy lives in chicago where she shares her life and love with her
husband of 28 years , bill , their two daughters jaime and katie , and
two rambunctious retrievers holly and hannah . kathy is a newspaper
columnist who writes sentimental musings on family life . you can
reach her by clicking here : mailto : kathywhirity @ yahoo . com
basket case
by vickie baker
when your day ' s in a hand - basket heading downhill
and your heart is beginning to race ,
your stomach is threatening mutiny
your headache is off the charts ,
your mailbox is bulging with overdue bills
and catalogs - - wastebasket style - -
your cat ' s tossed her cookies all over your bed
your dog tossed his on the floor ,
the goldfish all died , the toilet won ' t flush
and the parakeet flew the coop ,
the temperature ' s soaring , ash clogs the air
and your lungs are bent out of shape ,
the shower won ' t work , your attitude stinks
and you feel like a basket case ,
silence the critic inside your head .
become a kid again ! ! !
blow bubbles and run through the sprinkler .
walk backwards around the block .
give yourself a standing ovation .
clap long and loud and hard .
place a colander on your head
then stand by the window and wave .
have a picnic lunch in your bathtub .
eat purple popsicles a - la - nude .
drink from the hose and throw water balloons .
ring someone ' s doorbell ' n run .
leave a joke on somebody ' s voice mail -
anonymously , of course .
write an uplifting letter just for yourself .
send it off quick ! don ' t chicken out !
put a mark on yourself where you ' ve had it up to .
pick up your bath towel and throw it in .
give yourself a pat on the back
you ' re a basket case no more .
- - vickie baker
vickie baker and her cat live independently with the help of a daily
attendant in denver , colorado .
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grace says : tatum ' s grandma brenda and grandpa rube , have a
vegetable garden with tomatoes , squash and peppers . tatum was
visiting with her parents and brenda showed tatum , 3 , one of the home
grown tomatoes . brenda asked , " do you know who grew this ? " tatum
looked at her grandma with big blue eyes and very seriously replied
" god ! "
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