Sun Lakes Writers’ Group

Do you enjoy writing? Stories? Memories? Family histories?

Please plan on attending our Sun Lakes Writing Group. We meet at the Cottonwood Ceramics Room (A-8) each Tuesday from 1 to 3 p.m.

Please arrive at 12:30 p.m. for easy conversation before we start our group at 1 p.m. Each week, we choose two words to write on the following week. You can use either one or both words, or if you choose, you can use words of your own choice!

We do not critique any writings unless you personally ask for opinions. We are a fun group and we enjoy our creativity. We break for refreshments halfway through the meeting.

Please call Barbara at 480-388-0190 for further information.

All Created Equal

Gary Alan Rose

Walk with me on my journey; I swear I’ll walk with you.

Let us travel down that road, to see what good we both can do.

Surely we can come together, with all those folks we meet.

We may become quite weary, with tired legs and blistered feet.

But we’ll make new friends we join, breaking bread with one another.

We’ll come to know each one, accepting them as sister and as brother.

I don’t care the color of their skin, their race or where they’re based.

I only know they’re equal souls, on earth where they’ve been placed.

Humility is surely key and acceptance is the goal.

Let us bend a knee to help and gather as a whole.

Enough time has been long wasted, and keeping us apart.

Let us celebrate humanity, with an open gentle heart!

In Our Time

Gary Alan Rose

How far back can your mind reach to retrace the highs and lows of your life?

Over the years there have been times of great joy and times of great sorrow. Many of each can be recalled.

Surely for me, a couple of highlights bring a smile to my face; the birth of our only son and the birth of our only daughter. Each of them so different, each of them with their own separate strengths and weaknesses, as we all possess.

We took numerous photos of their formative years and beyond, photos now stored in albums that the newer generations no longer employ. But when we are old, or shall I say “older,” we can take those albums out of the closet, sit on the couch together, and relish the times past when they were young and we were younger. They are memories to treasure, while we can.

No plausible need to replay the lows we faced. But, we faced them together with determination to overcome, along with our hopes and prayers. Whatever befell us, we persevered. And somehow, those bad times brought us clarity to the notion that the rain falls on all of us. Difficulty is quite simply a part of life and·there are lessons to be learned from those experiences. As we emerged from the lows, we were more aware of the times of tribulation for others, offering them help and comfort like we had received during our journeys. No one needs facing turbulent times alone. Reach out … let your call be heard, probably by someone who face trials of their own.

Whatever time we are allotted here on terra firma, be the one to promote persistence to accept what comes your way and deal with it. Yet this is a hard task I still struggle with, if I am honest. Of the highs and lows we encounter, in our time, ponder how far you have come to find a portion of peace.

Gather your harvest of each while you may, and do the best you can. Then, regardless of the outcome, you will know that you could not have done more.

Not All Action Heroes Wear Capes

Jacqueline M. Ruffino-Platt

Comic books were so popular growing up costing only 10 cents or less. Today, there are people who collect the oldies but goodies worth way more than the pennies. I liked a few of them myself. Archie, and his friends, especially Blondie another good one. It has been so long ago to remember others. The boys always enjoyed reading Batman and Robin, who toured Gotham City saving those from the horrible and dangerous men and women who made themselves up with makeup and weird looking outfits. Superman, was a favorite one of mine. Flying around the Metropolis helping and saving the people. “Look up in the sky … is it a plane, is it a bird??? … No it’s Superman.” They were funny, and quite enjoyable. And they all wore capes. The ones who wore the masks I didn’t like very much. A little scary as a little girl. My brothers enjoyed them and one brother collected the old comics over the years until they were lost along the way with our moving from place to place. Some of you may remember these heroes were on the radio at some time and my mom was cautious not to expose me to the scary parts of the programs. On the last page of the comic books, and at the end of radio programs, everything always turned out good and everyone was saved. Our caped heroes helped everyone, and all was well in their cities. The bad guys were captured and all was good in the Metropolis and surrounding areas. Think about it … don’t you wish we had Superman even Batman to help us when things got really bad? I know I would. They would save us from the really bad guys and the environment we are facing.

Today, we have heroes in our midst, in our towns, in our cities and in our country. They don’t wear capes and fly around in the air from place to place; however, they are our heroes. We the people of the United States… I believe is the beginning of the Preamble to the Constitution. It is a good read. We have great heroes to protect us the best they know how and devote their lives in saving us from sickness, tragedy, crime and unfortunate situations. Nurses, who devote their time, many, many hours, their effort to help those who are brought to the hospitals and give the absolute best care possible with what they have to work with. Our doctors, our technicians, and all hospital employees work hard to see everyone is being helped. Our police officers who serve each and every town and country and try to bring peace to all. Our military men and women who are in countries, names of places we haven’t heard of before. Fighting for us to keep us safe. I could keep going on finding those folks out there who are doing their very best so we could be safe. We shall never forget to mention the volunteers who give of themselves and their time to help each and every one of us and our wellbeing. I know every one of these soldiers, nurses, doctors, policemen, military, and volunteers … I believe are all Action Heroes and they are flying around without a cape.

Pandemic Consequences

Ruby Regina Witcraft

The powers that be seem to think that we can handle ourselves now and have lifted the restrictions that have bound us to our homes. This won’t change my life much except that I can now go back to my daily swims.

Also, this may be one of my last stories on this subject as I am getting a little past thinking about it. However, since we are still in the doldrums of this episode, here I go again. This may be difficult as my old steel trap mind has now turned into a sieve.

Just finding something to keep me occupied is a struggle and I seem to make things to do just for the heck of it. For instance, I have changed my bed so many times that the sheets are wearing out. This, by the way, is a job that I hate to do most under normal circumstances. I have never slept in such a clean bed.

Yesterday I went on my weekly grocery shopping trip and was glad to see that the shelves have started to fill. My first stop is always the produce department where there were three men, trying to get the plastic bags open. I opened my bag immediately and they asked, “How did YOU do that?” I told them that you had to have an engineering degree but just moistening your fingers would help.

They gagged when I told them that I moistened my fingers. Hey, difficult problems require icky solutions.

My biggest and most tiring chore is to hose the side entry walkway and cement driveway. This involves dragging the hose down said walkway, out to the front, where I can reach well enough to wash. You probably wonder why I’m such a clean freak that I must do this unnecessary chore. I’ll tell you. My house and the surrounding cement are in the flight path of every bird in Sun Lakes which puts a very tall house, across the cul-de-sac, the prime destination for them. These areas are anointed with the droppings, from their nether bottoms, to the point that they really looked whitewashed. Then the sun does me a favor by baking this lovely present to an, almost, permanent condition. Looking, left, right, up and down the whole street, there is not another driveway that shows this gift. Now my driveway is so clean you could (not that you would want to) eat off of it. Lucky me for having something to do at a very boring time! Now if I can just lug this hose around to the back, hanger up, bracket I will really need a nap. When I can’t think of anything else to do, I cut my hair. I’ll soon be bald.

I feel blessed that I have such a nice home to do things for, and that I haven’t been struck down with the terrible virus, but will still be careful as I hope everyone is doing. Having been through several wars, in my lifetime, I feel sure that we will survive and maybe learn that bad times follow good times and, in reverse, look forward to good times, once again, following bad.