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Show PtgeZA J May 8, UeSnmmkConnlJBce 1998 if I Cpuld Toqch th World The Best Mom in the Whole Wide World POWtll little, know-it-a- ll, punk kid. I didnt appreciate her. No matter whin she did, no matter hew hard she worked to put food on our plates and clothes on ast week I promised two more lenona our backs, I just didnt notice. Tuna casserole 'one can learn by again?" Id say, or, T dont want underwear for watching Star Wart. Christmas, why cant I get tons of cod toys like Well, Im going to have to e beg your pardon and the remainder of dud column becauae aomething a little more important haa come to my attention. Thia weekend marks the moat celebrated, moat highly anticipated day on die calendar Mother's Day. Hallmark aaya thia ia their biggeat card sell-in- g holiday of the year. And why not? Everyone haa a mom, right? Unfortunately, I won't be able to make it home thia Sunday to tdl my mom how grateful I am for all abea done for me, and bow happy I am to be her son. So, oo top of the wonderful, ainccre yet awfully funny greeting card 1 plan on rending, I decided to tell you, oh faithful reader, exactly just what makes her the coolest, most awesome, and by far the beat mom in the whole world, and most likely, the entire universe. First of all, I have to tell you I came into thia world over 25 yean ago weighing something like 20 pounds. I mean, I was one fat little baby. Cute, but fiat. 1 was even a month early. Now, if she put up with that, ahe has to be great, right? Then I began growing up. Just like most boys, I came home dirty, tracked mid into the house, got into fights with my siblings, and put off doing chores until die last possilbe second, You know the routine. When you realize I had two older brothen and an older sister too, youll understand it wasn't easy keeping the house, and usi in order. On top of that, she was on her own. My fathef left us when I was very young, so it was just my mom. She worked, ahe cooked, she cleaned, she disciplined. - Alone.' And amazingly, ahe war able to see all the baseball games, all the school plays and recitals, and take us to ail the dreaded dentist Billy?" Unfortunately, it didnt get better with age. ' I wouldnt say I was rebelious, but I never showed much respect to my man, either. I never wanted to be seen with her in public. I didnt want her to congratulate me after we won a game, what would die girls think? I complained about doing chores, not having the expensive clotbes. or anything else I . could think of. I guess I could say 1 was just a kid and didnt know better. Even in junior high and high school, I had a lot to learn. But I dont want to take that route. I'm very Sony for ever treating my mom the way I did. Sure, I was never terrible, I was a pretty good kid, but my mom deserved better. Far all the hard work she put in to help ns grow, she deserved much more than what I gave her. Somewhere along the line, I did learn, my time away from home while at college, I began to tee her in a new light 1 no longer taw her as a mom, as someone who owes me something. Instead, I began to see her as a friend, someone with dreams, goals, wants and needs. Someone that deserves respect and appreciation for the sacrifices she made and the hard work the put in to help v; :v'. me become the man I am today. . I a doesnt Now, day dont ti"" go about what shes done for me or realize how much Ive grown from her wisdom. And when her wish conies true and I "have one just like me, Im sure ID gain an even greater respect and understanding for what she went through. ,v ;' But what makes her the greatest mom ever isnt really what shes done for me in the past, or what she continues to do for me today. , What makes hcr so special, so great, so unique, is the fact she asks for nothing in return, wants no thanks, And she did all these things without a single requires no recognition. Instead, seeing my happicomplaint. Not once did I hear how hard it was for ness and watching me attain my goals is reward her to do all these things. Never did she say she enough. There are four people out in the world today just wanted some alone time. No, my mom was a rock. But a rock with a soft side. who couldn't be where they are without the help When I was young, she was always there to and support of one special person. Four people chase away the scary, five armed, two headed mon- doing what makes them happy, striving to make : sters from my room when I went to bed. And when their dreams come true, and succeeding at whatever I scraped my arm dr a knee, she was there with a they put their minds to because of one person they and a few encouraging all know and love. gentle hug, a Band-Ai" Thanks mom,' for everything. ' Youre the The terrible thing was, however, 1 was just a greatest post-poo- h . . by-tha- t Guest Editorial Giving Thanks on Memorial Day . - 7 - . d, Ml Me About it Follow the Head Lemming t- Leon Sinister ter, respect, andor any other personal attributes that are praiseworthy or trill bring dignity and hour to any office sought, as the very highest priority for: i row;that the politi- obtaining votes. cal parties have had their himher into the proper pre-electi- on meetings, caucauses, nominating binges, etc., it is up to the voting public to pick the right leader and vote office. . The new electee is then expected to provide leadership which is not only capable, responsible and beneficial to all, but hopefully More often than not, however, it produces just more of the same. In view of this the voting public, after doing their duty at the polls, would then fall back into line by obediently following the leaders just g. elected. Reminds me of the often-tol- d story of the Lemmings. Lemmings are small creatures about 5 inches long, the best known of which live in the Scandinavian mountains. Yellowish-brow- n spotted animals, closely related to the mouse, they leave their homes sporadically about every 5 to 20 years and travel west toward the Atlantic Ocean or east toward the Gulf of Bothnia. When they reach their destination they dutifully follow their leaders, plunging into the sea. No one seems to really know why these creatures annihilate themselves in this We humans seem to have at least some inclinations to perform the same (but maybe more prolonged) type of by Mindly following some of the questionable characters we vote into office. Ifs like, "Well, we voted you in, now go do the job - and doot bother us anymore about it." Lots of folks never check oa these elected officials again once they set their switch on automatic pilot Too often the electee gets overcome with. his own ego and arrogance and screws things up, sometimes dragging the public, or at least massive amounts of the public's taxdollars - lemming like -into the Gulf with him. Too often we elect back into office again, when we really should be trying new talent which is equally or better pMiiMt No public official should ever have a lock" on the office heshe is cur rently holding. Those now in office who are willing to should be the first to in order to be sent packing. It appears to me that the major issue in any campaign far any office would be the level of personal honesty, ethics, integrity, charac- 'more-of-the-sam- e" In light of the blatantly obvious desensitizing of die public towards political shenanigans - from the nation's highest officials down to the very bottom-o- f the ladder in small, local disturbances - it seems as if ifs an world. " President George Bush, while in office, said that the greatest part of bang President of the United States wu simply, "...the honor of it. " And the White House group seated around the table with the new, current President, heard Mr. Clinton's responding statement, "How repugnant," (Ahem) Say again? Clinton's objective, in the opinion of Chicago Tribune Services, Chris Matthews, was to impress his cohorts " ..that "honor" should not be pitted above all the many programs and policies a presi- dent might choose to advance!" " Well, he's made lots of "advances" in his of sane of his "objectives," that's for sure. Yet the polls remain high, as they do for most incum-- . bento. But, one tiling about polls: they soar when times are good, but suffer when credibility pales and loses its status: Stephen Hess's article in Newtday states, "...it is probably the prevailing opinion in Washington (D.C) that Bill Clinton is probably the in the 20th most mediocre president ever I Memorial Day is a time of remembrance and of thanksgiving. because we pay our respects to' the American men and women who laid down their lives in time of war. :,Thanksgiving because we thank our Creator that such e people-onclived, and that their legacy is the unparalleled freedom we enjoy in thia great country and much of the world. Tod often on Memorial Day we think only of our military patriots as having sacrificed for our freedoms, but there art millions of other unsung Americans who supported their efforts. And today, there are those who never wore the uniform of qur country, but they, too, continue the fight to preserve thcValties weall cherish. Some of them will probably lead the effort to decorate graves and handle die myriad details of memorial services. Lets remember to say "thanks to them,too. Throughout the history of civilization, men and women of good will have honored their war deal They have paid homage to those who went into Harms Way when their country called. If we expect future generations to answer the call of duty, this is a tradition that we must preserve. And it is fitting that we do so. All of us, veterans or not, have a duty to do what we can do to pass oo to the next generation the blessings of liberty and an appreciation for the. values of patriotism, honesty, charity, civility, and diligence that provides dm firm foundation for our freedoms. On Memorial Day, we will celebrate the lives of our grea PatIioto in many ways. But as we remember those . one-milli- - who pa(d the price to make our country and, indeed, much of (he world the place it is today, let us also remember that there is only one symbol that embodies all that they believed as Americana and that ia our flag. I don't have to tell you what our flag means not only to us but also to freedom-lovin- g people everywhere. Yet, there are those who dont understand. Sane elitist mem-- ' ben of the media, ACLU officials, and general malcontents thrive on sewing strife and discard as they toy to make us believe our flag represents the freedom to destroy it. A Supreme Court decision set this belief into law in 1989, contrary to more than 200 years of tradition and jurisprudence, and contrary to die wishes of the American five-to-fo- ur people. Strange that die very heroes we honor today are the people who .would least understand such twisted logic, fat it wu they who laid down their lives on the field of battle to " stop die eBemytrom burning their flags. We can change that and we can change the state of the law. We cm restore to the American people die freedom to the flag protect their flag by urging our Senators to vote protection amendment, SJR 40. And we can show our own support for this amendment by showing, pur colon on this fa Manorial Day. It wu not the ACLU that gave us freedom of speech. It wu the Wood of men and women of all races, creeds and religions who honored our flag u a banner of opportunity and freedom, and uw it ad an ally against the forces of ' ' oppression. It is their memory 'that we honor on this day. Let so through prayerj reflection, thanksgiving Showing Your Colors, America! :i u do and, by ith . pur-shit- ' century. Ronald Reagan, when running for his first term as President, may have had a touch rtf insight about what has since - now, in today's world - turned out to be a drastic lowering of ideals, morals, and a gen- eral degeneration of accountability standards in America, when he answered s reporter's question of, "Governor Reagan, what do people see in you?" IBs reply was, "Would you laugh if I told you they see themselves?" And so it is with virtually every person who is seeking a political office. ' With so many opinions circulating among so msny politicians, it is almost impossible to discover the truth in what they uy. With incumbents being more experienced in political jargon they are, oftentimes, more advene to "juggling" facts and fiction together until it becomes impossible to separate the ...... two. "go-alon- g" "get-alon- By Antony G. Jordan - Thought for the day: 1 "A lie would have no sense unless the truth were felt dangerous." : Alfred Adler (1870-193Psychologist u - 7) To all the moms out there... .i Just Stuff Vhe Summit County by Jan I am fir from being the queen of culi-ntcraftinesibut when it comes to cuual cooking, I can finally hold my 'own: No longer is my husband relegated to TV dinners and peanut butter sandwiches u he wksat the onset of our marriage. No, with cook book tucked under my arm,.beaten in hand and a dish rag over, my shoulder, I have diced my way through onions, beat my way through eggs sliced my way through meat, tossed over a'few salads and even whipped some cream There are pages in my cookbook that are splattered with spills, evidence that the book has been used. In fact, Im practically on a first name basis i with Betty Crocker. I had finally changed my belief that the old skying "Why, she cant even boil water, bad been written solely for me. Not with my list of accomplishments I can cook a roast, fry chicken, bake potatoes, even make semiraised bread. Granted, I'll never be a galloping gourmet, but I can handle the basics.. .Or oy soljhoughl. Last week, the boys were busy with was on my own for dinner. I : decided Td have a soft boiled egg. Now, Ive baled eggs before, hard and soft. I follow the three minute rule three nun- -, urea for soft, longer than that fdr hsrd and , it neyer fails. My soft boiled eggs are just tiie right tunny; my hard ones are just u- dad, sti I tint, hard. - The water started to1 boil, I checked my watch and exactly three minutes lata I puUed my egg put of the wata,l held it 'over the bowl and cracked it with my knife,, expecting to see the bright yellow ydk ooze from the middle. Instead I was greeted by a glob of hard bailed yolk My timer, must have been off so I tuning, got anotiwr egg from the fridge, started a ' with fresh water, checked the time, I even checked tire cook book to itwire sure I had remembered everything. (Let's face it, there's not much to remember when boiling an egg,' 1 was surprised it was even included id the cook bode, but tints how basic my bookis!) The water started to boit I checked my watch and waited. Exactly three minutes later I gave it a crack' with ar butter knife Another hard boiled egg. ' Something was wrong. ; I decided to have. one more crack at' it New water. New egg. I even changed pans. But I didnt follow instructions. Instead of the standard three' minute rule, I let die egg boil for just two said a half. Whatever the problem, that would aolve iL I cracked the egg only to have icky egg ooze everywhere.: The white '' ' wasnt even set I never did get my soft boiled egg that night After three attmnpts, 1 admitted defeat and had a peanut butter sandwich. I couldnt imagine what was' wrong. Perhaps my stove', was caking out on me. Maybe the timer .was. messed up due to Daylight Savings time. Could it be that the water wu extra cokL I didnt know. As I wu munching oo my sandwich, it dawned on me. What an egghead. A few weeks before I h;4 tailed eggs for the annual Easter egghuht. After the kids adored several dozen, they lost interest Consequently, half dozen uncolored, hardboiled, Easter eggs got tucked into my egg bin in the fridge: Even though I know eggsactiy what happened, what it comes to boiling eggs I get a little eggsaspetated snd am still a little chicken. (Bee ' nonwM NimMf Damn North . - Kan Huangs Carol Eaton TJLQSss toMi IllUa UaTymy win me ami comtu naa'cursr sumo) la pubOhed weekly tor $16 per year In aummk CounW. Manure. SIS In county; $21 by Mm ntoHaftna W 075 West 100 South,. tleber City, UT 04092. reriodteata Postage raid at Coalville, UT 04017. POSTMASTER: Bend address changes o Tht Summit Oounji flat, rA Baa 7. CuaMBe. UT ' |