Rabbi Ben Ezra
“Somehow, not only for Christmas,
But all the year through,
The joy that you give to others,
Is the joy that comes back to you.
And the more you spend in blessing, the poor and lonely and sad,
The more of your heart’s possessing,
Returns to you glad.”
- James Greenleaf Whittier 
I well remember the first time I saw Fairce Woods. I was a junior at BHS and we were shooting baskets before our first class on the opening day of school. Nothing organized, just pell mell, grab a ball and shoot and run for another ball, reminiscent of the indiscipline of the prisoners of war in the Burma jungle which was under control of the Japanese in WWII when Alec Guiness, in the movie Bridge on the River Kwai, playing the part of a captured British Colonel, assumed command of the prisoners and brought discipline and order to the ranks.
Gol-darn your looks to hell, you dirty little rascal, as soon as Walter and Em’ get back, I’m going to call ‘em, and they’ll tan your hide. The proprietor of a general store next to the now defunct Elkatawa Graded School, whom I will call Greenberry, shouted his epithet at Jack Hamilton who had just thrown the breaker, putting his General Store in darkness, because the interior of the store had only two small windows that were heavily shuttered and steel barred, and on a dreary winter day, only a single light bulb lit the interior and Jack knew where the breaker was located on an out building.
Friedrich Nietzsche, a German philosopher in 1885 predicted the rise of secularism in German society and in his infamous quote, paraphrased, said: European decadence would produce a miserable last man devoid of any purpose beyond making life comfortable and making provision for regular fornication. Who are we? Why are we here? What happens to us when we die? Science says we are the descendant of a tiny cell of primordial protoplasm washed up on an empty beach three and one-half billion years ago. We are the blind and arbitrary product of time, chance, and natural forces.
I wrote recently concerning the power of two words: THANK YOU! Further, this is an attitude that makes life better for ourselves, our family and those with whom we come in contact. And, this grateful attitude needs to prevail, not just at Thanksgiving, but throughout the year. Finally, this is not just a matter of opinion but one that has a scientific basis.
Few persons, if any, living in Breathitt County today are aware of this true story, occurring in 1939, or thereabouts, in the community of Chenowee, three miles upgrade from Elkatawa on the CSX Railroad, known at that time as the L & N.
Keep in mind that at that time in Elkatawa and Chenowee and Oakdale we had no electricity, no telephones and nothing but county roads. Many of these county roads had been built by WPA workers.
Several readers have expressed to me that they like to read about “old” Elkatawa rather than the origins of Liberalism, and quite frankly, I enjoy writing about days gone by in Elkatawa, an excursion in nostalgia, as I remember days that were simpler, but more satisfying than the complexities of 2007. The era of which I write was from 1935 to 1980 and there were three general stores that served our community.
Last week, Mr. Craig R. Smith was the author of the essay concerning unhappiness in our nation, not Jay Leno who said only the last paragraph which was appended by someone unknown to what Smith had written. Smith raised the question of why 67% of Americans are unhappy with the way our nation is going and why 69% are displeased with the performance of our President, the percentages derived from a Newsweek poll.
The following article, sent to me by Mary May, from Wolfe County, has been reduced by me to fit into an allotted column. Next week, I will have more to say about the contents therein and the authorship. oc “The other day I was reading Newsweek magazine and came across some poll data I found rather hard to believe.
Eight of us converged on this Park for a golf holiday. Reasonably priced, this golf package offered two nights, three rounds of golf, two breakfasts, and two dinners in one of the most attractive settings that I have ever experienced.
The Lodge sits near the apex of the Pine Mountain Range that runs northeast thru eastern Kentucky, and while eating one can see for miles along this giant mountain range: unfettered, pristine, no human habitation in sight.
