Newspaper Page Text
Page 4A, The Lee County Ledger, Wednesday, August 21,2019
Of Life, Expect Nothing. Of Yourself, Expect Everything
Special to the Ledger
By Kate Scarmalis
There is an ancient
Indian proverb tells us,
“The crane, hoping to
eat dried fish when the
sea dried up, wasted
away in expectancy.”
Too often we are like
that crane. Anticipation
may be half the pleasure
of future rewards, but
expectation as often as
not becomes the root of
all heartache.
Through the pink haze
of their Disney fantasies,
little girls dream of a
frog turning into their
Prince Charming. In
reality, the prince fails to
appear. She never notic
es. She stays busy in her
attempt to force reality
to fit into the romantic
myth of her younger
years. Her notion of
ideal love masks the
total toad her “prince”
has become. Her expec
tations leave her with
little more than a gassy
man, and a lifetime full
of warts. Or, she falls
into the pitfall of trying
to change the immutable
rock into the man of her
dreams.
Granted, it is not only
the woman’s frustration
that leads to misery.
She’s tense, demanding,
overworked and maybe
has put on some pound
age. Either way, the
marriage suffers from
the same factor on each
side: the violation of
each spouse’s expectan
cies.
Many factors feed into
an individual’s expecta
tions about life’s future
outcomes. A good deal
of our expectancies have
been built around what
is known as the Ameri
can Dream. Americans
enjoy a set of shared
values that unite us in a
common dream. Hard
work and perseverance
can lead any individual
to partake of success, a
secure job, home own
ership, and access to a
college education.
The pathway to success
has been tied to getting
a good education. In
the past, learning could
come from different
directions. High school
students were offered
training from two
different tracks in our
country’s past. One
track was known as
college prep, the other
“vo-tech”. Students for
whom Shakespeare held
no allure followed a
vocational track.
The unfounded as
sumption that students
who signed up for
vocational studies were
forced to follow a lesser
footpath led to changes
that failed to benefit
individual students.
It was under the
Obama administration
during which the dictum
of “college for
all” was insti
tuted.
Sadly, stu
dents who may
have thrived
in a program
which offered
“vo-tech” are
now forced to
take foreign
languages,
advanced
mathematics and sci
ences. Many find these
courses irrelevant to
their needs and interests.
Shoehorning disinter
ested students into a
program where they
were required to take
courses designed for
college preparation was
the beginning of the end
for excellence in our
educational system.
Sad for the students,
but the situation is even
sadder for the teacher
who must maintain
a working classroom
environment for students
who are apathetic and
bored by the subject
matter.
Our expectations about
what constitutes a good
education has been
co-opted, stolen from us
through federal inter
vention. Think about it.
Individuals pay out the
nose in taxes for their
child to be educated in
the public system. Their
expectancies for what
constitutes the pathway
for their child’s success
(whether they want to be
a lawyer or a plumber)
has become moot. The
goal to a proper edu
cation has been set by
people we have never
met, those phantoms in
Washington, D.C. whose
progressive ideals have
pushed schools to adopt
a standardized curricu
lum of their choosing.
The federal govern
ment is not around to
dry up the tears of a
kid who cannot seem to
master the concept of
imaginary numbers in
their algebra class. Yes,
imaginary numbers are
“real” and must be un
derstood by all students
- because Washington
says so.
Students have the right
to expect a quality edu
cation - one relevant to
their future careers.
Sadly, it is not only
the public school that
has languished in recent
times. Some time ago,
I spent seventeen years
of my life preparing for
college. College for me
was the grand icon of
enlightenment of my
dreams. I had very high
expectations. And I was
to be bitterly disappoint-
By
the late
1960’s
our insti
tutions
were
already
in flux.
Curricula
that had
been in
place for
centuries
had begun to change
- and to devolve into a
lesser form. While that
might make me seem
By Harry R. Martinez,
Ph. D
Good Relationships,
pt. 2
Conflict and trouble
are part of life though
one may wish it were
not so. How well Job
knew that!
Job was a
contem
porary of
Abraham.
Both men
had phe
nomenal
knowledge
concern
ing God.
Scripture
reveals...
“In the
land of Uz
there lived a man whose
name was Job. This
man was blameless and
upright; he feared God
and shunned evil. He
had seven sons and three
daughters, and he owned
seven thousand sheep,
three thousand camels,
five hundred yoke of
oxen and five hundred
donkeys, and had a large
number of servants. He
was the greatest man
among all the people
of the East” (Job 1:1-3
NIV). When disaster
truck Job, would he
become bitter and curse
God as per the advice of
his wife? Thankfully,
he did not. His friend,
Eliphaz, seeking to
extend sympathy and
comfort to Job in the
loss of his children and
possessions said ... “Yet
man is born to trouble
as surely as sparks fly
upward” (Job 5:7 NIV).
“But if it were I, I would
appeal to God; I would
lay my cause before
him. He performs
wonders that cannot be
fathomed, miracles that
cannot be counted” (Job
5:8-9 NIV). This was
wise counsel. Similar
thoughts were pressed
by the Apostle Peter in
his admonitions for hav
ing good relationships
whether in marriage,
school, on the job, or
in society. “Finally, all
of you, live in harmony
with one another; be
sympathetic, love as
brothers, be compas
sionate and humble. Do
not repay evil with evil
or insult with insult, but
with blessing, because
to this you were called
so that you may inher
it a blessing” (1 Peter
3:8-9 NIV). In a previ
ous article, this writer
examined the first two
imperatives given by the
apostle; that of living in
harmony and expressing
like a fossilized hold
over from the time of
the dinosaur, I must beg
to differ.
No matter what the
era, when a college
student signs up for a
course in American
History, one expects the
topic to cover the events
in this nation’s past.
The professor assigned
to teach American His
tory didn’t want to, so
she didn’t. On Day One,
she gave the choice for
all students to request a
schedule change to an
other section, but it was
her intent to teach the
history of India, China
and Japan. And that she
sympathy. They were
to have a fondness for
other believers, one of
brotherly love. He urged
camaraderie to exist
between members of
the early local church
es. They had come to
trust Christ as
their Savior,
believing that
on the Cross
He paid their
entire debt of
sin to a holy
God. That
made them a
distinct people,
God’s own
possession, a
child of God
but at the same
time, they were
now a target of Satan in
his continuing attempt
to neutralize and render
ineffective the spiritual
lives of believers. With
persecution mounting
against Christians in
the Roman world, the
witness of believers
had to extend beyond
just words. Jesus said
... “A new command
I give you: Love one
another. As I have loved
you, so you must love
one another. By this all
men will know that you
are my disciples, if you
love one another” (John
13:34-35 NIV). Their
witness of brotherly love
toward fellow believers
would extend to all men,
even to their persecu
tors. Rome was about
to destroy Jerusalem
yet their love for one
another had made an
impact throughout the
empire. Christians were
encouraged to ... “Keep
on loving each other as
brothers (Heb 13:1 NIV).
The Apostle Paul wrote
... “I appeal to you,
brothers, in the name of
our Lord Jesus Christ,
that all of you agree with
one another so that there
may be no divisions
among you and that you
may be perfectly united
in mind and thought”
(1 Cor 1:10 NIV). This
would require a spirit
of kind heartedness and
humility. Christians
were to demonstrate
sensitivity to the feelings
and needs of others.
Good relationships are
devoid of cynicism,
coldness, and callous
ness. When adverse cir
cumstances or conflicts
arise, situations should
be evaluated carefully,
free from assumptions
that degrade, threaten,
or diminish the relation
ship. When wronged,
the Christian is to avoid
bitterness, or a vindic-
did. As a consequence
(while my records show
two courses in Ameri
can History), my studies
in history had nothing
to do with our country’s
past.
What I can tell you is
that those Indian princes
were not only swarthy,
but they were hot stuff,
according to testimony
given by Professor Lois.
My college coursework
in general was tepid, at
best - a watered-down
version of what I had
already studied in high
school.
I mentioned this to
other students, who
were confused by my
tive spirit ... “And when
you stand praying, if you
hold anything against
anyone, forgive him,
so that your Father in
heaven may forgive you
your sins” (Mark 11:24
NIV). Therefore, there
is no place for holding
grudges in the life of a
Christian.
The common, or
American, persimmon,
scientific name Diospy-
ros virginiana, is a fair
ly common tree in our
area. Persimmon fruits
are actually berries.
Persimmons are native
to China, where they
have been cultivated
for thousands of years.
They have been culti
vated in Japan for about
1,300 years. Wildlife
that feed on the mature
fruit include raccoons,
foxes, coyotes, hogs,
skunks, wild turkeys,
opossums, fox and gray
squirrels, bobwhite
quail, and songbirds,
including mocking
birds. Opossums enjoy
this fruit so much that
the persimmon is often
called “possumwood”.
The persimmon fruit
has been consumed by
humans for hundreds
of years. Native Amer
icans were using the
fruit when the Euro
peans arrived. The
fruit are bitter until
they are ripe. As the
fruit ripens, the fruit
becomes soft and its
skin starts to wrinkle.
Persimmons are used
in pudding, preserves,
beer, brandy, and
salads. They can be
dried for winter eating.
The native Americans
complaints. After all,
college for them had
become a bird’s flight
through to a diploma -
with party privileges.
This was their expecta
tion.
I learned a lot from
college, but mostly about
shattered expectations.
Having high expecta
tions is like feeding a
dog its own tail. It will
never fatten the dog.
Kate Scarmalis retired
from teaching in the
Lee County School
System. She has a B.A.
in Foreign Languages,
Elementary and Gifted
Education, and an M.A.
in Forensic Psychology
Editor’s note: Dr.
Martinez is an ordained
minister and was a
professor and head of
the music department at
Florida State University
School from 1975 to
2003. He is the father of
five adult children and
resides in Lee County
with his wife, Sara.
mixed dried persim
mons with crushed corn
to make bread.
While a few trees are
self-fertile, trees are
generally either male or
female. The American
persimmon is not the
only species of persim
mon. Worldwide, there
are 475 species of per
simmons. Persimmon
trees often bear fruit by
ten years of age. Their
optimum fruit bearing
age is between twen
ty-five and fifty years.
The persimmon has
a very long taproot.
This makes it drought
tolerant and allows it
to control erosion. It
also makes it difficult
to transplant all but the
smallest of these trees.
Persimmons are easy
to grow from seed. The
seed should be cleaned
and then kept between
33 and 40 degrees Fahr
enheit under moist con
ditions. This can be ac
complished by planting
the seeds during the fall.
The seeds should be
planted about one-half
inch deep. New trees
can also be produced by
rooting cuttings.
For more information,
call the Lee County
Extension Office at
759-6025 or email me at
collinsd@uga.edu
The Lcfe County Ledger
Established August 24,1978
lcledger@bellsouth.net
P.O. Box 715 (126 4th Street) (229) 759-2413
Leesburg, Georgia 31763 USPS 470-310
Official Organ of Lee County
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Editor Jim Quinn
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(USPS 470-310), is published weekly for $20.00
per year in Lee and surrounding counties, and
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POST MASTER: Send address changes on Form
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§®p)
Printed On member of Georgia
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ed.
Kate Scarmalis
Sharing the Word
The University of Georgia • Cooperative Extension Service
-i
:Llm,
Persimmons
Doug Collins, Lee County
Extension Coordinator
P utting J^nowledee toWork'j ^
Persimmons are ripening on trees this time
of year.
Persimmons