I'll Call It Like I See It

by sheila morris

Category: The Way Life Is

  • Hallelujah, Hope is Making a Comeback!

    Hallelujah, Hope is Making a Comeback!


    Thanks to former First Lady Michelle Obama for reminding me at the Democratic National Convention this week of our mutual feelings sixteen years ago when a young Senator from Illinois, her husband Barack Obama, was nominated to become President of the United States. President Obama became the champion of “hope” in my mind forever because he believed in the possibility of positive change in a nation I sensed we both loved. I’ve missed them both.

    We choose hope over fear. We see the future not as something out of our control, but as something we can shape for the better through concerted and collective effort. We reject fatalism or cynicism when it comes to human affairs; we choose to work for the world as it should be, as our children deserve it to be. (President Obama to the United Nations General Assembly, September 24, 2014)

    four-year-old Ella on board the Harris/Walz JOY Campaign Train in playhouse at the zoo yesterday while two-year-old Molly hoped for height

    My hope is we will choose to work together for the world as it should be, as all children deserve it to be.

    Onward.

  • Happy Birthday to our own Millenials

    Happy Birthday to our own Millenials


    Last night we celebrated our son Drew’s birthday with dinner at Dee’s Wings for his favorite ribs in town (mine, too) plus another all-time favorite of his (and everyone else at the table): the brownie sundae dessert. I asked Drew at dinner what words of wisdom he had when he considered his life on his thirty-ninth birthday. He looked thoughtful and said I’ve learned family is the most important thing in life. I believe he’s right.

    This morning I searched my archives and found we celebrated another birthday dinner five years ago in 2019 with our own favorite Millenials. Enjoy!

    Number One Son and Pretty Too

    This week Pretty and I had dinner with our Number One Son (Drew) and his wife Pretty Too (Caroline) to begin the celebration of their August birthdays. They are our very own Millenials and we love them dearly.

    This picture was taken recently by a friend of theirs – they are all smiles because next year they hope to be holding one Ella Elisabeth James, their daughter who is expected in October.

    Pretty and I are all smiles, too! Our children and grandchildren are our hope for not only our family but also for our country. May the promises of America become a reality in their lifetimes.

    ***************

    Two new little girls have been added to the family courtesy of our two Millenials since that birthday celebration in 2019, and last night after dessert we walked outside to visit a local street fair where a woman brought smiles to all by making balloon art and princess headbands. 

    Ella Elisabeth James was, indeed, born October 01, 2019, and younger sister Molly followed on January 26, 2022. Pretty happily morphed into Nana when Ella started talking, and I became Naynay. We’ve never looked back.

    Molly looking for Birthday Daddy

    (who was resting in the car to let brownie sundae settle)

    Stay tuned.

  • Juneteenth! Happy Freedom Day!

    Juneteenth! Happy Freedom Day!


    I’m sure many of you received this letter today from former Attorney General Eric Holder, Jr. If you already read it, please take a minute to absorb it again, and if you haven’t read it – well, trust me, it’s a must read for Juneteenth. I am a native Texan, grew up not too far from Galveston, and am so very proud of my Black family members who will be celebrating with good food, family and friends today. My heart is with them – Happy Freedom Day to all!

    Sheila,

    It’s Juneteenth — marking 159 years since freedom finally reached enslaved Black Americans in Galveston, Texas. And today, while we celebrate the end of slavery, we must do all we can to remember those who endured the unconscionable, this nation’s original sin. 

    You’ve heard me, and others, say this a lot, but we have to say it again: The march towards true, lived freedom is far from over. The struggle continues to this day, but the victories we’ve achieved are only because of the commitment of every new generation to engage in the fight for justice and equality. 

    And don’t get me wrong, we have come a long way since that day 159 years ago in Galveston, Texas. We have made our country a more welcoming, safe, and equitable place for Black Americans. But there is still a long road left to travel. 

    This Juneteenth, while we recognize the continued struggle, I’m still filled with hope for what’s ahead. Our power to make change has never been stronger. All voices in our democracy deserve to be heard, and I’m proud to be working alongside you in the fight to make that a reality. 

    Together, let’s use today to recommit to our shared effort to have this nation live up to its founding ideals.

    Thank you for being in this movement, and happy Freedom Day. 

    Eric H. Holder, Jr. 
    82nd Attorney General of the United States

    All On The Line is the grassroots advocacy campaign supported by the National Redistricting Action Fund. Support our work to end gerrymandering.

    **************************

    Today is also the birthday of Francie Kleckley – wish her a Happy Birthday at http://www.franciekleckley.com and support her campaign with a donation! Hint: $65. would be significant to her, if you catch my drift.

  • Mama Mia, ABBA made me a Dancing Queen

    Mama Mia, ABBA made me a Dancing Queen


    Dancing Queen? Just kidding. Anyone who has seen me on a dance floor from the time my mother tried to teach me how to rock n roll with Dick Clark and American Bandstand after school in the living room of our home in Richards, Texas to dancing with Pretty and our granddaughters in their kitchen to Roe, Roe, Roe, your Vote – anyone who has seen me try to dance will say gosh, Sheila can still carry a tune plus she’s got rhythm but Lordy, that old woman can’t dance.

    I may not be a Dancing Queen, but ABBA will always be my favorite musical group, my go-to songs when I think I can dance.

    Last week I watched the movie Mama Mia with Meryl Streep and a bunch of other people I know and like because it’s on my list of all time favorite movies and because I had a round of the epizooti. It was so good I watched it twice and then moved on to The Devil Wears Prada. I only watched it once, though, you’ll be pleased to know.

    Since I was in a prone position with no urges to dance, I listened to the words of a beautiful, slower tempo song from Mama Mia that Meryl sang in a poignant scene with her daughter. Beyond the obvious feelings I have now with my granddaughters, I can also connect the words to my relationship with Pretty. Life is often slipping through our fingers all the time.

    “Slipping Through My Fingers”

    Schoolbag in hand, she leaves home in the early morning
    Waving goodbye with an absent-minded smile
    I watch her go with a surge of that well known sadness
    And I have to sit down for a while
    The feeling that I’m losing her forever
    And without really entering her world
    I’m glad whenever I can share her laughter
    That funny little girl

    Slipping through my fingers all the time
    I try to capture every minute
    The feeling in it
    Slipping through my fingers all the time
    Do I really see what’s in her mind
    Each time I think I’m close to knowing
    She keeps on growing
    Slipping through my fingers all the time

    Sleep in our eyes, her and me at the breakfast table
    Barely awake I let precious time go by
    Then when she’s gone, there’s that odd melancholy feeling
    And a sense of guilt I can’t deny
    What happened to the wonderful adventures
    The places I had planned for us to go
    Well, some of that we did, but most we didn’t
    And why, I just don’t know

    Slipping through my fingers all the time
    I try to capture every minute
    The feeling in it
    Slipping through my fingers all the time
    Do I really see what’s in her mind
    Each time I think I’m close to knowing
    She keeps on growing
    Slipping through my fingers all the time

    Sometimes I wish that I could freeze the picture
    And save it from the funny tricks of time

    Slipping through my fingers…

    *************************

    Overheard in her playhouse from two-year-old Molly this weekend: “Naynay, I’ll never leave you.”

  • Pride Time is Anytime and Fun Times!

    Pride Time is Anytime and Fun Times!


    This coaster has been on my office desk for as long as I can remember – the office has been in five different homes over the past twenty-three years, but the coaster lingers on. Clearly worse for the wear, and not nearly as clever as Marla Wood’s images, but I remember how “Big” Dear Abbey was back in the day and still get a chuckle whenever I take time to digest the sentiment.

    Totally unrelated to Pride

    – except the pride Pretty and I have for our granddaughters four-year-old Ella and two-year-old Molly. We were at their house this past week, and the girls love to pretend to be Princesses in their dresses so their dog Sadie stands guard while Ella directs the play. The role of the Prince is often assigned to yours truly; Ella continues to believe I was born for the part. Bless her heart.

    This card was sent to us at Christmas years ago by our friends Cindy and Sandy who immigrated to Tennessee and became Lady Volunteer basketball fans during the Summit era. Pretty had saved it somewhere in the deep recesses of her treasures and recently retrieved it. I had to laugh again.

    another Christmas card from our past – this is pure Pride

    Happy Father’s Day to all proud dads everywhere!! Hope your weekend is festive and filled with pride in your children, their children, and all children to come.

    *******************

    Slava Ukraini. For the children.