Malia completing her paperwork to be a Junior Ranger
Well, here we go. I am on the verge of yet another release. My short story, "Eyes of Payne", will be coming out sometime in March. We don't have an exact date yet, but we're working on it. The story will be a prequel to Lazarus Rising although it can stand alone as well. I have wrote a sort of memorial to 9/11 in fictional form. Also, it will only be available in digital format on Amazon. I plan to take advantage of what Amazon has to offer with their KDP program. It will sell for a $1.99... but for all you out there who read my blog - just wait! I will be giving it away for free as well. It's a big deal to climb the charts even on free days since it gets your work noticed. So please, take advantage of the price. I will have a certain day I will ask all of you to get your free copy. And yes, if you have access to the internet you can read it! It just takes downloading the Kindle App, which, by the way, is also FREE! Click Here to get it so you don't forget.
I have been thinking about fatherhood lately and how important it is. It seems somewhere in the 60s or 70s our country started to veer off the path. Slowly fathers on television became Homer Simpson. Father's are portrayed as buffoons and in many cases as not needed. I read one article, The Fatherless Generation, that listed a ton of statistics showing the damage being caused by not having a father and the importance of having one. One stat claimed that about 40% of children who grow up in a fatherless home haven't seen their dad in over a year! I think of my own father and how he told me I wasn't nearly as important as the mother in my own case. I often wonder where he got these ideas from. There was a time I thought he was absolutely right. That I really didn't have enough of an impact to make a difference in my daughter's life. I am grateful to those who showed me a different path.
In our nation one stat claims that 43% of children born in 2007 were born into a single parent home. When you look at certain minority groups the number is off the charts. Some will claim a racist element or how the "man" is keeping the rest of us down, but I am sick and tired of spending my time defending the greatest country in the world. Instead of playing the game of standing around complaining about what happened 50 years ago, or 100 years ago, or longer, I say we begin by doing what we can to solve the problem of millions of children growing up without a father. Lets start there and stop subscribing to the debating society. The number one cause of poverty is a single parent home. Period. So the question is how do we start to change it. Well, I started with me and decided to be a part of my daughter's life regardless of other circumstances. Next, it's time we start speaking out and telling it like it is. It is time to stop worrying about people's feelings. That kind of thinking is killing us as a nation. If someone is not taking care of their responsibility as a parent someone needs to tell them. I guess we can be nice about it... the first time. We idolize men like Adrian Peterson who didn't even know one of his children that died. And he has kids running all over the place. In his case money isn't the problem, so what is? Access to contraception? I don't think so.
So where do we go from here? How about we just start talking about it with friends, family, and co-workers. I bet if this became the mission of every community many of our other issues would begin to be solved. Send me your thoughts... ideas... I truly think the time is now.
God Bless...
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