Mayflower Compact

Pilgrims signing the Compact

In the name of God, Amen. We whose names are underwritten, the loyal subjects of our dread Sovereign Lord King James, by the Grace of God of Great Britain, France and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith, etc. Having undertaken, for the Glory of God and advancement of the Christian Faith and Honour of our King and Country, a Voyage to plant the First Colony in the Northern Parts of Virginia, do by these presents solemnly and mutually in the presence of God and one of another, Covenant and Combine ourselves together into a Civil Body Politic, for our better ordering and preservation and furtherance of the ends aforesaid; and by virtue hereof to enact, constitute and frame such just and equal Laws, Ordinances, Acts, Constitutions and Offices, from time to time, as shall be thought most meet and convenient for the general good of the Colony, unto which we promise all due submission and obedience. In witness whereof we have hereunder subscribed our names at Cape Cod, the 11th of November, in the year of the reign of our Sovereign Lord King James, of England, France and Ireland the eighteenth, and of Scotland the fifty-fourth. Anno Domini 1620.

Link to the Constitution

US Constitution and Amendments
Here is a readable and printable copy of the US Constitution and Amendments

dealing with a loss

Life is so full of complications and therefore it is full of solutions.  This positive thinking is usually enough to keep me optimistic and productive, but there are also occurrences about which we are helpless to act upon.

What do I say to the child of a parent has just passed away,  what do you do about  the final part of a life.  How easy it is to say just carry on -- "they would want you to enjoy yourself" -- "she/he lead a good life and we must remember the good things."  Everything said is meant to help, but only time makes the pain lessen and there really is no solution to this sad, yet inevitable part of life. With the passing of someone there is amazing grief  witnessing the sadness of the people you love the most.  It rips the heart to see your own children so deeply distressed, yet we are powerless to truly make everything alright.   

Be happy there are people who love you

Grasp at the chance to help the living--love and adore you kids--smile at strangers--and observe the wonder all around you, for it will not always be there.  Change happens--the circle of life is filled with every emotion and with every pain and joy. 

great link for students studying USA Wars

Simthsonsian War Exhibit

The above link is an awesome aid to help students follow the great tragedy of American Wars.

What is important

Camille, Dan and Eric

Lovina Gulotta

Santi Gulotta

Brian, Alison, Liam, Summerly, and Deb

Some things in life are much more important than the Small stuff.  Is winning a game more significant the a grandchild's smile? Is being first in line for lunch more gratifying than a kind compliment from you to a loved one?  Do not believe the people who say there is always tomorrow--for today may be the most important day of your life.  Life is an amazing gift that is fabulous and fragile.  Live it--protect it--make the most of it, but while you are doing that: never forget the people around you.  

The real lesson one learns from observing happy people is that they offer acts of kindness more frequently than they display selfishness.

In 6 days my 34th year as an educator begins: may I be up to the task of being an example of how to treat people, and of how to live a life that touches others with lessons of respect, love, and integrity.

Cookbook odyssey

My wife Deborah is on a mission to create every one of the recipies in the "ONE WORLD VEGETARIAN COOKBOOK" by Troth Wells.  (sounds like a movie, and it is a bit disconcerting to eat recipes made by a man named TROTH: are we to line up with our hands behind our back and dig in like we are after holloween apples?) Last night we had # one  "Baba ghanoush", or eggplant dip. It was fluffy and pretty good.  The blender was in use during its creation for 20 minutes, but the results were better than satisfactory, for it was very nice.  It would go with many things -- Italian Sausage -- hot sauces could be added -- and any dipping chip or bread.  Anyways I am sure to be tasting many different vegetarian dishes in the next few years so I am prepared to have the courage to tell her if they are not pleasing, because why should I eat something that I do not like twice and the truth will set one free. I am lucky to have a good chef in the family who is willing to experiment, and I am happy to taste away.

still without pc

I have been unable to to post in my normal fashion for my computer died and my good wife's pc does not offer the same options.  We have made changes to our house in Sandwich--two new blinds--new air conditioner which will cool the entire downstairs to be installed on 16 August 2012--dead tree in the back of the yard will be removed using a 50 / 50 deal with the abutter--I am receiving an estimate for a porch on the front of the house--new oven because the old one would not bake above 175 -- new fridge--we keep trying to make it the home we want.

It is amazing to experince the difference between competent and incompetent contractors.  The team of dilivery men who brought the fridge dented it in three places and broke one of the shelves.  They also took paint off of our entry way.  It is now a bigger hassle for a new dilivery team is bringing the replacement on friday.  Humans make mistakes and all of us must try to remain civil, but it is a difficult thing at times.

worried

My computer died and it is very difficult and stressful to think about what will happen if the good people in the school tech office can not rectify the situation.

still learning

My son Dan, his wife Camille, and my grandson Eric are with us in Sandwich for two weeks.  Eric (two months) has a cold and it is amazing how it makes a grandparent feel to see their little loved one under the weather.  Life is full of emotional peeks and valleys and a sick little boy is an incredibly deep valley.  The silver lining is observing how wonderful Camille and Dan are at parenting.  It must be love that makes them good parents for their is no other way to go about becoming one.  Think only of the welfare of the child and things work out best.  What a great lesson for grandfather to learn.

Life is good

Dan and Camille

I am on Cape Cod with my son, grandson, and daughter-in-law. Life is good to those who are lucky enough to have great parents and Eric (born 6/15/12) has great ones. It warms the heart to watch my son and his wife with their son, for like the theme to the movie, "Love Actually," love is actually all around them. Take stock of the wonderful moments in life and remember that it is better to be good to the people you are with than to hope they do something for you. Today we will go to the beach and eat lobster for supper--there may even be a Cape Cod beer involved.

Wow--Running and the Olympics are Inspiring

Below is a post from boston.com - sports - (the link so you can read the entire article is posted below) 

I found this race to be so inspiring.  These young men trained so hard together, and Galen Rupp has been USA's best for years.  Running is pure competition, and these men were awesome.

LONDON — Midway through the men’s 10,000 final Saturday night, medal contenders from Ethiopia, Eritrea and Kenya were surging. Again. American Galen Rupp started to feel anxious about his position. He wondered if he should go with the African runners. Then, amid the almost-deafening cheers of 80,000 spectators at the Olympic Stadium, Rupp heard the familiar voice of his training partner, British runner Mo Farah, in his ear. At that critical moment, Farah, 29, was the prophetic voice of experience. “Relax mate, everything’s fine,” Farah told Rupp. “We’ve just got to play it cool right now and save everything until the finish.” And that was exactly what they did. The Somali-born Farah broke away from a 12-runner pack at the bell, outkicking the field over the final lap. Spurred by the home crowd, he accelerated down the final straight to capture gold in 27 minutes, 30.42 seconds. Rupp moved from fourth to second in the closing sprint for silver, finishing in 27:30.90. Ethiopia’s Tariku Bekele took bronze in 27:31.43, besting his older brother and two-time defending Olympic champion, Kenenisa, for a spot on the medal stand. “Today’s the best moment of my life,” said Farah. “It doesn’t get better than this. Being an Olympic champion is the best thing in the world. This is what we train for, why we put in all the hard work week in and week out, put in over 100 miles a week. Then, to have the Olympics right on your doorstep and to become Olympic champion, it doesn’t get any better than that. If it wasn’t for the crowd and the support I got today, I don’t think I would have won that gold because it was a very close race.” Farah crossed the line in wide-eyed shock, put his hands to his head in an expression of disbelief, then collapsed to the track, overwhelmed by the moment. In an event dominated by Ethiopians and Kenyans at recent Olympics, it was a history-making race for Farah and Rupp. Farah became Britain’s first Olympic champion in the 10,000. Rupp became the first American to win a medal since Billy Mills took home gold at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. And Rupp is only the third American to ever medal in the event with silver for Lewis Tewanima coming at the 1912 Stockholm Games. Rupp acknowledged it “was a little weird” seeing Great Britain and the US at the top of the finish board in the 10,000. “I still haven’t wrapped my head around the race and what just happened,” said Rupp. “I remember sitting down with Alberto [Salazar] when the Nike Oregon Project was started. We came out with the audacious goal that we were going to put Americans on the podium in distance races, in events that have traditionally been dominated by Africans. That’s something we’ve always been pointing towards.’’

link to complete article

sportsmanship

I played in the Kare Bear Golf Tournament with good friends yesterday and once again it became clear to me that winning is not as important as the play.  We had three players with 17 or higher handicaps and one player with about an 8 or 9.  In a scramble format we ended up 6 under par which was great.  All of us hit shots that were impressive at times when the other 3 did not, and this shared success was very satisfying.  Compete at you top - but know your potential.  Treat your opponents and team mates like family and play fair.  Sports equals companionship, so always strive to turn companionship into friendship.  The badminton teams who tried to lose to improve their opportunity in future rounds showed very poor judgement and sportsmanship in the olympics.  Did their country's force them to do this?  I can not imagine trying to lose unless you are playing a very young child at a childhood game. If I lose to my 2 year old grandchild at marbles I believe the world will not be a worse place. Do your best and you are always a winner.