The Ultimate Act of Humanity...

This one act of forgiveness, speaks volumes of loving one's 'enemy', turning the other cheek, and treating others as you want to be treated. I was moved by this gesture of humanity in it's finest representation. I can only hope that I would have as much grace and forgiveness in a similar situation.

As reported by The Associated Press:
BLACKSBURG, Va. (April 26) - A senior at Virginia Tech said moral responsibility led her to add a stone for gunman Seung-Hui Cho to a memorial for his 32 shooting victims that was set up at Virginia Tech late last week.

The stone was later removed, but was restored by Wednesday morning.Katelynn Johnson, a senior sociology-psychology major, identified herself in a letter to the Collegiate Times as the person who added the stone for Cho."My family did not raise me to do what is popular," she wrote in her letter to the campus newspaper. "They raised me to do what is morally right. We did not lose only 32 students and faculty members that day; we lost 33 lives."In her letter, Johnson said she feared a backlash from students and possibly faculty members who did not agree with having a stone for the killer included in the memorial. But she said feedback since the letter was published has been largely positive.


The student organization Hokies United put 32 "Hokie Stones" - of local limestone used in university buildings - in a semicircle in front of the administration building to honor the 27 students and five faculty members whom Cho killed April 16.The 33rd stone was added at about 4 a.m. Thursday, Johnson said.Cho's stone was gone by Monday morning, and was replaced by a small American flag.


On Wednesday morning, there were 33 stones again.This time, the 33rd was on the far left, unmarked, and slightly apart from the others. It was adorned with tributes similar to those on the other memorials: flowers, candles and beads in maroon and orange.University spokesman Mark Owczarski said that the student organization did not place or remove the stone for Cho, and that it would not interfere."They decided they would allow the expression of grief to take whatever form it needed to," he said.

Today is.... EARTH DAY

Click here: Up Next And Recaps, - CBS News
Here is a hyperlink to the story of author Rachel Carson's pre-environmental book published in 1962 that was featured on this morning's episode of ,"CBS SUNDAY MORNING." In her book “Silent Spring,” it warned the public about the dangers of pesticides and DDT in particular.

I remembered Mom and Dad out in the yard with their fumigation bottle of pesticide(s), and the airplanes I used to see as a little girl fly over head, with their billowing clouds of insecticides cascading over the agriculture.

It is so odd to think that we didn't wear masks, we played on the lawn that had just been sprayed, and ate the produce that had been treated with pesticides, very matter of fact, without out any reservations or cause for concern.

I recall Mom being disenfranchised that she would no longer be able to fumigate against these 'varmints' eating what her green thumb had produced.

Flash forward to today, in this day and age, it makes you wonder if there is any correlation to some of the ailments that have only presented themselves predominantly in the last 25-30 years or so, such as Autism? Cancer increases? Who knows. But I do believe two things: An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure and hindsight is 20-20.

That having been said, "Happy Earth Day"...each time I see something bloom, a sunrise or sunset, or a change in weather it makes me appreciate the beauty and wonder of our world!

Happiness In All Forms...

Hope you have many reasons to smile and laugh, time to relax, and can always find a way to scratch your own....er, uh, um......back, yep that's what I meant to say...back!!! (ha,ha,ha)