By Bill Fike
I found myself in New Jersey last week, relaxing on my son’s new deck of the home he just purchased. Oh, what a beautiful day, with the sun radiating through the forest of trees bordering his backyard, the sunlight brightly flooding the fall leaves, allowing their fall colors to explode in their rainbow of reds, yellows, and oranges.
It was not quite 11:00am as I sipped on a can of Old Style, left unopened in the fridge overnight, that escaped our celebration of the CUB’s victory the previous evening. Maybe the early morning alcohol had enhanced my senses, as I experienced the wonderful nature that surrounded me; witnessing the shadow of a hawk as it rushed over me, the bumble bees getting the last nectar of the season from nearby blooms, and watching the ground squirrels and chipmunks bury their acorns for the coming winter’s nourishment.
All the time on guard for the black bears that inhabit this neighborhood from time to time, and at the ready to grab the airhorn to sound the alarm for all who live in this “Garden of Eden”, if a black bear should appear!
Sitting there I had not a care in the world. The financial condition of our Twin Cities, of the our State, and of our Nation did not phase me. Who cares about Benghazi, Syria, Afghanistan,…… or about e-mail servers, or about corrupt and lying politicians. For a short time I had forgotten about my own health issues, gun violence, ISIS, the Russians, and the refugee problem in Europe.
I just sat on my cushion, soaking in the warmth of the sunshine, feeling the moment; enjoying every second of our time in New Jersey, with our son, his wife, and our two granddaughters in their new home. It doesn’t get much better than that!
Bill Fike owned and operated Winnie’s of Bloomington, Inc., (Winnie’s Menswear) from 1973 until his retirement in May of 2009. Bill also owned Churchill’s Formal Wear, LTD. from 1996 until he sold Churchill’s to James Carroll in March 2007. Bill and Cheryl just celebrated 40 years of marriage this past June 12, 2011 and they have one son, Joseph, and one daughter, Carmen. Bill was in the second graduating class of Illinois Central College in 1971, and then went on to Clark School of Aviation-Flight, obtaining both VFR and IFR flight certificates. Bill has been able to trace his family heritage back to his great, great, great grandfather’s family, A.C. Herron’s, (on grandmother’s side), who was one of the original settlers of Bloomington.
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