First thing Papa has to say is "I hate the title of this blog". I was messing around with possible names for my page and somehow locked this one in...can't seem to get rid of it so I guess it's mine.

My little brother, Glenn, was always around. Sometimes it was nice and sometimes I longed for a few minutes to myself. Five kids growing up in a house with less than 900 square feet made it hard to find any time for ourselves. Oh sure, you could hide in the workshop for a few minutes but eventually you would be discovered by one of the others seeking solitude. They would go back inside and tell Momma you were hiding in the workshop studying the lingerie section of the Sears catalog. You would be hauled out by your ear while the tattling sibling slipped into the workshop. Anyway, as I was saying, Glenn was always around.

Glenn was (and still is) one of those guys everyone loves. He was funny, mischieveous, and 'cute' according to Momma and a few of the little girls in the neighborhood. All I could see was this little guy who wet his pants a lot and sucked on a bottle until he was old enough to play football with us. As we grew older and discovered girls, cars, and general teenage good times, Glenn and I had less and less in common. He had his friends. I had mine. By the time I was in college I didn't feel like I knew Glenn all that well. When he got into college he let his hair grow and started on an impressive set of sideburns. He became a hippy. He wasn't a very good hippy though because he was raised with morals, a disgust for tobacco, and strict adherence to an alcohol free body. He wore the sandals, sloppy jeans and tee shirts. I think he had a couple sets of beads and he flashed the peace sign to anyone who made eye contact with him.

While the world watched thousands of young men shipping off to Vietnam, Glenn and I enjoyed the relative safety of the college deferment. We wanted to serve our country of course but we did not want to get shot.....of course. We figured the longer we stayed in college the better the chances that particular war would end and we could serve as officers in a good old peacetime army. My world evolved into a marriage and two little kids before the war was over. Glenn's turned into a marriage and a job he hated. We both felt guilt for not serving our country but we had obligations now. People to care for....One day while Glenn was working a co-worker got seriously hurt. Glenn watched the drama unfold and without another word stood up, walked out, and never looked back. He went straight to the Air Force recruiting office and signed up. Glenn's hippy days were over.

The Air Force transformed Glenn on the outside into the man he already was on the inside. I won't go into detail about Glenn's military career....after all, he may decide to blog one of these days. I will simply say Glenn spent most of his adult life serving our country in various parts of the world. He took his family with him and they all gained educations in life unavailable to those of us who remained stationary all our lives.

After his retirement, Glenn started his new career in education. He had hoped to work in a high school setting but the only opening he could find in his small district was for a second grade teacher. Oh well, it was a foot in the door. He discovered quickly how much these little students needed a daddy figure in their precious lives. As much as he wanted to move on up to the high school, his heart was captured by the little ones. He still teaches second grade today even though he swears each year, "this is the last time I'm doing it"! He is a wonderful teacher and takes his role of educator to young minds very seriously.

I am so glad I have had the chance to be the big brother to Glenn. I am very proud of him, his achievements, and especially his selfless life. It's my prayer his golden years will truly be golden.