Behind the curtain of these pages I can pull up every single picture I have ever loaded for potential use. It is an incredible mosaic of time, opportunity, celebration, family, friendship, travel, football, geography, music, and much more.
“IF” was a song made popular in 1971 by the group Bread.
“If a picture paints a thousand words then why can’t I paint you…”
Not unlike human nature would force when given a crack, I look at so many of those pictures in the inner sanctum of speaktherights,com and think about the pictures I missed. Pictures that are in my mind that exist just as well and maybe if not better? I can’t look at them later and be disappointed, right?
- Cody riding the wave. We were in the Gulf of Mexico. Orange Beach, Alabama. Cody was about eight I would say. He had a boogie board and I was out in the water with him helping him to CATCH A WAVE. Now and again it looked promising. Rolling white water would come our way. I’d ask if he was ready. He always was. The waves seemed to lose steam just when we needed them the most. I looked back again and thought holy cow! Get ready! It was a wall of water. I was hoping he’d have a good ride and I hoped I would live through it. He took off, I went under, I found my feet, I stood up just in time to see Cody riding high toward the shore with both arms raised and two fists shaking to proclaim victory. That is a sweet photo in my mind.
2. The View From the Swing in Brownstown, Indiana. A hazy yellow sign in the distance. I know that is what I saw. Up the hill from my tree swing at 204 South Jackson Street, if you were being pushed to the West to look up to Main Street you could see the old Western Auto store sign glowing in the distance. It was getting dark that night. My Dad would have pushed me til midnight had I asked him to. It was 1972 or 1973. I sat on a wooden board of a seat attached to two well weaved strings that made your hands a little dirty. All held up by a study maple tree. I think there is a law office there now. The Western Auto sign was a comforting sight.
3. The Scoreboard. It was 1988. I figured we would see something like this again. So far, we haven’t. On the puny Indiana University Memorial Stadium Scoreboard at one open end zone, the first year the stadium had lights, Indiana 41 Ohio State 7. Keith Jackson was there. So was I, with my Mom and Dad.
4. The Battery. I wish I had a picture of me and Kelly Samons and Mick Rutherford together in our high school uniforms. Mick snapped the ball, Kelly held it, and I kicked it. Simple as that.
I could go on forever. It could never end. With that, I am a blessed man delighted to be able to…
Speak the Rights.
Danny Johnson