My father was born in 1910

in Social Circle, and is presently in Heaven with my

mother who died several months ago. It's very interesting

what we fondly remember about our parents who, for

"better or worse," were the most important

people in our lives for many years.

Both of my parents had

lived through the Great Depression which certainly left

its mark on them, and on America, and on all who survived

it. My wonderful wife and I are from the "Baby

Boomer" generation.

I was born D-Day minus

four. In other words I was four days old when America and

its Allies stormed the beaches of Normandy. If one or

both of your parents were products of the Great

Depression, they were also what Tom Brokaw called in his

book, "The Greatest Generation".

Being from the Greatest

Generation and having lived through the Great Depression

formed some very interesting traits in their lives, and

in my opinion, some very good traits.

I have noticed that being a

baby boomer, I tend to want to repair things rather than

buy a new one. If something breaks or does not function

properly, I immediately think "I will fix it."

It never enters my head to buy another one unless the old

one cannot be repaired.

This is NOT New Millennium

thinking. I will even go to an auto parts store or to a

hardware store to get the components to repair something

and the young person behind the counter will just stand

there and smile. Nobody repairs anything anymore; they

just replace it!

If you think this is not

so, look at how many times some remarry. Many don't ever

think of going to a Christian counselor to "repair a

broken marriage." God forbid - just replace it!!

It's basically the same philosophy that people are also

disposable, kinda like unwanted babies.

Dad was a soap saver. Now a

soap saver is a person who when the bar of soap gets down

to where it is just a sliver of its original self, he

would take it and squeeze together with another gooey

sliver. This would make an interesting mass of

multicolored mushy soap. When you would reach for it was

an exercise in goo! Eventually he would transfer the

saved soap to his shaving mug which he still used as long

as he lived.

It's strange since he is

now gone that I find myself never throwing away a sliver

of soap in the shower. I don't really know where they go

but I just can't bring myself to get rid of them.

I remember how Dad, after

having been through World War II and the Korean War,

would always wash his socks in the sink, which would

drive my very squared-away mother, absolutely crazy. If

they ever came close to a divorce, this issue would have

been on the top of the list for her.

I'm sure we as fathers do

some strange things in life and probably cause our

families to scratch their heads, but if I knew anything

about my father there were three things that I knew 100

percent about him. First He loved God and his church with

all his heart, he loved us with all his heart, and he

loved the cause of freedom and education with all his

heart.

Now that he is gone, I also

love the same three. I still never touch the slivers of

soap, and every time I see a pair of socks I think of

him. God bless the soap savers of life!

Dr. Knox Herndon is the

pastor of His House Community Church (SBC) and a

substitute school teacher in the Fayette County school

system, and a former Army chaplain. The church is

currently meeting in the American Legion Log Cabin across

from the fountain on the Square in Fayetteville, but not

for long. We will be moving to our new land location near

Senoia in August. Prayer line: 770-719-2365. E-Mail: [email protected] .