I'll be doggone if it's not 2001, a new year in the life of all Hound Dogs who have passed through the gates of Remmel Park. To my littermates of the Class of 1970 and all other "old" dogs receiving this first Miles' Files of the millennium, I wish you a belated, but heartfelt HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Brothers and Sisters, it has been more than a month since my last confession. On December 9, the Miles' Files addressed the fragility of our youthful days. It also touched on the capacity for us to broaden our circle of friends as we have moved "beyond the kennel" on the campus of Newport High School. Our Newport connection allows us to bring other spirited people we meet into the circle who can "know" all of us without ever having met some of us. Likewise, we can "know" them without ever having met them through the stories brought to us by our friends from childhood and high school who have gathered up these "strays" along life's path. So it was on Friday, January 12, 2001, when many friends (from Newport and beyond) gathered to remember the life and times of Richard Brand (Class of '72).
Richard passed away due to heart failure on January 8 leaving a host of "stray dogs" he had befriended over the past 47 years to scurry about without him. Many of Richard's littermates from 1972 were joined by other "old Hounds" and "strays" he had picked up along the way at his funeral in Walnut Ridge on Friday. Just as Richard would have expected, these "old dogs" acted like a bunch of puppies ---- some whimpering because their littermate and playmate was no longer with them; some licking others in the face because they had not seen one another in a while; some coming together in packs with others they had never met before but "knew" through Richard's friendship to gather strength following this sudden loss; but all were there to remember their friend with the subtle sense of humor, the soft spoken approach, the BIG heart. It is somewhat ironic that Richard's heart failed him while it never failed us who knew him. We certainly will miss Richard's warm and friendly smile, but the memories he has provided will live on forever in our minds and in our hearts.
Following Richard's funeral, a few of us rekindled some of our memories at Bob King's (King of Clubs/King's Capri) north of Swifton. Carl Cross, Terry & Lee Scoggins, Steve Wright & his wife, Ron Hook, Phil Madison, Bobby Joe Forrester, Tim Buckley, Andy Adams, Mike Ibsen (Steve, Tim, Andy & Mike are college friends of Richard), Kathi and I stopped in King's Capri for a few libations before moving on down to the Port for another get together at the home of Ron & Mary Lou Phillips Delcase. The stop at Bob King's was Kathi's first gig at one of the "finest" roadhouses in northeast Arkansas. Like a lot of other "playgrounds" in our youth, I remembered the club to be "much bigger" than it is today. Hmmm! Anyway, as the beer bottles stacked up on the bar and the conversation turned to "days of yore," the place seemed to grow in stature. Kathi even enjoyed a brief visit with Mr. Bob King himself. The King of Clubs is celebrating its 50th year in operation in 2001. Cheers!
On arrival at the Delcase home, several "old dogs" had gathered to enjoy one another's company and relive the life of friend, Richard Brand. Mike & Kay Taylor Brand, Kenny & Billie Thaxton, Bobby Joe Forrester, Patti Forrester, Leanne Bennett, Debbie White, Neal Pankey, Lawson Anderson, Steven Toler, Phil Madison, Bud Conner, Margaret Duncan, Lee Gardner, Carl Cross, Mike & Melody Fortune, and our hosts, among others, had a memorable evening. Others I saw at the celebration of Richard's life included Mart Thaxton, Mike Sink, Frank & Ann Gardner Hearn, Ann Conner, Cack Reagan, Marty Hammer, Winn Dillard, Mike Estes, Bill Baldridge, and many others (old and new friends - Ain't life's journey grand!). I know some of these were gathering in Little Rock to raise a toast in Richard's honor. Becky McDaniel and my sister Lana (two more of Richard's littermates) were unable to attend the funeral because of time and distance, but their loving spirit was present (and we talked via telephone). While the occasion was tinged with a certain sadness, the stories told created scattered laughter and tears of joy. Thanks, Richard, for bringing us together once again! You always thrived at a good party and you truly did on Friday.
For you first time readers of the Miles' Files, I often use the maiden name of the "Girls of NHS" (sounds like a good spread for a Playboy cover story) so all will know of whom I speak and so I will not embarrass myself in not recalling their married moniker. And as a general reminder, whenever you tire of my ramblings, the delete key is a pretty handy device. I do welcome several "new faces" of "old Hounds" to the growing list of Miles' Files recipients. I genuinely love replies and unprovoked missives, so tickle your keyboard and "send" me a cyber note from time to time.
Clay Wright wrote recently reminding me of our annual futile attempts to save enough Blue Horse stamps to redeem for something we wanted such as a new baseball glove. Of course, you had to have saved a gazillion stamps to even qualify for a pencil, so those magical gifts were always out of reach. Clay asked if I remembered another stamp program similar to Blue Horses, but I am at a loss (I will blame this memory lapse on the last beer at Bob King's). Someone help us out! If you don't remember another such program, we will attribute Clay's hallucinations to some bad scotch. Wait a minute ... there is no such thing as bad scotch. Possibly the water in Oklahoma causes crazy thinking.
2001! Wow!!! When "2001 - A Space Odyssey" hit the screen in 1968, the actual coming of the year 2001 seemed literally light years away. Now we are living it. Awesome time travel! An odyssey is a long journey marked by wanderings, adventures, and hardships. That pretty well sums up life, doesn't it? For some the journey may not be as "long" as it is for others, but the wanderings, adventures, and hardships are commonplace for all the Hound Dogs I have been privileged to know. The sharing of those adventures and those hardships while wandering around through life is the principal ingredient of friendship. Sharing conversation, sharing laughs, sharing heartaches, sharing triumphs, sharing failures brings lives together in experience creating everlasting friendships.
After we left dear old Newport High, or as we moved "beyond the kennel," time and distance may have separated us from our roots; however, the common spirit we share keeps us together regardless of our location in the cosmos. Richard Brand certainly exhibited that Greyhound Spirit while he ran among us just as the ten members of the Class of 1970 and those alumni from other years who no longer walk upon this earthly plain did in their lives. The memory of lives past brings a better appreciation for lives present. Again, Richard, thanks for bringing us together in body and spirit and for raising that festival of the spirit to a higher level. The rest of us will continue to mark off each day of this odyssey we live from the calendars that direct us.
Until our next meeting, whether it be in person, over the phone, or in cyberspace, I remain Miles from Nowhere ... guess I'll take my time ... oh yeah!
In the Spirit of the Greyhound,
joe
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