PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 38
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
Saturday, September 25, 2021
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 37 - Pawpaw video When I look at a tree
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 37
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
When I Look At A Tree by Steven Skelley
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 36 - Pawpaw video Treasures of yesteryear
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 36
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
Enjoy my video of Treasures Of Yesteryear by Steven Skelley
Friday, September 10, 2021
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 35 - LGBTQ Pride
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 35
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
Why I Celebrate LGBTQ Pride by Steven Skelley
I can trace my maternal family line back to 1720 when Abraham McWilliams was born. He sailed to the New World, settled in Pennsylvania and his son Samuel fought in the Lancaster County Militia for American freedom. I am proud of that history.
Just as I have a place in the history of my genealogical family, I am also a part of another family. I have a place in the history of the homosexual family. Unfortunately, unlike my genealogical history that can be easily traced, the accomplishments of my homosexual brothers and sisters have been erased.
Cave drawings and art from the Mesolithic period in on Sicily, Bethlehem, Zimbabwe, Czech Republic, Egypt and more depict LGBTQ members of society.
Millions of people throughout human history have been born like me. Some societies valued my family. Most societies shunned, imprisoned, castrated, tortured or killed us. This is why I celebrate LGBTQ Pride.
What do we have to be proud of, you ask?
Three hundred years before Christ, the Sacred Band of Thebes is documented. The Sacred Band was an elite fighting force made up of 150 gay couples. They were so fierce, though outnumbered, they defeated the mighty Spartans. They finally fell to Philip of Macedonia and his son Alexander the Great.
Native American / Indigenous communities welcomed and honored LGBTQ people for centuries before conquering Europeans forced bigotry and religious persecution upon them. These Two Spirit people were considered valuable assets who were able to view both the male and female perspective.
Alan Turing is considered the father of computer science. An Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire for his Enigma code-breaking work in WWII which saved hundreds of thousands of Allied soldiers’ lives, he was convicted of homosexuality and chemically castrated. He then killed himself.
Harvey Milk was a civil rights leader who became one of the first openly-gay elected officials in the United States. He was assassinated.
There aren’t enough pages available to share all the history of my LGBTQ family that has been erased.
Even though my LGBTQ family has been sharing this planet with heterosexuals since the beginning of time, prevailing religions have been victorious in suppressing us, imprisoning us and killing us for being born the way we are.
We barely won the right to marry in 2015 but in most states, we can still be legally fired from our jobs or denied housing by heterosexuals for no reason other than we are LGBTQ. In many countries, we are still tortured, imprisoned and murdered.
For me, LGBTQ Pride events give me the chance to remember my family, to take my place proudly in the history of our shared world and to stand up to say we will never again allow anyone to make us second class, shunned, imprisoned, castrated, tortured or killed again.
I am an American. I am Gay. I am a Naturist. I am proud to be all three.
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 34 - You think you have time
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
My loves, make the most of every minute because we never know how many we have left.
Love you forever,
Pawpaw
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 33 - Who can see me
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
My loves, love is more than a sweet feeling.
Love you forever,
Pawpaw
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 32 - When I look at a tree
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
My loves, nature has amazing lessons to teach us if we'll take the time to look and listen.
Love you forever,
Pawpaw
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 31 - Treasures of yesteryear
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
My loves, I wish that I had spent more time listening to life stories of older people in my life. In their stories are treasures of yesteryear. I hope you search for them and treasure them.
Love you forever,
Pawpaw
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 30 - The soul of an eel
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
My loves, trust your heart You'll know whe someone cannot be trusted.
Love you forever,
Pawpaw
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 29 - The Mirror me
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
My loves, For decades of my life I looked in the mirror and saw the real me who wanted to be set free. You see, I had created a fake me that would fit in with the people around me. Finally, I set the mirror me free.
Love you forever,
Pawpaw
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 28 - The Dash
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
My loves, we each are given only a small amount of time on this planet. Make the most of your time. Be you!
Love you forever,
Pawpaw
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 27 - Standing in line
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
The human
journey is universal. We all begin and end. Our paths may be different. Our
colors may be different. Our luck may be different. Even so, we will all have a
beginning and then take our place in the line marching toward our end. It is
the way of nature. So, I sit here today making this rhyme to remind you to make
the most of your time standing in line – Steven Skelley
Pawpaw loves Connor, Bryson and Archer!
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 26 - Sherry's smile
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves and misses you all
Pawpaw loves Archer!
My sister Sherry
courageously battled cancer until she left this life at the age of forty-five.
She was a special person and the ideal big sister. I will remember her life as
a gift – the gift of a good example.
Pawpaw loves and misses you all
Messages To My Grandsons 25 - Not alone
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
The world is full of pain. People suffer horrible things every day. What better goal is there for us than to love and help those who suffer?
Pawpaw loves Connor, Bryson and Archer.
Messages To My Grandsons 24 - My scars
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer! I ahev endured more than twenty surgeries on my hands, knees, wrist, shoulders and skull. I have scars all over my body. I don't see them as ugly. Each scar tells a story of a challenge faced and conquered.
Pawpaw loves Connor, Bryson and Archer!
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 23 - My Mom's Voice
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
My Mom, Sherill May McWilliams Skelley, was a beautiful woman and a loving mother. You would have loved her and she would have loved you.
She passed away at the young age of 45. I have missed the sound of her voice every day since.
Pawpaw love you, Connor, Bryson and Archer!
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 22 - Love always mends
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
When I was two years old, my parents lived next door to a family that also had a two year old boy. Naturally, we played together every day and became friends. One day, his family moved away.
Later, we also moved to another city. I entered Kindergarten. On my first day, I was surprised to find my neighbor friend there! His family had moved to the same city. We attended school together from Kindergarten to High School graduation.
Around the end of Middle School, I ended our friendship over something stupid. I said terrible things. I was an idiot.
Forty years later, his face popped up on my computer on a social media program called Facebook. I sent him a message apologising for my childhood foolishness. I honestly did not expect a reply.
To my surprise, he messaged me back. In his kindness he said, "We all have done things we regret. I choose to forget those and remember all the goods times we had together as kids."
This man who has known me since age two taught me a lesson about forgiveness.
Pawpaw loves you, Connor, Bryson and Archer!
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 21 - It's important to shine
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
I looked up at the moon and a poem came to me. I hope it means something to you.
Love you forever,
Pawpaw
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 20 - I'm a happy boy
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
Sometimes it is fun to write a fun and silly poem. I hope this oine makes you laugh.
Love you forever,
Pawpaw
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 19 - I'll remind you
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
My loves, it is easy to get caught in the storms of life and forget how wonderful you are. When you forget, I'll remind you.
Love you,
Pawpaw
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 18 - First Love
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
First Love is a powerful thing. In my case, it was a lost
love. We were childhood best friends. We had the same dark hair. People often
asked if we were brothers. We finished each other’s sentences. We were soul
mates. In the living hell that is sometimes life, we grew up in a time when men
loving men was illegal. Men like us were beaten, jailed, murdered, refused
employment, refused housing, castrated. It was terrifying to even consider admitting
our natural sexuality. I was in love with a man since fifth grade but I was
afraid to admit it.
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 17 - Edication ruins a slave
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
I hope you enjoy my poem EDUCATION RUINS A SLAVE.
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 16 - Common Scents
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
My three loves, I write this poem to remind us of the wonderful happy memories that can come back from something as simple as a familiar aroma crossing our noses.
Love you, forever,
Pawpaw
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 15 - Choose me
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
I composed the original Choose Me as a
religious / inspirational poem in the late 1980’s. I focused on the desire to
fit in and have a place to call home that children feel so intensely.
When I reread my creation in 2020, I saw a
different pathway for the end. Through decades of life experiences, I have
learned that the only person that I need to have approve of me - is me.
I am now at peace choosing to set boundaries
on people and situations that may try to pound my heart into submission to some
unhealthy dependence on approval.
And now when I
Need one on which to rely
I feel confident to simply choose me.
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 14 - Become the calm
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
My loves, you can overcome any challenge or heartbreak. All you need is already within you.
Love you,
Pawpaw
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 13 - A butterfly to be
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw loves Archer!
This is my poem A BUTTERFLY TO BE. Sometimes we feel like we don't fit in. It's ok though. There's probably something better that's yet to be, guys.
Love you forever,
Pawpaw
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 11 - On being a naturist
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 11
Pawpaw loves Connor!
Pawpaw loves Bryson!
Pawpaw
loves Archer!
It
has been more than one year since I have been allowed to visit or speak to you,
my loves. I miss you more than I can say.
Once
again, I want to share something about myself since you are not allowed to know
me. I hope that you somehow remember all the good times we had in your early
childhoods.
Connor
and Bryson, as funny as it may sound, you spent most of your preschool life at
home nude! You both hated wearing diapers so, when your parents put them on
you, you’d just take them back off.
Eventually,
you were wearing underwear instead of diapers but you both preferred to be
nude. Your parents gave in and let you live nude at home. You played in your
yard nude. You played inside nude. You jumped on the trampoline nude. You were
nude on your swingset.
When
it came time for Connor to enter school, your mom and dad used to joke that
they feared the teacher would call because you would have stripped nude at
school!
When you guys visited my house, I allowed you to swim nude. I was raised to believe that nude is natural. Our bodies are nothing to be ashamed of. As an adult, I adopted a Naturist mindset.
Why I am a
Naturist by Steven Skelley
My parents
used to joke that they could not keep clothes on me as a toddler and preschool
child. I could often be found roaming our back yard nude as the minute I was
born.
We lived at
the edge of acres and acres of woods filled with trails and a deep creek.
During elementary and middle school, it was not unusual for my guy fiends and I
to strip off our Summer clothes and skinnydip in the creek. It was comfortable.
Many of us
played sports and showered together. We showered together after physical
education classes in school too. We showered nude with our coaches, Dads,
uncles and other adults we played sports with.
Quite
honestly, it was the perfect way to introduce us to the male body in all its
stages, shapes and sizes.
There was a
camaraderie that was intensified by being open and honest before each other.
When I
relocated 1000 miles to
The truth
of the matter is that I feel most at peace when I am naturally nude in nature
and naturally nude with others. There is an honesty and communion that I feel
nowhere else.
It is crazy
for people to say that naturism and nudism are unnatural. We are all born nude.
Every creature in creation lives their lives naturally nude.
There is
nothing more natural than being nude.
Monday, September 6, 2021
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 10 - Pawpaw's Mom and Grandma
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 10
Pawpaw
loves Connor!
Pawpaw
loves Bryson!
by Steven Skelley
My mother’s name was Sherill May McWilliams (Skelley) but I called her Mom.
Mom was very beautiful as a teen and twenty-something. I always thought she looked like Lucille Ball when she was young. She looked like an old-fashioned movie star.
I’ve seen photos of her as a teen wearing a sleeveless, fitted dress blouse, Capri pants and sunglasses. She was young, fit, thin and beautiful.
When I close my eyes and try to picture her as an adult, I remember her wearing pant suits with coordinated slacks and tops or sundresses with floppy movie-star hats and sunglasses.
Mom liked to dye her hair red or light reddish brown. She wore red finger nail polish and lipstick. This made me think of her even more like the young and beautiful Lucille Ball.
If I close my eyes, I can picture Mom right now, about 35 years old on a summer day, wearing a scarf on her head and sunglasses on her eyes, somehow also looking like Jacqueline Kennedy in the 1960s. I can see Mom smile as she looks over Atwood Lake
She had a great smile as well as a slight country accent from growing up in a town named Barnesville.
Mom and Grandma McWilliams (her Mom)Mom and Grandma Mc (Virginia Margaret McWilliams) were mother and daughter but they were also best pals. They laughed constantly when they were together no matter what they were doing. It was great seeing them having fun together and loving each other so much.
Mom and Grandma Mc were probably the ones most responsible for my love of reading. We would walk from Grandma and Grandpa Mc’s house to downtown Canton
We’d continue our downtown walks by window-shopping in the stores like Kresge’s, Woolworth’s and McCrory’s. Sometimes we would have lunch at the store lunch counter.
I have very pleasant memories of those walks, especially at Christmas time when all the city decorations and lights were up, the stores’ front windows were all decorated with shining Christmas trees and enticing gifts, and people were ice skating in the square as Christmas music played in the background.
When we were little, Mom and Grandma Mc liked to take us (Skip, Sherry, Susie and me) to Mother Goose Land. It was a small, themed park at the end of the Canton Park system, not far from the McKinley Monument
Mom and Grandma Mc would let us play on the playground and then walk us through the life-sized story-themed prop displays like Wizard of Oz, Ali Babba’s Treasure Cave
Sometimes, if there was any spare cash, we each got a marshmallow ice cream cone that probably cost a nickel or dime.
Sometimes, if there was any spare cash, we each got a marshmallow ice cream cone that probably cost a nickel or dime.
Mom and Grandma would also take us to the McKinley Monument
Mom loved visiting Barnesville , Ohio
Grandma Mc told us that Mom was born on the kitchen table back in the days when doctors made house calls. How things change from one generation to the next!
I don’t remember Mom having a full-time job during most of my childhood but I do seem to remember her working part-time with Grandma McWilliams as a cleaning lady in an office building in downtown Canton , Ohio across from the 200 year old Church of the Savior United Methodist Church
Mom and Grandma Mc cleaned the offices in the evenings after the doctors and business people left. I remember Grandma saying she was often stuck by syringe needles when she emptied trash cans. It was before there were controls over medical waste.
One of my funniest memories of Mom and Grandma Mc was when a nightclub opened for women only. It was called the Regal Beagle, if I remember correctly. The club had male exotic dancers like the Chippendales! Women would line up down the sidewalk for a block waiting to get in. One day I was walking to a friend’s house when I saw Mom and Grandma Mc, grinning from ear to ear, right in line with all the other women waiting to see the half-naked male stripper dancers!! Go Mom and Grandma Mc! Good for you!! I love that memory.
Hugs, Music and The Wizard of Oz
Mom was very tactile and very loving. She loved to hug and kiss her children on the cheek. We’d all giggle when she left a big lipstick kiss-mark on our cheeks.
If I sat with her on the sofa or swing, she would hum or sing while she’d gently rub my arm, back or head so softly it almost put me to sleep.Getting up on the cold, Ohio winter mornings for school, no matter how grumpy I was that morning, Mom always walked me to the door and sent me off to school with her wonderful smile and the words, “Honey (or Stevie)….have a great day.”
I am sure she knew school wasn’t going to be a lot of fun for poorer kids like us so she tried to start off the day on a positive note. I appreciate that a lot more now than I did then I suppose.
I am sure she knew school wasn’t going to be a lot of fun for poorer kids like us so she tried to start off the day on a positive note. I appreciate that a lot more now than I did then I suppose.
Mom loved listening to music and singing along. She had a record player in the dining room and played records by Elvis and Judy Garland. She also had records of the soundtracks from The Wizard of Oz and West Side Story. Whenever we were in the car, Mom would turn on the AM radio and we would all sing along to the songs together.
Back before there were videos and DVDs, the television broadcasters would air The Wizard of Oz once a year. It was a big deal. Mom always gathered us all together, made inexpensive Chef Boyardee pizza or even less expensive popcorn and we all watched The Wizard of Oz together. It was great family time.
Mom was poor almost all of her life though there were several better years when Dad was working union wage factory jobs and we could make ends meet and even have some fun.
Mom was hospitalized numerous times and had more than her share of operations. Dad told me that Mom had as many miscarriages as children. I don't know if he was exaggerating.
Eventually she would be overcome by pain and the hardships of life and she would unsuccessfully attempt suicide. Having had more than a dozen surgeries myself and having suffered decades of pain, I understand how she could become overcome and just want to end the pain. She wasn't weak.
Eventually she would be overcome by pain and the hardships of life and she would unsuccessfully attempt suicide. Having had more than a dozen surgeries myself and having suffered decades of pain, I understand how she could become overcome and just want to end the pain. She wasn't weak.
Mom passed away at age 45 - too young. The coroner did an autopsy and ruled it an accidental overdose of prescription medicines.
Mom was buried in Barnesville , Ohio
She deserved a better life than she got.
In spite of it all, she had a great smile, a great hug, and when she was happy, it was infectious.
That’s how I choose to remember her…in those happier times.
She died a year before my daughter Steffany was born.
Mom would have loved Steffany. They are so much alike with their ability to smile, laugh and reach out to others with love.
Mom would have loved Steffany. They are so much alike with their ability to smile, laugh and reach out to others with love.
They would have been pals.
I can just imagine all the mischief, love and laughter they would have shared together. I am sorry they never met.
I hope that my daughter and I carry on that same loving spirit that embodied the lives of Mom and Grandma Mc.
I wrote a song that was inspired by my mother and my daughter. It is "Thank You God For Making Moms."
You can see a youtube video of "Thank You God For Making Moms" at - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xW0d7JFm-X0
I wrote a song that was inspired by my mother and my daughter. It is "Thank You God For Making Moms."
You can see a youtube video of "Thank You God For Making Moms" at - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xW0d7JFm-X0
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 96 - COMMON SCENTS video and song
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 96 - COMMON SCENTS video and song Pawpaw loves Connor, Bryson and Archer forever! It is January 2025....
-
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 35 Pawpaw loves Connor! Pawpaw loves Bryson! Pawpaw loves Archer! Why I Celebrate LGBTQ Pride by Stev...
-
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 68 - Connor and Bryson in a fish tank! Pawpaw loves Connor, Bryson and Archer! I miss you guys so muc... -
PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 84 Pawpaw loves Connor, Bryson and Archer! When you were younger, Connor and Bryson, you used to ask m...
