web1_122809275-f49e558087b34319921c0cafbcfbb9a2.jpg

Juul’s ‘switch’ campaign for smokers draws new scrutiny

web1_c046d4d30dcd4623bca6b906500e17f5-6a27a8a13f1342a69674baa6a90fe1e4-0.jpg

Liz Weston: Is better credit worth exposing your bank data?

<p><em>Editor&#8217;s Note: The Times Leader is rerunning this op-ed that appeared four years ago.</em></p><p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; The month of May &#8212; Mother&#8217;s Day. Memorial Day.</p><p>Over three days recently, I had two special occasions that brought to mind, rather vividly, the days we will celebrate in May.</p><p>On a Sunday morning, we were informed that a nesting pair of bald eagles found a home in a wooded area near our house. Later that day, we went to catch a glimpse of our nation&#8217;s symbol of freedom and courage. As we quietly approached an observation area, keeping our distance so as not to disturb the parenting activity of the eagles, I thought about two things.</p><p>First, it was obvious how observant and protective &#8220;mama bird&#8221; was. Though we kept at a safe, legal distance, we saw that the nesting eagle was well aware of our presence, making sure that the eggs beneath her would come to no danger. A mother&#8217;s vigilance is untiring and pervasive.</p><p>Second, I thought about the meaning of our national bird, and I drifted to the thoughts of the men and women who serve our country with the same vigilance of a nesting eagle. When I returned home, I pulled out a book that my father had received after serving in the military and that I have kept preserved since his passing. I paged through the photographs of an infantry that landed on Utah Beach, Normandy, on D-Day plus 14 &#8211; June 20, 1944. I wondered what a young man of 19 years, who was raised not far from where the eagle was nesting, would have been thinking, knowing that his duty was to lay down his life if necessary to regain the freedom of so many, whom he had never before met.</p><p>It was his duty, his obligation and his courage that took him through France, Germany, Holland and back again to Germany. He rarely talked about his experiences, until, in his seventies, he knew the end was near.</p><p>He told about a night sleeping in a forest of evergreens, with snow on the ground and the sudden and overwhelming terror of artillery shells exploding among the trees, sending wooden splinters across the forest floor. &#8220;Tree burst&#8221; it was called, and the event occurred during the Battle of the Bulge.</p><p>During the month of May, be sure to tell a veteran, an active service member or their family how grateful you are for what they so ardently fight to preserve.</p><p>The second event I noted occurred one evening after returning home from work. I was presented with a book that was found among a hundred other books in my daughter&#8217;s room. It is titled &#8220;The Little Engine that Could.&#8221;</p><p>I opened the front cover and saw that it was simply signed &#8220;To Michael, From Joyce, 1957.&#8221;</p><p>I would have been 4 years old that year. The book and the signature reminded me of my mother and her friend Joyce, both of whom at that time worked at a local cigar factory.</p><p>I can recall reading the book, with my mother&#8217;s help, while sitting on her lap. I remember the soft, somewhat worn cotton dress and the smell of tobacco that seemed to linger in all of her work clothes. It&#8217;s funny how so many years later a simple, inanimate object is capable of bringing such vivid recall of touch and scent.</p><p>On Mother&#8217;s Day, be sure to share your memories. Remembering the past defines our present. It will do you good.</p><p>These two events reinforce the importance of family between generations. Share your stories with your children; it will provide them an identity to carry forward for the rest of their lives.</p><style>
.neFileBlock {
	margin-bottom: 20px;
}
.neFileBlock p {
	margin: 0px 0px 0px 0px;
}
.neFileBlock .neFile {
	border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa;
	padding-bottom: 5px;
	padding-top: 10px;
}
.neFileBlock .neCaption {
	font-size: 85%;
}
</style>
<div class='neFileBlock'>
<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/web1_Zimmerman.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Zimmerman </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/web1_Zimmerman.jpg</photo0><caption0>Zimmerman </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Michael Zimmerman</p><p>CEO/Family Service Association of NEPA</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Michael Zimmerman is the Chief Executive Officer at Family Service Association of Northeastern Pennsylvania.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Their view: Remembering May’s important days