Author Archives: Lois A. Bolin, Ph.D.

Last November, a visitor walked through the back door of the Naples Backyard History Mini-Museum who turned out to be the great-great grandson of the founder of the city of Naples. Since then, many surprise guests have passed through our doors, front and back, with stories about the magic of this place we call home. But this past week was something to behold.

In March 1776, Abigail Adams wrote to her husband, “If particular care and attention is not paid to the ladies, we are determined to foment a rebellion, and will not hold ourselves bound by any laws in which we have no voice or representation.”

I’m not necessarily a fan of Tom Brokaw, but I am a fan of his book “The Greatest Generation,” which has given rise to the naming of a group of men and women who are a cut above the rest. Born between 1914 and 1929, they grew up in the Great Depression, fought in World War II and learned the meaning of sacrifice before building our country into a superpower.

Have you ever known someone who could always turn lemons into lemonade? Last week I visited one of those fine lemonade makers who’s also the kind of gentleman we used to admire in the movies — the kind who’d tip their hat and rush to open the car door for a lady, all the while fighting off some villain, metaphorical or literal, with nary a bead of sweat nor a break in his confident stride.