Thanks to Nicole for letting me say these things.
Nicole’s remarks in the little sidebar chat thingy on this blog, which may have disappeared by this time, where she says “The jokes are daddy’s, well I guess they are mine now.” Got me to thinking about and remembering D.W. Hollingsworth. He had a terrific sense of humor and published a daily joke e-mail called “Colorado Comments” that was full of old and new jokes that all had one thing in common; they were clean and they were funny. Nicole has her dad’s quick wit and sense of humor among the many other things he put in her, and she is going to be sharing some of her favorite jokes and stories from “Colorado Comments” from time to time as she feels like it in my joke blog, http://herbshumor.blogdrive.com/. In fact, it was his daily dose of humor that made me want to do it.
Not knowing who may read this entry I guess it is safe to say that you may not ever have heard of him, which is too bad for you because he was a really great guy. He was always jovial and friendly, even after being diagnosed with terminal cancer. He would be so weak and in so much pain toward the end, but he never quit putting out his newsletter and he never missed coming to church whenever the doors were open. This was always his way, driving 35 – 40 miles in all manner of weather to make sure his family made it every service, even special revival services. The times that they missed in the 16 years my family has gone to the First Pentecostal Church of Colorado Springs you could count on one hand. In the end he could no longer drive and had to let his wife drive, but he loved God and he loved the Church so much that he had to go where he belonged.
Respected and liked by the other men in the church, toward the end they had to carry a recliner into the service since the regular pews were not made for the comfort of a cancer patient. He could have stayed at home and listened to sermons on tape, of course, but it was important for him to be at church. He could have possibly gone to church closer to home, but he was a loyal man. Loyal to God and church and pastor. When I was a scout leader one of the laws we tried to teach the boys was being loyal. Here was a living, breathing example. His body would be so exhausted and wracked with pain sometimes that he would occasionally doze off, but not too often because he didn’t want to miss anything. Without disclosing his personal business I will tell you that he was a devoted family man and every thing he did, his reason for being, was his wife and kids. He was quick to laugh, to smile, to forgive.
A heroic man to the very end. When you watch someone who is genuinely sick, not just a sniffly cold; when you see a man make church attendance mandatory for himself; when you see a man who will sacrifice his personal comfort for the betterment and future care of his family; you see a hero. Such a man was Brother David Hollingsworth. The Scripture talks about different kinds of men, righteous men and good men, here was both a righteous man and a good man. A good man that loved God, Church, Family and Country.
I had considered trying to write about the question of why such a good man would be taken and many lesser men, starting at myself, would be left, but it is something I don’t understand. The Bible book of Ecclesiastes has the answer, but you have to read the whole book through as a sermon. It is not exactly like the Proverbs, where you can pick out a verse or two and get wisdom, but rather you have to read it as a complete book, a complete sermon from beginning to end to really “get” Ecclesiastes. Anyway, the answer is in there and far more eloquent and articulately written than I could ever hope to be. Read what the Good Book says for yourself.
