Wayne A BernardI was raised in a small town in southeast Louisiana not far from a fishing community. My siblings and I, when in grade school witnessed kids pulled from our classrooms at a young age to either work on the shrimp boats or make a winter trapping trip. e understood what was taking place because we were told the stories by our mother and father of how they were pulled from school to work in the fields or babysit siblings. Education was not highly thought of by many that lived this kind of life. My mother and father preached to us about the importance of education. They both always said they would have loved to finish their education and in later years when we were on our own, my mother did so. We were not raised poor or needy but we were far from being well to do. My father worked hard and my mother raised her family. There may have been things we wanted and didn't get, but we had all we needed. The main thing we had was a loving and caring family and each other. As a young boy I played in the woods and swamps that today is a National Historical Park. I have walked my children and grandchildren along the board walks that follow the trails where I played and hunted as a boy. I return every now and then just to feel a small piece of the simple life we shared. After my Military Duties I went to work in the Maritime Industry as a field service technician. I have had the opportunity to travel the state of Louisiana and many others from one end to the other. I always thought the land and the scenery was beautiful, but the real beauty was in the culture of the people. Like my brother and sisters, we have never met a stranger. Still today I work in the same industry and look forward to work every day. Life is only as beautiful as we make it. Sometime simplicity is pure quality and beauty Read More Read Less