#260 / Five Guys

There used to be a Five Guys hamburger place in Santa Cruz. It was at the corner of Pacific Avenue and Cathcart, right downtown near the Del Mar Theatre. I never ate there, since I had moved beyond hamburger a few years before the Five Guys restaurant showed up. I do remember hearing, though, that the burgers were really good. I always liked the name, too, "Five Guys." Five is my favorite number. Maybe that's the reason. 

At any rate, I realized, just the other day, as I was working in my home office, that I have my own "Five Guys," upon whom I know I can rely for good advice and counsel whenever I find myself in need of that. 

Most days, in other words. 

The "Five Guys" that I am talking about are found in pictures, hanging on my office walls. One of those pictures is immediately below, a 2001 pastel portrait of my father, Philips B. Patton. My father's advice is probably not too accessible to those who may be reading this, though I can refer you to an earlier blog posting, titled "Father's Day Stories." My father's basic teaching, outlined there, was that "anything is possible." I have come to believe it - though not without a struggle, I can assure you. Another one of my father's admonitions has also struck me as good advice: "If you don't have a dream, Gary, you can never have a dream come true."

The teachings of the other authorities upon whom I regularly rely, all of whom are also pictured on my office walls, are much more accessible to the general reader. I am hoping you know who is pictured below, and how to access the Sermon on the Mount. Or, you can try The Jefferson Bible, if you'd like to read a little bit more.

The three others included in my "Five Guys" line up are all on one wall, above my desk, as you can see from the photograph below:

Bob Dylan's website (not to mention YouTube) provides an easy access to what Bob Dylan has to say. It is not a coincidence, I think, that Dylan has a rather powerful song specifically calling out three of my "Five Guys" for special recognition: Jesus, Gandhi, and Martin Luther King, Jr. Click here to listen. Click here for the words. "They Killed Him" is the name of the song.

Guidance from Martin Luther King, Jr., and from Gandhi, can be found with no trouble at all. Just click those links to get started. However, you might want to order yourself a poster for your own personal use. I think that would be a pretty good investment. When I start thinking about the social, political, and economic topics on which Gandhi and King have advice worth considering (in other words, when I am thinking about almost any such topic), I always start by looking at those posters on my wall. Here they are in a close up view, making it easier to read the words:

oooOOOooo

I always liked that name, "Five Guys," and the five guys on the walls of my office provide me with what I think is some particularly good guidance - appropriate guidance for all of us seeking to live a good and meaningful life.

Please feel free to follow up with any one of them!

Image Credits:

(1) - https://www.oakparkeats.com/food-news/five-guys-in-oak-park-to-close/

(2) - (4) Gary Patton personal photos
(5) - http://viewfromabus.blogspot.com/2012/
(6) - http://divine-cosmos.net/hate-cannot-drive-out-hate.htm