Howdy!  Goon here,  Goon Perkins.  Hope this finds y'all well.  Me, I'm doin'; nothin' really new under the (city) sun.  LOL

Still tryin' to survive this game called life.  At times it threatens to swallow me whole, but I refuse to give in.  Been doin' this ever since I can remember; I guess you can say livin' the life I do makes one street-smart.

Guess that's why I am still here, plus I have the love of God and family to sustain me.  :)

I do have some bad news.  My homeboy, Shawn, and his family have been split up.  His granny died last week; the police came and took the kids, put 'em in foster care.  My heart breaks for them; they really tried to make their lives better; now they are going to have to start all over again.

I just don't understand it.  Why some people seem to do great, have all their cards in a deck, all their ducks in a row, while others continually get bombasted by one tragedy or misfortune after another.  It just doesn't make any sense at all!

It seems that life has been cruel to people like Shawn Perkins and his family.  I am going to have to pray for them now, harder than ever (and I have been keepin' 'em in my prayers.  I pray for them every night)!

I have been trying to keep the drug lords or gangbangers off my tail; guess they think twice when they see me, the Goonster, coming.  After all, I am over 7' tall; I do cut an imposing figure to most people.  Guess that's why I am known as Goon instead of Garrett.  Makes perfect sense, right??

Maybe my bigness is a blessing in disquise????

I have been trying to help my family, in particular, my little brother, Joshiah, who is physically disabled.  He has some sort of rare disease (spinocerebellar ataxia) that has caused him to become increasingly disabled.  At four, he can no longer walk; he's in a wheelchair. 

There's no telling how long he will live; we might as well make his life the best it can be, or enjoy him while we still have him in our lives.  He is a blessing, not only to us, but to all who meet him!  He is incredible!

I mean, my baby brother has more courage inside that tiny, broken body than most people possess in their entire lives!

Having a brother like Joshiah has taught me about God's grace.  He's taught me about patience, love, acceptance, tolerance, and more.  Joshiah is a joy to be around; I wish more people could be as accepting of him as we are instead of looking at him as an object to be pitied rather than a real life person!

I mean, I could have been born with the problems Joshiah faces; yet by God's mercy, I wasn't, and I thank God that I wasn't!  I sure would miss out on a whole lotta things, ya know??

Well, sorry I gotta split, but we have to get ready for church.  I will write in here another day with more news about me, my family, Shawn (as I hear more), and other goodies (or perhaps baddies, depending how things are going).  Until then, this is Garrett, aka the Goon, saying so long and God bless!  Please keep my friend, Shawn Perkins, and his family, in your prayers; they really could use 'em!  Thanks in advance!

~Garrett Perkins ("Goon"). 

P.S.:  About the piccy:  The bird.  We went to my cousin's house, and he has several birds.  That's just one of them.  The little guy was singing his heart out.  He is a shaft-tail finch; they come from the northwestern part of Australia.  Isn't he cute??  Name's "Blackthroat" (and with good reason)!  :)

~"Goon". 

To be continued.