5/2/2026

My Dear Friend & POTUS, DJT,

Today I will be clerking a Meeting for Worship to celebrate the life of Grant Noda. He died in December at the age of 103. 

I’d ask you to call the family to express your condolences but apparently, your calls to bereaved families have not always gone well, especially Gold Star families who have lost a loved one in battle. AI reports that in addition to missing some calls, your comments have not always been comforting. I’m afraid you often give the impression that you have contempt that serve in the military. That came through in your call with Sgt. La David Johnson’s widow when you referred to her husband as “your guy” & said, “you know that this could happen when you signed up.” 

My take on your challenges in consoling the families of soldiers is that you continue to be haunted by the guilt you feel about not serving in the Vietnam War. You tell yourself the story that anyone who serves in a frontline position is a “sucker.” Since your executive control function is not as strong as it used to be, this story emerges when it shouldn’t. A therapist might be able to help you change that story, but you will have to invest some time in extensive self-examination to reveal your inner truths. 

Back to Grant Noda. He could serve as an example to you of someone who walked through life without grievance, even though he had every reason to resent the way his family was treated during WWII. He was interred at Camp Amache in Colorado. He hated confinement so much that he volunteered to work in the local sugar beet fields to get away from the camp. The workers got paid next to nothing for this hard labor so he left for Earlham College when that opportunity arose. Despite this inhumane treatment he walked the Earth with a smile & spread good cheer wherever he went, always ready with a giggle & a quip. He was a seeker, too. Always wondering about the existence of God & the meaning of life. I feel blessed to have known him.

I hope you find time to get some intel about the whereabouts of Aung San Suu Kyi. Please be mindful that MAH tells himself some crazy stories about his benevolence & could use some extensive self-examination. Perhaps you, two, could go on a silent retreat some day to figure yourselves out.

BYBS,

RCA