Above: The original Our Lady of Mercy church, on Main Street.

In the beginning of my writing career no story drew as much attention, calls or questions as the one titled, The Hawkman and the Nun. The nun was Sister Mary Ernest, who has since passed away. I was under oath not to reveal the identity of The Hawkman, except to say that he represented the “rainbow warrior” in all of us.

He, too, has passed away and I will keep my promise, for a while at least.

The Hawkman was an intriguing character, but, he was only one among a host of characters that we had here in East Greenwich.

East Greenwich was an education unto itself. Growing up here I was exposed to a whole spectrum of characters. They taught me that all learning doesn’t come from books and that a college degree doesn’t make you smart.

Neither does a “big job.” A lot of smart people I know don’t have a lick of common sense.

Anyway, you could hang around down at the shore, at Tar’s, or, in Mully’s and pick up a lot of interesting information, and some great quotes.

This “Rems” is dedicated to Chuck, The Irish Whip, Billy Sandman, The Hawkman, and, of course, that whole host of characters who spewed forth pearls of wisdom every day, whether they knew it or not!

Apparently, someone was listening, sooo here we go….

The Hawkman used to say, “Eat the rich!” or “There’s a lot of would’ves, could’ves and should’ves in the world.”

“Some people ask what happened; some people let things happen, some people wonder what happened? And some people make things happen! Make things Happen!”

Billy Sandman used to say, “You can’t catch the nine o’clock bus if you come at 9:15!” and, “Who cares if George Washington chopped down a cherry tree! What does that mean?”

Harry said, “It’s got to be the going, not the getting there that’s good,” and, “You can travel on $10,000 miles and still stay where you are.” And, “This is the town that made America famous!”

The Whipper said, “I can’t wait ‘til I get my Mercedes, then I can go around acting like a bulbous Buffalo Butt, like some I see around here. They think owning a big car means they have a license to put their nose in the air and think they don’t stink!” 

Chuck used to say, “If a man is the sum of the material things he has, and that’s where he places his identity, what happens if he loses those things? Does he cease to exist?”  

Hawkman said, ” If you believe in forever, then life is just a one-night stand.”   

Sandman – “The man who dies with the most toys is just as dead.”

The Whip – “Loyalty is worth more than all the money in the world.”

The Iron Man said, “BBBetter button that shirt, Mastracchio, if you know what’s good for you, and bbbbetter, get on the ball!”

Billy Sandman – “The guy who died yesterday wished he could be doing whatever you’re doing today, even if you are not doing it well.”

Chuck – “Not only have I met men I didn’t like, I have met men I downright couldn’t stand.”

The Whip – “I like the life I am living. It gives me something to do.”

Sandman added – “The only thing I am certain of is that you can’t be certain of too much.” And, “You better love your enemies, Brook, ’cause your friends might turn out to be bastards.”

The Whip – “There’s one thing about those country clubs though, they drain off a lot of people you wouldn’t want to be associated with anyways.”

Hawkman – “Don’t laugh at yourself. Make fun of other people.”

The Brook – “It’s too bad that the only people who really know how to run the country are too busy quahogging or fighting fires.”

Hawkman – “People like us are always catching the red lights in life.”

Chuck – “When you lose a parent, spouse or child, then the things you once thought were important don’t seem so important anymore.”

Billy Sandman – “Don’t miss the boat in this life because it’s a long swim.”

The Irish Whip – “The only sure things in life are death, taxes, Notre Dame football and the collection plate at the Catholic church. “

Well, that’s about it for now. As you can see, the gentlemen quoted above are well-read to say the least. Most of them have no more than a high school education and some not even that. But, as I have said, having a college degree doesn’t make you smart. At least, maybe, not in life.

And it definitely doesn’t give you a corner on the market of common sense. In the future I will try to come up with more Hawkman & Pals quotes. If you the reader have some pass them to me for next time.

Until then, be real careful out there and, as The Hawkman used to say: “Try to live in The Spirit of Crazy Horse! You will have to read the book!”

Bruce Mastracchio grew up in East Greenwich, where he experienced those 28-hour days and 8-day weeks that contained the magic that made his hometown so special. Included in all that were the numerous characters that added color to the local life and produced many of Bruce’s remarkable stories.