Greetings!

[Dennis Cayton]

Greetings To All:

Following a long period of self-imposed isolation and exile from the American Checker Federation Forums, I have decided to return.

The first thing I want to do is to thank each and every one of you who sent me financial donations, and provided me with some much needed moral support, during a very difficult time in my life.

Words alone are inadequate for expressing the magnitude of my gratitude for your generosity, and I am hoping and praying that I will have the opportunity to thank you in person and repay you at some point during my lifetime.

Although I am not completely out of choppy waters yet, I can now see some light shining ahead along the horizon of what has been a very dark sea, and I am now working harder than ever to steer my ship toward brighter and more prosperous waters.

Due to the financial crisis I was in, I was forced to sell my entire checker library. As a result, I feel like i am starting all over again, completely from scratch, in my goal to become a competitive player once again.

If all goes as planned, I am hoping to be able to make it to the ACF National Tournament next year.

In closing, I want to say.........

Thanks again for everything.

Very Sincerely,

Dennis Cayton

[liam stephens]

Welcome back Dennis.

So nice to hear from you and I wish you well.

Regards - Liam.

[Lindus Edwards]

Hi Dennis,
I was delighted to read your message and to know that things are looking a lot better for you now. May I say how much I enjoyed your pleasant emails with such warm words. As I stated before , I shall look forward to meeting you face to face one day at a tournament.
With best wishes always,
Lindus.

[tommyc]

Welcome back Dennis.

So nice to hear from you and I wish you well,good to see you back in the jungle.

[Irma Sierra]

Welcome back Dennis!

Am very happy you are doing better now, thanks God!

[Dennis Cayton]

Dear Irma Sierra, Tommy Canning, John Acker, Lindus Edwards, and Liam Stephens,

I want to thank each of you for your very warm words of welcome on behalf of my return to the American Checker Federation Forums. Your words of welcome mean a lot to me, much more than mere words can express.

I have a confession to make. Due to the circumstances I found myself in during the past two years, I heaped a lot of personal blame, guilt, and shame upon myself.

This led to a chronic state of self-flagellation and the internalization of a negative personal belief that I was not worthy to come back.

Fortunately, I came to the realization that I was being too hard on myself. In spite of one's setbacks, life must and should go on to the best of one's ability and lived to the fullest.

Forgiving yourself of past mistakes is a vital bridge to cross, in order to move on and embark successfully once again upon the journey of personal and positive growth that life is intended to be.

Hiding from and avoiding the friends one has made, including those who share a mutual love of one's favorite pastimes, is only a dark and lonely road of diminishing returns.

Fortunately, I have escaped from my personal island of self-isolation and have found my way back to the mainland and the road of life.

Friends like you have made it worthwhile.

Thanks again.

May God Bless.

Dennis Cayton

[Alex_Moiseyev]

Dennis, take it easy - life is short. We needed you and we missed you !

One Russian song says: "Nothing can bring us down !" You absolutely right - self-isolation only hurts yourself.

Try to find your niche in checkers - probably recover mai play ? Some time ago I proposed (seriously !) about promoting 4-moves restriction in mail play. Mail players were always ahead of cross aboard players What do you think ?

Regards,

Alex