Two funerals in one day.
Saying goodbye to two people you’ve known more than half your life wouldn’t be easy no matter when it happened, but two on the same day was tough.
One passing was expected. The other was not.
One service was nearby. The other was not.
I did not want to have to choose one service over the other, but because of the distance between the two and the start times for each, it looked as if I’d have to.
But, at ...
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The sound of passing cars was constant. The small, rented, pier and beam house sat just a few dozen feet from the highway.
Across the street, a manufacturing plant provided jobs for the locals. They made clothing.
He would sometimes sit on the front porch with his legs dangling over the edge, barefoot and shirtless during the warm months, and watch them come and go. He was free to be outside and enjoy life until shift change at the end of the ...
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If you’ve ever been to a Southern Baptist Sunday School Christmas party, it is likely that you have been a participant in what is called, “A White Elephant Gift Exchange.”
It was years ago that I was part of this holiday party game, but during that time I was never able to determine why it was named such, as I never saw a pachyderm, white or otherwise.
And now, thanks to the Internet, you and I both know more.
For those who aren’t ...
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The holidays are just around the corner and with their arrival, many universal family rituals return. When individuals who haven’t seen each other since last Thanksgiving (or sometimes even longer) reunite to partake of good food, football, and gossip about the relatives who didn’t show up, inevitably, out come the board games, decks of cards, and puzzles.
Now, you’re either all in or all out on games and puzzles at Thanksgiving and Christmas. Some people live for the annual 8-hour game ...
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“Life is what happens while you are busy making other plans.” – John Lennon, “Beautiful Boy” 1980
I recently glanced at the calendar and discovered that somehow, I got old.
I don’t mind birthdays. As a matter of fact, having them is quite preferable to not having them. It’s just that most folks, regardless of our age, never feel old. We may be old, look old, and act old, but inside, we don’t think of ourselves as aged.
In my head, I’m still ...
Continue Reading →As I write this, the tornadoes of April 29 are just hours behind us.
My wife and I were fortunate. Where we live was spared. Our fellow East Texans in Canton and other towns were not.
Canton was hit by four twisters, and Grand Saline by one.
There was loss of life and loss of homes and property.
As I look out of the bay window of our home, the sun is shining and the air is calm and crisp. A stark contrast from ...
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Rising quietly from the bed as not to wake her, I dress in the dark and make my way to the door. I open it and walk into the hallway. On the bedroom wall, I watch the dim light shining in from the living room narrow and then disappear as I lightly close the door.
As I make the short walk from our bedroom to the living room, the light brightens. It’s 3 o’clock on Christmas morning and the lights on ...
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When I was a child, there was a painting that hung on my grandmother’s kitchen wall. It portrayed a man who was praying over a meal of bread and what appeared to be a bowl of soup. Near the man was a book, which I always assumed was a Bible, and a pair of spectacles.
From my earliest recollections until my dad’s mother passed, I remember looking at this painting while we ate in her home and wondering many things. Who ...
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Our major holidays are centered around faith. Easter, Hanukkah, and Christmas focus on God. So does Thanksgiving, but it focuses on appreciating what the other holidays represent.
My earliest memories of Thanksgiving are of my sister and me riding in the back seat of my mom’s 1960 model Buick and traveling from one grandparent’s house to the other. I was very fortunate as a child. Virtually all members of both sides of my family lived in the same town.
Ashdown, Arkansas, was ...
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The first time I heard Warren Bradley on the radio, I was impressed.
After working for years in the radio business, I was not easily impressed by most on-air personalities. But, Warren stood out. It was obvious that he was far more talented than most in our market and really, I sensed that he would be better suited working in show business.
Little did I know that he had been trying to get into show business his entire adult life.
I did character ...
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