Post Archive by Month

I’ve never done a blog post on a Sunday night, and this really isn’t one.  It’s just what’s in my heart tonight. Billy Graham died this week at the age of 99, after a lifetime of carrying the message of the God he loved so much.  At the end of the crusades he led, he always gave an invitation to …

My family, like most, has a vernacular all its own—a language built over years of shared experiences.  One of my dad’s words in our family vernacular is LITMUS.  LITMUS is Dad’s acronym for “Locked In Thinking Makes U Stupid.”  Since we were kids, Dad has told us to open our minds and look at other ways of thinking.  All he …

I’m struggling to find words tonight.  The school shooting last week in Florida rocked me to the core, as I’m sure it did all of you.  Once more, the image of students running out of their school with their hands on their heads and tears on their faces sears itself into my brain.  Once more, my heart breaks for the …

The Oscars are going to be on in two weeks.  I love the Oscars—the glamour, the suspense, even the speeches.  In the last few years, I’ve been a little lost when watching the Oscars simply because the movies seem to have gotten more and more obscure.  So I decided to ask my own personal Oscar Academy about their choices for …

When you read this, Valentine’s Day will be over.  Some of you will be glad.  I know that there are people who hate Valentine’s Day, either because they’re single or they feel like the holiday is simply a commercial holiday, meant to sell greeting cards and flowers.  And then there are people like my mom, who absolutely love Valentine’s Day.  …

I have always had a personality that tends toward the melancholy.  I’m sensitive and emotional.  I’ve also spent so much time crying in my life that I’m tired of it.  These days, I’m choosing laughter—which isn’t hard, considering I live with Monty, who seeks out comedy and would spend all day laughing if he could.  What makes me laugh? Impractical …

Monty has come down with Olympic fever.  Ever since I’ve known him, Monty has loved the Olympics.  He prints out a schedule of all of the events, then goes through it with a highlighter and sets the DVR accordingly.  He loves the spirit of competition, but even more so, he loves it when the world comes together for something positive.  …

I saw a post on Facebook a few days ago that said something like, “Like and share if you had a paper route.”  I tagged Monty and my brother Adam on it because the three of us definitely have had a history with paper routes. Adam had a paper route when he was about twelve years old.  In the city …

Every Groundhog Day, on February 2nd, I watch the news to see if the groundhog in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania will see his shadow.  Supposedly, if he does, winter will last for six more weeks; if he doesn’t, spring will arrive early.  I don’t know what the statistics are on the accuracy of Punxsutawney Phil, but every year, I think, “Worst case …

In the movie “Taken,” Liam Neeson’s character has a daughter who is kidnapped.  This is his speech to her captor: Brilliant speech.  And if I were the captor, I would snap to attention and return my victim ASAP.  But let’s be honest—that speech is effective mostly because Liam Neeson is giving it.  It wouldn’t have the same impact if, say, …