Years ago my good friend Fred told me about a delightful conversation he had with his then 3-year old grandson, Nathan. Nathan was just about to have another birthday.
“Grandpa, I don’t want to be 4. I want to stay 3.”
“Why is that?”
“Because after you turn 4, then you turn 5.”
“What’s wrong with that?”
“Because when you turn […]

9:45 AM on Friday, June 8th at Aqua-Tots Swim School in Mesa, Arizona. Ron was working on his laptop while Paul and I were sitting at the meet and greet desk behind the glass.
A guy in a faded, forest green golf shirt walked up to the window. He looked a little frazzled.
Paul slid the window open. “Hi. How can I […]

I’d like to say I’ve never given my Dad any of the stereotypical Father’s Day gifts. But one year as a kid I gave him a three pack of English Leather colognes. I don’t know what the shelf life is for English Leather but I think there’s probably two unopened bottles in his closet that date back […]

Some lessons we learn the hard way. 
When I was a kid, we would spend Christmas with my cousins in Ozona, Texas. My Uncle John was U.S. Border Patrolman there. Ozona, maybe about 3,000 people, is the only town in Crockett County, a county that’s the same size as Delaware.  
Partly because of his line of work, partly because […]

Ever think about how one thing leads to another? 
If it wasn’t for the person who threw the beer bottle on the street Monday night, I wouldn’t have gotten a flat tire.
And if it weren’t for the person who designed the impossible to remove wheel covers on my car I would have been able to change the tire […]

Last Tuesday I spent the day in Annie and Emma’s classroom. It had been a long time since I’d done any cutting, gluing or coloring. Emma said I did pretty good at coloring. But my gluing needs work. 
And what I wouldn’t give to have a mandatory nap time again. How great would it be to stretch out on […]

Much as we’d like to believe that Mother’s Day is a shrewd marketing ploy of the Hallmark Company, they didn’t invent it. They just capitalized on it. 
Often Hallmark cards are accompanied by flowers and a family dinner to a restaurant, because Mother’s Day is also the biggest day of the year for dining out. And because not everyone’s Mom lives […]

“Anyone sitting here?”, I asked the lady.
“No.” She pulled her arms in a bit and gathered her purse closer to her.
Thanks to the “print your boarding pass the day before” option at Southwest Airlines I was in the “A” group. Which means I was at the front of the cattle call free for all in finding […]

Fox News reported last October that Akira Haraguchi, a Japanese mental health counselor, broke his own world record by reciting pi to 100,000 decimal places from memory. The 60-year old man needed 16 hours to do it.
In mathematical terms, pi is “a physical constant defined as the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter”. […]

The Southwest Airlines flight attendant leaned against the seat and, in a low ”we don’t want the passengers to hear” voice, said to her co-worker, “That was really bad. I’m nauseous.”
We were on the ground in Albuquerque last Monday night, waiting for passengers to board for the next leg to Phoenix. A few minutes earlier we were in the […]

One of the reasons I enjoy my part-time job selling merchandise at the US Airways Center during Phoenix Suns games is the sheer volume of people who come into our store and walk by in the concourse. I enjoy observing people. Any event that brings nearly 20,000 people to your door means there will be plenty to […]

Allie,
Please forgive this note from someone you just met and were only briefly introduced to, but I think I would regret not telling you this.
You mentioned in your conversation with your friend Rachel today that you just turned 18 and that you had a baby when you were 16. You said you had given up your […]

I’m not certain they even exist anymore but during my childhood days they were the centerpiece of every elementary school playground. The merry-go-round. The big, spinning fun maker whose only safety feature was some anti-skid bumps on the metal platform.
It was quite simple in construction. A base platform mounted on a center spindle containing sealed […]

A couple years ago at about 4 o’clock in the morning I woke up sharply, thinking it had to be a dream. I’m not in Iowa anymore so it can’t be what I think I heard. I put head to pillow when I heard it again. This time Palmer heard it, too, and he hit the doggie […]

Several weeks ago I took my twin daughters and my niece out for lunch at a small town cafe. As a Dad you always hope your kids mind their manners. So it was nice to hear Annie and Emma say “please” and “thank you” without being prompted.
When our server left to go get our beverages Annie asked, “Daddy, […]

I don’t know why I ever decided to keep it. It makes me mad every time I look at it.
The cover of the Sports Illustrated from 1975 says, “Cowboys Win A Shocker”. The Minnesota Vikings had the playoff game in the bag. Roger Staubach and the Cowboys were down and time was running out. On a desperation play […]

Phil Collins is a popular and highly successful musician whose career has spanned several decades as a drummer and solo artist. Back in the early 80’s he was on tour with Robert Plant. They were staying at the Ambassador Hotel in Chicago. Between themselves, their band and their entourage they occupied about 30 rooms, paying exorbitant prices.
On the […]

Over the holidays some dear friends gave me a great Christmas present. Tickets to Santa’s Village, a Christmas theme amusement park that sets up each year at Firebird Raceway here in Phoenix. We had a blast on the rides, eating kettle corn and cotton candy. It was a delightful afternoon spent making memories with my twin 6-year […]

Before there was a beginning, there was God.
Before there was a universe with galaxies and black holes and white hot stars, there was God.
God filled this nothingness and there was no void, because God is all God needs. He is complete in and of Himself. He is in the best sense of the word completely […]

Ever watch the “Antiques Roadshow”? It’s a TV program that goes from city to city with a group of expert appraisers who evaluate the treasures people bring in. The show is eclectic in that you learn about the history of diverse items. Everything from vases and furniture to jewlery and sports memorabilia.
For those individuals selected to be on […]

Heading for the check out lane at Fry’s Food and Drug tonight I glanced at a display rack of DVD’s.
“All Movies $9.99″.
On the top row in the middle was “The Greatest Story Ever Told”, an epic film from 1965 about the life of Jesus Christ. From His miraculous virgin birth to His sacrificial death on the cross, and […]

Take an evening stroll around the neighborhood this month and you’ll see a variety of nativity sets. Some are wood. Some are cardboard cut outs. Some are hollow painted plastic with light bulbs inside. Wherever you live, nativity sets all have the same figures. Mary and Joseph. Shepherds and wise men. Some animals. And of […]

Back in the day, before farmers relied solely on herbicides in their Iowa soybean fields, the preferred method of weeding was “walking beans”. It was a predictable summer job. You’d get your crew together, most of the time your family, spread out and walk down the field getting rid of the weeds that grew. Each […]

Hope Covenant, my home church, is in Chandler, Arizona. Like the other towns in the Phoenix valley, it began as a small farming town that over the decades morphed into an urban area. About 3 million people live in the metro area known as the “Valley of the Sun”. Vestiges of the former agricultural existence […]

Years ago in the church I attended back in Iowa I had my first experience with nursery duty. While I am now a pro and can handle anything and everything related to kids, back then I was only comfortable as long as they were happy. It was that crying thing that I was afraid of. After raising […]