There are a lot of important holidays this time of year. Perhaps you’ve heard of some of them: Pearl Harbor Day (Dec. 7), Winter Solstice (Dec. 21), Christmas (Dec. 25), New Year’s Eve (Dec. 31), and New Year’s Day (Jan. 1). Not to be outdone, December 29 is “Still Need to Do Day.” This is…
When I completed the manuscript for one of my books a couple of years ago, I sent it to a new editor. A few weeks later, she returned my manuscript, citing at least 100 mistakes. My response? I found a new editor. We all want to be edited – up to a point. I can…
Here’s a great trivia question for our older readers. What was the first nationally broadcast television program for children? Answer: “Howdy Doody,” which premiered on this date, December 27, 1947. This iconic NBC show always began with these words: “Say kids, what time is it?” The kids would answer, “It’s Howdy Doody time.” For its…
Today is considered by many to be the most depressing day of the year – the day after Christmas. It’s time to put up the tree, box up the decorations, and set up the living room, to look like it did before Thanksgiving. In other words, the thrill of sparkling lights, time with cousins and…
There are no lights upon your tree, The gift you want is to be free. You’ve sat alone throughout the night, When from the darkness shines a light. There’s Still Hope this Christmas Season, And from that hope there comes the reason You can make it day to day, No matter what your past may…
In 1943, Bing Crosby became the first to record I’ll Be Home for Christmas. What you probably didn’t know is that the song was written about a soldier in World War II, who was hoping to come home to be with his family for Christmas. With that in mind, James Kimball Cannon wrote this verse.…
The words of Oswald Chambers ring true this Christmas Season: “Your body is the Bethlehem of God’s Son.” Paul said it like this: “Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit” (1 Corinthians 6:19). The next time you are tempted to use your body for selfish indulgences, remember who else lives there. God isn’t…
Linus, of Peanuts fame, had it right when he said, “Life is like a ten-speed bike. Most of us have gears we never use.” I have a ten-speed bike. I like to ride the neighborhood for a little exercise. But after using the bike for a couple of years, I’m thinking about going back to…
What is the key to success, in recovery or in life? For answers, let’s turn to the ancient Athenian playwriter Sophocles, who was the most accomplished writer and thinker of the fifth century, B.C. Seven of Sophocles’ tragedies have survived to this day, and he is widely considered one of the greatest minds of all…
An interesting study was done with two groups of people. One group was told to memorize seven numbers in succession, walk down a long hall, then recite those numbers to someone on the other end of the hallway. The second group was told to memorize just two numbers, and then recite those numbers to someone…