I thought about calling this blog “closure,” until it came to me that most people equate closure with “the end,” and I realized that there is no end to what I’m writing about but there is a point where one can, and must sever attachments. That’s what I’m writing about; the end of attachment and wh…
Long ago, and not so far away, I was a professional speaker, had a perm, and led firewalks (see the photo). I didn’t intend to be a firewalk facilitator. In fact, I never intended to walk on fire. But stuff happens. During my years as a professional speaker, my ex and I conducted workshops all …
This is Dewberry at age four. That was his age when we first met fifty-nine years ago. On that day, I was ten. I lived with my parents, and my baby brother, in Trussville, Alabama, about ten miles east of Birmingham, where I was born.
In Birmingham, I knew every kid on my block and there w…
For the first time, in more than 100 blog posts, I’m not using an illustrating photo. The reason is simple; the pictures would be too shocking, too revolting, too despicable. That’s what racism is and it’s much more than that. Racism is the immediate and real manifestation of the worst e…
During my years of professional speaking, my ex and I developed a line of products that we sold, primarily at workshops and seminars. The assortment of products included, cassette tapes (yep, it was a long time ago), affirmation cards, and a book that I wrote and self-published. I had the book p…
I know where I was on November 22, 1963, the day John Fitzgerald Kennedy was assassinated. I was taking a nap prior to my wedding, scheduled for 7 PM at the First Baptist Church, in Palatka, Florida.
I know where I was on November 22, 1964, the day I was inducted in the United States Army. I …
One year after I started running, my
buddy, Carl Touchstone, told me I was ready for a marathon. I wasn’t so sure, so he continued his sales
presentation. “Sure you are, and this is
an easy one. It’s the Mardi Gras
Marathon, and the course is totally flat, no hills at all.” He paused, checked my…
I've had a number of careers. In one, I was a professional speaker for eleven years. At age 5, I determined I was going to be a speaker. The only thing that stood in my way was my knee-knocking, throat-locking, I-had-rather-die fear of speaking in public. It took thirty-three years to whip that…
I once co-owned, with an ex-wife, a three story home that hung on the side of Lookout Mountain, in Mentone, Alabama. The house had three decks, one on each level. The deck off the master bedroom became bird feeding central. I had five hummingbird feeders on poles attached to the railing that ra…
We are all chasing something – that something is the thing we believe will make us happy. In other words, the object of our pursuit is not the object at all. It is the instrument that we believe will make us happy. For most of us, the object of the chase will be one, two, or maybe even all thre…
I love to feed birds. I have two main feeding positions in the backyard. The first has two long tube feeders, each with multiple feeding positions, and a large single feeder that holds as much seed as either of the tube feeders. About fifty feet behind the main position, is a second one. It hol…
