PARADES Tis the Season for parades. It kicked off with the Macy’s parade in New York City and will end with the Rose Bowl Parade out in California in January. Those are a couple of big ones. The DeLand Christmas Parade, this past Saturday, is a big one for our small town. Thousands and thousands
STEADFAST JOY, DISCOVER IT In the search for a happy life, you and I often mix up “happiness” and “joy.” Happiness is a temporary feeling, coming from outside things like success or relationships. On the flip side, joy comes from inside and isn’t tied to what’s happening around us. It’s a deep feeling of happiness
SANTA DROPS IN ON DELAND These days Santa Clause parachutes in. It used to be Santa used a magic sleigh pulled by reindeer. The short video is from last night in Downtown DeLand, a Christmas Lights festival with thousands enjoying a beautiful evening. Barbara and I saw several friends enjoying the evening. Mayor Chris Cloudman
CHRISTMAS CACTUS Our Christmas Cactuses are getting starting to bloom. Perhaps you have one too. They are an interesting plant, with a different shape, a cascading set of flat segmented branches that project a bright red bloom around Christmas each year. Barbara’s dad grew a dozen large plants on the front porch for years. We
DOG AND BEST FRIEND ON A WALK I was watching a young woman walk across a field with her dog. She let the dog off-leash. The dog enjoyed the freedom and darted off to the left at first. The young woman kept walking straight down a path in the field. The dog dodged back and
WHEN A FRIEND SUCCEEDS Sarah could have been envious. She could have pouted. Many would be upset. Alex, her friend, landed his dream job. She was still feeling stuck in her job. He would move on. She would remain. Sarah chose not to harbor jealousy. She chose a different emotion and a different response. She
I AM GIFTED I woke up this morning to a fresh new day. Barbara is a wonderful wife and partner. Many teachers and coaches and commanders have taught me so many skills. So many gifts. I am gifted. There are more gifts. The gift of my mind to think and reflect. The gift of my
THE AMAZING POWER OF GIVING In our busy world where it is so easy to be focused on ourselves, giving is like a superpower that can change everything. I’m not talking about giving money or presents. I’m thinking about giving a smile, giving a hug, just being kind. Like the proverbial pebble tossed into a
I WAS SELECTED FOR THE TEAM Remember the old recruiting posters? Uncle Sam pointing his finger at you saying, “I want you.” For some reason, the image reminds me of my sandlot baseball days in our neighborhood growing up. It was just a sandy, grassy field that was used for parking at the Stover Theater
BIG FOOTBALL GAMES For years, Barbara and I, along with a good friend Pappy Drennan, went to the big rivalry between The University of Texas and Texas A&M. This was played on Thanksgiving weekend each year back then. Talk about schools with traditions and a big football weekend. Our son, Joshua, was a student at