My friend, here are three statements you can take to the bank. “If you are reading this, it is likely because a parent or teacher taught you to read early in life. Reading is the cornerstone of a successful education; without it, not much else matters. Reading benefits imagination, vocabulary, and unlocks the door to all other subjects.” These statements were made by Arkansas’ Lt. Gov. Tim Griffin in a recent guest column published in our state’s only statewide newspaper, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. As I read his tremendous article, I…

There is a medical condition in our nation which most of us don’t know much about, yet it affects 18 million adults. This condition is called sleep apnea, and it happens when an individual stops breathing for brief periods of time during their sleep. In fact, this can happen for some sufferers up to 30 times or more in an hour. One of the real blessings in my life over the past several years is attending a men’s weekly prayer breakfast at one of our fine local churches. In addition…

It has been said that “desperate times require desperate measures.” Today I would like to tell you about a national crisis during the Great Depression and how it was handled by our nation’s leaders. Let’s go back to the year 1929. The stock market crash saw a drop of 89 percent in its value and plunged our nation’s economy into a tailspin from which it would take years to recover. If this were not enough, a prolonged drought affected most of the country and exacerbated the problem. To be sure,…

The other day a lady who reads my column said something that really got me to thinking. She said, “Your columns are too deep for me.” You could have knocked me over with a feather. I have never seen my writing as too deep for anyone, but perhaps there are some readers who, from time to time, miss the point of what I am trying to get across. Of course, you know the three rules of communication are: be clear, be clear and be clear. There are some of my…

There is a wonderful mental power called “ruminating” that most people do not know much about, but it can make a wonderful difference in our lives. The definition of this word means, “To chew on - meditate, reflect or ponder.” As I said, this word can make a wonderful difference in our lives if used in the right way. To be honest, this word has not been in my working vocabulary until just recently. The lady who typed the manuscript for my new book used this word when she commented…

You know you are getting old when your favorite television programs are reruns of the Lawrence Welk Show. Now, don’t laugh if you are a younger person, because after you read what I have to say about Lawrence and his music, you may want to start watching him too, if you don’t already. My wife Janis and I love the Lawrence Welk Show, and we get it here on Saturday evenings at 6 p.m. on our local PBS station. Of course these are reruns, which means we get only the…

If you have ever worked on a project and had to scrap it because it was not working out and “go back to square one,” you will relate to what I want to talk with you about today. To be very realistic, this is exactly where we are in our nation today. The recent mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, where more than 30 people lost their lives to senseless violence, have served to highlight the tremendous need we have to scrap many things in our current…

While it’s true, and it has not always been this way, today knowledge is power. If you want to learn just how true this is, just become a contestant on “Jeopardy” sometime and you will find this out in a hurry. In this case, not knowing something could cost you several thousand dollars. These thoughts came to mind sometime back when my friend Joe Lehmann sent me a group of old sayings that I had heard often but did not know where they came from. This was so interesting that…

As a general rule, we don’t get too excited about something bad or negative until it hits close to home. This happened to me just recently, and it is so important that I want to share it with you in the hopes it will help you or someone you love. I have a dear friend by the name of Dr. C. Dennis Schick, who was director of the Arkansas Press Association for 25 years. Dennis has been retired for several years and he has helped me in so many ways,…

When I started reading Carl Barger’s new book, “Sons of War,” I had no idea what was in store for me and how thrilled I would be with my decision to read it. Carl is a master storyteller, and in this book he is able to capture the essence of America’s bloodiest war, the Civil War. From a historical family perspective, he transports his readers back to the years leading up to and during a war that would take the lives of 620,000 Americans, wound 475,000 more and have more…