While I have never been to the great state of Alaska, we have a Bookcase for Every Child project taking place in Fairbanks, Alaska, thanks to my good friend Randall Aragon. For several years Randall was Police Chief in Conway, Arkansas, but he left Conway and went to Fairbanks, where he helped get a bookcase project started. The state of Alaska is known as “The Last Frontier” because much of the state is not yet fully settled. In 1867, Secretary of State William Seward purchased Alaska from Russia for $7,200,000.…

When I was a kid growing up in a small town in Southeast Arkansas, a lot of the farmers in the area farmed rice. You may know that rice is raised in water, which means the land must be completely level. Many times, as the planting season approached, we would see large machines with a long blade out in the fields, scraping the ground to make sure it was level. This brings me to my point: there is a place in the world where the ground is completely level all…

Over the years in writing this column, I have mentioned many times that what we need in America are more good role models; the people who have or had those qualities that we would all do well to emulate. Well today, I have one of those special people and I am very excited to tell you about him. His name is W. Clement Stone, founder of Combined Insurance Company of America. Stone was born on May 4, 1902, in Chicago, Illinois, and passed away on September 3, 2002, and he…

During our visit today I want you to know that I have some fantastic news to share with you and all other readers across the nation. As you may know, over the past couple of years I have been developing a “Character Education” course to be taught in our nation’s schools. The reason is because I am terribly concerned about the future that awaits my children and grandchildren if we do not put a stop to the massive amount of violence that is taking place all across our country. Just…

The happiest of people do not necessarily have the best of everything: they just make the best of everything that comes their way. If we are to be truly happy, and please understand there is a difference between happiness and joy, we must learn how to handle adversity. This is to say, the trials and tribulations that come along in each of our lives. It has been truthfully said that into each life a little rain must fall -- not WILL fall but MUST fall. If you are not facing…

Are you aware that, in most cases, there is more than one way to do the right thing? I heard a true story a while back that will certainly illuminate this important concept. It seems a man and his wife in one of our Western states had a horse farm and raised Tennessee Walking Horses. Working part time, after school and on weekends on the farm for this couple was a young boy by the name of Jimmy. Jimmy loved to be around the horses, was earning a little extra…

It has been said that unless we are building our lives on truth we are building on sand, and a life built on myths, speculations, lies and half-truths cannot stand. Regardless of our age, where we live, what we do, or who our ancestors were, we should all seek to live by the truth. In the end, that is the only thing that will endure. Along these lines, a friend sent me something the other day by an unknown author that I believe to be the truth. Please allow me…

There is one good thing about being “simple minded,” and that is it does not take much to make your day. I have this happen quite often, which probably confirms what you have suspected all along. That reminds me of the fella who saw his friend “walk on water.” After he saw him do it for the second time, this fella said, “I can do that,” and his friend said, “go ahead.” The moment this fella stepped on the water, he sunk like a rock. With this series of events,…

Back in late 2022, the Arkansas State House of Representatives put out a report that said there were 300,000 adults in my state who did not have a high school diploma. This story and report were carried in our local newspaper. Can you believe that? In a state with only three million people, and this includes children, there are 300,000 adults who did not graduate from high school. When I read this, I said to myself, “This is totally unacceptable to me.” Since it is “unacceptable”, with God’s help, and…