Relationships
An Alligator Where?
My second-grade teacher kept an alligator in a trap door under her desk. At least that was the rumor, and I for one believed it! This might explain, at least in part, why she scared the heebee jeebees out of me. To make things simple, I’ll call her Mrs. Cinder. I did not do…
Read MoreA Boy’s Life
As the only boy in my family, I always felt sorry for myself because I was surrounded by three sisters and no brothers. I love my sisters but truth be told as I was growing up I had very few commonalities with them. For example: I was not interested in spending time talking about boys;…
Read MoreDogs, dogs, dogs
Several years ago, I was invited to speak at a conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico. I took my son Peter, who was five at the time, with me and was looking forward to spending three or four days with him. We drove my truck from Salt Lake City and arrived early so we could camp…
Read MoreDeer on the Road
As Anne and I drove up a nearby canyon recently, we noticed that the river was very low, in fact it was down to little more than a trickle. The leaves of the Aspen trees had fallen to the ground, leaving the stark white bark glowing in accent against the rich green pines. The forest…
Read MoreGun In My Face
The following experience is perhaps the most frightening and awful experience of my entire life. I kept it to myself and from my family for years, and I thought I would take it to my grave. Then I read some research on family history and our life stories and learned the value of sharing our…
Read MorePOP
I was 5 years old and lying in a hospital bed, all alone except for my new puppet, Pinkie. A Pink Lady volunteer had given it to me when visiting hours were over and the nurses made my mom leave, hospital rules. I remember holding Pinky so tight all night, my body tense and still…
Read MoreOuch! Ouch! Ouch!
I was in the eighth grade at Lincoln Junior High, which had a reputation as a rough and tough school. Our parents were mostly blue-collar workers who worked long, hard hours at jobs requiring lots of time and physical labor. Only a few students had parents with college degrees and desk jobs. Most of the…
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