Here is the story of the historical marker dedication I told you about last week. The directions took us past Edwin Waters University and the Dollar General store where racially motivated …

Before I retired from the parish ministry, Sunday afternoons were a valued time for rest. After a busy day of preaching, attending to people’s concerns, interacting with everyone at the social hour …

Statistics. Ugh. I took one required class in statistics for my sociology major in college. It was the bane of my existence. I got through it with the help of the professor who taught that subject …

The ticking and chiming emanating from the booth at the antique store drew me. Clocks of every size, shape and vintage provided a happy cacophony. The sounds sparked deep memories. We lived in …

Sunday is the last day of this year's Banned Book Week. If you have not taken advantage of learning what this is about, you have one more opportunity this afternoon with an encore performance of “ …

I have been an avid reader since I experienced the joy of learning through reading in elementary school. I loved spending Saturdays on a trip to the library and then going home and diving into …

I found Chestnut Street while scrolling through Facebook Reels for relief from the heaviness of the world. Serendipity. What a find. It makes me laugh. The stories about life on Chestnut St. with all …

Note: This is a personal commentary based on my experience attending the Call to Action meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 15 at First Missionary Baptist Church. I am not a reporter. Reporters’ accounts of …

Would you attend a well-researched lecture by a highly qualified professional on a relevant topic that costs only $5?  That is less than the price of a fancy coffee. To attend, you didn’t have …

Wendell Berry, poet, essayist, novelist, social critic, environmental activist and farmer, died this week at the age of 92 at his home in Port Royal, Kentucky. If you look up Port Royal in Google …

The title for last week’s commentary was “Living large by living tiny.” This week, I continue a big and little comparison, but in a different way. Last Sunday afternoon, I was a member of …

I spent the first two weeks of August on an extended road trip. For two weeks, I had a nomadic lifestyle. Now, I have two weeks of going to medical appointments and then recovery. I don’t need to …

The main purpose of our stop in Chicago was to visit this recently opened museum and center. My commentary about our visit is not just for those who voted for this person. It is to tell you about the …

I am traveling very OTB (over the bridge). A friend and I are on a long road trip. The first two days, we drove all the way to Chicago. Yes, on purpose. We drove through or around various cities …

Plants in containers do not like summer heat. Hot summer weather with water restrictions in place means containers need hand watering once or twice a day. They dry out very quickly. Plants go limp in …

Fifty-six years ago, I participated in a sit-in over the issue of wearing jeans to high school. Events on the news seemed distant. However, we tried our wings at challenging institutional authority. …

I have a cacophony of thoughts swirling in my head about the events in the world. However, for this commentary, I will stay close to home. My capacity for grieving was stretched in the first …

I took the opening photograph in the Republic of Ireland. The idyllic scene of sheep grazing on a hillside is visible around almost every bend of the winding roads. One does not see the hard work of …

Folk singer and songwriting legend Woody Guthrie wrote this well-known song in 1940. It became his most famous song, among the thousands that he wrote. He created prolifically, writing poems, drawing …

“That was amazing!” This description is overused. People use it to describe everything from a meal they cooked to a rock concert. Were they amazed, or are they hyping the experience in order to …