During July, in the month when we celebrate independence day, many patriotic thoughts come to mind as I see "Old Glory" wave high in the skies. If that flag could speak, what would it say? In my thought file, I have the following thoughts about our flag.
Episode 221: Memory Lane →
Happy Easter! After the long winter, the seeds of spring are beginning to appear. We are reminded once again that in our lives we will have times of winter, but spring will come as promised. Spring is a time when one gets the urge to travel with the birds and visit family and friends, renewing old friendships and making new friendships. This past weekend, it was my joy to travel back to my roots and visit family and see many of my old friends from years gone by. Celebrating a 40th wedding anniversary with family was one of the highlights of the journey. Traveling old familiar roads brought back many memories and can give one a bit of nostalgia. Memories, memories!
Episode 210: Fresh Dreams →
This is the first Warm Thoughts column for 1998: An unknown author once wrote this New Year’s thought…”What the New Year will bring us depends a great deal on what we bring into the New Year.” Among the many Christmas greeting cards received were many warm thoughts.
Episode 209: Roses in December →
Every year now, as Christmas Eve and Christmas Day approaches, my memories take me to the little town of Bethlehem. How special it was to be able to worship in a cave on the shepherd hills in Bethlehem. The night I worshiped in a cave on those shepherd hills will long remain in my memories. We traveled the winding roads of those hills with Abraham as the driver of the bus called the guiding star and Elijah and Gabriel guided the driver. As we sang those beautiful Christmas carols, it seems that the angels in heaven were helping us to sing on the shepherd hills. I wrote about this unforgettable experience later high on the hill in an international hotel in Jerusalem, and will share a few thoughts with you.
Episode 183: All Around Me, Peaceful →
May is family month! When you read this week's column, many of you will be looking forward to a day off from work - a three day weekend, the opening of the swimming pool, and the official start of the summer season. You may be celebrating life with family and friends. Memorial Day is a day and a time to remember the dead, especially those who perished in America's wars. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II.
Episode 164: The Christmas Spirit, All Year Long →
Christmas brings us many memories. For me, Christmas is a season that is very dear to my heart. I want to live in the Christmas spirit all year long! Is it any wonder when you come to that little home on the prairie that you may get a cup of Christmas tea and a warm welcome? The end of another year is approaching very rapidly. It is hard to believe that 1996 will soon be history.
Episode 163: Peace, Sweet Peace →
Recently I heard Terry Anderson speak at the University of South Dakota. Some of the readers of this column will remember the day he was released from the gloom of a Beirut prison four years ago on December 4th, 1991. Terry Anderson had been with the Associated Press in Lebanon when he was kidnapped and taken captive for seven years, or 2,454 days. He was chained to a wall in prison and lived at the uncertain mercy of his captors.
Episode 136: Our Lady of Freedom →
When you read this last column for the month of May, many thoughts come to mind about Memorial Day. As we reflect on the many Memorial days of the past, we experience many warm thoughts on peace and about our land of freedom. In this week's column, I will share a poem sent to me by a lady in her 80s. She is a very special friend who has been a real inspiration to me, especially during the last several weeks. She is a distinguished member of the International Society of Poetry, and her poetry will be featured in the "Best Poems of the 90s," a publication of the National Library of Poetry. And most recently, she was inducted into the Eastern Kentucky University's Hall of Distinguished Alumni.
Episode 117: Christmas in a Cave →
Recently, my dear friend from Nebraska shared with me her anticipated pre-Christmas pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Her excitement over being able to be in His land in the Christmas season brought many warm thoughts to my mind. It was 10 years ago that I experienced the joy of worshipping in a cave on the shepherd hills on Christmas Eve. While the many experiences I had the day before Christmas, and on Christmas day were so vivid in my mind. I wrote them down the day after Christmas, in the International Hotel on a hill in Jerusalem. And I will share these thoughts with you dear readers of this Warm Thoughts column.
Episode 116: Happy Christmas to All →
"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!" These heartwarming and familiar words so dear to all, complete Clement Clarke Moore's beloved poem, "A Visit from St. Nicholas." The following Christmas poem was written by an unknown author, "Twas the Night Before Jesus Came."
Episode 95: Remembering Peace →
May is family month. When you read this week's column many of you will be looking forward to a day off from work, a three day weekend, the opening of the swimming pool, and the official start of the summer season. You may be celebrating life with family and friends. Memorial Day is a day and a time to remember the dead, especially those who perished in America's wars. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II. Memorial Day is said to have started in Waterloo, New York, when on May 5th, 1866, residents held a commemorative program and decorated the graves of those who died in the Civil War. Over the years, and as the United States fought more wars, Memorial Day, or Decoration Day, as it is called in some areas, added the remembrance of those soldiers who died in World War I, World War II, the Korean conflict, the Vietnam War, and Operation Desert Storm.
Episode 90: Flowers Paint the Laughing Soil →
It was Palm Sunday evening and I was returning from a trip to Nebraska over the weekend. Many warm thoughts flooded my mind as I traveled along and reflected on the joyful events with family and friends. Suddenly, as I came to South Dakota, a winter storm greeted me, and I realized that the remainder of my journey I would encounter ice, snow, wind, and large snowdrifts before reaching my destination. What a warm feeling to arrive safely in a warm home, realizing that there must have been an angel guiding my pathway back home to the little home on the prairie. The storm continued for a few days and one realizes that we do not always stroll through pleasant valleys. As I realize this over a cup of tea, I thought about the many travelers who go to the Holy Land at this time of the year to travel that road to Calvary and also see the empty tomb in the garden. Pilgrims throughout the world, make their pilgrimage to the Holy Land at this time of year to worship at the many sacred sites. Perhaps uppermost in our hearts and minds with those travelers, is the fervent desire that peace may prevail throughout the world.
Episode 78: New Year's Blessings →
Warmest greetings to my dear family, friends, and gentle hearts around the world. It has become a tradition for me to write my Christmas letter on January 6th. The Christmas of the Gentiles. Today is Epiphany - the festival that commemorates the appearance of the Christ child as the promised Savior to the Gentiles, and to all the world. The lighted star shines today even brighter on that little home on the prairie, as I am reminded of the star that led the wisemen to Bethlehem. As we all travel the road of life, and reflect on the past year, may we have many warm thoughts as we reflect on what an unknown author wrote so many years ago. "Looking back, may we be filled with gratitude. Looking forward, may we be filled with hope. Looking upward, may we be aware of strength. Looking inward, may we find peace."
Episode 69: International Day of Peace →
Remembering 911. America, a day in September, we cannot forget. The month of September will always bring thoughts about 911. On that day, each year, we commemorate the courage so many individuals exhibited when in unimaginable horror, we watched the collapse of the World Trade Center, a burning Pentagon and a smoke filled black hole in the Pennsylvania field. It was on that dreadful day 10 years ago that I was inspired to write these thoughts.
Episode 49: Happy Easter →
Happy Easter everyone!
After the long winter, the seeds of spring are beginning to appear. We are reminded once again that in our lives, we will have times of winter, but spring will come as promised. Spring is a time when one gets the urge to travel with the birds and visit family and friends, renewing old friendships and making new ones. This past weekend, it was my joy to travel back to my roots and visit family and see many of my old friends from years gone by. celebrating a 40th wedding anniversary with family was one of the highlights of the journey. Traveling old familiar roads brought back many memories and can give one a bit of nostalgia memories, sweet memories.