I am an eucharistic minister volunteer at my church. An important portion of my duties includes distributing communion at a local assisted living facility about a mile from my church. I perform this service once a month, other members of our team handle the other weeks, allowing the residents the opportunity to receive this sacrament … Read more
In 8th grade, our English teacher marched all of us into the auditorium to practice “extemporaneous speaking.” We were all terrified. He had set up a microphone and speaker system and had placed our class, as well as that of another teacher, (part of the pod system, popular in the 1960’s) in the first 10 … Read more
Our family has never been considered “outdoors” people. We did not camp, RV, hike or engage in many of the typical activities that required sleeping, eating or conducting other bodily functions while out in the wild. In fact, my Dad was famous for saying “It took human civilization thousands of years to get indoor plumbing … Read more
Most people, when asked what the opposite emotion of love is, would quickly answer, “hate.” While that is a good answer and one I have given myself on many occasions, I have discovered, over the years, that a more accurate answer would be “indifference.” Anyone who has suffered through a break-up, divorce, separation or other … Read more
Many years ago, I first heard the story of the farmer and the preacher. It was related by Earl Nightingale, the late author and motivational speaker. In the story, a traveling preacher is on the road to one of his churches and on the way sees a farmer plowing his fields. The farm is beautiful … Read more
Recently, I was reminded by a high school friend, via social media, that a small group of friends and I had written and performed a song for her dog, based on the 1963 song “Puff the Magic Dragon” by Peter, Paul and Mary. While the words of that song, dedicated to her dog, Ruff, (I … Read more
As the new year passes and my next birthday approaches, it is a perfect time to reflect on both last year as well as the past years of my own life. I have watched the years turn over 60 times, have witnessed moon landings, the birth of the internet, the death of rotary phones and … Read more
W. Edwards Deming, one of the earliest pioneers of the quality movement, stated that if you put a good person into a bad system, the system will win….every time. From my experience, which includes almost 40 years of working for people and their systems I can firmly say that Deming is 100% correct. Granted, a … Read more
One day, in Buffalo, New York, a substitute teacher was offered a position that all substitute teachers dream of….a permanent position. Well, sort of. The position was a fill-in for another teacher who just took a leave for the birth of her first child. The position was contracted for the entire school year. The former … Read more