Musings

By Sean Dietrich Do you remember when we met? I do. It was a Barnes and Noble bookstore. I was reading; you were with friends. You waltzed through the door with that determined walk you have. That I-can-take-care-of-myself walk. There are some things a man never forgets. You wore a baby-blue sweater. Your...

By Rick Moore The most traveled road for locals and visitors alike throughout the Emerald Coast is Highway 98. Many are surprised to discover Highway 98 extends through several states. Decades ago, I would travel that road several times a year from my home in Mobile, Alabama, through the state...

By Sean Dietrich CRACKER BARREL—I am eating breakfast with a cute date. My date is a baby. A fat baby. She is my niece, Lucy. I love fat babies. They do something to me. They make me feel like the world is warm and squishy. When I hold Lucy, I feel...

By Rick Moore Reading, writing and arithmetic are commonly referred to as the “Three Rs.” This phrase first appeared in “The Ladies Magazine” in 1818. It seems like someone at that magazine was really hooked on phonics. Obviously, only one of these words actually begins with the letter R. While...

By Gueary Clendenning Christmas is just around the corner. After Thanksgiving, the pace quickens toward the big day! We’ll find ourselves in a big rush, always pursuing one more thing we need to get accomplished. We look for the nearest parking spot in the crowded mall, searching for the perfect...

By Sean Dietrich I feel a little silly writing you. Recently, I wrote a column about how when I was a boy I always wanted you to bring me a cowboy hat. A silver-belly colored Stetson. A few days later, one showed up on my porch from an anonymous person....

By Pastor Dave Holland Gently falling snow paved my walk to our village church on Christmas Eve so long ago. We lived a few blocks from the church I pastored in that small New England town and I expected the Light of the World to visit us as we celebrated...

By Rick Moore They say the acorn doesn’t fall far from the tree. My mother was a preacher’s daughter, and my dad was a professional gambler. I’m still not sure what that makes me. Some people bet on sports, some bet on the stock market, and some on real estate....

By Sean Dietrich Birmingham—I am eating hotel breakfast in the dining room. This past year, my wife and I have stayed in nearly sixty thousand hotels. That is only an estimate. And I rounded down. I have become so accustomed to hotels that when I fall asleep in my own bed...

By Rick Moore Supposedly, in the days of the Wild Wild West, if a prisoner on death row was well behaved, the sheriff would ask if he had any last request. Such requests would range from asking for a Holy Bible to a T-bone steak with a bottle of wine....