A Cowboy and Some Special Horses
As I watched the veterans ride by on a big trailer in the Fourth of July parade, I was reminded of a good man I had grown to know and love. I first met Bob the day the men from the church I attended...
View ArticleA Beary Scary Tale
My university colleagues and I always tried to find summer work, and then returned to share stories of our adventures. But John’s story was unsurpassed that year. As he had in other years, John found...
View ArticleOne Cat is Enough
Jed wasn’t fond of cats. So when his wife approached him about getting a kitten he adamantly refused. “Why do you think we need a cat around here?” he asked. “Because I counted two mice in our house...
View ArticleGetting Children To Weed A Garden
When spring came that year, my children were almost as anxious as I was to be working in the garden. We had spent hours looking through seed catalogs, and I had promised them that I would till up a...
View ArticleJust Neighborly Neighbors
When Tina called, Sally could tell something was really wrong. Tina’s voice was panicked and tense. She was so tense, in fact, that Sally couldn’t understand what she was saying. Sally decided it would...
View ArticleA Sinking Feeling About School
I walked into a local store and saw many aisles full of back-to-school supplies. The sheer volume caused me to remember a school in Peru. We had gone to visit the floating islands of Lake Titicaca. The...
View ArticleBackstage Graffiti: The Unromantic Phantom
Today is the culmination of Alpine Days. On the first evening of this annual extravaganza, I told the following scary story in the park. There has been a lot of banter online recently about the content...
View ArticleThe Right Kind of Girl
Mike was telling me this week about meeting his wife, Melanie. He loved to go four-wheeling on the sand dunes near where we live, so his first date with any girl was to take her there to see if she...
View ArticleWhen the Honeymoon Is Over
My wife, Donna, grew up in Los Angeles, and I was afraid my rural upbringing would scare her off. But she was one of the few girls I met who was not afraid to try new things. I was also always...
View ArticleThe Color of Things
My friend, Nathan, is an electrician at the university where I work. He has put in long hours lately because the campus is finishing a new natural gas heating facility to replace the old coal-fired...
View ArticleBackstage Graffiti: Pioneers Make me Laugh
Pioneers make me laugh. A couple of these stories appeared here several years ago, but I dare you to find them. If you did, you’d really be a pioneer. (And probably make me laugh.) I’m backstage again,...
View ArticleSomething to Sit on
It was a big event in the small Wyoming town. They were building a new church building, and this was to be the ground breaking ceremony. It would serve the needs of the people for multiple counties and...
View Article“Dear Teacher”: Notes From Students to Make you Smile
Most of my college students are bright, fun to teach, and work hard. But each semester I get interesting letters, emails, phone calls, and other correspondence from a few students. I save these, and,...
View ArticleMy Primary colors are Black and Blue
So. You’ve been asked by the Bishop to teach the Primary class filled with 10 & 11 year old boys and girls. The mind races for excuses but fails to come up with a good enough one to state to the...
View ArticleTicked-Off Kickoff
David, an old high school friend, recently sat by me at a football game. After we watched the opening kickoff, he turned to me and asked, “How did you end up becoming the kick-off person for our high...
View ArticleFootball Through The Eyes Of A Child
My older children were in the marching band, so it was only natural that we should attend the homecoming game to watch them perform at half time. None of my sons played football. Nor did any of my...
View ArticleA Rule of Thumb—Timing is Everything
Derek, a friend of mine, had lost half of his thumb to a power saw while building kitchen cabinets. Despite this setback, I never once saw him discouraged, even during the days of his recovery. He...
View ArticleBackstage Graffiti: An Invitation to the Universe
I may have mentioned here before that the Meridian Editors often assure me that Backstage Graffiti is read not only by 90% of the members of the church on Earth and nearly all of their friends, but by...
View ArticleAn Ounce of Understanding
I looked at my class roll and turned to Colleen. “Colleen, it’s your turn for the presentation today.” She looked up, anger showing in her face. “I don’t want to do a stupid presentation! I don’t know...
View ArticleStraw Mazes And Little Girls
My older children were all going to the straw maze, and my littlest daughters were feeling left out. “Why can’t we go with you?” my youngest daughter asked. “Because we will be with our friends,” her...
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