Editor’s Note: Daina Jurika-Owen is a former refugee resettlement professional and is an academically trained folklorist. A native of Riga, Latvia, Jurika-Owen lives in Abilene. She is the author of a new book, Ten Cultures, Twenty Lives. The following story about a refugee named Isaac is similar to stories in the book, which can be purchased through her website, www.amayabooks.com, Texas
Read moreMy friend knows me inside and out, and likes me anyway.
Read moreBy Loretta Fulton “And we hope you have many more.” That toast to Dr. Virginia Connally, Abilene’s first female physician, ended a special celebration Dec. 4 of her 105th birthday. Connally’s daughter, Genna, who lives in Waco, joined friends in Abilene for the celebration. A special gift to Connally from her alma mater, Hardin-Simmons University, was the Jesse C. Fletcher Award
Read moreBy Loretta Fulton The season of Advent, the four-week period of anticipation and reflection leading to Christmas, got off to a joyful, musical, and fun start in Abilene Dec. 3. Several churches held events that ranged from a bell choir concert to messy, but fun, chrismon-making, to an auction of chocolate “church mice” and other goodies. The Canterbury Adult Bell
Read moreIf your friendship is a dream come true, please don’t wake me up.
Read moreby Mike Patrick A middle-aged woman visited with a counselor because of her depression. Joy in life had evaporated over time. She hated her job and had difficulty getting through the day. She started her morning with energy and feeling upbeat. However, it got worse by the hour. The counselor thought that the way she lived her life at work
Read moreBy Danny Minton Pastoral Minister and Elder Southern Hills Church of Christ September 21, 1897 Dear Editor: I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, ‘If you see it in THE SUN it’s so.’ Please tell me the truth. Is there a Santa Claus? Virginia O’Hanlon, 115 West Ninety-Fifth Street.
Read moreThe wonder of today. The wonder of life. The wonder of beauty. The wonder of nature. The wonder of joy. The wonder of love. The wonder of you.
Read moreBy Loretta Fulton Irena Bytyqi didn’t believe in the resurrection until she experienced it. Her husband, Burim Bytyqi, found it hard to deny God, although he said he was an atheist. They took different paths, but both ended up in the same place, as Christian missionaries, thanks to meeting during a training session for Youth With a
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Spirit Of Abilene 