By DANNY MINTON Every year at this time people tell “The Story.” It’s the story of a baby wrapped in rags, born in a stable in a remote town called Bethlehem. It was the beginning of the fulfillment of a promise God made to Abraham thousands of years ago. Other stories continue to inspire us to do good during this
Read moreBy DANNY MINTON You’re in a dark room. You take a match and strike it. You can hold the match on the end and watch as it slowly burns down to almost the tips of your fingers and then, as it nears the end, blow it out. At that point, the match is blackened and useless never to be used
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By NANCY PATRICK I enjoy Thanksgiving more than any other holiday. Its position between two of the most publicized holidays of the year—Halloween and Christmas—offers a chance to breathe and focus on something other than commercialism. Thinking about Thanksgiving actually makes me feel good. It reminds me of the plans for my fall wedding back in 1968. Enrolled in Hardin-Simmons
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By DANNY MINTON Frederick Langbridge died in 1923. The one thing that he left behind that has had a lasting impression is a short poem he wrote. It simply says: “Two men look through prison bars;One sees mud the other stars.” It’s a simple little poem with a powerful message. Some people are never happy. They are always looking at
Read moreBy DANNY MINTON There is a box in my garage that has been sitting on the shelf for the past 10 years. It’s a white box with the words “coo-coo clock” written on the side. It was a wedding gift 50 years ago from my uncle. It’s sitting in the box because it’s broken, and I haven’t gotten around to
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By MONTY LYNN “Is work spiritual?” is an ancient and enduring question. Few other human activities capture a larger share of life than do paid and unpaid labor. As a Benedictine oblate, I’m committed to practicing a rhythm of ora et labora (prayer and work), but after a decade and a half, I still need help to avoid slipping into
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By DANNY MINTON It was a school day, and he didn’t much look forward to going. After all, when you’re a young boy, there are a lot more things in life that are much more interesting than spending the day listening to boring teachers and the endless hours of lessons. So, when he noticed the commotion outside his house, he
Read moreBy DANNY MINTON Growing up, my hometown of Plano was just a small rural community out in the middle of cotton farms and cattle where you could see for miles across freshly plowed fields and grazing pasture. It was 5 to 10 miles to the nearest town in any direction from downtown. The population in 1950 was 2,126. When
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By DANNY MINTON When the knock came on the door just as it was getting dark, I was taken by surprise as I saw two people about my size staring at me through plastic masks covering their faces. I was around three, and it was the first Halloween that I remember. I remember at that point my mother decorating my face
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Spirit Of Abilene 