A Century Old Friend

This month is the 100th anniversary of West Texas A&M's student newspaper, The Prairie.  I got to work on The Prairie during the three years I was at WT, serving as its editor in my senior year.  I have so many memories of my time on the newspaper.  It was one of the most valuable experiences in my quest to become a journalist.

When I enrolled in the journalism program at WT, the instructors were more than a little skeptical on whether I'd be able to make it.  They wondered if someone with a speech problem would be able to communicate well enough to conduct interviews.  Honestly, I didn't know if I could do it either, but I wanted the chance to try.

The Prairie gave me that chance.  I was enrolled in the newswriting class, where I had to find a news story and write an article each week.  I came up with my own method.  I wrote out questions before I went to an interview and gave the person a copy of the questions.  Then, I wouldn't have to keep repeating the questions if the person couldn't understand my speech. 

The newswriting class had close to 30 students, and we were competing for a spot in The Prairie each week.  With limited space in the newspaper, only the best articles from the class made it into publication.   I was so excited the first time I saw one of my articles printed in The Prairie.  It was a dream come true!

I wrote a lot that first year.  It was exhilarating to see my stories in the paper or heartbreaking to open the paper and find my article didn't make the cut that week.  I just kept writing, hoping to make it into print.  

I'd come a long way in that year.  The instructors who once had wondered if I'd be able to make it in the journalism program now recommended me for a staff position on The Prairie, and I was hired as the paper's copy editor for the next year.  It was a paid position.  It was only $150 a month, but it was my first paying job.  I was in heaven. 

I was copy editor for the fall semester and had planned to stay for the spring semester.  But when the editor-in-chief unexpectedly stepped down during the Christmas break, I became the new editor.
 
I was privileged to lead a talented team of writers and editors.  The paper received an All American Award from the Associated Collegiate Press, one of only 12 college newspapers in the country to win the award.  One writer on the staff received national recognition for writing the top college journalism story.  It was the Pulitzer of college awards for the writer. 

I took over during a tumultuous time in the university's history.  University President Ed Roach was indicted for diverting scholarship money to meet other budget deficits and later resigned.

The student newspaper serves several important roles.  It not only prepares students for a career in journalism but also records the university's history.  Knowing that I had a small part in leading the paper through one of the most historic years in the school's history made my time there so rewarding.
 
With the number of city newspapers dwindling, I'm glad to see The Prairie still going strong after 100 years. 

Carry on, old friend.  Carry on!

Back In My Day...

It's official.  I'm old!  I came to that conclusion this past Sunday when I only knew the words to one of the worship songs we sang at church.  I had never even heard the other three songs that the praise team sang.

I like contemporary Christian music, but I guess I'm not keeping up with the times.  I don't know many of the songs we sing during the worship time.  I used to love listening to K-Love.  I even went on a K-Love music cruise in 2005.  I loved all the music on the cruise.  Music has changed a lot since then.  There seems to be more "Christian rock" on popular Christian stations like K-Love and Air 1. 

Now, I listen mostly to older praise music.  I like groups such as Phillips, Craig and Dean, especially their early music. 

With satellite radio and the Internet, you can find just about any genre of music from classic hymns to alternative Christian rap and rock.  I listen to the Adoration channel on Internet radio.  It has a mix of classic praise music and current Christian hits.

Does this make me an old fogey?  I sure hope not.  I turned 50 in October.  I got the senior discount at the movie theater the other day!  My taste in music is changing in my "old age"!  I don't like loud music, but I have to turn it up loud because my hearing is going.

Every generation goes through this change.  We like the music we grew up with, especially church music.  Mom used to say, "Back in my day, we sang hymns from the hymn book!"  She said she didn't know the words to these new choruses.  Now, I say the same thing about the modern church music.

In the end, it doesn't matter what style of worship music we have or even if we like the songs.  It's about praising God out of a sincere heart of worship.  God looks at the heart.  We should focus our praise on Him and not on waiting to hear our favorite song.

Seize The Moment

Do all you can while you can!  That's been my motto as long as I can remember.  I truly believe that you have to make the most of every moment.  You never know when your life is going to take a sudden turn and the things you once took for granted are now things of the past.  I've discovered this firsthand.  I can't do many things today that I did just a few years ago.  Like driving.  I loved to drive.  It opened up a whole new freedom for me.  I was thinking about some of the "adventures" I had when I started driving.

I didn't start driving until I was nearly 24 years old.  It changed my whole world.  After being confined to a few city blocks on my three-wheel bicycle, I was free to discover the open road.  And that's what I did.  I became a weekend road warrior. 

One of my first roadtrips was Palo Duro Canyon.  It was only about 30 miles from my apartment in Amarillo, but the steep, winding roads down into the canyon were quite a challenge for this new driver.  I remember how nervous I was on those hilly roads, but I navigated the sharp turns like a pro.  I loved the breathtaking views in the canyon, and I went back many times.

Over the years, I also made roadtrips into nearby New Mexico to see Santa Rosa, N.M. (The Blue Hole); Santa Fe; Roswell, N.M. (UFO Museum); and Clovis, N.M. (Hillcrest Zoo).  I also made longer trips to Liberal, Kansas (Wizard of Oz museum); Cuchara, Colo; and my favorite trip to the Grand Canyon.  I enjoyed these trips so much and the memories I have of these places.

I haven't been able to drive since my neck surgery about five years ago.  I miss driving more than I miss anything else.  I'll always have those memories, though.  I'm glad I seized the moment and took those trips while I was able to go.

I read this quote that really sums it up: “It will be the things we haven’t done, rather than things we have done, that we will regret more.”

Feb. 14

It's Valentine's Day.  It was on this date two years ago that my mother fell and broke her hip.

She passed out in the kitchen and fell.  When she came to, she found two paramedics standing over her.  She asked how they got in her kitchen.  Thank God her life alert system notified authorities when she fell.
 
Mom had a broken hip and a badly broken shoulder.  She underwent a five-hour surgery the next day to put rods in her leg and completely replace her shoulder.
 
She was in pain.  A lot of pain.  Mom was moved from the hospital to the Pampa Nursing Center, which is where I also live.  Our rooms were across the hall from each other, and Mom began physical therapy.
 
Mom tried to do the exercises, but she was just in so much pain.  The pain medicine made her sleepy and confused.  She did not like going to therapy.  

I could see Mom was tired.  She was 81 years old, and she had spent nearly 50 years of her life devoted to taking care of me.  I remember Mom saying she hoped she'd be here for me as long as I needed her. 

During the four weeks that she was at the nursing home with me, she was able to see how the nurses and aides took care of me and that I was in good hands.  Besides the nursing staff, I had Karen and my aunts and cousins to watch out for me.  I think when she saw for herself that I would be taken care of, she decided it would be all right to go on ahead to heaven.  


In her last few days, Mom had a lot of anxiety, still struggling and worrying about those of us she'd leave behind.  Finally, her heart of gold just gave out.  They called it broken heart syndrome.   It's a real condition and is basically a temporary heart condition that's often brought on by stressful situations or anxiety. She passed away on March 23, 2017.

Mom broke a lot of our hearts when she left because she was so loved by many.  But while her heart condition was fatal, our hearts will recover physically but emotionally we will always miss her.
 
It all happened so fast.  I never expected it to happen this way.  I've just tried to accept it as God's timing.  He has a master plan for each of us.  The Bible says we walk by faith.  Sometimes, it takes a whole lot of faith to accept the unexpected.  But if we'll hold on to Him, God will see us through.

He Knows. . .

Living in a small town like Pampa, Texas, everyone knows your name.  When I'm out riding my scooter, I hear people shout out, "Hi, Chris!"  It's makes you feel important when people know you by name.  Now think about this: GOD knows your name!

That was the title of a sermon I heard Sunday: "God Knows Your Name."  Pastor Lynn used the story of Zacchaeus in Luke 19:1-10 to show that God knows us by name.

If you remember the Bible story, you know Zacchaeus was a little man (a wee little man was he).  He tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd.  So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree beside the road because Jesus was going to pass that way.

Luke 19:5 says, When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and CALLED HIM BY NAME.

How did Jesus know his name?  I had never thought about it before, but as Pastor Lynn pointed out in the sermon, no one had introduced Jesus to Zacchaeus.  No one told Jesus his name.  From all we know from the Bible, Jesus and Zacchaeus had never met.  But Jesus knew his name. 

God knows our names, too.  That should make us say, WOW! The God of the universe knows MY name!  It's amazing.  God not only knows our names, He knows everything about us, and He wants to have a close personal relationship with us.

Jesus said to Zacchaeus,  “Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your house today." 

Zacchaeus was a tax collector and known sinner.  Jesus knew this and He still wanted to go to his home.  Jesus said, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.”

He knows everything about us, too, and He wants to be our savior.  That's why He came.  He came to know us and save us.

I'm glad He knows my name!

Virginia's Villan

The state of Virginia is in a state of chaos.   The top three Democrats in the state are under fire for things in their pasts, and all three refuse to resign.

Virginia Governor Ralph Northam is in trouble because a photo in his college yearbook shows what appears to be him in blackface.   At first, Northam apologized and said it was inappropriate and offensive.  He later backtracked and said it's not even him in the photo.  It has sparked outrage among both Democrats and Republicans, and many have called for Northam to resign.  So far, he has refused.

Forget about the yearbook photo!  Northam has done something much worse.  About a week before the blackface controversy, he made some barbaric comments in a radio interview in support of late-term abortions.  He backed a proposed bill that would allow a woman to get an abortion right up to the birth of the baby.  Northam went even further, saying a woman and her doctor could make the decision to take the baby's life AFTER the child is born. 

Northam actually endorsed infanticide!  THAT's the reason he should resign!  Where was the outrage over these comments?  There was no outage.  Republicans and other Democrats should have demanded his resignation.  Instead, they were silent.  It's like his comments about killing babies were no big deal.

For that reason alone, Ralph Northam should resign!

SOTU Top 10

President Trump gave his State of the Union speech last night, and I actually stayed awake for most of it.  There weren't many surprises.  Trump listed some of his accomplishments, and as usual, the Republicans applauded and cheered and the Democrats sat stone-faced for most of the speech.  Nasty Nancy sat behind him rolling her eyes and looking like she had been sucking on a sour pickle! 

Instead of boring you with the details, I picked out the top 10 most memorable quotes from the speech:

 

ON THE BORDER WALL (2 QUOTES):

"In the past, most of the people in this room voted for a wall. But the proper wall never got built. I will get it built.”

“Simply put, walls work and walls save lives.”

 

ON BORDER SECURITY AS 'A MORAL ISSUE':

"This is a moral issue. The lawless state of our southern border is a threat to the safety, security and financial well-being of all Americans."

 

ON 'RIDICULOUS PARTISAN INVESTIGATIONS':

“If there is going to be peace and legislation, there cannot be war and investigation. It just doesn’t work that way. We must be united at home in order to defeat our adversaries abroad.”

 

ON TALKS WITH THE TALIBAN:

"The hour has come to at least try for peace. And the other side would like to do the same thing. It’s time."

 

ON THE ECONOMY:

“In just over two years since the election, we have launched an unprecedented economic boom — a boom that has rarely been seen before. There has been nothing like it.”

 

ON THE STATE OF THE UNION:

“Our military is the most powerful on Earth by far — and America is again winning, each and every day. Members of Congress, the State of our Union is strong.”

 

ON HEALTH CARE:

"The next major priority for me and for all of us should be to lower the cost of health care and prescription drugs — and to protect patients with pre-existing conditions.”

 

ON COUNTRY OVER PARTY:

"Victory is not winning for our party. Victory is winning for our country.”

 

ON SOCIALISM IN AMERICA:

"America will never be a socialist country."

God Provides

I was reading a morning devotion about Jesus feeding the 4,000 in Mark 8:1-10.  It's really an amazing event when you look at it and try to apply it to your own life.

It says Jesus had compassion for the multitude.  The people had been following Him for three days.  They hadn't eaten and were hungry.  Jesus saw their need, and He felt compassion for them.  He wanted to meet their need.  Similarly, Jesus knows when we're in need, and because He loves us, He wants to meet our need.

The disciples looked at the problem and saw only their limited resources.  They asked Jesus, “How can one satisfy these people with bread here in the wilderness?”

We often do the same thing.  We see the huge hurtle in front of us, and we feel so overwhelmed because we're only looking at our own resources.  Jesus knows we can't meet the need on our own.  He tells us it's OK because He is more than enough. 

Jesus asked the disciples how many loaves they had.  They tell Him there's seven loaves and a few fish.  "But how far will that go among so many?" they asked.  Jesus tells them to bring Him what they have.  He takes the little they had, and He uses it to work a miracle.  He took the seven loaves and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples to set before them.  They gave Him all they had, and He made something great out of it.

It will work the same way for us.  It may seem like we don't have much, but if we give Him ALL we have, He can multiply it and make something great.  In the natural, we will never have enough, but His resources are limitless.  The whole earth is His and everything in it.

In the end, Jesus fed the multitude and took up seven large baskets of leftovers.  It was more than enough.  If He did it for them, He'll do it for us.

We'll never come up short when we put our trust in Him!

Suckers

I may be grasping at straws, but I want to go on record as saying I think the proposed ban on plastic straws really sucks (puns intended). 

The ridiculous ban is the latest enviro craze sweeping the nation.  Cities like Santa Barbara have taken it to the extreme, threatening to jail and fine offenders.  The extremist crowd says plastic straws are destroying the environment even though straws make up less than four percent of the plastic waste in landfills.

Do they think we're a bunch of suckers?  Why are they picking on us?

These misguided environmentalists want us to get rid of our straws while, at the same time, they drink their trendy Frappuccino-like coffee in big ol' plastic cups — cups that also have plastic lids!

The enviro elites ignore the fact that the plastic cups they buy and chuck every day have a much bigger plastic load than the little plastic straws that they want to keep out of the ocean. The same goes for all the juices, soft drinks and other beverages in super-sized plastic cups. 

There's also millions of coffee drinkers that use coffee brewing machines that require single-use, disposable coffee pods cluttering the landfills.  Shouldn't they ditch their single-use brewing machines?

So far, 15 U.S. cities have a ban on straws.  I use straws, and I don't plan to stop, even if I have to horde them under my mattress. 

I admit it.  I suck, and I'm proud of it! 

Protect The Unborn

I may not understand everything in the Bible.  There's a lot that's far too great for my little mind to comprehend.  But some things are perfectly clear.  When the Bible says "Thou shall not kill," there's no way anyone can misinterpret that.

That's why I can't understand why anyone could think it's all right to take the life of an unborn baby.  But Democrats seem to be all-in in an effort to remove restrictions on abortion.

The call for the right to abortion-on-demand was loud and clear this week when New York state passed a bill to allow late-term abortions  — in some cases right up to the time of labor and delivery.  Lawmakers actually stood and cheered when the bill was passed.  In Virginia, a similar bill was proposed that would allow abortions to be performed even when the mother is about to give birth.  Thankfully, that bill was defeated — for now.  But is it just a matter of time before Virginia and other states follow New York's example?

The bottom line is the Democratic Party has embraced infanticide.  These Democrat lawmakers want abortions to be an option for women right up to the moment of delivery and, in some cases, even after the birth.

If a baby is born with a deformity or disability, the mother and doctor could decide to end the baby's life.  They call it compassion.  God calls it murder.

I was born with a disability.  Imagine if this law had been around then....

The Democrats' logic makes no sense.  If someone kills a pregnant woman, the suspect can be charged with double homicide.  Two lives were taken.  But the Democrats now want to say it's not a viable life while it's still in the mother's womb.  This is hypocrisy!

Liberals like to say "All Lives Matter."  I guess that doesn't include unborn babies.

I can't believe this could happen in America.  It's barbaric, and God is not going to look the other way.  Instead of saying "God bless America," we should pray "God forgive America."