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Angel Wing begonias remind me of Granny

As I quickly walked past, I immediately saw something that caught my eye. There in a pot sitting proudly as a peacock was an old-fashioned Angel Wing begonia plant. I…Click to Continue »

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Wonder’s power should be part of adult life

He didn’t even know I was watching him. It was as if he was in his very own world. Although the store was filled with people, he was so busy…Click to Continue »

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My daddy is the reason I treasure my old cookbook

The last time I reached for it, part of the plastic ring binding cracked away. All of the inside pages of the book have shifted over time. For the past…Click to Continue »

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Patience can beat frustration

Life can be very frustrating. In fact, frustration is something we deal with from the time we’re babies until we take our last breaths.Click to Continue »

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Freedom lets us take wing

Every time July rolls around, I think about two things. July is the month my mother was born and the month we celebrate our independence as a nation. Being grateful…Click to Continue »

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Good and bad flow in and out

If there is one thing I’ve learned in life, it’s that we are all more similar than we seem. We all feel love, joy, hurt and betrayal. In the process,Click to Continue »

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Bullying leaves scars felt well into adulthood

The other day, someone forwarded a note to me that really hit home. It pertained to children bullying other children. These days you can hardly turn on the news or…Click to Continue »

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You have to let go of that control

“Why would you do that?” she asked with a little tone in her voice, pushing the gas pedal down a little and proceeding exactly as she had planned.Click to Continue »

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Pets could teach us some tricks

It was late and I was exhausted as I made my way up the steps to our back door. I had been away on a trip and had just finished…Click to Continue »

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Things aren’t always what they appear to be

A few weeks ago, I was at a resort in Florida where I have spoken for several years. It is a very beautiful place with a large number of original…Click to Continue »

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Childhood memories taste so sweet

During my childhood, we were the family who often went to the grocery store on a “per need” basis. That’s not to say we didn’t attempt to create a grocery…Click to Continue »

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School is about starting anew

The other day, I passed the back-to-school aisle in a store and had to stop for a minute to take it all in. I don’t know exactly why, but I…Click to Continue »

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Surround yourself with sunshine

Approaching the field ahead of me, all I saw was a brilliantly bright yellow haze. As I got closer, I realized it was a field of sunflowers in full bloom.Click to Continue »

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Think blessings, not problems

I have been extremely busy recently getting my new cookbook ready to go to press and, even though it was the hot month of August, I worked on a painting…Click to Continue »

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Details make the big picture

Recently, I spoke at a place in north Georgia I’d never visited before. So, in this age of instant answers on the World Wide Web, I enlisted the Internet’s help…Click to Continue »

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You can if you believe you can

As a small boy, I sometimes would play a game where I would run around in a circle chanting “I think I can! I think I can!” I know this…Click to Continue »

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Mark Ballard: The lessons of listening

Even before it officially arrived, I knew it was about to happen. There are all sorts of signs that whisper to us that autumn is around the corner. At first,Click to Continue »

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Broken pieces await new life

In a dark and lonely corner of our basement there is a pile of broken pieces of everything breakable you can imagine. These pieces, mounded in a heap, include ceramics,Click to Continue »

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Humor helps us through life’s missteps

My wife recently returned from a business trip to Alaska. When she got home, I noticed a small bruise on her arm. Of course, I asked her about it.Click to Continue »

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Granny created magic with biscuits

I was doing something in our kitchen the other day and happened to take a glance up high. Above the cabinets all around the room I have placed various things…Click to Continue »

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