Columns & Editorials

Lori and I have a small flock of chickens on our little farm outside Lone Oak, Texas. I have to tell you, we love our chickens. We had them in Forney where they were confined to the back yard. Even then, we lost a couple of our hens to a hawk. It was a very traumatic experience, especially for our granddaughter.

GOD caused the water to dry up from the earth and, when the ark landed, Noah and his family came out of the ark onto dry ground. Noah planted a vineyard and started to grow food for his family. As Noah’s family began to spread over the earth they soon learned that sin was not destroyed with flood. The people wanted to take over the earth and Heaven as well. They decided to build a tower up to Heaven so they could come and go as they pleased. (Gen: 11:1-9) All the people of earth were of one language so GOD came down and changed the language of each family so one could not understand the other. The work on the tower stopped and the people scattered over the earth which was GOD’S plan from the beginning.

Dear Aunt B Readers,

THE REAL “BAD BOB” (Part 7) The Final Shootout (Part 2)

In the beginning GOD created the Heavens and earth…GEN: 1-1.

Dear Aunt B,

“When my mom told me to clean my room, I asked God, and He said ‘Yes!’ Then, I did it. I thank God,” says Christian, 8.

Lucifer was created to be a guardian Cherub. He was created beautiful but was not content with that position. When he tried to move his throne up by the side of GOD the Father he was cast down.

Dear Aunt B,

“And, then, Aunt Hallie and Uncle Sam took everyone to Galveston. They all stayed at the Flagship Hotel, except, Uncle Sam was CRAZY. One night, he took all of the kids out onto the beach and they slept in the sand! Yes, that’s right. Uncle Sam was great at magic tricks. He could always pull a quarter out of your ear.” This is an excerpt of an actual recent telephone conversation I had with my cousin. There’s one odd aspect to this exchange. I never met my Great Uncle Sam. Aunt Hallie was in her latest years when I was very young. Uncle Sam was long passed away. This was a story of my mother’s youth, kept alive and well through the ages. I’ve heard it told, and retold, so many times, I can see it all in technicolor: my mother’s ruched bathing suit and rubber swim cap, her cousin Priscilla’s pedal pusher pants and penny loafers, Aunt Hallie’s cat-eye glasses with the rhinestones in the corners. It’s a tale from the 50’s, back when there was a Flagship Hotel, and it was legal to sleep on the beach. While family lore is often passed down through the generations, it’s an inherent thing we southerners do, speaking about the long-ago times and long-lost ancestors as if they were just in another room. I never once saw my precious Uncle Opie working in the Seagoville prison, but I can visualize him walking down dimly lit cellblocks, ring full of keys attached to his hip. My grandmother’s father lost his life in a train accident mere yards from the old cotton gin he was racing to before the close of that weighing day. I can see the red flatbed truck he was driving as well as I can see my husband’s truck in the driveway right now. In the south, our stories do more than stick around. They keep people alive.

When you hear the word “budgeting,” your first thought might be that it’s mostly for young people starting out in their careers and adult lives. Yet, budgeting can be important for everyone, no matter their age. And even if you feel that you’re in pretty good financial shape, with a reasonable amount of savings and investments, you can still benefit by establishing a budget or improving your current one.

THE REAL “BAD BOB” (Part 6)

Dear Aunt B,