Dispatches
Dispatches from Home: Titanic 25 Years Later February 2023
Twenty-five years ago, it was a windy, cold afternoon. I stood in a long line at the picture show with a massive crowd of strangers. After purchasing my ticket, I found my way to my favorite seat, under the projection…
Dispatches from Home – Pop and the Polar Bear June 2023
My father loved to travel. His two favorite means of travel were the family auto or by train. Planes were a last resort because Pop loved to see the countryside. Two of our road trips by car are acid etched…
Dispatches From Home – The Book of Proverbs April 2020
In a country torn apart by race, anarchy, murder, and death, the Book of Proverbs is a good read for those who long for wisdom in these dark days. Even if you believe the Judeo-Christian Bible is nothing more than…
Dispatches from Home – The Day the Queen Died. September 8, 2022.
We went to Westminster Abbey this afternoon. I was awestruck by its majesty and grandeur. Sam and I decided to go our separate ways while in the Abbey. Later in the day, I went looking for him and found…
DISPATCHES FROM HOME: A Friendship Remembered July 2020
Who’s the chubby kid standing near the orchestra, I asked while sitting in the choir loft of Gulfport’s First Baptist Church? Don’t you know, replied a fellow choir member? His name’s Keith Ballard. He’s singing the boy soprano part in…
Dispatches from Home: London Calling September 1 2023
By this time, a year ago today, I was on Delta flight 4874 bound for Atlanta. Later that evening, I flew out of Atlanta on Flight 0032 bound for London’s Heathrow Airport and the fulfillment of a fifty-five-year-old dream. The…
DISPATCHES FROM HOME – 131 + 43 + 4+1 = 179 Titanic memories.
While recently waiting in line for some eye meds at the local apothecary shop, I spotted what I thought was an old friend of mine, who seemed to whisper, “Please don’t leave me here. It’s been so long since last…
DISPATCHES FROM HOME: I WANT A MAGICAL SHREDDER FOR CHRISTMAS!
On Christmas Day, 2016, the sunlight slowly melted the delicate tracery of the morning frost hugging the rooftops on dear ole Wilson Drive. Little did I know that would be my last Christmas with my “mom.” Why the quotations? Although…
Dispatches from Home – 125 Years!
On a Sunday evening in the hot summer of 1966, my dear parents and I joined Gulfport’s First Baptist Church. As we walked down the aisle, and the pastor, Dr. William Tanner, greeted us, I was fascinated by the greenish-amber…
Dispatches from Home – The Hummingbird.
Who remembers the Hummingbird? One delightful June morning in the late 50s, Dad dropped Mom and me off at Gulfport’s train station. He then motored to New Orleans and would meet us there, while Mom and I rode the Hummingbird.…
Dispatches from Home – February 2020
One year ago today, February 22, 2019, God called my dear mother Home. The morning was foggy with rain. A dull silence filled the house. I’d slept a somewhat sleepless night, pondering what the future held for Mom and me…
Dispatches from Home – New Year’s Eve 2019
As Father Time shuffles off this mortal coil and awaits the arrival of the New Year baby, I’ve come to the end of the year and the decade amazed at how quickly 3,650 days disappeared. I’ve also pondered the grains…