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A doff of the cap

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A doff of the cap is done as a sign of respect. It is an acknowledgement to someone who has done well. It doesn’t necessarily mean you agree with everything, but that one still respects the effort at the end of the day.

That’s why we take our caps off when the National Anthem is played, or when a person of honor enters the room. It is giving credit where it is due.

Not in control

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Being in control is something that many, if not most, people long for. Why else would obtaining a pilot’s license and purchasing a personal aircraft be so high on the list?

Control freaks, which describes some people more than others, doesn’t just affect adults. Watch teenagers and younger adults who can’t seem to steer the wheel in their life when things are off kilter. Children, who are learning boundaries and testing their parents’ ability to maintain sanity, are where it often begins.

Wherever you are God is with you

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For those who try to live for the Lord and want to please Him, I’m sure you know what I mean when I say there are times when the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. When it comes to maintaining a red-hot enthusiasm for the Christian life, we are not robots, but rather we are emotional humans that have good days along with other times that are clouded with with feelings of melancholy. It does the heart good to quietly sit alone as we search within our soul trying to figure out what is wrong.

If I'm the universal donor, then the universe is in trouble

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I was sitting with my arm outstretched, purposely not looking at the needle which was drawing blood from the artery in the crook of my elbow.

Since my childhood days, I’ve found a spot on the ceiling in whatever doctor’s office I found myself, and I have stared at that spot, daring myself to give in or fall apart.

When the phlebotomist finished taking two small vials of blood, I admitted that I felt brave and strong.

So I casually asked, “What are the benefits to giving blood?”

Dozens of cousins

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“We are cleaning up our stuff,” Meschack, the tile layer who now more or less permanently resides in our home, informed me. “We are giving you more space.”

“More space!” I said in mock amazement. “Why would I need more space? I see at least three square feet over there by the closet and another four feet behind the dining room table!”

Meshack squinted his eyes and looked at me seriously, as he does. He was again accompanied by his assistant, Yusefu, a recent immigrant from Kenya.

The refrigerator gets to stay

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Editor’s Note: This column was penned prior to the death of Susan Lincoln’s husband, Don, on Sept. 9, 2021. Since columns featuring “The Husband” are favorites for many of her readers, it is published today with her gratitude for nearly 40 years of marriage where laughter prevailed.

Our hard-working refrigerator has been in the business of cooling the family’s food since the year 1989. Recently, it asked for a few days off but we encouraged (actually we begged, pleaded) with it to continue spitting out ice cubes and humming all day long.

Struggling to tame our tongue

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We tend to have a much-higher opinion of ourselves than what we ought, but everyone with a lofty self-perception is surrounded by a world of porcupines.

In this day and age of social media mimicking the national news media by doubting and digging and provoking with a certainty of discovering a seedy, underneath side of others, especially those who have established themselves as a person of some importance, the great unwashed (you and me… Joe Q. Public) has given ourselves a license to dig up dirt and talk about it.

Choosing to become more aware of God

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The Bible refers to a joy that is unspeakable and full of glory but what does this mean? I believe one answer would be the contentment of the conscience for those who know God and have decided to live in the awareness of His presence. How can we do this? We can train our minds to think about God the same as we learn and become skilled to do anything else. Repetition and commitment are the building blocks of being proficient and in the Christian faith, selfdiscipline is the path to spiritual transformation.

Modern policing is a problem

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What is expected of police in the United States varies greatly, much of it according to location. Urban areas are completely different from suburbia, and then there are small towns and even rural communities.

The answers are not easy and like the men and women who wear the badge, are sometimes flawed. One answer is to do away with the vocation altogether or to defund it to the degree they cannot meet the needs of residents. Decisions are then made to disregard many laws and allow common police responsibilities to be disregarded.

Dozens of cousins

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“We are cleaning up our stuff,” Meschack, the tile layer who now more or less permanently resides in our home, informed me. “We are giving you more space.”

“More space!” I said in mock amazement. “Why would I need more space? I see at least three square feet over there by the closet and another four feet behind the dining room table!”

Meshack squinted his eyes and looked at me seriously, as he does. He was again accompanied by his assistant, Yusefu, a recent immigrant from Kenya.