The Quiet Anchors in a Noisy World I have sat on countless folding chairs on sidewalks across this great country, watching local parades march by. The smell of roasted peanuts mixes with the exhaust of old farm tractors. Children wave tiny paper flags on wooden sticks. We all stand up when the brass band starts […]
A Familiar Face on Main Street Walk down any main street in our great country around early July, and you will see him everywhere. He looks down from parade floats, waves from old recruitment posters, and stands tall on front porch flags. He has a stark white goatee, a top hat adorned with stars, and […]
The Magic of Morning Box Scores I remember the crisp autumn mornings of my youth vividly. The world felt much quieter then. The local paper boy would ride his bicycle down our street and toss the heavy Sunday edition onto the front porch with a loud, satisfying thud. I would race out in my slippers […]
I have spent my entire life watching this beautiful country change, grow, and reshape itself in countless, fascinating ways. I have seen dirt roads paved into multi-lane highways. I have watched quiet neighborhoods blossom into bustling city centers over the decades. Yet, of all the shifts I have witnessed from my front porch, few are […]
It is early morning here, and the sun is just starting to paint the sky a soft, pale pink over the neighborhood. I like to sit on the porch with my coffee, letting the steam warm my face, and watch the world wake up. There is a gentle breeze rustling the old oak trees. Kids […]
There is a very particular smell that catches the evening breeze on a late summer afternoon. It is the distinct, heavy aroma of hickory wood burning down to soft, glowing coals. When you smell that sweet smoke in the air, you know your neighbors are gathering. You know that lawn chairs are being unfolded, iced […]
The Dawn of the Rest Day The light hits the front porch differently on a Saturday morning. I have sat on this same porch for decades, watching the neighborhood wake up. There is a distinct quiet, a brief pause between the frantic rush of Friday evening and the lawnmowers of Saturday afternoon. The air smells […]
The Rhythm of the Highway I remember the steady hum of tires on cracked concrete. It was a rhythm that settled deep into your bones. You would roll your windows down to let in the hot summer air. The smell of sagebrush mixed pleasantly with exhaust fumes. We were not just driving from one place […]
The Great Divide of the Mind and Map I remember the first time I drove across this great country of ours. I was just a young man then, with a full tank of gas and an endless stretch of two-lane highway ahead of me. The journey started in the dense, green embrace of the eastern […]
The Magic of the Modern Aisle Let me tell you a story about a quiet revolution. It did not happen on a battlefield or in a grand political hall. It happened in a grocery store. Before the world moved quite as fast as it does today, shopping was an entirely different affair. You would walk […]