Memorial Day was always a special day for me, even as a child. It was a particularly important day of remembrance for my mother. Every year, she made sure we wore the commemorative red poppies to honor her youngest brother, the family hero. Kenneth Arthur MacMillan was the youngest of four ...

Last week I reminded my grandson to take God with him to his exam. I always said a prayer before an exam. Usually, I asked God to help me remember what I studied. I did not go into an exam without the work. I knew that he worked hard. He was proud of his average with all “A”s. This ...

Dream was the word I associated with exercise machines in the old days. Not the dream of ownership, but the dream of possibility. The machine promised the ultimate transformation. I was going to become the new me. Now, at my advanced age with dashed dreams, I am giving up. I decided that this ...

Judging from recent commentary, it seems the definitions of rights and privileges have been conflated in our political discourse. To start: A legal right is an action that an individual can take that cannot be legally infringed by other people or by the government. Natural rights for ...

It is strange, but sometimes little things make a big difference. I recently found a recipe for Sourdough Bread that sounded interesting. I have a recipe but the starter needs to be fed regularly. To be honest that makes it too difficult to keep going. This new recipe makes two batches of ...

Last Friday I received a pacemaker. I’m still not over the shock that I needed one. I was skeptical because surgeons want to do their job. You know, they’re trained to cut. Same as my hairdresser. But the cardiac surgeons at St. Vincent’s in Erie were convincing. Long story short, my ...