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Nation needs to work to find common ground

As we mark the fifth anniversary of the insurrection that took place on January 6, 2021, let us pause and reflect, not just on the unnecessary events which unfolded and included the worst kind of political violence, but also ask ourselves how we’ve grown from it. Our civil discourse has become more challenging in the last several years with too many instances of incivility, division and hostility. You don’t need to look any further than our own backyard in Pennsylvania where we had an assassination attempt in Butler County two years ago along with a brazen attack on the ...

Having a small frame for life’s big picture

Our family has cut way back on Christmas presents in recent years. We all still enjoy filling some desires from the grandchildrens’ wishlists. Honestly, they are the only ones who really need anything. But I have a problem, and it is probably a hangup going back to my childhood. I want everyone to have a package or two under the tree. A few years ago, we set a modest limit, so the gift shouldn’t be big, fancy, or expensive. It just has to be wrapped and tagged “to and from” so everyone gets to feel special. We are such a small family that giving each other a small gift is ...

Rounding Third: Challenges with 24 legs in house at holidays

Today, the second of January, a working day, really begins the New Year. Fuggedaboudit. I’m hoping people have today off to go along with the holiday. Two long weekends in a row? Now THAT would make for a happy Christmas. Despite housing six additional 2-legged residents and two 4-legged critters for the fun of Christmas week, our house is now back to its boring everyday quiet. Every bed was full including a new twin inflatable. Each seat at the dining room table was occupied. And the matriarch’s heart was full of comfort and joy I noticed the noise level that normally arrives ...

Recognizing our heroes during the giving season

The month of December throughout our nation’s history has been a very active time for our military. We all know about the Day That Lives in Infamy, when the Japanese, unprovoked, attacked the islands of Hawaii decimating the Pacific Fleet of our Navy. We know about the siege of Bastogne in the European theater of WWII that lasted many days and showed the true tenacity of the American soldier, holding off overwhelming German forces in what became known as the Battle of the Bulge. During the Korean War, Lieutenant Colonel Raymond Davis against a superior Force led his Marine Battalion in ...

Our opinion: Believing in the magic of Christmas

In September 1897, 8-year-old Virginia O’Hanlon asked a now-famous question in a letter to the New York Sun. Is there a Santa Claus? Not only did the letter make young Virginia O’Hanlon a celebrity, but it prompted one of the famous newspaper editorials ever written with an answer to O’Hanlon’s question. It is reprinted today, a tradition our sister paper in Warren, Ohio, takes part in each year in part, the editorial page said, because it’s entirely possible that no one has answered the question better, nor has anyone better described the spirit of Christmas. The ...

Rounding Third: Years of fulfilling the dreams of Christmas

Marcy’s vacation week offers a holiday column excerpted from her book, Rounding Third … originally from 2006. Christmastime is pure nostalgia. Many of my holiday memories began with our children’s arrival. I will never forget the total exhaustion of falling into bed after filling the last stocking and cleaning up the toy construction evidence. The elves who visited our house weren’t super handy or organized. Depending on how successful last-minute wrapping and battery searches were, bedtime followed – during a lucky year at 2:00am. Often much later. I never felt as stringy ...