Camps show students their future
By Tom Poland The blue lake, white sands and green trees of summer camps live on as I recall days at Rock Eagle 4-H Camp. I dare not mention the mosquitoes but canoeing methods, crafts and tree identification broadened my skills. But hindsight’s 20-20. I work with words. If only I could have attended a creative writing camp, you’d be reading a better writer. Too late for me, but not for South Carolina students. They can apply to...
Living with a purpose: Keep your face to the sun
By Bill Holland We all have problems occasionally and there are times when we feel like we’ve been punched in the gut. I felt like this a couple of months ago when one morning I went into my office to start the day and my computer would not wake up. I realize that hard drive failures are not the worst things that could happen, but for someone who writes several hours a day, it’s discouraging to say the least, but in the big picture of...
West End memories: Shaving with a straight razor
By Bill Shepard Have you ever shaved your face with a straight razor? Perhaps an easier question to ask would be, have you ever watched another person shave with one? And a still easier question: Have you ever seen a straight razor? I always said that shaving with a straight razor was a real art! I believe that the last time I can remember seeing anyone use a straight razor to shave their own face was a long time ago, when I was a...
Old memories in unusual places
By Bill Shepard Slingshots, iron-piles and a place called the Thicket! What do these three have in common? Read on … I can’t tell if it is the cold and drizzly days of winter that are upon us that have put me into the mood for this article or if it is just an old man, recalling some of his childhood memories. It really doesn’t take much to send me back into time, like the other day when I visited the doctor’s office for a routine...
The dignity found in abandonment
By Tom Poland As you drive from here to there in a rush, how many times have you turned around to stop at an abandoned store? I do that a lot. The older I get, the less I hurry, and being in a hurry on the back roads just doesn’t happen for me. I take the back roads to pay homage to those who came before us and to save my sanity in this crazed mad rush of a world. Returning from a book event in Greenville a few days ago I passed a...
Living on Purpose: Can God do the impossible?
By Bill Holland The biblical account of Abraham and Sarah having a baby has been cherished throughout the ages and is familiar with those who probably first heard it as a child in Sunday school. The concept of a man and woman having a child together does not sound overly unusual until we consider that Abraham was 100 and Sarah was 90. We find the story in Genesis chapters 17 and 18 and it reveals how God planned to establish a...