The tears that wouldn’t fall

Huge tears pooled in my eyes but, amazingly, for 15 minutes, they did not fall.They were stoic.Just like my friend, John Jarrard.As I sat at a table in a sequined dress for a black-tie event, I watched the video that honored that wonderful man.

Knowing when it’s time to go home

I first had the pleasure of meeting U.S.SenatorMitch McConnell of Kentucky in 1987 at Scottsdale, Az., roughly six months into his first term.McConnell was energetic, vibrant, quick-witted, and very thoughtful in his public policyposition statements.McConnell is now retiring as U.S.

What to know before ‘reversing’ retirement

If you’ve retired, you may have thought you closed the book on one chapter of your life. But what happens if you need to “reverse” your retirement?

Attention all fathers

I have been called a lot of things in my long life, and not all of them flattering. A few years back, I was referred to as an “Obama bed-wetting liberal,” and a “racist redneck.” Both in the same week. Go figure.What I like being called most of all, however, is “Dad,” as well as “Pa.

Celebrating good fathers

A friend of mine and I were talking once about a crook we both know.As my Daddy would say, “He wouldn’t know the truth if it hit him between the eyes.”The stories about this crook are endless. It seems like almost everyone has a story about a lie, illegal transaction, or some such.

An opinion on Okefenokee ‘no opinion’

Dear Congressman Buddy Carter,Your appearance a couple of weeks ago before the Water, Wildlife and Fisheries subcommittee in Washington, of which you are not a member but were allowed to question a witness panel about our Okefenokee was, shall we say, a bit out of the ordinary.

The Hydrangea

It was about 16 years ago that a famous man dug up part of a famous plant in his garden of world renown and gave it to me.“Don’t put it where it’ll get the hot afternoon sun, plant it in the gentle sun,” he explained. “If the leaves wilt, it’s from lack of hydration.

An awakening

A significant awakening swept over me recently.When it happened, I was happily stunned at my observation.Daddy had a close first cousin named Gurley.Tink, a Yankee, had never heard of degrees of cousins until he came South. He did not know what a “first” cousin was or how you became third cousins.

Hard to be a sore loser in Georgia

The things you learn on this job. Someone called PromoGuy, who it turns out, isn’t a guy at all but a company that has something to do with sports betting, says Georgians feel down for an average of 39 minutes after their favorite sports team suffers a disappointing result.

The dreams of friends

On the bookcase, at the top of the stairs, sets a framed photos of two young girls, barely out of college, and both wearing the Victorian lace look of a retired brand called Gunne Sax.