I celebrated my 81st birthday recently, and the event caused me to realize that I am actually an old man. Do I now start acting like one? Shall my body posture reflect my age, shall I stoop over appropriately and buy a gnarled cane? When I prepare for work in the morning and stand before…
Category: The Book of On – Volume 3
On Becoming A Man
Various cultures around the world have what is sometimes referred to as the “Right of Passage”—a ceremony conducted at the time a young boy is either at an age of maturity or has simply matured to a point where the tribal leaders feel he should become a man. It is interesting that most primitive tribes…
On Make My Day
“Make my day,” was a famous line from the Dirty Harry movies. A more appropriate take from that series would be to make someone else’s day. Mariska Hargitay said that “Just smiling at someone walking down the street can make the person’s day. It’s all about paying it forward.” I remember a rather unique opportunity…
On Their Being With Us
Sitting in Sacrament Meeting one Sabbath Day and contemplating the Sacrament Prayer, the following words, that I have heard hundreds of times, just seemed to reach out to my mind, “…this do: that they may have His spirit to be with them.” I pondered those words for a few minutes, thinking about what that might…
On How Would You Like To Be Remembered?
I rather doubt that very many people ever think about how they are going to be remembered by those they leave behind when they die. Some would say they don’t care because they will be gone (dead), and it won’t make any difference to them. Others will write their own obituary just to make sure…
On Being In The World
When I think about being in the world, it does not conjure up negative thoughts about how mean, cruel and diverse the world is. I rather feel that the diversity, for the most part, is good; it is how we learn to deal with all aspects of life that are going to confront us sooner…
On Being Anonymous
Years ago we had a woman from Lithuania living with us for approximately six months while she was learning the administrative procedures at an American University. At the time, I was the Dean of Student Administrative Services at a University in Utah. While staying with us, she was also trying to learn as much as…
On Choosing To Believe
I read a weekly email from my granddaughter, Sarah, to the family. She is serving a mission in Arizona. She gets a little frustrated with her missionary contacts from time to time. She described one encounter this way: ”We were…out knocking doors. One door we knocked on, this gruff looking man answers, and as soon…
On What Would The World Be Like If
In a very interesting and provocative article. Bradlee Dean asked the question, “What would it be like, if…?” I have never thought too much about a question like that because it is pure speculation. There is really no way of knowing now how things would be different if history could be changed. We can’t change…
On Giving It Our All
We sometimes hear the term, “I am sorry but I gave it my all, the whole nine yards.” When we hear that, we know it came from a person who probably failed the task and failed, as well, to “give it their all.” Ordinarily, a person or a group will never undertake to do something that…