This morning at work, I was given a stark reminder of how quickly things can change and how incredibly unsettling change can feel. We talk a lot about change, don’t we? The current president promised hope and change. Folks like me fail to see the hope, but we sure recognize the change. We talk about…
Category: Greybeard Chronicles
The GreyBeard Chronicles: Welcome to Cube Gene
I recently welcomed to my cubicle a new inhabitant. I have now served as cube mate and mentor (do as I say, not as I do) to all three members of a trio of twenty-something friends. When this dawned on me and I pointed it out to the newcomer, he responded by calling my…
The Greybeard Chronicles: Yesterday, When I was King— or, There is No Time Like the Present
It is the habit—and the prerogative— of those of us with silver in our hair to reminisce, to rubberneck, to relish (and embellish) past heroics. I have not pastored a church since 1997. I have not suited up for a game of organized football since 1979. The further I get from the things I “used…
The Greybeard Chronicles: Why I said nothing at the moment of truth
What will you do when standing up means standing out? It is easy to talk tough until it is tough to talk. Everybody is ready to do something until something must be done. The reason we revere the founders of America is because they pledged everything– their lives, their lands, their liberties– for a cause…
The GreyBeard Chronicles: “Do I Disappoint You, God?”
I was speaking with a Christian friend yesterday. She said, “I think I am such a disappointment to God.” To this, I replied, “No, you are not.” It is, I believe, impossible to disappoint God. We may displease Him, but we cannot disappoint Him. Disappointment is born of unfulfilled expectations. We anticipate a certain day…
The Greybeard Chronicles| Christmas, 2011: Too Soon Past
Seven months and counting. That is how long I have been away from home now, working in Mobile, Alabama, doing my thing— or, what passes for “my thing” until I can really do my thing. I came in May and now it is almost January. I would ask where the time went, but a quick…
The Greybeard Chronicles, Thanksgiving 2011: I Have Never Journeyed Alone
Dateline: Mobile, Alabama, Thanksgiving Day, 2011 And so it was in my fiftieth year, I spent my very first Thanksgiving Day alone. Some of my fondest memories, both from childhood and adulthood, center on this day. The sweetest people I have ever known, the finest food I have ever eaten, the best football I have…