Time

Time for Life is the title of a new book by James Robinson and Geoffrey Godbey. In the book they say that while Americans feel more rushed they actually have more leisure time than ever before -- nearly 40 hours a week. The findings are disputed by some. In fact numerous publishers rejected the manuscript because, they said...

Money

There are about 6,033,686,000,000 dollar bills in circulation in the United States at any one time. That's six trillion, thirty-three billion, six hundred and eighty six million. With so many bills in circulation I wonder how it happens that I have so few of them! I also wonder how it happens that so few of them find their way into...

The King Is Coming

When his son Leka was three years old his father, King Zog of Albania, fled before the advancing Italian army. That was in 1939. After his father died Leka regarded himself as the rightful king of Albania. In 1993, after Communism had fallen, King Leka tried to return to Albania. But the police threw him out of the country. He was...

Heaven

The novelist and poet Conrad Aiken was in his ancestral city of Savannah, Georgia when he saw a ship named Cosmos Mariner. The name struck him, since cosmos means universe. He looked up the vessel in the Shipping News. Beside the name Cosmos Mariner it read "Destination Unknown." Aiken liked that so much he had...

Fame

Howard K. Smith, the well known newscaster, said that his daughter was not at all impressed by his fame. Even though he had interviewed presidents, and had a nationwide listening audience, she was unimpressed. Then, he said, he took his daughter to Disney World. The daughter was looking forward to seeing Mickey...

Cross

In 1934 the city of San Francisco erected a cross, 103 feet tall and 39 feet across, on the top of Mt. Davidson in a public park. For years "Easter" services were held there. But in March of 1997 the Supreme Court ruled that the presence of the cross violated the state Constitution of California. Unless city officials can find a way...

Christ, the Founder

Most bells ring nine times at 9:00 p.m., but the tower bell at Oxford's Christ Church college rings 101 times every evening at 9:00 p.m. It is to commemorate the 101 members who founded that academic community many centuries ago. If we tolled a bell to commemorate the founder of Christianity we would only have to ring it ...

Child Of God

Les Baux de Provence is one of the most visited places in southern France. Overlooking the village are the remains of a once great castle and fortress. It was built by the lords of Baux who claimed to be descended from King Balthazar, one of the three wise men. While it seems improbable it is possible that they were...

Blessings

Recently in Bill Keane's Family Circus comic strip the little boy says, "Ah-Choo!" and his mother says, "God bless you!" He says it again and again she says, "God bless you." He does it again and again, getting louder each time, and again and again his mother says, "God bless you." After the fifth "Ah-Choo!" his mother says,...

War Is Too Costly

Some months ago the New York Times published a piece by Thomas L. Friedman, in which he noted that no two countries that both have a McDonald's restaurant have ever fought a war against each other. He doesn't count civil wars. McDonald's has restaurants in 100 countries now. It makes more money outside the U.S.A. than...