Beech Tree News Network

     I recall a sweltering and sunny afternoon. The sun lay strong overhead and cast its gaze as far as the eye could see. I stood in the back yard with my feet on a small concrete slab and my eyes affixed to the basketball goal only feet above the ground. Being 6 years old, the prospect of attempting to score a point would prove futile if the goal were at the standard height. Sweat beamed from my body, through my striped polo shirt and khaki shorts as I attempted to calculate the trajectory of the ball. I was going to be like Michael Jordan. I would be in the next Space Jam movie.

The following is a true story. A man who became a Christian later in his life was talking to his grown son one day about how he stood before God. The conversation went like this:

    Father: Son, I wish I had been a Christian while you were a little boy.

    Son: Why do you say that?

    Father: Because, if I had been a Christian when you were a little boy, you’d be one today.

    Son: You don’t know that.

    Father: Well son, think about it this way. When you were little, I would take you hunting in the fall. What do you do now on your own?

It’s time, once again, for the Big Dummy Awards!

Dear Editor:

Certainly, 2015 has been an event-filled year. Some events will make history, and some may have changed how we think about our world. As the year’s end nears, some memorable 2015 events are listed below.

In our area of Kentucky, 2015 started with cold temperatures and some significant snowfalls. Overall, the temperatures this year were above normal. We are currently in a strong El Nino pattern which has provided us with an extremely warm December.

‘While back I gave a young man my chain saw. It still ran good.  It had a right new cutter bar.  I had added electronic initiation which cost very little.  The young man needed work; I wanted to help him.  I hadn’t needed the saw after we quit burning wood; that was a good while.  It cost me practically nothing to give it away.

There are some things that would be amusing no matter what time of year they occurred, but they are particularly amusing if they happen at Christmas, especially if they happen on Christmas day.  My daughter’s fiancé, Scott, found himself in one such situation.  He went with our family to Taylorsville on Christmas day.  Garey’s mom, Aggie, was visiting from Alabama, so we drove two separate vehicles—Scott, Natalie and Sabria in one; Garey, Aggie and me in the other. 

Abraham Lincoln once said, “No man has a good enough memory to make a successful liar.” George Washington was quoted as saying, “I hope I shall always possess firmness and virtue enough to maintain what I consider the most enviable of all titles, the character of an honest man.” In a time in which lying to one another (and to ourselves) seems to be epidemic, let us see what God says about lying.

“Christmastime is here.  Happiness and cheer.  Fun for all that children call their favorite time of year”.  That’s the opening stanza of the Lee Mendelson and Vince Guaraldi written song.  It was written for the 1965 television special A Charlie Brown Christmas.  It’s no wonder this special has been aired during every Christmas season since.  Some might look at it as a sad song because it’s a slow ballad.  I happen to like it. 

During December, we often hear Christmas music. It has become a traditional part of our celebration. We all know most of the songs. One we often hear is “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” an old song that uses repetition with each verse building on previous verses.