A Blessed Life (17) My dad had a way of saying a lot without using very many words. I remember some of the things he impressed on me in just that way. One memory stands out clearly in my mind to this day. It was junior-senior prom; the night when you plan on staying out…

A Blessed Life (16) Friday afternoons during my senior year found me thinking about the three o’clock bell beckoning the end of another week of school. It was around two o’clock on Friday, November 22, 1963, that our sixth period class was interrupted by an announcement over the intercom. The principal solemnly announced that President…

A Blessed Life (15) After two and a half years attending school at Bourbon County High, and six and a half in elementary school, there was a change in January of 1963. We were moving back to Harrison County where I had lived the first seven years of my life. I would be enrolling mid-term…

My years in high school were filled with really good times and my memories are many. Basketball games every Tuesday and Friday from December through March were regular events on our calendar. Back then a Wednesday or Sunday game was rare, if not totally unheard of. Those days were reserved for the church. We lived…

A Blessed Life (13) I admire people who have a sense of direction for their lives. They seem to be clearly focused on their goals. During my teenage years I vacillated between being an auctioneer, radio announcer, or a forest ranger. I loved public speaking; I composed sermons, but never seriously saw myself as a…

A Blessed Life (12) Hanging on the wall of my office at home is an old violin passed down to me from my Grandfather Morrison. William Morrison and Mary Withers Morrison were two wonderful people who blessed my life. At least two Sunday afternoons a month found us at their house for Sunday dinner with…

A Blessed Life (11) Teen years are easier when life is simpler. At least that was my experience. Life centered around farm work, school and church. I can truly say in the words of the John Denver hit song, “Thank God, I’m A Country Boy”. I don’t say that arrogantly, but rather, with deep appreciation…

A Blessed Life (9) Shortly after my baptism our family started attending Mt. Carmel Christian Church. It was located only a couple miles from our home. Since the move to Bourbon County, we had been driving over half an hour to attend the Salem Church where I had grown up. Being so close to Mt….

A Blessed Life (8) Summertime meant two things for sure. Little League baseball and Revival Meeting were as certain as summer itself. July of 1957 marked my eleventh birthday, second year of organized baseball, and my baptism. Summer evenings inside the Salem church building were extremely warm to put it mildly. Hand held fans furnished…

A Blessed Life (10) The spring of 1959, marked another milestone in my life. In May of that year I graduated from eighth grade at Center Hill School. By the end of summer I would be a teenager and headed for my freshman year of high school. Leaving Center Hill was a bittersweet experience. I…