Who is the Old Dude?

I celebrated a birthday last week.  I am now officially fifty-nine.  I saw my reflection in a window recently and wondered, “Who is the old dude?” I am pretty sure I am now older than my dad.  I should have seen it coming.  I didn’t, but I should have.  It is like Christmas most years. 

I Turned Fifty-Seven…Terrible.

I turned fifty-seven this year. Terrible. I am in the final quarter of life.  There is no denying it.  A lot of games are lost or won in the final quarter.   I plan to win. About ten years ago, I noticed the upper-back-part of my head was going flat.  It used to be round back

How to Own Christmas Week (and stay sane doing it)

So it is almost Christmas!  Here are a baker’s dozen practical ways to help you down the final stretch! Finish up your shopping The week before Christmas is crazy at the retail centers and you don’t want to be at the mercy of the mail to deliver an on-line order before the wire.  Finish up.  Settle

A Walk Down Duval Street… (Are WE the new counterculture?)

Melissa and I were recently in Key West. I officiated a wedding for our best friend’s oldest son on the beach at Ft. Zachary Taylor. Well the beach-ish anyway. If you have been to Key West you know what I mean. No one goes to Key West for the beaches. Those who do, only visit

Staying Effective as an Aging Leader

What if you don’t HAVE to get less effective as you get older? What if you just have to CHANGE?  I don’t know about you but I am not getting any younger.  After playing softball for decades, I now find it painful to bend over to pick up a bat, much less scoop up a

I Was Thinking About Mortality Today…

I was thinking about mortality today. Not morbidity. Just mortality. I am 55. Seems shocking just to read. It’s really a pretty good age. Oldish but not old. Balding but not bald. Slowing but not slowed. That kind of stuff. My best friend from high school died this year. No warning. Just working out and

Musings on My Roaring Mid-Fifties: Wine and Diet Pepsi

Class of 1980. I am now 56.  Soon to be 57.  If I live to be 113, I am currently middle aged. I am past middle age. Here some of the ups and downs (downs and ups) I have discovered from this season of life. 1) Down: What of my hair is not turning gray

Ten Fifty-Two Year Old Reflections

Reflecting on this wonderful season of my vocational life. Here are some observations: 1) At 52, I get to see the harvest of seeds I have planted over the years. This harvest comes in many forms but it is all good. 2) At 52, I no longer have much a need to be known or

Forgetting to Remember (What Grandchildren Teach Us)

Forgetting to Remember (Fairview Heights, Illinois, circa 2009) I had a really bad day.  Nothing really went wrong but I couldn’t find the hours to accomplish what I needed to do.  As the day wore on and deadlines approached, my mood became worse and worse.  By late afternoon I had clearly deteriorated from affably ineffective

I Love You Enough for Both of Us

  Experpt from “Exactly as I Remember It” Maddox (Fairview Heights, Illinois, circa 2011) One Sunday evening after I wrapped up 6:00 church, I was headed to the car to scare up a late supper.  Melissa was already waiting on me, but I noticed that my daughter Lydia and her family were still in the