Rich: Bringing joy to others

As my time has stretched into many years, I realize the exceeding importance of giving moments of kindness.Take, for instance, my friend, Edward.Edward is kind and well-mannered. Every person who knows Edward gushes with love and stories of his thoughtfulness.

Rich: The friend I’ll always remember

Silently, Tink closed his laptop. He had been showing me a couple of videos.He observed me for a moment before asking, “You miss him, don’t you?” I nodded, my eyes pooling. “Very much.”“Does it make you sad to watch these?”I sighed. “Yeah. He was such a force. Charming, frustrating, funny.

Rich: The magic of ‘The Waltons’

This story comes on good authority which assures us that this good story is true.One day, Tink and I were visiting his father, former television Executive Grant Tinker, when the conversation turned to Merv Adelson, a legend of iconic 1970s television shows.

Rich: Fair and unbiased (or biased) sports reporting

Count me in as one who still enjoys holding a good, local newspaper and absorbing almost every word.From the front page to the obituaries to the sports to the legals. I even read the entire jury list.High school football season had just begun, and I was reading the town’s sports page.

Rich: Rudeness and courtesy

Sometimes, I have decided, rudeness works.Sometimes, it’s even called for.I had to do a lot of thinking on this because I advocate kindness and courtesy.But if someone is being abused publicly, I can see the need for rudeness to spare the victim.

Rich: Jesus was a Jew

In the modest country home where I grew up, prejudices were not allowed.However, there was a serious bias against what Daddy called “no accounts,” men who laid up drunk and didn’t feed their families.

Rich: How prayer works

This is how prayer works: Tink and I were one hour into a seven-hour trip home from Memphis.I’d been on a book tour for two exhausting weeks and had a stomach bug, very rare for me. Our good friend and house sitter, Kathy Lanning, is alert and doesn’t miss a thing.

Rich: Tellers of songs — part three

Dolly Parton is, unquestionably, one of music’s best songwriters. Arguably, she is the best writer of the “girl singers,” as they were called in the 1960s, to come out of Nashville.Loretta Lynn was smart and unique in her view of marriage and relationships.

Rich: Tellers of songs - part two

In 1949, a young North Carolina preacher decided to take his ministry to the streets of Los Angeles where he and his staff pitched a tent and waited for the people to come. A few did. Billy Graham had prayed that the Lord would provide a larger congregation.

Rich: Tellers of songs - part one

Those who write songs are my favorite storytellers.In roughly three minutes, they can wrap your heart up and tie it in a pretty bow. Or, they can write of a baby that was born, then carry you down through his long life until his pinewood box is lowered six feet into the ground. In three minutes.