Today is the birthday of the man who saw great discrepancy between Declaration of Independence rhetoric and then-contemporary reality of legal slave trade and slave ownership in America. Not only did he acknowledge it, but President Abraham Lincoln was able to do what others before him unsuccessfully attempted–He abolished the vile practice in all states.…
The oft-used American idiom, “Freedom is not free,” reminds us to recognize sacrifices of the military men and women who have fought for and maintained that liberty, but I believe there is also a less apparent truth in it: As a free people, we are each responsible…
Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. It is the day when my extended family gather at our place in the “country” along the Alabama River for fellowship and feasting, but the most meaningful part of the day occurs before the blessing of the meal when my uncle calls on various family members, young and old alike, to state something that they’re thankful for. Now, this is often lighthearted with children blushing when called upon and responses that we all know as “go-to’s,” such as, “I’m thankful for my family,” but…