Reflecting on the Decline of The Daily Paper

I have always been a newspaper guy.  Growing up in Detroit our family subscribed to two daily papers; the morning Detroit Free Press and the afternoon Detroit News.  My primary focus was usually the sports section, reading the baseball box scores and tracking the leaders in the various categories.  I also read the front page and metro section.  Fall was always an exciting time in the Motor City and the papers featured the first images of the new models from the various manufacturers. 

While in high school I delivered the Detroit Free Press.  I arose at 5:00 AM and retrieved the papers that had been delivered to our front porch.  I folded all 150 papers and then placed them in a canvas sack that could be hung from the handlebars of my Schwin Bike.  I took my responsibility seriously.  The people on my route depended on me to provide them with the latest news.  There was an added benefit; I also perused the paper as I folded them.  I had a technique; my work area was the rear stairway where I would sit on the steps folding the papers, with the sport section tacked to the wall across from me. 

Barb and I still subscribe to the Dallas Morning News.  I sense we are a dying breed. We might be the only people on our block to still get a daily paper.  I am holdout and recently renewed our subscription for another year.  I know I could get much of the same information via television or radio (KRLD- News 1080) but there is something about reading the news and processing the information.  I also read the editorial section and while I do not always agree with the opinions expressed, I have learned the value of listening to alternative voices. 

Today, people have a choice when it comes to how they get their news.  For young folks, social media has become the top choice.  In my opinion, the problem with using social media as the primary source for information is two-fold; the individuals and sources within our social network often share our opinions or perspectives, and there is no filter on social media so it becomes difficult to distinguish “factual” from “fake” news. 

I would like to propose a solution to this problem.  We need to first acknowledge the power of social media and with it the reality of “fake” news.  At the same time we must 1) stay informed and 2) become engaged with those who might disagree with us.  That is not easy to do because our network of friends and associates usually is made up of people who are like us and often share our opinions.  It begins when we engage in discussions with those who represent other generations and opinions.  It requires stepping outside comfort zone on where we hangout and who we talk to.  Our church family is a great place to start.  If you have young folks in your congregation, get to know them and learn to listen to them. 

Father's Day: Memories of Dad

Today was Father’s Day.  I must admit I still miss my dad.  He died in August, 2004, a victim of cancer of the esophagus.  I got to spend a week with him about a month before he passed. We shared a lot of memories during that week.  I knew dad was slipping because one of the things on our agenda was watching the baseball All Star Game.  After the second inning dad informed me he was tired and needed to rest.  Dad had rule; you never left a baseball game before the final pitch.

Dad was member of Gideons International.  That week, each time I asked him what scripture he wanted to hear his response was the same; Judges 7.  When I asked him why he wanted to hear the story of Gideon defeating the Midianites over and over he said it was because of the lesson that you could do much with a little.  Dad was a living example of that.   He grew up during the Great Depression in a very unstable home environment.  He was raised by aunts and uncles on farms north of Detroit.  He did not graduate from high school until he was in his early twenties.  He served in the United States Coast Guard during World War II.  Dad was stationed in Detroit, and that is where he met my mom. 

After the war dad went to school to learn accounting.  We was a bookkeeper for a number of small companies before spending twenty plus years working for a gas pipeline company.  Dad was involved at church.  I remember him best as the Sunday school superintendent but also served as congregational president and treasurer.  He and mom also sang in the church choir.  Church was not an option in our family and it not surprising my one brother ended up a pastor and my sister a Lutheran school teacher.  Our youngest brother is also very involved in his church.

We moved into our first house when I was four.  It was a “small” bungalow.  My dad built the garage and then finished off the attic so that my brother Jim and I would have a bedroom.  Yes, dad was a handyman.  He was also a collector.  Our basement always contained a collection of old parts.  He had a special fondness for washing machine motors.  He turned them into table saws and grinders. 

Dad was a bowler and one of our favorite stories involves a shipment of defective bowling pins the bowling alley had received.  Dad claimed them and soon everyone in the family had a bowling pin lamp.  After I was married I was home visiting family and stopped by to see Pastor George Kurz who was the only pastor I knew growing up.  Sure enough, there was bowling pin lamp on his desk. 

All this leaves my wondering what kind of stories our kids will tell about me.  I am not the handyman my dad was.  I did not inherit my dad’s accounting skills; I am not even allowed to touch the checkbook.  He did bequeath me his love for music, although he was a tenor and I am bass.  If I have a servant’s heart, you can credit my dad.  There were no strangers in my dad’s world.  I credit him as the reason he and mom lived in the same house on the eastside of Detroit for over forty years.  Color of skin or economic make-up meant nothing to my dad.  Everyone was his neighbor.

My dad was an example of discipleship.  I pray that is the legacy I am passing on to Peter, Mark and Katie. 

Reflecting on 50 Years of Marriage

This weekend Barb and I are celebrating fifty years of marriage.  Our actual anniversary is June 14 but to accommodate family schedules we are celebrating the weekend before.  We are blessed to have so many friends and family members from various parts of the country join us for the festivities.  

In January of 1967 my life was in shambles.  A month earlier a long-term relationship with my high school sweetheart had come to an end.  I was also struggling academically.  My grade point average was so low there was a good possibility I would not be allowed to return from my junior year in college.  The “Great Snow Storm of 67” led to a turning point in my life.  Classes were cancelled but the student leaders seized the opportunity to plan the first on-campus dance in the history of the college.  I was living in an apartment off-campus but found a way to walk the two miles so I could attend the dance.  At the end of the evening my buddies informed me they were escorting a group of girls to their off-campus homes.  Everyone had paired off but there was on one to walk with Barbara Brown.  Little did I know how my life was about to change. 

Barb became my helpmate almost immediately.  She was an honor student and she was not going to allow me to fail.  Study dates became part of our routine.  She also offered to proof-read any major paper I wrote.  By the time we graduated my GPA was high enough to get me into graduate school and I had even made the Dean’s list.  We both graduated on Memorial Day Weekend in 1969 and were married three weeks later.  On July 1^st we began our ministry together at Trinity Lutheran Church in Cape Girardeau, Missouri.  Our ministry would take us back to the Chicago area for sixteen years and eventually to Texas. I had a career in youth ministry and Barb found a way to use her musical talents.  Along the way we were blessed to have three children and create lots of memories. 

Marriage is a life-long commitment.  Even our marriage has had its ups and downs but we remain dedicated to each other.  My prayer is that others might see that in our relationship.  The commitment that Christian couples have to each other might be the strongest testimony we can give to a world that often does not share our perspective; God’s plan is for one man and one woman to be joined together in a life-long journey.