Opinions

Janice Thomas came in the Mule Barn for breakfast the other day, and sat at the counter for the first time. She usually gets one of the tables, or a booth against the wall. We were kinda flattered that she’d come sit with us, but wondered why.

So many people give up on trying to really make a difference, mostly because they think they’re not the best speakers, not talented enough, smart enough, good-looking enough, or have enough funds, or opportunities open up to them, or have enough time to help make this world a better place.

DEAR ABBY: I love my cousin “Carly” like a sister. We come from a large family, and both of us are estranged from our mothers (who are sisters) as well as our siblings. We’re OK with this because we have no room for toxic people in our lives.

DEAR ABBY: My husband and I walk around a local lake three times a week. We met another couple there who seemed pleasant until the husband tried to give me his doctor’s name so I could “Get that ‘thing’ removed.” (“That thing” being the beauty mark next to my smile.) I told him I wasn’t interested.

DEAR ABBY: I am a man whose long-distance boyfriend of one year has a married female best friend. (She’s his boss.) She is also a tobacco-addicted narcissist who drinks a lot. They chat on the phone and text for hours every day because, as he puts it, “she can’t be alone.

DEAR ABBY: My son and his fiancee are getting married in a few months. They are planning a small reception with only their closest friends and family. Unfortunately, this excludes my late father’s second wife, “Bonnie,” who has been in our lives for nearly 40 years.

DEAR ABBY: I have a friend, “Chris,” from our teenage days. We’ve been performing music together for decades. We live in different cities but get together every few years. Over the last 20 years, Chris has turned toward a fundamentalist viewpoint on religion.

Babies. Tiny and adorable. Helplessly trusting you to feed, diaper and love them. They tend to bring out the best in us adults. Ladies find themselves wanting to hold an infant, just to feel it’s solid weight in their arms, and touch the incredible softness of the tender skin.

The existence of evil and suffering in the world is a complex and far-reaching reality. Consequently, understanding God’s role in the existence of evil is critically important in helping us ultimately to answer the question: is God dead?

Are ghosts real? Before I share my sister-in-law Auttie Johnson’s ghostly experience, let’s see what Scriptures say about ghosts…. In Mark 6:45 it says after they fed the 5,000 who gathered to listen to Him speak, he told his disciples to get in a boat as He was sending the people on home.