Today marks the 400th anniversary of the first publishing of the King James Bible. Who was King James, anyway? King James VI of Scotland (crowned 1567) went on also to become King James I of England and Ireland (crowned 1603). He assumed the throne in Scotland at the tender age of 13 months after the … Continued

In much of the country, today is Arbor Day…a wonderful idea that originated in the great state of Nebraska. I love trees. Growing up in Illinois, we had 11 mature oaks in our yard, along with huge, stately spruce trees on three corners of the lot. At my current home, more than half of the property … Continued

The world’s oldest cog railway (and second-steepest) is located right here in New Hampshire…it climbs Mount Washington, traveling from an elevation of 2,700 feet to the 6,288 summit on a track more than three miles in length. How steep? The average grade is more than 25%. The train’s base station is located in beautiful Bretton Woods … Continued

As a landscape and nature photographer, probably my favorite time of year to shoot is autumn. My adopted home state of New Hampshire is amazingly beautiful during the season. While colors in many parts of the United States are lovely, in my book nothing comes close to what you’ll see here – mainly due to … Continued

Holy Week is nearly upon us…my favorite time during the church year. Christmas is great, but for me, this is better. And as a gardener – and photographer – I really enjoy and appreciate the masses of Easter Lilies used as decoration. Especially in big churches, where there may be scores of them adorning the … Continued

My favorite holiday, hands down, is and always has been Easter. It’s obviously special for what it means as the pinnacle of the church year – but the older I get, the notion that it hasn’t been commercialized to excess the way Christmas has only adds to its already wonderful appeal.   As I’m sure … Continued

Each year it’s interesting to get the background story on New York City’s Rockefeller Plaza Christmas tree. Finding out something about the family who donated it and how it was selected is always interesting.   That prompted me to find out more about the National Christmas tree, which will be lit this year on Thursday … Continued

Friendship Day is fast approaching! The tradition of dedicating a day to honor friends began in the U.S. in 1935; now many countries worldwide mark the first Sunday in August as a time to celebrate that special bond. Robert Louis Stevenson is quoted as having said, “A friend is a present you give yourself.”  Turns … Continued

Don’t forget! This year, daylight saving time comes early as we’ll make the change overnight March 10th/11th rather than the first weekend in April. Fortunately, nobody has yet talked about replicating the infamous Daylight Saving Time Energy Conservation Act. In 1974, the clocks remained on daylight saving time through the dead of winter. Ironically, folks … Continued

For a short month, February is jam-packed. On the church calendar, of course, the big date is Ash Wednesday (the 21st this year), marking the beginning of Lent.   In secular terms, we’ve got Groundhog Day, the birthdays of both Abraham Lincoln and George Washington, Valentine’s Day….and baseball fans like myself are counting down the … Continued

It’s hard to believe it’s November already, particularly since it was a beautiful, warm day today in New England. While I know what’s coming, at least for now it’s a treat to have had the windows wide open all day! Thanksgiving seems to lose more ground every year as the Christmas shopping season starts earlier … Continued

As Labor Day weekend begins, I thought it might be fun to take a look at occupations in the Bible. Let’s see how well we know what various people did for a living! (Answers appear below.) King David started his working life in what occupation? (1 Samuel 16:11-13) What was the first occupation mentioned in … Continued