In July 2018, I was doing a photo shoot with my daughter and granddaughters out at McCourtie Park near Somerset Center. We were walking around and discovered a small rock painted bright purple, sporting the words, "Have courage and be kind." I left the rock where I had found it after taking a quick photo. … Continue reading Kindness is the best policy
A battlefield far away
PFC Marx Tittjung and Pvt. Melvin Kretzger may not have known each other before they were shipped to the Italian front in 1944. But they died within months of each other on a battlefield in Florence, their short lives marked by a pair of simple white crosses. Tittjung and Kretzger are two of the 4,400 … Continue reading A battlefield far away
Paying Respects
Every living thing on Earth experiences the end of life, just as we all experience its beginning. But in our modern culture, death has become almost a forbidden topic of conversation. We live in a society that celebrates youth and beauty, perfection and immortality. Death seems to have been cut out of the overall social … Continue reading Paying Respects
The Dog Days of Summer
The dog days of summer are here. According to the astronomical calendar, the "dog days" occur when the dog star, a.k.a. Sirius, and the sun occupy the same part of the sky, which is July 3 to Aug. 11. The Farmer's Almanac explains, "During the Dog Days period, the Sun occupies the same region of … Continue reading The Dog Days of Summer
