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I am a pretty black and white person. I believe honesty is the best policy. People know that I am good on my word and it is the best way to approach loved ones, friends and even acquaintances. There was just this one time, that I can remember that the wheels fell off the wagon.…

Some families try something once and decide that’s probably enough. Growing up, we may have been one of those families. At least at first… When my brother Joe was in high school, we hosted a foreign exchange student named Roberto from Ecuador. If you asked any member of our family, they’d probably agree Roberto wasn’t…

If you don’t already know, the Maryville Forum is now under new ownership, rather familiar ownership, as previous owner Phil Cobb and I have come to an agreement for him to once again lead this historic newspaper into the future. Phil has been gracious enough to allow me an opportunity to bid you all a…

I heard as a child the story of a great uncle I never knew, one of my grandmother Doris Pearl’s brothers, Paul Raynor. ‘Little Paul’ (he never grew up, and thus remained ‘little’ perpetually) was born with a heart defect, a hole in the cardiac tissue that allowed anyone within a few feet of him…

Love is in the air. February has been designated as the month of romantic love dating back to the 14th and 15th centuries. Who knew? When I think of Valentine’s Day I think of romantic love, flowers and candy. Honoring loving relationships with friends, coworkers and family is important throughout the entire year not just…

My wife, Beth, and I once took a group trip to Hawaii back when I was still an on-air radio broadcaster. Over the course of the tour, we hopped between islands and found ourselves immersed in Hawaiian culture, cuisine, music and the easy rhythm of island life. On Oʻahu, we wandered into a ukulele shop.…

The young lad sat up straight on the edge of the sink, holding his chin a little higher than normal. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see his face covered in white, feel the warmth of the shaving cream and smell something that, even years later, still reminds him of a bathroom…

“Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.” – Confucious After a full week of school I was ALWAYS ready for the weekend. Saturdays usually meant grocery shopping with my Mama or taking a small trip with my family. We’d usually go to Burlington (I grew up in a small town in…

My hope over the past several years has been that this column feels like a weekly talk with friends. Some of you reading I know well, others perhaps only by acquaintance, or not at all. I like people, and I like this corner of Missouri. I feel like I understand folks, and my desire has…