Category: Parenting

  • Well Done Faithful Servant

    I lost a friend last week.  Lost him to pancreatic cancer. He was more than a friend – more like the big brother I never had.  And that doesn’t describe him justly.  He was a mentor, a role model, the kind of man whose opinion you sought, whose counsel was valued, and whose approval was…

  • Life Lessons I Have Learned from My Children – Part 2 How to Treat a Restaurant Server.

    Being a parent, I have always tried to be mindful about how my behavior influences my children.  Ironically, there are some life lessons they have taught me.  Case in point — how to treat a server at a restaurant. Two of my daughters served as waitresses at various times during their high school and college…

  • The Memory Blogger

    The Memory Blogger

    Another milestone passed!  This post represents my 100th blog post on TheBuddyBlog.com website. No one is more surprised than I am.  To celebrate this you-gotta-be-kidding-me event, I thought I’d share my thoughts and reflections on how I came to be a blogger. It might surprise you. After all, I never thought I’d spend any time…

  • They Are Always Watching

    They Are Always Watching

    The title of the opinion piece caught my eye. “Dear militant feminists, stop messing it up for the rest of us.” The author, Carol Roth, is a “recovering” investment banker, bestselling author of “The Entrepreneur Equation,” and television news contributor.  The article (1) expresses her fears that good manners are being killed because some women…

  • Avoiding the Chainsaw-Toting Mama  –     A Mother’s Day Reflection

    Avoiding the Chainsaw-Toting Mama – A Mother’s Day Reflection

    A recent email from my favorite tool equipment company has suggested that Moms want to get their yard-work done quickly and get back to what truly matters, family.  Moms, so says the email, deserve the very best.  The headline of the ad-mail reads “Dear MOM, Happy Mother’s Day.  Love, STIHL.” The implication being that lightweight,…

  • Life Lessons I Have Learned from My Children

    Life Lessons I Have Learned from My Children

    Wait a minute!  I’m the father. I’m the grandfather.  I’m the one that is supposed to be the role model, the one leaving a legacy.  Then why in the name of ancestral protocol am I the one learning life lessons from my own children?   Yes, this father has indeed garnered a powerful lesson from…

  • Grandfather Therapy

    Grandfather Therapy

    Now, for the first time on TheBuddyBlog.com is an updated version of one of my most popular Reflections, Grandfather Therapy. Since first published, the number of my grandchildren has doubled.  So have the therapy sessions. So have the lessons learned. I have concluded that grandchildren, or at the very least, the nine who call me…

  • A Christmas Gift Giving Guide for the Man Who Has Everything

    A Christmas Gift Giving Guide for the Man Who Has Everything

    My children tell me that there is a direct correlation between age and the difficulty of buying gifts.  The older I get, the harder it is to pick out a gift for me.  They are well aware that their father, aka Poppy, has told them on many occasions that he is a man who has…

  • Constantly Improve Your Position

    Constantly Improve Your Position

    Navy Seals have this well-deserved aura about them.  Hearing one speak always makes me glad they are on our side.  I recall watching a video a few years ago featuring Seal Commander Rorke Denver, who shared a fundamental principle by which Seals work, that to “Constantly Improve Your Position.” Rorke reminded listeners that there is…

  • A Spiritual Legacy

    A Spiritual Legacy

    It is never easy to contemplate the end of your life when you are in the middle of living it. But long ago I realized if you love your family, you will be sure to have a current and valid will. So, when I recently updated mine, it prompted much thought about what I will…