Alva Review-Courier -

I awoke one morning early this week with the knowledge that I had to write a new article. I was having a hard time figuring out what I was going to write about – until I walked through the kitchen and...

Recently I had to spend a weekend out of town on business. Normally when out of town, I can find somewhere unique or cool to eat out, get a drink or go hangout, or something to see. However there was...

Recently, someone in my family passed away, and since his death, I have pondered a story that he often told me about a feat he accomplished as a high-schooler. To be clear, my words and thoughts are...

I was recently having a conversation with my son regarding my mother’s ancestors and how they came from Denmark to settle in Oklahoma. In thinking not just about my great-grandparents but also the o...

Last evening I was watching television, specifically a movie showing a father driving his family home after a long weekend, and upon getting home late at night the father carried his young daughter...

Often when I write an article, I generally know the answer to the question I am asking … in this case I do not have the answer, or at least all of it. Rather, I know the question, and I know the i...

While my articles often touch on moral and/or societal issues, I usually try to avoid explicitly discussing religion. However, as we have just begun a new year and are expected to have forgiveness in...

I was home most of last week with the flu, and I watched a lot of television in an attempt to get my mind off of how bad I felt. While channel-surfing, I happened to come across an old movie that...

Recently, I wrote an article on being deceived by appearances, as it applies to someone who appears weak or powerless. Today, I am writing about being deceived by the appearance that someone has all t...

The fact that I am writing this means that I am breaking one of the rules that I imposed on myself when I started this column: to stay away from politics. With that said, I saw something on TV as I wa...

Over the holiday break, I had a rather enlightening conversation with an old family friend. From the beginning of our friendship many years ago, he was a hard-working, honest, good guy from a really...

I am always on the lookout for life experiences I can share that have irony or a catch – something that can teach a lesson differently or uniquely. Today’s story is one I was told years ago. One of...

I am generally an optimist and try to see the good in life. Every once in a while, however, one has to stop, look and acknowledge the bad or negative experiences in life. Ironically, once you see and...

This is my New Year’s article, and I find myself in unknown territory, as I have only been writing slightly less than a year, so I have never had to write an article about the upcoming year. In t...

It goes without saying that we often view our problems as a negative aspect of our lives. Taking it one step further, we then often bring God into the situation by implying, or in some instances...

I was recently watching the news when it was announced that Norman Lear had passed away at the age of 101. For a reminder, Norman Lear was a writer and producer, perhaps most notably for several...

One of the most valuable lessons I have learned in my life came from a college course titled “Logical Reasoning.” As I ponder today’s world, seldom does a day pass without me considering this lesso...

One of the first and most important things I learned early on in my relationship with my wife is the important distinction between “good” and “not bad” when describing something. To the best of my m...

I want to follow up with last week’s article on “two steps forward and one back,” and challenge you to think outside the proverbial box with this question: if all we are doing is objectively movin...

I want to take a brief moment to congratulate my daughter, Harper, on being elected vice president of the Oklahoma Student Council last week. We are all very proud of you. One of my go-to sayings...

Before getting into today’s article, I want to clarify the title really isn’t about me being greedy or unduly ambitious, but instead about me not knowing how to do something outside of my exp...

I have two horses that serve as symbolic mirrors that reflect society’s biases and prejudices. I rescued Buttercup from the “Killer Lot.” For those of you who are not familiar with this place, it’s th...

While recently attending a small out-of-town event, I was visiting with a gentleman to whom I had just been introduced. As we chatted, the topic of this weekly column, “The Eccentric Cowboy,” cam...

Some of you may be familiar with the saying, “Are you tough enough to wear pink?” As a nationally recognized breast cancer awareness campaign, Tough Enough to Wear Pink is popular in the rodeo and...

I am going to pass on some of the best advice to date: When you don’t know the answer to a question, or when you don’t know something about a subject, just admit it. As a young person, I was alw...