Witty Witness

There is a saying in our family, "you get what you get and you don't pitch a fit." I doubt Amber coined the phrase originally, but she uses it the most, in our crazy Moore crew of 5. It's most often uttered in response to one of a million different kid grumblings about how their life is somehow unfair. To be clear, what is "unfair" is living in desperate poverty on less than $1 a day. What is "unfair" is suffering at the hands of religious persecution in a country that won't allow you to worship the way you choose openly. What is "unfair" is living in constant fear because the region of the world in which you live, is constantly at war and in chaos. What my kids are forced to endure from the comfort of their suburban bubble is far from unfair. They are blessed beyond measure. My initial frustration with them and their grumblings, inevitably ends in a frustration with myself. I have a duty to teach them, to guide them, to shape ...

The lines at Disney have nothing on the beer line at an Irish festival. The crowd we were a part of, was purportedly the largest in the somewhat short history of the downtown festival. Bagpipes played loudly under one tent, while the smell of traditional Irish food from another tent blew through the air so thick, it was almost visible to the naked eye. I was in attendance that Saturday night to watch a very special dancer take the stage after the "pipers" were finished. While most little girls take ballet, tap, or classical dance, my daughter, Mallory, chose Irish dancing. Irish dancing is unique and its beautiful, just like my daughter. Mallory is bold and she's brave and dancing in front of a huge crowd of strangers never phases her. As a father, she makes me so very proud. As I was standing in the crowd waiting for Mallory's group to dance, I noticed a few nuns and a priest from the Catholic church that hosted the festival, walking through the crowd. The nun...

Cars driving by started taking notice of the young man working on the abandoned house. The house had set broken, ugly, and abandoned in the neighborhood for as long as most could remember. Despite the steal of a price, even the enthusiastic young man would admit it was quite the project. For a younger man, the price point was attractive and it gave some room in the budget to make improvements. To everyone else that passed the house and took a snap assessment, this place was a dump, a dilapidated old house, not worthy of repair. To most it was void of any sort of beauty, wonder, or redeeming qualities. One day, as the less than skilled young man was struggling through his chore of painting the outside of the house, a kind older gentleman walked up to the foot of the ladder. "Boy, this place is going to be beautiful." Not seeing the older man walk up, the younger man steadied himself on the ladde...

Walking up to the front of the school, I took my place in the back of the long line leading inside for "meet the teacher night." Classes were scheduled to start bright and early the next morning, and this was a chance for parents and students to get acquainted with new teachers and new classrooms. It was a  meet and greet/dry run if you will. After a few short moments, the single file line that I was apart of, slowly marched its way inside. As I entered the crowded lobby, I immediately noticed two large poster boards on easels. A closer look revealed the boards were diagrams of the roads and parking lots around the building, which depicted, in great detail, a new traffic pattern for student drop off. Few things can cause parental anxiety more than a change to the familiar traffic pattern of morning school drop off. To the school administration's credit, the new pattern and logistics of drop off was an attempt to get kids inside the building in a safe and efficient m...

About 71 percent of the earth's surface is covered in water. Of that number, about 96 percent comes from the world's oceans. Most of us spend the vast majority of our lives on land, but there is something beautifully majestic about the ocean, isn't there? Growing up in a landlocked state, the ocean has always intrigued me. I think the ocean is a fascinating place for most people. Think about the number of tv shows currently running about the ocean (beach property shows, deep sea fishing shows, shipwreck shows, shark shows, etc...) The number of friends I know who vacation at the beach, at least annually, is staggering. We are people obsessed with the sea. On a recent vacation with my family to Seacrest, Florida, I woke up at sunset to walk on the beach in quiet solitude before my crazy crew all woke up. After a short walk, I stood on the beach and stared into the massive water landscape. I snapped the above photo on my phone before returning to the double queen bed hot...