It was an especially hot summer day growing up in rural Tennessee! Relief from the heat was nowhere to be found—unless we disobeyed my mother’s direct command, “Do not go swimming in that nasty cow pond!” Boys will be boys, the saying goes, as five brothers formulated a resourceful and cunning plan to go swimming without getting caught.

A couple months ago, to celebrate one of God's biblical Holy Days, some very good friends mailed me a small gift – a little tin of chocolate covered espresso beans.  They are delicious, so to make them last I have only a couple every few days.  When I eat a few of these tasty little treats, I remember my good friends – and their friendship.

It is too easy to be overwhelmed by the statistics and not consider the agony.  It is too easy to dismiss the headlines as something happening "far away."  But today, men, women and children just like you are suffering and dying in Zimbabwe in a hopeless, hellish nightmare. 

The scandal involving Governor Rod Blagojevich of Illinois has all eyes on the corrupt political environment that has traditionally surrounded the Chicago area. The FBI's wiretap recorded Governor Blagojevich's profanity-filled bid for personal gain – allegedly attempting to sell President-Elect Barack Obama's vacant Senate seat to the highest bidder. 

The day after Thanksgiving has traditionally been the biggest shopping day of the year and the "kickoff" to the holiday shopping frenzy.  "Black Friday," as retailers and businesses alike have dubbed it, is a day that economists predict most companies move from the "red" to the "black," and begin to realize a profit for the year.