Download MP3 (right click to save)
I hate to be late for a wedding, but I was. I had a carload of teenagers going with me to this wedding, and we were racing to get there by 11:00 A.M. Finally, after I came to a juncture I said, "Wait a minute! Which church is it at?" I'd left my invitation at home. I said, "Oh, I know where it is."
Download MP3 (right click to save)
We kept two special remembrances of our wedding. One was a piece of wedding cake that we froze; the other was a recording of the ceremony. The recording was a much better idea than the cake. We ate the cake on our first wedding anniversary. You've heard of chocolate cake; this was more like chalk cake. Uh-huh, bad idea. But oh, the recording, now that was a great idea. In fact, often on our wedding anniversary we have replayed it. We relive that wonderful day that our marriage began. I know some couples go beyond that. They actually dust off the old wedding dress and reconvene what's left of the wedding party, and do it again on some milestone anniversary. Hey, it's good for a couple to remember that wedding day. It's good to remember where it all began isn't it? In any important relationship a trip back to the beginning can rekindle the spark.
Download MP3 (right click to save)
When I go to the doctor, he sure is inquisitive. I tell him, "I feel sick!" And he insists on getting all the details: What's your temperature, tell me about your symptoms, what about your throat? Let's check your throat. I mean sometimes he even resorts to a blood test. How radical! And if it's serious enough, we even have to get into my mother's health and my father's health, and my family history. Actually, I'd be wise to give the doctor all the specifics I can think of. If I just walk in and say, "I'm sick", that doesn't do much. It's really tough to help someone when they're not specific about what's going on.
Download MP3 (right click to save)
So, the Defense Department has approved women being in combat roles. Well, women being in combat might be new for the military, but they're not new.
Download MP3 (right click to save)
Rosie the Riveter! That's a sweet, fragile name for a lady, huh? How would you like to go out on a date with somebody called Rosie the Riveter? Actually, Rosie was a symbol during WWII. She was a symbol of the millions of women who left their homes to go to work in America's factories.
Download MP3 (right click to save)
Okay, here's the scene: My wife and I are sitting together on an airplane. I'm busy working, trying to be a good time manager; getting my work done on my way to Chicago. And my wife has headphones on listening to whatever program happened to be on the stereo system, and she's laughing out loud. You know how frustrating that is? I'm trying to get work done and she's ho, ho, ho, ho! Listen, that drives you crazy when you don't know what somebody's laughing at.
Download MP3 (right click to save)
I think in a way, life is kind of like 365 deaths and resurrections every year. You know, you go to bed at night. It's kind of like you die, and then you come back to life the next morning. Now I know some mornings those resurrections look a little doubtful, like they may not happen. There's the sound of a buzzer, or a bell, or a radio going on, and then no signs of life. But eventually, sooner or later, there are signs of stirring and the dead person returns to life—another new start in a lifetime full of new starts. Whether or not you find those early moments of your day a little tough, I think I've got something that just might help you get out of the gate each morning.
Download MP3 (right click to save)
One of the most dramatic scientific advances in my lifetime has been those amazing space shuttle flights. Apparently they're behind us now, but man, they sure did make aeronautical and science and all kinds of history. We got to hear space news on a pretty regular basis and watching those dramatic launches. We'd hear conversations from space. We still do from the Space Station. You know, you could hear the familiar sound of the conversation between the NASA Mission Control Center and those astronauts up there. The space day would begin with a wake up song from Houston. They'd play something that would say, "Good morning!" Then they would communicate back and forth all day long. Of course, they were in constant communication. See, when you're living in an environment where so much could go wrong; it's real important to do that.
Download MP3 (right click to save)
I won't be going on a cruise anytime soon. Not that I ever wanted to. But the reports of those passengers on that powerless, drifting cruise ship a while back, oh that clinched it. Fire at sea, everything shut down - from lights to air conditioning to toilets, no communication, little bags as your personal "bathroom," accounts of sewage running in the halls and down the walls, a repulsive stench, sleeping wherever. I ain't goin'!
Download MP3 (right click to save)
You gotta feel bad for the youngest child. I mean, there's a thousand pictures of the firstborn, "Hey, we've never had one of these before!" Maybe 300 or 400 of the second born. And then, if they're lucky, possibly 30 of the final arrival. Oh, we loved him just as much. We just didn't have as many pictures of him. Probably because his brother and sister wore us out.
