For many this year has been a tough one, and it doesn't matter the reason or circumstance, it perhaps hasn't been your most promising year.  That is often the time we least feel like celebrating Christmas because we are looking for the wrong thing.  We look for the hassle not the blessing.

You will not find Christmas in the department store.  You will not find it standing in line at the post office after hours of wrapping and packing gifts.  You will not find Christmas in your worries about the impact on your budget.  You will not find Christmas when you stress over the cards that were sent late because you had no time.  You will not find Christmas in the stress, worry, or chaos as you work like a madman or woman to force a Christmas to remember on everyone and everything in your path.

Christmas is never found there, because it can't be found in these man made hassles.  The spirit of Christmas can only be found when you realize the things around you that make life special… faith, family and friends.  This is where you will find it.

Live simply, laugh often and celebrate the love that is Christmas.  I found Christmas in the miracle of Christ and the people I love.  Finding Christmas this year was easy… I just had to stop, look and suddenly there it was right where it should be, and I can't wait to make the memories.

Wishing each of you a very Merry Christmas!

According to a recent article in The Telegraph, high school curriculums are dropping classic, fictional books and replacing them with non-fiction to better prepare students for the workplace. (Read More…)

Two such classics reported to be on the cultural chopping block are The Catcher in the Rye and To Kill A Mockingbird.  Perhaps I am being a little biased in my objection to this proposed policy, but these happen to be at the top of my reading list.

While I am certain I have never received employment from having read such classic books, and my love of Shakespeare never closed a deal, I do know that fiction sparked my creative mind.  An imagination, and an ability to become the "well-rounded person" is an important factor in preparing you for the workplace.

Having recently taken a barrage of assessment tests, I can assure you I was asked very little that would have been garnered by reading a technical manual.  Oh, I guess you could argue that some jobs need only technical skills.  If you are locked in a basement working alone from home with no human interaction, this just might be the case.  I have never held that particular job, so some skills I learned from reading classic literature have been important to my education.

When you read fiction it requires you to imagine the people and the places described by the author.  Most of us read books, take the black and white print and create from it a mental picture via our imagination.  An entire industry of movies and film is an outpouring of such a visualization when a book comes to life as a movie.  Without imagination I think most great ideas whether in life or business never happen.

And then there are the lessons we learn from books.  I grew up in the South in the 60's and 70's.  It was during my high school years that I read To Kill A Mockingbird.  I learned a great deal about acceptance, tolerance and the moral issues of racial inequality from reading just that one book.  

Many do not know that Harper Lee wrote the book based on an event that happened in 1936 near where she lived as a child.  While the Pulitzer Prize winning book is narrated through the eyes of a child, it is perhaps the father character, Atticus Finch whose well penned morals have been an inspiration to many for years.  I am certain perhaps a person or two may have been rightfully influenced in their beliefs or perhaps chosen the legal profession from this required reading.

While the article reports that a very interesting book on the Recommended Levels of Insulation by the EPA is a possible replacement, I am certain that would have never impacted or changed my life.  And, having read EPA recommendations as part of my career, I can say without hesitation my imagination was never once sparked.

I hope a balance will be found and the great novels are still read for generations, because the lessons learned remain important to us as a people.  Education is not simply about getting a job.

Yesterday, the President made a White House video featuring a middle-class family in Virginia.  Of this high school teacher and her family, the President stated, “They’re keeping it together, they’re working hard, they’re meeting their responsibilities.”  In addition to the President’s statement, the teacher, Tiffany Santana, pointed out that she and her family, like millions of other Americans, have tightened their belts during these hard economic times. Then, she proceeded to ask the government to do the exact opposite by extending tax cuts and providing for continued entitlement increases. 

Most of us did not expect to have football commentary crossover to our constitutional rights, but thanks to Bob Costas that is what football fans were delivered when he commented Sunday night on gun control.  This after Kansas City NFL player Jovan Belcher's tragic murder/suicide this past weekend.

I have very little to say on this debate that wasn't written in a previous op-ed this year and you can certainly read my thoughts (Tragedy and the 2nd Amendment Debate), but once again those who oppose the 2nd Amendment find their voice by skewing tragic events into "if he didn't posses a gun".

Conservatives took to social media and voiced their immediate discontent with Costas, who is known for his commentary, and the hashtag #BobCostasLogic was born.  Twitter was filled with comments about the logic of blaming an inanimate object, instead of blaming the people who use the object for a bad purpose.

So let's be very, very clear:  Guns don't kill people, people kill people.  That's my logic and I am good with that thought.  My constitution should be upheld as is, and my football doesn't need a political agenda.  Winners don't always punt on 4th down, so Mr. Costas we will just keep playing by the rules of our constitution.