First, Catch Your Cookbook

November 25, 2023.Reading time 4 minutes.

By Lawrence “Mack in Texas” Hall … The arc from Thanksgiving to Christmas is when the thoughtful cook will seek out MeeMaw’s cookbook to verify seasonal specialties: Waldorf salad, corn casserole, turkey fried or baked or broiled, ham fried or baked or boiled, and those old traditional dishes special to each family.

Thanksgiving as a Singleton

November 22, 2023.Reading time less than 1 minute.

By Lawrence “Mack in Texas” Hall … Memories of a drive-through just won’t do  / Set something on your table, if only for you / A turkey plate from the grocery store / Two side dishes from cans, or maybe more

Being a ‘Possum Must be Rough

November 14, 2023.Reading time 1 minute.

By Lawrence “Mack in Texas” Hall … Being a ‘possum can only be rough / Dragged all over the yard by a dachshund / A furious dachshund half its size / Until it collapses into a faint

A Good Five-Cent Cigar

November 11, 2023.Reading time 6 minutes.

By Lawrence “Mack in Texas” Hall … But about the nickel: last week I found a 1948 nickel in my pocket change. That I count pocket change at all dates me because almost no one else does so. This nickel and I both appeared in 1948 and both are a bit worn but still here.

The Squirrel Festival

November 8, 2023.Reading time 1 minute.

By Lawrence “Mack in Texas” Hall … Squirrels! / They’re up the trees; they’re down the trees / They swarm each other just like bees / They’re up the oak; they’re down the pine / They really need a traffic fine

Autumn 2023: The Pursuit of Happiness

November 4, 2023.Reading time 2 minutes.

Join us as we explore the Pursuit of Happiness! What does it mean and where can it be found? Plus our first nonfiction author interview, a new Evermore story, and the fifth installment of Knights of Adonai. Don’t forget to check out the photo contest, Scripture Search, book & media recommendations, and Bible trivia!

Alexander the Coppersmith

October 31, 2023.Reading time 1 minute.

By Lawrence “Mack in Texas” Hall … We don’t know much about the coppersmith / (Indeed, we don’t know much about each other) / The works of an artist’s hands may serve the Lord / Or else they serve Ephesian vanities

The Aeolian Harp and the Aeolian Tree-Stump

October 24, 2023.Reading time less than 1 minute.

By Lawrence “Mack in Texas” Hall … Every tree is an Aeolian harp / Singing the Daily Office of the wind

Are You an Old Soul?

October 16, 2023.Reading time less than 1 minute.

By Lawrence “Mack in Texas … Sometimes we march in step along the route / At other times we seem to fly in pairs / Or sometimes trudge a lonely path in the night / And hear the music of a thousand spheres

A Carrier of Bodies

October 10, 2023.Reading time 1 minute.

By Lawrence “Mack in Texas” Hall … I don’t know that anyone shouted, “Corpsman up!” / Like in the movies; I was already up

A Station Stop for the Hummingbird Express

September 26, 2023.Reading time less than 1 minute.

By Lawrence “Mack in Texas” Hall … Hummingbirds buzz the sugar water buffet / At this junction for the connection to Mexico / I feel I should be wearing a white apron and cap / Refills for everyone – and will that be to go?

Another Funeral in Margaritaville

September 23, 2023.Reading time 1 minute.

By Lawrence “Mack in Texas” Hall … Of course all our friends are dying away / Old age sneaks up on us, ghosting us in turn: / Yevgeny, Jimmy, Dusty, Judith, Rod, and we / Who blessed each other in our happy youth

Even the Oak Trees are Dying

September 18, 2023.Reading time less than 1 minute.

By Lawrence “Mack in Texas” Hall … Poor drought-dead leaves in mockery of autumn / Wind-rustle across the lawn as the dried husks they are

Tea for Texas

September 11, 2023.Reading time 4 minutes.

By Lawrence “Mack in Texas” Hall … Bubba Ebarb, of happy memory, required certain specific performances for his several successful restaurants. One of his rules was that the iced tea would never reach the old age of one hour before it was tossed and replaced with a fresh brewing of the refreshing leaf.

A Cat is Stillness in Motion

September 5, 2023.Reading time less than 1 minute.

By Lawrence “Mack in Texas” Hall … There is no stillness like a cat / To the laws of physics a stillness unknown / When all is still he is stiller still / Even stiller than a stick or stone

Riding to the Sound of the Guns

August 29, 2023.Reading time 5 minutes.

By Lawrence “Mack in Texas” Hall … In Texas most firefighters are unpaid volunteers, a rare contradiction to the axiom that you get what you pay for. Volunteer firefighters don’t get paid nothin’, but their names are written large on the scroll of Texas heroes.

August as a Yellow Flame

August 22, 2023.Reading time 1 minute.

By Lawrence “Mack in Texas” Hall … This August is indeed like a yellow flame / Death writhes among brown-burnt withering leaves / The grass is as sere as Macbeth’s acrid soul / And garden hoses drip in futility

The Fuel Pump Screen Queen

August 15, 2023.Reading time less than 1 minute.

By Lawrence “Mack in Texas” Hall … She’s fresh and lovely on the television screen / Promoting a recipe for a sugar-free treat / And fashion tips for being In The Scene – / Her face on the fuel pump is ever so sweet…

Half-Awake in Moonlight

August 8, 2023.Reading time less than 1 minute.

By Lawrence “Mack in Texas” Hall … No one is fully awake in this strange moonlight / The magic won’t work if we think of it / Pirate ships can’t fly if there’s logic about / And lovers would never touch hands

Summer 2023: An Issue of Patriotism

August 5, 2023.Reading time 2 minutes.

Join us as we explore the issues of Patriotism! Our staff is all American, but we’ve focused largely on international or historical ideas. Don’t forget to check out the photo contest, Scripture Search, book & media recommendations, and Bible trivia!