An Arkies Musings

My An Arkie's Faith column from the July 27, 2022, issue of The Polk County Pulse. The morning was hot as the radiant heat of summer permeated my shop. The temperature was already in the nineties, and sweat ran down my face. The unusual heat wave with unending 100-degree days was wearing me out. As I wiped the sweat out of my eyes, the phone rang for what seemed like the hundredth time today. "Richie's," I said, and the voice on the other end of the line asked about a windshield and back glass for their car.  I took down the information and scheduled a time to put the glass in their Ford Crown Victoria. When the customer brought the car in, I started by cleaning out the broken glass and preparing to install the back window. I placed the new back window on a stand, ready to prep it for installation. As I looked at the glass, it didn't look correct. Sure enough, when we held the new glass up to the opening in the car, it wasn't nearly tall enough. "What is ...

My An Arkie's Faith column from the July 20, 2022, issue of The Polk County Pulse. The Lufthansa airplane landed on the wide strip of tarmac, wheels touching down with a slight bounce. Almost twenty-four hours ago, Daddy and I had climbed into his little Prius and headed for the Dallas-Fort Worth airport. Now we were finally on the ground in Berlin, Germany. After getting our luggage, we made our way to the train station inside the airport. My heart sank as I tried to figure out the train system. I knew I needed to go to Alexanderplatz station, but I couldn't find it listed on any signs.  The train station had two platforms with trains going in different directions. I tried reading the signs with the help of the translation app on my phone, but I couldn't figure out which train to get on. There was an automated kiosk to buy tickets, but even with the English option, it wasn't clear to me. There was no one there to help, so I decided to leave the train station and return...

My An Arkie's Faith column from the July 13, 2022, issue of The Polk County Pulse. It was a spring day in 1521, and Martin was on his way home from the city of Worms. He had been on trial before a council of religious and political leaders for his religious beliefs. In January, the church excommunicated Martin because his writing and teaching contradicted the church leaders. A new emperor, Charles V, had ascended the throne of The Holy Roman Empire, and the church pressed him to punish Martin. Frederick the Wise, who was instrumental in Charles gaining the throne, asked him not to sentence Martin before granting him a hearing. The emperor was between a rock and a hard place. The church wanted an imperial edict sentencing Martin to death. But, according to Jean-Henri Merle d'Aubigné’s book, The History of the Reformation, Frederick the Wise "declared firmly that 'neither his imperial majesty nor any other person had shown that Luther's writings had been refuted;...

My An Arkie's Faith column from the July 6, 2022, issue of The Polk County Pulse. There are many things that I remember about visiting my grandparents. There was the old antique farmhouse cupboard where they kept the flour in a large bin. I wanted my drink in the plastic insulated glasses with the photos on them. On the breakfast table, there was always a box of Apple Jacks. We never had sugary cereals at home, so eating Apple Jacks at Grandma's house was a treat. One of my favorite things at Grandma's house was looking at her View-Master. We had to ask to play with the View-Master, and my stern grandfather always reminded us that it was not a toy. "You be careful with that," he would say. And when we finished, even if we had carefully put each reel in its sleeve, he would bellow, "make sure you have put everything away properly!" But when we got out the View-Master and the many reels with it, it always transported me to other places in the world. I had ...