Some people object to the words “under God” being in the Pledge of Allegiance, but Christopher Award-winner Father Robert Barron points out that this Biblical belief is what keeps the United States a free country. He writes, “One of the most significant contributions of the Bible to politics is the placing of kings ‘under God.’  Israelite kings were not like Egyptian Pharaohs…absolute in judgment and godlike in sovereignty.  Rather, they ruled at the pleasure of God and according to God’s... Read more

Today you can find one on pants and dresses, even boots and backpacks.  But when Gideon Sundback introduced his zipper in 1914, people didn’t get it—or want any part of it. After all, they had buttons, hooks and clasps. Earlier versions proved to be part of the problem; they jammed and pulled apart too easily.  That’s why Sundback gets credit as the inventor of the zipper, because his device was practical and reliable. The U.S. Army used Sundback’s zipper for... Read more

Ever want to catch for a Major League Baseball pitcher?  Try connecting on Twitter! On a day when his team wasn’t playing, Colorado Rockies pitcher Jeremy Guthrie wanted someone to catch for him—so he sent a message to his 34,000 followers on the social media website Twitter, asking, “Anybody on lunch break & up for a catch with me?” Woody Roseland, a 21-year-old stand-up comic, was the first to respond to Guthrie’s offer—and he got a positive response!  It was... Read more

In July 2011, six-year-old Lucy Magnum was playing in one-and-a-half feet of water at Ocracoke Island, North Carolina.  Her father, Craig, and mom, Jordan, were only 10 feet away.  Suddenly, Jordan heard Lucy scream and saw blood shooting out of her leg.  She had been bitten by a shark! Craig, an emergency room doctor, stemmed the bleeding and rushed his daughter to a nearby hospital.  Though Lucy endured a severed artery and a tendon tear, there was no nerve damage... Read more

Psychiatrist and Today Show contributor, Dr. Gail Saltz, tells her Woman’s Day audience it’s normal to feel distressed when you don’t get what you expected.  She offers three steps guaranteed to help you bounce back. ▪ Allow yourself some time to be sad, disappointed and/or angry. “Whether it’s not having the job you envisioned, a relationship breaking up, or an unsupportive parent—it’s truly a loss, and you’ll experience all the emotions associated with it.” ▪ Rewrite negative thoughts, which are... Read more

The first time Van Harris saw Shirley, she was just 10-years-old and punching a bunch of boys who had taken her hat off her head. “I said, ‘Geez, I’d like to meet a girl like that,’” Van recalls. Well, they did meet—and eventually married. The two even worked together as comedians in the Catskills in New York. Talking on a radio program about the colorful characters they met in their Brooklyn neighborhood, the duo found much to smile and laugh... Read more

Catholic News Service columnist Therese J. Borchard cites Cicero as stating that, of all of life’s virtues, gratitude is “not only the greatest…but the parent of all the others.” As diligently as gardeners tend to the plants that sprout in their backyards, so should we work to sow the seeds of gratitude implanted within our souls.  Borchard suggests several surefire ways to cultivate gratitude: ▪ Change your language. Words of thankfulness are the best antidotes to fear and resentment. ▪... Read more

“To Spec, On Time.”  That’s the mission statement of a technology company, and it says that every product is completed to a client’s specifications and delivered on time. Jim Nichols, vice president of a full-service communications firm, feels that when it comes to writing mission statements, organizations should take their cue from the military.  “There is no possible way that every minute detail can be communicated to every soldier on the battlefield,” Nichols explains.  Instead, the commander’s intent focuses on... Read more

Red Sox baseball great Curt Schilling strives to be a devoted husband and father. That might even be more challenging than being an excellent pitcher. Schilling, who’s never been a public figure newsworthy for poor behavior, was asked whether faith plays a role in guiding him. He replied, “No, it doesn’t play a role—it’s everything.” Curt and Shonda Schilling, together for more than 19 years, wrote a book entitled The Best Kind of Different describing their personal journey as parents... Read more

“This is the bookstore of my childhood,” says author Ann Patchett of the shop she co-owns in Nashville, Tennessee. She feels its size—a “shoebox” compared to the larger booksellers—is more like the way bookstores used to be. “People are really coming all the way back around and saying, ‘I want and miss the little store,’” Patchett believes. As for the financial investment, the writer sees the venture as a “gift” to her city, a spot that sees itself as the... Read more