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It's the issue that can decide who's the senator or congressman in many states. It can decide who the governor is in some states. The battle lines are drawn around the issue of abortion.
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When you're five years old, you have a number of those milestone experiences - a lot of "firsts." Like your first soccer game. Yeah, our five-year-old grandson had that. I reminded our daughter that she had joined that much-talked about tribe called "soccer moms." Yeah, our grandson had never played soccer before, and he didn't have an older brother or sister to learn from. So his first game was, shall we say, a great learning experience. And he did a good job. But not good enough for the kind of performance most firstborns expect of themselves. Though he got the ball several times for his team and moved it down the field, he didn't score any goals, and he was bothered that he missed one. Right after the game, he gave his mom his two-word summary of how he thought he did. He just said, "I tried."
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When St. Patrick's Day rolled around, I realized I'd lost my shamrock tie. Yeah, I was bummed. Of course, everybody else was thrilled. Oh, yeah, yeah I always used to love wearing it for St. Patrick's Day every year to celebrate that part of me that's Irish. In spite of the fact that people insensitively described the color of it as "barf green." It just doesn't seem that anyone is missing it but me.
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One of the great names for Jesus in the Bible is the "Lion of the Tribe of Judah." When noted author, C. S. Lewis, created a character to be his Christ-figure in his "Chronicles of Narnia" fantasies, he introduced us to Aslan, the lion-king of Narnia. In Lewis' enchanting books, Narnia is a land where the animals speak, where the forces of evil are strong, and where Aslan, though only seen on rare occasions, is the dominant figure. Lucy is one of the children whose transported to Narnia. In one of the later books in the Chronicles, Lucy is finally reunited with the lion-king, Aslan. I'll let C. S. Lewis take it from here: "'Welcome child,' he said. Lucy said, 'Aslan, you're bigger.' And he answered, 'That is because you are older, little one.' 'Oh, not because you are?' Lucy said. 'Oh, I am not. But every year you grow, you will find me bigger.'"
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I was teaching my son to drive, I think. There were some pretty thrill-packed moments as he learned to drive. And there was a strange byproduct taking place as he learned to drive. My driving improved! Yes, and it needed it! See, we were living in the New York area. And when you're there, traffic tends to make you a little more careless about the right way to drive; the way you learn how to drive; the way the book says you ought to drive might be two different things when your survival is at stake, which it almost is constantly there.
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There's just enough of a kid in me, I really like those glass elevators they have in some hotels. You know, you get in on the main floor and then you ascend to the top floor, all the time you're watching the big things in the lobby become small things in the lobby. And the limited view you had down there, oh, suddenly turns panoramic. Or if you've been in one of the world's great skyscrapers, you may have tried some of those elevators. We're talking lobby to observation deck in like seconds; rising scores of floors in less time than it takes to place some phone calls. So, at 10:02, you're down in the lobby or even the basement and at 10:03 you're looking out over the entire city - all because of an elevator.
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The folks at the hospital asked my father-in-law if he'd like to donate his organs. He smiled and said, "Depends on how soon you want them." That's a great answer.
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I guess parental pride comes with your baby's birth certificate. I mean, you brag about their first word, their first steps. We show off pictures of our babies, and then if they're ever selected for a solo or a starting position later in life, or they get a part in something or an award, we will be there to take pictures, get video, whatever. A parent has a special glow when his son or daughter makes him proud. Of course, it's supposed to work the other way, too.
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Well, I went to get an additional weather alert radio for our home. They were out. I probably shouldn't have been surprised. Not in light of the tornadoes we've been having, what they've done to lives and property across eleven states. And we weren't far from one of those ourselves.
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Do you want me to speak from the floor or up on a platform? See, sometimes I'm asked to make that choice before I speak somewhere. Now, I would rather be on the floor, given that choice, because I just like to be closer to the people I'm speaking to. The problem is, if I do that, I will disappear. I know on the radio you think I'm like six foot six. Well, in person I can only seem to muster, you know, about five feet six inches or something like that. But if I'm standing down on the floor kind of on everybody else's level, then you might as well be listening to a recording, because you can't see the expression on my face. So I need to be above the crowd at least a little in order to best communicate my message. See, I need a platform. So do you.
