The Problem – A Silent Epidemic One in three teens will experience abuse in a dating relationship and two-thirds of them will never report it to anyone. Dating violence is not just dangerous, it is devastating to a young person’s health and safety. The effects of dating violence are long-lasting. Teens who experience abuse in relationships act out exhibiting higher rates of drug abuse, school drop-out, high-risk sexual behavior, acts of violence and suicide. The Solution – Education, Activism, Advocacy Everybody has the right to safe and healthy relationships—regardless of where they live,...

One of the nice things about being a teacher is that you do get some good vacations.  Of course, you’re not paid for the summer.  Many people do not realize this.  That’s why so many teachers look for summer work.  But you also get Christmas vacation and the legendary Spring break.  Teaching is such a demanding job, you need those breaks.  Rest is as important as work. Each year, during Spring break, my wife and I travel up the California coast to a place known as Big Sur.  Big Sur is not a town, per se.  It is a stretch of Highway One, just past San Simeon, leading up the coast to...

I can remember many years ago, lying in my bed in a great deal of pain. I had hurt my back. I had two herniated discs. Now for those of you who don’t know exactly what that means, it means that the gelatinous material that exists between two of my vertebrae had been punctured and was leaking out and making contact with the nerves that run through the center of the spinal column. Chiropractors refer to these as slipped discs, which calls to mind an image, which is somewhat less than accurate. A “slipped disc” makes you think of discs out of alignment. This is not the case. Imagine...

If there is one thing that gives me hope about my own feeble attempts to walk in a path towards God, it is the men who followed Jesus. You couldn’t ask for a thicker, slower, weaker, bunch of people. Time and time again, they fell on their faces in their attempts to find that path towards the universal spirit. Over and over, they failed to understand the message that was being given them until in exasperation, Jesus had to explain it to them, feeding them as if they were baby birds. And yet, as thick as they were, as slow, and as completely off the mark as they were so often, God, or Allah,...

A Pirate’s Last Words I am the last man of my kind And soon there’ll not be any Black spotted as I stand here With treasure not a penny You mean to see me here well hanged This hempen halter fit for me You’d hang me for a thousand slaves My human booty now set free But not a life I ever took That did not mean to take my head I took the ship, but spared the crew And for that you would see me dead How many fell in ‘61? Were slaughtered in your civil war? How many brothers, fathers, sons, Will see their families never more? But I am just a privateer And from the poor I’ve...

You know, I can’t go into a market or a restaurant anywhere near where I teach without some kid, or some parent coming up to me and talking to me. It’s part of the price you pay for that little bit of notoriety, albeit very local. I have a friend who used to live a couple of blocks from the school where she taught and every time she was out in the front yard doing the garden she found herself giving impromptu parent conferences right there in her front of her house. She moved. It must be very difficult for those people who are really famous. That’s one of the reasons that John...

Some people like to see the Bible as history. Others like to see the bible as a rule book for the way we live our lives with which they can beat people over the head until they conform to society’s rules, whatever those rules are. I like to see the bible as a collection of stories that teach lessons about the nature of God and the universe. And I don’t think it matters much if all the stories are true, or if they happened in the way they are described. The stories still have something to teach. But those stories can sure be hard to understand sometimes. You read those words and you...

I have decided there are roughly six types of bosses. I have spent at least 32 years studying this matter and after a great deal of thought I think that all bosses fall into these categories: The Jaguar (Incompetent/Unintelligent)This is your basic Psycho Boss. This is the boss who is incompetent and too stupid to realize it. This boss believes in having total power. They want to control every little thing that happens in the workplace. If you try to explain why one of their half-baked ideas won’t work their eyes sort of glaze over. They are frequently into nit-picking and will totally not...

How many times I’ve sat in prayer, Hoping there was someone there, To listen to the musings of my heart So many times I thought I knew, What I wanted God to do, And so I put the horse before the cart For as I put my order in, And waited for God to begin, To send my heart’s desire postage paid I never stopped to give a thought To all the good things I have got Or give a nod to plans God might have made For when I make my prayer request I assume that I know best What will bring me happiness on earth For what I fail to realize, A man, no matter how he tries, Can never estimate the real...

Let me give my love to those in need Let me comfort those who bleed Let me give my ear and heart To those whose lives are torn apart Let me be thankful for this day For good friends come and gone their way Let me see each day as new With those the years have seen me through Let me always realize The hope in every child’s eyes Let me walk upon the land With gentle foot and loving hand Let me value every friend Who walks with me to journey’s end And let me thank you for my death That day I take that final breath And let it float on summer’s breeze Please Wilson/07