Since 1993, I have had the opportunity to bring to our radio audience short stories that inspire, inflame, provide moral education, teach self discipline, honesty, loyalty, faith, and some are just downright funny. I have attempted many times to chronologically layout these stories in a fashion that would be easy to sort through, maybe even publish. Instead I decided to bring these stories to you through the magic of the Web. All of these stories except for a few (very few) were sent to me by others who wished to provide the same guidance that we as youngsters were provided by our parents. I added this category in honor of all parents who read to their children.
A man asked his wife what she’d like for her birthday. “I’d love to be eight again.” she replied. On the morning of her birthday, he arose early, made her a nice big bowl of Coco Pops, and then took her off to the local theme park. What a day! He put her on...
by Aesop A WOLF, meeting with a lamb astray from the fold, resolved not to lay violent hands on him, but to find some plea, which should justify to the lamb himself, his right to eat him. A WOLF, meeting with a lamb astray from the fold, resolved not to lay violent hands on...
It started out innocently enough. I began to think about freedom now and then – just to loosen up and pretend it was possible to live free. Inevitably, though, one thought led to another and soon I was more than just a social thinker. I began to think alone — “to relax,” I told...
As retold by Grace H. Kupfer There ruled in the city of Syracuse, in Sicily, many hundreds of years ago, a tyrant by the name of Dionysius. Not only was he sometimes ruthless in his actions, but he was vain of his own talents. His court was made up of flatterers, who were afraid...
My nephew’s cat Pooh died several years ago after 16 years. Pooh stopped breathing in Andy’s arms almost as soon as he walked into the vet’s office. Pooh was buried in the side yard under the new pear tree. Shelly, Andy’s wife, told me she will have a lot of flowers just as she...
Remember when you were a kid and the other kids would dare you to do something? “I dare you to do it.” Sometimes they would “double-dog dare” you. Ah, but the ultimate challenge was to say, “You’re a chicken if you don’t!” My Dad used to tell me the exploits of a man he...
This is one of those kinds of stories I’ve always read from others (and sometimes casually dismiss with a “yeah, whatever”), but this is one of my own that actually happened to me. As columnist Dave Barry was fond of saying, I’m not making this up. While I was praying this morning, I was...
A lady went to the butcher shop looking for a chicken for dinner. She asked the butcher to see his selection. He only had one chicken left but he did not disclose this to the lady. He kept the chickens in the bin below the showcase and so he reached down and pulled out...
The Roman Emperor Vespasian had the practice of reviewing each day. Each evening before retiring he would call into account his actions that day. He would enter his assessment in his diary. When he found that he did not do something good that day, he would write “Diem perdidi.” Translation? “I have lost a...
Barbara was driving her six-year-old son, Benjamin, to his piano lesson. They were late, and Barbara was beginning to think she should have canceled it. There was always so much to do, and Barbara, a night-duty nurse at the local hospital, had recently worked extra shifts. She was tired. The sleet storm and icy...
If at first you don’t succeed, skydiving is not for you. If you lend someone $20, and never see that person again, it was probably worth it. Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way, when you criticize them, you’re a mile away and you have their shoes....
The house is untidy from window to door, Marks on the walls and food on the floor. The washing’s unwashed And the dishes are too, There’s scum in the bathroom And fat on the stew. There are toys in the passage And under our feet; The garden’s a jungle When seen from the street....
Eventually you will reach a point when you stop lying about your age and start bragging about it. Don’t let anyone tell you you’re getting old. Squash their toes with your rocker! The older we get, the fewer things seem worth waiting in line for. Some people try to turn back their odometers. Not me,...
A Mouse looked through the crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife opening a package. “What food might this contain?” He was devastated to discover it was a mousetrap. Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed the warning. “There is a mousetrap in the house!; there is a mousetrap in...
Our teacher asked what my favorite animal was, and I said, “Fried chicken.” She said I wasn’t funny, but she couldn’t have been right, because everyone else laughed. My parents told me to always tell the truth. I did. Fried chicken is my favorite animal. I told my dad what happened, and he said...
“For unto you is born….. a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord” – Luke 2:11 Of all the beautiful traditions of Christmas, few are so ancient in meaning and so rich in symbolism as the Candy Cane. From the beginning of the tradition of the Christmas Tree, it was customary to decorate the tree with...
Sent to me by Sue Rawls It was one of the hottest days of the dry season. We had not seen rain in almost a month. The crops were dying. Cows had stopped giving milk. The creeks and streams were long gone back into the earth. It was a dry season that would bankrupt...
Few of us that can not relate to this. I ran into a stranger as he passed by, “Oh excuse me please” was my reply. He said, “Please excuse me too; I wasn’t watching for you.” We were very polite, this stranger and I. We went on our way and we said goodbye. But...
There was a certain professor named Dr. Christianson, a studious man who taught at a small college in the western United States and who was a Christian. Dr. Christianson taught the required survey course in Christianity at this particular institution. Every student was required to take this course their freshman year, regardless of his...
The Silent generation, people born before 1945. The Baby Boomers, people born between 1945 and 1961. Generation X, people born between 1962 and 1976. Generation Y, people born between 1977 and 1989. Why do we call the last one generation Y? I did not know, but a caricaturist explains it eloquently …I’ve Learned something...
A woman is driving at night on a narrow country road. At the same time, a man is driving in the opposite direction on that same road. When they narrowly pass each other at high speed, the woman rolls down her window and loudly shouts HORSE! Immediately the man shouts back WITCH! The man...
Possibly the funniest story in a long while. This is a bricklayer’s accident report, which was printed in the newsletter of the American Insurance Journal. This is a true story. Had this guy died, he’d have received a Darwin Award for sure. Dear Sir: “I am writing in response to your request for additional...
Sandra felt as low as the heels of her shoes as she pushed against a November gust and the florist shop door. Her life had been easy, like a spring breeze. Then in the fourth month of her second pregnancy, a minor automobile accident stole her ease. During this Thanksgiving week she would have...
Next time you are washing your hands and complain because the water temperature isn’t just how you like it, think about how things used to be……… Here are some facts from the 1500s: Most people got married in June, because they took their yearly bath in May and still smelled pretty good by June....
The USS Astoria (C-34) was the first U.S. cruiser to engage the Japanese during the Battle of Savo Island, a night action fought 8-9 August 1942. Although she scored two hits on the Imperial flagship Chokai, the Astoria was badly damaged and sank shortly after noon, 9 August. About 0200 hours a young midwesterner,...
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