Category Archives: Family History

The State of the Onion Message

Posted on January 22, 2015 by ivanbenson

Two nights ago President Obama presented the annual State of the Union message. To say that it “made history” is an understatement! Whether or not you agreed with all the President had to say, or whether you think our country … Continue reading →

Posted in Family History, Stories, Uncategorized | Tagged 2015, benefits, better days, citizens, Family, flourish, Jim Carrey, Nation, onionskin, peel, personal, President Obama, public policy, State of the Union, The Grinch, unruly | 6 Comments

No Room at the Inn

Posted on December 4, 2014 by ivanbenson

As the Christmas season approaches, and colder weather creeps in on us, my thoughts turn to . . . rodents in the chimney. Please understand, I would rather write about something else, today. Almost anything else. But the truth is, … Continue reading →

Posted in Comedy, Family History, Uncategorized | Tagged Bethlehem, chimney, Christmas, control, firelog, flue, Jesus, life script, manger, Mary and Joseph, no room at the Inn, no trespassing, R.O.U.S., rodent, The Princess Bride, transforming, varmint | 10 Comments

Imagine That!

Posted on October 16, 2014 by ivanbenson

My youngest daughter has not yet married; she is twenty-eight. Of course, not everyone wants to be married. And not marrying certainly doesn’t make someone a second class citizen. But . . . she wants to marry. She wants to share … Continue reading →

Posted in Family History, Stories, Uncategorized | Tagged commitment, divorce, loyalty, marriage, obsolete | 12 Comments

Ashes, 2 Ashes

Posted on September 2, 2014 by ivanbenson

It happened while I was watching a favorite TV series the other night. A young man was given his estranged father’s ashes to scatter as a memorial to him. He chose Eagle Lake, a special place in Alberta where his … Continue reading →

Posted in Aging Parents, Family History, Fathers, Stories, Uncategorized | Tagged Abraham Lincoln, Alberta, ashes, casualness, cremation, devotion, Eagle Lake, Gettysburg, Heartland, honor, human remains, interment, life is sacred, reverence, sacred ground, sacredness, Tucson Arizona, urn, urn vault, valued | 7 Comments

Heartland

Posted on July 15, 2014 by ivanbenson

The Canadian family television series Heartland has certainly worked its way into our hearts. And, as per our typical pattern, we are watching it for the first time a full seven years after its release (thank you, Netflix). We are … Continue reading →

Posted in Family History, Stories, Uncategorized | Tagged 1963, 1970s, 2005, addiction, Alberta Canada, Amber Marshall, Anaconda, anger, appreciative, Arizona, awestruck, Canadian TV series, Clint Goben, cowboy, disappointment, genuineness of heart, Graham Wardle, grief, heart, Heart Depot, Heartland, horizon, humbled, Lauren Brooke, Linda Chapman, Michelle Morgan, Minnesota, Montana, Netlfix, Randy Stinchfield, right-sized, Shaun Johnston, subterfuge, wide open spaces, www.heartdepot.org | 8 Comments

Evolution of a Design (No Doubts)

Posted on June 22, 2014 by ivanbenson

Last Wednesday I followed the cogent advice of my son-in-law: I went to http://www.99designs.com and contracted for a logo design. The process ended just after 12 noon today (Sunday). It involved creating a basic design idea, then waiting and watching … Continue reading →

Posted in Family History, Stories, Uncategorized | Tagged "Eight and Sand", "Now what are we going to do?", 1960, Arthur Blank, Bernie Marcus, design, domain name, doubt, evolution, Heart Depot, Home Depot, John F. Kennedy, jpeg, King Midas, locomotive, logo, Oval Office, psd, railroad ties, railroad track, rediscovering ties to the heart, self-evolution, son-in-law, trademark, train of thought, vectorized pdf, work in progress, www.99designs.com, www.heartdepot.org | 10 Comments

The New Normal (Riding the Pipe)

Posted on June 3, 2014 by ivanbenson

Just over 13 months ago, on Easter weekend 2013, my wife and I began a new venture – we bought two iPhones. And ever since then life has not been the same. For one thing, we ended up doing away … Continue reading →

Posted in Family History, Stories, Uncategorized | Tagged 1950s, 1982, 2013, adoption, Alvin Toffler, cancer, chattanooga, Easter, embolden, Facebook, Frederick Buechner, Future Shock, Hawaii, iOS 8, iPhone 4, navigate, riding the pipe, suicide, surfing the pipeline, surrender, Tennessee, the new normal, The Sacred Journey, The Third Wave, undo | 16 Comments

Sense and Sensuality

Posted on May 18, 2014 by ivanbenson

Sense and Sensibility, Jane Austen’s first published novel, 1811, (beautifully portrayed in the 1995 movie starring Alan Rickman, Emma Thompson, Hugh Grant, and Kate Winslet), is one of the many successful stories that have made her one of the most widely … Continue reading →

Posted in Family History, Stories, Uncategorized | Tagged 1811, 1995, Alan Rickman, Archie Bunker, aselgeia, Bud Light, country music, Dionysus, Emma Thompson, Greek, Hugh Grant, Jane Austen, Jason Aldean, Jesus, Kate Winslet, licentious, New Testament, Oscar, Oscar Wilde, Plato, Plato's Republic, Ravi Zacharias, regret, Sense and Sensibility, sensuality | 5 Comments

Finding God in the Dark

Posted on May 6, 2014 by ivanbenson

To many, Barbara Brown Taylor is a leading theologian, an accomplished speaker, and an excellent writer with over a dozen books to her name. The TIME MAGAZINE cover for April 28, 2014 features an article about her life, and about … Continue reading →

Posted in Family History, Stories, Uncategorized | Tagged April 28 2014, Arizona, Barbara Brown Taylor, Beyond Words, carbide lamp, Catalina Mountains, caving, dark, eternal stars, faith, Finding God in the Dark, Ford, Frederick Buechner, Genesis 1:2, Hebrew scriptures, Landon Saunders, Learning How to Walk in the Dark, light, lightning, Memphis, Tagore, Tennessee, theologian, Thomas Carlyle, thunderstorm, time, Time Magazine, Tucson | 8 Comments

The NeverEnding Story

Posted on April 29, 2014 by ivanbenson

One of the most delightful experiences of my life has been . . . storytelling. I remember as a child those rare moments when we would get Dad talking about growing up as a small boy in Macon, Georgia, or … Continue reading →

Posted in Family History, Stories, Uncategorized | Tagged Apple, Bill Cosby, Brian Regan, chattanooga, childrens CDs, Christmas, Garrison Keillor, Georgia, Gus and Phil, Harry Potter, Hickman County TN, Jerry Clower, Jobs, Journey to the Center of the Earth, Little Red Riding Hood, Macon Georgia, Pecos Bill, Pete Seeger, Pied Piper, Sand Mountain, Steve Jobs, Stone Mountain Park, storytelling, The Byrds, The Greenhorn and the Mule Egg, The Hero of Stone Mountain Park, The NeverEnding Story, The Three Apples, Turn Turn Turn, world war II | 6 Comments

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