A few months ago I posted on Facebook a letter I received from a man serving life in prison for first degree murder. He expressed gratitude to me that my books had helped him through his darkest and most hopeless…
Some years ago I read in the New York Times of a strange East-meets-West phenomenon. The Japanese had discovered Christmas and, no doubt aided by enterprising retailers, taken the season to heart. Aware that the holiday has something to do with…
I had a somewhat traumatic childhood, but 1970, the year I turned eight, was especially difficult. A Tsunami of misfortune hit my family. My father lost his job and couldn't find work and my mother began to exhibit the first signs…
CLICK TO SEE NATHAN HELPING OUT Nathan Glad has the perfect last name. According to his parents he is always glad. Glad and grateful. He is also fragile. He was born with Osteogenesis Imperfecta, (brittle bone disease) which means his bones…
The task of defining love is one that some of humanity’s greatest minds have wrestled with. Philosophers, theologians and psychologists have all contributed their definitions of the phenomenon. Personally, I found a pretty good definition of love in Italy. One…
This guest blog is from my daughter, and writing assistant, Jenna Evans Welch. (Yes, the same little Jenna from The Christmas Box, only grown up. Enjoy) Yesterday I gave my old bike away. I wheeled it out of the…
I’m the worst kind of grandparent–the kind who will show pictures of his grandson to complete strangers, including people in the Atlanta airport who don’t speak English and look terrified as they nod approvingly. I’m especially annoying because I know I’m…
(Dedicated to my sweetheart.) My oldest daughter, Jenna, recently said to me, “My greatest fear as a child was that you and mom would get divorced. Then, when I was twelve, I decided that you fought so much that maybe…
This is a true story. It still makes me laugh when I think about it. Feel free to share. One morning I was driving to my mother-in-law’s house in a small gated community when I noticed an elderly man sitting…
Dear Friends, please help me get this letter to the person who needs it by sharing it on your Facebook page, email and Twitter. Thank you. Dear Anonymous, I was very much disheartened by your anonymous letter. I was…