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mostlyfrommemory · 5 days

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Salt Life

Bumper stickers are a mystery to me. You would think that you could tell a lot about about a person by what kind of bumper stickers they have, but really you can only tell that they are bumper sticker people. And that is the mystery for me: is this bumper sticker accurate? I’ve always thought it would be funny to put bumper stickers on the vehicles of unsuspecting Wal-Mart shoppers at random. But…

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mostlyfrommemory · 21 days

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How to Acquire Taste

Have you ever wondered what it takes to acquire a taste? People are always eating weird stuff and telling you how good it is and then you work up the nerve and taste it and it tastes exactly how you thought it would taste: nasty. I tried Goat Head Soup once and it was as bad as it sounds but better than it smelled. My friends-who had grown up eating it- were just wearing it out, laughing at me.…

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#Alabama #Cooking #Family #Food #food heritage #Health #Heritage #Humor #Narrative #Recipe #recipes #Rural #soul food #Southern #southern cooking #Southern Living

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mostlyfrommemory · 29 days

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Communication: Implicit & Explicit.

“I know we’re not supposed to bully people, but that works with me. I have been inspired to make life changes because someone talked rough to me. I hate it when people don’t tell me something plain. I feel like I’m being lied to if they afraid to say something because they think it may hurt my feelings. That doesn’t help.” This is what a young man told me recently. And I have been thinking about…

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#Alabama #Apostolic #Bible #discretion #god #high context communication #implicit and explicit communication #jesus #low context communication #Pastoring #proverbs #saint #Southern Living #Wisdom

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mostlyfrommemory · 1 month

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Broken

“This guitar is broken!” I said in exasperation to the young man I was helping move across town. “You can have it.” He said, looking nonchalantly at the tired old instrument with a large crack in the heel of the neck. I laid it in the back of my truck like a wounded soldier amongst the mirrors and pictures wrapped in moving blankets. This guitar had been neglected if not abused. I winced as I…

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mostlyfrommemory · 1 month

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Controlled Burn

I still get the itch to set the yard on fire.

“Is this a controlled burn?” The volunteer fireman asked my dad as he looked out across the kudzu patch with flames leaping halfway up the ancient pecan tree. “Does it look like a controlled burn? Don’t drive on my new field lines!” My dad replied. I still get the itch to set the yard on fire. It has been welling up in me since the last church men’s cookout we had. We have kind of given up on…

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#Alabama #burn ban #campfires #camping #Childhood #Family #fiction #fire safety #forest fires #Humor #men&039;s cookout #Rural #Southern Living #volunteer fire department

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mostlyfrommemory · 2 months

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Taking Notes

What does wisdom, understanding, and knowledge look like?

Sarah just got me a brand new notebook. It is a wonderful feeling to start a brand new notebook. Something about a fresh crisp and clean page makes me want to take my time and try to write neatly. I have always had poor handwriting-or penmanship as Col. Moore stated in his lament about trying to read my assignment-but on a good day I can still read what I have written, even if it was a long time…

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#Alabama #Bible #christian writer #Church #Faith #fasting #how to practice writing #how to take notes #jesus #Oral History #Preaching #Sermon notes #the art of preaching #theology #writing

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mostlyfrommemory · 3 months

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Rich People Things

How important is money to you?

What would you do if you were rich? I mean so rich that you could eat slow food anytime you wanted. If I were rich and famous I’d only drink ice cold Topo-Chico in glass bottles. I’d wear a brand new pair of socks to church every service. Rich people can do things like that. I’d probably get a gold tooth too. Not right in the front, but off to the side where you could still see it but only when I…

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#Alabama #ALJC #Apostolic #Apostolic Creative #economics #God&039;s economy #jesus #life #money #personal devolopment #personal growth #Real estate #rich #self discipline #UPCI #wealth #WPF music #Zane Wells

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mostlyfrommemory · 3 months

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Spanish

In 2020 I listened to the audiobook version of Don Quixote by Miguel Cervantes. I chose that book because it was included in my subscription to Audible and I didn’t have to use any of my precious credits. It turned out to be hilarious. I really appreciated how the 400 year old humor still made me laugh out loud today. It really made me think If the book was that funny in English, how funny was it…

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#Apostolic #bilingual #duolingo #Education #english #homeschool #indepedant learning #language #language arts #language-learning #Learning #linguistics #personal growth #polyglot #self efficacy #spanish #Zane Wells

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mostlyfrommemory · 3 months

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Dieting

How's your diet coming?

“I’m going on a diet, starting tomorrow. By summer I’m going to have to introduce myself. I’ll be so skinny y’all won’t recognize me.” Mom. Circa 1998. My Mom was a serial dieter. My Dad was not. The first time she tried to make them go on a diet Dad would just swing by Nonna’s house and eat with them on the way home from work. When he got ready to go on home he’d say something like, “I guess I…

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#Alabama #carnivore diet #Chick Fil A Cullman #Cullman Alabama #cycling diet #diet #dieting #Health #Health food #lifestyle #nutrition #paleo diet #vegan #vegetarian #weight loss #weight loss tips #weight watchers #WPF

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mostlyfrommemory · 4 months

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Apostolic Youth Ministry

I never really think about who may read whatever you want to call what I write, until I meet them in person and they tell me. If you are in Youth Ministry today I want to speak directly to you.

Sarah and I drove from Alabama to Virginia this last weekend to attend the funeral of a man who had been a young person while we were leading youth ministry. Being there and seeing the teenagers-now grown people with families-whom we spent nearly every Friday night of our 20s with brought back a flood of memories. I love those people. And I still recognize a familiar connection that is not easily…

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mostlyfrommemory · 4 months

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Which Guitar Should I Buy for My Student?

As a guitar teacher, I get this question a lot. In fact I got this question while writing this article. My conscience will not allow me to give a quick answer. It is kind of like asking a chef-who likes just about everything- what meal should I eat? Well it depends on what you are in the mood for. Do you like onions? Do you like spicy food? Those kind of questions will help a chef narrow down…

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#apostolic guitar teacher #Beginner guitar #christian guitar teacher #guitar lessons #music lessons #Online Guitar lessons #Zane Wells #zoom guitar lessons

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mostlyfrommemory · 4 months

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Oh Brandon

An odd thing happened to me this week: I lost my pocketknife. The same one that I’ve been carrying for eight years. It was a beat up red handled Case Tiny Toothpick. Now I have a dozen or so knives. But this one was special. After a week of searching I finally gave up and slipped a Case Mini Copperlock into my pocket. A gift from a man that makes me feel like I am talking to my Dad. For a long…

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mostlyfrommemory · 4 months

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Books of 2023

Then there are books that truly challenge your thinking, cause deep introspection, bring fresh ideas, and promote a positive change in your life. This is the kind literature that I am interested in reading.

I was cutting my hair this week and some of the pieces of hair stuck to the scissors. So I turned the water on and just washed it down the sink. I was instantly transported back to my childhood living room with various members of the family sprawled out on every available piece of furniture and the floor. Each lounger with their own unique piece of literature. The Sunday Comics, a National…

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#Alabama #book club #book list #Southern #Zane Wells

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mostlyfrommemory · 5 months

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Words Fitly Spoken

How often have you had a conversation with someone and after it is over you find yourself wanting to edit what you said?

This year I read Reflections on the Revolution in France by Edmund Burke. I was initially intrigued by this work because I was on a French Revolution kick brought on by reading through A Tale of Two Cities yet again. What I found was I became far more interested in the writing style of the author than the subject material. This mastery of the English language is also what makes me, and countless…

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#Alabama #Childhood #creative writing #Family #how to write a personal letter #letter writing guide #South #Zane Wells

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mostlyfrommemory · 5 months

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Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is probably my favorite holiday. It’s just like Christmas, but you don’t have to get anyone a gift. I don’t really need any help getting sentimental, but Thanksgiving seems to draw it out of me. I am genuinely thankful for all that God has done for me, and I think it’s proper to have a holiday set aside to be grateful. Every good gift and every gift is from above, and cometh down…

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#Alabama #Birmingham Alabama #Childhood #Family #Family Friendly Entertainment #Fatherhood #Humor #Self-Help #sober living #thanksgiving #Traditions #Vincent Alabama

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mostlyfrommemory · 5 months

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Dog Walker

I went for a walk at my brother’s house while visiting him for Thanksgiving. I picked up a stick out of a brush pile on the side of the road. It just feels right to walk with a stick. And the last time I went on this walk a dog bit me. I would not describe myself as a dog person. No sooner had I picked up the stick a dog came running towards me. I was ready for it. But when I saw the dog cower…

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#Alabama #Apostolic #Cullman Alabama #dog health #dog story #dog walk #dogs #louisiana #peripatetic #Southern Living #Story #Traditions #walking

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mostlyfrommemory · 6 months

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The Spirit of Ignorance

To reject knowledge or instruction in our ignorant state is a dangerous folly, and to prefer ignorance over understanding is the root of the Spirit of Ignorance.

Poverty has many roots, but the taproot is ignorance. Lyndon B. Johnson Ignorance simply means the lack of knowledge or information. If you pause to reflect on how many books are in your local library, or better yet how much information is on the internet (64+zetabytes) you can begin to see how much there is to know that you don’t know. You may become overwhelmed with how ignorant you are.…

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#Alabama #Apostolic #higher education #Intellectual #Self Taught #Sermon notes #Thought provoking #United Pentecostal Church #UPCI #Wilson University #Worldwide Pentecostal Fellowship #WPF #Zane Wells

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