Faulty Alarms

LightGramsMarch 2, 2023Volume 27, Number 7 To say that the security system in our church building has been annoying would be an understatement. Since they were installed about 15 years ago, we’ve had to deal with a fire system that has multiple sensors throughout the building. That system is monitored by an agency, and when…

The Price Of Freedom

LightGramsFebruary 16, 2023Volume 27, Number 6 When something is too expensive, we sometimes say that it cost “an arm and a leg”. If you were incarcerated, would you be willing to pay a kidney and bone marrow to reduce the amount of time you’re required to serve? A bill has been submitted in the Massachusetts…

Bringing Back The Dodo

LightGramsFebruary 2, 2023Volume 27, Number 5 Just the name “Colossal Biosciences” sounds audacious. When you read of their plans to bring back the dodo bird (extinct for over 300 years) and the wooly mammoth (extinct for centuries) the name of the company seems to fit. Can such a feat be accomplished? To date they have…

A Coordinated Rescue Mission

LightGramsJanuary 26, 2023Volume 27, Number 4 Had you been strolling through Clearwater, Florida last week you might have seen a strange sight. About 30 people were walking shoulder-to-shoulder down a creek in water above their waists, stirring the water ahead of them with their hands. A strange sight, perhaps, but it was a successful effort…

Piecing The World Together

LightGramsJanuary 19, 2023Volume 27, Number 3 Cooper Wright of Cumberland Center, Maine is only 13 years old. But when it comes to putting the world back together, he’s your guy. The “world” of which we speak is the Lego World Map, a set consisting of 11,695 pieces. Cooper was determined to beat the Guinness World…

His Words Returned

LightGramsJanuary 12, 2023Volume 27, Number 2 Few things are as whimsical as finding a message in a bottle. How many bottles containing messages have been cast into the ocean is unknown, but occasionally we hear of someone finding one. A famous movie starring Paul Newman and Kevin Costner was produced in 1999 on this idea.…

Finally Free

LightGramsJanuary 5, 2023Volume 27, Number 1 A December 30, 2022 article published by the Associate Press noted that several significant literary and musical works would officially enter the public domain on January 1, 2023. Among the works was the last Sherlock Holmes mystery, works by Agatha Christie, Willa Cather, William Faulkner, and Ernest Hemingway. Entering…

A Ship Filled With Treasure

LightGramsDecember 15, 2022Volume 26, Number 38 “When my ship comes in” is a phrase many of us have heard or even used. It’s basically a vision of wealth at some future date, “when my ship comes in”. One website explains that people could once buy shares of ships’ cargoes; for their investment, they would be…

When The Light Is Dark

LightGramsDecember 1, 2022Volume 26, Number 36 Merriam-Webster, known for their publication of dictionaries of the English language, announced earlier this week their “Word of the Year for 2022”. The word “gaslighting” surprised even the editors, who said that there was no single story in the news that caused interest in the word to peak. The…

Guarded Treasures

LightGramsNovember 10, 2022Volume 26, Number 34 At a garage sale you purchase an old purse that caught your attention. As you examine it later you discover a baseball card tucked away inside. Further investigation reveals that this card, which is in near-mint condition, could be worth a great deal. So what do you do with…