Life Lessons from The Professor, or Why I Blog

by Larry Hehn on May 7, 2012

Back in 1971, television station CHCH in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada produced an incredible 130 episodes of a children’s series called The Hilarious House of Frightenstein.

Though the show contained mostly comedy sketches, it also offered educational segments like The Professor, featuring unforgettable physicist and television personality Julius Sumner Miller. 

A student and friend of Albert Einstein, Miller had an unrivaled enthusiasm for his subject matter (“Physics is my business”) and for education in general.

As you can see from this clip here, Miller’s passion is undeniable and downright infectious!

Did you catch some of those nuggets?

“Lots of people look. Not everybody sees too well. And lots of people listen. But few hear. So you must see when you look, and hear when you listen.”

What do you think of what he said about intellectual inertia and photophobia?

Too much for a children’s program, you think? I love what he has to say about that in the following clip:

You know, I’ve always struggled to communicate why I blog, until now.

But I feel a certain kinship with The Professor when he says, “My singular purpose is to make everyone reach, and thus their brains are stretched, and their emotions moved, and their spirit touched.”

It’s not that I think I have any superior personal wisdom or insight to share. Rather, it’s the excitement of shared discovery that brings me back to the keyboard time and again. 

Just doing my best to fight intellectual – and spiritual – inertia.

Yours? Well, yes I suppose. But, truth be told, mostly my own.

I’m just pleased to have you along for the ride.

Who has made you reach, stretched your brain, moved your emotions, touched your spirit?

Why do you blog?

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Posts with the Most – April 2012

by Larry Hehn on May 2, 2012

PWTM April 2012Have you ever looked back over a stretch of time, scratched your head and asked yourself, “What the heck happened?”

Seems like April was that kind of month for me. I quickly fell behind and spent the rest of the month trying to catch up!

Thankfully I did manage to assemble some of my favorite posts from around the blogosphere – the Posts with the Most - for your reading pleasure.

As always, I invite you to share your own faves from the past month in the comment section. After all, this is all about discovering and sharing some of the great blogs and bloggers out there. Come join the party!

Here are my picks for April 2012, in random order:

  1. The Confident WriterBilly Coffey‘s touching story of a priceless gift he received from his 10-year-old daughter.
  2. My Father’s Son – Continuing our parent-and-child theme is Jamie the Very Worst Missionary, with a special appearance from the word ”badassedness”.
  3. The Stuff That Matters – My friend Liz from Life With Bellymonster shares some wisdom about what’s really important.
  4. I Know You! – Pirates and snot bubbles and more! It’s another gem from Mandie Marie.
  5. To Losiah’s Birth Father…On Losiah’s Birthday… – Yes, there’s definitely a bit of a parenting theme this month at PWTM. This one’s a heartfelt post from Carlos Whittaker of Ragamuffin Soul.
  6. Shining the Light through Leaky Cracks – Jessica Bufkin guest posts here for Sundi Jo. Did you ever think that love might be contagious?

Congratulations to all our featured blogs and bloggers!

What were some of your favorite blog posts in April 2012?

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Wear a Shirt, Build a Well

by Larry Hehn on April 28, 2012

Wear a Shirt, Build a WellLast year I switched the hosting of my website over to NewBlogHosting.com.

It was one of the best things I’ve done for my site. Their hosting is reliable and inexpensive, and their customer service top notch.

But there’s another reason why I like being associated with NewBlogHosting.com.

It’s their heart for giving.

For every new hosting plan they sell, NewBlogHosting.com puts $15 into their ‘well fund’. When they have collected enough, they use the money to buy wells through World Vision for villages that don’t have fresh, clean water.

Today they are taking that campaign one step further.

For everyone who posts a picture of themselves online today wearing a NewBlogHosting.com t-shirt, they are donating $10 toward the well fund.

And, while it may be a little late for you to get your own t-shirt (if you live close by, come on over and borrow mine!) and post your own picture, I encourage you to make a donation to help build the well.

The well costs $2,600.

Every little bit helps!

As Peter Pollock of NewBlogHosting.com puts it, “We are truly blessed in this country to not have to worry about our water and what diseases it might be giving to us and our children and we want to give others that same peace of mind too!”

Many months ago a water main broke near our house, and we were without water for 30 hours. Those were probably the longest 30 hours of my life. I can’t even imagine being without fresh, clean water on a daily basis.

Wouldn’t you help build a well, if you could?

Click here to learn more about how you can donate to this worthy cause.

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Mental Floss

by Larry Hehn on April 24, 2012

mental floss“I was thinking about how people seem to read the Bible a whole lot more as they get older; then it dawned on me – they’re cramming for their final exam.” – George Carlin

I have a dentist appointment tomorrow, so a few days ago I started flossing again.

Because I know I’m going to get that question…

“So…have you been flossing?”

Well, let’s see…

You just tried to floss my teeth for me, I winced and my gums started to bleed.

I think we both know the answer to that question.

Truth be told, I only floss for a few days before my dentist appointment (in a futile attempt to make it look like I have been flossing regularly), and a few days after (until I either forget or just get too lazy to continue).

And my teeth and gums pay the price.

When it comes to just about anything – whether mental, spiritual, or physical - we need to put in some regular effort to stay in shape, or we’re going to get sick, soft and flabby.

My “spiritual floss” is reading my Bible, praying regularly, and weekly get-togethers with two of my best friends where we support and encourage each other.

My “physical floss” is exercising for an hour almost every day using the awesome P90X program.

My “mental floss” is reading and writing regularly, and solving puzzles.

Sometimes I floss regularly, sometimes I don’t.

And, as much as I don’t like to admit it, the answer to the question, “So…have you been flossing?” is usually pretty obvious.

Lately I think I’ve only been doing really well in one out of three.

The other two?

Well, today is a new day.

Pass the floss!

So…how often do you floss?

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How To Be Great In One Easy Step

by Larry Hehn on April 12, 2012

volunteers“Everybody can be great…because anybody can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace, a soul generated by love.” – Martin Luther King Jr.

When you look in the mirror, do you see a person of greatness? Did you know that you possess everything you need to be ‘great’ right now, right where you are?

Greatness has nothing to do with your level of education, celebrity, athletic ability or political power. Your physical attributes, fashion sense or how much money you make are unimportant.

God has given you a unique assortment of gifts and unique ways to use them. They may not seem special to you. Since they come so naturally to you, they may even seem trivial. Still, you are equipped to serve others in ways that no one else can.

How to be great in one easy step?

Use your gifts. To serve others.

Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms. – 1 Peter 4:10

There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. – 1 Corinthians 12:4-5

The greatest among you must be a servant. – Matthew 23:11

Who inspires you by the way they serve?

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