ON DECEMBER 28, 2012, BARBARA AND I celebrated our 50th year of marriage. Most of our friends would ask her, "Barbara, how did you put up with him all those years?" Admittedly, it has not been easy for her. She started dating me because she thought I needed help and she became my helpmate and soul mate. Today, she used her computer skills to show me how to cut and paste the manuscript of this book. She has been a fantastic mother to our three grown children, mother-in-law to our children's spouses, and grandmother to our three grandchildren.
God has been the source of Barbara's strength. She has worked as a school teacher, church worker, Disaster Relief worker and homemaker. Most of all she has been a faithful, loving wife.
Our stories are about our Christian walk. The success that we have had we attribute to our attempt to follow the steps of the Master Teacher, Jesus.
We acknowledge that we owe much to Carson Newman University where we met, dated, married, where I taught for 35 years and where several members of our family have graduated. We are happy to continue to support CNU with financial resources and volunteering our time on campus.
Over the 35 years at CNU I kept a file of my favorite quotations which are included throughout this book and are credited where possible.
Thanks to Benita Claiborne, there are fewer mistakes in this book because of her fine eye for errors, to Bethany Carpenter for her computer skills in assisting with page arrangements, and to Dr. Connie Bull for proof reading the manuscript.
Thank you to all who read my previous book, "Daddy, You Have Told This Before." A professional educator in Iowa read it and called me "the Will Rogers of Tennessee." A friend, who was a college president, said mine was the only book he had read twice, except for the Bible. Many responses from readers have been encouraging.
