Previously, I had ended the Founding Brothers Era of American History with President James Monroe. A few months ago however, I listened to the case made by fellow Jackson Countian and historian …

While we live in a rural area where targeted crime is rare, it isn't unheard of. Most of us routinely travel to larger urban areas where crime rates are definitively higher. Carjackings, armed …

Sleep and mental health have a powerful, two-way connection where poor sleep can trigger mental health struggles, and mental health conditions can disrupt sleep. Anyone who’s tossed and turned or …

I know that the “Holy Grail” is a great big concept for a little Briar to tackle. It’s one of those ideas we’re usually encouraged to leave to learned men and theologians and not worry our …

In researching these pieces, I was reminded how dominant foreign policy issues had been to this point in our then-new republic’s history. This week’s piece on President Monroe’s domestic policy …

We’ve got an important decision coming up in Jackson County, and I’ve been thinking about it a little differently. Forget the names for a minute. Forget who you know, who your family knows, what …

I spent roughly sixteen years driving a semi truck for the largest corporation there is. While I don't have a laundry list of complaints, and I'm appreciative of the life it provided me, there are …

The term “pride” can be a very confusing one. With all the conflicting messages that we receive about having pride and being prideful, it can be very difficult to decipher whether it’s a good …

This one is a hard one to write, y’all and I expect it will be a hard one to read for a few of you. In the grand scheme of things it doesn’t seem like much but up close and personal it goes …

This week, our nation recognizes the 25th anniversary of the worst terrorist attack on American soil. These 9/11 attacks saw 2,977 victims lose their lives between the World Trade Center, the …

It pays to be clear. As President James Monroe neared the end of his second term in office, contained within his written State of the Union Address to Congress in 1823 was this unambiguous sentence: …

Phones have killed the family unit. It's all about individualism. I watched a clip of a family from years gone by depicting an evening at home. The family gathered in the living room, piling onto …

Envy is a common but often misunderstood emotion that can significantly impact mental health. Envy is a complex emotional response that arises when one perceives another individual as having an …

I’ve heard it before. Maybe we ask too many questions. Maybe we need to stay in our lane and let people do their jobs. But every time I hear that, I wonder the same thing. What exactly is our …

In the jungles of Southeast Asia, and several other places I’ve been told, there is an age old trick used to catch a monkey. There are several variations of this monkey trap but they are all based …

A family story tells that some of the boys living in the old Abel Gabbard House in Sand Gap came back in from George Felty’s movie theatre on a Saturday night and explained to an elderly Jim Willie …

I've seemingly been to more funerals lately than the normal rate. It's a combination of getting older, when the end becomes inevitable, and simply understanding that life down here is merely a vapor. …

Living in a small county has a lot of good about it. We go to church together, see each other at the store and usually know a little about what’s going on in each other’s lives. But I think that …

Hello again and welcome to the road to mental wellness. Last week I said we would discuss a variety of trauma induced mental disorders. However, before we get to that I feel we should discuss …

It is never happy news to learn that someone has passed. Some deaths impact us more than others, however, and some deaths leave an entire community reeling between grief and disbelief. When the news …