Ponderings by Dan Ponder

It is hard to follow someone that is a legend in their field. College football is one of the best examples.  Ask Ray Perkins after he followed Bear Bryant as coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide. What about Ron Zook that followed Steve Spurrier at Florida?  Ray Goff followed Vince Dooley at Georgia.  At Auburn,…

The Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year seasons give a weekly columnist a lot of material.  We have so much to be thankful for.  Our families often surround us and there are so many memories of Christmas past. We reflect on the past year and project on the coming one.  After a while, however, you just…

This is my 13th year writing a column about the coming year.   They have changed quite a bit over the years.  Originally, I would list my resolutions for the New Year, something like a “To-Do” list.   I would follow up the next year and grade myself.  Some years I did okay and some…

I stirred in my sleep as I heard someone talking outside. Our beds were on a sleeping porch and my brother, sister and I were all snug under the blankets. I turned to the window and saw my Dad talking with a neighbor. There was some sort of spotlight lighting up a portion of the…

I first heard Christmas Carols at the First Baptist Church of Cottonwood, Alabama.  I started playing the organ there during Junior High School and quickly learned every Christmas song in the Baptist Hymnal.   Of course, most I had already heard in my home as a child growing up.  I would say that 80 percent…

It is a long drive to Charleston, South Carolina.  I always tend to think of it being northeast of Auburn.   In reality, it almost due east, just a few degrees to the north.  It is significantly south of Atlanta.  There is no easy way to get from here to there unless your private plane…

I am not sure when I understood the meaning of Advent.  The Baptist church I grew up in did not celebrate Advent.  That was over 50 years ago; so much may have changed since then.   Our personal celebration of Advent began shortly after Mary Lou and I were married and joined the Presbyterian Church…

Continuing my quest to find the best Chinese restaurant around, I stole away to have an Asian buffet.  It is not Mary Lou’s favorite food, and a lunch when I am by myself gives me the perfect opportunity to try yet another place.  It fit into the category of “Good, not Great” as most Chinese…

I climbed up on the board placed over the two arms of the barber chair.  The old gentleman pumped the chair to raise me up a bit and went to work with his clippers.  Before long, I had the closely cropped hair typical of a boy 60 years ago.  I remember being mostly mesmerized by…

I recently had the pleasure of attending the reception and ceremony naming the Amphitheater at the Gouge Performing Arts Center after former Auburn Mayor, Bill Ham, and his wife, Carol.  It is a fitting tribute honoring a couple that has done so much for Auburn, not just during their 20-year tenure as Mayor and First…