Ponderings by Dan Ponder

  I enjoyed having two college friends and their wives join us at Compass Lake for a few days this past weekend.  One was my college roommate, and the other has also been a great friend since we met as starry eyed Freshmen at Auburn. Our wives have all become fast friends as well and…

  For most of my life I have spent Memorial Day at Compass Lake.  As a toddler, I spent the time around my great-grandparents, grandparents and parents.   Now I spend time around my own children and grandchildren.   It is never the same. Tropical Storm Alberto decided to visit this year, leaving a little…

  Do you remember your fourth grade teacher?  Mine was Mrs. Gross.  She was a petite older lady, not any taller than the biggest of the fourth grade boys.   She had a quiet voice but I honestly do not remember her having problems with any of the kids.  Of course, that was a different…

  This is the time of proms, fancy dresses, and graduations. Facebook users get the opportunity to see not only the local graduations but the postings of pictures by their extended family and friends. The common denominator is the pride shown on the parents’ faces. I did not have any children graduate this year, since…

  I passed by the cemetery without really looking.  Something caught my eye and I turned my head back.  The two oak trees at the corner of our family’s plot in Cottonwood had been cut down.  Only the bare trunk of one tree, shorn of its limbs, remained. I turned around and went back to…

  Occasionally when I have a few hours to kill I will drive through Cottonwood, Alabama on my way back home from Dothan.   It is not much out of the way, allows for a bit of variety in the drive and gives me a chance to visit my boyhood home. I spent my entire…

This time last week, I was hiking around in the Sonoran desert with the wind so dry my skin was flaking within two days.  Water was nowhere to be found, unless it was in a lake on a golf course or in the ever present water bottle I had with me. This week, I am…

  The Sonoran Desert is one of the largest deserts in North America.  The border between the United States and Mexico runs right through the desert, which spans over 100,000 square miles.  Many people have an image of a barren, desolate area where it is difficult for man, beast, or nature to survive.  A closer…

You could hear them long before you could see them. A red cap finally became visible through the trees and brush, way down near the creek and deep in the ravine. Before long, the three adventure seekers were in full sight, steadily climbing over the rocks on the steep slope. Mary Lou and I kept…

The year was 1964.  Barry Goldwater was the Republican nominee for President.  The Beatles made their first appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show.  The Surgeon General declared for the first time that smoking may be hazardous to your health.  I was 10 years old and still loved playing Cowboys and Indians with my friends. The…