Thanks for a Happy Birthday!

Thanks to my friends and faithful listeners who helped to make Thursday, Feb. 15th, a happy 56th birthday for me. I appreciated the many phone calls, gifts, cards, and other kindnesses that I received as I celebrated the anniversary of my birth in 1951, a very good year indeed! We had fun on "The Great Day in the Morning Show," answering 1951 trivia questions and reminiscing about the past. My how times have changed! As noted on my birthday show, a gallon of gasoline cost 27-cents in 1951...a new car, $1,800...a house, $16,000...bread, 16-cents a loaf...milk, 92-cents a gallon...postage stamp, 3-cents...average annual salary, $4,200...and minimum wage, 75-cents. I'll bet they complained about the high cost of living back then just like we do today!

I'd like to especially thank my friend Faye Hazelwood Staples of Ridgeway for presenting me with the most delicious chocolate, heart-shaped birthday cake. I love chocolate, Faye! The icing on my cake had to be at least 2-inches thick, just the way I like it. Faye is the "Queen of the Kitchen" and has truly mastered the art of baking (Ivan Thomas is pretty good too). Faye is a faithful listener and a dear friend. I also enjoy her music. Faye is a member of the accapella gospel group One Accord. Faye, we are all in "one accord" that this was one of the best birthday cakes ever, and it was mine! However, I'm glad to share the bounty of Faye's labor over a hot oven.

Thanks again for all of the thoughtful gestures afforded me on my birthday. Thanks most of all for your treasured friendship! I am now 56-years-old, more than double the age of my transplanted 25-year-old heart which has been ticking perfectly and serving me well since I was fortunate enough to receive it almost 10 years ago. I have truly been blessed by the Lord, and it is my desire to try to reflect His presence in my life by the way I live the rest of it. It is a daily struggle for me, but I keep trying. Your prayers are appreciated. You always have mine. I say a prayer that I'll be able to serve my radio listeners well every morning before I go on the air. Until next time, may God bless you with a "great day"!

The ancient one,
Richard