Personal Archives - Page 13 of 29

Personal

Talbot Davis October 5, 2010 at 6:09 am 5

There are some things about which I have irrational fears.

These are the kinds of things that keep me up at night or give that sinking feeling in my stomach if I'm already awake.

So here they are:

5. That I'll drive up one Sunday and NO ONE will be at church. Of course.

4. Heights. When I was a kid, I went to the top of the Empire State Building . . . and loved it. Now if I'm in uptown Charlotte and I walk underneath a skyscraper and look up, I almost lose my lunch. Or breakfast.

3. Something in my eye. It's why I've never had Lasik surgery -- the thought of some sharp object near my eye is too much to bear, even under an anasthesia.

2. Rats. One good thing about owning two cats. The only rodents we see at our house these days are already half-eaten.

1. Dogs. A life-long fear. I was blessing houses with a Good Shepherd friend last week when a dog came rushing at us. What did I do? Got behind my friend as fast as I could so the dog would eat him first. Fortunately, the dog in this case really was more bark than bite.

Personal

Top Five Tuesday — Top Five Things About A Texas Weekend

Talbot Davis September 28, 2010 at 6:00 am 0

I don't ride horses, wear cowboy hats, hunt deer, or eat barbecue brisket.

But I am Texan.

It's hard to understand if you're not from there, but if you are you know what I mean: it's always home.

So I was excited to travel there this past weekend with my 18 year old son Riley in order to look at two prospective colleges, the University of Texas and SMU. We flew to Austin, stayed with family, visited the University of Texas, drove to Dallas, toured SMU and attended the SMU-TCU game, hurried back to Austin for the UT-UCLA game on Saturday before catching a flight home on Sunday.

I hit the Wall about midday on Saturday. But it was all worth it.

Here are the top five things about this Texas weekend:

5. Extended time with Riley. A dad would be a fool to take that for granted.

4. T-shirts for sale in Dallas that said: "Keep Dallas Normal." Here's the background on that one. For years, much of Austin has been a land that held on to the 60s as hard as it could. Sort of the Haight-Ashbury of the southwest. Its semi-official slogan -- seen on shirts and bumper stickers everywhere -- is "Keep Austin Weird." They've succeeded. Dallas' new shirts are its impassioned plea to stay far from the Austin vibe. They're succeeding as well.

3. Taking a picture of the house I grew up in. The block that seemed so long and imposing as a six year old now seems small and manageable.

2. UT-UCLA on Saturday. It's the kind of spectacle you have to experience to understand. 101,000 people in Darrell Royal stadium, 95,000 of whom wore burnt orange t-shirts. The bands were loud, the fans rabid, and the food forgettable.

And when it became apparent that UCLA was going to pull off the upset -- they did so in dominating fashion, 34-12 -- I went through some secret delight. Because the last time I'd been in that stadium was as a six year old boy, desperately longing for visiting SMU to knock off the favored Longhorns. They didn't (38-14, I think)and I was devastated. Revenge was delayed, indirect, but still sweet . . .

1. . . . which explains my top moment, the time at SMU. My dad was on the law faculty there for from 1947-1977 and much of our lives centered on the school. That campus is still gorgeous. The people are still enthusiastic. And the football team still lost -- though they played TCU tough, leading briefly in the second half. Seeing Riley wear one of the shirts with this logo on it

is one of those moments you have to be a Davis to appreciate.

So where will Riley end up at college? We don't know . . . but probably closer to our Carolinas home than either of the schools in Texas.

But every once in awhile you can in fact go home again.

Personal

Top Five Tuesday — Top Five ‘Always’ & ‘Never’

Talbot Davis September 21, 2010 at 5:00 am 2

"Always" and "never" are words you're never supposed to use in marital spats (or that you're always supposed to avoid), but I thought I'd give some of the leading "always" and "never" moments from my life.

1. I've never won at Bingo. And in doing nursing home ministry I've played it a fair amount. I long for that time when the victorious shout "Bingo!" will leave my lips.

2. I always shave twice a day. Morning and evening. It's like starting the day all over again.

3. I've never locked my keys in my car.

4. I always wear two pair of socks during the work week. White, thick Thor-Lo underneath to keep my feet warm and then dark blue on top to look somewhat respectable.

5. I've never smoked a single cigarette of any kind. Thanks Mom!

Personal

Top Five Tuesday — Top Five Things About Having A Son

Talbot Davis September 7, 2010 at 5:00 am 4

As I posted last week, my daughter celebrated her 21st birthday on September 2.

Well, yesterday my son Riley turned 18.

Twenty-one and 18 . . . two major milestones.

Anyway, as some of you know I was in the early days unsure about my ability to be a father to a son. I knew I would do well with a daughter, but for a variety of reasons I did not have confidence when we found out that we would be having a little boy.

Eighteen years in, I can't imagine it any other way. I worked on those fears and soon after Riley invaded our world, I realized that this relationship was just the kind of gift I needed.

While I haven't taught him to fish, hunt, or chew tobacco, nevertheless we've done well together. Here are the top five things about having a son:

1. Sports & Memory. When I was six or seven, I'd cry whenever the SMU Mustangs or Dallas Cowboys lost a football game. Riley did the same thing at the same age, only with the Tampa Bay Bucs and the University of Miami Hurricanes. What is it about little boys that they invest such emotion in heroes, athletes, and teams? I don't know the answer . . . but I do believe their focus and loyalty has something to teach us.

2. Music. What a progression. He fell asleep in my arms at a Jars of Clay concert when he was four. Then I took him to a Hanson show when he was five. Soon I introduced him to Led Zeppelin . . . and he liked it. We saw the Rolling Stones together when he was 13 -- the first event ever at what was then called Bobcats Arena. And now? I watch him and his band in some of the shows they play around the area.

3. Juvenile Humor. I think most middle-age men still find the things they laughed about in high school to be funny. We're just wound too tightly to admit it. Living and laughing with a high schooler loosens me up.

4. When They Need Us. Car wrecks. College advice. Questions of faith. Even teenage boys have times when the veneer drops and they really do need their parents.

5. My son's a beast. That's a good thing, by the way. It's what they say in the gym or on the football field about people who are really strong. And he is.

Personal

Twenty-One Years Ago Today . . .

Talbot Davis September 2, 2010 at 5:00 am 3

. . . I became a dad.

We lived in Georgetown, Kentucky, I was in my last year at Asbury Seminary, and our daughter Taylor Charlotte Davis was born at the Central Baptist Hospital in Lexington.

I still remember that she had a head of thick dark hair (like her mom, of course) as well as big, brown eyes.

Today? She still has thick dark hair and big brown eyes.

I also remember an feeling an overwhelming sense of responsibility -- Julie and I had, humanly speaking, created this life and now were in charge of it. Of her.

These days she's a senior in college and by all appearances has a level head and a firm faith. The nicest thing she ever said to us was, "I never had to find myself because I always knew who I was."

Personal

Talbot Davis

The Heart of the Matter

Subscribe

Latest Posts

Past Posts