So yes, my dream girl is a beautiful woman named Meganne. A diva, queen of all she surveyed, sitting at her upstairs desk in a Texas Nissan dealership in 1986. As I watched her, she fielded passing car salesmen and customers like a shortstop tagging runners. No one made it to first base. In […]
Stephen Bransford’s Blog …
Riders on the Storm
For several hours the twelve men in the boat had been rowing against the wind. It had only been a breeze when they started, but now, just past 3 am, it had become a howling gale that threatened to capsize the boat and crush the hopes and dreams of these maritime desperados. Most of them […]
Award Winning Mom
When we attempt something bigger, higher, more noble than ourselves, there comes a time when it will require everything we’ve got. But what happens when we give it everything we’ve got ― and it’s not enough? We call Mom. Midnight Call It was after midnight. I was a single father raising my son who was […]
The Smell of New Leather
Baggage This is not about travel. It’s about the journey to the river. On this journey, everyone has baggage. Baggage is something from the past that we carry into the the present. It may be welcome or unwelcome. It may be pleasant or painful. Some goes back to childhood. Other baggage appears from recent events. […]
Oops, I Created a Superbug
Thresholds Some people do not know when they come to a threshold. They take the next step not knowing that it will change the rest of their lives. Thresholds are wonderful when you move through doorways of blessing. But they become markers of regret as you descend into places you’d rather not be. Locked In […]
A Story is a Painting not a Photograph
What makes you cry when you read a story? What makes you laugh? What makes you feel sorrow? Joy? Pride? Fear? Any feeling at all? It is the way words are placed on the page. Words communicate ideas, images, sensations, realities. These are called word pictures. We use them to create moments in a story. […]
The Bigger Story
No caterpillar ever became a butterfly by attending a seminar. In fact, every caterpillar who ever became a butterfly couldn’t help himself. Transformation is not a self help process. In nature, caterpillars hatch after butterflies lay eggs, and not one minute sooner. Caterpillars consume leaves until they arrive at the moment they can consume no […]
The Kitty in the Wagon
I am going to shine a light on self awareness, or self consciousness. Some would call it self centeredness. In some cases they’re right. However, my concern is that without a healthy self awareness you cannot feel joy. And I find so many joyless people. I wonder if they have missed something. That is why […]
I Know Something About You …
Right now you are more wonderful than you’ve ever dreamed. You are more beautiful, graceful, majestic, more valued than you know. Every day you accomplish eternal purposes that never enter your mind. How can I be sure? … because you are not so different from me. I know that inside you is a river. A […]